Hi friends! Some of you may remember that I was doing quick takes on Wednesdays during my pregnancy. I chose Wednesday because my due date was on a Wednesday, and I was mostly writing around the pregnancy. Now that I’m no longer with-child, I am moving the quick takes posts to Friday so I can easily do weekly highlights.

1. Aria has a dairy intolerance, which she appears to slowly be growing out of. We’ve found that Noah also has a dairy intolerance, and is allergic to corn and soy. I think he may also be reacting to gluten and eggs, though not as strongly as the other foods. Our chiropractor, who is very knowledgeable about food and its effect on the body, thinks it’s likely Noah is reacting to GMOs. Whatever it is, he doesn’t tolerate it if I eat corn, dairy, or soy. Friends, that eliminates almost everything packaged in any way, and essentially all restaurant food. I can eat certain things from Chipotle or Qdoba. So far, that’s all I’ve identified as edible from a restaurant. The positive side is that much of what he’s reacting to none of us should be eating, so he’s just forcing us to eat healthier – and I’m dropping the remaining baby weight much quicker than I otherwise would have. 😉
2. Noah is 8 weeks old this week. He’s growing quickly, like they do, and doing well. Aria still thinks he’s great, though he’s no longer a novelty so she doesn’t mess with him as much. She does occasionally do something loving, like share the remaining juice from her popsicle by turning the empty wrapper upside down directly over his ear. She also likes to hold him, and some days follows me around, randomly plopping down on the floor and patting her lap to clue me in to the fact I should give her the baby.
3. Speaking of Aria: Last week I had a new experience. It was pretty intense. And funny. Thankfully. Are you intrigued yet? So, Aria was in her crib, not napping, though she was supposed to be. Noah and I were in Andy’s and my bedroom, where we go to hide away until Aria falls asleep. While I was changing Noah’s diaper, he exploded all over the sheets. And up his back. It was extreme. I went into damage control mode, cleaning as quickly and efficiently as I could. He was not a fan of the clean-up process, and started hollering at me, loudly. In the meantime, I hear Aria’s sounds escalating, until she is flat-out screaming. Okay, I think, I’ll get him dressed as quickly as I can and go get her. Then I heard a strange sound from her room. Then some more strange sounds. It sounded like someone was in her room with her. I started to freak out a little. I got Noah’s diaper on as quickly as I could and placed him in his co-sleeper before hopping up and hurrying to Aria’s room. I came to the door cautiously, unsure what I would find. What I found was Aria. Standing at the door to her bedroom, with one sandal on (she had on zero sandals when I put her to bed), grinning at me. What?? I was not wrong someone was moving around in her room. Thankfully it was just her. And thankfully she hadn’t injured herself when she climbed out of her crib, onto her dresser, grabbed her sandals, and slid down to the floor. That night we lowered her mattress the rest of the way.
4. Andy and Jim have been working hard on our back deck, and on Monday (Labor Day) they finished laying the decking and hooked up our grill. We’ve been grill-less all summer, so it was exciting to be able to grill again! The deck is large, and beautiful. Jim and I have a beautiful railing planned, and we hope to put a little slide beside the steps so kiddos can slide off the deck. Monday evening some of our family came over and we ate yummy grilled food on the deck. It was lovely. We’re spending as much time as possible out there right now. I want to get maximum enjoyment out of it before the weather turns.
5. This week I am officially back to work. My hours are shorter now, to accommodate my new role as a mom of two. I feel good about the arrangement we’ve made. Right now the kids and I are still trying to get back to our routine. Once we’ve got that down, it should be fairly smooth sailing. (Although, as I type that I am reminded that in the first year with a kiddo there is really no such thing as a “routine”, because they change too fast.) I’m ever-grateful for my employer, and in particular for my boss and co-workers in my department, who are supportive of my unique work arrangement.
6. Last night The Phil Chorus sang the National Anthem at a playoff game for the local minor league baseball team. Andy, my sister, and I took the kiddos. Aria made it through the game admirably, seeming to enjoy the experience. She was given a game ball by a first base coach, and a gentleman in the crowd caught one of the soft balls they toss to the spectators and gave that to her, as well. Her favorite part, by far, was the mascot, Johnny. He came near us to talk to some other kids, and when she saw him she became apprehensive and wanted held. Seconds later she’d decided his presence was positive, and started pointing at him and jabbering. He came over and sat in the empty seat directly in front of us. At that point I thought she would start to cry and cling to me. Instead, when he waved to her, she waved back, and when he held out his hand for a high five, she gave it to him. When he moved on she watched him go, and kept track of him for several minutes, pointing and jabbering, clearly trying to convince someone to please take her to him. Toward the end of the game I saw him nearby, and said “Aria, there’s Johnny”. She immediately became animated and starting trying to scramble over the top of me to get to him. At the end of the game he stood near home base and danced to a song. She stood up on my lap and watched him with utter delight, often looking around expectantly at everyone around her to make sure they were all enjoying this wonderful experience. During the post-game fireworks she was far more interested in trying to keep track of where Johnny was than she was the light display. She did well with the fireworks, though, until the finale, when it overwhelmed her and she became frightened and sobbed. Though, when everyone else burst into applause she instantly stopped crying and clapped along. My sister and I lost it. It was hilarious. She’s such an agreeable child. Noah laid in his dad’s arms and watched every second of the fireworks with interest. I love watching the intellect behind a baby’s eyes.
7. I’m pretty excited about a couple of offerings from two of my favorite artists. Ann Voskamp secretly released a new book. Last week she quietly started mentioning the book, and lo and behold! It’s already on back order on Amazon. I’ve got mine ordered. I can’t wait to read it come December.

Andrew Belle’s new album, Black Bear, was released at the end of August. I love his music. You can sample the album here.

So. What’s new with you? Got any dairy-less, soy-less, corn-less, gluten-less recipes for me (please!)? Are there any new albums or books you’re excited about?