Bathtime for Daddycar

We've been regular customers at the new Falls Church carwash to get rid of all the winter salt and sand. But now that spring is here, I was happy to take advantage of the free child labor in the cul-de-sac, even if I might trade off something in the quality control department. Jake took to his duties with his normal level of seriousness, focusing his efforts on the rear quarter panel of the car. When he was finally satisfied with that area, he moved on to scrubbing the driveway. And then Danny's back. Check out some more pictures.

Caron's back

I know not all tripdub readers are Wizards fans, and that most basketball fans are wrapped up in their college hoops brackets, but did anyone see the Washington-Philly game tonight? Caron Butler was back from a knee injury and had a pretty good night (21 pts, 6 rebs, 4 assists) -- AND he scored a three from SEVENTY-NINE feet! He threw up a shot at the third quarter buzzer from the Philly free throw line and hit nothing but net. I think Ali and I both said "Holy Moly" at the same time. That makes him 100% (1 of 1) from his opponent's free throw line and I think that shot will really help us in the playoffs. Check it out here. Go Wizards!

Chez Ali

We don't get out to eat as much as we used to, but we still love reading restaurant reviews and keeping tabs on what our favorite chefs are up to. If Tom Sietsema dined at our house tonight he would have had to award three stars to the meal Ali prepared. Jake and I came in from our evening trampoline jumping activites and were treated to Shrimp and Orzo with Feta, a perfect complement to a beautiful spring day. Warm rosemary focaccia was the accompaniment. The ambiance was just right, and the service was impeccable. I plan to dine at this establishment often.

Ode to Jake

Jake at 21 months last Sunday

Jake seems to be in a mental growth spurt these days. I think it's partly that his communication skills are getting much better, and partly having Sadie around to remind us how much he's grown.

He's putting little sentences together, telling us what he wants and what he doesn't want. I'm sure it has to be satisfying for him too-- to finally be able to convey his needs to us with some accuracy.

And with Sadie here, it really hits me how much he's grown in less than two years. I mean, after two years of High School I picked up some new skills but Typing and Geometry are pretty minor compared to walking and talking. It's pretty amazing to see the world get bigger through his eyes. Probably the most fun for Ali and me is to see his personality develop. Wherever you stand on the nature vs. nurture argument, I think Jake's personality was showing all the way back to when he was Sadie's age.

He's always had a little independent streak, determined to accomplish tasks on his own and usually with some degree of seriousness. In new environments, he's always preferred to carefully observe for a few minutes, before engaging. He's sensitive to others, and that's really come out recently with Sadie. He's no angel, occasionally bonking Sadie on the head, but mostly he's concerned if she's crying, and he's always bringing things to her that he thinks she might need -- like trains and trucks and books. And he's always had a sense of humor. He seems to enjoy laughing and making others laugh, and as far as I'm concerned, that's probably life's most important lesson: you gotta laugh.

Here's a picture of Jake from about two months ago when he was clowning around with us. He had just gotten out of the bath and was being silly and making faces at us and I was lucky enough to catch one on camera. Warning, this image is PG-13. :)

New Sadie pics

I got a few good shots of Sadie yesterday afternoon. Click here or the link over to the right in the Photo section to see more. You can see her right eye is pretty much back to normal and we're all glad to see that.

Bye Bye Deni

We dropped Ali's sister, Deni, off at the airport today and Jake started to cry a little. He doesn't usually get upset with goodbyes, and rarely even notices us leave when we drop him off at daycare. Deni had stayed with us for a week, helping us get settled with Sadie and making sure we did not just eat Chinese takeout every night. We were all sad to see Deni go, but was Jake just expressing a worry that we're all feeling? Will we now wear pajamas all day and eat leftover Moo Goo Gai Pan for breakfast? I told Jake that we'll be fine and he looked at me with those eyes that are wiser than his age and said "Gobar." That kid cannot get enough granola bars. Anyway, THANK YOU Deni for all your help this week!! I know you're enjoying your quiet house tonight.