Moving

I'm not sure what to call this--crawling or limping--but Caleb is definitely moving. He's been thinking about it for a week or two now. His muscles cooperated with his brain this past Thursday.

Overdue Update

I haven't posted in a long while, mostly due to the fact that we're getting less sleep and more play/cry time around here. But before I have a mutiny on my hands, I'd better update everyone.

What's new?

• Caleb started eating solids. Thanksgiving week he got a full meal including sweet potato, green beans, and pumpkin. Ok, so he forgot the turkey. Maybe we'll get to turkey by Christmas.


• We were able to see family for Thanksgiving. My parents and grandmother came to Cedar Rapids on Thursday and managed to eat our (dry) turkey, and we traveled to Ottumwa to see all of Luke's family on Saturday and scarfed down the (delicious) turkey.
  

  Oh, and I suppose the grandparents had their chance to hold Caleb, too.
  

  
• Caleb's third tooth came in. And don't worry, Grandma, he's not addicted to his pacifier. This is how I found him after one nap this week:



• Caleb started sitting up and playing on his own. And now he's thinking really hard about moving. I'm enjoying the last few weeks before we really need to babyproof the hazardous parts of our house.


• Caleb had his six month check up, and we discovered just how skinny he is. Evidently he needs to be eating that turkey--maybe the whole thing. With the way he's been eating lately, I wouldn't put it past him.


• We hosted a Chili Cook-Off at our house with our ABF (Adult Bible Fellowship) from church and managed to plug in 12 or 13 slow cookers in our kitchen without blowing any fuses. Caleb proved his extraverted tendencies by staying up past ten because of all the excitement.


• Luke, being his diligent self, has been putting in some long hours at work as they approach(or miss) some deadlines. Thanks, Luke, for being such a great husband and father even in the midst of busy weeks at work.



• We managed to put up Christmas lights before the first snowstorm. Yay!
  
• Caleb has started putting syllables together. See the following video.

Nature v. Nurture

Have I mentioned that Caleb's future is planned out for him?

He'll be an avid reader,

an internationally renowned pianist,

and I suppose he'll enjoy an occasional video game.

Pad Thai

I came back from Thailand with a love for Thai food, of which one common dish is Pad Thai. Pad Thai simply means Thai noodles. As such, there are probably hundreds (if not thousands) of ways to cook this dish. You can find Pad Thai anywhere from fancy restaurants to street vendors. My favorite version was one I purchased from a street vendor. After browsing many recipes, I came up with a recipe that I think remains true to the original spirit of Pad Thai, that is, making good food from readily available ingredients. It doesn't include a few of the ingredients some people say are required for "true" Pad Thai, but those ingredients are not easy to find around here. I'm no expert on Thai food--I just like to eat it, so this is what I came up with.

Speaking of hard to find ingredients, if anyone wants to give us an awesome Christmas gift, our Asian food store stopped selling our favorite Thai dipping sauce and we haven't found anything close to it. If you're in a city with a larger Asian food market, would you look for Mae Pranom Dipping Sauce? We'll reimburse you for it!

Pad Thai

Ingredients:
8 oz. rice noodles (medium width)
1 T. oil
Cilantro (freshly chopped is best, but dried will do
1/2 lb. chicken breast, diced
2-3 green onions, diced
2 eggs

Sauce:
2 T. fish sauce
1 T. oyster sauce
1 1/2 T. rice vinegar
1 1/2 T. brown sugar
1/4 tsp. cayenne

Optional garnishes:
Lime juice
Sugar
Chopped peanuts
Crushed red pepper
Fresh bean sprouts

Directions:
1. Cook the rice noodles. Because I'm usually trying to rush things, I boil a pot of water, remove the pot from the heat, and then soak the rice noodles in the hot water for about 10 minutes or until the noodles are bite-able. Drain. Alternately, I think you can use really hot tap water and soak the noodles for a longer period of time. Do not try to boil the noodles like pasta. You'll have a sticky mess, not that I would know.
2. Mix the sauce ingredients (fish sauce, oyster sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar, and cayenne) in a small bowl.
3. Heat 1 T. oil in wok or skillet. Cook diced chicken with cilantro over high heat until chicken is cooked through. Add green onions. Break 2 eggs into center of wok and stir fry until egg is cooked through.
4. Add more oil to the wok if necessary. Add cooked rice noodles and sauce to the wok and stir fry.
5. Serve and garnish with a splash of lime juice, a sprinkle of sugar, some chopped peanuts, crushed red pepper, and bean sprouts to taste.

If you want to eat this in true Thai style, use a fork to push the noodles onto a soup spoon and spoon into your mouth. If only DQ made 5-cent baby ice cream cones here like they did in Bangkok, then it'd be a complete meal.

I love you when...

Caleb,
I love you when...
...you give me your cheesy grin right as I put you to bed.
...I take you for walks and your socks become your mittens.
...you grab your toes and hold on for dear life.
...you blow so many bubbles that you end up with a goatee.
...you're "flying" and your goatee drips...on me.
...I feel your soft hands in the early morning.
...people comment on how symmetrical your head is.
...you "sing" while I play the piano.
...I accidentally cut your finger instead of your fingernail.
...you show curiosity about new faces.
...you cry in the middle of the night.
...you sleep.
...you try to eat your entire hand, wrist included.

Sometimes my love makes me laugh, sometimes cry, but I'll keep working on demonstrating that love in these ways. And when I fail, please remember that this love is perfect and never ending.

Pictures

Did I mention that Caleb's teething?

And that he's discovered his toes?

Or that he decided he needed glasses?

Quintessential ISU

I have some friends who are ISU grad students but have never been on the ISU campus. They've decided to visit the campus this weekend, drawn in part by their whooping Aggie loyalty. They're wondering what they should see and do on campus. I've reminisced about one of my favorite Ames restaurants. Some of the other quintessential activities for Iowa Staters include:

• Attending VEISHA and watching the Barker House Lawn Chair Brigade.
• Kissing under the Campanile, preferably with your life-long love. (You can also read about it here.)
• Walking around Lake LaVerne, also with your life-long love. (On certain days, this should also be done holding your breath so you don't inhale toxic fumes.)
• Eating Great Plains Pizza.
• Eating Hickory Park BBQ.
• For the superstitious: Walking around the Zodiac in the Memorial Union, especially before a final exam.

So Iowa Staters, what other activities are a necessary part of being a Cyclone?