The Many Hidden Talents of my Husband

So a few days before I left for California, Lane made a German Chocolate Cake, you know, just cos. Our friend made one a couple months before for a party and Lane was so wowed he asked for the recipe. Now, we all know Lane is a baker, (by the way, I am going to post his cookie recipe soon – harass me if I don’t) but this was super fancy baking. He went to the store to buy special flour and special chocolate for his three layered cake with gooey coconut pecan icing; he even put it on a cake stand! What a super star baker!! Don’t worry, he took most of it to work to share.

Lane’s idea of planning weekend activities usually involves one simple move – asking me what we’re doing. He’s not much of a social coordinator. Or so I thought. The moment I left, this guy had plans practically every single night of the week. He had dinner with some friends, went to a re-opening of a bar, had dinner with other friends, went to a birthday party at a bar in Clarendon, played Frisbee and went out for ice cream, and some how managed to cook several really delicious dinners. I know, because the left overs were in the fridge!! Lane, honey, your secret is out. You are now appointed Grover Social Coordinator. I haven’t been doing such a snazzy job at that lately, anyhow.

But the very bestest, is that Lane’s cooking skills are getting fancier and fancier. He made me dinner over the weekend and it was out of this world. Lane marinated tri tip steaks, whipped up some succulent mashed potatoes with fresh herbs, sautéed fresh green beans with a mushroom reduction sauce, and roasted some sweet onions until they were all soft and juicy. He also served a spinach salad with fresh strawberries, pears, and goat cheese along with his home-made vinaigrette dressing! YUM!!! While I’m so proud of Lane, I’m not going to lie, I’m also proud of myself. Those cooking lessons are starting to pay off big time!!

Special Visit in CA

Gabriela was expecting to see her Grandma and Grandpa and Nana and Papa and some aunties and uncles and cousins last week, but she wasn't expecting Oakland Grovers to drive down just for an afternoon of sweet Gabriela-ness!

I didn't think the boys would be that excited about a little girl, but Beau especially loved his cousin. He held Gabriela and played peek-a-boo with her. When she was taking a nap, Beau asked his mom when Gabriela was going to wake up because he wanted to hold her again and she was just so cute and he loved her so much.


awww...

We are going to have such a nice visit when the three of us go back to CA to visit with all of Lane's family in Paradise, CA. We are especially excited to introduce Gabriela to her Uncle Noal and Auntie Cati, since they haven't gotten to meet yet. Only three more weeks!

Andrew

This is the look Gabriela gave her cousin Andrew the whole time we were there. I think she was trying to learn some tricks from him or something. Pajama party with Nana

Andrew was very sweet to Gabriela. One morning he said she was so "dorable" he could just gobble her up. Andrew was in charge of bringing fresh diapers for Gabriela. He took his job very seriously.

And then another morning, I walked out to the kitchen all dressed up for work and was greeted by this little three year old munchkin who proclaimed, "you look STYLISH!"

Too cute.

Nine Months (and two days) Old!

Gabriela spent her nine month birthday in California, which is why this post is 2 days late. I had a work training to do in San Jose, so I brought her with me. It was a short trip filled with long work days commuting to San Jose. I didn't really tell anyone we were going because I knew it was going to be crazy busy and hectic.

Anyway, we are pretty sure Gabriela gets cuter by the second. She easily sits up by herself, crawls on all fours, pulls herself to standing on every possible surface (mom, dad, tables, chairs, lamps, couches, dishwashers, you name it) and sometimes even does a little cruising - that is, walking alongside furniture. She sits very well for storytime and loves to turn the pages of her books.

Since learning how to stand up, it's not as easy to leave Gabriela in her crib to fall asleep. She says Dada and Mama and even Nana!! Gabriela is also a HUGE flirt. She loves boys. She can't keep her eyes off of boys and is always flashing them smiles! uh-oh.

Gabriela doesn't seem very interested in her food purees anymore. I think it's because she knows she can feed herself with her fingers. We give her lots of table food now. She can eat almost anything if it's cut into tiny pieces for her (by her mother who is paranoid she might choke). Even though she prefers finger foods, one of her absolute favorites is smoothies. Gabriela just can't get enough of them.

I think she might be teething again. Gabriela's had a runny nose for about a week and also is much more drooly than usual. I'll keep you posted.

Her nine month check up at the doctor is in a few weeks, so we don't know exactly how tall Gabriela is, or how much she weighs, but she is getting SOOO tall!

Sunshine Sunday

Sunday was absolutely gorgeous! We had to go enjoy the sunshine. It was so relaxing to just be outside with Gabriela. We played, took lots of pictures, blew bubbles and just enjoyed our little sweetpea.

Burger Madness

So we were tired after a day of walking all over DC. Gabriela and I decided to take a nap, and you cannot imagine how happy I was when I awoke to an apartment full of groceries that I didn't have to go shopping for, and two giddy boys with an amazing dinner plan up their sleeves.

It was pure heaven to enjoy a delicious dinner without having to work in the kitchen for it.

These boys were talking about their dinner idea all the way home on the metro. We dined on an assortment of MINI BURGERS. Four different varieties. YUM.

Presenting Burgers 1 & 2

Burger 1 - The roasted burger - oven roasted garlic, roasted jalapeños and cheddar cheese
Burger 2 - Maple bacon burger with gorgonzola cheese and grilled onions

Burger 3 - Avocado bacon burger with scrumptious Trader Joe's barbeque sauce

Burger 4 - Classic burger - spinach and tomato, drizzled with balsamic vinegar and melted cheddar cheese
Pair it with some roasted garlic and rosemary potato wedges, and you can't go wrong! These babies were out of this world!

They were so good, in fact, that the next morning, we continued the theme with some very similar BLT sandwiches. Lane whipped up a fabulous smoothie. We also had some fresh strawberries and coffee and left over potato wedges. YUM. And again, I didn’t cook a thing! - don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing I enjoy more than being in the kitchen, but this usually means non-gourmet dining.

Thanks for such a fabulous visit and for bringing your mad cooking skillz, David! We always have such a great time with you in DC!

Saturday with Uncle David

We spent most of Saturday out and about with David. Gabriela decided she needed to hold on tight on the metro too!

So we checked out the Japanese Street Festival, but it was entirely too crowded. WAY too many people and strollers and crowds, plus we were starving. So we stayed just long enough to wait in line to buy some food, chow down, and decided to head to the mall where we found even more people also enjoying the cherry blossoms.
As you can see with the next photo, Gabriela got very excited when she stood on Uncle David's shoulders!

We were so tired after spending all day walking around, but boy was it beautiful!

New Skillz for Gabriela

Gabriela was crying in her little crib on Saturday night so I went to check on her. I saw these little hands and face poking out.

She must have been very excited about this new ability, because she did it like 6 times in a row.

Gabriela had to show off for Uncle David

And now she's pulling herself up on the couch, chairs, her crib, her changing table, her mom and dad, and basically anything else she can get her hands on.

I'm So Crafty!

My mom tried to teach me how to crochet years ago and it was a complete disaster. I deemed myself non-craftworthy and haven't tried anything since. That is, until the beginning of March. Betsy volunteered to show us red crossers how to knit the first weekend in March. Having no faith in my ability to craft anything, I went along just for the social time. But, I can do it! I enjoy it! I'm so proud of myself!

I'm not done yet, but I've made a lot of progress. Adrienne even helped me start a new skein of yarn.

Can I take you home???

Gabriela was very curious about Natalie's suitcase... (check out the cool anklet Claire made her - it even has a little charm on it!)

Unfortunately (for the SB Grovers), Gabriela didn't quite fit in the suitcase. We are sad the Grovers had to go home yesterday, but we are so lucky they spent Spring Break with us. We had loads of fun, and Gabriela had so many kisses and snuggles and hugs and smiles and cuddles from her auntie and uncle and cousins, that she really, really, REALLY misses them all.

We are so excited it will only be a couple months before we see you again!

All Around the Town

Thanks to her Auntie & Uncle and cousins, Gabriela has been to both the Bureau of Engraving & Printing AND Ford Theatre before either her mommy or her daddy.

She also went to the Air & Space Museum and Mt. Vernon without us. What a big girl!