Sock Hop

Last night we went to a Sock Hop. My mom made Maiby a poodle skirt, the headband, and some fancy socks. Maiby won two prizes: the Best Socks in the Baby category (they had bows and little binkies) and also Best Dressed Baby Girl. Then during the dancing portion there was a Daddy-Daughter song and she danced with Uncle Wade because her dad was not there and he didn't have a daughter.

Maiby has learned to 'Give 5' after only a week of teaching her.

Video Finally Posted

James, I finally got it to work, as long as it posts. I will just do this one and then make a newer post with another video if it will work. But here are pictures from Julia's birthday party. For anyone who is not James, our niece had her 1st birthday last week and Maiby and I went to Lewiston for the party. I would have probably stayed home if I had known that I would pick up the flu and then give it to my mom. But we are all better now!!

This is Julia Grossman, now one.
Her big brother James is getting so big.
And her new brother Jackson was born on the 11th of June - he looks like a tiny old man and loves to keep his elbows and knees bent. When I was holding him he started crying and looked like it was as loud as he could but I could barely hear him. Such a cutie!


Maiby and Julia are only 2 1/2 months apart, but are now almost exactly the same size. Maiby is starting to pass her up in height, but she doesn't walk yet so it's hard to tell.

And here's how Maiby is almost crawling...she doesn't realize how fast she would go if she would put her knees under her.

A Bunch of Stuff for Daddy

Well I have some time while Maiby is sleeping in my brother's room to put some stuff up that I have been trying to remember to bring to my mom's house so I can include it here for. Most of it is for James, since he is missing a lot of things that Maiby is doing, but of course everyone is free to enjoy her antics.

Grandma Cox made Maiby a dress, but she didn't know that she was so tall, so it is really a shirt. But so cute!!

At my mom's house there is no high chair, but she is very resourceful. Maiby loves being up where things are happening, instead of being stuck near the floor when she's in the walker.

The Have and Have-Nots

I'm sure you all have experienced a day when you want to add something but are unable to decide what blog-worthy thing has happened since you last wrote? Well that's been me the past few weeks. But I was checking out Erin & Stan's blog and they had a list that I enjoyed looking at and discovering more about them, so I decided to copy it and follow their lead (I have done the things in bold).

1. Touched an iceberg
2. Slept under the stars
3. Been a part of a hockey fight
4. Changed a baby's diaper
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Swam with wild dolphins
8. Climbed a mountain, but not all the way to the top
9. Held a tarantula
10. Said "I love you" and meant it
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Stayed up all night long and watched the sun rise
15. Seen the Northern Lights
16. Gone to a huge sports game
17. Walked the stairs to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
19. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
20. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Bet on a winning horse
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Taken an ice cold bath
28. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar
29. Seen a total eclipse (lunar)
30. Ridden a roller coaster
31. Hit a home run
32. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
33. Adopted an accent for fun
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Felt very happy about your life, even for just a moment
36. Loved your job 90% of the time
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Watched wild whales
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Gone on a midnight walk on the beach
41. Gone sky diving
42. Visited Ireland
43. Ever bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited India
45. Bench-pressed your own weight
46. Milked a cow
47. Alphabetized your personal files
48. Ever worn a superhero costume
49. Sung karaoke
50. Lounged around in bed all day
51. Gone scuba diving
52. Kissed in the rain, and snow!
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Done something you should regret, but don't
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Been in a movie(how about a TV show?)
60. Gone without food for 3 days
61. Made cookies from scratch
62. Won first prize in a costume contest
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Been in a combat zone
65. Spoken more than one language fluently
66. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone
67. Bounced a check
68. Read - and understood - your credit report
69. Recently bought and played with a favorite childhood toy
70. Found out something significant that your ancestors did
71. Called or written your Congress person
72. Picked up and moved to another city
73. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
74. Helped an animal give birth
75. Been fired or laid off from a job
76. Won money
77. Broken a bone
78. Ridden a motorcycle but I wasn't the driver
79. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of greater than 100 mph
80. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
81. Slept through an entire flight: takeoff, flight, and landing
82. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
83. Eaten sushi
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read The Bible cover to cover
86. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about
87. Gotten someone fired for their actions
88. Gone back to school
89. Changed your name
90. Caught a fly in the air with your bare hands
91. Eaten fried green tomatoes
92. Read The Iliad
93. Taught yourself an art from scratch
94. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
95. Apologized to someone years after inflicting the hurt
96. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
97. Been elected to public office
98. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream
99. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
100. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
101. Had a booth at a street fair
102. Dyed your hair
103. Been a DJ
104. Rocked a baby to sleep
105. Ever dropped a cat from a high place to see if it really lands on all four
106. Raked your carpet
107. Brought out the best in people
108. Brought out the worst in people
109. Worn a mood ring
110. Ridden a horse
111. Carved an animal from a piece of wood or bar of soap
112. Cooked a dish where four people asked for the recipe
113. Buried a child
114. Gone to a Broadway play
115. Been inside the pyramids
116. Shot a basketball into a basket
117. Danced at a disco
118. Played in a band
119. Shot a bird
120. Gone to an arboretum
121. Tutored someone
122. Ridden a train
123. Brought an old fad back into style
124. Eaten caviar
125. Let a salesman talk you into something you didn’t need
126. Ridden a giraffe or elephant
127. Published a book
128. Pieced a quilt
129. Lived in an historic place
130. Acted in a play or performed on a stage
131. Asked for a raise
132. Made a hole-in-one Only in mini-golf
133. Gone deep sea fishing
134. Gone roller skating
135. Run a marathon
136. Learned to surf
137. Invented something
138. Flown first class
139. Spent the night in a 5-star luxury suite
140. Flown in a helicopter
141. Visited Africa
142. Sang a solo
143. Gone spelunking
144. Learned how to take a compliment
145. Written a love-story
146. Seen Michelangelo’s David
147. Had your portrait painted
148. Written a fan letter
149. Spent the night in something haunted
150. Owned a St. Bernard or Great Dane
151. Ran away
152. Learned to juggle
153. Been a boss
154. Sat on a jury
155. Lied about your weight
156. Gone on a diet
157. Found an arrowhead or a gold nugget
158. Written a poem
159. Carried your lunch in a lunchbox
160. Gotten food poisoning
161. Gone on a service, humanitarian or religious mission
162. Hiked the Grand Canyon
163. Sat on a park bench and fed the ducks
164. Gone to the opera
165. Gotten a letter from someone famous
166. Worn knickers
167. Ridden in a limousine
168. Attended the Olympics
169. Can hula or waltz
170. Read a half dozen Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys books
171. Been stuck in an elevator
172. Had a revelatory dream
173. Thought you might crash in an airplane
174. Had a song dedicated to you on the radio or at a concert
175. Saved someone’s life
176. Eaten raw whale
177. Know how to tat, smock or do needlepoint
178. Laughed till your side hurt
179. Straddled the equator
180. Taken a photograph of something other than people that is worth framing
181. Gone to a Shakespeare Festival
182. Sent a message in a bottle
183. Spent the night in a hostel
184. Been a cashier
185. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
186. Joined a union
187. Donated blood or plasma
188. Built a campfire
189. Kept a blog
190. Had hives
191. Worn custom made shoes or boots
192. Made a PowerPoint presentation
193. Taken a Hunter’s Safety Course
194. Served at a soup kitchen
195. Conquered the Rubik’s cube
196. Know CPR, but need a refresher course
197. Ridden in or owned a convertible
198. Found a long lost friend
199. Helped solve a crime
200. Responded to a NJP newsletter

Screaming

Scream scream scream. That's the new sound I get all day. And I thought you might "enjoy" hearing it. If this phase doesn't stop soon, I don't know what I will do.

Cake Decorating

When I was younger I loved helping my mom decorate cakes - she used to work at a bakery so she knew what she was doing. When I was in college, my mom bought me a decorating kit and tried to buy a Wilton class through Michaels, but it didn't work out. So I have been taking them the past few months. I have finished course 1 and 2, but 3 and the fondant course will have to wait until at least July because of the course schedule. But I wanted to share the cakes that I made for my classes.

The first three here are from course 1. I learned how to make buttercream icing, clown cupcakes, using several tips to make leaves and flowers, and a rose.

The next ones are from course two, and this time we learned to make royal icing (for the flowers) and color flow (for the bird and butterfly - it's how you can make anything on top of a cake from a picture - like spongebob or dora or something from a coloring book). And I learned a new rose that I don't like as much and a bunch of flowers out of royal icing, and also the basketweave technique. I hadn't expected to enjoy that, but I really had fun with it.

And here are some cupcakes I made for my friends' baby shower - they are rattles (I can't remember what my mom thought they were, but she was way off...)