milestones

green peppercorn on the left, pink on the right

The mustard was whipped into submission, and now must relax in the fridge for a week before consumption. I will celebrate with a Bouchon roasted chicken (page X) for dipping. In better lighting, the paler mustard is full of electric pink flecks from the peppercorn.

I put Liam down and went to change Dash, and when I looked over I found him pleased as punch propped up on his elbows. Congratulations lad for rolling over!

Dash worked on his smiling skills today. We went to get Charlie some more gatorade and graham crackers, so that he can recover from his crazy illness. The doctor thoughtfully provided hardcore antibiotics and cough syrup. We make a good team.

Brotherly love

smiley

Smile? Why, yes we can!

spice

Dash enjoyed his first dinner party on Saturday night. An asian-themed event with friends, Charlie made his delicious banh mi sandwiches. I love a man who makes his own baguettes.

Another day, another refrigerator full of bottles. Yes, this will only last a day.

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How to impress people when you have very little cohesive time to do anything: make your own mustard! If you think it makes you look a little like Martha Stewart, it's because it is actually one of her recipes. I've made all but the pink peppercorn mustard types from this set of recipes. The red wine has been the least favorite, but I really think it's because I used a so-so bottle of red wine vinegar. Like many foods, the quality of your end result is only as good as the ingredients. I order all of my mustard seeds and peppercorns from Penzey's and do make one substitution: whenever the recipe calls for black mustard seeds, I substitute brown. At first this was because I misread the recipe, but the end result was so tasty I'm going to keep going with the error.

I started green and pink peppercorn today

The english mustard is spicy and delicious. The green peppercorn is pretty much divine. We regularly roast simple chickens and just eat them with this mustard on the side. This week I'm making the pink peppercorn for the first time and can't wait to try it.

Liam supervised

Making mustard is super easy, and I mean that. You just need a few large-ish mason jars. You add some of the ingredients, sit for 48 hours, add the rest, and beat the tar out of it in your food processor. Total time is maybe 10 minutes the first day, 20 the next because it can take a while to get it good and creamy. Then separate into tiny jars, give some away, and eat the rest of it.

Four Months

dance!

Four months old! The boys had their poke-and-prod on wednesday. Just this week they have started to notice one another. Actually, I think it's the clothes. I keep seeing Liam staring intently at Dash's bottom, and then realize that he's probably appreciating the contrast of the superb red and white robots on his pajamas. And Dash stares dreamily at Liam's.....striped shirt. But it's a start! They are smiley, wiggly, and utterly charming.

we are much bigger now

and can lay on our bellies!

Dash weighs 13 pounds 13 oz, and has been given the go-ahead to stop eating his premature baby formula and move on to the regular stuff. While a little on the small side weight wise, he is an impressive 25 inches long. He also would like to point out that he has a bigger head than his brother. Still a bit of a spitter, he's started a new regimen of medicine to reduce his stomach acid. Being fruit punch flavored, it's going over well. It is amusing to watch him balk at having the pill put in his mouth, but once it starts dissolving the lip smacking begins. Sweet tooth, you have been formed.

I look tough, because no matter how short my nails are I manage to scratch myself

While the more delicate of the boys physically, Dash makes up for it in his social conversations. We can go back and forth with vowel sounds and the occasional "abooooooo" for a good long time. I can still remember when he refused to look at me....now we hang out and he gets his silly lopsided grin and his eyes brighten and out come the aaaaaaahs and boooos.
He's had his share of doctors lately, after making through a particularly grueling round of illness and now some funny spots. He has definitely inherited my difficult veins, but continues to try to smile through all of the needle pokes. Hopefully he'll have a clean bill of health soon.

looking dapper in a wee hospital gown

Liam weighs 15 pounds. It's interesting to have the immediate contrast of brothers, because though he weighs just over a pound more than his brother he has a completely different density. If you gave both boys to a carnival huckster who guessed weights for a living, I bet he'd guess that Liam weighed at least three pounds more than Dash. There's something about him. Something in how his center of gravity is perhaps, with lighter limbs and a heavier center. It's quite fascinating. While only a half inch shorter than Dash, Liam has a cute round belly where Dash's is slim and flat.

captured: Liam's crazy forehead wrinkles

Liam definitely shines in the coordination and strength department. When lying on his stomach, he can push his whole torso up and looks around with curiosity. There's a lot to see out there, and Liam doesn't want to miss anything. He also loves laying on his back on the floor and looking up at a mirror or a toy. Hand to mouth motions are also much more developed. He'll try to push the bottle further into his mouth, or pull your hand up so he can chew on your fingers. Throw in a big gummy smile and it's hard to resist.

ha!

Liam, sleeping in the sunshine, absolves you

Red

Quite possibly the best $15 I have ever spent: a camping chair that lets you sit on the floor and have back support. I spend most of my days on the floor, covered in one or more babies.

Januweary

Why yes, we have persisted into the new year past Jan 1. After being walloped by post-holiday exhaustion, relentless illness, a bout of infant hospitalization, freak snowstorm, car getting whacked at a stoplight, and just about whatever else you can think of, things are starting to get back to normal.

I will leave you with images, since our power is flickering and I don't know how much longer this is going to last:

the Bodkin kinder wearing their holiday dresses, crafted by mom and I during an August visit. They worked out perfectly! Calliope's cape was part of another present from Gabriel.

Dash hanging out in a pot. Hey, we wanted to see if he would fit!

Dash modeling one of the girl's Venetian masks

Dash looking remarkably like young Marlon Brando. Well, maybe a raver Brando with a pacifier.

Liam sitting in his green throne. Trust me, he is thrilled. Maybe it's the missing sock.

Bathtime Liam thinks oh my god it's Full Of Stars

The aforementioned snowstorm. Luckily everyone flew out right before it happened.

new year

On the 25th day of christmas, I got my awesome family.


And my family got smaller by one. Pop-pop, I'll remember our walks to Turkey Thicket and your huge polka and german music collection that I inherited. And mostly this picture which always makes me smile.