Garden Updates

Some pictures I took a couple of days ago. Nothing really fancy, but very lovely. And the smell in the yard is so great.

Fun Sunday Afternoon At Boston Common

Last Sunday, we went to Boston Common for a play date with our friend's baby. I have been there so many times, never notice the frog pond! Guess I always stayed in the garden part, avoiding crowds. Anyway, little caterpillar and her little friend had such a great time, they both forgot to nap!

Both babies loved playing on the blankets, even the cutie on the neighbor blanket came over to join the party.

And why kids always want other's toys, or food? We gave them their cups, but they showed more interested in the other one. So, they ended up drinking water from each other's cup instead. Very cute! But Ewwww!

The Tadpole Playground nearby was great, even though there is nothing little caterpillar and her little friend could really play with, they still had a great time. The frogs were too cute to pass by, we just have to take pictures with them.

We had too much fun at the pool and the playground, almost miss the merry-go round. We made it there 10 minutes before closing, so little caterpillar went for her first ride. She didn't know what to do and was so affraid at first, but after a couple of spin, she was holding on like a pro. She liked it a lot, at the end, she even refused to come down. I can see us playing there again very soon.

Weekend Brunch

Normally we try to catch up on sleep during weekend, so we always end up having brunch, instead of breakfast. Stubborn really prefer traditional Chinese breakfast whenever we have time. So, my big stacked steamer always work hard during weekends.

These are what we had last Sat, steamed vegeterian buns with dried mushroom and Chinese greens, Shanghai style sticky rice shumai, rice soup from leftover steamed white rice, and Beijing style fermented tofu. YUMMMMMM!

ByeBye, Lily

Today is our nanny Lily's last day! We are so sad that she is leaving! She has been taking care of little caterpillar since she was 3 month old, and little caterpillar loves her dearly. She always put on the biggest smile when she sees lily in the morning. The new nanny starts on Monday, one of us will stay home for the first week to help little caterpillar during this transition time. I am sure it will be quite hard on little caterpillar, since she is old enough now to remember people. Lily also kept our home so clean, better than I did! I just hope the next nanny will be at least 80% like her. Well, lily is going back to school in NY, which is a very brave thing to do and big change for sure. We are happy for her! And wish her a bright future and safe trip!

Another Great Thing

Take a look at the picture above, you will understand why I hated that situation. Stubborn and I use different shampoo and conditioner. And even though little caterpillar has her own bathroom, we have been giving her bath in our bathtub, so there are a couple of more bottles for her, and her bathtub, little rubber duck, knee pad thing, spout cover, stool for us to sit while bath her. Now you can see where my frustration came from, and what a chaos it was in our master bathroom. Chaos no more! At least I fixed a part of the problem. Until we move little caterpillar to her own bathroom, I just have to get used to the rest.

Welcome my new helper, the shampoo dispenser! Take a look at this handsome little thing. So shiny, so clean, so organized! I am so in love with it!

I have been searching around for a 3 compartment dispenser for a while, but most of them are two compartment ones, and the only perfect one I found online was just too expensive. Then on our last trip to NH, we made an unplanned stop at local Walmart, and there it was! I couldn't believe my luck, quickly grabbed one, and couldn't wait to get back home to try it.

The installation is just so easy. Just put the double sided foam tapes on, squeeze all the silicon glue on, and stick it to the clean shower wall. You want the glue to come out through those little holes, just like this.

Now here is how our bathtub looks like after removing 3 giant bottles! See, only two bottles left in that corner, and nothing else in the tub! And once I finish those two, they won't come back, so there will be no bottle there later!

Here is a close up shot of how I organized little caterpillar's stuffs. Now, all her stuffs in that big plastic box, so they all can drain, yet not touching the bathroom floor. I could leave them in the tub to drain, but we use this automatic shower cleaner every time after shower, I don't want those chemical get on little caterpillar's stuffs, since it will go right into her mouth. I have to take them out of the tub to protect her. It's not a perfect solution, but it's working, so we are keeping it.

Hot Baby

literally! Little caterpillar has been having fever since yesterday, up to 102.4F! Poor thing is not eating well and threw up once. Even in such condition, she is such an active baby, always onto something. Get well soon, my darling.

DIY Crib Rail Guard

Every since little caterpillar could pull herself up standing in the crib, she has been biting the crib railing! I just worry that with her razor sharp little teeth, she might scretch some paint off and eat it. So, I have to protect her, not the crib. Searched on the Internet for a perfect solution, but again just like the table bumper thing, none of them provide both the function and design element. So, I just have to make them myself. I bought lots of sample fabric pieces before Fabric Place (I loved that place) closed. Found some very colorful polka dot ones, but they were quite small, about 12" by 24" each, barely enough to make one guard. I really prefer the white one, but don't want to go buy more fabric when I have a big shelf full of them in the basement. At first, I made only one, you guessed it, the white one, to protect the front rail that little caterpillar was chewing on. Then she moved on to the other rails, so I had to cover all of them. The colors look a little bit busy, but then when I put the train crib organizer (gift from my sister, Thanks!) back on, plus the wall art, the Pottery Barn letter and number mobile (gift from my neighbor), and all the cute stuffed animals and dolls on the shelves, it looks ok. Just like what it supposed to be, a fun playful baby room!

I really love this crib organizer. It's so colorful, and all the wheels rattles. Little caterpillar has been playing with it even before she could sit. She would just laying there, grab one of the wheel or that yellow bar thing, shaking and chewing and entertain herself for a long time. As soon as she could sit up, she figured out that mommy hides lots of her favorite birdies in those pockets. So, even though I put her toys in there all the time, they always end up all over the crib, sometimes even on the floor. I am getting used to the idea of stepping back and let her explore and have fun, but I just have to keep the crib clutter free once she doze off, for her safety and my sanity. And later on, I can teach her to put her toys back in the pockets, clothes in the closet or hamper, books back on the bookshelf, etc. Well, I am daydreaming again. The only thing she loves to do is taking her animal friends out and play with (or chew on) them. See, she already got her next victim? Ahh, I meant little purple bear.

First Slide

or, should I say, first climb up the slide! Little caterpillar didn't show any interest in the slide when Stubborn held her sliding down. Maybe because she is not used to it, or she was not wearing pants, so her skin stuck on the slide. But as soon as she turned her head around, she realized that she could probably climb this thing.
Climb, she did! And surprisingly fast! That slide must be squeaky clean afterward, since her hands and feet were sooooo black!

Happy July 4th

This Year's July 4th weekend was just too hot. So, instead of going to beach or BBQ on the deck, we took the chance to relax. We bought lots of summer clothes for little caterpillar, both for this year and next year. I could not believe how cheap they were. 40% off clearance price! So, for just $35, we got a big bag of clothes! Little caterpillar had a great time picking out what she likes. We don't want to buy her same clothes in different color only, so if we cannot decide which one to buy, we just hold them up in front of her and let her choose. We probably have a very girly girl in hand, because she will always pick the pink or lavender ones. Go figure!

Always Up To Something

Nowadays, little caterpillar is moving so fast. As soon as you turn your head around, she will be on to something, like daddy's iPod. If you don't stop her immediately, she will grab it and shake like crazy. We are so worried that one day she will do some serious damage to it. And we often found her turning on the radio and turning the volume all the way up! Time to baby proof all those electronics, and their remotes.

Oh, as you can see from the picture, my homemade furniture bumper is really working. It is still tightly attached to the TV stand after several weeks of baby testing. Ha! I feel like a genius! Now how many more do I need to make? Well, all I can think of now are that big china cabinet and the nightstand in the nursery. Have to go to Lowe's soon. BTW, I am making some other good little things, and redecorating the nursery, but I'll keep you in suspense for a little while longer.

DIY Nursery Wall Art

Finally finished! Made these two cute felt animals back in Feb. They were supposed to be wall art, but for a long time, I couldn't figure out how to frame them, and be light weight and safe, since I planned to hang it above little Caterpillar's crib. And it has to be easily changable, just like photo frames, in case I change my mind or change the room's decor. Then, the lightbulb moment. Velcro Tape with Adhesive and Foam Board! Some simple cutting, glued a couple of scrapbook paper on front, and stitched the felt animals to the center. Stick the velcro tape to the back, and press it on the wall. And Voila! Perfectly unique wall art for my baby girl.

They looks a little weird with all that colors, against blue wall. But I am making other things for the room, and the colors will tie together. Oops! Where is "MooMoo" (the orange moose we got from Ikea)? Little Caterpillar must pulled it off the shelf again. Well, you just have to wait till I finish the whole room to meet him.

Garden Updates

Daylilies in my garden and around my neighbor's deck.

My purple cone flower.

Petunia on my neighbor's deck railing.

My neighbor's lily is super bright orange. So yummy!

Some yellow flowers from the other neighbor's yard. It's a perennial, comes back stronger and stronger every year.

The flowers on my snake plant is reaching its peak.

The flowers of my hen and chicks are opening up even more. I think I am not the only one that likes it. Look at that bee working.