Thanksgiving 2011

We shared Thanksgiving with our Ohio family at my grandparent's house this year. It was Noah's first year to enjoy the feast, and to make it even more special, he got to sit in my Grandpa Bunky's father's highchair which was made in the 1890's!

Right as the meal got underway, I accidentally cut Noah's finger with a butter knife while trying to cut a tomato. It bled a lot, and made for a bit of a stressful situation, but eventually things settled down and I could finish my meal.

Before dinner we all lounged in Tissy and Bunky's beautiful living room, looking at books and playing blocks with my cousin Ross.

Looking at photos with Bunky, Noah's great grandfather!

It's been a rough few days for Noah, what with three teeth coming in, getting cut by his mom, and falling at church yesterday and coming up with a split eyelid and black eye. But we're all doing well. Noah's such a trooper and is as happy and sweet as ever. We have so much to be thankful for, to list our blessings would take too long here so I'll just keep the list in my quiet heart and go to it when I need to.

A Couple More Halloween Pictures!

I thought I'd share a couple more Halloween pictures here before I post about Thanksgiving. Noah just had the best time walking the sidewalks and leading the pack.

Here is my little octopus wearing an Octopus Cap!

Noah the octopus, Octopus Kids, and a Picture Wall.

Noah was a little octopus for Halloween this year, and went walking through the neighborhood with a big group of friends. It was one of the cutest things to see him walking the sidewalks like a big kid in his costume. We borrowed it from my wonderful friend Jenny, whose 6 year old son, Augustine, wore it when he was 1. She said that he wasn't walking yet when he wore it, so it was a whole new level of cuteness to see Noah walking around in it.

Also it's a bit funny that I run a company called Octopus Caps and Noah was an octopus for Halloween.

Speaking of Octopus Caps, I started Octopus Kids this week! Noah has the first Octopus baby cap, and I thought it was so perfect that I needed to start selling them on Etsy. I think they will sell really well for the Christmas season.

Noah was also wearing an Octopus Cap in my last post about apple picking.

To get to Octopus Kids' Etsy store, click here.

Lastly, I got Noah's gallery wall hung. We had friends from church over for a Halloween cookie decorating party, and I wanted to have it done for that, so I did it! I'm a big procrastinator, so having people over gave me a good jump start.

Rudy pointed out that the "N" and clock on the bottom look like "NO", something which escaped me completely! I think I'll add an "AH" to the end of it and say I meant to spell "Noah" out. You have to be flexible with these things.

Also I think I'm ready to pack up the Pack and Play, and put a bonifide toddler bed in Noah's room asap! I like the idea of never putting a baby in a crib, but always letting them sleep on a mattress on the floor. Once they start crawling, they are free to explore their space. I'm never out of earshot of Noah while he's sleeping, so I think this is a good thing for us, although it is nice to know that he can't get into any trouble while inside of his cage, I mean crib.

Picture wall in Noah's room.

I finally got to put up Noah's picture wall earlier this week. I painted the N today and added it and the clock this afternoon. After Noah watched me hammer in the nails, he went and got his own nail and tried to place it gently on the wall. It was so cute and fun to see him learning and trying new things.

I hope he likes his little gallery as much as I do!

Noah and the Apple

There's a whole lotta cuteness going on.

Lately...

We've been up to so much lately...

{Picture taken by our friend Nick Fancher}
You can click on the picture to see it larger.
We went apple picking last weekend. It was in the 70's and absolutely gorgeous. Noah couldn't have had a better time. Can you tell?

Gatsby ate a corn cob off of the table when our backs were turned a few weeks ago. He had to have it surgically removed which was the pits all around. All I have to say about it is thank God things cost less in Ohio than they do in California!

I caught a nasty stomach flu this week and was out of commission for a few days. As soon as I was just about done with being sick, it was Rudy's turn. We're both just now on the mend and crossing our fingers that Noah doesn't get it!

Noah turned one on September 23rd! More pictures and a video to come.

My lovely friend (and old next door neighbor), Jess, had a baby boy and named him Charlie! This is us at her baby shower. It was at a wine bistro and was a very fun and much needed mama's night off. I also wore bright fuchsia lipstick which is a big deal for me (dork, I know).

Now that Noah is walking full time, I try to take him and Gatsby for walks around the block pretty often if not every day. It was a bit drizzly two weeks ago, but we went anyway. I think he's just about too cute in his raincoat. Also, how cute is our front yard and street?! I feel so blessed to call this house our HOME!

Lastly, here is a view from our attic master bedroom at 7:30am. It is our very own back yard. Need I say more?

I'm watching two little boys who live down the street rake leaves in their yard. It's adorable. I LOVE fall.

Talkin' little man.

Here's one more cute video for good measure. I love how much he talks and plays while we are eating together, it makes my days so bright.

Three Very Cute Videos

We've been very busy over here at the Perkins household, but I wanted to share with you some videos of our hectic, but very beautiful life:

Noah took his first steps! The first few seconds are all you really need to see. These were his actual very first steps, caught on film, to the amazement of Rudy and I. He has since taken a few more, but is still cautious and usually chooses to crawl.

Our homegroup (through our church) had a cookout last Monday, and this is Noah in fine form flirting with our friend Cole.


This one is from our Clintonville neighborhood block party (*can you say "best place to live ever?" because I can*) where Noah rode a tricycle for the first time. Ok, held onto one while I pushed, but still, the little guy is only 11 months old!

Noah is 11 months old.

Yesterday Noah turned eleven months old. I cannot believe that in one short month he will be one! Where has the time gone? He is just the sweetest and busiest boy imaginable, and I feel so lucky to get to spend my days with him.

Here's what we did yesterday:

We went to the Columbus Museum of Art downtown. Admission is free for the rest of August, plus they are very kid friendly and even have a great playroom set up for small children. Needless to say we'll be going back very soon.

The museum was having an exhibition where they give viewers yards and yards of plastic fabric to take home and make something out of, then the viewer uploads photos of the finished work to flickr. Naturally I took home a roll! The fabric is in the bottom right of the photo above. I thought I would recover our seat cushions with it, and Noah helped me do a test run! I love how proud he looks holding his very own screwdriver.

In the evening I baked a spinach lasagna I had put together the day before. As shown by the pictures, Noah had just about as much fun eating it as possible. I'm pretty sure that more ended up in his lap than his belly.

Happy eleven months little Noah Benjamin. We love you!

Lately.

I just got home from a wonderful 12 day vacation in California with Noah.

I'm playing catch-up now, and it's a bit overwhelming. I'm so blessed to be able to run a company from home, but at the same time it's a lot of work for someone with an 8 month old and home to keep up and food to make.

I'm day dreaming of the walk on the beach I took the first day I was in Carlsbad. Just my son and I searching for colors in the rocks and sea creatures in the tides.

The beach.

Thank God for the Pacific ocean and sand beneath my feet.

Newspaper poetry

I love this newspaper poem by Austin Kleon, found here. I probably wouldn't want the print, but love the idea of his poetry.

I also love that it's about his wife.

Stuffed logs.

Now that we've decided to stay in our townhouse*, I'm really wanting to get it to where I like it. This also means making it a baby-friendly place for Noah to grow for the next couple of years. Our decorative fireplace has candles in it now. Noah is crawling like a monster. These two things don't go together. I think these stuffed birch logs would be very cute in the fireplace. Baby-safe, and easy on the eyes. Win-win.

Except they're out of stock, so there's that.


*My husband is working on his PhD, and just passed a big test which allows him to go on with the program. Which means we'll be staying in Columbus for at least 3 more years. I'm really not happy with our neighbor situation right now.While I like the people we share walls with, there are 5 yapping dogs there at any given time, and they smoke in their bedroom and basement which leaks into our place. Not to mention that they stay up till past 3am most nights. They are completely not compatible with our lifestyle.
After weeks of killing myself to find a nice single family house for us to live in for the rest of Rudy's time, I finally gave up. We just can't afford it. I know this may sound weird, but I got the sense that God was telling me, just be still. Stop worrying!
A week ago we found out that our neighbors move out June 1st! While it would still be nice to not share walls on both sides, this is what we can afford. It's the right price in the right location, and the right size. Patience isn't my strong suit. I'm tired of only being able to afford apartments. But it's not forever. It may feel like we're poor, poor, poor, but we can afford a really nice place. We can afford great food. We've got each other, a healthy baby, and love to spare. So I'm deciding to quit complaining and making our house a place I love to be. I'll keep you updated for the ride.

Cute fabric.

This fabric is so stinking cute. I think it would be fun to do a water color painting of this little circle too. I want to paint more!

My little Easter man.

My friend Michelle passed on this adorable jumper to Noah a few weeks ago. It is perfect for a little Easter outfit, but as the weather wasn't cooperating, I knew Noah couldn't wear it out yesterday. So I took pictures of him in it instead. It is much harder to get him to sit still for pictures now a days. He either wants to crawl, put something in his mouth, or crawl until he gets to something he can put in his mouth.

{Noah just got his first two teeth on the bottom, and loves to feel them with his lips}

{Have I mentioned that I can't get enough of his blue eyes?}

{Chewing on papa's finger}

Oh man. He's getting way too big, way too fast.

More projects...

It all started with this picture, Christien Meindertma's giant hand knitted poufs. I had to have one. Didn't have over a grand to lay down on buying one, so naturally I looked up how to make my own. Because everyone knows how much time I have, (this is going to be a recurring theme here now, waahwaah). Anyhow, Pickles has a free pattern for many many things knit and crocheted. I've added a couple more projects for when I become a master knitter:

The Plain Vest for Ashley's baby, Finley.

...and the Sunny Cardigan for me!

Wednesday, April 20th

Happy birthday to my beautiful mom. You have taught me so much and are such a source of joy in my life.

On that note, isn't it amazing how you realize HOW MUCH you are loved when you become a parent yourself? I mean it is astronomical!

Talking on the phone with my mum today, I asked about what foods she started us off on. I've been letting Noah gnaw on cold carrots lately to ease some teething pain and expose him to new tastes. She said that we all loved steamed broccoli, so I tried it out tonight and took a video. I'll get that up as soon as I have a chance.

And by when I have a chance, I means possibly never. At least that's how it feels right now.

Noah and Rudy

I LOVE these guys.
Is it just me, or is Noah all of a sudden a little man?!

Noah and the skate park.

This post could also be called, "Columbus skips spring and dives right into summer". It was hot and humid yesterday, so we packed up the family and went to the skate park. Here's the story in photos:

We...

...basked in the sun.

...hung out with Gatsby.

...watched dad skateboard.

...went for a walk around the park.

...sat around with no pants on (Okay, only Noah did this one).

...and after a little snack...

...fell asleep on the way home.

Blue Rock Station

Yesterday my friend / old next door neighbor, Jessica, and I went to Blue Rock Station, a closed system Earthship made out of recycled materials. Jess invited me to go a few weeks ago for a class on raised bed gardening. I have never grown anything in my life, so the "class" was very enlightening, and I went home with plenty of heirloom seeds to start out with.

The process of growing food has always seemed very daunting to me. I decided that instead of getting overwhelmed by it, I would just become a master at one thing every year. This year it will be tomatoes, I've heard they are easy to grow.

Here are some pictures of our little outing. Noah had a good time checking out everything on the farm and was admired by all. Although I didn't get any shots of the inside of the house, I can assure you it was very cozy and beautiful. Although this way of life may seem extreme to some, it actually felt very easy and enlivening.

{Noah in front of the plastic bottle green house which grows plants all through the freezing Ohio winter}

{Mr. Llama, I guess that llama poo is the best fertilizer around}

{Thomas and his hens roaming the grounds}

{Noah meeting a hen, who put up with him grabbing her face and trying to eat it / cool art}

{A couple of kitties were always on patrol}

{Rosie the dog and the rest of the ladies doing some gardening}