The Harvest...

After just a month (or even a little less!), we've already gotten to enjoy the 'spoils' of our garden! Ok, maybe not plural "spoils", but we did pick and eat ONE STRAWBERRY. It was great- we grew our own piece of fruit, picked it, cut it into 3 pieces (very small pieces), and each enjoyed it! It was fun and tasted great. Elise asked for "more berry", but we think it'll be about 2 weeks before the next 3 berries are ready. The next spoils will be jalapenos...there are almost 10 that'll be ready in the next week!!!! We'll get to share some with neighbors, which is fun...
Until the rest of the fruit/veggies are ready, we'll keep hitting our local farmers' market. On Saturday mornings in the historic Summerville town square (about 2 miles away), there's a Farmers Fruit/Veggie and Craft Market. We went this weekend and got some fantastic Strawberries, Bananas, Watermelon, and Peppers. It's always fun to support local farmers and the prices were great, too! =)

"Love"

I feel like I spend hours each day telling Elise and Ainsley that I love them. Once or twice, elise has repeated right back to us "Love you, Mommy/Daddy"...which absolutely MELTED my heart. It really was amazing! However, last night Elise muttered her FIRST UNPROMPTED "Love you" comment, unfortunately, it wasn't toward Adam or myself! We were all playing upstairs trying to kill 30 minutes after bathtime before bed. Elise was playing with her PRIZE possession, Her Uglydoll "BeeBop". She has slept with this stuffed "monster" EVERY SINGLE DAY/NIGHT since she was about 8 months old...hands down her main source of comfort in bed. Anyway, we were playing around and she ran over, picked up BeeBop and said, "Eis (Elise) love him" and ran out the room. Adam and I looked at each other in amazement! The first unsolicited object of her love was a midsized stuffed animal (gift from Uncle Kelly) with a goofy face...oh well, maybe we'll be next.

The dive the hunt the fish

I headed offshore to do some fishing, SCUBA, and spearfishing on Saturday. We did some bottom fishing with little success but dove twice in about 65ft of water. The visibility was not great, only about 15-20 at best, but the spear fishing made up for it. I shot the two Sheep Head and the Amber Jack on the first dive. I passsed up Amber Jack and Sheep Head on the second dive hunting for the elusive Hog Fish and Grouper. I chased one Hog Fish but got a bad-angled shot on him and he got away. There wasn't a scale on the boat but we estimate the Amber Jack to be about 20lbs and the larger Sheep Head to be about 10lbs. It was a great day of recharging the batteries and enjoying a bit of nature...and taking some of it with me. Now we just need to cut Erica loose from the munchkins for a day for re-charging her batteries, but I'm guessing she'll pass up the spearfishing.

In case you were wondering I found out the Amber Jack is most likely the "white fish" you see on many seafood menus. Apparently more tonnage of Amber Jack is sold than any other fish. They are certainly big, abundant and fight like crazy. Having one at the end of a spear is a blast. Around here they call them a reef donkey because of the fight.

Ah, Prayer...

Every day/night before Elise gets in bed, we say a quick prayer. "Amen" is all she's ever said, but she bows her head, listens contently, and every once in awhile will throw in an extra request, usually "Gus". That's it. Last night at dinner, elise grabbed for our hands and said, "Amen" to get us started. Adam prayed for the meal, our health, good sleep overnight, etc...then we noticed Elise mumbling something along with us. So, Adam quit talking and elise spoke up (still bowed head and holding our hands...she very clearly said "Mommy, Gus, Table, Gus, Towel, Pizza (!?We were eating salads, I promise!), Hide n Seek. ....(pause) AMEN!" She was so proud of herself and I (shocking) had tears in my eyes. We're not sure if she was actually praying for Hide n Seek or if she was finished praying and then ready to Play Hide and Seek. Either way, it was adorable and so sweet and sincere.

Japanese Lesson...toilets

There are a lot of things that America does well (ie-Panera Bread, Target, Fresh Market Grocery stores), but one thing that Japanese have cornered the market on is HEATED TOILET SEATS! The traditional Japanese toilets (for MEN and WOMEN) are basically recessed urinals in the floor. You stand over it and squat/hover to relieve yourself (pic on left). You also provide your own toilet paper to wipe and paper towel/handkerchief to dry your hands after washing up. Although a little tricky to get the hang of, they're fine once you're used to it- especially if you have good balance and strong quads.
On the other hand, the "Western-style" Japanese toilets are HEAVENLY... they're in many of the malls, big train stations, and hotels. There is a control panel on the side (right picture) that allows you to play music or the sound of running water (in case you get Stage Fright to pee in public), a bidet to rinse with, and a few other buttons that I never figured out! But the greatest part BY FAR is the fact that most of these "Western style" toilets are heated. Since Japanese homes are NOT typically well-insulated, they get the important part right...the seats are warm and toasty to sit on and it really makes the whole experience nice. (side note- Japanese are INCREDIBLY clean and sanitary...I would NEVER SIT ON A PUBLIC TOILET in the USA, but it's ok over there, REALLY!). So, there you go...a lesson on Japanese toilets that you never knew you were interested in! I add all of this because in the last year of being pregnant and getting up to pee multiple times overnight and now getting up a couple times to feed Ainsley, I sit of the FREEZING toilet seat all the time. There are so many times that I've hollered out to adam (who's trying to peacefully sleep), "AUGH, I MISS THE HEATED TOILET SEATS!!!" So, there you go.

comparing Buddhas...

Here's a picture of Elise at about 9 weeks old and Ainsley at 9 weeks, too. We have them labeled as "little Buddhas" on the computer. SO great! I think Elise was probably a little chubbier at this point than Ainsley is now, but they're both happy, healthy babies. =) Hmmm,...and maybe I need to get my hair cut soon, too! I haven't had it cut since September...this is the longest hair I've had since college!

baby model, con't...

I just love the little spit bubble he captured in this picture. She's so curious and you can really see that in her eyes!