Weekend Link Love

Found via anichini.com

It has been a hot and humid week.  We might head to the beach this weekend, so towels are on my mind.  It's time to replace our (formerly) thick and (formerly) white towels, so I am eyeing linen bath towels.  They dry fast, are antimicrobial, and take up less energy when washing/drying.  The only drawback: they're thin.  Anybody use linen bath towels before?

Here are some link loves for the weekend...

I don't have that many rules for Levi!  But some of them are funny, and some of them ring true.

Wow.  Talk about ultra exclusive in a hipster way.

A death advertisement?  

I think this is SO brilliant, and would be appreciated by film lovers.  My favorite is Superman.  

And I think this is clever too.  His side comments about the buildings are endearing.

Tasteful toast inspired by tasteful art.

I want, especially for the car.

Holy cow, Alec Baldwin!

These days Levi is into paint, so this is cool.

He's also into bubbles, so this is just perfect.

Throwback Thursday: 15 Weeks

Photo Credit: Douglas Ridloff

I am watching Levi nap.  I know he will wake up soon, and I know that we will eat lunch together before going out to the park.  I know our schedule.  I know Levi, who he is right now.  He is not this "sweet stranger" anymore.  He's my sweet son.

The Bath Ritual

Napkin Ninja

Levi uses me as his napkin on occasion.  If he touched something unsavory then he would wipe his hand on me and not give it another thought.  If I wanted to approach Levi with a napkin, I must explain my actions before proceeding with caution.  No fast movements.

List #19: Levi's Playgrounds

Parks are Levi's stomping grounds.  We created our own rhythm over the past few months, consolidating school and nap schedules.  After Levi wakes up and before the after school rush, we hit the playground.  Sometimes when it is particularly gorgeous out and we both are craving a bit of grass in this city, we make a trip out of it and I bring a small smorgasbord of munchies, a blanket to lie on and a book in case Levi falls asleep.

We visited a number of playgrounds but I am listing those that made an impression on us including the black and blue variety!

Those are the playgrounds we frequent because of their proximity (walking distance):

Yesterday we lost a loved one to cancer.  We are going to have a quiet weekend with our family.

Balancing Act

In another lifetime I went to yoga sessions regularly with Douglas.  We also practiced yoga at home, balancing sharp angles on yoga blocks.  This was in addition to our daily gym sessions.  Oh, those days.

One Night, Many Moments

Photo Credit: Julie Hochgesang Cameron

Photo Contribution: Joy Schultz 

The Babysitters

There were so many highlights during our D.C. visit--a lovely wedding, a wonderful gathering with the Schultz family of The Schultz Bunch, a leisurely and long Sunday with friends on the waterfront, a stroll around Georgetown and so forth.

We were in D.C. for only one night, and we left Levi with a babysitter.

List #18: Levi at 17.5 months

I can pinpoint the exact moment Levi shifted from walker to climber.  It was the same time he was able to open a washable marker by himself.  Levi today is so different from last month.  It is bittersweet when he wrestles away from me to get down and roam around while outside.

This is who Levi is today:

Likes:
1.  Richard Scarry's books, especially the jumbo sized The Biggest Word Book
2.  Red trucks and trains
3.  Looking out the window
4.  The colors red and yellow
5.  Things that spin/roll
6.  Bubbles
7.  Painting and drawing
8.  Climbing
9.  Cats
10.  Being outside

Dislikes:
1.  Bees
2.  Diaper changes
3.  Fruit and veggies
4.  Rainy days

Does:
1.  Uses his hair as his napkin while eating
2.  Hugs his fire truck during book reads
3.  Slaps his cheek a bit too hard when signing the word bee
4.  Talks himself to sleep
5.  Flings his arms behind him as if flying when trying to run

Can:
1.  Recognize/sign the letters L, R, F, S, T, X, V, A, E, I  and O.
2.  Recognize the numbers 1, 2, 5 and 6.
3.  Hoist himself up on elevated furniture
4.  Blow

Says:
1.  Two word phrases regularly i.e. "red truck," "my book," "where grandma?" and "Joaquin home."
2.  Three word phrases occasionally: "Sheep eat grass," "Pop sorry hurt," "fire truck red."
3.  Four word phrases every now and then: "Levi mama want up," "egg fall broke horse."(this refers to Humpty Dumpty)

Eats:
1.  Ricotta cheese
2. Annie's crackers
3.  Tortilla chips
4.  Chicken
5.  Beef
6.  BBQ sauce & ketchup
7.  Yogurt

Drinks:
1.  Water
2.  Mama's milk
3.  Wheatgrass juice mixed with orange juice.

Sleeps:
1.  Once a day at around 11:30 for an hour and half.
2.  On the days his grandparents come, it's touch-and-go.

Wears:
1.  Overalls quite often
2.  Blue Vans (I had to hide his red sneakers--when he sees them he insists on wearing them, even though they are way too small)

Vital Stats:
Height: 30 inches, approx.
Weight: Unknown
Shoe Size: 5
Clothing Size: 18-24m

Weekend Link Love

Photo Credit: Brad Pitt

I just love the fact that Brad Pitt took this photo of Angelina Jolie.  I found this photograph after reading about her double mastectomy.  What a difficult decision to make and to share with the entire world.  

Would you do this for $99?

It's a good thing this kind of printer isn't available for $99.

Next Monday I will be going to this, just down the block from my home.

A friend of mine just opened shop on Etsy.  Isn't this darling?

Garden in a box.  How about that? 

My nephew is coming to stay with me in a few weeks.  I think he would love this.

Flippin' fun!

Neat collection of short ASL videos for children.

After a daunting three-way mirror experience at Bloomingdale's, this comes in very handy.

This weekend we're off to a wedding in D.C.  Hope to come back with photos galore!

Brilliant Box

Okay.  It was 1:30 pm in the afternoon, after lunch and his afternoon siesta.  I didn't want to go to the playground just yet.  We had a box filled with packing peanuts and an hour before hitting the slides.

Levi looked at the contents of the box and said, "white."  Ho hum.

Colors on a Rainy Wednesday

Photo Credit: Javier Pinon