250 Years Ago

It was 1764.  Native American Indians were the prime inhabitants of the Ohio area but the American and French had started moving west.  From the 1750's to the early 1800's there was a clash of power between the Native Americans who had lived on this land and the new settlers from the east.  The United States of America did not exist; that would come almost 20 years later through the American Revolutionary War.  Once the US of A was formed, we had yet to recognize George Washington as the first President; that would come 25 years later.  And it wasn't until nearly 40 years after that that Ohio officially became a state...

..but around 1764 there was a little seed that sprouted from the ground.  It surpassed all the other seedlings and fought over the next 250 years to capture sunlight, water, and nutrients to grow strong, tall, and healthy.  It would later become known as an American Linden or Basswood, a native tree to this area.  It lived through rain, snow, sun, sleet, and hail; historic summers, falls, winters, and springs.  It provided shade for generations of children to run beneath, homes for other animals, branches to perch on.  It grew and grew and grew and competed with other trees around to become one of the oldest standing trees in the area.  In 1764, that little seedling began its 250 year life in our backyard.

250 years later.

When we moved into our house back in 2010, we learned that this tree was in decline.  We spoke to arborists, we injected it with some magic solution, we spoke to more arborists, but each subsequent year it had several more branches that just didn't leaf out.  In addition to its decline, it had a severe lean right over top of our house.  Having an old 250 year old declining tree leaning over your house is a little unnerving.  So, despite our best efforts to save this monstrous tree, we decided to have it removed.

Before and after from the front.

Before: Leaning over the house.

Before: That tree top loomed directly over our bedroom.

X marks the spot.  As if there were several 250 year old trees in our
backyard...only one to our knowledge...

Jack wonders what tree he will chase squirrels around now.

After: No more looming...and no more squirrels.

All logs 'a loaded!

And we are left with a stump...

Kate wonders where we put our tree.
Did they hide it underneath??

What we saw and what we now see when we look up.

The arborists were loading the last of the tree limbs when Kate and I got home.  They told us that one of them was up in the tree from about 9:30 am until 1:30 pm getting all the limbs cut down.  When we asked them if they thought we could've done anything else to save it, they said no and that the tree was so rotten inside that the wood was soft instead of hard.  When Kate and I felt it, you could even feel the softness.  They said that the tree had been rotting well before the time that we moved in and that ants had damaged it as well.  Kate and I inquired about the age of the tree with them too.  It was so rotten inside that we couldn't even see the tree rings to count to determine the exact age, but the specialists estimated that it was, "at least 250 years old".

It amazes me to think that a tree in our backyard had been around that long.  Putting it into perspective really emphasizes how young the United States of America really is.  We just cut down a tree that was here before this country was even a country!  (At least according to the arborists.)  Blasphemy!

Nonetheless, the leaning tree is no more.  In a few days, the arborist team will come back and grind the stump.  And in a few months, hopefully we have a nice patch of grass where our old tree used to grow.  We are not without worry, but it is very relieving to know that the tree that loomed over top of us does not pose any more danger with high winds, or gentle breezes for that matter!

UPDATE
The stump grinders came and ... grinded the stump.  Shocking, I know.

It was actually pretty cool!

Kate and I watched from the second floor!

We are now left with a pile of wood chips in our yard.  Hopefully we'll have another update on those soon!

UPDATE II
The tree mulch has officially been removed.  We are 100% tree-less.

Any bets on how long it'll take for grass to grow?!

And here is our final before and after:

So long, tree.  You will be missed.

Fifty Shades of Oatmeal

Kate hasn't watched much TV in her almost 17 months of being outside of the womb.  We typically promote playing when we are together since we are working on limited time with both Brian and me working full time jobs during the day.  The other reason that we haven't really promoted television watching is because I read that it's pretty much useless before the age of two.  Children learn WAY faster and SO MUCH MORE with a human to human contact versus a TV to human contact, so if we're going to use our limited time wisely, we are going to keep the boob tube watching at a minimum.

In light of this, Kate has been very interested in the remote to the television.  She knows what it does and loves to press the buttons.  She'll pick up the remote, point it at the TV, and press a million buttons!

(She has extended our screen, added captions, and put our wide-screen back to non-wide-screen format.  Most of these instances involve Brian fiddling with the same remote Kate was playing with for 15 minutes trying to get the TV back to the way it was.  How is it possible that she can push the exact combination of buttons to swap these sorts of things EVERY SINGLE TIME and we can't for the life of us easily figure out how to navigate the menus to get the screen back the way it should be?!  For the record, she does the same thing with our cell phones too.  We are thankful she has not yet swapped the language to anything other than English.  Though with our track record it is only a matter of time.)

Since Kate became interested in using the remote properly, I figured it wouldn't hurt to have something age appropriate for her to screen should she so desire.  I figured Sesame Street would be our first stop, so I began recording some of the new episodes so that we have a little stock pile saved on our DVR for rainy days.

Today just so happened to be a perfect rainy day.  Kate took the remote and pointed it at the TV.  I asked her if she would like to watch Sesame Street and she nodded her head yes.  I turned on the last recorded episode while I got busy folding clothes.  (Ahh, laundry.  One of the many weekend to-do's.)

The very first clip of the show was with Bert.  He was sitting on a bench reading a book.  The camera zoomed in on him while the birds chirped around him.  And he mentioned he was reading Fifty Shades of Oatmeal.

Bert's book image compliments of www.muppet.wikia.com.

Fifty Shades of Oatmeal?!  I literally laughed out loud!  Who knew Sesame Street was so entertaining?! Knowing the premise of the original Fifty Shades but seeing it in a much more innocent version gave me a little joy.  Hearing Sesame Street incorporating a current fad into their show, one that an adult would understand but a child would not grasp, was refreshing.  I can honestly say that I don't recall watching an episode of Sesame Street for a very long time.  From I what I understand, this is pretty common practice for Sesame Street. A learning show geared toward child but with the humor and current events that an adult would understand?  Know wonder they've been around for almost 45 years!

Prime Sesame Street watching spot: snuggled on the couch,
next to the dog, surrounded by fuzzy, soft, fleece-y pink blankets.
One can never have too many fuzzy, soft, fleece-y pink blankets!

And here's a close-up because she's just so stinkin' cute!

I'm looking forward to our Sesame Street lounge time.  I'm looking forward to Kate finding characters that she remembers and loves.  (We have several Sesame Street books around the house that she is already a fan of.)  I am even looking forward to watching some of the Sesame Street episodes snuggled up next to my baby girl! Especially if they incorporate silly lines like, "Fifty Shades of Oatmeal"!

Seriously!  If you really think about all the things you could think of fifty shades of, oatmeal is the most innocent and child friendly one out there!  And in the child side of my brain, it literally cracks me up every.single.time!

An Extended Stay

My Mom, Scott, and brother, James, all drove down from Canada for an extended stay with us over the past few days.  This was SUCH A TREAT.  It was the first time in a long time that we were actually together for longer than a two-day weekend, and while it was so so so nice to have them here, it made me realize how much I really miss them.  And I miss them a lot.

When I made the decision to move to Ohio to pursue my relationship with Brian, I did not realize how much I would miss my family and friends and the surroundings that I grew up in and knew my whole life.  It really wasn't until I moved away and had been away for a few years that it actually hit me pretty hard that I missed everyone and everything that I've ever known tremendously.

That thought and feeling surprised me.  I moved 5 hours away from my home town of Columbia, MD when I went to college and lived an hour away from that home town when I graduated and took my first full time job.  I like to travel, I like to experience new things, I like to explore and play and learn.  Apparently, I also like to put roots down.

I guess I really didn't know what I had til it was gone, but hindsight is 20/20, and that is a lesson that I've learned time and time again.

I do really like Columbus, Ohio, my new home town.  And it is really great to be in close proximity to Brian's wonderful family.  We are both employed here, we've bought a house here, attempted way too many times to teach our dog to walk properly and not pull incessantly (still not a success), and are currently raising our daughter here.  Brian has a lot of friends here and I'm working on making mine, and there are four distinct and wonderful seasons of the year.  We are definitely spreading our roots.

But it pains me a little that it feels so far from my home.  From my familiar.

What I've realized though is that "spreading roots" does not mean that you will be somewhere forever.  Who knows what the future holds.  (I promise there is a point here.) "Spreading roots" is not necessarily a literal expression, as in planting yourself somewhere and not going anywhere else.  "Spreading roots" is a metaphorical expression, meaning to spread or connect yourself to the important people in your life so that no matter where you are they are always there with you.  Spreading roots horizontally through family and friends, weaving in and out of time, not vertically, down into the soil so that you are stuck wherever you are planted.  (At least that is what I am telling myself these days.)

Whether we are here in Ohio, in Maryland, in any other part of the United States, or the world, we will work continuously to keep spreading our roots, to keep our family and friends in our lives, and to keep our values and our morals close to heart.  It's not easy, but it makes the times that we are together so very precious and meaningful.  No one ever promised life would be easy anyway!

Having my parents and brother in town was a little slice of heaven the past few days.  I am going through a serious withdrawal not seeing them here and having them so near.  I miss them dearly, all of my family and friends, but I am extremely thankful and grateful for the time that we had together.  Extremely.  It was a dose of home that I didn't know I needed.

We went to the Franklin Park Conservatory to see the blooms
and butterflies!

Mom caught a little butterfly!

So Kate got to see it up close!

She also got to see it fly away!

Miss Independent!

Exploring the jungle!

SQUIRREL!  Oh, wait...WATERFALL!

Pretty orchids!

We did a lot of catching up and had a lot of quality time, so there aren't a lot of photos just timeless memories!  We did make a stop at Franklin Park Conservatory to see the Blooms (read: orchids) and Butterflies display (photos above) and we did host a fabulous dinner with Brian's parents (photos below)!

At the heart of every Grandma, is still a Granddaughter!

The photo above reminds me of this one taken just one day
after Kate was born.  Those Grandma's just don't age a bit,
but Kate has tripled in size!

Kate's new thing is hiding between the door and
the screen door and waiting for you to find her...

Pointing at something...

...and something else...

Do they see me?!

"HERE I AM!!!"

Sockless with a sippy cup in hand -  a
common sight these days!

We HEART these people SO MUCH!

I'd be lying if I said my heart wouldn't break a little bit if Kate decided to move 6.5 hours away chasing after some boy.  (I don't even want to think about that honestly.)  But if that is what made her happy, I would support her decision and I would do my best to keep our roots deep.

I'd also try not to cry myself to sleep every night, but I suppose that is neither here nor there.

Shamrock Shakers

In an effort to gear up for St. Patty's Day, Kate's class has been learning about all things related to the holiday!  Shamrocks adorn the walls, rainbows are hung, GREEN is everywhere, and the very idea of Spring being upon us brings a smile to the faces around!

Today, Kate's class made Shamrock Shakers.  They placed several shamrock confetti bits into a mini water bottle and then filled and sealed them with green water!! How cool is that!?

Picking up shamrock confetti!

And placing them into her mini water bottle!

Filled, sealed and shaken!  Success!

When Kate brought this little green guy home, she was more interested in trying to open the top and dump it out.  I think she wanted to put the confetti shamrocks back in again rather than shake them up! She loves putting things into things and dumping them out and doing it again!  It's like a wash, rinse, repeat cycle in this house!  Nevertheless, we showed her all the shaking she could do with her DIY Shamrock Shaker and watched all the little confetti bits fall to the bottom of the bottle.

In addition to making her very own Shamrock Shaker, Kate also got to try on a silly glasses/mustache getup:

Best.Photo.Ever.

I can already guarantee that the photo above will be the HIGHLIGHT of my entire St. Patrick's Day holiday!

SO Big!

Kate has really been perfecting her utensil usage recently.  She is becoming a pro at picking up a spoon or fork and using it properly!  It is so amazing to watch her learn how to get food from her plate, onto a utensil, and into her mouth!  Believe it or not, her teachers have said that she is even teaching her friend Sam (a girl) how to use silverware correctly.  They told us that Sam watches Kate and repeats what she does.  Setting a good example?!  Check!

She is such a big girl and so proper!
I think she got that from me!  ;)

It's a good thing that Sam doesn't dine with us while we are at home though.  Sam would also learn:

1. To throw your utensil when you are done and/or frustrated with it.

2. To drop it on the floor and watch the dog scrounge for any last morsel of food.  Seriously, you'd think we starve him.

3. To fling your vegetables and other unwanted food items and watch them magically disappear (compliments of the starving dog) AND think it's hilarious.

4. And give it up entirely if there is something on your plate that you want more than you have the patience to use a utensil for, like applesauce or cool whip.  (Yes, sometimes we like to eat a little dollop of plain cool whip.  She may or may not have also gotten that from me...)

We are so proud of our darling girl!  And she looks so big in this picture that it makes me feel so proud and excited of what is to come yet kind of a little sad that her baby-ness is slowly fading.  (Ah, so that's why people have more kids.)

Did you notice in the photo above that she pulled her peas out from her lunch?!  The teachers have told us that she does that sometimes and eats them all at the end!  How cute is that?!

Weekend Errands

Is having your 15-month old push the cart while you are grocery shopping considered child labor??

I sure hope not.

Pool Play

We decided to start our March off with a little fun in the indoor pool at OSU.  We headed up as a family and Kate and I jumped in the pool while Brian went to workout.  This was the first time that we have taken Kate to an indoor pool and, once again, she was very observant!

So cute in her terry cloth robe and hot pink crocs!
This girl is stylin'!

Kate is very much a watch to see how it's done and then do it type of person.  We've noticed that she's not one to really jump into things without some prior knowledge and/or experience of them.  I'm sure after a few visits to Sky Zone or the pool they will both become fast favs on Kate's list of places to go!

Are we going in that big bathtub, Mama??

Doing a 360 and taking in ALL of her surroundings!

The water was quite cold.  Then again, I am a real wimp when it comes to cold water.  I guess it would've been fine if you were swimming laps or jumping up and down or playing Marco Polo, but just sitting on the edge hanging out, half submerged, left Kate and me both with goose bumps!

We decided to ease into the pool.

Kate was so intrigued that it took a little convincing to get her in!

We brought some toys to promote some water play!
(They were very quickly snatched up by other pool goers but we
got them all back!)

Testing the water.

I heart this.  So innocent!

Still taking it all in!

In the pool!

Once Kate got in the pool with me, we hung out near this little ledge that allowed her to stand and play with the toys that we brought while simultaneously still observing!  We got a bit braver after a while and actually ventured out into the water!  Kate loved swaying around in the open water!  We even swam all the way over to that blue contraption in the photo below and pulled on the little lever to make water come out of the red faucet!


Our little swimmer!

Such a cutie!

We watched kids play, adults swim, a group play water basketball, and several children go down the little water slide.  I know that Kate will grow to love going to the pool.  What kid doesn't love the pool?!  And I am totally in support of the not jumping in until you've assessed the situation thing.  This is very beneficial when Kate is, say, faced with a flight of stairs and she is at the top looking down.

I'm reveling now in the fact that she wants to stay by side, to be with me, to do what I do because I know there will come a day where she wants to be off on her own.  And I have a sneaking suspicion that that day is going to come sooner than I'd like. 

For now we are enjoying our special moments, experiencing new things, learning about the BIG world around us, and it is all so very exciting!

Rosie the Riveter

Kate's school sent me this photo of her today:


Apparently Kate just had to try on one of her teacher's hair bows, so that is what she did!  After I had shown every one at my office the latest photo of Kate and then made it my phone screen background I got to thinking that it reminded me of something...

...Of another photo...

...I distinctly remember attempting to describe said photo to my coworker and failing miserably.  I think I said something along the lines of, "You know that war ad photo?  The one of the woman representing woman's rights?  Where she is showing her arm in a strong man's pose like this?"  [Cue Erin entering into a pose where she is attempting to flex her measly bicep muscle...at work.]

I didn't specify what war.  I didn't know her name.  I didn't even know her story, but I quickly found them all out.

Ladies and Gentlemen, meet Rosie:

Rosie the Riveter.

(Apparently I didn't fail miserably when describing Rosie because my coworker looked at me like I was the dumbest person on the planet and said, "You mean, Rosie the Riveter??"  Ugh, yes, thanks.  I didn't realize she went by that name.)

Rosie the Riveter.  Yes.  That's who I meant.  Kate's photo reminded me of Rosie's:

Did you know her name was Rosie?

From the blue shirt to the red/pink hair bow to the yellow background.  The similarities are uncanny, though I have to admit that Kate is much cuter and less frightening.  (Which I am extremely grateful for.)

Rosie's poster was created in 1942 as part of a series representing women who worked in factories during World War II.  Women took over a lot of the jobs that men would normally do while a lot of the men were off fighting the war.  Since production of war supplies was at its greatest demand and supply of men factory workers was at an extreme low, women took their place.

It's not just "it" that we can do, Rosie.  We can do anything!  (That will be my one and only feminist plug...for this post.  I think.)

Anyway, you can read more about Rosie here if you are interested.  There's a whole ton about her and the era in which she was created.  Perhaps this is a sign of the strong, independent woman Kate is destined to become.  Perhaps this is just another coincidence like the heart-shaped cheerio.

One thing is for sure, Little Miss Kate is one extremely lucky lady to be growing up in an age where women are distinguished closer to equals as men.  Where women have just as many opportunities and sometimes more than men.  Where it is common to hear of a stay-at-home Dad because the woman of the household is working.  It is because of many, countless strong women before her that have paved this mighty path of opportunity in front of her.

Who knows where women will be by the time Kate is old enough to read this post and understand some of the struggles in the past.  I certainly don't think Rosie sat long and hard and thought to herself about how this poster would be [apparently] common [name] knowledge in households seventy-two years later!  That, my friends, is history.

♥

PS: Did you know her name was Rosie the Riveter???

Heart Healthy

Since Cherrios are the quintessential kid food AND they promote their heart healthy benefits, we typically have a classic yellow box in our cabinet for Kate (and us) to munch on!  Nothing says childhood quite like that yellow box of Cherrios!

Anyway, the other day when Kate and I were having second breakfast we noticed that instead of the typical 'O' center that Cheeri-OHs are known for, this one Cherrio had a heart shaped center:

Cheeri-heart!

We looked through the other pile of Cheerios that we were snacking on and didn't see any more that resembled such a distinct heart shape.  So we're wondering, is this a simple coincidence - a heart healthy snack in the shape of a heart?  Or is this a purposeful creative marketing ploy to get people like me to buy another box to see if there are more Cheeri-hearts?!

You be the judge!

Dancing Queen

If you're an avid blog reader or know Kate at all, you know that she loves her some music!  It's only fitting that she also loves her some dancing too!  Tonight Kate was busting out all of her dance moves and even showing us ones that we had never seen before!  She just recently started incorporating twirling in her dance routine and it has become a fast fav!  Kate doesn't dance without a twirl or two these days!

I was so happy to be able to catch this on camera!  A few things to note before I bid you adieu:

1. Kate's dance moves include the twirl, the dizzy twirl, the Hawaiian car girl hula, the dwarf bounce, the high knee twirl, the spit-n-twirl, and the chicken wing flap.  See if you can spot them all before she spots the mark on the hutch that I need to clean off!  Thanks, Kate, for pointing that out.

2. Please ignore the dog that pops in at one point.  Even Jack doesn't mess with dancing Kate.

3. Please also ignore the semi-singing voice you hear for a moment.  Even though I had a camera in my hand I forgot I was filming.

4. I think we can add "dancing" to Kate's repertoire of words!

5. If you want another laugh, check out this music video.  It's a classic!

6. Enjoy!