And now, the amazing flying baby in a blanket!

*more, more, more*

Summer Fun!

Well, the summer is winding down. The days are getting shorter, the nights are cool. We have managed to have alot of fun this summer, though.

As Mama Hayes mentioned in her last post, she "conned" me into coming home early yesterday (it didn't take much convincing!). O' awoke form her nap shortly after I arrived, and Mama had the fun idea of building a fort in the living room. We spread an old sheet across a couple chairs, climbed in and read books, had some snacks and played away the afternoon. A great memory for this Daddy!

This morning, we got out the door by 7:30 to go to the farmers market, which goes rain or shine, and it was rain this morning. Thunder and lightning on the drive down, torrential downpours. Mama was a little worried, but I thought it would be fun. Our kid-pack has a great rain cover, and Olivia was plenty well protected. We almost had the place to ourselves, which was fun, but the farmers were definitely bummed about the bad turnout. It cleared up later, and hopefully the crowds arrived!

Afterward, we went to Grandpa Peter's place for a yummy breakfast of quiche with garden fresh veggies and some fun playtime! After all this, it was family nap time.

We spent the afternoon with Marshal, Christy and Everett at the CSA they are members of. They were having a corn boil, which was a blast. Great food, good company, and a beautiful setting.

The humidity is here now that the storms have passed, and I am bakling bread and listening to the radio. Tomorrow we will go to church and off to Grammsie's for a Brats (from the farmers market), corn (form our CSA), and a yummy raspberry desert.

I hope you all are enjoying the dog days, love and God bless!

Biker Babes

Up until today, this week was a PERFECT weather week: highs in the upper 70s to low 80s, zero to low humidity, sunny skies, and cool breezes. Olivia and I took advantage of the sunshine and went on lots of bike rides. We biked to work with Daddy on Tuesday morning, stopped at a park on the way home to play with friends, and got back on the road after naptime to meet up with other friends. We went for a long bike ride with Grandpa on Thursday morning and another series of short bike rides that afternoon to run various errands around town. This morning we biked to playgroup, and I think Olivia enjoyed the rainy bike ride home - I wish I would have remembered to pack my rain jacket!

The sun and now today's rain should make our wildflowers and carrots grow faster. :)

I convinced Sean to take the afternoon off - he should be home soon, and we will scheme up something fun to do this afternoon! I'll try and convince him to blog about it, too...

(P.S. I finally posted some recent pictures of Olivia from this summer - check out the Hayes Family Photo Gallery II!)

Summer Blur

Greetings, dear ones!

My jaw dropped in amazement when I noticed that our last blog entry was more than two months ago. The summer months brought us the most sunshine of the year, and we seem to have let the light and warmth distract us from our family musings. Nevertheless, here I am, and behold - I bring to you the lightning round of The Hayes Family Summer '09.

JUNE

It's Dairy Month here in WI, and we celebrated by visiting the Cows on the Concourse during the Farmer's Market on June 6th. Olivia received sweet kisses from a baby holstein, baby guernesey, and baby swiss brown. It was precious!

I started my worker share at Vermont Valley Farm, a CSA operation in Blue Mounds, just west of Madison. Every Wednesday through October, Olivia heads to Jane's house for the day, and I head to the fields. In exchange for my work, our family receives a box of fresh produce each week. Favorites so far include strawberries, salad mix, kohlrabi, and new potatoes.

I made it to American Player's Theatre in picturesque Spring Green, WI, with Mumsy and Sal for a roaring performance of Shaw's "The Philanderer". We enjoyed a picnic dinner beforehand and toasted Mom's friend (and fellow theatregoer), Bonnie Reinke, for winning the 2009 Governor's Business Plan Contest. The show was witty, satirical, biting, basically everything that makes me love Shaw's work.

Father's Day - Sean's second! Also the day of cousin Holly's wedding. The three of us traveled to the Milwaukee War Memorial, site of the beautiful event. We celebrated Holly and Erik, caught up with family, and enjoyed cheesecake lollipops!

We ended the month in seasonal style and headed to a Brewer's game with old high school buddies of mine. Me, Sean, Bodo (her first pro baseball game!), Allen and Harpo tailgated, picked up bobbleheads on our way in, sat next to Bernie's dugout, and groaned as the Brewer's lost the game after hitting the ball maybe half a dozen times. Ah, well - here's to the peanuts and crackerjacks! (Or lemon ice and ice cream sundaes, as the case may be...)

Logfest '09: On the Road! I roadtripped with Mumsy and Sal to Ohio for Sal's second round of chemo, which had been agonizingly postponed a week due to her low white blood cell count. Fortunately, after a super duper booster shot, Sal's blood counts were high enough to protect all of us from harm that week, and she went ahead with round two. I was so glad to be there with her, to be able to support her in that way. Ben, the conquering hero, ordered us all road trip t-shirts afterward, and I love the memories mine conjures! (A special thanks to Therese and Jane for being with O during the day while I was gone and making this trip possible for me.)

JULY

Happy Independence Day! We celebrated the 4th of July in Verona with Mumsy, Sal, Ben and his parents. We had a wonderful picnic feast and ended the afternoon's festivities with fireworks. (Yes, the men took a fieldtrip - yes, the ladies stayed home cackling and gossiping.) It also happened to be O's first experience with fireworks! She was all over the sparklers, poppers ("Pop!"), and various incendiary creations - that is, until the Crop Circle. For those of you familiar with homegrown fireworks, this one looks like a turtle, spins really fast, makes a high-pitched squeal and is projected into the air with a whizbangboom. Hands over her ears, O hollered and looked at the men disapprovingly before making her exit.

Olivia reached the 18-month milestone this month. Folks, we have a toddler! Our little baby is growing up fast. Her 18-month checkup proved that. O is running, climbing, talking, inventing and oh, is she a blur of energy and laughter. :) She can climb the junglegym at the playground by herself. She is learning more and more words every day (my favorite thing to hear her say: "scratch").

On Saturday we went to a march and rally for health care downtown. We road our bikes to State Street, locked them up, and joined the hundreds of people marching to the tunes of Mama Digdown's Brass Bane and waving "Healthcare for All" placards, among other homemade slogans. Olivia road in her chariot, sign in one hand, cell phone in the other. She was a posterchild for the next generation, let me tell you! It was exhilirating to be out there with everyone and show our support for Obama's health care reforms. Our Representative, Tammy Baldwin, spoke, as well as a couple of doctors and a few citizens with their personal stories to share. We took to the streets and marched for what we believe in!

***

Happy summer to all, and to all a good night!

Utah Adventure

We are back in Madison after a week long trip to Utah to visit family and friends. What a wonderful adventure we had! We took a bus to Chicago - Olivia loved being able to stand up and jump on the seats. Such a better way to ride than being strapped down to a carseat. :P We flew Southwest from Midway to Salt Lake City. The flight was smooth, and Olivia even took a great nap along the way. She was well-rested and rarin' to go by the time we met up with Grandma Cora, Grandpa Bill and Aunt Katie - hooray for happy reunions...and baby intro! This was Olivia's first introduction to family in Utah.

We spent the first few days of our vacation in Salt Lake. The weather forecast was ominous, but fortunately we never got caught in any rainstorms. We spent an afternoon at the zoo, and Olivia loved seeing all of the animals (and hanging out with her wild cousins!). I loved watching O get to know her Utah family. (Special thanks to Aunt Katie and Grandpa Strike for making a special trip to see us!) She and her cousin Elias were like two peas in a pod. She warmed up to the ladies right away: Grandma Cora, Aunts Katie and Emily were smoochin' her up!

We drove up to Ogden on Saturday morning to visit Strike, Jan and the 2 Scotties (Soooo sweet! They made O giggle to no end.) Cora hosted a family get-together on Saturday night, and it was wonderful for the three of us to spend time with everyone who could make it. Olivia was getting to the point of New Faces Overload, but she was a trooper!

On Sunday morning we headed to Ryan and Em's for breakfast: strawberry shortcake! Decadent... Elias showed us "Happy Feet", and Olivia danced, too. :) Ryan took Sean on a tour of the basement brewery, and we were excited to learn that his plans with the brew pub are progressing. O and her 2 cousins were all playing together at one point, and it made me really happy!

To be continued...

The Joy of Easter

Chapter 1: The Rose-Festooned Frock

Gramsy, Mama Hayes and Olivia had quite the fun adventure hunting for an Easter dress for sweet O. (Well, I think Olivia might say that the adventure lay in how fast she could get Gramsy to push her in the stroller cart!) Almost at the same moment, we noticed a light cotton, mint-colored dress with an elegant row of roses at the waist. We knew that this was the one! Item: one beautiful Easter dress. Item: two pairs of lacy socks. Our search for a white cardigan led us to another kingdom, where the perfect accompaniment to the Rose-Festooned Frock was triumphantly discovered.

Chapter 2: Celebrating the Resurrection

We woke up to bright sunshine smiling down on the land, and got ready for church. While Mama Hayes merrily bustled about her beauty bonanza, Papa Hayes got himself and sweet O dressed up in Easter fashion. We arrived at church at nine o'clock to join friends for juice, coffee and fresh baked goods in the Fellowship Hall. "Happy Easter!" we greeted one another with joy.

The Easter service was lovely. Lilies filled the front of the sanctuary. We sat in the front row, and during the children's message, Olivia pranced down the center aisle, swishing her dress proudly. Pastor Rich offered joy, hope and thoughtfulness to the congregation in his sermon. Our congregation sang Easter hymns with more gusto than usual!

Chapter 3: The Feast

After our morning at church, we journeyed to Gramsy's castle for the great day's feast. Olivia went down for her nap, and the three of us sat down to a sumptuous meal:

• Quiche with roasted red peppers and asparagus, bacon and gruyere. Made with farm fresh eggs, Blue Marble Dairy milk, and a cornmeal crust.
• Spinach salad with cranberries and walnuts, topped with an oil and vinegar dressing. We bought the spinach at the Farmer's Market on Saturday morning.
• A side of asparagus, lightly steamed and finished with olive oil. Served chilled.
• Lane's Bakery cherry kringle, strawberries and grapes.
• Swedish rice pudding was served for dessert, an old-fashioned recipe, made the night before.
• Beverages: Highlander Grog coffee and virgin Mimosas.
  

Chapter 4: The Hunt is On

While O slept peacefully, the Easter Bunny came and hid sparkle eggs all over the living room and dining room. It seemed that each egg contained something especially for Boo... She awoke at length, and the hunt was on. She was given her Easter basket, and we told her she could find the eggs that were hidden for her. Olivia found an egg and shook it. Eureka! She quickly brought it to Mama, and I opened it for her. Her eyes lit up, she smiled and covered her mouth with her hands in delight: an animal cracker! It was instantly grabbed and stuffed into her mouth. I put the empty egg back together, she took it and dropped it in her basket. Then she went forth to find more! This continued through 10 more eggs, and each egg had an animal cracker in it. O ate as she went, more and more triumphant, until the last egg was found. "All done!"

Chapter 5: Joy

We give thanks for the health and well-being of our family! We rejoice in our family and friends who fill our life with happiness and nurturing relationships! We bask in the light of God!

Easter Bunny in Action!

Springinginginginging

Good news from the north: forecasters across the board are predicting NO MORE SNOW this spring! That means sandal weather is just around the corner, and soon I will be able to transition to my spring wardrobe - it's under the bed with bulky sweaters; hello, tanktops!

It is time.

Olivia has had spring fever for awhile now. She luuuuvs nothing more than to run around in just a diaper. On many occasions she has demanded to go on a walk wearing nothing but her pair of rainbow Baby Legs. Alas! The weather would not permit. But now....hmm. Her prospects are looking up!

MORE NEWS

I am excited about a CSA worker share program I will be a part of June through mid-October. Jane put me in touch with Vermont Valley Farm, a large-scale community farm in Blue Mounds, just west of Madison. In exchange for a box of produce every week, I will put in four hours of work on the farm on Wednesday mornings. About once a month, there are family events that Sean and Olivia will be able to join me for: a Pea Pick in June, a Corn Boil in August, Pesto Fest in September, and a Pumpkin Pick in October!

I am so looking forward to the opportunity to experience a slice of life on a farm. I think it would be amazing if every citizen of the U.S. was required to do some sort of work program on a farm for at least a partial season. I believe that would help to put all of us back in touch with the land and maybe gain a national appreciation for where food comes from.

SHOUT OUT

A big shout out to everyone I have talked to recently who is committed to planting a Victory Garden this spring! You know who you are, and I am cheering you on!

Spring Break

Uncle Spark is home on spring break. That means quality time with the Hayes Trio! Hehehe. We went to Verona this afternoon for brunch with Uncle Spark and Gramsy, and Olivia was dazzled by her uncle's ability to eat almost as many waffles as her. Her devotion to him was cinched as he zoomed around the room in her fastest experience yet of baby-in-a-basket. Too, too fun!

We are all enjoying the warm weather, especially the divine Miss O. Every morning she is knocking on the front door, waiting to go out and play. I usually insist on breakfast first (mainly because I am so hungry!), and then we head out for a morning walk or time at the playground. As it continues to get warmer, I think we could spend all our time outside for the entire day!

I finally posted new pics from the past few weeks - check 'em out on the link to the right!

Happy Spring!

Spring Fever

Today felt like spring here in the north country. We got into the fifties and the sun was shining. It was gorgeous!

Lee had a modeling gig, so O and I got to play. When we got home from dropping Mom off, we headed out to the park that's just a couple doors away.

Olivia was thrilled!
It was a pretty long walk with those chubby little legs, but she is a real trooper.
Olivia went straight to her old favorite, the swing. She was giggling with glee! Then we went over to the slide, and Daddy decided that O was big enough to give it a try! Talk about giggling! Talk about glee! She loved it! Sorry, no pictures of that, but here's a cute one!
In the afternoon we made a run to the Zoo, and enjoyed the river otters, the camels and the new tiger. Such a great day! I am so excited to go camping this spring!!

Heeeeeeere Horsey Horsey Horsey

Little Runner

Winter Wonderland, Month 4

It's snowing again! I actually secretly appreciate a fresh coat of white crystally goodness on the earth. Makes me think that the soil can go back to sleep and rest up for a bountiful planting season. Let's see, one or two months of winter to go? We'll see! :)

Sean, O and I went to the indoor farmer's market for a delicious breakfast this morning. Anyone who ever wants to join us, give a ring! We love going there on Saturday mornings. There were fresh greens for sale by a number of vendors this morning. Mmm... We bought a bag of mixed greens that I can't wait to dig into this afternoon. Bless these dear farmers for filling my need for fresh, local vegetables! (And donuts. Have I mentioned the donuts?)

I have another choir concert coming up next Saturday evening that I am very excited about. I even got a solo in one of the pieces! We have been privileged to work with our composer-in-residence, Paul Carey, and will be performing a variety of pieces he composed, including a premiere commissioned especially for the Festival Choir.

Olivia's rash is doing much better. She is still itchy, but her skin isn't nearly as raw as it was even a week ago. The sweetie has been sleeping better, too, which has been a good thing for all three of us. :) Part of me wonders if the humidity coming this summer will do her some good!

Winter Blues

rash: any red eruption on the skin

staphylococcus: spherical Gram-positive parasitic bacteria that tend to form irregular colonies; some cause boils or septicemia or infections

balm: any of various aromatic resinous substances used for healing and soothing

ointment: semisolid preparation (usually containing a medicine) applied externally as a remedy or for soothing an irritation

Cephalexin: an oral cephalosporin commonly prescribe for mild to moderately severe infections of the skin or ears

discomfort: an uncomfortable feeling of mental painfulness or distress

sleep deprivation: a shortage of quality, undisturbed sleep that results in detrimental effects on physical and mental well-being; a chronic lack of sufficient restorative sleep

ongoing: present time that is perceived directly, not as a recollection or a speculation; often considered as a hyperplane in space-time, often called now, but it may also be viewed as a duration; continuing, permanent; presently or currently happening; being in progress; includes systematic monitoring and observation related to specific problems

oy vey: an exclamation of dismay or exasperation meaning "woe"

Birthday Bash

Today was the day of our "official" birthday celebration for Olivia. We invited family and friends to meet us at the winter Farmer's Market (indoors!) for a hot breakfast, cake and a fun time! Every week at the indoor market, a chef from a local restaurant works with local ingredients to create a yummy breakfast served to Farmer's Market customers. Today's featured chef was from L'Etoile, Madison's equivalent to Chez Panisse. YUM!

The three of us had a great time getting together with friends today. Thanks to everyone who came and helped to make it a special day! There were people from all different spokes of our life: family, old friends, new friends, coworkers, playgroup mommas and babies... We are truly blessed to have a supportive, nurturing network!

I ordered a half sheet cake from Lane's Bakery, and it was almost all gone by the time we left. Good job, everyone!

President Barack H. Obama

YEEEEEEHAWWWWW!!!!!!!

Happy First Birthday, Olivia!

Greetings, family and friends! I am so glad that Sean created a new post today, and I feel similarly inspired. It has been too long!

Olivia's birthday was Friday, and we had a blast. She gave Mom and Dad a real treat by sleeping in until 6:15a.m. It was amazing! The three of us woke up together, had a sweet interlude of cuddle and giggle time in bed, then Momma got pancakes going...mmm. A special breakfast treat for our sweet Boo. (With chocolate chips sneaked into Mom and Dad's!)

Daddy headed off to work, while O and I hit the play mat. I am sure O knew what a special day it was. She was running around, squealing and letting out little baby shrieks to her heart's content. I couldn't help but giggle, too. :) She was all about rocking on her rocking horse (a Christmas present from her fairy godmother!) like a cowgirl from the wild wild west. Yeeeee-haw!

O took a great nap so I could finish getting the house ready for our Friday Playgroup - which took on the form of O's birthday party on that particular Friday. After she woke up, I dressed Boo in her birthday outfit, complete with her presy from Mom and Dad: rainbow Baby Legs! I even put her Santa hair clip in her hair for the finishing touch. Soooo sweet!

The mommas and babies started arriving at around 11a.m. There were 12 of us by the time everyone had arrived, and it was a pretty wild party, I have to say. I served hot tea (it had snowed quite a bit the night before) and angel food cake that I made from scratch on Thursday night (I was told by a couple of mommas that it was the best angel food they had ever had!). The babies had a ball playing with all of the toys and getting into mischief! Olivia showed everyone how the rocking horse went, and turned her wagon (yeah, the one she used to need to walk) into a scooter. Momma is in trouuuuuble! :)

Daddy came home for lunch right about the time everyone was packing up to head out and put their sweet babes down for a (much-needed) afternoon nap. Boo was excited for the surprise of seeing him midday. It was another fun little interlude in our day, and Boo couldn't get down for an afternoon nap after all the excitement!

Which was okay in the long run because she got to spend more time with Grandpa Pete! (Poor sweet Gramsy was home sick in bed with the nasty bug Sean referenced in his post. We missed her so much!) Grandpa came with a card, present and a goofy smile that made O giggle. I took a few pictures of the two of them playing together: a little peek-a-boo, a little tickle monster and a lot of O running around squealing again!

We had a very fun day, and O was pretty wiped out by evening. Daddy did bath time with her and put her to bed, and she slept very soundly all evening.

Sean and I were able to look at the pictures taken by doula Stef at the hospital a year ago when Olivia was born. Wow, so much has happened in a year! We continue to be amazed at how fast she is growing up and how much she is learning every day. One year flew by, and I am sure the next year will feel equally as fast. The love we have for our little girl only grows as time passes, and I often catch myself for a moment to pause and wonder at this grand adventure I am on as a mother.

Happy Birthday, sweet Olivia!

What a month. What a year...

What a month we have had since the last post on our blog. Of course, there was Christmas and New Year. And, Olivia turned 1 two days ago, and what a year it has been! I love being Olivia's Dad, she is an amazing little person. So smart and funny and sweet, she really keeps us on our toes. Our family life is continuing to evolve in new and exciting directions; Lee is selling Mary Kay cosmetics, in addition to some singing oriented volunteering, and being an amazing Mama to our little Baby Boo. We continue to enjoy time at the farmers market, cooking, and movie night. Daddy is looking forward to spring (already? It's only 5 months away! What?!??), to get some family camping started.

Christmas was great with Olivia and the Franson Family. I will let the video do the talking here, it's at the bottom of this post. Enjoy!

New Years was a bit subdued, Olivia was quite sick, as was Lee, so we had a great meal at the Fran Ranch, and then it was pretty much home to bed. The cold, which more like half a flu, had all of us sick at one point. It was a hard week and a half, but we made it through and we are all feeling much better.

Olivia's Birthday was a blast. She and Lee hosted their play group, so there were five baby's and mommies (in addition to Lee and O) running around our apartment. I came home for lunch, and witnessed the end of the madness. Olivia has been very happy the last few days, seeming to revel in her milestone and the presents and attention she received.

Work is going very well for me, I received a promotion and will be helping management with a strategy to roll out Graphic Design services as a new offering to our clients.

In news of other families, our friends, Marshal and Christie Barker had their first child yesterday. His name is Everett Allen Barker. We just paid them a brief visit at the Hospital, and all are doing well. He is a big boy, at 9lbs 8oz, and super sweet!

Well, we will try to maintain the blog a bit better in the upcoming months. And be sure to check Olivia's photo album for some holiday/birthday shots. I am hoping to get them uploaded soon.

Love to all, and peace in the New Year.