Nora Evelyn

The title is, of course, an allusion to a classic of American filmmaking and not meant to be an indication that anything exciting happens in this video. :) Nora totally gets the basic objectives of the game ‘catch’ now (even if the motor routines required to support it (like suppressing giggles while the ball is coming) are not quite there yet).

She definitely could play for Michigan’s football team with the skills she demonstrates here (at least as kicker).

Nora and I made some amazingly delicious soft pretzels a couple of weeks ago (not pictured because we ate them too quickly to photograph them). Here are some shots Jen caught of the kneading and shaping part of the process.

There’s a risk this post will sound too much like I’m bragging. I guess maybe I am, but the real point is to put it somewhere that I (and, much more importantly, Nora) will find it again someday. Nora’s favorite question is now, “Why?”

It had to happen some time and, if her parents are any indication, we’re in for a whole lot of “why?” (much of it snarky) over the next few decades.

Many of these current “why?” questions are excruciating and unanswerable (“why is paint?”) or bizarre (“why are these my shoes?”). I thought I had her when she said, “Daddy, why are you?” and I said, “I am because I think, love.” But, without pausing, she put Descartes to shame, “why do you think?”. Drat. She’s too smart for me already. In a related question answering session she asked me, “what is the opposite of you?” and I told her, “a lawyer.”

This weekend we were at the grocery store and, in the checkout lane, she asks, “Daddy, why is there summer and winter?” I thought, “ah ha!! I know this one, I can totally do this.” So I explained that the Earth is a giant ball that spins every day. The spinning is what we call day and night, but the axis of this spinning is tilted with respect to the plane of our orbit around the Sun (demonstrates with convenient apple and stem). The result is that one part of the planet gets more sunlight, more directly, and for longer periods of time every day than other parts. Which part this is changes progressively throughout the year and this causes the seasons. I explained, for example, that this summer when it was hot and sunny here her friend Salomé was experiencing winter in Bolivia.

Now I don’t expect a nearly 3 year old to get most of this. I give full answers to questions because I like to and because I want her to feel loved and respected or some junk; she seems to eat it up and it’s crazy fun trying to explain the ecliptic to a toddler. At the end of my explanation she did the little nod that she often does, but the man in front of us in line, whom I had not noticed was listening, gave a very thoughtful and pleased “huh!” with intonation that said, “so THAT’s how that works.”

Public service accomplished. :)

Recently (not sure when) our photo management software lost its mind and started putting new pictures in seemingly random folders. While sorting through the mess this evening I found a whole bunch of pictures we haven’t posted yet. I’ll be posting these over the next few days. Here are some pictures from a visit to Granny’s nearly 2 weeks ago*.

* anyone upset about the infrequent and erratic updates is eligible for a full refund of their purchase price. Just click the large, red “I would like to complain” button below.

I forgot to post this here back in August. Nora found it earlier today, though, and laughed so hard she literally ended up rolling around on the floor holding her belly. Not shown, Nora tracing an unsteady parabola away from the spinny chair as she tries to run a straight line to the swings. :)

Shortly before the school year started back up in earnest, Nora and I made our first ever attempt at a father/daughter camping trip. Her Uncle Brien (not to be confused with her Uncle Brian or her cousin Brien or her deceased grandfather Brian or her new little cousin Briahna) outfitted us with tent, fly, ground cloth, stove, axe(!), and self-inflating pad. Mother Nature outfitted us with near 100% humidity and scattered thunderstorms.

We had a lovely drive with much duet singing of Beatles songs, Nora loved putting up and playing in the tent, our beloved umbrella went kaput, we saw wild turkeys, we heard wild turkeys, we endured the drunken festivities of Ted Nugent fans drunk out of their minds (presumably on Wild Turkey) and undeterred by either bedtime or torrential rain. We shared a damp, exhausted late night drive home through the rain to warm towels and the comfort of our own beds. On the way home Nora said, “I bad at camping, Daddy.”

Not true, little one, you did great. We’ll definitely try again next summer.

What could be more fun than playing with bubbles on a warm summer afternoon? [ as always, click for large version and occasional easter egg ]

There are few things I consider a greater waste of time and resources than lawn maintenance. I haven’t gotten around to a better solution yet, though, so every once in a while I’m forced to break out the old CMM1000 electric mower, get it working again, and mow all of the various plants to a more or less uniform height. This month, Nora decided to help but I’m not a big fan of rushing to the emergency room so I let her help by being carried around the yard and giving me directions.

One of Nora’s favorite things right now (and we’ll love every second of it while it lasts) is to be helpful around the house. Last night she helped me make dinner (cornbread, steamed green beans, and sandwiches). We cut and scraped the kernels off some leftover grilled corn from Sunday’s dinner and followed this recipe modified from Mark Bittman:

Ingredients

2 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 cups medium-grind cornmeal
1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder (no aluminum)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
kernels from 2 ears of grilled corn
2 eggs
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1 1/4 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla

Method

1. put the butter in a 10″ cast iron skillet, stick it in the oven, and preheat to 375ºF (190ºC)
2. combine the dry stuff
3. combine the wet stuff in a separate bowl (yes, this includes the sugar and corn)
4. combine wet and dry gingerly and without too much fuss about lumps
5. bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown and delicious

Photos

Tonight at bedtime I was singing Nora the Pogues’ “Dirty Old Town*” when, about halfway through, she said to me: “Shane MacGowan. Shane MacGowan.” *pause* “I Nora McGowan. Shane MacGowan. I Nora McGowan.”

“Yes, dear,” says I, “but your teeth will last longer.”

* yes, I often sing Pogues songs as lullabies. “Waxies Dargle” is a particularly fun one as is Behan’s “The Auld Triangle.” The song leading into “Dirty Old Town” tonight was Men at Work’s “Overkill.”