Sunday afternoon in the park

Except it was Thursday, and at sunset.

We met at The Park at Lakeshore East for the last "Movie in the Park" this summer. The setting was incredible––the soaring condo buildings of downtown flanking a perfectly manicured green space. In my opinion, Lakeshore East is quite possibly the most beautiful, serene city park in all of Chicago. And that's a tall order as there are almost 600 parks around town! 

The weekend, succinctly

Max had a couple new food experiences this weekend. Now that we're on this baby-lead weaning approach, he pretty much gets whatever we're having. And we had Moroccan and Chinese this past weekend... so... it was interesting. And challenging. 

Our local Moroccan place is where The Fella and I had dinner the night we found out the gender, over a year ago! We had had my ultrasound earlier that day, then tucked the results into an envelope to take to a celebratory dinner. 

Random baby snaps { + videos } . . .

Just some cute pics of my baby boy . . . happy Tuesday!

{ Max the bodybuilder –– 9.5 months }

Be the change you want to see in the world

Baby Max seems to be on speed these days. At 10 months, he's all walk, walk, walk instead of crawl, crawl, crawl. This milestone requires a lot more of Mommy's attention, naturally. And a lot more bumps on his head along the way. But the look of determination––followed by satisfaction––on his face is just priceless.

Butt nekkid

Running loose, just before a bath!

Busted!

 

Sunday supper: Lamb Ragu

I saw a few leaves today that had turned color already. It's only the end of August, but that means fall is near. I love, love, love fall in Chicago and I'm happy to experience it for the last time before we pack our lives up and head to D.C. at October's end. You know what fall weather calls for... my favorite hearty Lamb Ragu. Try it, you'll like it.

Max's first sushi experience

I've been forced to start Max on baby-led weaning, which is basically the lazy way of giving your baby solids––he feeds himself and eats whatever you're eating. Simple as that. Only he misses his mouth most of the time and the food falls out. So... not so simple, is it! I guess he's decided he's a big boy now because he's all of a sudden refusing to be spoon-fed a few weeks ago (so glad I just made large batches of several purees in the freezer!). 

 
^^This is Max, refusing tofu and other bits of garnish from our sushi plate at a Japanese restaurant in the neighborhood. But not the fried calamari, no, this he likes.

Last weekend, succinctly

Catching up on last weekend––it included a spontaneous shopping trip downtown during the Air & Sea Show with a girlfriend and her son, who is 10 days older than Baby Max. 

Picnic in the backyard { + Video }

And by "backyard," I mean the city park a couple blocks away.

It has a softball field, dog park, community pool, infant splash ground, and lots of wide open spaces to spread out on. We've been taking advantage of the waning days of summer in the city before our big move in the fall, spending as much time as possible outdoors. Just the day before, our little family––dog included––stretched out at the park across the street before Max's bedtime. 

The weekend, succinctly

We stopped by the neighborhood block party over the weekend just before Max's bedtime. It was a perfect, sunny day after a night of tornado warnings. We ate homemade food like Smoked Gouda Mac 'N Cheese and Bread Pudding with Bourbon Glaze that was entered in the potluck competition and caught up with our friendly neighbors. I wish Max was old enough to bounce around in the bounce house––it looked so fun, I wanted in! 

The weekend, succinctly

{ Longman & Eagle offers good fancy food/drinks, cheap rooms for rent. Sure, why not? }

Following up a fun girls night out during the week involving oysters and dinner inside an old bank vault and new hair, basically my weekend revolved around insanely delicious food with friends via a BBQ at home, then brunch at a newly discovered, neighborhood spot off the beaten path. Oh, and the two-hour wait with a friend in from NYC at the ever popular Longman & Eagle was well worth it for the Crispy Porchetta alone (although the Soft Shell Crab with Soy-Caramel Glaze was pretty amazing, too). 

Happy Sunday!

And for my next act . . . 

Timber!

Las Palmas

It's one of those neighborhood gems. I suppose that's just reason no. 132 why I love this city so much––there are a trillion little (and big) gems like this one tucked away in random corners or streets. Las Palmas is close enough to a Topolobampo but without the prices. If you can believe it, it's fine Mexican food in an easy, sunlit atmosphere and it's right in my neighborhood, just a skip-hop away. 

Baby Max, 9 months + Video

Baby Max turned 9 months about two weeks ago. We went to his 9 month wellness checkup, where the pediatrician weighed and measured him (10th percentile at 17lbs 13oz and 10th percentile at 27.5in), then asked a series of questions about his development:

Does he sit up unsupported? Yes.  
Does he pull himself to sit position? No.  
Does he crawl? No.
Does he have a pincer grasp yet? I don't know. 
Does he eat finger foods yet? No.  
Does he eat meat yet? Um, no. I was waiting for this appointment to ask if it was okay.

I felt like I was being a bit judged for not feeding him enough, or something, as she made some scribbles in his chart. Just a bit.