Leadership Duluth -- part 2

In my email box this morning was this awesome picture of the day we spent at the 148th Fighter Wing. We got to see their hanger and jets up close, including take-offs. You know it's gonna be cool when you have to pass a background inspection and go through security checks ahead of time...

Leadership Duluth

Usually this blog is all about the kids, family, garden, and living in the woods. But there is a whole 'nother side of my life that I step into around 8:00 a.m., Monday through Friday. I drive to the city, make my way to City Hall, and spend my day immersed in matters of zoning and land use, of economic development and neighborhood planning, streets and trails. I love being among the first to know of new developments in town. I love brainstorming how we can make Duluth even better. And I love meeting people who live and work here.

The Duluth Chamber of Commerce runs a program called Leadership Duluth, a year-long class where participants engage in Duluth's history, economy, government, and industries to learn what makes this city tick ... and to meet new people and do a little bit of good along the way.

In June 2012, I submitted my application, with the goal of networking with other leaders and gaining knowledge that would help the City in our planning efforts. The Class of 2013 began meeting in August of last year, and "graduated" last month. We met all day once a month. It was an informative, engaging, FUN experience; I wish every citizen could take part in this experience not just for the wealth of information but for how invested you feel in the community.

The program hired a photographer

to do head shots of everyone

For our service project, I joined a group that decided to do a Diaper Drive for the food shelf at CHUM. It was challenging since we had to do it while I was on maternity leave, but I was proud of ourselves for raising over 16,000 diapers! It reminded me of all the service projects we used to do in Girl Scouts, or while working at SRF.

The day we dropped off the diapers and cash donations. We had to bring two-month-old

Alex with us, so you can see him in my arms!

I had expected the program to focus on hard "leadership" skills like networking, professional speaking, how to manage people and budgets. One of the biggest lessons, though, was that leadership is about serving others, be it your staff or community. Now that the program is over, my challenge is to stay connected to my classmates and the Chamber, and find a way to continue in community service.

first solid food

This picture was actually taken about three weeks ago, the night we first gave Alex oatmeal.

This kid had been seriously dying for solid food. He would sit in my lap and watch me eat ... his head would move back and forth, back and forth, as I moved my fork to my mouth. After a few weeks of never taking his eyes off the fork, he started making these little half-crying noises when the fork bypassed him and went to Mommy's mouth. With every bite, I heard, "eh eh eh!" "eh eh eh!"

So, to Target I went for oatmeal. And he loved it from the first bite. The instructions on the box suggest mixing it with breast milk for their first meal, and adding a lot of liquid. Nah, not for Alex. He needed no encouragement, and refused to stop at just the one tablespoon they recommended. We are all surprised at how much food a tiny little kid can pack away. Now he is sitting up in his high chair, acting like a baby bird as he opens his mouth and dives at the spoon. He is pretty impatient and insists on constant shoveling ... just keep that nummy food coming, Mommy! And as you can see -- he is already reaching for the spoon, wishing he could feed himself!

Happy Birthday Alex!

Half birthday, actually. My little boy is SIX MONTHS OLD today!

To mark the occasion, he got an awesome gift. The orthopedist this morning declared his feet "perfect" and said he now only has to wear his brace for naps and bedtime. Yay for free feet, especially in this beautiful summertime weather.

I really should have taken a picture of those cute feet, but instead I snapped this picture of the stickers on V's legs (the doctor offered her stickers):



And this one of A-man with his curly, frizzy hair (thanks, humidity), playing with the backing of V's stickers. It crinkled and made awesome noises!

A little bit about Alex at six months:

• He rocks at sitting up. He can sit and play for long periods by himself without falling over. 
• He still loves playing on the floor, mainly on his tummy or rolling around
• His other favorite place to hang out is sitting on someone's lap, watching whatever is going on
• He really likes playing with his toes (and now will get to do it even more!)
• He LOVES his oatmeal and last week we introduced him to other baby foods. Both the pears and mango were met with questioning faces, but he eventually decided to keep chowing. This kid loves food.
• Not such a big fan of formula, though. The stash of frozen breast milk is gone, so every day he gets a little formula at daycare to supplement. Lou reports that he may have an ounce or two before deciding it isn't tasty enough to continue.
• He has been a really good sleeper, lately, sleeping til 4:00 or 5:00 a.m. At that point I feed him and he goes right back to sleep.
• He loves kisses and being raised up in the air.
• Strangers can be scary.
• His favorite toy is his crinkly fabric book.
• He's getting much better at riding in the car, no longer crying when the car stops! He is pretty happy playing with toys, watching his sister or the trees out the window, or taking a little nap.

Love our little man!

hanging out at home

over the rainbow again

Matt's photo of the rainbow from a couple weeks ago ...

perfect summer night

An impromptu invitation to my parents', Adam and Megan came too so the whole family was there including all the pups, with a fire and roasted hot dogs and s'mores, fresh watermelon and gin and tonics, perfect temps and lots of laughter and silliness topped off with some fireworks ... heaven ...

4th fun

A small town parade (with candy! lots of candy!), pony rides, big fire trucks, and grilling burgers on the deck ... it just doesn't get any better than this.

Daddy was a big help getting candy, especially when all the big kids wouldn't share

Alex loved watching everything ... but only from Grandma's lap.

 

After the parade, the fire department had an open house

One of V's favorite day care friends, Alex (known as "big Alex" now that a second Alex has been added),

gave us a personal tour of the big trucks 

Alex and Mommy grabbed some shade to play while Daddy and sister waited for the pony rides. 

her first canoe trip

All winter and spring, V had been talking about the beavers. She had never seen one, but she knew they live in our river. She knew that Daddy had seen them, that they have a house not far away, and that Daddy had promised to take her in the canoe some day to see them. And in the middle of winter, who wouldn't dream of a canoe trip down the river?

The day finally arrived. She broke out her brand new life jacket. Insisted on wearing her rain boots. And tromped off beside Daddy.

here is the beaver house!

I sure wish I had videotaped V when they were done and she came back up the hill. I walked out on the deck to see how it had gone. When she saw me, she started talking so excitedly: "Mommy! The beaver house! We just saw it out on the river. You have to get your shoes on and go with Daddy, and go in the canoe, and go see the beaver house!"

It was one of those moments I am glad we are raising our kids in the woods.

12 things we've been doing

1. Going to doctor appointments

They are tiring!

2. Playing play-doh

"This is a beaver!"

I can't remember what this creation was

3. Buying diapers

Lots and lots and lots ...

4. Sharing dinner

V loves having Alex sit by her. I think the feeling is mutual.

5. Cutting down trees

Three trees were dying and threatening the house. My dad and brother came to help. And came up with some genius ideas to ensure thee trees would land exactly where they wanted them!

Here is a video of one of the trees falling ...

6. Enjoying our flowers

I planted these just last year and they have grown so much. 

7. Impromptu family reunions

We went to L&M and saw my aunt Janet and 30 seconds later my uncle Roger walked up!

I LOVE SMALL TOWNS. 

8. Painting our toenails

9. Jumping

Video of V jumping down our living room steps. This was the favorite activity for a whole morning. 

10. Baths

Love this new bath seat.

11. Walking

The kids and I walked the lake walk.

12. Playing in water

At Grandma and Grandpa's

Cuter than the dog

But those camo pants sure make him tough. 

"looking good"

I actually typed the below note last Thursday ... and forgot to hit "publish" ... so here it is, a few days late!

That's what our orthopedist said at today's appointment. After a month with the brace, the feet are holding a good position and showing no signs of stiffening. What does this mean? If he can keep it up for another month, he will be able to have the brace off while awake!

Someone asked me today if they need to adjust the brace like they do braces on your teeth. Many people have had braces to straighten teeth and are accustomed to the regular tightening--and to wearing a retainer afterwards to keep their teeth in position. Well, I explained that in this situation, the casts are like braces (regular adjustments to move into correct position) and the leg brace is like a retainer (holds in position, no adjustments). As Alex grows he will occasionally need a new brace just to accommodate growing feet. But other than that, no correction is necessary.

over the rainbow

I have a lot more pictures and stories from last weekend yet to come, but in the meantime I thought I would share this beautiful double rainbow we had last week. These pictures really don't do it justice. It was vibrant and gorgeous, stretching fully from end to end. I was so excited I ran downstairs to get V and bring her outside to see the rainbow! The bottom rainbow had something I have never seen before: the green/blue/indigo spectrum was repeated twice. I don't think you can tell in the pictures, but with the naked eye you could clearly see a double band along the bottom. Very cool.