Rocco is 2

Rocco turned 2 on August 1st. I just can't believe how much he has changed since I started this blog (see blog header) ! His birthday came and went without much hurrah. No party in southern Ca. this year.

His birthday landed on a Sunday this year, so the Friday before I bought him a ballon and a cupcake from the grocery store. (Yah, I went to an esteemed culinary school in New York City to be trained in baking, what?) Side story reads that I was more than 8 months pregnant and exhausted, had elephantitus in my ankles from swelling and pre-elephantitus in my thighs from eating too much sugar. Also my husband "just isn't that in to sugar", who do you think would have eaten ALL the cake? Anyways the balloon ended up in the sky by the evening and the cupcake got stuck in the garage fridge until Rocco and I pulled it out the following week to be eaten cold and stale. I DID sing Happy Birthday to him several times.

We also drove to Orlando the evening of his birthday and spent two days there pretending to be on vacation while Nick attended a work training seminar. Orlando in August alone with a 2 year old when you are super prego, what could be better? We killed time in Ikea, swam in the pool, ran the hallways of the hotel, and hung out at a giant gaudy McDonald's between check out time from the hotel and the time Nick was done with his seminar. Poor Rocco, I think he was happy though. Next year we will have a big party in Ca. with all his cousins and a big fancy cake, I promise.

Here are some things about Rocco at age 2:

He acquires a new word just about every day and mimics various movements we make. As I type he is watching Nick scratch his back and trying to scratch his own. My favorite current phrase is "me me" which means "excuse me", like what I say to him when I want him to get out of my way.

He enjoys calling "people" on the phone and has figured out how to check our messages and replay them 100 times. Also, if you call and hear heavy breathing, that is because he has recorded a new greeting.

He loves to wear hats and shoes but not clothes as much. He prefers his shark pajamas to any others.

He can open the fridge. He can climb over or open our gates. He can climb on or tries to climb on everything. He can lock and unlock doors.

He furrows his brow and makes a mad face then doesn't stop until I make the same face and say "What you talkin' bout Willis?"

He reviews his alphabet and numbers with Nick every night before bed.

He requests to listen to his "sic" (music) several times a day. He has a playlist on the Ipod which includes primary songs he knows from nursery at church. One of his current favorite songs is "The Wise Man Built His House Upon the Rock".

He likes to pretend with his favorite stuffed animal, Scout. He puts diapers on it, feeds it, puts it in the booster seat, puts his bike helmet on its head, and hugs and kisses it when it falls.

Signs Your Son May Need To Spend More Time With His Father

1. He tries to put on all manner of make-up.

2. He says "Cute!" when putting on his clothes.

3. He likes to wear clips in his hair.

4. (See below)

Pictures For Carlsbad

Due to an impending baby, we will be missing the annual Lake family Carlsbad vacation. It's a week of sand, surf, and sun (and Diet Coke). We are sorry to be missing this week of fun and family bonding. Although I'm sure the family wants Nick and me to be there, of course who they really wish was coming is Rocco. So, Papa and Grandma Joansies, here are some pics you can print off and hang on the Carlsbad fridge to pretend Rock'em is there with you.

Rocco's Rickshaw

Faux Easter

This was our real Easter. It included General Conference for our church with lots of background noise from Rocco and his toys, homemade bagels, gluten overload remorse,Rocco in play clothes and rain boots, a nauseated husband (new eye contact prescription), fruit snacks in plastic eggs, dead grass (can't wait for our patio!), and Rocco barfing before bedtime from being too wild.

This was our faux Easter. We had a beautiful brunch on our new patio. Rocco was dressed in his cute Easter outfit and did not get any dirt or food on his clothes all day. We listened to General Conference and Rocco did not make any noise. Nick felt wonderful. My house was clean all day. Later, our family came over for an Easter egg hunt in our lush grass. None of the children cried and they did not gorge themselves on candy or act so wild that they made themselves throw up.

Rocco Right Now

Rocco right now: is 20 months; insists on feeding himself and often ends up coated in food; says "wow, huh, geese, no, nana (banana), and mmmm what's that?"; seems to understand the threat of "you will get put in your crib if you don't stop screaming"; likes to brush his teeth; knows to fold his arms and close his eyes for praying; rips apart all his board books; still loves sticks and rocks.

Rocco right now: likes to put lotion on his face; is very responsive to any kind of music or beat; is starting to avoid vegetables but loves fruit; has a little friend across the street; has begun to recognize babies as being different, small, and cute; gives hugs and kisses.

Rocco right now: has become more attached to me lately and gets upset if I leave; can identify candy simply by the way it looks, even if he has never seen that kind before; likes to put his blanket over his head and walk around the house; wants to wear shoes (mine, his, or Nick's); can identify his nose, ears, and tushy; knows the sound of a Diet Coke 2 liter being opened.

Jacksonville Zoo

Recently we took Monsieur La Roche to the zoo. It's a nice zoo with a lot of animals, but I don't think he was that impressed. He was much more interested in the people than the animals. He didn't care about the new penguin exhibit, or when the lions wrestled and roared, or when the huge silverback gorilla ran by and pounded on the plastic viewing divide. The highlight of the day for him was when we happened upon some children playing hide and seek. He chased them around and followed them through the bushes and trees until I ruined his fun and retrieved him. It's a good thing for us there are always lots of children at zoos because we bought an annual pass.

Photo opp at the carousel!

Our Weekend (WARNING: May bore you to death if you are not a grandparent)

Here's a few pics from the VERY EXCITING moments of our weekend!

We worked in our garden this Saturday. It's our first one so we don't really know what we're doing and hope something besides weeds will grow. Rocco is very helpful digging in the dirt, holding worms, playing with the hose, and running around the yard screaming.

We went to church on Sunday of course. Rocco is in nursery while Nick and I co-teach an all boys primary class. We're told he only screams a little bit. After church Rocco decided to rub his pot roast and vegetables all over his head and Nick decided to let him. I couldn't quite capture the true reality of the gross factor, but I tried. If you look closely, you can see a chunk of meat in his ear.

Nothing better than a fresh babe, so Nick scrubbed Rocco before bed while I scrubbed the table and floor. THE END

Angry Rocco

This is the look I get when I don't let Rocco do something he wants to do like clean out the fridge, play with the computer wires, crawl around the garage, or play with my camera when I'm trying to take a picture of him. He's got a very good accusatory look going, don't you think?

Baking

Mmmmm....Black and White cookies. Ever had them? I had never heard of them until I moved to New York, and didn't start craving them until after living in South Florida. There are a lot of awful B&W's out there, but if you get a good one, it is hard to stop yourself from going back and taking another nibble time and again. A few weeks ago I decided to bake them myself since I no longer had easy access to that S. Florida bakery. They were very good and I just have to post a pic for Aunt Lisa, Muggs, and Grandma.

My recent baking project was a 50th Wedding Anniversary cake. It was for a great couple here in Jacksonville that are grandparents of the kids I used to nanny in Fort Lauderdale.

I made a white cake with a vanilla swiss buttercream and a ganache filling. I put a cursive Z on top (their initial) because I couldn't find a topper I liked. Why are toppers so cheesy?

The cake was served after a service at the synagogue and so it had to be kosher. This meant that I had to make it in the synagogue's dairy kitchen. They don't have much there as far as making cakes. They only had one 4 quart mixer from the 60's while I have two 6 quart Professionals (thank you Joansies) at home. It is quite a feat to make a cake, ganache, and buttercream for 100 people with one little mixer. I didn't even have a hand mixer for back up. There was a lot of mixing, transferring, cleaning and mixing again. I also didn't have access to my regular line up of cake tools because they were not kosher, so I had to really simplify the whole process as much as possible.

This picture doesn't capture how truly sad this little mixer was.

Is that my child sucking on a 22 lb bag of chocolate? Why yes it is, I guess some things are genetic! Several times a day, until I smartened up and moved the bag, Rocco would crawl over to this bag of chocolate, suck on the outside and cry.