This Year's Garden

On Sunday Mark's dad showed us a shoebox that was passed down to him from his father. This box contained hundreds of seeds from various vegetables, all labeled and separated into different envelopes and baggies.

Mark's grandfather and great-grandfather had both saved these seeds from their favorite veggies that they had planted in their own gardens through the years. Some of the bags were labeled with a year, like '76 Stone Tomato' and '1984 Long Squash.' Others were labeled written in Italian, and we have yet to figure out what those seeds are.

We took a few home to see if we could bring them back to life for our own garden this year. If they re-germinate, I think it would be a pretty cool family tradition. We'll keep you posted!

Product Recalls: Another One Bites the Dust

When I was checking items for recalls before Aubrina was born, I came a cross the Consumer Product Safety Commission's website. They are a government agency that monitors product recalls daily, and you can sign up to be notified by email whenever a recall occurs. I signed up back in August and have received an email almost every day with new product recalls. That might sound like a lot of emails, but I've found it to be very valuable.

For example, yesterday's list included a crib toy that we received at our baby shower.



But they don't only monitor baby items. Today's list included fire extinguishers that fail to operate. I checked all of ours and they were not included in the recall.

The CPSC always includes pictures and detailed instructions to find out if the product you have is included in the recall. They also give instructions on how to contact the manufacturer for a refund, replacement, or how to fix the item.

The items that we've had recalled in the past 6 months are: a crib, baby bjorn, crib toy, and a circular saw.

The scariest was probably our original bassinet.



They also send out safety announcements and information on new laws. We have a lot of friends and family that have pools, so we found this Pool And Spa Safety Law update really helpful.

For all you parents out there, I highly recommend signing up at the CPSC website.

First few days of School

Today is Aubrina's third day of school (We're calling it 'school' now instead of 'daycare' because that's what it really is :)

She has been having so much fun and has activities all day to keep her busy. Yesterday she went to the art studio to learn about movement and texture. They played with mobiles and touched a bumpy mural, which some of the older kids made. Each day the teachers take pictures so that they can document the kids' progress, as well as share with the parents what they do all day.

I feel very lucky because I've been able to spend time at school with Aubrina to create a gradual transition. The teachers still do most of the work, but I'm able to answer questions about Aubrina's routines and play from time to time. This way Aubrina is able to build trust with her teachers and other kids while I'm there so that she feels safer. I've been leaving for gradually longer periods each day to get used to saying goodbye. I'm not sure if it makes much of a difference to her, but it sure makes a difference for me!

Here is a video and pictures of Aubrina's first days.





Gazing at a picture of Daddy.


Reading with Jordana.


Learning about art with Valerie.


Aubrina's favorite toys right now - her feet!