Friday, April 19, 2013

Gustafer Yellowgold Live!


A few weeks ago, we had the pleasure of seeing GustaferYellowgold perform at Jammin Java. At almost 2 years old, this was Orion’s first concert. I wasn't sure if he would be too young to enjoy the show but this doubt soon turned out to be unfunded even though he did seem to be the youngest of the mobile babies (there were one or two infants).  We paid $39 total for 3 tickets and then I spent $20 on a plush Gustafer and a plush Slim the Eel and it was worth every penny.

When we arrived, Orion was asleep in the car so we hung out in the parking.  Doors opened at 10am with the show starting at 10:30am.  I have been to many a show and know they never start on time. We woke him up at 10:30 and went inside.  I had never been to Jammin Java before which has a coffee shop up front with tables and benches taking up about ¼ of the space.  Behind a heavy curtain is a large room with chairs, a stage, a small merch nook, and an area with table and chairs.  Orion wanted to explore and quickly decided that up front climbing on the benches was the place to be.

I noticed the merch area and the plush dolls which I never knew existed.  Even though I was very much in the not going to buy Orion anything because his birthday is coming up, I had to buy him a Gustafer and then Slim looked so cute, so done and done.  Orion was happy to hold his new friends, one for each hand.  It wasn't until the gentleman who sold me the toys got on stage that I realized he was Gustafer, Morgan Taylor.


Orion wanted to explore and ended up climbing the stairs all the way to the top to say hello to Jimi. The show was about to start and I did not want to miss anything. The last two rows were empty and some tables as well, there was also space to sit on the floor in front of the stage.  Patrick took a seat in the back, I attempted to get Orion to sit on the floor with me but he would not be contained.  When the music started it seemed to startle Orion.  He sought comfort in his father’s lap clutching his new friends until he figured out what was going on.  This made quite a cute sight!


I have lost a bit of hearing during my early concert going years and have a hard time hearing a person if they are not facing me.  The volume was not too loud and the sound was really quite good.  I have to say I think he sounded better live that day than when we listen to him on Pandora.  I really like his voice and you could hear the texture it had, good job sound guys!  The music is mellow and he asked who was “ready to soft rock” which I thought was very cute.

One reason I thought Orion would enjoy the show aside from his love of music and dance is that Morgan Taylor is an illustrator and all of the songs have very cute illustrated videos.  Orion loves TV almost as much as he father does and if a TV is on he will usually watch it. We have watched the Mellow Fever DVD a few times (checked out from our local library!) and it has held his interest.


The music is very cute and sweet with a great sense of humor. Mr. Taylor did a great job interacting with the crowd, asking questions, waiting for replies, telling little anecdotes, and even did a live commercial for eel chow (so cute!).  It did not take very long for Orion to warm up and climb down from daddy’s lap.  He started to walk closer to the stage and then I was able to sit on the floor with him in my lap.  Eventually he got out of my lap and stood closer to the stage and danced a bit.  He also wanted to explore the cables on stage and the tall tripod with the projector on top.  Thankfully is was easy to redirect him away from these things and he did not cry about it.  He was the only kid who wanted to explore these items, I was amazed by how good everyone acted!


The show was about 45 minutes (or so) which was about the perfect length as lunch time was fast approaching.  Mr. Taylor raffled off an original handmade GY drawing which yours truly won!  Which Orion immediately creased and I still need to get framed.  Orion seemed very energized after the show and since the place was emptying out, I let him run around. I wanted to get a picture with Mr. Taylor and wanted to wait for the line to be nonexistent.  He was really nice about getting a picture and apologized for butchering my name and Orion’s when he announced the raffle winner. 


It really was a wonderful outing which I highly recommend.  Orion might be too young to remember this outing but I will and we have pictures to prove it! He is playing tomorrow in McLean but we will not make it because we have the great Cloth Diaper Change and I do not want to come off as a Gustafer Groupie (even though I am).  I hope we get to see him again when Orion is a bit older and might remember the experience.  Now I really need to own all 5 of their DVD/CDs which might become my standard birthday gift for a while.     

Thursday, April 18, 2013

A good day of nothing much


Today was a good day. Nothing special happened, nothing exciting, and actually it was pretty boring. But I felt good today, I had energy and managed to get a few things done. I got an undisturbed night’s sleep last night which may be responsible for my good feelings. It was one of those days where I was all “OMG, almost 3pm already!” instead of “Blarg, it’s not even 3pm yet?”.   As I write this, my husband is attempting to get our son to sleep (after I spent about 50 minutes nursing him), so I might be a bit premature in saying that today was a good day.

This morning we woke up around 6:30 and I made French toast for breakfast as that is the only way Orion will eat eggs.  I folded laundry while he watched Sesame Street, there was a lot of it and baby laundry takes forever to fold. By the time that was done and I was washed and dressed, Sesame Street was over.  We headed out just after 9am to run a few errands. While getting on 28, I noticed a fox in a patch of woods along the highway. I saw a fox in this same spot a few days ago so I will assume it is the same one. I shall name it Fanny (after Fantastic Mr. Fox). I know where he lives and am thinking about bringing him a snack. If I see him again I will stop and take a picture.

We went to Joann Fabrics so I could pick up a few things. I need to finish Orion’s 2nd year photo album before his birthday next week. I also needed to fix a necklace he broke which I was able to do while still in the store. I forgot to buy elastic for the birthday party masks. I also avoided all the fabric because the last thing I need to do is buy more fabric. I didn't save as much money with my coupons as I had hoped (always seems that way).  But Orion was a very good boy while we were in the store.

So I decided to push my luck and hit up Ross in the hopes of finding some shoes for Orion.  Didn't see anything I liked but picked him up a pack of 2 no spill snack cups to replace the one we have which is so stiff I can hardly get anything out of it.  I also got him a puzzle because I am a sucker and it had sprockets on it with construction vehicles. With his birthday being next week I might return it, we shall see. I keep saying that I am not going to buy him anything else and then I go and buy him something.  (Our recent trip to Ikea was 80% stuff for Orion which he didn't technically need but….) Since I was already at Ross I figured I would try to find some pants because nothing seems to fit anymore, found nothing.  Then I went looking for new dress to wear at Orion’s party. (Why is it I feel like I can only wear a dress once for a special occasion?)  I headed into the changing room with 8 items and was only able to try on half of them because Orion was pitching a fit.  He finished all his little cremes, did not want his chips, and ate half the pouch I brought. The good news is I did find one dress that I really liked for $16 and we did manage to make it to the check out.

On the drive home while listening to Das Pop, Orion fell asleep. I pulled in our driveway, rolled down 3 windows and read in the car while he slept.  He has had a little cold with a runny nose and congestion so he did wake up coughing a few times but slept for almost an hour.  During that time I was able to read and am less than 200 pages away from finishing A Dance With Dragons.  I want to hurry up and finish the book to see what happens but I also want to read just one page a day so the next book might be written and available before I finish this one.

We went inside and I made lunch. Brazilian beans and rice for Orion, I had potato salad and mashed up those same beans with chèvre and guacamole.  I enjoyed my lunch while Orion did not eat a single bite. He did play with it and dumped his plate all over the table.  I gave him a popcake which is like a rice cake but taste more like nothing with a whiff of blueberry cinnamon. It pretends to be food but I had picked them up a few days ago while shopping so he could snack on something after he dumped all his snack in aisle 8.

After lunch……we….what did we do? We played, I did the dishes, and he watched an episode of Yo Gabba Gabba.  We listened to some music, we danced.  About an hour or so after lunch I made a smoothie with carrot juice, coconut water, lemon juice, blueberries, strawberries, pineapple, and mango. It was a bit hot and humid but not so bad that I had to turn on the air conditioner so I wanted something cold to cool off.  Orion and I shared it, he seems to be on a juice fast these days. Then we went outside and played in the backyard with the dogs.  

I played fetch with Fizgig while I walked around on poop patrol.  Orion ran around and played with his soccer ball.  I blew some bubbles for him much to his delight. Then suddenly he had his head stuck between 2 posts of the railing on our deck.  I had to help get his head free and then he had a bit of a cry. He attempted to stick his head in that same spot a few more times and got very upset when I thwarted these dreams.  (Update: Orion finally seems to be asleep after an hour and 25 minutes of almost being asleep!)

We needed a change of scenery so I took Orion outside in his Joovy tricycle and put the dogs on leashes so we could all go for a walk.  We did not get far.  Orion likes to drag his feet and was wearing new fake clogs (bought earlier at Joann) which I worried he would ruin.  We made it down the street, which took forever.  The dogs seemed happy to be out to mark their territory and there was a nice breeze.  No one seemed too upset when I turned back for home.

Back inside the fun and games continued. I gave Orion a little green machine smoothie because I knew he would drink it all down.  Then I set him up to put some foam stickers on paper which I was excited about but he only wanted to eat them. When I wouldn't let him eat them and he couldn't take the stickers off the paper once they were stuck on, he cried so that came to an end.  We read a few stories while he sat in my lap.  We got a bunch of new books from my super sweet Aunt and he only wanted to read the new books, none of his old favorites.

Then it was time to cook dinner.  I put on an episode of Yo Gabba Gabba and got to mincing shallots.  Next thing I know Orion is trying to climb up on the dog food bin.  He does this, a lot. This is why all of our chairs live in the laundry room until they are needed along with his art stool.  He likes to carry that stool around so he can get into trouble anywhere he wants.  So I had to strap him into his highchair.  I finished cooking (Soba noodles with shrimp and sugar snap peas) just a few minutes after Patrick walked in the door.



It felt nice to sit down to a yummy dinner (and a glass of wine) and be finished well before 6pm.  Orion was offered what we’re eating and a bowl of yogurt.  He likes to eat yogurt with his hands so dinner is usually messy but tonight he managed to keep his hair yogurt free so I call that a win.  Then I offered Orion a popcake and Patrick ate one too and was disappointed as they smell way better than they taste. Patrick and Orion played while I feed the dogs. Orion did manage to eat a piece of dog kibble, I bet if I served him dog food for dinner he would eat it up. They all went outside so I could empty the dishwasher without Orion trying to climb on the dishwasher door or wiggle between my legs to come between me and the counter to push me away from the dishes.  I washed the dishes and then it was time for Patrick to get Orion ready for bed.  (I would actually love to do the dishes every night just to do something without Orion.) 

Bedtime took forever but we only nursed 3 times today for about an hour and a half total which I see as a very big win. I do hope the end of nursing is in sight.  It was fun while it lasted but he is such a big boy and it will be getting too hot to have a little heater all up on me. I also did not get done all the things that need doing.  I managed to put away Orion's clothes but not my own. I am also in the midst of packing up outgrown clothes, switching over to summer clothes, and getting rid of all the things which no longer fit.  

Dude, I am exhausted but it was a good day even though nothing really happened  We all survived, nothing blew up, and I saw the universe in the swirly carrot colored curls on the back of my sons head.  This little days matter as much as the big days out. I was there for my family today and they were there for me, we all felt loved and that we matter.

Epilogue: Just a bit before 9 I put a pin in writing this to watched SNL and was in bed just after 10. I have now spent close to two hours writing this post.  Orion ended up waking up around 9:30 so we saline sprayed his nose (which he hates, he used to lean forward to put his nose on the nozzle) and we nursed for about 15 minutes. Then he woke up again around 1:30 we nursed for about 15 minutes. It is now 7:13am and it sounds like he might be waking up, I hear him coughing but no crying. Shame I did not wake up a bit sooner so I could get a cup of coffee in me before baby wrangling.  But I was sleepy, and so starts another day…