Burdick's

Amy and I went to Harvard square and got some famous L.A. Burdick hot chocolate. I tried the white chocolate hot chocolate and Amy got the milk chocolate hot chocolate. They also have dark chocolate.

Chalky

Chacarero is Adam's most favorite place to eat lunch/dinner on the days he doesn't take his own. It is a Chilean place. It is in the financial district close to where he works. I am always jealous when I hear that he got a "chalky" for lunch.

They really only sell one main item besides a few sides. The main item is this delicious sandwich. The bread is a big, round, thin bun. Then they put an avocado paste on it, thin sliced beef or chicken, cheese, and they top it off with fresh green beans. You can also add some more spicy sauce as well, which is a must. They are so fantastic! I made sure to take Amy there. This place should be on Boston's top 10.

Vacuuming

Alex loves the vacuum. He has a few friends that have little vacuums and that is what he wants to play with when we visit them. We decided to get him one for Christmas. He is just practicing in this picture on Christmas day in the new robe that Amy gave him.

Aunt Amy

Amy came to visit us for Christmas. This was one of Alex's favorite things on Christmas day. He got all wrapped up in the scarves Amy and I received from our grandma and grabbed his new teddy bear and just wanted to sit on Amy's lap. He got to the point where Adam would say, "Alex look here is another present for you." Alex would just look over at him and stretch out his arm and hand and wait for Adam to bring it to him. He was acting like a king and was unwilling to relinquish his favorite seat.

Alex has had so much fun with Amy. He even shared some cracker.

Boots

Alex loves to play with Adam and my shoes. He just couldn't keep his feet out of some of our visitor's boots either. It was hilarious!

Jammin' out!

Hot Ticket Items

We had a really good Christmas. These are a few of Alex's gifts he received. He also received some new clothes, books, treats, and a few other things.

Christmas Eve

For Christmas Eve we had our neighbors from Nepal over for a little party to show them some popular American traditions. They invited us to their Christmas celebration back in October.
(Ankit, Carolyn, Adam, Aakrit, Kiran, Anu)




We gave them a stocking full of little gifts. We watched "The Light of Christ" dvd from the church. We had good food and made gingerbread houses. It was fun.

Our Little Tree

This year due to limited space we got a little tree. I decided to make a popcorn train to string on it. This reminds me of my Grandma McNabb. When I was still living at home we used to make popcorn trains for our trees and my Grandma would sit for hours working on it.

Pedicures

Paige taught Alex the luxury of a pedicure when she was here in November. When Adam or I are not available to give him one he has no problem taking care of it himself.

Children's Museum

We went to the Children's Museum in Boston today with some of Adam's coworkers and their children. This car was by far Alex's favorite thing. He sat in it for probably 45 minutes without getting out and just switched back and forth between steering the steering wheel and pushing one of the three buttons it had. It was one of the most basic toys/activities there and it was what Alex loved the most.



This was in the construction room at the museum. We are still trying to give Alex some farm background. Keith would be proud.

I remember when I was still in high school I was helping my dad build a decorative wall outside of a care center. Carl, Keith, and I did most of the work with my dad. Keith was only 11 years old and he first learned how to drive a little skid steer similar to the one in this picture while we were building the wall. He became the official driver on the job.

The Real First Word

About 6 months ago Adam and I were fed up with Alex screaming at us whenever he wanted/needed something. Since he wasn't talking yet we finally started to teach him sign language. He has quite a few signs under his belt now, most of which have to do with him needing something. For example - thirsty, food, milk, more, all done, etc. One that we have taught him in the last month is "please", which is signed by making a small circle motion with your hand on your chest. He signs please for everything; when he wants help opening a container, unzipping a bag, or wants a bite of something you are eating.

Tonight Adam was eating a cookie and Alex's eyes got all big and he started whining for some and Adam said, "can you say please?", which means "can you sign it?" Alex all of a sudden rubbed his chest and said out loud "beez." Adam and I just looked at each other thinking, "did he really just say that?" So we tried it again and by the time the peppermint oreo cookie was gone, he had said it four times. We cheered and clapped for him. He got a kick out of the applause. After he had ended his spell of politeness, he signaled for more applause, by maintaining a steady clap to keep us going. We are happy with his first word.

Girls

I am pretty sure that almost all of Alex's friends here in Boston are girls. Just to name a few: Clara, Kaija, Maia, Gabriella, and Abigail. This is Clara.

Never gets old

Have I mentioned he loves his passey?

Getting ready for the big game

Adam played in a turkey bowl game yesterday morning for Thanksgiving with some friends from the ward. While he was gone Alex was rummaging through the box full of sports equipment Adam had left out. When Adam got home he helped Alex lace up these ankle braces. Alex was so pleased.

-CS

Happy Thanksgiving

Alex really enjoyed the pie preparations this morning. We went to the Ragozzine's house for the feast today. They are so much fun to be around.

-CS

Everyone needs a passey . . . right?

Adam went to the gym the other day and while he was going through his bag in the locker room he found a pacifier in one of the side pockets. This of course brought a smile to his face.

Today when Adam was packing up his bag again to go to the gym Alex came running over to his bag and we saw him stuffing a pacifier in the side pocket. It was like he was saying, "I didn't want you to forget this". Alex has seen me numerous times sticking a pacifier in his diaper bag just as we are leaving the apartment. He was just doing the same for Adam.

It is interesting to me how much Alex still loves his pacifier. He always wants to have what we have but since we never use a pacifier it is curious how much he still wants his passey.

-CS

Just a sec

Adam was getting Alex ready to take a bath this morning. He had just taken off all Alex's clothes and diaper. He took him off the changing table to let him walk to the bathroom but at the last second Alex veered towards the living room. I saw him come running in and slip between the bookshelf and tv. I thought he was just trying to be funny by running from Adam naked. But within a second he squeezed back between the shelf and tv and was headed straight for the tub . . . but now with his passey stuffed in his mouth. He knew right where he had left it.

-CS

Mouse!

I am extremely scared of mice. It is quite ridiculous since I grew up on a farm and I saw them on a regular basis in our barn or garage. Even when I have tried to face my fear I have not been able to. I caught a mouse down in Paige's basement last summer on a sticky trap. It was stuck there completely helpless and I still had to go get Paige to come dispose of it. I also think I have had more one on one experiences with mice than most people.

This week when I was babysitting the Bullocks, Alex found a mouse! It was just a battery operated toy so I was able to keep myself in check but it still made me a little squeamish. I had turned it on and put it on the ground and it started scooting across the floor. At first Alex just stared at it, but as it headed for him he got a frightened look on his face and quickly backed away but could not take his eyes from it. Once it finally stopped and was turned off Alex was willing to pick it up and investigate it more closely. But when it was moving around he was not interested in the least. Hopefully he won't grow up scared of mice like me.



-CS

MFA

I went to the Museum of Fine Arts here in Boston with Megan. Both of us really enjoyed the dress collection. There were dresses that dated back to the early 1900's. Many of the dresses in the collection were worn by Audrey Hepburn and Barbra Streisand.

-CS

Visitor

Our friend Megan came to visit us last weekend. We met Megan through Adam's cousin Patrese. She is so fun to be around and Alex loved having her here. In the morning he would run up to her bed and cuddle up next to her. He doesn't even do that with Adam and me.

-CS

Thief

We went to Sur la table (a kitchen store) last weekend. As usual Alex was grabbing at everything he could get his hands on from his seat in the stroller. When we left he had a fit when he discovered we were not buying what he had been carrying around the store. However, we did not realize the lengths he was willing to go to, to get what he wanted. Adam found him sitting on about 10 of these scrapers when he took Alex out of his stroller to get in the car. We returned them today and the sales woman came and bent down to Alex's eye level and said, "You better watch it, I've got my eye on you". Hopefully that rattled Alex enough to not try that stunt again.





-CS

Nutella

I was first introduced to nutella after I married Adam. We were at a birthday party for one of the Sipherd cousins. The dessert was a white cake with nutella for the frosting. This is only one of the many ways we Sipherds eat nutella. I have conformed to the Sipherd's way and it has become a staple in our house. Alex had a snack of toast with nutella this afternoon and loved it.

-CS

Happy Meal

I did not plan well today as we left our apartment which resulted in Alex enjoying his first happy meal. There was no dollar menu at the McDonalds we went to and the happy meal was cheaper than a single item for Alex. I guess a little McDonalds every now and then can't be too bad!

-CS

New Friends

This is McKayla (Kaija). Alex and I babysit her along with her older sister once a week. Alex enjoys being around them although they are sometimes unsure how to take his very boisterous personality. They are both very calm, quiet, and easy going. Alex on the other hand, screams when excited or mad, gets in their faces to laugh when he thinks they are funny, and tries to crawl all over Kaya when she is trying to relax on the couch like he would Adam or me. But overall they have a pretty good time, especially when I pull out the goldfish!

-CS

Bird Watching

Alex loves to try to scale the wall so he can peek over the window sill to look for birds on the telephone wires and dogs in the park.



Alex loved that Mammi let him stand on the window sill to get a better view.

-CS

Mammi!

Paige came to visit us this week. I have enjoyed making Indian food with her, searching for official "Boston Baked Beans" pots, and just sitting around talking. Alex has loved having "Mammi" here as well. He has been enjoying personal manicures, wrestling, and his new dog sled hat.

-CS

The Little Lobster

For Halloween this year our neighbors let us borrow a lobster outfit which is very appropriate for being here in New England. After they gave us the costume Adam said he wanted Alex to be something that has a mustache like Zorro. But after much looking, I could not find anything suitable. We decided on a lobster, with a mustache! He stole the show at the trunk or treat and caught on quickly to the idea of walking up to people and getting candy from them. But he got very frustrated a few times when I stopped him from stealing candy from other children's buckets.

-CS

Making Stew

I gave Alex one of my wooden spatulas that I never use to play with. He now loves to fill one of his many containers with a few toys and stir them up like he is making stew.




...and of course he has to taste test it.

-CS

Favorite PJ's

We got these long-john pajamas from Jason and Kristy Huish as a baby shower gift before Alex was born. Adam is a strong believer in long-johns and was so excited when he saw them. They now fit Alex and they look so cute on him.

p.s. Adam thinks Alex looks like Zach Willis (Adam's cousin) in this picture.

-CS

This is my pal

Alex loves his dad and he loves homemade strawberry icecream! We pick Adam up at the train station everynight after work. Alex gets so excited when he sees Adam through the window walking towards the car. He has also realized that if he wants a sweet treat he just needs to find his dad.

-CS

Crème Brulée

Adam had creme brulee for the first time when he visited his Aunt Tenney in France when he was 18 years old. I have been hearing about how much he loves it for a LONG time. He did not have it again until this past year at Modern Pastry. I decided to try to make it this past weekend. It was a lot of fun to make and tasted delicious! The recipe we used was from one of Julia Child's cookbooks. I can hardly wait to make it again.

-CS

Indian Christmas

Our neighbors from Nepal invited us down today to celebrate Christmas with them. We were greeted into their apartment with the strong smell of incense and Indian music. We were decorated with a talika (not to be confused with a bindi) on our foreheads and special flowers that looked like long pieces of grass to put behind our ears and an apple slice, a wedge of coconut, and a $5.oo bill. The Christmas dinner consisted of goat, bamboo soup, lentils, rice, and spicy vegetables. For dessert we had plain yogurt with a gulab jamun on the side. We had fun experiencing new traditions.

-CS

Axey

This is Alex with his next door neighbor and best friend, Maia. She has started talking over the last few weeks. "Ax" (aka Alex) was her second word. It is very cute--other than the fact that she started saying it before he did (she's only one month older). Also worth noting, is this is how Big Alex used to say his name when he was little, which earned him the nickname, "Axey," along with all its derivatives.

-CS

Feeding the chickens

Price is Alex's oldest cousin on the Sipherd/Armstrong side. Price showed Alex the ropes on the farm including how to handle the animals, tractors, and hustle Papa for candy. What a good cousin!

-CS/AS

(Photo by Kari - Inkom, August 2010)

Where'd you get that mouth?!

Adam as a baby.


Alex at 1 year old.


Alex a few days ago at 16 months old.

When Alex eats, laughs, and cries his mouth opens up extremely big. It is funny to watch him eat because it looks like he is waiting for an extra large serving spoon, filled to the brim, to be put in his mouth. When in reality, it is a baby spoon, half full.

By the looks of it, he gets it from his dad.

-CS

Favorite Pastimes

Before we left Idaho in August, Paige made Alex some small, laminated animal pictures and cut a hole in the lid of a plastic container so that he could slip the picture through the slot. This invention was a life saver on the airplane and continues to be a favorite item many times a day.


Alex has been enjoying his new freedom on chairs with good books.


Alex has been very fascinated with containers and lids since earlier this year. In this particular picture he has an old, spice container and is switching between the green lid and the red lid. Every once in a while he screws the lid on too tight and comes screaming to me for assistance.

-CS