Progress...

Progress...Lately Clancy has been learning a lot of new things. We have been going to story time at the library, and we've learned some fun new songs. He loves to do the actions to head shoulders knees and toes, and now he actually points to his head, toes, eyes, and ears. We still have shoulders, knees, mouth and nose to get down, but hey, it's progress. He also likes a song called open, shut them which involves clapping, creepy crawling, and tickling. We are trying to record him singing these songs, but have not yet convinced him to perform in front of the camera...hopefully soon.

He is also saying a lot of new words:

ball, duck, head, toes, shoes, eye, banana, apple, mama, dada, out, outside, star, pop (popcorn)

snack snack (nana), dog, don't touch it, sit down, all done, books, baa (sheep), Jesus, desert, waa, (Chinese for wow), wo (like in the scriptures, wo wo unto you), boo

He folds his arms for some prayers now, mostly if the tv was on and then is turned off while he is sitting in his high chair. He gives lots of hugs and kisses, and pats you on the back when he hugs you. He also likes to dance, mostly head bopping and spinning, though we have seen him do the moonwalk a couple of times.

His new favorite game is crawling around on the floor panting and pretending that we are dogs. I am glad to know that he is starting to learn to pretend. If he masters that, he won't have to have so many toys! Just kidding.

He is now sitting forward-facing in the car since his legs had to be bent to be backward facing. We just have to make sure we load him up with 2 pounds of clothes and shoes before we put him in his car seat. Hopefully by 18 months, he will actually weigh 20 pounds. He is starting to grow out of some of his 9months clothes. Progress....

Yummy Salmon Recipe...are you jealous yet?

I went to cooking 101 (an enrichment activity for the ladies in our church) the other day and learned a few new recipes. I made them that night and Andrew asked me what the special occaision was. It wasn't that hard or that expensive to make, but it was good.

"Gigi" Salmon

Ingredients:
1 slab salmon (I used a fillet of a whole 12"+ salmon)
3/4 teaspoons powdered ginger (or enough to sprinkle all over the fish)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt (kosher salt is best, but I used sea salt)
1/2 teaspoons fresh ground pepper
2 cloves minced garlic
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup brown sugar

Directions:
Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and lay the fish down in the center, skin side down. Sprinkle evenly with salt, pepper, ginger, and garlic. Rub down with olive oil and pat on brown sugar. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes, or until done (not translucent, and flaky when you stick a fork into it).

Serving suggestions: serve with brown rice. Trader Joe's Brown Rice Medley is really good with this.

Spring Salad with Goat Cheese and Tangerine Vinaigrette Dressing
Ingredients:
2 Tangerines, oranges, or blood oranges
2 teaspoons cider vinegar (you can use white if you don't have cider vinegar)
3 Tablespoons orange or tangerine juice
1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard (I used spicy brown)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground pepper
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 Tablespoon fresh chives, chopped
8 cups mixed baby greens (I used Trader Joe's Herb Salad mix)
1/2 cup (2 ounces) goat cheese (Chevre), crumbled
1/4 cup golden or regular raisins

Directions:
Using a microplane grater, grate 1 teaspoon of zest into a small bowl. Peel and section fruit, cut segments into bite size pieces and set aside. Add juice to zest and whisk in vinegar, mustard, salt, and ground pepper until mixed. In thin steady stream, whisk in oil until the vinaigrette is blended. Stir in fruit segments and chives. Set aside.
Place greens in a large bowl with raisins and crumbled goat cheese. Just before serving, pour dressing over the salad and toss to coat thoroughly.

So, if any of you in a land-locked state find yourself drooling at this point, just hop on a plane and come to Seattle. We'll make sure that you get some tasty seafood.