Christmas 2009

Christmas this year was a sweet time for Aleks, Maia, and I. We decided to spend our first Christmas at home, without the stress that traveling can cause.

The week before Christmas we had a few friends over to decorate "gingerbread" houses (made with graham crackers) and had a blast enjoying their company.

Seriously, how cute is she?!

The older sister.

Our house was decorated and the stockings hung on the mantle with care.

(Right after I took this picture, Maia rolled off the couch onto the floor. She's ok.)

Maia was super excited for Santa to come in the morning, she was dressed in her red pajamas ready for a good night's sleep.

(You can tell the level of excitement by the blurriness that are her arms.)

After Maia went to bed, Aleks and I ate the mole poblano chicken enchiladas that he had spent all day making. To read a full description of the event, you can check out his blog.

Maia woke us up on Christmas morning at 6, and after her breakfast of peaches and oatmeal, we opened presents!

After Maia went down for her morning nap, Aleks and I had breakfast. I had made a Kringle, (a Skandinavian pastry), which my mom usually makes on Christmas morning.

We spent most of the day taking it easy, watching movies, and going for a walk. We received a call from my mom around 1 with the news that her mother had passed away. Grandma has been sick with Alzheimer's for awhile and has been in and out of the hospital since June. She was such a special lady and there will be an emptiness with her gone. The sadness of losing someone I loved has also made me so grateful for the strong family ties that remain. The memorial service will be on Jan. 2 in Castro Valley and we plan on being there. I look forward to celebrating my Grandmother and helping support and show love to my Grandfather.

Aleks and I spent the rest of the day cooking. It was a really special time for us to talk about our families, Grandma and Grandpa, and many other things. Although the circumstances are crummy, Aleks and I were able to bond closely that day.

Our favorite moment of the day was cuddling up with Maia on the couch and watching the Muppet Show. She loved it and we were able to get some rare snuggling from her.

Here are some pictures of our Christmas dinner:

Yeast rolls that I made

Aleks did an awesome job with the steaks, look at the crust on that thing!

The menu:

Filet mignon with goat cheese and balsamic glaze

Mashed potatoes

Rolls

Arugula Salad (aren't you proud mom?)

I also made a bouche de Noel. I think it looks pretty, but unfortunately, it didn't taste very good. It was just really rich without a lot of flavor. We ended up throwing it away...

We hope you had a blessed Christmas. Love to you all.

Huge Leaps

In just the past few weeks Maia has made some huge developmental leaps. Here are some things that Maia is now doing:

When we say "Clap your hands!", she claps her hands

She signs "more" and "all done"

When we say "Shake" she shakes her hands up and down

She now waves hello and goodbye

and my favorite:

She plays peek-a-book by hding her face in a shoulder, blanket, or whatever is around

She's too much fun.

Christmas and Chanukah is upon us.

My wonderful wife usually writes these Blog updates, but I have been given the task of reviewing our 2009. Every year we write a Christmas letter and it always seems like the next year can't get better, but somehow it does! This year was no exception with lots of amazing highlights. So in no particular order...

• On April 4, 2009 weighing 8 lbs and measuring 20 1/2 inches long, Maia Lee Sternfeld-Dunn was born! A friend said that before kids, you exist as a couple, but after kids, you are then a family. How true that is. Maia is now 8 months old- learning lots, growing strong, and putting on quite a show. For more about her check out earlier entries in this blog.
• After a year at teaching WSU, Aleks was offered 2 other jobs. One was for a visiting Assistant Professor at Central Connecticut College, CT and the other was for a tenure track position at Casper College, WY. After much discussion between Emily and Aleks, as well as the current department chair, Aleks returned to WSU for another year. He now has a new title: Clinical Assistant Professor. Fancy isn't it? Overall, Aleks is enjoying his teaching job, has great students, and gets to teach really interesting classes.
• This year Emily began teaching at WSU as well. She teaches applied voice as an adjunct member of the WSU Faculty.
• Emily has continued to grow her private studio as well. She has a full studio with 14 students, both studying piano and voice.
• After about four years Aleks has finished his dissertation and successfully defended it! He is now officially a doctor... but not the kind that helps people.
• It has been a good performance year for Emily. She recently gave a WSU Faculty Recital consisting of music for voice and non-keyboard instruments. She is also a finalist in the Coeur d'Alene Young Artist Competition and will compete in the beginning of January.
• Aleks had a busy year of composing. Along with completing his dissertation, he finished a a piece for English Horn and Cello that was commissioned by oboist Keri McCarthy. Aleks also has three more commissions that he is working on. In addition, Aleks received a grant from Meet the Composer, had a new band piece published by FJH publishing, had his recording of Joker's Wild released by the Kiev Philharmonic, and had his Sonata for Alto Saxophone selected for a CD release on Capstone.
• Aleks and Emily are no longer home owners. While this is sad news for some, it is great news for them. After sitting on the market for longer than they wanted, their Connecticut cape-cod sold, and they are now waiting patiently for a little geographical stability before they buy again.
• Emily has developed a great group of friends who are also new moms to children Maia's age. They meet about twice a month to visit and have the babies interact. Emily is so grateful for these friends and loves seeing Maia play with her friends.
• Aleks has a new passion: cooking authentic Mexican food. He started his new hobby with mole sauce and has continued with pork verde, tacos, enchilladas, salsas... the list goes on and on. Aleks and Emily are continuously trying to find new cabinet/counter space for all the dried chilies Aleks is buying. They are eating really well though!

We feel truly blessed for so many things in our lives right now. We hope that you have a wonderful holiday season and very happy New Year!

Love,

Aleks, Emily, and Maia

Love letter, 8 months, and a Thanksgiving Cruise

Lately I've been thinking about how thankful I am for my husband. Here are a few reasons why I love him so much.

1. He is always making me laugh.

2. On the longest traveling day we've ever experienced (by ourselves or with Maia) he regularly asked me "What can I do to help you?".

3. He doesn't hold a grudge when I'm super cranky with him in the middle of the night. Granted, I shouldn't be mean even if I'm tired, but he's figured out how to ignore the crazy things that come out of my mouth at 4 a.m.

4. When we were on the cruise and I was in the cabin most of the day while Maia was sleeping, he let me use his Kindle, even though he was in the middle of a book.

5. He sometimes goes out after dinner to get me ice cream.

6. He likes to cook, so I don't always have to make dinner.

7. He comes home after work to watch Maia while I teach and never complains about it.

8. He works his butt off applying for jobs and competitions.

9. I know that he's always trying to better himself professionally and personally.

10. He cleans the bathrooms.

I'm so blessed to have him as a partner.

Maia is 8 months old on Friday! It's hard to believe that she's already that old. She's cut her first tooth, it's the bottom, front left one. She's not crawling, and just until recently hasn't been too interested in it. However, in just the past few days, she's been rolling all over the floor to get from one thing to the next, so I think crawling is in the near future. She gives kisses when you say "Can I have a kiss?", open mouth and everything! We've started getting some really good belly laughs from her and it's becoming apparent that Maia has a good sense of humor. The other day she thought it was very funny that I couldn't find her boots as we looked all over the house. Maia also knows to look around for Daddy when I ask her where he is. She also says dada, we think in reference to Aleks, but it's not consistent yet. On the cruise we held up a ball and said "ball" and she said "ba". Coincidence? We're not sure, but it seems like she's definitely begining to at least think about talking!

For Thanksgiving, Danni took us on a cruise to celebrate her 60th birthday, which was in June. We had a wonderful time and Maia was the queen of the cruise. By the end of the week, almost all of the dining staff knew her name and loved saying good morning to her. Maia would bestow smiles on all who said hello. I'm sure she's wondering where all her loyal subjects are now that we're home.

Bathing Beauty in Jamaica

Lunch in Cozumel, Mexico.

All dressed up for Thanksgiving dinner.

Flirting with the restaurant staff in Grand Cayman.

In the ocean in Jamaica.

Swimming in Jamaica. Maia loves the water!

7 Months Old and Halloween!

Maia turned 7 months this weekend. She's still sitting on her own and teething like crazy. We think that she might cut her first tooth in the next week or so. We'd love for her get those teeth soon!

This weekend my mom came to visit and Maia and Grandma had tons of fun together!

Maia's play group had a Halloween party and here they are in all their animal greatness!

Maia the Monkey, Oliver the Dinosaur, Harmony the Bee, and Owen the Skunk.

(Hank the cat was presiding over the festivities)

Maia's other friend Alden the Owl came over to trick or treat on Halloween night.

Pumpkin Patch and First Haircut!

Last weekend, while Aleks was out of town, my friend Chelsea, her son Owen, Maia, and I went to the local pumpkin patch! We had so much fun! Maia loved being out in the crisp autumn weather.

The sign says "Mini pumpkins: 2 for $1"

Also, Maia got her first haircut last week! Maia was a trooper and didn't even know what was going on. Her haircut has really made her seem more grown up now, it's kind of amazing.

(After)

(Before)

We're all doing really well. Maia continues to entertain and keep us super busy. She's learned to shake her head back and forth, I think she might be dancing. She shakes her head and bobs up and down when she hears music or when she gets really excited. Still no teeth or crawling, but it's so easy having her stay where I set her down, that I don't know if I ever want her to crawl!

Next week, Aleks goes to CT to defend his dissertation...

6 months old and a birthday!

Maia is now 6 months old. At her doctor's appointment today we found out that she is 27.5 inches long and weighs 15 pounds 5 ounces. She now knows her name, can sit up on her own, sleep through the night (!!!), say "ba ba ba" and "da da da", and be really cute.

Aleks celebrated his 29th birthday on Oct. 3. This last year has been a big one for him. He became a dad, got his first teaching job, and got hearing aids, to name a few events. It's been a great year and this next one is going to be just as exciting. He's finished his dissertation, passed all the mandatory testing and will be defending his dissertation in the last week of October. All signs point towards a December graduation. Heaven help us, he'll be making us call him Doctor Sternfeld-Dunn the minute he passes his defense.

Here is my handsome 29 year-old husband:

For Aleks' birthday, he decided that he wanted to cook for some friends. He's been really into cooking authentic Mexican food and has been making recipes from Rick Bayless cookbooks. These recipes include drying his own chilies. For his birthday he made chicken en mole, tortilla soup, salsa, and homemade tortilla chips. It was all really good and we had a great time with his friends. In the spirit of a Mexican feista, I made a pinata. I was going to make a replica of Aleks' face, but thought it could get weird when we tried to break it. I made one of Voldemort instead. It's in the spirit of the Potter Puppet Pals Voldemort.

Owl Hill Goods

So today I had a little fundraiser at my house for Hartford Opera Theater. (Yes! It's still alive and growing in Harford, CT!) This spring I've been asked to sing a role in a commissioned opera, "Tom Sawyer", which will be performed at the Mark Twain House in April. April 21, 2010 marks the 100th anniversary of his death and the Mark Twain House in Hartford is sponsoring many festivities that month.

My good friend, Michelle Hendrick will be directing this opera and is the producer as well. Along with being an extremely talented director and actress, she is also a wonderful textile designer/creator. This summer Michelle started Owl Hill, which features her handmade goods. Many of these goods are created from recycled materials and are organic.

Below are some of the goods that are still for sale. If you're interested in purchasing something, please let me know and I can tell you how much it is. Michelle is donating all proceeds from this collection to Hartford Opera Theater.

Rag Rug (about 5 feet in diameter)

Pot holder rug (about 3x3 feet)

Pot holder rug (about 3x3 feet)

Child's sweater

Child's Bird Hat

Baby bloomers (cashmere)

Angora bunny (made from a sweater)

County Fair, First Ponytail, and the E.R.

The past few weeks have been pretty big around the S-D household. Maia is now sleeping 12 hours a night! Aleks and I are so grateful and are slowly catching up on our sleep.

Usually we put Maia down at 6:30 and she sleeps until 6:30 the next morning. Last night when we put her down, she woke up at 7:30 screaming. We went in and calmed her and she fell back asleep only to wake up again at 8:00 and 8:30 screaming. Aleks and I were both getting concerned and decided that a trip to the E.R. was called for. Well, 1 1/2 hours later, the E.R. doc diagnosed her with an ear infection and prescribed ear drops and Tylenol. If she doesn't get better in the next few days, we also have a prescription for some antibiotics that we can fill. So far, she's been doing fine with the pain management. Anyway, after we put drops in her ears, we have to put some cotton balls in to catch any oil that might drip out. This evening, Maia was eating peas in her rice cereal with cotton in her ears... I think she looks like Shrek.

Maia's hair is long enough to put in a ponytail! It didn't last very long and looks like it was styled in the 80's, but still pretty cute.

This weekend we went to the County Fair. One of my students was showing a pig, so here we are with Hamlet the pig.

It was super hot, so Maia cooled off with some ice.

Maia rode her first merry-go-round! She loved it and we loved seeing her experience it for the first time.