Local {Toddler} Wildlife

While at the arboretum yesterday, we came across this ferocious beast:

This king of the jungle seemed very engaged in testing the groundcover, patroling his territory, and surveying his animal kingdom.

He seemed so cute and cuddly, though, we decided to take him home! 
If you couldn't tell, Clark is a lion this year for Halloween. I was literally one click away from ordering Clark a dog costume on a few occasions, but decided to try and make his costume last-minute. A trip to Joann's and a week later, voila. Mission accomplished!
For any curious seamstresses, I used McCall's pattern M6015 (.99!) in size ½ (commercial patterns tend to run huge in baby/toddler sizes) and modified the length using some of Clark's pj's as a guide. The headpiece took the longest and I feared he would destroy at least part of it and certainly not keep it on his head, but he's worn the costume for a trunk or treat activity, a playgroup, and a photoshoot so far and doesn't seem to mind the mane. He must be aware of how cute it looks around his already adorable face!

How we play

I thought it would be fun to take a few pictures during playtime to remember what Clark was interested in at this age...and for these 5 minutes.

We dance to the music Clark's toy vacuum plays over and over...

There's a lot of walking practice across the rug.

Drinking out of the barn? That was a new one for the camera. and mosquitos have come out with a vengeance here, hence the loads of bites.

Shoving toys in between the couch cushions is a classic favorite.

How I roll

Clark always rides in his stroller like this--just kickin it with one leg up. He gets a lot of comments about that when we're out and about.

Pantry staples

We went to Whole Foods to pick up a few allergy lifestyle pantry staples. Going to that store is usually a bit of a downer for me since it's always a reminder that we can't cook conventionally. Yesterday, though, I had a coupon from livingsocial.com that got me $40 of goods for $20. Since allergy-friendly food usually runs at least twice as much it was a more normal grocery experience for me, at least at the register.

I'll admit, a lot of our haul was mostly for me. I try to eat like Clark where I can--and where it's economical--since having a food allergic child has made me think about food in a very different way. In case you don't frequent the special diets aisles of the grocery store to recognize what we got, here's the rundown:
kettlecorn (that I'll have to enjoy alone until Clark gets more teeth. darn.)
Enjoy Life chocolate chips (no dairy, soy, etc... plus I had $1 off coupons!)
whole flaxseeds (these babies run right through the body, but I like the texture in waffles...and we already have a boatload of milled flax)
xantham gum (leavening agent when you can't use the ol' yeast/gluten combo)
egg replacer
gluten free (GF) flour mixture (rice flour, potato starch, tapioca flour)
GF cinnamon raisin bread mix (I've been craving a cinnabread)
tapioca flour (will use to make my own GF flour mix someday when I feel like affording Authentic Foods superfine brown rice flour and their outrageous shipping costs)
rice pasta  
coconut milk yogurt -- whoever named it So Delicious brand was right. it's real good.
I still haven't tried Clark on coconut, so this will probably have to get eaten by yours truly with my personal recipe of allergen-free granola. 

Bayou Bend

We took advantage of Family Free Day this weekend to go check out the Bayou Bend attraction that's less than a mile from our house. None of us had been there before and it was a beautiful day. This is how you get across the bayou after parking your car:

Bayou Bend includes the 1920's mansion and gardens built for Ima Hogg. The home has since been turned into a museum of American furniture. It is the second largest single collection in the country. 

 We toured a few rooms in the home but mostly enjoyed the beautiful gardens.

 This was by far the most greenery I've seen in all of Houston this year.

I've already put the Family Free Day in March on my calendar. By then the azaleas will be in bloom and I hear they are quite spectacular here.