More Favorites and Not-So-Favorites

1. Not-so-favorite (Jean): Spending the joyous, three-day Memorial Day weekend sick at home, stuffy and icky, while coughing all night long (motivating the poor, exhausted husband to relocate to the couch), and witnessing the relentless reproducing of wadded-up Kleenex in every wastebasket. (And let me also give props to Tim and Weston, who endured the same illness but who are now, mysteriously, much healthier than I.)

2. Favorite (Jean): Going out on a REAL DATE to the Melting Pot on Friday night (just prior to the onset of aforementioned illness, thank goodness), and enjoying some REAL conversation and REAL quality time with the husband. We celebrated our five-year anniversary with a fabulous, four-course fondue dinner, of which the piece de resistance was the yin-yang chocolate fondue for dessert. Tim (how I adore you, my dear) got me a beautiful silver necklace and a dozen roses. I, on the other hand, got him a couple of his art-crush favorites: the movie Cloverfield (whose wicked-awesome monster was designed by Neville Page, with whom Tim will be taking a creature design class this fall at Art Center), and a forthcoming art book by Iain McCaig (who worked on Star Wars and a bunch of other films, and whom Tim looks forward to meeting at an upcoming conference). I also got him peanut M&Ms, of course. (Allison Sy-rie, I'm sure you understand.) :-)

3. Favorite (Jean): My new, stunning, tangerine-colored bridesmaid dress, which just arrived for my awesome friend Lauri's wedding in August. (This is Lauri of Lalee Photography fame, who will be marrying one of the sweetest guys on the planet.) I love getting all dolled up, and dolled up will we be, lemme tell ya! :-)

4. Favorite (Tim): His beloved new Xbox 360, which was recently purchased with the spoils of a freelance concept design project. He also purchased Halo 3 and a subscription to Xbox Live, so now I will occasionally come upon him in the living room, staring at the TV with rapt attention, and apparently talking out loud to no one. Hey, at least he's watching the young'un:
5. Favorite (Weston): Sucking on his hands. The newest development in Westonland is that Mr. Hand has finally met Mr. Mouth. He absolutely LOVES it when his hands make their way up there, and he can sit with a blank stare while focusing his entire attention on sucking away on his fingers. Here he is, going to town:



6. Favorite (Weston): Standing up. (Actually, I guess this is a favorite of mine and Tim's, too. I rather enjoy standing up.) Weston LOVES it when we hold him so he's standing - he can't balance yet, but he locks his knees, and he apparently adores being up high on those little legs. He gets this really proud look on his face, and sometimes he cries if we start to sit him down.

7. Not-so-favorite (Weston): Scratching his pristine little face with his terrible mini-claws (which require greater delicacy than brain surgery to ultimately trim with the nail clipper). Actually, he doesn't seem to care too much when he scratches himself, but Mommy sure does. (Can you see the scratches on the right side of his forehead below? So sad.)
8. Not-so-favorite (Weston): Sleeping with his head at a freakish angle. (At least I would think... he just goes on and sleeps.) Doesn't this appear a tad uncomfortable?

Oh, and Liz, does Weston qualify as "pasty death white" or just "pasty white"? I'm not quite sure... :-P

Last but not least...
9. Not-so-favorite (Jean): My crappy camera. Observe the two photos below:

With the flash:

Without the flash:

The "without" picture is actually how our apartment looks when the light is turned on. Using the flash highlights the immediate subject, but totally washes it out, and totally darkens everything else. Oy vey! What's a photoblogger to do?? :-)