For the first time we know that our 9 week old son has discovered his feet. He may have discovered them before this, but finally we have evidence. We knew when he had discovered his hands because he would hold his little fist in front of his face, stare at it admiringly, move it, then stare some more. His feet are harder though just because they are harder for him to get in front of his face.
However, lately Callum has enjoyed being propped up on the couch in a sitting position. The hilarious thing about him enjoying the position is that now when he is laying on his back he tries to sit up but lacks the balance or muscle strength to do so. The result is him lifting his head and his shoulders a tiny bit while he makes a weight lifter's face and his eyes show intense concentration. But back to the point at hand. We have started noticing that while sitting propped up he will suddenly lock on to his feet with his eyes and start slowly and reverently leaning towards them. The major problem is that he lacks the balance and coordination to pull away from his prop without slumping to the side. The end result is a child laying on his side on the couch in a C shape staring intently at his toes.
All in all it makes me wonder what I should still be amazed at.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Houndstooth Coffee
If you live in Austin and like coffee, I mean REALLY like coffee, you must go to Houndstooth.
One tired day shortly after our son was born before I went back to work I had to go to a special compounding pharmacy to pick up something for Lisa. On my way to the pharmacy I saw a coffee shop and decided that I really needed some caffeine and would stop on the way back. I'm glad I did.
Houndstooth coffee is on North Lamar just a little north of Central Market and on the other side of the street. It is in the same building with Uchiko and Taco Deli.
This place is coffee lovers' heaven and a pure coffee shop. Make no mistake, if you like "coffee drinks" or essentially milkshakes with a shot of espresso, this is not your shop. There are no blenders or caramel syrup. They sell espresso, espresso drinks, coffee, tea, and pastries (oh, and beer too). Everything comes in a single size, so there is no need for cute names for sizes from which "small" is strangely absent. Although sizes are lacking (this isn't a failing, trust me), there are still plenty of options. If you want a drip coffee, you don't have settle for the coffee of the day, they will grind any coffee they carry for you fresh and make it for you via a single cup drip or in a french press. If you want espresso, they will have two espressos available for you to choose from on any given day. One will be a good baseline espresso of the type that would normally be the "house espresso", and the other will be some sort of more experimental "unique" offering (sometimes at a $.50 surcharge). This second espresso will be more floral, or perhaps have a very prominent bright acidity, or perhaps be a sweeter more caramel-y lighter roast. Tasting notes will be on the board by the register. Also if coffee isn't your thing, there are plenty of great teas to choose from (and again, the beer).
The baristas are the really great thing here. Unlike some major brand-name coffee shops out of Seattle with locations all over the place, each of their baristas is well trained and loves coffee. Every milk drink I have gotten has had milk steamed to a perfect microfroth with a bit of latte art on the top of every one. The baristas hand tamp the espresso into the portafilters and the result is a great tasty crema on every espresso drink. The baristas are knowledgeable and can answer any of your questions or just chat coffee with you. They are friendly and it's worth it to stand at the bar and watch them make your drink. It's usually entertaining watching and a bit of nice conversation.
The space has a sort of urban feel with exposed metal, stone, cement, and nice clean lines. It is a small shop with a few high tables, a few low tables and a couch and a few spare chairs inside and 3 or so tables outside. It's not cramped, but at high business probably not the best place to hang out and read, study, or play cards. If that last part is your need, hit up my second favorite coffee shop in Austin (used to be my favorite until I found Houndstooth) Mozart's Coffee Roasters. If, however, you are having a quick one on one business or personal coffee, are stopping in for your morning caffeine fix, need to kill some time between places you're going, or just want an awesome cup of coffee, go to Houndstooth. Houndstooth makes my inner coffee snob very very happy.
If you really love espresso, take my word for it and get a plain shot or two. It's served up with a small glass of sparkling water. Heck, get a shot of each of the day's espressos.
One tired day shortly after our son was born before I went back to work I had to go to a special compounding pharmacy to pick up something for Lisa. On my way to the pharmacy I saw a coffee shop and decided that I really needed some caffeine and would stop on the way back. I'm glad I did.
Houndstooth coffee is on North Lamar just a little north of Central Market and on the other side of the street. It is in the same building with Uchiko and Taco Deli.
This place is coffee lovers' heaven and a pure coffee shop. Make no mistake, if you like "coffee drinks" or essentially milkshakes with a shot of espresso, this is not your shop. There are no blenders or caramel syrup. They sell espresso, espresso drinks, coffee, tea, and pastries (oh, and beer too). Everything comes in a single size, so there is no need for cute names for sizes from which "small" is strangely absent. Although sizes are lacking (this isn't a failing, trust me), there are still plenty of options. If you want a drip coffee, you don't have settle for the coffee of the day, they will grind any coffee they carry for you fresh and make it for you via a single cup drip or in a french press. If you want espresso, they will have two espressos available for you to choose from on any given day. One will be a good baseline espresso of the type that would normally be the "house espresso", and the other will be some sort of more experimental "unique" offering (sometimes at a $.50 surcharge). This second espresso will be more floral, or perhaps have a very prominent bright acidity, or perhaps be a sweeter more caramel-y lighter roast. Tasting notes will be on the board by the register. Also if coffee isn't your thing, there are plenty of great teas to choose from (and again, the beer).
The baristas are the really great thing here. Unlike some major brand-name coffee shops out of Seattle with locations all over the place, each of their baristas is well trained and loves coffee. Every milk drink I have gotten has had milk steamed to a perfect microfroth with a bit of latte art on the top of every one. The baristas hand tamp the espresso into the portafilters and the result is a great tasty crema on every espresso drink. The baristas are knowledgeable and can answer any of your questions or just chat coffee with you. They are friendly and it's worth it to stand at the bar and watch them make your drink. It's usually entertaining watching and a bit of nice conversation.
The space has a sort of urban feel with exposed metal, stone, cement, and nice clean lines. It is a small shop with a few high tables, a few low tables and a couch and a few spare chairs inside and 3 or so tables outside. It's not cramped, but at high business probably not the best place to hang out and read, study, or play cards. If that last part is your need, hit up my second favorite coffee shop in Austin (used to be my favorite until I found Houndstooth) Mozart's Coffee Roasters. If, however, you are having a quick one on one business or personal coffee, are stopping in for your morning caffeine fix, need to kill some time between places you're going, or just want an awesome cup of coffee, go to Houndstooth. Houndstooth makes my inner coffee snob very very happy.
If you really love espresso, take my word for it and get a plain shot or two. It's served up with a small glass of sparkling water. Heck, get a shot of each of the day's espressos.
Fatherhood
I have a nine week old baby at home. Last night he fell asleep laying on my lap. He had been fighting sleep for a long time and I was relieved that finally at 10:30 he was sleeping. He had been asleep for about ten minutes when suddenly his eyes shot wide open, he started waving his arms and legs wildly and looking all over in a panic while preparing to cry. Then he saw me: his head turned toward me and he made eye contact with me. He smiled a little sleepy smile, slowly closed his eyes, then collapsed over toward me until his forehead was laying against my stomach.
It made me warm all over.
Fatherhood has surprised me. I never thought that I didn't want kids, but I never really felt any drive to have kids either. Lisa wanted to pretty early in our marriage and I kept pushing it off. Because I never felt a strong drive to have kids, the reasons not to do so always outweighed the reasons to have kids: I'm still in school, we can't afford it, I'm not working full time, I'm not where I thought I would be in my life... all these reasons kept me from wanting to have kids. Lisa, fortunately, was full of patience and grace.
Finally I felt ready to have kids, and soon after we were pregnant. When Lisa told me the news I was excited and that excitement grew as we shared the news with others. Then we saw an ultrasound of the top of this tiny little head with these little spindly arms and legs flying wildly around it and it was the most incredible thing I'd ever seen. It was when I could feel Callum moving that I really started to love him. I could lay on Lisa's lap and read books to Callum and he would start kicking when he recognized my voice (once he kicked me in the ear so hard it hurt!). It was still a little harder to love a concept, a person I had never met and I didn't yet know if that person was going to be Cal or Anya, but then he was born and instantly I loved him and my whole world became consumed by him.
Romantic relationships no matter how whirlwind they may seem involve a slow buildup. You fall more and more in love over time, perhaps moving from friendship to love or attraction to love, but the love continues to grow and change. I have no doubt that I will learn to love my son more and more, and I have no doubt that our relationship will grow and change. However, when Callum was born, once where there was nothing, minutes later there was this little person for whom I had this instant fully-formed love. There simply isn't any relationship I have ever experienced that I could compare to it.
Now his mood holds sway over my moods. When he cries or hurts I feel so sad and can't think of anything else. When I make him happy again or make him smile or laugh or fall asleep I feel a sense of accomplishment and happiness that would be hard to match. And now I am getting ready to do something that I never thought I would do. I am going to quit my job to stay home with Callum for the next nine months so that we don't have to send him to day care until he is older, and I'm so excited about it I can't believe it.
It made me warm all over.
Fatherhood has surprised me. I never thought that I didn't want kids, but I never really felt any drive to have kids either. Lisa wanted to pretty early in our marriage and I kept pushing it off. Because I never felt a strong drive to have kids, the reasons not to do so always outweighed the reasons to have kids: I'm still in school, we can't afford it, I'm not working full time, I'm not where I thought I would be in my life... all these reasons kept me from wanting to have kids. Lisa, fortunately, was full of patience and grace.
Finally I felt ready to have kids, and soon after we were pregnant. When Lisa told me the news I was excited and that excitement grew as we shared the news with others. Then we saw an ultrasound of the top of this tiny little head with these little spindly arms and legs flying wildly around it and it was the most incredible thing I'd ever seen. It was when I could feel Callum moving that I really started to love him. I could lay on Lisa's lap and read books to Callum and he would start kicking when he recognized my voice (once he kicked me in the ear so hard it hurt!). It was still a little harder to love a concept, a person I had never met and I didn't yet know if that person was going to be Cal or Anya, but then he was born and instantly I loved him and my whole world became consumed by him.
Romantic relationships no matter how whirlwind they may seem involve a slow buildup. You fall more and more in love over time, perhaps moving from friendship to love or attraction to love, but the love continues to grow and change. I have no doubt that I will learn to love my son more and more, and I have no doubt that our relationship will grow and change. However, when Callum was born, once where there was nothing, minutes later there was this little person for whom I had this instant fully-formed love. There simply isn't any relationship I have ever experienced that I could compare to it.
Now his mood holds sway over my moods. When he cries or hurts I feel so sad and can't think of anything else. When I make him happy again or make him smile or laugh or fall asleep I feel a sense of accomplishment and happiness that would be hard to match. And now I am getting ready to do something that I never thought I would do. I am going to quit my job to stay home with Callum for the next nine months so that we don't have to send him to day care until he is older, and I'm so excited about it I can't believe it.
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