Socha,
Your wonderfully fat cheeks jiggle when we go over bumps in the road. Adorable!
Your wonderfully fat cheeks jiggle when we go over bumps in the road. Adorable!
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
11 1/2 hours
Wow, Socha! You slept for 11 1/2 hours last night. Straight! I actually got 8 straight hours of sleep and got up willingly before my alarm. What a difference a full night's sleep makes. I could get used to this - but I realize I can't yet. At least I know it's possible now. We just put you to bed for the evening and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that you will sleep for a fairly long period, if not 11 1/2 hours. Six hours seems reasonable, four is pushing it, and anything less than four will be truly irritating. I hope that all your crawling and standing up and balancing and teething will make you tired enough to make it through the whole night. In other news, I hope your teeth that have been bothering you for a month now will finally show up! Oh, and did I mention that you're standing - as in, you are pulling yourself up to standing using anything you can get your hands on, and on several occasions, your Dad and I have witnessed you standing, balanced, by yourself. Several people have predicted that you will walk early. I'm pretty sure you're going to skip walking and start out running.
Sunday, November 25, 2012
2/3 of a Year - or Socha's 8th Month
It is so hard to believe that you've been in our life now for 2/3rds of a year, Socha! You celebrated your 8-month birthday on Thanksgiving this year. We had a very nice visit with your Dad's Aunt Betsy and Uncle David in New Jersey (and his cousins, Dan and Kevin, and their girlfriends). Great food was eaten (as always on Thanksgiving) and some good family time was spent. We also spent a day in Brooklyn, NY visiting our friend Jaime and her son Teo and her Dad and Step-Mom, Greg and Demi. We visited some piers that are being remade into park space (very cool playgrounds here - we'll definitely take you back when you can appreciate it more), and we rode the carousel (your second ride on a carousel - I think you liked it much better this time). What an amazingly beautiful day in the City!
Meanwhile, you are growing up so fast! I think you are possibly at your fattest stage - your cheeks are amazing (what are you storing in there?!). They jiggle at the slightest movement. And you have rolls on your arms and your legs. I love it! And you are such a happy baby. The only time you really get fussy is when you're tired and when we then try to get you to go to sleep. I'm sure that you believe sleep is for chumps, but if that's the case, then your Mom and Dad are chumps, because we would like to sleep a bit more than you allow us to. Alas, that's the way it is with a baby. I just have to believe that one of these days you will learn to sleep through the night on a regular basis...
So, what's new this month (besides all the small posts recently)?
You got to spend some time with Grandpa Tom while I went to Montana on a business trip. I think that time away was harder on me than it was on you - I cried as I went through security at the airport and you just enjoyed riding on your grandpa's shoulders as you all went back to the car. We all survived my absence, although your Dad requested more than once that I "come home soon!" I was happy to get back home to my wonderful little family.
You and your nanny, Lori, get along famously. She really enjoys spending the days with you and I hear you laughing with her throughout the day from my post in my office. Lori said this is the best nanny job she's ever had - I think that's mostly due to you, Socha. You're a pretty likeable little girl. I have to admit that I get slightly jealous that Lori gets to spend the days with you, however, I do appreciate my time getting back into my work.
You've been teething for what seems like more than half your life at this point (maybe a slight exaggeration, but not much). You still only have two bottom teeth, but we're sure those upper teeth are going to show up before the end of the year.
And crawling. Yup, you're crawling now. You officially started crawling on Monday, November 19, 2012. You were nearly crawling for several days before that, but that day is when it actually clicked for you. Now there is no safe place in the house that we can just let you hang out by yourself in. Luckily, we have a pack and play for you to sit in when we need to get something done. And we have a gate on the stairs - the most important piece of safety equipment we've purchased so far. We'll have to get some video of you crawling away from us at top speed...
Finally, you are turning into a great eater! We've tried three types of solid foods so far: rice cereal, oatmeal, and yams. We're attempting to make your food for you - which requires some forethought since we don't often go to the store - and your Aunt Kathy got us a special blender with great little storage containers for your pureed food, so we really have no excuse not to be making your food for you. So far, so good - the yams were fairly easy to fix and you LOVED them. The rice cereal and oatmeal we bought from the store, although we could try to make them ourselves with organic grains - maybe next month. Once we make sure you are not allergic to the oatmeal, we're going to move on to avocado and banana (not together). Boy, if I could have my way, I would just eat avocados - luckily they're really good for you, so you will get to eat as much as you want (and we can purchase and mash).
So, happy 8th-month birthday, Socha! We're having such a great time with you and are looking forward to many more milestones along the way.
Meanwhile, you are growing up so fast! I think you are possibly at your fattest stage - your cheeks are amazing (what are you storing in there?!). They jiggle at the slightest movement. And you have rolls on your arms and your legs. I love it! And you are such a happy baby. The only time you really get fussy is when you're tired and when we then try to get you to go to sleep. I'm sure that you believe sleep is for chumps, but if that's the case, then your Mom and Dad are chumps, because we would like to sleep a bit more than you allow us to. Alas, that's the way it is with a baby. I just have to believe that one of these days you will learn to sleep through the night on a regular basis...
So, what's new this month (besides all the small posts recently)?
You got to spend some time with Grandpa Tom while I went to Montana on a business trip. I think that time away was harder on me than it was on you - I cried as I went through security at the airport and you just enjoyed riding on your grandpa's shoulders as you all went back to the car. We all survived my absence, although your Dad requested more than once that I "come home soon!" I was happy to get back home to my wonderful little family.
You and your nanny, Lori, get along famously. She really enjoys spending the days with you and I hear you laughing with her throughout the day from my post in my office. Lori said this is the best nanny job she's ever had - I think that's mostly due to you, Socha. You're a pretty likeable little girl. I have to admit that I get slightly jealous that Lori gets to spend the days with you, however, I do appreciate my time getting back into my work.
You've been teething for what seems like more than half your life at this point (maybe a slight exaggeration, but not much). You still only have two bottom teeth, but we're sure those upper teeth are going to show up before the end of the year.
And crawling. Yup, you're crawling now. You officially started crawling on Monday, November 19, 2012. You were nearly crawling for several days before that, but that day is when it actually clicked for you. Now there is no safe place in the house that we can just let you hang out by yourself in. Luckily, we have a pack and play for you to sit in when we need to get something done. And we have a gate on the stairs - the most important piece of safety equipment we've purchased so far. We'll have to get some video of you crawling away from us at top speed...
Finally, you are turning into a great eater! We've tried three types of solid foods so far: rice cereal, oatmeal, and yams. We're attempting to make your food for you - which requires some forethought since we don't often go to the store - and your Aunt Kathy got us a special blender with great little storage containers for your pureed food, so we really have no excuse not to be making your food for you. So far, so good - the yams were fairly easy to fix and you LOVED them. The rice cereal and oatmeal we bought from the store, although we could try to make them ourselves with organic grains - maybe next month. Once we make sure you are not allergic to the oatmeal, we're going to move on to avocado and banana (not together). Boy, if I could have my way, I would just eat avocados - luckily they're really good for you, so you will get to eat as much as you want (and we can purchase and mash).
So, happy 8th-month birthday, Socha! We're having such a great time with you and are looking forward to many more milestones along the way.
Friday, November 16, 2012
Almost crawling
You are SO close to crawling, Socha. Your Dad predicts that you will be crawling by Thanksgiving, and after watching you today, I think you might be crawling by the end of the weekend. You are figuring out how to pull your legs up under you to move forward rather than dragging your stomach over the floor. Oh, how I fear your mobility! Luckily, we have most of the house baby-proofed now. We actually need to attach some of the taller bookshelves to the walls PDQ. Maybe that will be done this weekend/early next week as we work on hanging our pictures all over the house. We already put up a large photo of the Soča River in your room and I want to hang your guardian angel quilt that Nana made for you too. Hopefully by the end of next week our house will finally be "home." Meanwhile, some photos from today.
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| Look at me, Mom, I'm almost crawling! |
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| And check out my teeth! |
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| Man, I'm tired after all that almost-crawling today. |
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Introducing you to music
Dear Socha,
Your Dad and I love music, but for some reason we haven't been playing a lot of music for you. People say that classical music is good for babies, so when we do play something it often is Bach or Beethoven or Vivaldi, etc. And for such a young girl, you've heard quite a lot of live music. Last month we listened to the first song that Take 6 performed for the students here (then we had to get you home to bed). Last week you were quiet and very interested in the chamber music performances by DA students:
It was actually your bed time for this concert too, but you enjoyed two performances and most of a third before we had to leave.
Then last night, one of the many very talented teachers here sat down to play the grand piano in the dining hall after most everyone had left. He played several lovely tunes, including one he wrote when he first moved to New York City, called, "The City." It was so beautiful and emotional. I hope he will give me a copy of his recording of it! Anyway, you were unabashedly staring at him and the piano while he played, so I thought you might like to plink a key or two:
Your Dad and I love music, but for some reason we haven't been playing a lot of music for you. People say that classical music is good for babies, so when we do play something it often is Bach or Beethoven or Vivaldi, etc. And for such a young girl, you've heard quite a lot of live music. Last month we listened to the first song that Take 6 performed for the students here (then we had to get you home to bed). Last week you were quiet and very interested in the chamber music performances by DA students:
It was actually your bed time for this concert too, but you enjoyed two performances and most of a third before we had to leave.
Then last night, one of the many very talented teachers here sat down to play the grand piano in the dining hall after most everyone had left. He played several lovely tunes, including one he wrote when he first moved to New York City, called, "The City." It was so beautiful and emotional. I hope he will give me a copy of his recording of it! Anyway, you were unabashedly staring at him and the piano while he played, so I thought you might like to plink a key or two:
Perhaps you will be a musician. Hopefully you'll be more willing to practice at it than I was...
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Yes We Can
Dear Socha,
Last night we saw President Barack Obama win re-election for another 4 years as our country's leader. Your Dad and I couldn't be happier! We also saw Elizabeth Warren become Massachusett's first female senator. Again, we couldn't be happier! Tammy Baldwin will become the senate's first openly gay or lesbian senator (from Wisconsin), and same-sex marriage was supported in Maine and Maryland (we're still waiting to hear about Washington and Minnesota's ballot initiatives). John Tester is currently leading in the senate race in Montana (we're keeping our fingers crossed). What a night! We truly couldn't be happier! And we feel a large weight lifted off our shoulders, especially when we think about your future. We breathe a sigh of relief that you will have access to good healthcare, you will be paid fairly for any work you do, you will be able to get contraception if you want it and you will have the right to choose if having a child is the right thing to do, and you will have the right to marry whoever you damn well please! (Well, except for the fact that your Aunty Kendra and I have already arranged your marriage to her boy Jack - but we'll leave that open for discussion...)
Today, I can legitimately say that I am SUPER proud to be an American. We re-elected a fairly moderate president who will fight for US and we made some strong inroads to getting the crazies out of public office (Mourdock, Akin, West - I'm talking to you).
Last night, you must have sensed our tension, because you would NOT sleep. We put you to bed around 7:30pm, but by 9pm you were wide awake and very vocal about it. So your Dad and I grabbed a couple of beers and sat down with you on the floor in your bedroom and played with you while we trolled the intertoobs for election coverage. This was quite a calm party compared to the party we attended in downtown Bozeman in 2008, but no less moving. I didn't actually cry last night when Jon Stewart called the election for Obama around 11:15pm. It was somewhat anti-climactic considering all the hooplah about this election for the much too long election cycle. But, this morning as I read some of the news and read Obama's acceptance speech, the tears came. Tears of joy. Tears of pride in my country. Tears of optimism for your future Socha.
Be warned, Socha. Your Dad and I are major political junkies. Expect to get out the vote with us in the future. We take this stuff pretty seriously and fully embrace the notion that voting is a privilege and our duty (as Craig Ferguson said in an excellent monologue in 2008: "It's not sexy, it's not hep, it's not fashionable - it's your DUTY!).
Four more years. Then, Hilary 2016? :)
Last night we saw President Barack Obama win re-election for another 4 years as our country's leader. Your Dad and I couldn't be happier! We also saw Elizabeth Warren become Massachusett's first female senator. Again, we couldn't be happier! Tammy Baldwin will become the senate's first openly gay or lesbian senator (from Wisconsin), and same-sex marriage was supported in Maine and Maryland (we're still waiting to hear about Washington and Minnesota's ballot initiatives). John Tester is currently leading in the senate race in Montana (we're keeping our fingers crossed). What a night! We truly couldn't be happier! And we feel a large weight lifted off our shoulders, especially when we think about your future. We breathe a sigh of relief that you will have access to good healthcare, you will be paid fairly for any work you do, you will be able to get contraception if you want it and you will have the right to choose if having a child is the right thing to do, and you will have the right to marry whoever you damn well please! (Well, except for the fact that your Aunty Kendra and I have already arranged your marriage to her boy Jack - but we'll leave that open for discussion...)
Today, I can legitimately say that I am SUPER proud to be an American. We re-elected a fairly moderate president who will fight for US and we made some strong inroads to getting the crazies out of public office (Mourdock, Akin, West - I'm talking to you).
Last night, you must have sensed our tension, because you would NOT sleep. We put you to bed around 7:30pm, but by 9pm you were wide awake and very vocal about it. So your Dad and I grabbed a couple of beers and sat down with you on the floor in your bedroom and played with you while we trolled the intertoobs for election coverage. This was quite a calm party compared to the party we attended in downtown Bozeman in 2008, but no less moving. I didn't actually cry last night when Jon Stewart called the election for Obama around 11:15pm. It was somewhat anti-climactic considering all the hooplah about this election for the much too long election cycle. But, this morning as I read some of the news and read Obama's acceptance speech, the tears came. Tears of joy. Tears of pride in my country. Tears of optimism for your future Socha.
Be warned, Socha. Your Dad and I are major political junkies. Expect to get out the vote with us in the future. We take this stuff pretty seriously and fully embrace the notion that voting is a privilege and our duty (as Craig Ferguson said in an excellent monologue in 2008: "It's not sexy, it's not hep, it's not fashionable - it's your DUTY!).
Four more years. Then, Hilary 2016? :)
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
On eating books, being cold, and standing up
Hi Socha,
A couple of new things in your life:
You've been really going to town on your "Brain, Cognition, and Development" book.
You seem to love the noise it makes when you squeeze it in your hands and you love to chew on the pages and rip them apart. It's mostly in pieces now and you've managed to cough up a few bits here and there. I think it might be time to take this "toy" away. Luckily, the BCD lab has sent us a new book (that we'll try to keep in one piece) to continue reading to you.
Yesterday, your Dad and I took you for an afternoon walk, all bundled up (or so I thought) in your stroller. Well, I really didn't bundle you up well enough for how cold and windy it actually was, so when we got about as far away from our home as our walk was going to take us, you got really mad because you were so cold! Welcome to winter! You really haven't experienced true cold yet (until yesterday), so I'm not surprised that you really didn't like it. Your poor hands, feet, and cheeks were frigid when we got home. And you were so upset you couldn't even nurse for a while. Chalk this one up to inexperienced parents... Luckily, after you had a turbo nap on my lap, you seemed to forget all about being cold and being mad at us for making you cold. It's possible you woke up in the early hours of the morning last night because you got a little chilled too - temps outside were in the 20s and your room didn't stay very warm. Sorry again. We'll do better. I've already got the snowsuits out and won't let you go outside without being truly bundled up. Yes, I tend to overcompensate after making a mistake...
In the last week or 2 you have started standing up in your crib. In fact, trying to put you to bed when you are in any way awake means that we have to convince you that when you are as tired as you are, trying to stand up in your crib is not a good idea. You've bonked your head from falling a few times now. But you're pretty amazing - pulling yourself up to standing and shrieking with glee! And you're using all the real estate in the crib to roll around and sit up and stand up and stretch. And you're definitely not quiet about it - most of the time you're just talking to yourself about how cool it is to be sitting up/standing/rolling/etc. You only seem to cry when you realize that you ARE actually tired but you don't want to go to sleep.
I'm so not ready for you to be mobile.
A couple of new things in your life:
You've been really going to town on your "Brain, Cognition, and Development" book.
You seem to love the noise it makes when you squeeze it in your hands and you love to chew on the pages and rip them apart. It's mostly in pieces now and you've managed to cough up a few bits here and there. I think it might be time to take this "toy" away. Luckily, the BCD lab has sent us a new book (that we'll try to keep in one piece) to continue reading to you.
Yesterday, your Dad and I took you for an afternoon walk, all bundled up (or so I thought) in your stroller. Well, I really didn't bundle you up well enough for how cold and windy it actually was, so when we got about as far away from our home as our walk was going to take us, you got really mad because you were so cold! Welcome to winter! You really haven't experienced true cold yet (until yesterday), so I'm not surprised that you really didn't like it. Your poor hands, feet, and cheeks were frigid when we got home. And you were so upset you couldn't even nurse for a while. Chalk this one up to inexperienced parents... Luckily, after you had a turbo nap on my lap, you seemed to forget all about being cold and being mad at us for making you cold. It's possible you woke up in the early hours of the morning last night because you got a little chilled too - temps outside were in the 20s and your room didn't stay very warm. Sorry again. We'll do better. I've already got the snowsuits out and won't let you go outside without being truly bundled up. Yes, I tend to overcompensate after making a mistake...
In the last week or 2 you have started standing up in your crib. In fact, trying to put you to bed when you are in any way awake means that we have to convince you that when you are as tired as you are, trying to stand up in your crib is not a good idea. You've bonked your head from falling a few times now. But you're pretty amazing - pulling yourself up to standing and shrieking with glee! And you're using all the real estate in the crib to roll around and sit up and stand up and stretch. And you're definitely not quiet about it - most of the time you're just talking to yourself about how cool it is to be sitting up/standing/rolling/etc. You only seem to cry when you realize that you ARE actually tired but you don't want to go to sleep.
I'm so not ready for you to be mobile.
Sunday, November 4, 2012
My first Cthulu
This one goes out to Uncle Keith.
I'm trying to convince Jeff that we should make the plush Cthulu Socha's "Lovey" (an item that is supposed to help her sleep - something she can cuddle with). Jeff's exact words when I mentioned this were: "No comment." Hmmm... Not sure what that means. :)
I'm afraid the doll might be having some influence on Socha - look at that evil raised eyebrow in the second picture...
I'm trying to convince Jeff that we should make the plush Cthulu Socha's "Lovey" (an item that is supposed to help her sleep - something she can cuddle with). Jeff's exact words when I mentioned this were: "No comment." Hmmm... Not sure what that means. :)
I'm afraid the doll might be having some influence on Socha - look at that evil raised eyebrow in the second picture...
More pumpkin cuteness
We had a playdate with our friends Allison and Elliana on Friday. The weather was perfect: brisk, bright sunshine, and lots of leaves on the ground. So we got a bunch of photos of the two little pumpkins. Super cute! It was also the Halloween dress up day at DA so your Dad and I dressed up too.
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Halloween costumes - or how Mom and Dad are already humiliating me
You got to dress up in two costumes for Halloween. The first was a pumpkin suit that turned out to be rather hot, so you only wore it pretty much for pictures:
The second was a pink poodle. Your Dad thinks this one is much more humiliating and I think he actually felt bad for making you wear it:
But he did laugh when we sat you down on the sidewalk and looked at you from above (so did I). A colleague saw you in the front carrier on Dad from a distance and honestly thought he was carrying a dog:
And the fun will continue tomorrow when we have a playdate with a neighbor and both of you are going to wear pumpkin costumes (a second one we have) and pose in front of the giant pumpkins on Main Street.
All of these costumes are hand-me-downs. Your Dad and I love to dress up for Halloween, so please forgive us for inflicting these costumes on you.
I have two teeth!
This is the only picture we could get of you showing your new teeth. You're a bit frustrated because you want so desperately to crawl. You look a lot better when you're grinning (and the teeth show quite well then), but we haven't had the camera ready for such occasions. So, we'll just have to use this picture for now and I'm sure we'll get a better one later.
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