Cat, Dog, Mama, Paw paw

These are the words that Leo knows.

Not too many, but he sure does know how to eat!



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You are my sunshine

My Leo.
Until just now, you've been the sunniest baby I've ever known. And now you hurt. I'm sorry. Who knew that those vaccines would hurt so badly? Emma must have known that is was going to hurt when she yelled at the nurses, "Don't hurt my Yaya!"
We're hoping that the pain & fussiness will fade soon and that the sunshine in your smile will return. And then we'll be able to focus on the tasks at hand--getting you to start talking and gaining weight! And maybe to stop climbing on the table.
You are so brave! There is nothing you can't climb or conquer. While so far, you've remained uninjured, I'm sure it's only a matter of time before we end up in the ER after some of your hijinks.
And now you sleep! Not so much at naptime, but at night you do, and for that I am thankful. The only complaint I would make is that you no longer want to cuddle and rock and sing the shema at bedtime. As much as I miss our sweet bedtime routine though, I do so love to see you sleep in your silly frog-legged position, head-cocked to one side, half-drunk bottle on your lips.
My Leo. You may not be smiling your sunny smile today... But you make me smile one of my own.
I love you.


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A conversation I don't want to forget

All last weekend I coached Emma to say “Albuquerque” and that daddy was going to Albuquerque for a few days and while he was there he would buy her presents.
Last Monday, as JMT was saying his goodbyes, this is the conversation that ensued…

JMT: I’m going away to Albuquerque, Emma. Do you know what that means?

Emma: You bwing me pwesents?

JMT: Yes, Emma. I bring you presents. What kind of presents do you want?

Emma: (matter-of-factly) A man.

JMT: (visibly startled): What kind of man?
Emma: (matter-of-factly) A black man.

Big grown up boy

Eating lunch this Sunday afternoon on the patio at Panera.  He knows when his picture is being taken, and gives this big grin for the camera each time.

I'm amused

By my little monkey, who spent most of our last grocery trip squatting backwards in the cart like this.


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I'm in love

With the two of them, and all their little secrets and rituals. It makes me so happy when I catch little moments like this.


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Wild Goose Chase

The children of mixed-religion marriages often end up with some mighty interesting religious-ish traditions. 

When I was growing up, my folks didn't want me to miss out on decorating for holidays, but we didn't do anything for Christmas.  So, when my birthday would roll around (soon, people, soon), they would lug  the utility ladder out of the garage and plaster it with crepe paper.  We called it the birthday ladder.  It was wild and colorful and festive, and there was room on each of the rungs for presents!  I'm sure my friends all thought we were nuts... but we were.  So nothing lost there.

This year, on our way to JMT's parents' house for Easter dinner, we stopped at Confluence Park to look for geese.  Emma has been particulary fixated on geese lately... in that slightly creepy way that only a two year old can be... so we thought it would be a fun way to spend some time together as a family.  Wouldn't you know it, though, the area that is usually filled goose-shoulder to goose-shoulder with fowl was a ghost town.  Not a goose to be seen (but plenty of evidence that they'd been there).  So, we embarked on a literal wild goose chase around Columbus.  In the end, we settled on some ornery ducks in the pond at Schiller Park.  It turns out the geese were all hanging out by the horseshoe at OSU.  JMT found them today while he was out running.

As I think about the type of traditions that I want for my kids to look back upon fondly, I hope that the Easter Goose Chase becomes part of the memories they conjure.  Next year, we'll know to check out campus on our way to Grandma and Papa's house.  And who knows, maybe this is the year for us to start a birthday ladder?

Not so sweet

Leo waking up a dozen times in the night in teething pain and me having a 13+ hour day at work the next day.


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So sweet

That Emma has discovered how cozy cuddling in mommy's bed can be.

E: "this you spot?" (patting pillow)



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Random things

Random things…

Leo is amazing. At 10 months old, there is nowhere he can’t get to. He’s not walking, technically, but standing and scooting and pushing things all around. He says Mama. He plays peekaboo and claps his hands. He’s almost always smiling. And that smile is no longer toothless. He has three teeth and another on the way.


Leo is a fearless and voracious eater. We may never finish off the last of the baby food, because as soon as he learned how awesome it is to eat real food, he dove into it wholeheartedly. To date, he has never turned his nose up at anything. Except mama… right now he is on an intermittent nursing strike that is frustrating and occasionally maddening to me. It began after a painful blood draw. He doesn’t seem to want to spend much time snuggling with me since then… I think he’s voicing his protest in the only way he knows how.

Emma is a goofy and talkative delight. Her verbal skills are no longer measured in number of words, but in complexity of sentences and creativity of ideas. She has mastered shapes and colors and is counting to 10 (usually in order, but frequently skipping three). The other day, she told us that Leo is white. Surprised and curious about her racial awareness, we began asking her about what color other members of the family are.

Us: What color is Emma?
Emma: White.
Us: What color is mommy?
Emma: White.
Us: What color is Rance?


Emma: Black.
Us: What color is Babycat?


Emma: Umm… Brown.
Us: What color is Wiley?


Emma: Mean.

Spot on.




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