bright shiny things

Five reactions to this image.

1. PC has no idea why he's looking, but it sure is enjoyable.

2. TV is the opposite of books, and we are therefore bad parents.

3. He's just like his parents.

4. Damn, nice TV!

5. "Boobah" is the new Teletubbies. Only no gay characters (maybe :))

baby steps

About a month ago we took a picture called "no hands" that showed PC standing by his truck clutching a couple flowers he'd just destroyed. Since that time, he's been doing a LOT of "cruising" along furniture and he loves to walk around holding our hands.

But now we're getting very very close to full walking independence. This afternoon, after lola and lolo's, we went out in the front yard where there's thick grass and set him on his feet. And bam! Five steps! Five, unaided steps, and twice--once walking from me to his mom, and once the other way. It's exciting.

I think this is the first time I've ever used the phrase "baby steps" to refer to the actual thing.

Lola's Birthday

Lola's Birthday

Color

No way! After too many years of enjoying a split pea soup colored
bedroom, I was determined to change it up a bit. I actually was going
for a super-bright green. I will gladly admit that the shade I chose
was not exactly what I had hoped, but it is pretty close..... And
bright!!!!

getting there

PC's room is complete; what was once a small work space now has a crib, rocking chair, and storage shelf for books and toys. The room is on the second floor at it has a nice, tall window that looks out the front of the house and up the road. A not bad first room, for sure.

The paint was the major change and has been the biggest surprise of the room makeover. We were going for something like the green in the sidebars on this blog, but we ended up with something even brighter than the green in the title bar up top. I mean, green---neon green. The shoelaces I bought in 7th grade neon green. It's so bright that it casts a light green veneer onto every white surface around it. The crib grandma A. bought is not white, and it looks fantastic in the new room.

For flooring C bought half-inch foam tiles, 26 of them, one for every letter of the alphabet. We needed cushioning for the wood, most of all, but an extra added bonus is that Stanley gets his name on the floor. And Buford too.

units parental

Children are our future--Whitney Houston was not being ironic when she sang that.

Friends in Champaign-Urbana and central MN are expecting in the next two months, and friends right here in the RIC also have oven-with-bun. Two girls, one boy. We're in "that age," I guess, among that dense and predictable cohort of people who are having kids now. I can think of ten little ones under the age of two in a small group of folks we used to hang out with. It's much like the cycle of marriages among our friends ten years ago.

I learned from my colleague that China has become much more strict about adoption these days. Though they more lenient as a culture in regard to the state's "one-child" idea, there are still a lot of orphans and a lot of us in the U.S. adopting them---30,000 families in the U.S. are waiting right now. Very cool. This also makes for quite the wait these days--it will be four years before the child is here and they can start livin' family style. Anyway, the background check she described is quite extensive now, and includes things like if either parent takes anti-depressants. Taking anti-depressants rules you out.

I don't know if that's the case in other places. But I do know that there has been a happy transition from Russia to Minneapolis in recent months for this new guy. We are so happy for you and we love following along.

shoes and who needs 'em

If PC is like his parents, he may end up with a shoe habit.

According to babycenter.com's "9 month, week 4" e-mail, he's too young to start buying them:

"...you needn't bother until he's really walking well. In fact, experts believe going barefoot indoors helps a baby's foot develop properly and promotes better balance and coordination."

We can appreciate this. But whoever wrote this never shopped for adorable little baby shoes.

weeekend towel scramble

Dear Prince Clementine:

First off, we love you very much.

Second , here's a list of lessons from this weekend.

1. Buford's giant bowl is meant to hold the doggy's water. When you grab its edge and pull toward you, the water spills everywhere and your parents go scrambling for towels. Maybe you knew this. Remember, Buford can't drink the water if it's not in the bowl.

2. "Sippy cups" are called that because babies drink from them. This requires that someone (preferably you, PC) lift the cup to your lips and tip it toward you. Holding the sippy cup upside down like a salt shaker means your parents scrambling for towels.

3. This is huge. The toilet is the white ceramic bowl where you poo and the bathtub is the bigger white ceramic tub where you clean yourself. When you poo in the bathtub we have to scramble for towels and hold you over the toilet (we can see how this is confusing). Remember, it's cold when you're wet and hanging over the toilet as the area is sanitized. Think of bath time as relaxing, yes, but not too relaxing.

We love you very much.

Your parents

mixing it up

PC and I had a morning home together today--a rare thing. We started by reading a book about colors, then we advanced to playtime down stairs and an attempt at a "schedule." I say attempt because it was clear, throughout the morning, that he clearly understood something was different. I am not the person he sees most mornings, or plays with or eats with, and he certainly does not take his morning nap in his mom and dad's bedroom. This he made clear to me. Eventually, though, we worked things out. We rocked Radiohead's "Fake Plastic Trees," became tearful and lonely singing "Red River Valley," and shouted out our self-esteem with a, uh, evolving version of Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful." He thinks guitars and singing are magic.