"Party girl" Lily may try to emulate my social butterfly of a mother, but Anna seems to be more like hers. Yours truly.
While Lily was off raging it up at her friend Katy's house during Wednesday's snow day, Anna and I were kicking it at home. I tried to get a head start on the mountain of dishes that have taken up residence in my kitchen sink, so poor Anna was stuck in the exersaucer for a bit. One minute she was wildly jumping and "talking" loudly. The next minute she was asleep. Sound asleep. Sitting up.
Perhaps Noah will have to warn her future significant other about how lonely Saturday night's are when your wife falls asleep on the living room couch exactly 10 minutes after you put the DVD in to the machine. Of course, that's after he warns every living creature that walks on two legs to stay away from his baby until she's at least 40!
I'm constantly amazed by Anna's RAPID progression (far too rapid if you ask me) through the baby stages. I'm sure this is common for younger siblings. I mean, Lily only had two grown-ups to learn from so it took all of 12 months to potty train her. But Anna...well she has a four year old to learn from, so she's hitting milestone after milestone before I can even blog about it!
The latest in our world is food. Real food that is. While we still have to be extremely careful about foods in an attempt to outsmart those evil allergy devils that are lurking, Anna is allowed to partake in much of what we're eating ourselves these days.
Is she happy about her transition from jarred purees to finger food? Y.E.S. Yes, yes, yes!
In fact, it's really the only thing that quiets our very talkative (and LOUD) baby. I've never seen someone enjoy herself so much.
Tonight's menu -- orzo and roasted chicken. I had more fun watching her than I did eating myself.
When asked what activity she wanted to do this winter, Lily was emphatic. Swimming? No. Didn't want to get wet. Gymnastics? No. Not in the mood. Music? No. No reason given. What she wanted to do -- and what she asked for for weeks -- was art.
Um...talk about genes. Nature vs. nurture? I guess in this case it's both. One of Lily's first books was a children's story about Picasso and Matisse -- with a slight barnyard twist. When Pigasso Met Mootise. And then, of course, there's my mother who missed her chance at an art prodigy with me; I'm sure she's been channeling creative energy at Lily since she found out that I was pregnant!
So I signed Lily up for a Dad & Tot art class through Arlington County, which was an adventure in and of itself (classes, especially in the winter session, are full within an hour of the online registration opening). Apparently I neglected to tell Noah to wear his painting clothes, so he did come home with a few red splotches on his absolutely favorite jeans. But that's not as bad as last winter when I told him that parents were supposed to be IN the pool with the kids during swim class. And reminded him that pool rules stated you have to shower first. So he showed up with Lily, on the first day of class, dripping wet in his swim suit, to find all the other parent "escorts" bone dry in their business suits. Oops. I guess I hadn't read the fine print on that class registration confirmation...
Week 1 of "Operation Artistic Endeavor" was a big success. Topic -- still life. Most favorite moment -- finding the super sparkly gold paint before any of the other kids. Next week -- clay creations.
And I don't know you about you, but I think that Lily might actually have gotten my mother's talent. Or maybe it's just because I'm her mother, but I was impressed! I mean, I can actually tell what it is. Not bad for four.
This insanely incredible day in our nation's -- our world's -- history started off on a less than incredible note. It started with a trip for Anna and me to the pediatrician's office. With three visits in the last week, I think that I deserve my own reserved parking space. At least parking is free; one of the benefits of suburban living for all you urbanites who claim you could never move across the river!
I knew that Anna was sick, but I didn't realize just how sick she was. With a raging infection in her left ear, and oxygen levels below 90% thanks to her wicked cough and awful wheezing, we narrowly missed a trip to our local emergency room. 2 hours, 2 nebulizer treatments and 1 teaspoon of oral steroids later, we were released with strict instructions to neb her every 4 hours. And to drive home quickly so that we didn't miss any more of the pre-swearing in live coverage!
With Lily clad in her "Obama is My President" shirt, and Anna sporting her "I drool for Obama" bib, we were all set to experience this moment in history from the comfort of our living room. Hey, we might be a mere 6 miles from the swearing in ceremony, but we were warm AND had some of the best seats in town thanks to MSNBC. Unfortunately, high definition TV isn't kind to some people, including several who jumped out at us from the TV screen today.
Since we weren't heading down to the Mall to experience Obama-mania live, I decided to make our home-based celebration a bit more festive by buying an Obama cookie for Lily. Which she could eat right after the word "elect" had been officially removed from after HIS name. But I apparently forgot to mention that part to Noah. So this is what I discovered at 11 a.m. when I got back from the post-pediatrician's office pharmacy run... (Um, cookies for breakfast??)
And this is what I discovered on the kitchen counter after Noah ran a few post-swearing in ceremony errands. A box of three fresh gigantic Obama treats!
Official counts are not yet in, but guesstimates have the crowd numbers just south of 2 million. Which is mind-boggling. Even for a city as large as ours.
Today was an indescribable day. It was an amazing day. A day that has changed our historical landscape worldwide. Today is a day that while Lily and Anna may not remember in detail (or at all -- hence no overwhelming guilt at not making the FREEZING trek to the Mall), it is a day that they experienced. A day that they celebrated. And a day that they'll learn about in their high school history class. And for my girls, hopefully today means that the thick glass ceiling that hangs above our heads just got a little bit higher.
PS -- we got our party started on Sunday, "gettin' jiggy" during the amazing Lincoln Memorial concert!
Or leave it to Lily. She's in a huge "I can do it by myself" phase right now. She prides herself on doing things -- anything -- by herself.
Bonus if she's not asked to do it (a rare...extremely rare occurrence).
SUPER bonus if it's not something she's supposed to be doing. Like going through my china cabinet. Or, apparently, "styling" the baby's hair.
Recently I had put Anna in her crib so that I could go answer the phone. It was a safe place to leave her for a minute. Or so I thought.
When after a few minutes I realized that the house was pretty quiet, I knew that Lily had to be up to something. For sure. And disappoint me she did not. Although I suppose it could have been worse. MUCH worse. Thankfully she got a spray bottle and brush and not, oh say, a pair of scissors. But I've got to say that the final "Leave it to Beaver doo" left a lot to be desired!
Back before you got married -- if you're married -- when you were dating someone, did you ever wonder what your life would be like if you two ended up together? Where would you live? What would your kids look like? Come on...admit it. Who DIDN'T wonder that!
Well I need wonder no longer. For today, when I took Anna to the pediatrician's for her 9 month appointment, I saw my ex-boyfriend. Only he was a she. In bobby socks and patent leather mary janes. And she was about two years old. Honestly, it was one of the weirdest experiences I have had lately...heck, ever.
When I signed in for our appointment -- early, hoping that they would take me early (as if!) because I had a critical client conference call exactly 50 minutes after Anna's appointment was set to begin thatI had to BE HOME for -- I noticed a familiar name in the parent column on the sign-in sheet. And while I won't divulge the name on this blog, it's not exactly "Jennifer Smith" or "Sarah Jones" or something leaning towards more common. It's not impossible that more than one person exists with this combination of first name and last, but the likelihood that there are two of them in the DC metro area isn't great. I would say that the likelihood is in the low single digits.
While I do know her name, I have never met the woman who married my ex. Thankfully. Because this means that I haven't seen him in ages. And that's a good thing. I had no idea if I was sitting next to her, would pass her in the hall, or would miss her entirely. But when I saw the little girl, there was no mistaking it. Totally biazrro; she looks exactly like her father. Hands down -- a thousand times over -- my kids knock the bobby socks off of her. Is that too awful to admit out loud? My kids are WAY cuter than his!
After recovering from this bizarre encounter, I made it through the appointment AND made it home in time to call my client while sitting in front of my computer. With about 12 seconds to spare. Poor Anna had to play in her crib -- with the bedroom door closed so as to muffle any cries that could potentially (and did) erupt -- while I was talking to a pretty important executive from a very big company about incredibly complicated and technical things. What a day.
And to round out the bizarreness, I was floored when they put Anna on the scale today. While her weigh-ins have been nearly identical to Lily's to date -- except for their birth weights, but they only differed by 3 ounces -- Anna weighed in today at 20 pounds 1 ounce and measured 29 inches. Lily, on the other hand, rocked the scales at 23 pounds 1 ounce, and only 27 3/4 inches, at her nine month appointment. Anna is long and "lean," at least by Israel baby standards!
Anna @ 9 months (thankfully her nose is a bit better today -- this picture, though, is from her 9 month "birthday")
We wished that we were in Kentucky today to help celebrate Lois Anne's (AKA the famous LOLY!!) birthday, but we're all stuck in Virginia going to work and school. How boring.
Since we couldn't be there in person, Lily decided we should send a video greeting.
So, to all of you out there, Internet, please help us sing!
Lots of birthday hugs and kisses, LAP. We LOVE you!
For the second time now, Anna's face has had a tragic encounter with our living room floor. Unfortunately for her, the area rug that we have by the couches isn't a nice fluffy one but a thin tapestry-type one that's more for show than, clearly, comfort. Especially for noses.
This time it happened on Noah's watch. Amazingly, he and Lily were sitting right next to Anna on the couch. We still don't know how this happened. Suffice it to say, she's fast. And now on probation -- she's no longer allowed to be more than 3 inches off of the floor unless she's totally strapped in. This kid can't be trusted. And neither can we.
Especially at this time of year, I fear that she'll get teased. Rudolph the Red Nosed Baby...
Since poor Lily had been a fairly good sport, putting up with two sick parents for much of the week, I decided to drag my infected sinus, pink eyed self out on a little kiddie-centered outing. And where better than a spot we'd never been before...but had often talked about...the Air & Space Museum near Dulles Airport.
Lily was thrilled when she heard about our destination; off we went. Anna napped in the car as we drove the half hour to the airport. Lily talked. Nonstop. About how she was going to ride in an airplane once we got there. Because Nettie told her that you could ride in airplanes at this museum. Lord I hoped this was true!
We arrived at the "free" museum (they get you with the $12 parking fee) without a hitch, thanks to my handy friend Ms. GPS. For those of you who haven't been there, it is a stunningly beautiful building in the landing path of international flights bound for IAD (Dulles Airport in FAA speak). Off we went to find a plane...any plane...to "ride" in.
The museum is housed in a large airplane hanger-type building. There are dozens of planes, from all ages, that scatter the lower level as well as at least that many suspended from the ceiling. Lily and I were both stunned by the sight when we first entered the building. We immediately ran down the ramp, practically capsizing Anna's stroller in the process, off in search of the plane. We were in great shape until we got down to the bottom of the ramp. Lily froze. In terror. I have never seen her react like that to anything -- my child is not exactly the timid type -- but she was paralyzed by fear. Afraid that one of the planes was going to fall on her head. Not even astronaut ice cream could make her feel better.
Since the visit was headed downhill, and fast, I knew that I had to find something for her to ride in. Since, contrary to the tales my mother had told her, you cannot ride in a plane at the museum, I had to figure out a Plan B. Even faster. So off we went to the simulators, where the woman selling tickets promised me that one of the rides was appropriate for a four year old. And a baby. And only one parent between them. $14 later, we were headed for the machine and a six minute "ride" in an "airplane." I'll spare you the details, but about 45 seconds in to the simulator ride, I had to hit the emergency stop button. The three of us emerged, Anna clinging to me for dear life, Lily a pale shade of green, and me sweating through my clothes. Please heed my warning and DO NOT believe salespeople who are likely incentivized to sell unsuspecting moms tickets to their NIGHTMARE of a machine. It is most certainly not appropriate. For women, children, babies or lunatics either.
The McDonald's McCafe saved us. Sort of. Lily wanted to go home. Immediately. I think most of the people there knew that she had had enough.
The following day was our last for vacation. Where had the two weeks gone? Since Noah and I didn't think that we could hear one more "I'm BBOOORRREEDDD!" we decided to pack it in and head to the Baltimore Aquarium. Surely fish would be a bigger hit than airplanes.
They were. Sort of. Anna was completely enthralled by the exhibits. She barely blinked during the dolphin show.
Lily was a bit more relaxed at this museum than she had been the day before. We actually got a few smiles out of her, although we weren't permitted to take any photos. "Don't even think about it!" was her warning. A reflection, here and there, was about all Noah was able to sneak.
At four, she's even learned the art of "talk to the hand."
But that's ok. Perhaps Lily will warm up on her next trip to the Aquarium. Or the one after that. After being tortured by a bored preschooler during her winter vacation, I decided to get a family membership to the Baltimore Aquarium. Because Winter is long. And it's just January. And there's no way that we're going to make it to Spring with Lily climbing the walls in Arlington. Charm City -- I hope you're ready for Madam Lily!
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