Zora

We've Moved!

2009-08-25T10:45:00.006-05:00

... In virtual terms, anyway. We have sort of migrated a lot of Z-related stuff to Facebook. It's a hassle if you don't have an account, and I know some people don't like Facebook, but it's kind of a nice service, and a little easier to post pictures and videos of Z and, well, other stuff. It costs nothing to sign up... JOIN US. GOBBLE GOBBLE, GOBBLE GOBBLE, ONE OF US! ONE OF US!

Please come on over and friend Rachel or me and get caught up! That is if anyone ever looks here any more. If so, thanks for thinking of us! Here's some recent stuff from August 09: a bike ride and a typical Zora in hot weather situation...

CASE IN POINT: THE MOVIE NEVER LOADED AFTER AN HOUR OF A SPINNING WHEEL. There's a better way to do this, y'all. Come see us on Facebook!

March Snowstorm Trudge

2009-03-03T13:52:00.003-05:00

... with a sorry snow angel!

Hello. Remember Us?

2009-03-03T10:12:00.003-05:00

We've been mighty sick in our parts-- from major illnesses to a recent three-person bout with the flu.

Here's a recent video of Z doing her bedtime thing.

Library Days...

2008-11-27T20:46:00.007-05:00

We've been going to the downtown branch of the Providence Public Library every Tuesday for the last few months for a little story-time, a little playtime, some germs (two colds so far, picked up from glomming onto plastic foodstuffs...)

Zora really enjoys the stories, likes a bit of the toys, but more than anything, she likes to try and escape. At least three times a morning she tries to log into the librarian's computer and then, while I'm moving her away from the desk, she takes off for an attempt at the Young Adult wing. Or the doors. Or... Who knows?

I had the chance to record one of these forays. Enjoy!

Late Halloween Updates...

2008-11-16T11:10:00.003-05:00

Halloween was two weeks long this year-- or so it seemed. Between the parade, a costume day at the library downtown (no photos, unfortunately) and the actual Halloween Candy Gorge, Z got a lot of chances to wear her R-made costume and smudge her face-paint.

Many thanks to our neighbor Diane for the great Halloween-night photos of Z. As you can probably tell from the first photo, chocolate was consumed. Yes.

And here's a non-Halloween photo... from last night, when Rachel threw Z in a basket of toys.

Halloween Parade

2008-10-26T09:27:00.007-05:00

This is Z without her ears on doing her best lion growl.

Yesterday they held a little Halloween Party at the park. There was face-painting, beanbag tossing, sugary snacks, a pet costume contest (ugh), punkin'-chuckin' trebuchet, mutant elephants, potato people, a human fly and a giant ear of corn. Typical Providence.

Before she went away for the weekend, Rachel put together a cute little lion/cat costume for Zora. I bungled the whiskers, but most everyone got it. Some people called out "bear," so I had to show them her tail, but everyone thought it was cute.

A few photos from my camera (it's still on life support).

So there was a costume parade, which Z took very seriously. She insisted on walking most of it and had a shaker that she kept going most of the time. The Corn Guy led the parade and the Elephant and Potato guys showed up midway. I'm sorry I don't have any pictures of their arrival, because it was pandemonium. Some kids burst into tears and some attacked them. It was a good show.

Tail end of the parade, where the insistent short-strides coagulated.

Here she is with another neighborhood toddler, Kyle. I've never known a kid (he's a few months older than Zora) who can speak like he can. I swear he uses the subjunctive better than I do.

...

The arrival of the Elephant Guy.

...

She fell asleep on the walk home, of course.

October update

2008-10-12T14:29:00.007-05:00

This week, cousin Jamie's Bat Mitzvah in Jersey aligned with a long holiday weekend, our pending wood anniversary, and a desperate need to use up those accumulating vacation days. We've taken the opportunity to traipse up and down Route 95 a little bit, including several hours each getting over the George Washington Bridge and then the Lincoln tunnel. Zora really appreciated the opportunity to get an up-close, slow-motion look at our nation's crumbling infrastructure.

Even more so, she appreciated the foods of the Northeast Megalopolis, with great gusto. At the Ethiopian place in New Haven Friday night, Doro Wat was a great hit, as were lentil samosas and great wads of injera. We don't need to mention the chocolate cake for desert.

At the kiddush in Leonia, NJ on Saturday, she found that the flavor of the pickled herring in sour cream was very much to her liking, but not so much the texture. The challah, fruit salad and a black-and-white cookie were more her speed.

Saturday night in Brooklyn, Zora really appreciated the lasagna with home-made ricotta and fresh-baked semolina bread whipped up by Auntie Stef, not to mention the awesome gen-u-ine caesar salad created by Marc, with real anchovies and everything. After a short walk to Blue Marble ice cream, we failed to prevent her from consuming 3/4 of a butter pecan ice cream cone (Keem! Keem!).

Sunday morning, Zora was up for dim sum. Clams in black bean sauce, fried noodles, chive dumplings and sundry other delicious treats were a huge hit.

She really is surprisingly adept with chopsticks, and is very adamant about using them instead of a fork. There ends up being a huge mess, but we've got to laud her effort to be culturally sensitive.

She's pretty excited about the new shoes we found in the same neighborhood.

Chinatown was, frankly, a little overwhelming.

Wild Child

2008-09-01T20:47:00.004-05:00

Zora cast aside the shackles when she awoke Saturday. She slipped out of bed quietly and decided to have an adventure. While her parents did the unthinkable, sleeping past 7 AM, she exercised her freedom.

WITH SOME LIPSTICK.

Here she is in the bathtub.

Events preceding an early bath, in play form:

R: ZZZZ.

C: ZZZZ.

R: Honey. Where's Zora?

C: ZZZZ!

Zora passes by bedroom door. Looks in. Walks toward box of cereal that is on the kitchen floor for some reason.
Z: Beebapo peez kay.

R: Oh. Do you want some cereal? Just a second. Honey. Hand me my glasses. You can't have that kind; that's Daddy's. You want some (Nature Happiness Brand O-rganic O's) O's?

Honey. Hand me my glasses.

C fumbles for glasses, hands them over to R. ...

R: OH MY GOD!

C: WHAT!

And... SCENE!
So not only did Zora try out her mother's favorite lipstick, she had to extract said lipstick from her mother's purse, which was on the table. The middle of the table. So she had to pull a chair out, climb on said chair, get onto the table, pull the bag down, get down herself...

Yes, we really dodged a bullet. She could have done anything! Thank goodness(???) she covered half of her face in lipstick.

Once her face was on she got a little hungry and tried for my Honey Nut Cheerios. She couldn't get them open. This was also on the kitchen table, though we found it on the floor-- next to a couple of packs of English muffins, both packages with torn plastic and smeared lipstick all over them.

The Cheerios:

At some point during or after the lipstick application she came in to pat our bedsheets, no doubt an homage to the art found in Chauvet Cave.

Which is done by a toddler covered in lipstick and which is done by our Paleolithic cousin?

Just to erase the image of the the wild child drinking her own bathwater-- hopeless-- I've included a photo from just a few days prior, when her face was clear and all seemed right with the world...

In case you're wondering, it all came off fine. It even came out of her hair!

Briana: She's Gone! :(

2008-08-18T21:27:00.003-05:00

Folks, that's my first-ever emoticon right there in that title. Something about the occassion calls for a... symbol that expresses the profound sadness we're feeling today, so I had to bust it out. To reiterate, :(

I took Briana to the airport this morning at five-ish. Got a call later in the day saying she made it back to Akron where I'm sure they gave her a welcome-home parade and her parents will lavish her with attention before she heads off for her sophomore year at Toledo U. Some life.

Despite the fact that our apartment is so small, and Briana's nocturnal schedule was sometimes... tricky, I already miss her and the apartment seems a little sad without her. Sure, there's a decided lack of bad music coming from laptop speakers, but... we miss her.

At dinner I mentioned her name in conversation with Rachel, and Zora began to look very concerned. She went to what was Briana's room, checked it out. Looked out the kitchen window. Asked to look out of the bathroom window. Pointed off into the distance. It made me kind of sad to think that her memories of Briana's visit will probably be occluded by words when she gets them, and the pile of memories she's bound to put on top of this summer, but I suppose that's the way it goes. I remember blurred images from what must have been my first couple of years, so maybe she'll remember Briana picking her up, or blinking into the late-morning light, or quietly eating a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch, or falling asleep next to her car-seat on rides from the beach. Who knows? I'll remember them, at least.

Briana was always very sweet with Zora; very patient and sharing. Here she is helping Zora with her hair. You'll notice you can see the floor in this photo, so I think that might date this image back to the first couple of days of Briana's visit, before she unleashed her shoe collection.

And here she is with Zora at SoundSession, wherein Providence introduced its funky self to Briana. We hope she makes it back for next year's parade!

2008-08-14T19:35:00.004-05:00

Sorry for such a long delay, folks. A broken camera (many good years, several bad drops) and a busy life have kept us from posting for a loooooong time.

Luckily, our neighbor Ben has a fancy camera on his phone and shot some pictures of Z down at the corner store. She was hanging out with Megan (our awesome upstairs neighbor-- the best and perhaps only good thing to come out of Pennsylvania, really) while R and I were at a class.

ANYWAY, the photos. Thanks, Ben, and thanks, Megan.

This one is a little creepy because she looks like a teenager. Sort of. She's holding a Wiggles doll (property of the store, really) that has been modified for S&M. He had a gingerbread gal as a top, but I don't think Zora's found her yet.

She is... perplexed by this guy, but asks to see him every time we go to the store (hourly, some days).

And here's the cutest picture I've seen in a minute (slang minute)-- Megan and Zora in the park. They took a walk with Ben and reportedly Zora was a huge hit with the wandering Christian missionaries who set up next to the playground occasionally and sing evangelical hymns in Spanish. For some reason they always steer clear of me when I'm out there with Z, but apparently Megan looks like she could be saved.

Finally, here's a link to a little video of Zora dancing with some other kids in the park. She's got the same dress on, but it's a different day. What can I say? We get a lot of use out of this dress-- it's awesome. Her auntie Stef got it for her!

TTFN, friends, family and neighbors.

PS. I just looked at that video, and damn if she hasn't grown a foot since then! She looks like a baby, whereas now she looks like a little kid.

Memorial Day Visit to Brooklyn...

2008-06-14T09:27:00.005-05:00

... where we visited Auntie Stef and Onkel Manny. And Zeke (Zeek?) and Zelda (not pictured).

We did a lot of traveling.

Walking and eating a scone.

Fort Greene Park

Prospect Park, Memorial Day

Discarded (dud) water balloon. I sincerely hope it was a water balloon.

Enough with the photos.

Happy Mother's Day Picnic

2008-05-12T14:39:00.006-05:00

Okay, I didn't get any of the actual picnic, but it was very nice. We had it out at Breton Point, where it was blustery and sunny. Look how happy and full this kid is! She ate her weight in olives. Look how little hair she has at 16 months! Ridiculous.

Flying a kite with Mary (Grandmom).

Holy Smokes!

2008-04-15T10:08:00.005-05:00

I guess there's no way to make up for lost time, but here goes.

Sorry for the delay. We're all doing fine. The baby (not so much a baby anymore) is doing really, really well, though she's not talking much. I mean, she makes tons of noises and busts out the occasional "Mama" and "Dada" and "ball," but really, I expected more, and her sentence structure is horrible. She is experimenting with her eyebrow and forehead expressions, and the other day looked at R and I, scrunched up her face in mock soulful pain, and sang, "Ooooooh." I have no idea where she got that.

We got a bike seat for her and she seems to enjoy it a great deal. It sits on the front of my bike rather than the back and she makes for a terrific windbreak.

Okay, some photos. I hope someone is still looking at this blog!

Howard and Mary come every week so Rachel and I can slip out to the gym and get some exercise sans baby. Zora and Mary are the best of buddies.

Zora's Aunt Mary (of the Freed Clan in Virginia) sent Zora some egg-shaped shakers she LOVES. She's shaking them here. She appreciated the packaging almost as much-- a cardboard tube and a silk handkerchief.

I've been working on some clothing design. I call this one "Dress I."

Bike helmet!
R has been baking bread lately-- amazing bread. Zora is a fan of all food, really, but fresh bread with a little butter and a pinch of kosher salt? It makes her very happy.

It's a shame our neighborhood has no proper hills.
"Dress II"

Uncle Joshua wrestling Zora away from the computer.

Sunday Styles.
Bored baby.
Asleep with Zeppo, our 20-pound cat.

Pancakes!

2008-01-03T13:13:00.000-05:00

Aside from accomplishing everything on her list before noon on this cold, cold day, Zora also had a couple pancakes. She approved. Please find below an abridged chronicle of the pancake event.

All of a sudden, clouds passed over the sun. "What is this crap?" she said.

"Oh, well."

Happy Cold Day, Reader!

New Year's Eve Meal

2008-01-03T13:02:00.000-05:00

R made a fancy dinner with Z. It's often hard to work with someone breathing down your neck, but R has gotten quite good at it.

Tarragon mashed potatoes, shallot cream sauce, scallops... Yum. Yes, it's a dark photo, but look at that plating!

Happy (belated) New Year!

TO DO:

2008-01-03T12:29:00.000-05:00

Zora is collapsed, exhausted, on my shoulder. I just pried a tiny piece of paper from her clenched fist, on which is scrawled:

a Drop mama's phone behind bed
aa Bite mama's boob
a Kick daddy in privates
a Eat page of seed catalogue
a Break dish
a Remove all plastic containers from cupboard
a Pour cup of maple syrup on self, floor
a Unload clothes from dresser
a Find lipstick in mama's purse
c Noon nap

Good to see that someone in this house is achieving their goals for the day.

11 Months and Counting and BONUS: Undersea Quilt

2007-12-28T09:22:00.000-05:00

Classy Lass.

We have a walker, ladies and gentlebeans! Toddler, really, but she walks 'round and 'round our tiny apartment, her little leather-soled shoes chuffing like a tiny steam engine.

Late morning preparations for the day. Phone and scarf, check; jam-jams, check.

We were recently in VT for the Christmas holiday. Zora toddled and shouted for her relatives to the North, ate copious amounts of lasagna (shout out to Uncle Steve), had numerous showdowns with the dog, Lola, and generally had a nice time.

Occasionally I forget how fortunate we are to be part of such a creative family. There is nothing that someone in our extended family (dear friends and godparents included) that isn't known, excepting the Great Mysteries. I know this, but sometimes I forget. Then I see something like this, the quilt that Lila, Sarah and my mom made for Zora. It's so beautiful that pictures truly don't do it justice.

Here it is suspended in the living-room window so you can better see the various shades of blue. It is, as the kids used to say, bananas. Click the photos to blow them up a little!

Some close-up shots:
Lila did the crab. Reader, you've probably never seen any artwork Lila's done other than this, but let me tell you-- it's in her style. I'll post a close-up of it later. He's resting on a grotto with a starfish inside.

I think Sarah did a lot of the work on the jellyfish. They're cnidarian-tastic; one even has a puffy... head-thing made of soft something.
See the tiny disc jellyfish and drifting sea anemones? Those are the quilt's ties. It's all very sturdy and pickable for Zora, too! She inspects it quite thoroughly upon waking.
Thank you, Aunts and Grandma! This belongs in a museum!

PS. Here's a shot of the crab. Satin goodness, and funny to boot. Note the chubby hand creeping toward the grotto.

Adios, friends!

Happy Hanukkah/Chewbacca!

2007-12-04T22:38:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year again! For eight nights (at least) homes across the world are redolent with the smell of onions and fried potatoes.

Zora's first latkes! She approves.

Note the tear of joy under her left eye. Latkes, sour cream and homemade applesauce...

I started to clean up, but ran out of dishwasher room. Too bad! Good thing it's Tuesday night-- Howard and Mary come up tomorrow so R and I can hit the gym and burn away a latke or eight-- Zora will help her grandma clean up the rest.

Have a nice holiday, everyone!

More Photos of Turkey and People

2007-11-30T02:17:00.000-05:00

This is the baby's blog, I know, but... some non-necessarily-baby photos for your amusement.

Fire... goooood!

"Endeavor, please, to keep dem coals out me drippins."

Howard, Turkey, Z, Laila, Alec. Herb is kind of hiding and eating back there, too.

This was the first time in many years I had turkey. It was pretty damn good. Any guilt I had was washed away by an incredible nap before dessert.

Z, Laila, Howard, Herb.

Que Linda!

Z and Mary talking about politics, weather, the traffic getting down there, music boxes.

Li'l Jeanyus

2007-11-29T23:25:00.000-05:00

"So this is a bowl. What do she taste like?"

------

Books pulled out from the bookshelf by Z yesterday:

The Metamorphosis
Nineteen Eighty-Four
The Subterraneans
Prometheus Rising*
How To Baby-Proof Your Home**

*This one's kind of a clinker, I know.

**Irony duly noted.

Also, she has Peek-a-Boo DOWN. Go on and get yourself a scholarship, girl!

No, seriously. I can't afford to send you to college.

Happy Belated Thanksgiving and Ensuing Holiday!

2007-11-27T10:30:00.001-05:00

The native people of this land shared with the settlers the proper way to blowtorch a turkey.

Honestly, though-- grilled turkey is good! Z had a bit of everything (save for dessert) and astounded all with her gusto.

A post-meal, pre-dessert stroll to the harbor. You can't see her (because she's grabbing at the camera), but Z loves going for walks in the dark. She looks around at everyone happily and just laughs at the shadows. I'm just saying she's not the scared kid (yet) her dad was.

A walk on the beach the following weekend. Z usually falls asleep around the halfway point. She's getting heavy!

When Eric at the corner store (while holding her) asks if Zora has leftover squash in her ear, it's maybe time for a post-Thanksgiving bath. She's enjoying her baths more and more lately.

More good photos to come. Sorry for the delay; Blogger has been acting up a bit.

First Snow!

2007-11-20T23:35:00.000-05:00

The last time Z saw snow she was a little blob in a baby sling. Today she stuck her tongue out into the wind and the big, wet flakes that fell for about an hour this morning. Please note the marvelous hat now fits! Thanks again, Leah!

Happy One Day Before Thanksgiving!

2007-11-20T22:12:00.000-05:00

Actually, it's two days as I post this, but you get the idea. I'm sure we'll have a jillion pictures of the three-toothed wonder (two on top, one on the bottom; she loves to grind them together in my ear on our walks. Wonderful!) eating mashed potatoes and turkey very soon.

You ever intend to do something and then as time goes by you make it more and more ornate or large or generous in your mind in order to mitigate the shame of procrastination? And then the sheer size or complexity of that act stymies you further?*** No? Well, it happens to me all the time. Case in point: Zora's had a busy, busy couple of months, and I fully intended to post about them here complete with illustration, but...

So, sorry for the wait. Here's some of what we've been up to.

Z's been a traveler these last couple of months. In October she (and her parents) went to: Newport (not such a stretch, as she's got family there) for Violet Von Doom's first birthday. Hostilities were kept to a minimum. Z was a little overwhelmed by all the babies there, and since she was the only one without teeth (the shame!) could not partake in the goldfish crackers. Good time, though. Great cupcakes.

Z also has been to Vermont (Roberts Fam, Maya), Virginia (Freed Fam), Boston (Driscoll-Brooks Fam-- twice!) and Northampton (Newman-Bernstein Fam) over the last couple months. Though we took the train to Virginia (without major meltdowns, somehow. Having grandparents across the aisle was a major plus. Everyone should travel with 'em!), Zora has been a real trooper with the car seat lately. She rarely screams in the car any more-- which is nice, as you can imagine-- and often sleeps for a good stretch of any drive we take. Hooray! Embrace your American-sized carbon imprint, child!

Anyhoo, the pictures...

A mild day in autumn. Perfect for an afternoon swing!

Z has almost mastered THE CUP. We tried a sippy cup, but honestly, it seemed like more work than figuring out how to hold an actual one. That's not to say we can give her a pint glass of Pepsi and walk away. More like a tablespoon of water with constant attention. More often than not she'll pick it up and put it down correctly, but sometimes she just tires of the whole process and drops it like it's hot (Holla!).

Loves lemons, lemon juice, lemon pulp. Here she's enjoying one of her favorite toys: the lemon reamer just after use. This last weekend she actually got a little lemon in her eye, but it slowed her only a little. She still loves them.

Zora really enjoys eating, but she really, really enjoys sitting down with lots of people and eating. Shabbat, when she sits down, candles are lit AND she gets to hear her mother sing? AWESOME. Here she is being changed after dinner. Can you make her out way in the distance on her changing table? She's very excited about the candles and being naked. Don't worry-- her mom is just out of the frame spotting her.
Here are mom's hands. Z is always happy to be naked.

Z in Virginia, wearing her traveling best, putting together her supplies for the day.
Making the long crawl to the kitchen at Dave and Mary's in Virgina. Due to our tiny apartment, Z rarely gets up to top speed with her crawl. This house in Virginia was as close to a baby autobahn as there is. The straight shot from the front door to the kitchen allowed her to hit top speeds. Note the rumpled rug in her wake.
Here she is admiring pots AND pans. And their respective lids.
Who doesn't love a green chair?

Obligatory Halloween photo. Short story long: We had several possible costume ideas, including Tintin (my favorite), Kuato (warning: kind of gross), and Master Blaster, and as is so often the case with us, spent so much time laughing at our ideas that we didn't come up with anything good. So we literally went with something our neighbor found on the sidewalk. Really. If you can't tell, it's some sort of polyester pumpkin hat (washed). Later we whistled away our sadness at losing ALL the good candy bars. Little monsters around here reaching into the bowl with TWO HANDS. ALL THE SNICKERS WERE CONSUMED. She really can whistle, by the way; a funny, airy little thing, but it's a whistle. I don't know how she picked it up, as I'm not a very good whistler-- she just started one day. She also mimics coughing for any unfortunate soul who happens to be sick nearby. It's quite annoying if you're really sick, as I was a few weeks ago. NOT FUNNY.

LOVES being naked.

Enjoying the crinkly part of decorative corn. She's wicked smaht.

We went to Boston last weekend for a museum trip with Onkle Manny, Titi Stefanie, Tom and Heather (who are like family, but I can't bring myself to write "Uncle Tom"). They're dear friends, though, who fed us a five (six?) course meal after our museum trip. We had a lovely time, I got my first and probably only 'Nog of the season (*sob*), and Zora was awesome. She ate with us, traveled with us, was completely down for whatever. Give this kid enough lemon wedges and she'll even sit in a bar while her parents have a hot whiskey. This was actually a lot less depressing than it reads.
Zora and Stefanie enjoying the third course: pumpkin soup with corn and lemongrass.
That's it, thanks for reading! Sorry it's been so long since we last posted. Love to all and happy Thankstaking, as Uncle Legacy says.

***This is the story of my life. I owe myself about a billion sit-ups when I finally get around to it.

Teefs!

2007-10-26T09:45:00.000-05:00

Ladies and gentlemen, we've got 'em. C is delighted. I think he was beginning to think we would have to get her tiny dentures.

Just to be different, Z decided to have the top ones arrive first. They just showed up yesterday, and various family members have already called her "Cletus,""Bucky," and "Kukla." (I'll let you figure out the generational divide on that one.) Halloween being just around the corner, and us being the kind of ignoramuses that we are, we briefly entertained the idea of going for the "most offensive costume" award by dressing Z as a caricature from a WWII propaganda poster, a la Mickey Rooney in Breakfast at Tiffany's. Very briefly, indeed.

Eight Months and Fourteen Days

2007-09-19T11:57:00.000-05:00

Late again.

We have had a nice August/September. We saw family, friends, arch-nemeses (Violet von Doom). Of course, being the person I am, I have no photos of any of these encounters here with me on my computadora. Soon, perhaps.

Zora fared much better in her second encounter with Violet. There was almost a toy phone incident, and mild hair pulling, but the manacles and leg-irons on Violet evened the playing field for the most part.

Hmm... what else?

Z finally had a reason (Rosh Hashana) to break out one of the fancy Par-ee French dresses Auntie Stef gave to her. It's an amazing thing-- it has more detail on it than any piece of clothing R or I own. It fits her perfectly.

I don't quite remember the rule about plastic bags, but I do remember one is bad for babies. I'm pretty sure then that several wadded up and stuffed in a large plastic bag-- which is then tied to the wall for easy recycling that never happens-- is the perfect toy for a baby to play with.

Contemplative polka-dot elf.

More to come soon!

Zeven Monthz! (Again)

2007-08-17T20:47:00.000-05:00

Raspberries from Vermont (mixed with rice-- it looked like she was eating steak tartare) were a big hit.

In what is probably a sign of teeth to come, Z's favorite baby bin toy is a book held together with a string and a large bead. She likes to put the book in her mouth and stands up to show whoever is on the outside looking in her trick. CONCERNED GRANDPARENTS AND OTHER READERS, DO NOT WORRY. I AM WATCHING HER AND THE BEAD AS SHE DOES THIS.

An evening walk with Mom. Boy, does she love her Mom.

Belated Seven-Month Post!

2007-08-17T20:42:00.000-05:00

We're always late.Never getting dressed on time...

Playing with stuff while we should be concentrating on other things...

Spacing out at the breakfast table...

Staring off into space...

Ladies and Gentlemen, the Amazing Panty-Head!

2007-08-17T20:39:00.000-05:00

"Fun" folding laundry!

Fun time's over.

Some of What We Did on Wednesday...

2007-08-02T17:45:00.000-05:00

Took a morning walk to the park...

Took a swing in the morning light...

Watched our shadows...

Ate copious amounts of brown rice blended with peaches. That is a bib, not a shirt, unfortunately.

There were also naps and X-treme poos, but you don't want to see those pictures. Really.

Hope your Wednesday was also good, dear readers!

Auntie Stef Came to Visit

2007-07-23T20:52:00.000-05:00

Teeth were checked...

All clear! Yay!
Zora had a great visit (except for the car bits) with Auntie Stef.

What's That?

2007-07-23T20:48:00.000-05:00

It's Zora!

Having a little avocado.

GUYS-- YAMS!

2007-07-17T19:12:00.000-05:00

YAMS.
YAMS.
YAMS!
GUYS... YAMS!

YAMS.

2007-07-17T19:09:00.001-05:00

YAMS.
YAMS.
YAMS.
YAMS.
YAMS.
YAMS.

Beach Day!

2007-07-09T13:33:00.000-05:00

Maya came down from the Green Mountains to visit Li'l Rhodey for the weekend. We had a belated kickoff to beach season at the local edge of the world. We ate clam cakes, underdone fries and lots and lots of sand.

Here are my two favorite daughters:

SIX MONTHS OLD!

2007-07-05T21:23:00.000-05:00

Hooray!!!It's official: only six months left on our no-questions-asked return policy. So far, so good, but I'm waiting to see what happens with those ears and that hair before I make my final decision.

No, I'm only kidding. It's character! She's a keeper.

We were a travelin' family in the month of June. We visited our Western Mass fam, our Vermont fam and our O-high-in-the-middle-O fam. Zora flew (in a plane) with no complications, and drove across several states (in short chunks) with her usual protestations. She hates the car. We try to accommodate her by breaking up drives across this great land of ours into two-hour chunks (coinciding with naps, of course), but even that sometimes is too much. Inevitably she stops crying as soon as she hears the e-brake click into place, and by the time I unfold myself from the front seat, she's smiling through the leftover tears.

Some photos.
Asleep in the sunny guest room of our dear Somerville friends, saving up the shouts and accusations for the ride to Vermont.

With the VT Family.
I couldn't get a photo where everyone was looking at the camera. Here R considers her daughter's patchy curls.

Of course she was fine in Vermont and even seemed okay at the outset of our return trip. She didn't disappoint, however, and decided she'd howl and sob from the Massachusetts border to our home in the Ocean State. Good times!

Zora did well on the plane and had a good time visiting Ohio. Wherever she goes there is no shortage of people who want to hold her, and the Buckeye State was no different.

Here we are on the lawn of the beautiful Toledo Art Museum.

Here we are in an enormous and strangely beautiful cemetery in Cleveland. She's being held by her Uncle Joshua.

Here she is in an Akron restaurant that had its own special kind of beauty: a sundae bar and more types of pie than you could shake a stick at. She's being held by Nana.

And here she is on one of the two worst beds I've ever had the misery of trying to sleep on. Incredibly, they were in the same room! Comfort Inn of Akron (the one off of Market Street, right off of 77), you need to step your mattress game up.

A Declaration of Independence

2007-07-05T13:12:00.000-05:00

So we had a very nice, damp 4th of July, with hot dogs and hamburgers at the home of Roger and Janet, the site of our wedding. All officially-sanctioned fireworks were called off for the weather.

We returned to Providence around 10:00 or so, while the city was demonstrating its usual teeter on the edge of utter lawlessness. Opening the car door was like stepping into a war zone, the air thick with firework smoke while bright explosions burst into the air from a house on every block. The occasional police cruiser rolled slowly down the city street, in passive appreciation of our neighbors' investment in thousands of dollars of illicit pyrotechnics.

We hit the hay around 11:30, while the bombs bursting in air continued indefinitely. Zora had different ideas, though. Despite repeated attempts to nurse her to sleep, I kept stirring awake as she crawled all around us. The last time, I woke to a squeal of delight and caught her STANDING, having pulled herself up on the edge of her bed. Did you hear me? I said STANDING. Damn, chile. And tomorrow is just six months.

---------------------------------------------------------

This evening, Z decided to stage a reenactment, to quell any doubt about her Super Baby skillz. You can follow along step-by-step, if you have a hard time with this maneuver, yourself.

and . . .

HUP!

Just in case there are still any doubters, here it is on the flip-side:
(and yes, she is trying to climb up onto the couch. Lucky for us all, she hasn't figured that out. Not this week, at least.)

Cray-Zee!

NEWSFLASH!

2007-06-29T18:37:00.000-05:00

Zee crawls!

Five?!

2007-06-12T22:45:00.000-05:00

Hey! Look who it is! In soft focus and ready to start the day!

Zora hit five months on the sixth, which, I realize, is a week ago. We haven't been good about keeping up with this blog, which is kind of how these things go, I gather.

Anyway, Zora is in fine fettle. She's getting long, is still lean, and has a winning personality. She's won over the folks at the corner store and is generally a hit nearly everywhere else we go. Actually, we only pretty much go to the corner store, but I'm very confident other people would like her, too.

She's very funny.

We took a trip out to an amazing old house built on a rock in Jamestown Harbor in May. There was lots going on, and you'd think, seeing as I had a camera with me, that I'd document it, but the true highlight (for me) was seeing Z strapped into her futuristic flotation device. She was puzzled by it, but put up with it for the trip back and forth.

She looks so small there, but she really is growing. And she's very strong. Her doctor says she's "motorically advanced," which R and I really like. We thought she was blowing smoke, but that's actually a word. And Zora is motorically advanced! Really! She's just about sitting up by herself, and goes up on her hands and toes. Her crawler is busted, so she just rocks back and forth and scoots backwards, but I'm predicting a leap this week.

Here she is balancing while we visited her Uncle Josh and Aunt Stew.

She's only just begun tasting adult food. The criteria are texture (easily gummed) and overall parental laziness in keeping her away from it. She's pretty dogged. Anyway, tonight R gave her some avocado bits. Wondrous!

It got a mixed review. She followed it up with a napkin and the tantalizingly cool air of a Popsicle held just out of reach.

Lastly, we've really been enjoying the fine weather. We had a field day a few weekends ago in the park near us (I broke a piece of the croquet set, Z drooled all over a mallet handle), and have taken some good walks. Here we are in south county about to enjoy some Rhode Island mosquitoes.

The other big June event (so far) has been an actual baby encounter. All of a sudden Z seems to notice other babies, even if they're her in the mirror. Last week we had a walk in the park with a baby slightly older and in possession of a harder edge. Her name? Violet von Doom. Yes. And she quickly initiated Z into big-baby world. Bonus: she showed her how many "five" really is.

Some earlier photos, before the great insult:

Happier, simpler times...
Violet isn't really THAT much larger than Zora. She's a little closer to the camera. She is much more focused, though. Unfortunately for Z, that focus isn't on the other baby next to her.

This kind of snub (and the hand-to-face above) can only lead to years of enmity and rancor, but it's so damn funny now. We're going to do a complete series of baby fights before they know what's up.

BONUS VIDEO: ZORA DRIFTS IN TIME-LAPSE!

FOUR (months).

2007-05-06T21:35:00.000-05:00

Z is four, drooling, happy, gum-smiling months old! She's a pleasant and, we think, fun baby.

This last month we:

Visited Vermont family....

Maya and Zora...
Aunties Sarah, Lila and Zora (and Rachel).

We had a great visit up there and rang in spring (with the traditional Roberts Family spring picnic and burning of the wreath), but got caught in winter's last gasp on the way home-- snow, sleet, freezing rain and then just rain. A one-way total of about five hours. A couple more like that and Zora will have qualified for her learner's permit.

We've been enjoying the nicer weather following Winter's last gasp, and take a daily walk in the morning. Zora has been getting to know the people at the corner store, and various characters on the block. She's a big hit, and smiles for most everyone. Her laugher is broken, and she can only get out a few chuckles here and there. Squeals are becoming common, and long soliloquies bookend the day; one when her parents are still groggy, and one during the late-evening diaper change. Lots of "Oooohewwwwahs" and "Queeeeeahhhoooohs".

Lighting Photo Round!

Here she is on our trip to the Land of Garish Patterns.

Fresh Produce!
High-intensity nap training!
Blurry smiles! Still an elusive smiler-for-the-camera.
Like her father, Zora hates the flash.
Random tidbits: She loves bottles of all shapes and sizes. We don't know if she's a reincarnated glass blower, bottle collector or lover of drink-- or if she's all three. Her favorite so far is the Gerolsteiner fizzy water bottle, and if she's squirming while we're eating dinner, we only have to plunk the bottle in front of her. She loves it!

Progress report

2007-04-07T19:58:00.000-05:00

. . . as of Friday!

Putting on size!
This photo was actually taken about two weeks ago, and this morning, the scale read 13.5. Grow, lil' Zee, grow! All around, Zora is a super strong, healthy yet petite little lady. Her weight holds steady at the 50th percentile, but she was closer to the 75th in length, last time we measured. No chubby babies here! It seems like most of her fat lives in her thighs (in case there was any doubt who her parents are), which are the delicious texture of a perfectly kneaded bread dough. Seriously, you have got to feel them, they are so delicious.

At three months, Z still loves the mobile.
Both of the above photos feature our all-around favorite feetsie outfit, which has come to be known as Golden Honey Bear (alternately, Z becomes Golden Honey Bear when wearing this outfit). Sadly, GHB has gotten a little short for our lanky girl, and will have to be retired. I gotta find another cottony fuzzy outfit like this, because it is so cute on her it makes everyone squeal. Zora has the nearly unique distinction of looking fabulous in yellow.

Aside from the mobile, Z has a few other loves. Here she is communing with Ms. Bumpy, who is clearly a dynamic personality.

It's hard to capture on film, but Z smiles and smiles and smiles, and even has a wonderful squeaky little laugh. This is really just about the closest we can get to the smile on film.

Zora has discovered her hands. Although she has figured out that they're great for sucking, as well as for grabbing other stuff to be sucked, she spends a lot of time either rubbing them together like an evil genius or impersonating a Hummel figurine:

As you can see, her hair remains sparse, and is mostly sort of fuzzy and fluffy and makes us laugh a lot. There are some curls in there, but we can't tell how tight they're going to turn out. We like to think that, once it fills in a little more, her hair might look something like this:
I suspect Z has an athletic streak like her Dad. She gets a strange thrill from doing situps, and stands up so so tall while holding onto our fingers. While at Chez Newman over the holiday, she impressed any and all by rolling over and over!

Her most impressive athletic achievement to date is winning $20 (2nd place!) in Legacy's March Madness pool.
I tell ya, this kid really knows her collegiate sports.

Professional, Holder of Masters Degree, Mother:

2007-04-06T22:00:00.000-05:00

At changing table:

"That wasn't hardly no thing! That was more like a colorful fart!"

More Passover Photos

2007-04-06T14:22:00.000-05:00

I wouldn't call it a long seder, but for a first timer...

The Bernstein Ladies entertained with their fingers. It's a family secret, apparently.

ZORA! DROOLER AND GUMMER OF KNUCKLES...

2007-04-06T14:18:00.000-05:00

IS THERE ANY WAY TO STOP HER???!?!?!?!

Oh, it's been too long...

2007-04-06T13:36:00.000-05:00

Sorry.

Happy Pesach!

Passover for those not in the know is the annual sprinkling of matzoh crumbs on one's person and around one's home. Eight days of crumbs!

We had a wonderful first Passover with Zora. We celebrated at Chez Newman along with Uncle Joshua, Auntie Stew (Zora's favorite knuckle snack), Stew's sister, Laila, Uncle Genius and his ladyfriend, Cousin Linda and good ol' Al Bemis.

Laila and Auntie Stew were a big hit with Zora. They seemed to enjoy making her laugh, and they did a big-hair dance with Joshua that she really enjoyed.

Sorry in advance for the blurry seder photos-- people just wouldn't sit still while they were singing and laughing.

Choice Quotes from Mom R

2007-03-15T16:29:00.000-05:00

Zora overeats, deposits excess onto shirtfront-- R:

"Can you hand me a shmata? She's beginning to cheese."

PAUSE

"I never used 'cheese' as a verb before having a baby."

At the changing table, observing a full diaper:

"That's a spicy meatball!"

Is it any wonder I love her? She's a great mom with a disgusting sense of humor.

Two Months!

2007-03-06T22:27:00.000-05:00

It's cold. Slush runs out of the tap and coffee gets a milk-skin before you take a sip. My mother told me her eyes nearly froze shut while outside (in Vermont, but play along) today.

Not the best time for a bath, you say. Better to wait a while until this cold snap breaks, you say. This is probably right. But here's the thing: I've been telling myself and anyone who will listen (Zora) every morning at her 8:00 a.m. changing of the guard that today is bath day FOR SEVEN DAYS. Every morning she smiles, burps and a recent meal rolls down her cheek, and every morning, as I try and clean her face, I say, "We're going to take a bath today," in some embarrassingly high sing-song voice I've found these last eight weeks. Today HAD to be the day-- even I can't procrastinate that long on hygiene.

Eight weeks! Two months officially today! We're very, very happy.

After a bath, styling:

After styling, more styling:

Happy two months!

Haiiiii-yah!

2007-03-05T11:08:00.000-05:00

Happy Purim!

Seven Going On Eight

2007-02-26T21:51:00.000-05:00

Zora's names

2007-02-21T22:15:00.000-05:00

Sorry it's been almost three weeks since the last post- lots has been going on, and this long post was a long time in the making.

We had Zora's naming ceremony Sunday before last- it was a really lovely day, and we were so honored to have our closest family members, both blood and adopted, share the occasion with us. More on that day, including photos from the lens of Uncle Genius, coming soon.

Zora's full name is a bit of a mouthful- Zora Tali Newman Greene. As a part of the ceremony on Sunday, we explained where we got the names from and what they mean to us, so I thought I'd put it out there for all to read.

C and I landed on Zora very easily. Last April, when the zygote that was to be our daughter was about two weeks into production (I strongly suspected it, C did not yet know), we visited C's family in Ohio. While there, we had the privilege of being in the audience of a play starring C's cousin Annetta, who many readers may remember from her great rendition of "Unforgettable" at our wedding. One of the other actresses was named Zora, and C leaned over to me and whispered "What do you think of the name Zora?" My response was, "Ooh, I've always liked that name." And presto, our daughter, who we didn't yet know for sure was coming, had a name.

Of course, "Zora" is more than just the name of an actor in a play we saw. The name was on each of our independent radars in the first place because of Zora Neale Hurston, the Harlem Renaissance author, WPA anthropologist, and wearer of great hats. She has always struck me as a great mind, a great individualist, and a strong character who shucked any of the accepted roles and exceeded any of the expectations to which the circumstances of her birth may have limited her. Looking at the existing black and white and sepia images of her, and reading what she and others wrote about her life, I see someone with a cutting intellect and independence of thought who accepted no less in others, who possessed a refined sense of the music of both the English language and the human experience. Also, did I mention the hats? Really sharp hats. This is one woman I could really hope that my daughter might emulate.

(Old family friends Chip and Barbara gave us a photogravure that Chip made from the original negative of this portrait. How awesome of a gift is that?)

About a month and a half before our trip to Ohio, my Grandma Thelma, who had been living a few blocks from my folks since she moved East from Ohio in 1998, turned 95. We celebrated her birthday with a family dinner, after which Grandma, who was never a person for ceremony or speechifying, went around the table and told each of us her individual thoughts for us. She told me how proud she was of me and my "position" (as she called my job, since I receive a salary, have my own desk, and on very rare occasions, am required to look kinda-sorta professional), and she told Cauley how lucky we all are to have him in the family, how much my grandfather would have liked him, and that she wanted to see a "little Cauley" sometime soon.

This wasn't the first time she had put in a specific order to Cauley and me. Some point in 2002, she called each of the grandkids into her apartment, one by one, and went down a little checklist of things she had to tell us - before it was "too late", I guess. On her list were the four grandchildren's names, then four little sub-lists of messages/requirements for each of us. Cauley and I were the third down the list, and there was a faint pencil checkmark next to my cousins Mike and Aaron's names ahead of us, and next to each item in the little list pertaining to each of them. I don't remember most of the three or four items she read to me, except for the last one: "I want to kick up my heels at your wedding," she said, to Cauley and me who, after two years, had discussed the idea of marriage in fairly general terms, but hadn't buckled down to anything specific. "You may be very close (what a nice euphemism, I thought), but let me tell you, there's nothing in the world like being married." How, exactly, is one supposed to respond to that? "We'll think about it, Grandma," I said, more as a protective reflex toward Cauley than anything. She pointed her finger- "You do more than think about it."

Soon after we returned from last year's trip to Ohio, my grandmother fell and broke her ankle. As is often the case with that kind of situation, it was the beginning of a pretty dramatic decline in her physical state. Until the moment of her fall, she had maintained as much autonomy and control of her life as possible, obsessively balancing her checkbook to the penny every week and sticking to a strict regimen of neighborhood walks, although the walks were shorter and shorter and increasingly assisted by her "sportscar," the shiny red walker. The fall left her confined to her wheelchair in a nursing home, and, I think, increasingly depressed. At first, she was supposed to be going through physical therapy, which my grandmother, ever the athlete, would have loved. But her cast kept her from working on her walking, and, by the time the cast came off, she had really grown too weak and had lost her will to walk again. We watched her progressively shrink and fade.

Mentally, Grandma seemed to come and go, and her voice nearly disappeared, but there were definite flashes that she was still in there. She was so excited that Cauley and I were having a baby, and rallied in ways that surprised us all on most of the occasions we visited. Some point in November, I brought a little dress I was knitting for the baby-to-come to show off, hoping this might be something to capture my grandmother's interest. Grandma was not a knitter, but was a great darner, mender, re-user and perfectionist. Her fingers automatically wandered to a spot where my amateur knitting had left a gap at the neckline, and she pointed out "You need a slip-stitch." I don't even know what that is- I've never darned anything in my life. When I told her that my fingers hadn't even gotten fat during my pregnancy, Cauley joked, "Knock on wood," and out of her silence, my funny grandmother came out with, "You need to knock him on the head."

We were so lucky to be able to introduce Zora to Thelma three times- the last time was last Monday, on Grandma's 96th birthday. My mom had been there earlier in the day and eaten some birthday pie, my grandmother's favorite treat. When we got there that afternoon, though, my grandmother was awake-but-not-awake, sitting in her wheelchair but unable to open her eyes or communicate with us. We all knew that this was not a birthday that she wanted to celebrate- she was not living her life in a way she ever intended for it to be lived. She died this past Thursday afternoon.

Zora's middle name, Tali, is after my grandmother Thelma. She was a great athlete, a swimming teacher and surrogate mother to hundreds of lost boys who came through the Boy Scout troop she and my grandfather led together, a seat-of-her-pants gardener who canned a crawlspace full of produce every year of my mother's childhood, an intensely competitive, plain-speaking holder of intimidatingly high expectations for her children and grandchildren. (When C ran his first marathon, she said "I hope you win!" When we explained that thousands of people would be running, from all over the world, many of them professional athletes, and C wasn't going to win, her reply was, "Well, maybe you'll come in third.") She was a loud laughter and sneezer, a penny-pincher, and a taker of no bullshit (although she would have called it something like "horsefeathers" or "hooey." More likely, she would have just given a look meaning as much). She was a real individualist and lacking in prejudice, qualities upon which she and my grandfather built their home and established the foundation for our family.

When I was still pregnant and my grandmother was still in the nursing home, she came out of the world to which her physical condition had limited her and said "I see you with three little ones." "We'll start with one, Grandma," I demurred. But neither of us would be surprised if we did end up filling her order- she never gave us many other options.

For Legacy:

2007-02-21T21:40:00.000-05:00

Apologies for not updating in a timely fashion. Holla!

A Retraction

2007-02-10T10:34:00.000-05:00

That thing I said yesterday about sleeping for five or six hours straight? Last night, not so much.

2007-02-09T16:34:00.000-05:00

Despite what C would have you believe, we still have the cutest baby on the block. To wit:

and

Awwww.

Not just cute, but the nicest baby around. I had no idea that some babies let you sleep for, like, five or six hours straight. Did you know this? I am flabbergasted.

Eavesdropping at the changing table

2007-02-09T11:49:00.000-05:00

These words just heard from the baby room:

"How did you get the poop there?"
and
"Wait, that's not a mole, that's poop!"

Believe it or not, I married this man, at least in part, for his intellect.

Did I Say Peter Lorre?

2007-02-09T03:45:00.000-05:00

I'm sorry, I meant Zero Mostel.

In all seriousness, our baby has been enjoying her first month, despite the acne and the balding pate. What can I say? She's very much her father's daughter-- I'm a pro when it comes to thinning hair and face spots. My mother tells me I had acne as a baby, and my youngest sister had it, and I even passed it on to my older daughter, so I guess it runs in the family. Yay!

Some random photos of the last week or so. She's been packing it on (9 lbs. 9 oz. at the one-month check-up) and is developing quite a personality. It's very much like having a little at-times-bellicose roommate you have to appease: you tip-toe, you soothe, you clean up after. Of course, R and I are horrible cleaners, and our apartment, specifically the kitchen, fell into a collegiate-level state recently, but we've got it back now thanks to a visit from R's mom. She usually dandles the baby while we clean, but the baby just slept and slept, so we ALL cleaned. One definition of shame is watching your mother-in-law exclaim at what's under the coffee maker.

We’re doing a baby-naming ceremony this weekend, fittingly late, I might add, and Zora’s going to meet her other grandmother, her great uncle, Auntie Stef and Uncle Manny AND her older-by-14-years sister.

PS. I realize I overused the hyphen here. Forgive me, I’m tired.

I kind of like this jacket. It's very "That Girl."

Zora is a mighty sleeper like both her parents.

(R adds: Notice Z likes to keep the cell close by for late-night shout-outs to her peeps.)

Quick update!

2007-02-06T00:14:00.000-05:00

Sorry it's been so long. You might be asking, "Why no snapshots of the cute baby?"

Answer: Peter Lorre. Balding. With acne.

But we'll put up some low-light pix soon!

Love to all!

2007-01-26T15:52:00.000-05:00

Today, Z discovered that a bath,

while initially somewhat alarming,

and altogether new,

involving quite a bit of manhandling,

can actually be quite lovely.

The drying off part was a little surprising,

but we ended the day with Z's favorite meal.

Daily Zee

2007-01-26T15:39:00.000-05:00

Hey, Guys. Its me, Z.

I just wanted to let you know that I was NOT a party to the selection of these bright sheets.

I mean, really.

AMAZING HAT:

2007-01-25T02:46:00.000-05:00

THANK YOU, LEAH.
We have been inundated with wonderful, beautiful gifts. We do mean to thank each and every one of you and will do so very soon in actual paper form. We're still trying to get used to this higher level of multitasking, and in that vein have adopted this man as our new role model. Click the link and be amazed.

The Greatest Love of All (Suspended Eight to Ten Inches Over Your Face)

2007-01-25T00:15:00.000-05:00

I was dubious when R's Mom found us this mobile (at either a yard sale or a secondhand shop). It seems a little too engineered to be much fun, one of those products that is meant to appeal to the parents more than the baby in the end, the kinds of things R and I have tried to avoid (so far). Not having money has made this incredibly easy, by the way. Try it! It totally cuts down on your consumption, conspicuous and otherwise.

Anyway, we attached it to the changing table in a fit of boredom when Z was still doing her sit-in, and joked about the claims made on the box, and the ultra-specific instructions it came with. Proper distances from the baby, when to switch to a more complicated pattern... Again, it all seemed a little too engineered. Some of the best-loved toys I've seen have been (a random sampling in no particular order): a monkey made from a stuffed bleach-stained dress sock (a Mom Roberts creation), a one-armed Micronaut (a Mom Roberts find from the old days), and a Lost In Space flying saucer made out of glued-together paper plates (a Lila and cG creation of long ago). What I'm trying to get at is kids-- even babies-- can be made happy with just about anything, and a lot of stuff is just over-designed.

That said, this mobile is awesome. It is one of those rare beasts that doesn't fail to live up to its hype. It's so great that at times I get a little jealous at the way Z stares at the various parts of it. In fact, if the love affair goes on much longer, I'm going to start wearing a mask with the various mobile designs blown up to face size.

Check it:

You can't tell here, but her little fists are flying! She really loves this thing. I think she also digs the shapes of the photos on the wall, but that's a distant second. Nota: the hairdryer is for diaper rash (pediatrician approved!), not styling. Really.

The Many Faces of Zora

2007-01-20T13:17:00.000-05:00

Annoyed:

Angry:

Concentrating:

Pooping:

Oh, there's many, many more.

PS. I actually do call her my "Li'l Lou Grant," though R. disapproves.

What a weekend we had...

2007-01-15T14:11:00.000-05:00

Auntie Lila visited Saturday...
as did Auntie Carrie and Uncle Joshua...

... as did Auntie Liz. We had a wonderful day of cooing, toe-biting and general cuddling of the baby.

On Sunday we went down to Newport for a little more family time.Cousin Linda...
and Great Grandma, among others, were introduced.

On Monday Zora slept in the quiet jungle over by the window, worn out from all the attention.

Thanks for a great weekend, all!

A Walk in the Park on Friday

2007-01-15T14:07:00.000-05:00

We made a baby!

2007-01-12T13:04:00.000-05:00

I realize that, aside from the various woodworking projects described below, we haven't really given the full run-down on the BIG craft project. I'll spare you the details of the first steps of the project- we don't have photos of that, anyway. Also, if you need info on the whole mitosis/meiosis thing that took place between mid-March and this past week, you'll have to look it up yourself. I'm not sure I totally get that, but I think it was mostly mitosis. Or maybe meiosis. I don't know. We didn't go over that at urban planning school.

As most of you readers have probably heard, I had an incredibly easy pregnancy, so there's not much to report in that regard. I really had none of the yucks that often bother ladies in a delicate condition, until really late in the game. Month after month, week after week, the midwife wrote absolutely nothing on my chart at my regular weigh-ins- there just wasn't anything to write, aside from the usual weight and blood pressure stuff. My medical record from this pregnancy is one mostly blank sheet of paper. To celebrate our anniversary in October, we went bike riding around Block Island with 7 months of baby-in-progress on board, and the weather this year made it pretty easy to keep on with our weekend beach and nature preserve walks mostly right up to the end.

I don't remember who it was who told me that "the baby comes when you just can't stand it any more, and then you wait two more weeks." As Z's due date got closer and closer, I kept feeling like, "This isn't such a big deal. Who are these people who just can't stand it any more?" Just around the last week in December, just about when I went on leave from work because the baby was supposed to show up any day, I got this itchy rash on my stomach. Then my arms were continuously asleep, I got too winded to make much more than a lap and a half waddling around the park, I woke up one morning and said "Holy crap, are my feet fat!" and I actually outgrew my maternity clothes. I thought, "I just can't stand it any more!" And then we waited two more weeks. And then we waited another 4 days, just 'cuz.

Stay tuned for the exciting conclusion, coming soon. . .

Another Project Documented With Photography!

2007-01-12T11:40:00.000-05:00

The other project we made this fall in anticipation of Zora was a changing tabletop. It was obviously a much smaller project, but a nice warm-up for the bed.

Also, these photos allow me to show off my Daughter Anterior, the Divine Ms. M.

A simple box, we measured for underside braces so it would fit tight on top of a small bureau R's mom found for $5 (!). R and I painted it incredibly sloppily over three days, but you can't tell unless you look from, say, ten feet away. Still, with the tabletop on it, it looks cool and works wonderfully for all those little baby clothes.

R's Mom made soft little pads for it, too-- another nifty project...

Sparing you the construction photos for what is essentially a shallow box, I take you first to the sanding stage. We used the wood left over from the baby bed project, which you can see in pieces under the table.

M had her first woodshop class this year in school. What fun it is to sand!

The sanded box with a first layer of powdered color rubbed in. We didn't paint this project as we did the bed, just rubbed the stuff in.

First red, then yellow...

H applies the first of two coats of lacquer. Like most people, he has an industrial venting system and different airbrushing equipment.

Here it is on its bureau. Note the soft, soft pads... No complaints yet.

Thanks for looking!

We Made a Baby Bed (over a few months)

2007-01-11T20:29:00.000-05:00

We made a little co-sleeper bed with nifty wheels for rolling around the apartment in order to better annoy our neighbors. It has a removable (sliding) wall and it fastens to the side of our bed with simple hook and eye pieces. Vanity demands I point out the circles were my idea, but R's Dad (H) made most of this possible, both with his expertise in building things and his extensive collection of tools.

I enjoy building things provided they aren't too complicated (IKEA, piles of debt). I did assist in a number of Roberts family constructions in my youth, including a massive chickenhouse/work shed. It is Vermont's only Brutalist chickenhouse/work shed and will never come down, neither by the hand of man nor that of nature.

Had I done this by myself the bed might still be in pieces under our bed, covered with a downy layer of discarded cat fur. If it was together, it certainly wouldn't look as nice. It is a certainty that a butterknife would be employed at some point as a screwdriver. Luckily, there are no substitute tools in H's world; he either has it or it does not yet exist. In one case we had to wait for a tool to be invented.

I think it came out nice and thought I'd share it. Sorry for the length, but I wanted to show it from beginning to end. Don't worry-- the baby's in the last few. She spent nearly all of last night in it, and lay in it this morning in the living room. She's in it right now!

The dimensions had to be re-thought a bit.

H.

We used two locking casters and two free-rolling. I thought I was being fancy, but the locks haven't been useful for anything yet.

The poor hole saw was overtaxed.
H has all these great colors in powder form. We added pure yellow and then pure red to alcohol and painted it on.

We burnished it once it had dried, blending the colors. H then sprayed it with a lacquer.

Here it is, done weeks before the baby even deigns to join us!

Finally, in the living room tonight:

Good night!

* R adds: Is it me, or, in this last pic, does our darling Z has an amazing resemblance to Vinnie Jones or some other footballer yob? Awwww.

hey, y'all.

2007-01-10T21:58:00.000-05:00

Hi folks, remember me? I used to post here. I've been rather busy being sucked on for the past 4 days. More Mama Zee goodness coming soon, I promise. Just as soon as I get my teat back.

This Baby is All About Action

2007-01-10T20:47:00.000-05:00

Trying to keep up with her is major work. We're quite tired.

Here she is running R's mother ragged:

I'm at wits' end here!

Galaxie Restaurant is cheap, great and cheap. We love it. Here the baby keeps me from enjoying some noodles.

R's Mom grapples with the kid.

R is able to settle the wild one for a brief respite. The cats are completely overwrought.

Today:

2007-01-10T16:18:00.000-05:00

I learned to enjoy the freedom a baby sling provides.

AND

We took a walk around the park and down to the corner store to introduce Zora to our local purveyors of meats, cheeses and newspapers.

Zora in the hospital...

2007-01-09T16:14:00.000-05:00

Hello.

There's much to say about our experience in the hospital, but it was largely positive and went well. We got a baby out of the deal, anyway. R will no doubt have a lot to say, along with details, but I've just put together a little photo essay of our first couple of nights there.

Friday evening, when we were still jazzed enough to not be exhausted, R's parents came up and brought us pizza, wine, ale (spilled twice), salads... We had a nice little welcoming party in that little, little room.

The fold-out bed I used was a bed in name only, and R's bed wasn't all that great either, but we didn't get a chance at much sleep anyway. If I wasn't walking with her, she was in bed with R-- we tried to keep her with us as much as possible, and she really only left for "vitals" every few hours or so.

So many of you have already sent congratulations and good wishes, and we really, really appreciate them. We feel so very lucky.

Say hello to Zora!*

*I've since learned that aside from this Zora, her sort-of namesake (be sure to read her linked essay against the Brown vs. Board of Education decision), there is this Zora, and this Zora... Ah, well. Here's another!

First Day

2007-01-07T13:59:00.000-05:00

Words fail; photos do, too. Everybody's jes' fine. More later.
Late afternoon Saturday. First hellos.

Sunrise, Sunday.

Sunrise again, Sunday again.

The Name Game

2007-01-04T20:18:00.000-05:00

We've been asked many times what we will name this baby, but I haven't (apparently) been asked enough. I'm curious as to what names you find generally interesting. Any guesses or suggestions are, of course, welcome.

Before we found out we were having a girl baby we went over several male names. I've often been fond of Ezekiel, or Zeke, and while we're on the topic of great ball players, I've always admired World (born Lloyd) B. Free, both for his great name and extraordinarily ordinary looks. The last great name that we'll never use is that of Mantan, and only because R doesn't like it. What I'm getting at is there was no shortage of names for boys, and it would be a long, knock-down, drag-out discussion over what we settled on if we were having a boy.

For girls it was pretty straightforward, though. We came up with it very quickly while watching a play and it's stuck since. Every once in a while I get nervous about it-- it's a heavy thing naming someone for life-- but I'm pretty sure we've got this right. Still, I can be convinced of almost anything. Share what you've got! Please! But don't share your keeper names-- literally several people look at this blog, and I'd hate to see someone take your favorite.

Update! Still No Change!

2007-01-03T16:08:00.000-05:00

We went in for a fluid check (apparently the dipstick is just a myth) and a little face-time with the baby today. Nothing new or exciting, but we did get to see the baby's face during the fluid check. Unfortunately, I am a lousy lip-reader and the ultrasound was not closed captioned, so I couldn't make out what she said before she turned away from the camera. My guess it was something along the lines of, "Bugger off."

We've gotten a lot of suggestions as to how to bring her out, including Chinese food, scaring R into labor (with an axe, no less) and my personal favorite, smoking her out. In the interest of full disclosure, I came up with the smoking-her-out plan, but before you call DCS or whatever, keep in mind my plan doesn't call for a little fire-- it calls for *liquid* smoke and a baster. Ease up, people. In the interim we're going to start blasting power ballads and other bad music at the general hoo-hoo area.

2007-01-03T11:06:00.000-05:00

I am so effing tired of waiting for this baby already. News at 11:00? Probably not.

Also, here's some fun news: My feet are fat. Like, so fat that if you were in the desert, you could stick a straw in one of them and survive for a week by sipping the fluid.

Mm-mm!

Adventures With the Li'llest Procrastinator

2007-01-02T03:07:00.000-05:00

Literally hundreds/none of you have asked that I post an entry. Truth be told I'm a little gun-shy about it. R is a fantastic writer who rarely does so, while I am solidly the inverse. Still, I try. Here then is our final day of 2006 in color. Please know that I am aware of the massive size of these images (click to see infinity). My apologies. It is late and I am woefully uninspired right now.

We spent New Year's Eve by the seaside, mourning the loss of our stubborn and/or lazy tax write-off for 2006. Despite R's intractable guest, we had a fine time hopping from boulder to boulder at the edge of the world.

I know what you're thinking: "Is that safe to do?" Relax, it's fine. Although I only had on my fancy boots, I was in very little danger of slipping. On unsure footing I made sure R was someplace near so I could reach out for support.

The weather was, as has been the norm this "winter," quite mild. The sea and wind were calm; you could hear paddlings of ducks pip-pip-pipping their way around while they did whatever it is waterfowl do at this time of year. It was so calm, in fact, that the ripples in this picture were caused by my panting from clambering around the rocks.

Here is a pregnant lady we came across on our way home. Isn't she lovely! You can't see it, but our massive and beautiful sun is setting behind her, some 93 million miles away.

Later we ate sushi and other Japanese dishes for dinner with R's parents, played Scrabble with R's parents, and took turns psychically browbeating our unborn child for not arriving even close to schedule. Then we all drifted off into different corners of the house. I took a shower, R looked at the computer, R's dad looked at another computer and R's mom fell asleep watching a special Prairie Home Companion on TV.

It was the lowest-key New Year's I'd had in six years, and on a personal note, I hope it was the last time I ever hear Garrison Keillor singing so near to what ought to be a fresh and unspoilt start to a new year. The man is a prolific gift of a writer, but his singing is to music what gjetost is to cheese.

Cats In Hats-- What Fun! (Bored)

2007-01-02T03:01:00.000-05:00

HAPPY.
NEW.
YEAR.

2007-01-01T19:44:00.001-05:00

Nope.

Captain's blog, 5:27 a.m.

2006-12-31T05:27:00.000-05:00

One of the great joys of late pregnancy is insomnia. Actually, I guess that could be a factor of the pregnancy, or of the fact that we went to bed at 10:00 last night, or of the general anxiety of the child-waiting mode.

Yesterday's baby-loosening strategies included a couple of swift laps around Dexter Training Ground (swift for a Macy's parade float), copious Indian food (which probably could have been spicier) and a long drive over Rhode Island's poorly paved highways and byways.

Conclusion: The Indian food gave me gas, and we really do need to do something about the sound our brakes are making. And oh, yeah, no baby.

Now that I know I have at least a small handful of readers, I feel obligated to post daily so no one thinks something is happening that isn't. If you are reading, drop a comment so we know you're out there! Whatcha dooin' for New Year's?

My name is. . .

2006-12-29T12:13:00.000-05:00

Midwife visit was frustrating and annoying yesterday- not because of any bad news, just because of a kooky-nut incompetent nurse and a very rushed midwife, who was pinch hitting for all the other midwives who were out for the holidays.

How kooky-nut was the nurse? For evidence, take your pick:
* Throws open the bathroom door and says "Wait! Don't go yet!" as I'm sitting on the can, because she forgot to give me the little cup to pee in.
* Tells me she didn't want two boys, so she was happy when they ended up with two girls, even though her ex-husband, he wanted a boy both times. Then, he left her anyway, when the girls were six and nine, to go raise somebody else's kids. Can you believe it? And that woman, she has been with everybody, I mean everybody. Oh, he is a jerk. (Me: Well, I don't really care, boy or girl. . . I mean, what the hell was I supposed to say? Who was this nut?)
* Can't figure out how to use the baby-listening device. Gets ultrasound goo all over me. Makes me seriously wonder if she has ever done this before.

In the end, all is fine.

Had an ultrasound this morning to get my fluids checked. The dipstick says I don't even need them topped off. Next appointment, I'll actually pull into the garage, straddle a pit in the ground, and have a bunch of Voc-Tech grads poke at my undercarriage.

The ultrasound lady said she could see hair on the back of baby's head. cG first thought she said she saw hair on the baby's back, which I guess would mean she takes after my family.

Speaking of my undercarriage, we are starting to institute a baby-loosening curriculum. As a first step, we walked a couple of miles on Blackstone Blvd. this a.m. cG has decided to play chicken with the baby, strategically removing the front right wheel of the car to "check the rotors." She didn't flinch, so he's next going to up the ante by taking off both front wheels and replacing the brake pads, which he has never done before. This is not some kind of medical metaphor, he is actually disassembling the car. We're hoping she will decide to show up as soon as he can't figure out how to get the brakes back together, just to be contrarian.

We've started calling the baby "Peaches," because boy howdy, did she like peaches when they were in season this year. Seriously, she made me eat like 1000 of them. They were SO GOOD. So we're thinking about dangling a peach between my knees. Think that will lure her out? It sure couldn't make my walking any less graceful than it already is.

I think those of you with a passing knowledge of the Nina Simone repertoire will recognize why "Peaches" is not only cute, but damned inappropriate as our daughter's nickname. We're all about the impropriety around here.

*not this Peaches.

And coming in 1st in the Bantha-Weight division. . .

2006-12-28T13:03:00.000-05:00

We went for a walk yesterday, just over to the park. Here's me as a slow-moving land mammal:

Fears of global warming aside, I'm glad it has been such a warm winter, because I have no idea what I would have done for a coat, if I needed one. I've been wearing the same green sweater, and now C's sweatshirt, for months. So this whole "climate change" thing has really been working out for me, fashion convenience-wise.

It's 1:25pm, and I just finished some lovely pancakes a la cG. I'm settling into a life of sloth waiting for this damned baby. The good news is that cG seems to have nearly perfected the art of the pancake in the past week or so, which is surely an important qualification for fatherhood.

Midwife appointment at 4:00 today.

Enough already!

2006-12-27T10:48:00.000-05:00

Seriously.

Still nothing to report on this front. I've got a list of errands to run today, including stopping by at the office, paying some bills, and the grocery store. I somehow didn't think grocery shopping would be on my agenda this week, but nothing, I mean NOTHING seems to be happening as far as this baby is concerned. I have my regular weekly doctor's appointment scheduled for tomorrow at 4:00. I don't want to go, so I've given baby a new deadline of 3:30 tomorrow.

C and I decided to keep the blog for all audiences for now, so sorry if you feel like you are missing out on some of my juicier viewpoints. We're going to primarily use it as a place to post baby pictures (when there are any to post) and take it from there. For now, only one of you out there even knows this exists- I suppose we should spread the word.

My husband has taken to wearing this wool vest my parents got him for Chanukah, every day. He is my very cute mulatto Paul Bunyan. (Wait, is that All Audiences? I just don't know any more.)

Who goes there?

2006-12-23T17:34:00.000-05:00

I'm trying to decide who to let in on this blog, as the content will surely be determined by who I think is reading. I tend to be somewhat- shall we say- incorrect in the company of certain audiences, and somewhat more restrained in the company of others.

Case in point: I surely did not say "Portuguese" in my most recent restaurant discussion with C. I surely used a mild ethnic epithet, one my Southern New Englander friends would be comfortable enough with to just find silly, which might give others pause, and which somehow got cleaned up for publication. Another case: C and I think it's just funny as hell to think of Baby Zee as our "little Quadroon." Some folks, they just don't find this so funny. Some folks, they just don't get what we find funny about it, and some folks, they find it funny for all the wrong reasons.

Also, there is some news about the activity in my hoo-hoo that I would share with certain reading friends, but perhaps not with, say, any number of our lovely elderly relatives.

This an issue I will have to meditate on. I'll let you know the verdict.

Hum dee dum. . .

2006-12-23T17:15:00.000-05:00

Still sitting on my butt, and getting seriously bored at this point. I've had some passing crampy things, but that's been going on for the past 2 days or so, so not really worth paying my attention to, in my book.

We're going to a second-run theater in E. Providence tonight to wile away the time some. I proposed going for Portuguese dinner while we were over there, which was greeted with resounding indifference by C. So I threw out, "There's a good Korean place. . ." and got no response whatsoever. Because you know who is mostly nonplussed by most Asian food? My husband. And you know who could eat Asian food in all its permutations almost every day of the year? Me. Maybe this whole "marriage" thing was ill-considered.

Throughout this pregnancy, I have been especially into all things spicy and salty. And what's spicier and saltier than Korean? Not much (well, there is Portuguese). My mother says I'll know I'm about to have the baby when I just don't feel like eating. Burrito yesterday, latkes last night (then left over and re-heated for breakfast today. The main reason we decided to have children is so someone's around to eat all my over-cooking. See "Latkes for 2" above), and now I'm jonesing Portuguese or Korean. Hmm. It might be some time before this chil' shows up, after all.

In other news, Eric and Moira at the corner store came up with their perfect name for Bebe Zee: De'Cor Ambiance Erica. Hm. In light of this excellent suggestion, C and I will have to seriously discuss reassessing the name we thought we had settled on.

By the way- Potato/Zucchini latkes? Awesome.

Tick, tock

2006-12-22T17:33:00.001-05:00

So we never gave too much creedence to this whole "due date" idea in the first place. C and I distinctly remember being told two different dates by different practictioners of the medical arts - the 20th by the midwife, according to her groovy little calendar wheel, and the 24th by the ultrasound guy ("the last mid-40's guy with a beard I ever want to hear discussing my daughter's labia," as C says). Even with those two forecasts, I knew better than to expect anything to happen when THEY said.

Even so, it's the 22nd, and I'm damned impatient at this point. I really kinda thought today would be the day. I've been off work since Tuesday, and kept telling C that I just needed two days to not think about work and not feel like I had anything else to do, and then I would be ready to have the baby. 'Cuz that's the kind of control freak I secretly am. I think I have magical mind control over my cervix or some shit.

Ok, Baby, it's been 2 days. I know I was rather stern with you on Tuesday, when I told you you were going to have to wait until I got a little rest and C went to Boston to train for his new gig. I cleaned up your room then sat around in my pyjamas all day yesterday while he was gone. I don't really have anything left to do, and at this point, you're just frittering away my maternity leave. So step to, kid. Oh, yeah, we haven't installed the car seat yet. Is that what you are waiting for? Cuz we'll do it first thing tomorrow, I promise. It's dark out now, and that would be a total pain, especially given your father's and my proven pattern of fumbling with and bickering about anything that requires assembly.

We worry that Baby Zee is going to be some kind of neat freak, and will be horribly dissapointed as soon as she sticks her head out of there and sees the condition we keep our apartment in. Is she too horrified by the stacks of books and mail on every surface to come out?