First Steps

The little Peep has been pulling herself up and coasting from object to object at day care and at home. Around the house, she's taken to moving the bar stools from our kitchen island around. But today she finally let go of all that and took her first step toward mobile independence. Carl and I were in the middle of a heated argument about nothing important, and Emma, sensing our attention wasn't on her for a whole couple of seconds, did what she could to redirect us - she walked from me to Carl.

Then for good measure - and to ensure neither of us would ever remember what it was we were arguing about - she made sure she had our undivided attention and walked from Carl back to me.

The kid's got impeccable timing.

Book Review: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking Glass

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
(Last read January 13, 2005)

Classics are classics for a reason. Lewis Carroll creates, on the surface, a child's fantasy land, populated with memorable creatures and characters -- each just as extraordinary and odd as the next. I wish my college professors had seen this story fit to dissect, for I'd love to delve into what I believe is Carroll's distaste for structure and authority, absolute contempt for conformity, and bleak opinion of humankind, especially where its imagination is concerned.

Alice's search for normality in an imaginary rabbit hole (or through a mirror) is no different than our own searches. We cling to things that appear familiar; because they are familiar, they must be safe. But we can only hold on to those things for so long, because sooner or later we find that things aren't really as they appear (babies turn into pigs, flowers can be painted red, and just because you're bigger than a house does not mean you're bigger than a dog). And until we deal with the reality, we're left to wander "wonderland" indefinitely -- playing games that don't make sense, being threatened by people with no real authority, and looking for things we'll never find.



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Nine Months

Nine Months Old.

Don't let this sweet face fool you. She throws a mean tantrum. 

Granted, the tantrums come partially because no one in this house has been 100% healthy or 100% rested since Thanksgiving. Yes, the winter sickfest continues - not a single day has gone by in which I haven't had to change my clothes at least once because of this little thing. We had an epic day last week in which I changed five times - five times - and Carl changed three times. In addition to all the outfits that had to be washed, we also cleaned all of our bedding, all of Em's bedding, and the glidder seat cushions. Gross. So gross.

Likes: Brushing your teeth (and now that we have that little yellow guard, you're not gagging yourself with the brush, which Mama likes!), and spices (vanilla, cinnamon, thyme, basil, oregano, and maple are all hits)

Dislikes: TEETHING. BEING SICK. And deja vu. :P

Spring cannot get here soon enough.