Happy New Year

and Silent Night.

Still can't talk. It's really not such a bad thing I've found. If I need to, I can get up close and whisper so I've only had to resort to writing notes once when we went out to dinner last night at the Village Squire (if you're in McHenry, I've got to take you here) and I wanted Cap to request Hello by Lionel Richie for the guitar dude to play (he didn't). I can also mime pretty well. For "Addie Spit Up" I do my tongue hanging out and then make a motion like I'm zippering up a parka. It works. Addie doesn't seem to mind a mute mother as she still gets lots of smiles and cuddles.

Mom kindly babysat this afternoon while Cap and I snuck off to see a movie - SUCH a luxury! We tried to get into Casino Royale but it was sold out and ended up at Blood Diamond. Amazing movie. It reminded me again why I have a pink sapphire engagement ring. Right now Addie is napping, we're sipping champagne, and Mom is preparing a homemade vegetarian Japanese Shabu-shabu feast. Lucky us! I'm not sure we'll make it to midnight but that's fine by me. It's 2007 somewhere anyway.

Some New Year's Resolutions:

Take a few risks and stop being a baby. I have a real one now.
Remember everyday what a blessing it is to have a healthy, beautiful daughter.
Reach out to my family and friends more often.
Continue to blog. It's good for my soul.
Stop buying so much stuff. On Sale isn't a license to buy.
And if you feel like dressing like a synchronized swimmer in the middle of winter while reading the business section - you go girl!

Happy New Year every one!

Christmas Tales

The Addie Clan is still here in the farmland of McHenry County, Illinois enjoying the last few days of our visit. We've been her a full week with my Mom and then celebrated Christmas Part 2 with the Detroit P+Q's in Chicago, so I don't even know where to pick up. Cap definitely has shaved his dashing mustache and my bangs have gone back to their usual straight and lackluster existence. Some folks get dressed up for Halloween, but the LA P+Q's take it as a challenge for Christmas.

If Addie was writing this, she would regale us with tales of her first Christmas complete with new toys (all battery free thank goodness), clothes, books and her first Savings Bond. Of course there were many many kisses from lots of family members as she showed off her full crawling skills and how she can now pull herself up (goodbye beautiful crib bumper). When she isn't motoring around on hands and knees, she got to go in taxis, trains, planes and automobiles and of course her stroller. She has been to a bevy of restaurants representing her already global sensibilities including Chinese, Greek, French and Japanese. While she wants to sample the eclectic cuisine, she has had to be content with her rice cereal, the ever delicious Enfamil A.R. Lipil for Babies Who Spit Up Frequently and trying to grab everything off the table from chopsticks, to beer bottles and little plates for soy sauce. We have learned that you can't have enough extra spoons on the table since she seems to much prefer them (along with cell phones and remote controls) to any of her baby-appropriate toys.


But since Addie isn't the author, I get to toss in that this Mama has been one sick lady which wasn't what I had imagined Addie's first Christmas to involve. I got the stomach flu last Friday which doesn't take much imagination to understand what that meant. I remember at one point Addie screaming her lungs out, the phone ringing and me, barfing up a fake Tylenol gel cap thinking, "This is not good, not good at all."

That subsided, we all hopped on a plane Christmas Eve (and Addie's 7 month birthday) and then I catch the flu - the regular flu. I was up enough to open presents Christmas morning but the rest of the day I spent wrapped up in blankets asleep on the couch while Cap played the role of single parent. I managed to be upright long enough to eat my second installment of turkey for the year before passing out again.

Feeling less feverish the next day, we headed into Chicago to spend 3 fun nights with my Dad, Nanci and Drew in the Windy City. I felt better enough at one point to guzzle a martini on the 96th floor of the Hancock Tower. Since then however, I have lost my voice, communicating in barely audible whispers but enjoying being restful back at Mom's and of course her homemade cookies. This might be a good opportunity to implement some baby sign language.

Perhaps its my mute state that has made me so long winded in writing so let's just stop here. Despite my ill-health, it was a wonderful Christmas filled with all the right stuff - Grandparents, an angelic little girl with a big smile, and my super-hubby.

Check out more photos of our Christmas adventures here.

Seasons Greetings!

need we say more?

She's Got Fever

Fevah! Fevah! Fevah! Fevah!

Friday afternoon.
Baby is hot.
Take Temp. 101.0
Call Cap. "Addie has a fever."
Call Pediatrician (our old one from Santa Monica because new one is OUT. long angry story involving insurance swindling but let's not go into it now). No other symptoms. Advise to take Baby Tylenol or Motrin.
Administer Tylenol (okay I'm cheap and it's actually generic Acetaminophen from Target)
Napping
Crying
100.2
Acetaminophen
Playing
99.9
Napping
Acetaminophen
Lots of crying
100.2
Realization we won't be going to my office holiday party. Cancel Babysitter.
Carry crying baby around house for hours
100.3
Acetaminophen
Sleeping at night. Waking frequently. More drugs
Saturday Morning. 100.2
Acetaminophen
Napping/Crying/Playing
Carry baby around the house (this time in her sling. getting smarter here)
101.0 CRAP!
Acetaminophen
Research meningitis on Internet. Rule it out - no stiff neck.
Napping
Acetaminophen
Bedtime. Sleeps through the night!
Sunday morning: no fever and a happy baby returns!

Roll tape!

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It recently dawned on me that Addie's first Christmas is the opportunity to start holiday traditions of our own. I'm nutto for Christmas; it's by far my favorite holiday. I love the christmas lights in people's homes, the carols (except when blasted from every store speaker), the christmas tree (even if ours is silver), myriad ornaments collected over generations (including the real seal fur star that Uncle Brother gave us made by Eskimos in Alaska), the stockings hung by the fire with care (Addie will have 3 by the time Santa arrives), the Christmas cards, and the often overlooked Advent calendar counting down the 24 days before Christmas. This is a tradition that I loved as a child, and one that I will continue with Addie.

I bought our German Advent calendar from an antique store in Richmond, Illinois when Addie and I were visiting my Mom in October. I am definitely drawn to the traditional with ornate scenes of old-fashioned holiday cheer.
I picked the Christmas Train one out because I was entranced by the cheery (yet creepy) dolls ('creepy' and 'doll' are redundant) who are so excited to see Old Saint Nick driving not a sleigh but a train into their idyllic, snowy, German village. My favorite window from the 11th shows Santa changing the tire on a Model T that belongs to 2 young angels. How delightful and bizarre!

In Pottery Barn they now sell gigantic advent calendar wall hangings that you can stick presents in the pocket. I don't need my advent calendar to have gifts or even chocolates behind the 24 doors. To me, the humble advent calendar, made of paper and a gentle sprinkling of silver glitter, is a reminder that joy and the excitement of the new and unknown can come in the simpliest form.

Kibble Nibble Avoided

Addie wandered into the kitchen and came dangerously close to Didi's turkey and giblets meal. It's really a matter of when, not if.

Admit it. You ate cat/dog food once when you were little, right?
An LA Fireman was just awarded $2.7 million in damages for unknowingly eating dog food as part of a hazing ritual at the ole firehouse. I could say a lot about this story, but I'd just get annoyed.

But back to me. As far as I can recall, I don't think I actually did eat pet food ever and we had plenty of cats(6) and later on several dogs (4) plus an assortment of pet mice. Check out the ingredients in mouse kibble: fortified mix of vegetables, high fiber hay, healthful whole grains, and fruit. balanced Omega-3 and Omega-6 Polyunsaturated fatty acids aid in development of shiny coats. powerful antioxidants boost immune systems to fight disease. loaded with essential fiber." This could very well be the ingredient list of my pre-natal vitamins.

Ah-Choo!

or is it A-Choo, or Ahchoo, or Achoo, or . . . ?

Firsts

Look who can sit up! Addie has actually been able to sit up for about a month or maybe 2 - I can't remember and it depends on the definition. She's been practicing though and now she can sit up for several minutes and entertain herself trying to pick up leaves on the grass. Last night, however, was the first time she got herself into a sitting position all by herself. Bam! One moment on her tummy, the next she's sitting up!

I've been having trouble since Addie was born identifying her "Firsts." Her first smile, rolling over, sitting up, and even crawling I haven't really felt confident about locking in an exact date. If we count crawling as Forward Movement then Addie has been able to crawl for several weeks although she isn't yet moving hands and legs in opposite directions. She can maneuver herself to any object she desires but it is more of a commando crawl where she pulls herself forward dragging her lower body behind her. Another technique she employs I like to call the inchworm. She sort of sticks her butt up in the air (think downward facing dog position in yoga) and then slides forward. She can now get up on all fours like a true crawler but hasn't been able to get her legs in motion - any day though! She's the only kid in her daycare class that can move about. One of the triplets is becoming more mobile but when there is one toy in the middle and two babies, Addie gets there first. She pretty much has the run of the place and all the choice toys. Queen Addie of Daycare.

material girl.8

Is someone at Dwell Baby reading my mind? No longer an oxymoron, the perfect baby linens are now in a modern cowgirl print. Yeeee-haaaawwww!

Of course, I still love Addie's Pink Palace, but perhaps a hooded terrycloth towel in the cowgirl rose print would make a lovely and complementary addition to Addie's House of Style. Santa, are you listening? Addie's been an awfully good girl this year.

Write Your Own Caption

This photo Cap snapped on Sunday is just screaming for a caption, but I couldn't come up with anything humorous myself. I'm heading out to Seattle back on Wednesday so have fun with this while I'm gone!

Cap's gonna kick it off with: "Spare a dollar for a Grateful Dead ticket?"

Can you think of a good one?

Mmmmmm gruel

By golly, I think she likes it!

Addie was gobbling up her organic (what else?!) rice cereal this morning when she, for the first time ever, had what is technically referred to as solid food although it definitely seems more like watery swill. About 10 seconds into the video I exclaim, "Yay! That's food!" Be warned, it's disturbingly loud and shrill. I guess I also didn't think it necessary to wipe her face at any point resulting in Addie resembling Uncle Sam or Colonel Sanders by the end of the meal.



Babies can start rice cereal anytime between 4-6 months according to our pediatrician. Here Addie is 6 months, 2 weeks and we are finally serving up the gruel. With a history of food allergies on Cap's side of the family and the desire not to have stinkier poo, we've been pushing this off for, well, 2 months. She's been ready for a long time though but then I insisted her first taste of cereal needed to be captured on film and that required daytime on a weekend to get enough light to take a decent video. What kind of a parent am I that makes decisions based on light conditions?

Addie will practice on the rice cereal for maybe a month and then we can start introducing orange foods. I don't know if that is what the baby books recommend, but our pediatrician was very specific that we should do only orange foods next. I'm just imagining what that poop is going to look like. Ew.

Portrait of a Girl and her Cat

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Props to Gran who discovered this secret source for extra cute (but not too cutesie or babyish) stockings. She ordered 3 different ones so we get to be surprised when we come for Christmas. Yippee for surprises! and Gran!



Simultaneously we also ordered a stocking for Addie from Garnet Hill. As my Mom said, I'm sure she'll have enough loot to fill both of them. We had the polar bear stocking monogrammed "adelaide". Sometimes I think we should try to call her Adelaide because I really do love it, but Addie seems to have stuck. I suppose she can change it in high school when she wants to appear sophisticated or something. In the meantime, Miss Addie is going to be a very lucky little girl this Christmas.

Can't wait for Santa!

Check out Ellen Today on NBC

If you get a chance to see Ellen today you might catch me dancing or clapping like a mad women. I was in the studio audience for the taping Tuesday evening sitting on the aisle 3rd row up. I'm in a maroon sweater and my friend Andrea is in a white turtleneck sweater. We missed the 12 Days of Christmas giveway by 1 day. Sniff sniff on our bad timing but it was still fun.

I have our DVR set to record so I can be sure to be mortified (but secretly thrilled) that I might be on TV.

More about this post-airing. I heart Ellen.

hunt for the perfect stocking

I'm trying to find the perfect christmas stocking for Addie - something that I can say later to her, "We gave you this stocking on your very first Christmas." And darn it if I can't find anything I like. I even tried Lillian Vernon in a moment of desperation. Gasp! I've also contemplated making one for Addie, but who am I kidding? I can't sew nor do I have the time to boil old wool sweaters to make a felt stocking even though Martha has instructions and a template on her website. I'm just hoping that somehow we can get out Christmas cards this year.

Any suggestions on where I can find the perfect stocking?

6 month stats

This morning we found ourselves back in the doctor's office bolstering ourselves against another round of immunizations. Didn't we just do this? Sorry Moms, but this is one of those things that definitely does not get easier with time; just the opposite. We have a new pediatrician since commuting to Santa Monica during rush hour was becoming a joke. Let's face it. We don't live on the West Side anymore so let's just get a grip on this. We liked our other pediatrician but Dr. G. is groovy too. He likes to chat a lot more and ask questions like, "Is there any part of your daughter's body that concerns you?" We also got a lesson on how to identify a ruptured appendix. Did you know that if the pain is on the lower right abdomen right above the hip that it's probably not indigestion and could signal the need for an emergency appendectomy? Maybe everyone else already knows this which reminds me that I really should take an infant CPR class especially since Addie can grab and eat anything within a split second.

So, here’s the scoop. She went from being smack dab in the middle at birth (50^th percentile) to being super tall and slight somewhere in her first few months and is now tiny and tiny. She’s 14 lbs 12.5 oz, (18^th percentile) and 25.5 inches (22^nd percentile). I guess this makes sense since I’m certainly no giant in the stature department. She really feels giant though. Cap and I can't stop commenting to each other how shocked we are at her size. She seems huge!

She’s finally graduated to the #2 diaper (without a scale at home this has become our general weight benchmark) and is still fitting smartly in her 3-6 month clothes. She has gobs of pretty summer dresses that she hasn’t worn because even in LA it’s still fall and just a wee bit too cold for sleeveless and legless clothes especially during the week when she’s in daycare. On the weekends if it’s sunny and we’re outside I try to rotate her through the more summery outfits. Maybe I could go for a sort of layered grunge look and have her wear long johns under her baby doll dresses.

Here’s a photo of Miss Addie in the morning. Cap likes to take every one of her toys and pile them around her like she’s holding court to an entire entourage of stuffed animals-in-waiting. You’ll probably see a lot of these pajamas too because she has 3 sets of the same kind thanks to a sale at Baby Gap.

Turkey and Cupcakes

Addie had back-to-back celebrations this week. Thursday was her first Thanksgiving and Friday was her 6-month birthday both of which involved lots of eating on the part of her parents.

Grandpa Mit, Great Aunt Marcia, Great Grandma Vede and our friend Sara came to our house for dinner. We brined, spice-buttered and roasted a 22-pound organic bird to celebrate. Cap and I only eat turkey on Thanksgiving and Christmas, typically being pescatarians the rest of the year. I wanted to make this turkey exception last, and 22 pounds for 6 people made that wish come true, ad nauseam.

On Friday, we took to our favorite park and the swing sets to celebrate the Big 0.5 complete with leftover turkey sandwiches and carrot cake cupcakes. I took 229 photos which is ridiculous I realize but it's really hard to resist she's so darn cute and fun. Don't worry, I managed to get it down to under 75 for the photo album.



We have a lot to be thankful for this year with such an amazing daughter. Happy Birthday little Addie-cake!

A Message of Thanksgiving

Addie's now baba-ing her way through every conversation, and my does she have some things to say, like ...
Happy Thanksgiving y'all!

On the Swings at Roxbury Park

Like her pal Jake, Addie is nutto for the swings. We hung out at Roxbury Park this afternoon so I could work on my photography class assignment. We had a picnic, Cap snapped a lot of photos of the munchkin while I did my homework and then we adjourned to the swings.



Look how much fun she is having! You want to explode with joy watching her. I felt very Mom-like taking her to the playground with all of the other parents. She was definitely the youngest one but she certainly enjoyed herself, as did Cap and I. You can check out more photos here.

Correction

I thought I should set the record straight. Addie's Night of Sleeplessness was not about the teething but about the snotty nose. She slept well the next night and the rest of the week as her cold subsided. I think this is rather good news because she has another 18 teeth to contend with.

Can you see them poking out along the bottom? They have just broken the surface.

where's the baby?

Can you spot a little Addie somewhere in this chaos?


There she is!

This is why I don't take Addie to work. There is no where to put her. And I can't get any work done and neither can anyone else. Still, I thought I'd give it a try on Friday afternoon. She played in her little blue bed, drooled on a few coworkers, refused to nap, drank a bottle, and banged away at my keyboard.

material girl.6

Back to patterns. You know I love them. And cowboy stuff. So you can imagine I go ga-ga for cowboy prints. You may not know that I'm a fan of English designer Cath Kidston (hint hint. I have my eye on her cowboy mugs for myself). I still haven't made a field trip to her store in Brentwood, but it's on my list. I'd love to see this cowboy fabric on a cozy chair in a nursery, although not Addie's fictional nursery because it doesn't work with the Pink Palace. Cath Kidston also makes a delightful fabric and wallpaper with giraffes and elephants that is sub-continent colonial cute.

Calling All Angels

Cap loves this photo from our hike and thought I should have used it in my post yesterday. Cap is in New York all week and has got to be missing his little angel.

Addie gives her Papa a big hug, a toothy smile and can't wait to see him.

A Hike in Franklin Canyon

Sunday was warm and clear so we took to the hills - Beverly Hills. I was pleasantly surprised to learn you can go hiking just 15 minutes from our house in Beverly Hills no less. I had to shoot some slide film for my photography class, a technical assignment about depth of field, but we also brought our trusty point and shoot along as well because I haven't had much luck with my slides to date. In the first assignment my slides were so over exposed that many were just white light. Then for the second assignment I must have loaded my film wrong because they came back all black. I'm hoping this time I'll be able to see the images. Fingers crossed.

I love watching Addie be curious and excited by the world around her. Everything must be viewed and then stuffed into her mouth for further testing and exploration. She truly savors nature.

Addie seems eager to try solid food as she looks longingly at everything we eat. Many babies start as early as 4 months but our pediatrician recommended we introduce solid food closer to 6 unless we were really eager. Stinkier poo? I think we can wait. There is also a history of food allergies in the family so I'd rather err on the side of caution. I think she's ready now and we have a box of organic rice cereal ready to go.

Check out a few more photos from our romp around the lake.

She Got Teefs

Where to start? It's been more than a few days since I've had a chance to blog between our first babysitter, photography class and a work trip to San Francisco. I was gone less then 48 hours in SF and Addie has two teeth coming in! You can feel their razor edges and get a peek occasionally when she isn’t sticking out her tongue, which is rare.

Last night was rough though; up every few hours to an hysterical baby who we were only able to sooth by feeding her. We've had this recurring problem with her bottle where she somehow punches in the nipple dousing herself with 4-6 ounces of formula. Poor gal soaked her pjs, the bed, and her swaddling blanket at 3 am. On top of this, she has a cold and Cap had valiantly been suctioning snot out her nose all night long. With all the extra liquid she downed, she also woke up with an overflowing diaper that saturated her second set of pjs and a second set of sheets. She boycotted her morning nap so around noon I took her out in the stroller where she finally slept while I went shopping.

The good news is that I have two new pairs of shoes, and she’s sleeping in her crib these days. I never thought we would have kept her in the bassinet for this long. Before she was born, I had this sleep plan in my head where she’d sleep in our bed for 2 weeks and then we’d move her into the crib. Instead, she never slept in our bed (except a few hours on rare occasions) but instead has been in her bassinet for almost 6 months despite the fact she’s too long for it and her head was poking through the fabric. When I went back to work at 3 months, I was selfish with my sleep and was afraid to disrupt a pattern that seemed to be working. Well, here we are, up again throughout the night suctioning snot.

In other news, we are close to the demise of breastfeeding. Ever since I went back to work it has been downhill. My body has revolted against me, and I have just come to accept that I can’t do both. I can’t work and breastfeed full time. I don’t like it but it’s the way it is. Thank goodness for formula otherwise I’d have to quit my job. Addie doesn’t seem to mind at all and I’m still trying to feed her in the morning and evening even though she still needs a bottle afterwards. I guess a tiny bit is better than nothing. I am, however, enjoying the freedom. I no longer have to sequester myself away in a frigid room at work to pump 3 times a day to only eek out 3 ounces out of the 18 she needs. I can, for instance, drink a liter of cold beer in Malibu at noon on a warm Saturday without feeling guilty.

(the above photo is from our trip to the LA Zoo last weekend with pals Sara F., Jamie, Chria and Munchkin Clara)

I Voted

I'm sure Addie is a young democrat in the making.

It's crazy warm in LA - high of 87 today - as we ceremoniously took ourselves to the Freda Mohr Senior Center to cast our ballot against Arnold. There are a zillion confusing propositions so we had to do some cramming last night and bring along our sample ballot. Is making the voting process so confusing aiding democracy? I think not.

Sunday Morning

She is so cute when she holds her bottle.

Addie the Octopus

As you can see, Addie is the cutest octopus under the sea. Pine Scented Car Air Freshner was, in fact, the winner by popular vote. However, I invoked the Mommy Amendment allowing us to make the final decision despite the poll. Parenting is not a democracy. Thank you to everyone who voted as it was endlessly entertaining to check the results. There is always next year for the air freshner although I'm thinking asparagus.



Halloween evening, despite some heinous West Hollywood Parade traffic, we drove to Jonathan and Jeannine's house with our homemade pumpkin bread for some picture taking madness with Addie the Octopus, Jake as Charlie Brown and cuddly white Clara bear. Addie tried to maul poor, unsuspecting Charlie Brown. She's completely crazy for anything yellow. Her taste has improved greatly though as she was shlurping on a bag of yellow pampers a few weeks ago. When we were at the aquarium in Chicago, she was transfixed by all of the different yellow fish. Of course, yellow is very trendy these days so it's hardly surprising she's honed in on it in particular. As both Jeannine and Jamie have eloquently shared, we all had a grand ole time and the three kiddos together were just too cute.

Happy Halloween!

Cap's Bird of Terror and Sarah's Powerlines of Terror

Visiting my Family

Location: McHenry and Chicago, Illinois

Timeframe: October 18-22

Cast:
Super Cute Baby - Adelaide P.
Mommy - Sarah Q.
Gran - Cathy Q.
Uncle Brother - Andrew Q.
Auntie Snorg - Jennifer Q.
Pop Pop - Rod Q.
Nana - Nanci P.
Uncle D - Drew P.G.

I've FINALLY put all of the photos together from our trip to Chicago to visit my family. I want to say we went to Chicago, which is true; we did go to Chicago but only for 24 hours. The rest of the time we were at my Mom's place in McHenry which is located in the farmland of Illinois over 50 miles from Chicago. Can I still say Chicago? Anyway, there was family galore. My brother and sister were there and then Dad, Nanci and Drew drove down from Detroit to meet us in the city and for Drew to tour DePaul. I selfishly would love for him to end up there because the more family I can get in one place, the happier (and easier) it is to visit them. I still haven't made it to Alaska to visit Brother, nor have I been to NY in 2 years. Bad me.

I had such a wonderful time and Addie was spoiled (even though I don't believe you can spoil a baby) by all of the love and attention she got. We had lots of time to hang out at Gran's house, do 3 jigsaw puzzles, have amazing Gran-made food and drink lots of wine. I loved seeing Andrew and Jennifer read her books, feed her bottles and play with her. Of course, she loved it.



In Chicago, Gran took Addie and I to the Shedd Aquarium, and Addie was transfixed by all of the different yellow colored fish. Addie has excellent taste because yellow is very hip this season. Mom headed back home and then we met up with Dad and crew and my siblings. Addie shopped Michigan Avenue, had Chicago stuffed pizza, drinks at the Hilton and then slumbered somewhat peacefully at the luxurious Travelodge.



Dad and Gang had to head back first thing the next morning, so Andrew, Jennifer, Addie and I spent the day at the Museum of Contemporary Art checking out the Bruce Mau/Massive Change exhibit on sustainable design.



After that we drove back to McHenry to have a Thank-mas (Thanksgiving and Christmas) dinner complete with a turkey and all the trimmings. With all of us in different places, this was the chance to celebrate all of the holidays together. On Saturday, we cruised the antique shops in Richmond. Uncle Brother and Auntie Snorg took turns strolling Addie around while I checked out milk glass cake stands and creepy dolls - all around an awesome day! I'm not sure when I'll have the chance to be with all of my family again making this trip extra special.