Mother's Day

 

Rolly polly

Came home to a wonderful surprise yesterday!!  Our nanny keeps a log of Anne's daily routine and accomplishments.  Noted on the top of the page "Anne rolled over this morning!" 

Yet Another Elijah Quote

What does Mommy do for work?
     Help patients.

What does Daddy do for work?
     Make money for Omar.

Four months old

Anne is four months old today!  She is quite talented when it comes to blowing bubbles and has started to share a few giggles with us.  She sported shorts for the first time last night.  We carried her across the street to the park where she was swarmed by little girls from the neighborhood, who can resist tickling those sweet toes? Before bed, she was full of amazing smiles and happy squeals. Amiel made a video and will post soon!!

Five and a half

Elijah turns 5 1/2 today.  Here is his current list of favorite things.

What is your favorite time of the year?

    When the leaves change colors.

What is your favorite food?

    Pickles, olives, puffy pancakes and pizza!

What is your favorite dessert?

    I can't answer that, Mom.

If you were president of the United States, what would you do to make the world better?

    Telling the people what the weather is, so they'll know what to wear.

Where would you like to visit?
    Europe, I want to see the castles.

Do you think you'll get married one day?
    I plan to not get married.

If you were an animal, what kind of animal would you be?
    Is a shark an animal?  I want to be a shark!

What kind of animal is Daddy?
    I have no idea.

What kind of animal is Mommy?
    Dog.
  

What do you want to be when you grow up?

    I decided to not do a job.

What do you want to do then?

    I don't know.  Play in my bed, your bed.  Make CDs and then watch movies on the TV.

What is your favorite color?

    Blue.

What is your favorite thing to do with Mommy?
    Snuggle in your bed.
 



        

Our little explorer

All photos were taken at one of our favorite hideaways, the Alfred Caldwell Lilly Pond

Another Elijah quote

"When I and Daddy die, will you still be alive so you can work and do your work forever?"

A little bit of chaos

There is a Yiddish saying that goes Mentsch tracht, Gott lacht. Man plans and G-d laughs. That is the best way I can describe the past few weeks. After spending countless hours arranging for Anne's child care, things fell apart entirely on my second day back to work. The nanny was not horrible but it was clear that things weren't going to work out. We let her go and I furiously started looking for a new person. Over the past two weeks, little Anne has been watched by EIGHT different people. Thankfully she is an easygoing little person and hardly seemed to notice. I am happy to report that our new nanny is super sweet. She started today and I am so relieved.

Anne and pal Oliver hanging at the park

Anne, Auntie Panda and Uncle David at Pesach

With Papa a few minutes later

Elijah seems to like the camera alot more these days

How cute does she look in this dress!? This just might be my favorite hand-me-down. Thank you, Clarissa!

Sharon made the goregous blanket and Margot made the gorgeous sweater.

Milk

It appears that Anne has developed a reaction to the protein in cow's milk. She is adorable, gaining weight and will be just fine. In order to verify and treat the condition, I have to eliminate all dairy products from my diet (or stop nursing). From what I can gather, we can retry dairy in three months and see how she does. Most kids grow out of this, so I am hopeful she will be enjoying Haggen Dazs by her first birthday! I never aspired to be (almost) vegan, but today was my last serving of dairy for a long while. Much to my own surprise, I feel ok about this. I consider the elimination of dairy to be an excellent challenge and I look forward to discovering new foods. Can anyone suggest a good coconut milk ice cream? A healthy diet requires fat, so I now have an excuse to purchase high end olive oil! Most of all, I am grateful that our little Anne is healthy.

On a lighter note, Auntie Sandy put this cute clip in Anne's hair last week! Brooke has been giving me baby hair styling tips too (stay tuned for a photo of Anne's first ponytail). Quite adorable though her natural mohawk is still my favorite!

Smiles

Anne is just about 3 months old now. Elijah often brings her toys and likes to suggest how I do things with her. This afternoon, I let him use my phone to take pictures of us. He was very excited to make her smile, made really silly faces and even poked her a few times. He would never admit it but Elijah is definitely warming up to the little girl.