Twinsies at 12 Months

This pic was taken a few weeks back--here's Judah and his twinsie Ryan just a few days before both of them turned one.

I love their matching drool bibs, as they both were growing out their 2nd set of bottom teeth. They are such good buddies!

Just a note to say...

Hey, I'm still here! Just been very busy with a retreat in the mountains and loads of crappy office work. But Judah is in fine form and walking up a storm.

Here he is flaunting his best feature, his butt.


And here's a baby abandoned by the side of the road by his poor tired parent.

Judah's Dog and Pony Show

Here are some things you can do now:

--When we say "clap" you clap.

--When we say "fisssst!" you make fists and clench your face.

--When we say "monster face!" you make a low gutteral sound like "aaaaaaaah."

--When I say "milk" you do the sign for milk (open and close your hand).

--When I say "all done" you do the sign (shake your hands up and down).

--When we say "fuuuuuchila" (which means stinky in Spanish) you wave your hand up and down like you're fanning away a stinky smell. This is a diaper-time sign of course.

Just yesterday your nanny showed me new tricks she taught you!

--When she says "cuantos anos tiene?" you stick out 1 finger!

--When she says "no, no, no" you wave your finger "no, no, no."

Oh yeah, and I almost forgot, my favorite trick that you do...

--When I say "Judah, dame besos! (Give me kisses-in Spanish)" you face toward me and open your mouth, ready to kiss. But it takes awhile for you to finally do it cuz it's not your favorite trick.

One

Dear Judah,

Today you turn one! Here are photos from each month of your life, one for each month. This time last year I was just starting labor and completely surprised when a little human was placed on my chest when it was all over.


Your dad and I felt so overwhelmed and under-qualified to take care of you those first few weeks, not least of all, because you were an extremely "alert" and "high-need" baby--barely sleeping, and hating to be put down.


The weeks and months rolled by so quickly, I didn't even notice how much and how quickly you were changing.


I did however notice how heavy you were. It seemed like my arms were always on the verge of falling off, my shoulders never stopped aching, and my carpal tunnel would never abate.


And the sleep deprivation. Oh the sleep deprivation. What torture!


As the months went on I often wondered at this new life I was living, this new reality, this new normal...


I don't know how I could have EVER thought that I was busy, before I had you. How could I even begin to know the meaning of the word, until I had you?


How could I ever know what "restrictions" were? What it meant to be tied down? What it meant to be in self-denial (in the good sense of the word)?


How could anyone know what "lack of freedom" means until you haven't slept more than 4 hours at a time for at least 9 months?!


And yet, I found I was experiencing every paradox in the book. Life with you was fast and slow. Fun and painful. Hard, and yet irresistible.


How could I ever have thought I knew what Joy was, until I had you?


How could I ever have thought I understood anything of Love or Care or Devotion?


Before you, only certain days felt special--vacations, holidays, birthdays. But with you, every night feels like the night before Christmas.


And every day, an incredible Gift.

Playdate at Park

Recently we went to the park with your buddy Jackson (same age as you). We haven't seen him in a while so I was surprised at how much of a Buddha-belly he developed. His parents say he's only grown in the middle, not taller!


I finally found a baby fatter than you!


I made you try on Jackson's Cal hat to see if you would accept it. You hate when I put your sun hat on you so I thought you might like a cap. But no, you threw it off after I snapped a picture.


I introduced you to the slide for the first time. First you went down backwards by yourself...


...fun!


And then with mommy...


...not as fun. But I enjoyed it!

The Ballad of Judesco

We recently had a jam session with our church and you were the youngest member!


You love strumming the guitar strings while I hold down a minor chord and sing bandalero-style "Judah, the guitar-strumming baby...Judah!"

Judah Jail

We put a foot-activated baby gate at the top of our stairs as Judah's obsessed with them now. He loves trying to go up and down, and the key word here is "trying". He is of course far away from actually being able to handle them.


Judah's figured out how it works and keeps stepping on the peddle to no effect.

Little Neighbors

Last week we invited some neighborhood kids over to our house for a play date. You were happy to show off your toys (which finally got some attention as you never really play with them).


Here's you and your cute Vietnamese girlfriend who's 3 months older than you and always rocking a hip Halle Berry pixie cut. Everytime she sees you she likes to go right up and give you a kiss! Bold!


Here's you with your best friend next door who would not stop gorging on your snacks. You guys obviously share a love of food and a love of throwing them onto the white rug and crushing the crumbs into the fibers.


Note to self: Never buy a white rug for baby's play area. Duh.

Rolling Ghetto Style

OF COURSE you love the stroller that cost us $24 at Target and HATE the stroller that cost us more than 10 times that amount.


Meanwhile mommy has to go around town pushing you in this ugly thing while judgmental people look on and think "That mom is so cheap!" I should make you wear a onesie that says "My other ride is a B.O.B. (I just hate being in it)!"

Kid in Play

Once again we returned recently to your favorite store (okay, my favorite store) and you demonstrated your love for all things pushable.



You can't get enough of pushing things with wheels, even if they're clearly designed for young girls and their dolls.


I love how we can kill hours at this store since it's chock full of toys as far as the eyes can see. We're always finding something new for you to experiment with...like this xylophone. It has a nice light plastic hammer that you could swing by yourself, which you loved to do. I would have bought it but it was $36! I'm not paying $36 for a cheap toy that I could probably get for $10 in Chinatown.


But then again...the toys from Chinatown probably have lead paint in them...okay, maybe we'll go back and get you that toy.

Costume De Rigueur

Apparently there's a uniform for the men in this house...


...right down to the grey-tipped Hane's brand socks!

I do Myself!

Judah now insists on feeding himself with his spoon, but his hand-eye coordination and muscle control is not so great.


We take a lot of baths after meals.