The Peace of Wild Things

Thursday, May 31, 2012

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

The circus that is feeding the two girls every few hours is one of the main reasons I haven't been getting out with them as much as I'd like during the days when Mike's at work. With the exception of trips out for milkshakes or to a friend's house for a New Mom gathering, we've been hibernating at home.

But when Mike's parents were in town, we took a couple of family field trips - one to the new Natural History Museum and one to the two sites that Mike's program Real Food Rising will be farming this summer. Mike's getting the crops in the ground with the help of his intern, Kate, and a whole bunch of volunteers; the youth begin at the end of June.

at the Natural History Museum

Zora gardening with Daddy at home

One of the farm sites

At the other farm site

Saturday, May 26, 2012

8 weeks!

It's a cliche, but time really does fly. Especially when you're attending to every need of two baby girls. They are, thankfully, very well-behaved little munchkins (for now). We're still in the phase when there's not much that can't be fixed by a cuddle with mama or a bottle from papa. They're definitely more alert and starting to get interested in staring at us while we feed them or at the ceiling fan (apparently of equal fascination).

Speaking of feeding, we had their 2-month doctor's appointment on Thursday and they both earned high praise from Dr. Holbrook for their weights. Noemi is now 9 lbs. and Zora is 7 lbs. 13 oz. The doc even mentioned that it wouldn't hurt Noemi to slow down a bit with her weight gain! We've been worried about Zora's eating ever since she was born, and more now that her reflux has worsened to the point that she's on an antacid, so it's nice to get more and more reassurance that she's on track. Come to find out it just seems like she's not eating much compared to her voracious sister. I say Noemi would eat her own arm if you stuck a nipple on it.

Dr. Holbrook gave us the green light to go to "breastfeeding only" for half of Noemi's feedings and one of Zora's feedings in a day (instead of breastfeeding and then topping off with a bottle). And we've been trying simultaneous/tandem breastfeeding more and more. You'd think it would save a lot of time, but at this point we're still so new at it that it's like a circus of babies and boobs and milk and burp cloths and bottles everywhere. But we'll get better!

Sunday, May 20, 2012

Neglected Pup Gets Haircut

Mowgli is such a trooper. Having already suffered through 8 months of shorter walks and a lot less attention as Katy weathered the storm that was pregnancy, he now has to deal with being knocked down not just one but two rungs on the house hierarchy! He's handling it in true Mowgli fashion - sleeping, wanting his belly rubbed, and barking at other dogs. He is a little better at coming when called and sticking close to his pack (which usually can be found camped out in the living room with babies and books), but that could be the afterglow of his time at Ryan & Jamie's (what we call Camp Ryan) while we were in the hospital.

One thing Mowgli didn't get for the last several months was very much grooming. So when the hot weather arrived and the tangles in his butt hair were beyond hope, we got out the clippers. The first time we buzzed him back in Austin, he peed himself. We're happy to report he kept all bodily fluids inside this time around. He's now ready for summer!

Great camera work by Bob/Grandpa!

Monday, May 14, 2012

Mother's Day 2012

Early on Sunday morning, as I was changing her diaper, I tried to get Zora to get to agree to a "no crying policy" in honor of Mother's Day. That lasted, oh, about 5 seconds (those wipes are cold, Mommy!).

With my romantic notions of an idyllic Mother's Day dashed, I welcomed Judith Newman's review of Making Babies by Anne Enright in the Sunday NY Times. There were some gems in there, including: "The essential condition of motherhood isn’t pleasure or wonderment or even terror — although there’s plenty of that. The essential condition is absurdity." And: "At one point, with her child inconsolable, Enright spends time pondering whom she hates most — her baby, her husband or herself. 'Who does the baby hate?' 'Why is everyone screaming, now?'"

Is Mother's Day just about recognizing yourself as part of the percentage of people in the world who can relate to these sentiments? I guess I'm in the club now! And have a growing and profound respect for those who have been in it for so long already (especially my own mom).

Just a few random shots of (Grand)Mom(s) and babies: