Worry

Immediately after I got pregnant, I was excited and nervous. Miscarriages are more common than people realized and I couldn't shake my fears. My mom told me, "Welcome to parenthood; the rest of your life will be worry." Well, it's only been nine months and boy was she right. (I can't even begin to think about when he starts driving.) Is he eating enough? Should his poop be that color? Does he need another coat of sunscreen? Is he breathing? Ugh. Most of the time, I'm confident he's a happy, healthy boy, but recently, I've been plague with worry about the fact he doesn't crawl. I tell myself a million times a day: the pediatrician isn't concerned, so I don't need to be. I know every baby is different and develops at his own pace, but I just so want Leo to be normal. Maybe I'm a little over obsessed with "normal" because of Mikey (my brother), but my heart seizes at the slightest thought that there is something wrong. Look, I know he's normal. He's absolutely perfect, but it is strange to go on playdates with kids younger than him that are much more advanced in a number of ways. All the other moms are really nice about it, though.

Well, that's what's on my mind right now. I'm sure tomorrow I'll be worrying about something else and once he starts crawling, I know I'll be in trouble.

Here are some pictures and videos of my perfectly normal baby boy.

Modeling the shirt-bib thing I made for him when I was pregnant.
Playing with Billie.
I got this bead maze off craigslist for a steal. It's a big hit.
Billie scavenges for scraps under the high chair during every meal. She'll eat anything -pasta, pancakes, peas. Such a weird cat.
Video of Leo eating string cheese


Dancing with dad

Moms group

I'm trying to be more involved with my moms group. Technically, I'm the PM Playdate Leader, but I haven't put much on the calendar. For a while, I was working, and then Leo nap pattern was shifting, so it was difficult to find the time. Now, I have no excuse. Honestly, it can be difficult to lead a play date--for all the expected reasons, like a cranky baby or a huge pile of laundry, but also because you are putting yourself out there. Often I feel like I'm throwing a mini-party and my feelings get hurt when people don't show (especially when they have RSVPed). The upshot is that even though there isn't a very good turn out, the moms (and kids) who do come are really cool and I really enjoy spending time with them.

I had a playdate on Friday and another one tomorrow. One of the moms, April, took some great pictures on Friday. You can see them here. The baby in red is April's son, James, older girl is James's sister Daisy. You'll probably recognize Cara and Addison, and, of course, Leo and me.

Summer Vacation

We had a wonderful few days in Seal Beach spending time with family. My mom and Skip let us take over their house and made us very comfortable. My dad and my stepmom Sharon came into town for a couple of days, and my aunt (tia) Josephina drove up from San Diego for the day. It was great to see everyone and everyone was extremely charmed by Leo. He did great during the entire trip. We took him out to dinner and out to lunch, which is rare for him. He made a huge mess and enjoyed himself. And, of course, we went to the beach. I created a little slideshow below.

Summer Vacation Pictures

Toothy grin

So Leo has sprouted two more teeth, for a total of six. In less than two months, he went from no teeth to a mouth full of 'em. Crazy. I miss his gummy smile, but his toothy grin is pretty adorable. With all his hair and teeth, he's really starting to look like a little boy and less like a baby.

Here he is showing them all off. (He gives me this smile multiple times a day and I never get tired of it.) His chompers allow him to do some biting, like with these sweet potato "fries".

It's coming...

I predict Leo is going to start crawling very soon, and I'm going to miss his days of immobility. He's rolling like a log and bringing his knees under him. Once he figures out how to coordinate his arms, we're in trouble. I bet he does his first crawl (of some sort) while we're visiting Nana next week.

Getting ready to start the day. This is how I find him after most of his naps (more evidence he's ready to be on the move).

Going shopping

We headed to Whole Foods yesterday and Leo had his first experience sitting in the shopping cart. I usually carry him in my Ergo, but it isn't that convenient to have 20 pounds of baby strapped to my chest while I shop. He had a worried look on his face the whole time, but he survived.

Here he is checking out the cart cover for the first time. All done and back to the car. (He has a kiwi seed on his face from the sample we had in the produce department.)

Lounging with dad.

The Face

Here's a little video of Leo playing and babbling. Towards the end, he makes "the face". It's not a cute face or an ugly face, but just a funny face he started making once his top teeth started coming in.

Check it out

Nine months old

Honestly, I can't believe my baby is nine months old. This is such an amazing age. He brings me so much joy; I'm not sure I can even articulate it. He had his check-up today. He weighs 19 lbs. 6 oz and he's 28 inches long. Apparently he's a little on the small size (according to the averages, which are based on formula-fed babies), but within normal range. The pediatrician is very happy with his growth and his development. Even though he hasn't hit all the developmental markers (clapping, crawling, self-feeding), she says he's totally normal and she isn't worried about him at all. This is very reassuring. His little friend, Addison, visited today and she is crawling. Watching her on the move (and her mom chasing after her) made me realize two things: 1) I need to do a whole lot more baby-proofing and 2) I'm in no rush for him to crawl and I need to enjoy his immobility. He had to have a finger poke, which he handled like a champ (no crying). Here are some pictures from today.

"Hey, mom. I'm nine months old! What do you think about that?"

Billie must of sensed he needed some attention after his big day at the doctor's.
Bandaged finger. This was fun to chew on, but got dirty pretty fast.
The kids played together and went in the pool this afternoon. "Hey, where are you going?"

More eating pictures

We're experiencing another heat wave. I don't want to start ranting and raving about global warming, because that's not what this space is about. It's about the baby and people don't want to hear me preaching about alternative energy, biofuels and converting lawns into gardens. But it is starting to get a little ridiculous. So I'll just say this, I hope everyone is doing their part since we're leaving this planet to Leo and his generation and I want him to be able to enjoy it. Okay, on to the baby.


He's started to make this funny face where he scrunches his nose and shows off his teeth. Tom caught it on camera yesterday.
So Leo and I are doing our usual heat wave routine -- staying inside mostly, quick dip in the pool, bath, hang out in the yard. I'm trying to give him more solids and encourage self-feeding. I'm not sure if beets were the best choice. (And yes, I did paint a heart on his chest with beet juice.)

But he enjoyed it. This was the end result. All the way down to his feet. I was tempted to just take him outside and hose him and the chair down since I had to clean them both thoroughly.

Into the bath. When I dumped the water after, it was pink.

Too cute (but doesn't he look like some other kid?)
His favorite part of bath time - splashing.

All neat and clean.

Oatie-Os

We had a relaxing day, which was nice after entertaining yesterday. The big news is Leo successfully got a piece of finger food from the tray into his mouth. Just one, and it sort of confused him, but this is an exciting development in a household that loves food. Here's an assortment of pictures from today.

"Hello, ladies"
A roseola flare up. Enjoying some Oatie-Os (not necessarily the actual name) drenched in a carrot-squash puree.

I tried out the black and white feature on my camera.

Happy 4th of July

I hope everyone enjoyed celebrating our country's independence. We had a little get-together. The roseola kept some people away, and honestly, I don't blame them. It completely erupted all over his tummy today and looked pretty bad. I also think his teeth were really bothering him. He still completely charmed our guests. He's a big flirt.

Here's Tom enjoying a mint julep. Everyone gathers for the first round of food.
Leo shows off his swimming skills.

Tom takes him for a ride into the deep end.
Time for more food.

Rich holding his son, Jacob; Tom with Leo.

Leo shows off his patriotic tie-dye. Jacob tries on some swim goggles.
Kai starts to get tired after a long day of fun.