My Wittle Wabbit Hat

  • Posted on January 25, 2009 at 11:20 am

It took me over a month, and I had to start over four times, but I finally finished knitting Stella a pink bunny hat. The pattern is from Stitch n’ Bitch Nation.

I was able to get a few pictures of Stella modeling the hat, just before she pulled it off and stomped on it. Because by the way, she hates hats. I thought maybe, MAYBE, if it was a bunny hat, she would wear it, but she wasn’t so impressed. I even tried wearing it for a while to get her excited about it, but it was a little too small on me.

Heres a view of the bunny face.

Here's a view of the bunny face.

The reluctant model strikes a pose.

The reluctant model strikes a pose

The upside-down view, otherwise known as the little bunny foo-foo wants to be picked up angle

The upside-down view, otherwise known as the "little bunny foo-foo wants to be picked up" angle

If you want a bunny hat, I’m taking orders. But for the amount of time it took me to make this, let me warn you–it’s not cheap!

A Letter To Stella: Nine Months Old

  • Posted on January 20, 2009 at 9:06 pm

Dear Stella,

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You are nine months old–nine whole months. For nine months, you grew inside me, and for nine months, you have grown outside me. And now, each passing day is one more day on the right side of this delicate equation. Everyday I watch you become more like a little girl, and less like the baby who tapped danced in my belly and refused to come out, even with some coaxing. I still remember what it felt like, your somersaults and jabs inside my belly, and I sometimes miss it. I enjoyed everyday of my pregnancy with you, in awe of what my body was capable of.

And now, nine whole months later, everyday you amaze me with your absolute brilliance and moxie–and so it seems you have grown into your name, as I knew you would.

At nine months, you’ve been crawling for over a month, and now that you’re pulling yourself up on furniture and creeping around, I think you’ll be walking in no time.

You’ve got the smallest little nub of a tooth on your bottom gum, but nothing more–my little toothless wonder, I call you.

Your hair is turning blond, your eyes are a light blue-grey, you weigh 17 pounds, 13 ounces and measure 28 inches long.

You say Dada and Baba and Lala and Guh and sometimes Mama, but only if I’m lucky.

You fed yourself corn puffs for the first time last week, a huge accomplishment, and a skill that requires fine hand-eye coordination–though you often miss your mouth, or can’t figure out how to get the puff from your palm to your mouth.

You love to bang on things–I can give you a wooden spoon and a bowl and you’re the happiest little baby.

You are already a social butterfly–you make friends wherever you go. You stare at strangers until they make eye contact with you, then you smile and flirt. You can make any stranger smile–your smile is contagious, and you get so many compliments that I just have to nod and smile and say thank you, yes, I like her too.

You give me kisses when I ask, and you also kiss your stuffed animals and your own reflection in the mirror.

Your favorite books are “Moo Ba La La La” and “Hello Bee, Hello Me”, and I read them to you everyday.

I know how quickly nine months will turn into nineteen months, and then nine years, and then nineteen years. But in the meantime, I love watching you discover the world, and discover yourself, and I can’t wait to see the little girl you will become.

When I was pregnant, I thought  the bond I felt with you as you grew inside me was the strongest feeling I was capable of. Now I know. Now I know.

I love you.

Yours always,

Mommy

Would You Like Fries With That?

  • Posted on January 6, 2009 at 10:20 pm

Stella took her first trip to Indiana over the holidays.  She loved Indiana, except for the part where she threw up five times. Luckily, I was there to catch her puke in my hands (oh my god what was I thinking why did I stick my hands out and why did I do it it MORE THAN ONCE. Because, like, god forbid we get a little throw-up on the changing pad. The machine washable changing pad.)

No one’s first trip to Indiana is complete without a trip to Steak N’ Shake. Behold, the family tradition:

Brandon, Eric and I after our first trip to Steak N' Shake, 1994

Brandon, Eric and I after our first trip to Steak N' Shake, 1994

This picture was taken when my family went to Indianapolis to buy a house in February of 1994. Steak N’ Shake was a novelty to us–hello, Steakburgers? Milkshakes? Skinny little french fries? We thought we were soooooo funny, wearing the hats and the bibs. The photographer (my mom) caught me mid-sentence, my mouth hanging open so that I look like a big grungy dummy. (It was 1994, almost 15 years ago. Kurt Cobain was still alive and flannel was, like, cool.)

And now, 15 years later:

Stella at Steak N Shake, 2008

Stella at Steak N' Shake, 2008

It looks like they’ve updated the hat slightly–notice the sleek new double line look. The bibs, however, are exactly the same.

(P.S. I’m playing around with the look of the blog–so please excuse the dust while we remodel.)

First Art Project

  • Posted on December 16, 2008 at 9:34 pm

Stella came home from school yesterday with her first ever arts and crafts project:

What a cute little reindeer. I think she did a great job, especially with cutting the head and nose and drawing the eyelashes. I am going to keep it forever and ever and ever.

Santa is Real, I Swear

  • Posted on December 11, 2008 at 9:56 pm
Somehow, he seems more evil than he ever did when I was a kid. Something about the eyebrows.

Somehow, he seems more evil than he ever did when I was a kid. Something about the eyebrows.

I am going to admit something embarrassing.

I believed in Santa until I was in the fourth grade. Yes, that’s right. I was nine years old. All of my friends knew the truth. In fact, it was my friend Macy and her mom who finally told me that Santa wasn’t real one December evening as we sat eating dinner at the Frisch’s Big Boy in Union Lake, Michigan. And I distinctly remember where I was when I learned the truth because it was so traumatic for me.

I just wanted to believe so badly. I loved the magic of Christmas, and I ate up all of the fantasy and excitement. I was a smart little whippersnapper, but I somehow managed to rationalize Santa’s existence. “Santa HAS to be real, because I only told Santa that I wanted a bike, and I am sure that I never told Mom and Dad.” And the old “I am SURE that when Mom and Dad went to bed there were no presents out. There has to be a Santa because I woke up before Mom and Dad and there were presents! Who else could have put them there?”

My parents endured ENDLESS questions about the existence of Santa, and never spoiled it for me, even though I’m sure they were dying to tell me the truth just to shut me up. They kept telling me that if I didn’t believe, then Santa wouldn’t come. I wanted presents, so I believed, goddamnit!

I am so excited to make Santa real again with Stella. I may not believe in the baby Jesus, but I believe in the magic of Christmas. I can’t wait to tell her all the little details that my parents and grandparents told me to make it so real, like looking for Santa’s sleigh in the starry sky on Christmas Eve. I can’t wait to put boot prints next to the fireplace and take bites out of cookies left out for Santa. I can’t wait to put out a little elf in the house and tell her that the elf is watching her and reporting back to Santa. Just like my parents did. In fact, sometimes the little elf STILL shows up mysteriously in my house. And he doesn’t even have legs anymore.

Most Unusual Motorcade

  • Posted on December 10, 2008 at 9:56 pm

Yesterday I was driving Stella to school and I was stopped by a motorcade. It’s not such a rare occurrence when you live in D.C., although I don’t see them as often in my nouveau ghetto Virginia suburb as when I lived in Bethesda or D.C.

But this was no ordinary motorcade.

We sat at a stoplight, and two cops on motorcycles blocked traffic on Arlington Blvd. in both directions. As we waited, more cops on motorcycles drove by, trailing the last of the cars turning onto the main road. Traffic was at a complete standstill.

A closeknit cluster of police motorcycles and cars crested the hill–here they come, I thought! Who could it be? A diplomat? Brangelina? Rhett Miller? Or–gulp–the president, on his way to…hmm…McDonalds? (I live in a McDonalds neighborhood, not a Starbucks neighborhood.)

As the car passed us by, I saw Santa Claus himself, flanked by two reindeer, waving from the back of the gray sedan. He turned onto the main road and was gone in a flash. It was the most exciting thing that has happened to me all week.

What I would like to know is–where was Santa going at 7:30 in the morning in Falls Church, Virginia, and why did he need a police escort?

Gallery of Firsts, Part One

  • Posted on December 8, 2008 at 11:03 pm

Because I am too busy and too tired to write anything even remotely interesting, I present to you: a Gallery of Stella’s Firsts, Part One:

As you can see, Stella has been a busy little girl. Next on the agenda: growing teeth, saying mama, and high fives.

You’re a Bottlecap Away From Pushing Me Too Far

  • Posted on November 5, 2008 at 10:15 pm

When I have a bad day, I like to put the Old 97’s on and sing my favorite songs at the top of my lungs.

Then I get some StellaTherapy. Snuggles and slobbery kisses and giggles make my frustrations melt away.

Stella’s Woodland Wonderland

  • Posted on October 26, 2008 at 8:44 pm

I am in love with blik.  That’s right–blik.

In our neverending effort to make Stella the coolest kid on the block, the envy of all other babies and the all-around happy-go-luckiest girl there ever was, we decorated the walls of her play area in the living room.

I decided that the walls were too drab–just plain old green. She needed visual stimulation. So I googled “wall decals” and the first thing that came up was blik.

They have just about the coolest decals I have ever seen. I know, I know, when you think of decals, you think of the little stickers that your dad put on your big wheel tires on Christmas morning. Not those kind of decals.

I decided on the “wee gallery woodland” theme.

How can you not be jealous of this?

Stellas Woodland Wonderland

Stella's Woodland Wonderland

Just look at the little hedgehog! and the mushrooms! and the owl!

I want to get decals for every room in the house. Seriously.  Maybe I’ll get some purple trees for the guest room, and some giant robots for the rec room, and a fancy chandelier for the dining room.

They even have decals based on the artwork from the latest album of a band I like called Of Montreal. Love it love it love it.

(Blik did not pay me to write this, swear to god.)

Quel Weekend

  • Posted on October 20, 2008 at 9:13 pm

We had a very busy weekend. I am too tired to write about it, so I’ll let the pictures tell the story.

On Friday, Stella had her six month check up, complete with shots. She screamed and then it was over.

On Friday, Stella had her six month check up, complete with shots. She screamed and then it was over.

On Saturday, we went to the zoo with Timmy, Chris and Maggie. Stella didnt really notice any animals.

On Saturday, we went to the zoo with Timmy, Chris and Maggie. Stella didn't really notice any animals.

On Sunday, we had friends over for playing. The adults ate chili and the kids learned about sharing.

On Sunday, we had friends over to play. The adults ate chili and the kids learned about sharing.

Stella is a big hit with the boys.

Stella is a big hit with the boys. nomnomnomnomnom!