Sunday, July 31, 2005

Ezamommie

We got back from a short trip to the beast this week. Actually it was one of my longer trips. We were there with Chris, Daisy and Sadie. It was fun, though now as usual, I feel the need for another vacation. Everyone got sick except me (there is a change of pace). So the trip wasn't as good as it could be. It was also ridiculously hot, so we spent most of the time indoors or in the pool. I am beginning to conclude that our next big vacation together should be somewhere in the middle with a nice cheap hotel and swimming pool. Maybe as they get older, there will be more to do.
Sophie is just speaking up a storm now. She is very vocal, and has developed one of the cutest expressions "Ezamommies." It is not entirely clear whether she mean Mommy, or Mommy's or something else, but it is a new favorite. She is also saying Oh Kay! more and more, replacing No NO NO.
Sophie did great in the pool and started to jump in. Well, more of a controlled fall holding our hands, but still, not to bad. Then on the last day of vacation she started trying practice jumps around the condo. Now she will do them pretty much anywhere. They resemble a sort of startled fit more than a jump, but her intentions are clear. It is adorable. And she seems to get the idea of practicing, which is very cool.
She is also super sweet. She has always gone around picking up Will's pacifier or blanket and giving it to him. But over this trip when Sadie was crying, Sophie would either approach and give her pats and hugs, or try to find something interesting to hand to her. It was very sweet.

Will, is crawling around in a sort of wormlike way. He wriggled and rolls in what appears to be a random pattern, but then somehow he ends up at his toys, or something else of interest. So I think he does have some idea what he is doing.
We also gave him his very first "solid" food. This consisted of an ounce of mother's milk mixed with a little dry rice cereal. So it was a pretty thin gruel, but he managed to get some down I think. He looks so tiny in Sophie's old chair (she has graduated to a booster seat). But Carly brought out some old photos and he is bigger than Sophie was when she started. Funny the way the memory works.

Wednesday, July 20, 2005

School's Out for Summer!

I finished my grading yesterday. They did okay. Slightly better than usual. I am getting better at making my expectations better known, I think.

In theory the air conditioning in my building is going to be repaired soon. It is already fixed on one side of the building. So hopefuly by the time the semester starts, I will be in a cool clean place finally. About then they should move me in to the new building. :)

Some changes.
We will be getting a new dean. This is probably a good thing. I think the division needs a shaking up. My hope is that the new person, whoever that is, is energetic, and enthusiastic. I am not getting my hopes up.
I will have more job related stuff soon. I am taking a new approach this semester. We shall see how it works.

La la la.. I can't hear you!

I am dilligently ignoring Bush's nommination of Whitey McFetuslover and trying to think positive thoughts. I find myself thinking in sort of long term, fall of the Roman Empire, terms. This too will end. So we get to play the bad guys for a few decades.
So in other news...

Sophie is talking up a storm. Words I don't really even remember teaching her.
Today after I got her dress she pointed across the room to her little toy train "choo choo" she said. Cool. "Daddy" and "Mommy" appear to have eclipsed "No!" as her favorites which is good. She is also getting more independent and testing her boundaries. Nothing too rebellous yet. For example, last week we were all at the mall and took her umbrella stroller, she was pushing it with her little bear in it. She was all over the place, and as soon as we tried to correct her path, she would slap our hands away "No NO!" if we continued she would stop in her tracks until we returned control back to her. Amazingly we still got somewhere.

Will is growing and moving around quite a bit. He is just starting to army crawl. He can get about five inches or so, but he is enthusiastic. He is also making it through the nights now and again. Last night he was crying around 3:00am but Carly just rocked him a little and he fell back asleep until after 7am! Woo hoo! I am looking forward tosleeping through the nights again.