December
The first half of December was a bit rough on all of us. It started with a bad cold after Thanksgiving that lasted a week or so and kept us from classes and play dates. You had a day or two where you were healthy and then got an awful stomach virus, which both your dad and I got soon after (just as you were recovering, which made it tough to chase you around). After that, I got another bout of mastitis and had to take a couple of trips to the doctor for antibiotics. In the midst of this, our fridge stopped working and it took about a week to get a new one delivered so we were operating out of a cooler on the porch. Thank goodness it was cold out! There were some good points, though, too. Ra and Papa came up for a visit and Ra, you and I went on the Charlestown Christmas Stroll to look at all the Christmas trees decorated around town while dad and Papa installed the baby gate at the top of the stairs. That night, your dad and I went to the PwC Christmas party while Ra and Papa watched you. The next day we got our Christmas tree at the Boys & Girls Club right down the block, which was very convenient. We decorated it that night and you were obsessed with the lights, constantly trying to pull them or put them in your mouth (!). We went to see Santa at Magic Beans in Brookline. You were very interested in him and seemed like you were going to be ok… until I handed you off and then you burst into tears. You eventually recovered enough to get a few pictures, but you were mostly unhappy with the idea of Santa Claus. We went to Vapiano to see Belle, Avery, Elisabeth and William and we barricaded you all in so you could play together while we had a drink and some pizza. The three of us went to dinner on a Friday night with Belle, Andrew and Avery to a “Family Style” dinner at Aura. The dining room was filled with families with small children, a play area and some really good food – geared both to adults and to kids. The weekend before Christmas, we drove down to RI and opened presents with Ra and Papa on Saturday and celebrated Vuono Christmas on Sunday, where you got to play with Gracie and Jacob. The following week, we spent a day at the Museum of Science where you only wanted to chase around the older kids, then drove down to NY for Christmas with the Verdi’s. You had your first bacon-waffle breakfast and got tons of presents and clothes, although I’m not sure you really knew what was going on. (You even fell asleep while we were opening presents.) Some of your favorites were a lift-the-flap book from Ra and Papa, maracas and a drum from A. Ashlyn and U. Benny, blocks from Grammie and Pop-pop, a fire truck from U. Jared and A. Margaret, wooden balls and a ball popper from Santa. But Floyd, Grammie and Pop-pop’s basset hound, was by far your favorite and nothing else could hold your attention when he was in the room. You would chase him around, he would lick your face and you would die laughing. (Sadly, Floyd died right after Christmas and we were all very upset.) We got the first big snowstorm of the season right after Christmas and spent an extra day down in NY waiting for the roads to clear a bit. When we got back up to Boston, we painted our bedroom (finally!) and you seemed a little confused as to why the room was now yellow instead of white. On New Year’s Eve, we went to the Hynes Convention Center for a First Night celebration. It was geared for kids a little older than you, but we found a puppet show that you loved and you sat and watched it for at least 15 minutes without moving. We also watched the parade with Sharon and you LOVED that. It was Mardi Gras themed and there were lots of interesting floats and bands and dancers. You held onto a set of beads for the whole 45 minute parade, just watching everything go by. After it was over, we stopped at the 99 Restaurant for dinner, where you had macaroni and cheese and broccoli (two of your favorites) and dad and I had bacon cheeseburgers. We were out for almost 8 hours and you were a rock star through all of it, so I’d say it was a successful NYE, even if you didn’t stay up to watch the ball drop. (Don’t worry – I didn’t make it either.)
The downside to this month is that with all the sickness and traveling, you stopped sleeping through the night. You have been waking up two and three times a night which has been throwing us all off our game a little bit. You are babbling a lot more now – almost non-stop – and are starting to make sounds that seem closer to real words. You started saying “dada” in response to daddy coming and going, and especially in the morning when you want him to wake up. You’ve said “mama” a few times too, but not really in TO me yet. You really turned the corner on walking – letting go and walking without us cheering you on. By the end of the month, you were nearly running. You’ve also been falling quite a bit and getting some bruises! You love being upside down and playing near the stair railings, which resulted in you actually pulling one of the railings out completely! You love peek-a-boo, especially over the top of the couch, and reading, especially your “lift-the-flap” books. You play with your hair or mine when you are nursing or trying to soothe yourself (although we’re still working on playing with vs. pulling). When we were in NY for Christmas, Grammie brought down my old record player and you loved dancing to the old records. Before Christmas, I made some gingerbread and for a few days, we would share a slice with some whipped cream after you woke up from your afternoon nap. You liked it so much that you would cry when it was “all done.” Emptying the dishwasher is the best thing in the world to you and you erupt into tears if someone closes it before you can get to it. Unfortunately, your emptying usually just means taking all the clean spoons out and throwing them on the floor. But we’re having so much fun laughing and playing and running all over that it doesn’t matter if we have to wash the same spoons five times before they make it back into the drawer.
