Dancing Theo

As you can see, Theo had a blast at his ballet and tap recital. He had the biggest smile and we just couldn't believe his level of excitement and ease up on stage.


Can you see the love story in this photo between Theo and the pretty girl kneeling on the right?

Walking Girl

Melody took her first steps today!

Last night she began standing up from a sitting position, without using furniture or anything else to pull herself up. Then boom, the next day, she's standing in the living room and takes a few steps! She did it several times, and happily Joe and I were both home to see it.

Tooth Be Told

Tooth number 8! Bottom center, next to the first two.

Beautiful Ballet Boy

Ballerina Flower

Melody Is 1

I was holding Melody this morning and I passed by the mirror. I gasped and did a double-take. She was stunning! My once-goofy baby was beautiful. Of course she was always beautiful, and of course she will continue to be goofy. But there was something about this moment--her transformation became apparent all at once. She was a beautiful toddler.

Only she doesn't toddle yet. She's taking her time, and I don't mind. Theo was 11.5 months when he first walked, but Melody is in no hurry. I think she likes her place as the baby of the family. As long as she has arms to be cuddled in and fingers to hold on to as she walks, she feels safe as content.

Now that she's 1, her personality has really become her own. She makes jokes and understands ours. She thinks it's hilarious when she drops something off the highchair and the cats eat it, so she tries to give them all her food. Actually, she loves to feed everyone. She even tried to feed a waitress recently! Nothing pleases her more than for someone to accept her offer.

She also thinks it's hilarious to bite me while nursing...she knows it gets a reaction out of me! The bigger the show of pain, the funnier it is!

We gave her a set of instruments for her birthday and she instantly knew how to use the cymbals. Her favorite, though, is the triangle!

On her birthday Theo forced me to go out at 8PM and buy party hats and balloons. I had failed him as a mother for not having these things.

Melody slept through the first hour of her birthday party yesterday, which was great because I was still setting up anyway. When she woke up to a room full of 30 adults and toddlers, she took it all in. She didn't cry--just looked around and tried to figure out why everyone she knew in the world was in one spot. After a few minutes, she was smiling away. Mom and dad played songs on the piano and led the toddlers in a singalong as they banged instruments! Truly wonderful.

We sat her in her birthday throne and sang "Happy Birthday" -- she did the appropriate toddler thing and devoured the cupcake, covering her face with frosting! Lots of photographing from guests ensued. (I will update this post with photos and video when I have them.)

Melody's 7th tooth, a molar, came in this morning. Her hair is growing rapidly and is mostly wavy but curly when it rains! 1 year later, her eyes are an icy blue. We've marked her height on the wall in her room in our new apartment, days after wishing Theo's height markings goodbye in our old apt.

She is 21 pounds and switching daily between chubby and slender, depending on growth spurts.

She loves baths so much that for her birthday, I gave her two baths and let her stay in longer! And there is no such thing as one of them taking the bath without the other. And these days they're joined by Theo's baby doll, who he undresses, reads to, and washes.

Melody's doing a great job with pointing and waving bye bye. She even blows kisses! We are still waiting for her babblings of mama and dada to apply to us, though. Her most specific word is cat ("at").

Here's to the next year of first steps, first words, and of course--lots more dresses!

Naked Cowboy

The Naked Cowboy has been playing guitar and singing in his underwear for years. He plays Times Square and has achieved astonishing fame!

Theo, upon seeing the Naked Cowboy:

"He's in his underwear!"

Happy Ten Months Birthday, Melody!

My beautiful blued-eyed baby is losing her babyness.

Melody is fantastic. Just look at her. Charming, graceful--and most of all, Melodic! She likes to sing along with my cell phone when it rings (I have the theme song from E.T. as my ringtone). And when she hears music, she can't help but dance!

Melody loves pasta. Phew!

Melody waves bye-bye--backwards, using both hands.

Melody performs Itsy Bitsy Spider and loves to wash the spider out!

What else can I say in this stream of conscience post...the little Chicklet continues to adore her brother and the cats. I admire her courage and big 'ol heart. She is determined to make nice with the kitties who fear her.

Right now, as I type this, she is dancing to Hugh Jackman singing "I Go To Rio" from The Boy From Oz.

She is about 27 or 28 inches, and not yet 20 pounds. She stood up unsupported for a whole 5 seconds--today, in fact!

Melody's favorite room is the bathroom. Take your eyes off her for one second, and sure enough, she is standing at the tub knocking the bottles in or splashing in the toilet. We can be anywhere, doing anything, and if she hears the water in the tub running she quivers with excitement! There's no such thing as bathing Theo without having to give in and let Melody join him. It's just as well, since he insists on having her in there with him anyway.

My daughter now says "mama mama mama" on a daily basis, but so far I don't think she's talking to me.

She loves toys but has no special one yet; no lovey. And her favorite foods are unfortunately still bits of paper and plastic.

Another favorite activity is to empty my purse and go through my wallet. I think she's after my credit card. Yep, she's a girl all right!

Mamamamama

Melody has really been saying "ma ma ma ma" over the past few days! At first I didn't think she was referring to me at all, but there have been a couple of times when it has seemed like she was talking to me. Patting my leg, looking straight at me and saying "mama" ... It's hard to know for sure. Regardless, though, it sure is a sweet sound to hear!

A Bath Biggie

We have a bath book that comes with a washcloth. On each page is a different animal. You take the washcloth and "scrub the duckies, scrub the cow, scrub the piggy, you know how. Scrub the chickens, that'll do, silly chickens, now wash YOU!"

Theo loves washing the animals and then washing Melody.

This morning while Melody was in the bath I opened the book and handed her the washcloth to see what she'd do. Normally she immediately tries to eat it. But today--sure enough, she started scrubbing the duckies!

What a smartie I've got on my hands. :)

Don't Be Scared, Melody!

We joined the zoo this weekend. Melody and Theo have one thing in common--their mutual fascination with penguins! Melody's eyes grew wide and her body animated when she and the penguins were face to face with just the glass in between them. After a visit Theo's other fave, the polar bears at the Central Park Zoo, we moved on to the Children's Zoo.

It was Melody's first time at the petting zoo. She was taken aback, to say the least, when the sheep ate out of her hand. She was so scared she cried! But soon after watching Theo feed the sheep and the goats, she grew brave. She was a pro by the time we left.

Hello to Bye-Bye!

I got a nice present for the first day of April--no foolin'! Melody waved bye-bye to me from her car seat! Sharon picked her up to take her to playgroup, and I waved as I always do, and boom! She did it back. I'm glad Sharon was there as my witness! Melody did a cute little backwards wave.

And just to show me just how smart she is, she waved for me again at home later.

This weekend at Grandma Popcorn's house, they practiced the "Sooo big" game. She's really getting it down! (And so is Melody).

:)

Aunt Pia and Uncle Gary Visit!

Despite the men's efforts to thwart my video, I still have a cute account of Aunt Pia and Theo reading together. She's a natural teacher and he did very well with her.

Theo Feeds His Baby Sister

This speaks for itself. I have nothing to say except I LOVE this video!!!

A Theo Milestone!

Theo is on the floor reading Melody a book on kittens, so I'm taking a moment to gush! I'm so, so excited! He came home today and for the first time, told me something he did in school! It may not sound like a big deal, but it is to me. He's never told me about his day unprompted before.

He showed me a dance he learned, and then wanted me to do it. Of all things, it was the Macarena! He was so adorable--he even counted to four with each step, which really impressed me. All the while wearing his signature huge smile!

We all know how routine-oriented he is, so I think after enough days of being asked what he did in school today, he finally volunteered the information. Makes me feel like I did something right! Which is a nice feeling, considering all the mom guilt I plague myself with on a daily basis. ;)

P.S. Happy St. Patrick's Day! Thanks, Sharon, for making green cupcakes with him! We're so lucky to have you :)

P-I-E

Theo and Melody both love a show called Word World on PBS. Animals put together letters, and once they spell a word, the word turns into the thing. On one recent episode, when the pig spelled P-I-E, the letters became a pie. But he only made one pie, and his friends were sad that they couldn't share. Then he had the brilliant idea to add an S! Once he spelled P-I-E-S, there were pies for everyone! Theo totally got the concept. And all week, he bugged me to make a pie with him.

Saturday we made a three-berry pie, and we even made the crust from scratch! The kitchen was a mess, but it was so worth it. The pie was delicious!


Theo cut out the strips of dough.


Yum! Berry pie with vanilla ice cream a la mode!

Mini Milestones

I say, "How big is Melody?" I lift my arms and say "Soooo big!"
This morning, she lifted one arm! She also took both my hands and lifted my arms!

Incidentally, when Theo hears this he says "How little is my doll? So little!" What a sillybutt.

Yesterday Melody clapped in the bath, but she wouldn't do it again so I figured it was a fluke. But today after Joe practiced with her a bit she clapped a few times again! Yes, I cried. I'm terrible that way. Sigh!

Tappin' Theo

Theo got his tap shoes! Miss Kimberly, the dance teacher, told me I should have seen the look on his face when he first put them on and tried them out. That excitement had built up for three weeks! He was beside himself with joy.

She also told me she was shocked--and she emphasized the word shocked-- that he remembered the correct ballet arm position for boys. She said she even forgot, but he remembered from the week before! He puts his hands on his hips while the girls hold their arms out. My little masculine ballerino. :)

Happy 9 Months Birthday, Melody!

We call her our little chicklet. Because her teeth overwhelm that gorgeous smile of hers!


Gettin' some luvin from Aunt Gloria

Stylin' at Nonny's House.

Ain't she the cutest little frog?

9 months in, 9 months out. Phew! Right now she's trying to eat Theo's underwear, which is on the floor. Hang on....OK, I'm back. Underwear removed, replaced with mini xylophone, gift from Grandma Ice Cream.

I can't report on her measurements yet, but she'll be at the doc tomorrow, so I'll update this. I'm guessing she weighs 19. 5 lbs. We'll see if I'm right. She's a good eater, eating everything from beets to sweet potatoes to whipped cream. All the time and love I put into making her food, forget it. It was her first taste of a McDonald's french fry that had the angels singing. If you could have seen the look on her face! Joe tells me it was the same when he gave her a sample of ice cream. At first she was surprised by the cold, but when the flavor hit her, a smile exploded on her face!

When Melody eats beets, everything turns red. And I do mean EVERYTHING.

Melody knows the words cat, monkey, and glasses. When you say one of these things she looks for it. And she kinda sorta maybe said glasses...well, gass. You can see it in this video.

But she still calls everything and everyone da-da. :)

She loves baths! She practically jumps in when she realizes the water is running. She can't get enough of Theo's toy frog that winds up and spins. Theo always insists that they take their baths together, which is just fine with her! She follows him from room to room. The other day I even caught him reading to his baby sister. He was reading her a lift-the-flap book and lifting the flaps for her and showng her pictures. He told me Melody was his very best friend, and he made a card for her. At the playground this weekend, my friend was holding Melody and took her to the swings, and Theo got very mad when he couldn't find her. "Where's my Melody?" he demanded.He still carries around his Melody doll and mimics with the doll Melody's every move. The doll eats when Melody eats (yes, he does take off his shirt, put the boppy on, and put her to his "boobie") crawls when Melody crawls, and now even bathes with them. He calls it his doll friend. She comes with us on outings and sleeps with him. He wears the doll in the Ergo (my baby carrier) around the house and pushes her in her stroller. Sad to say, but these days she's been replacing Knuffle Bunny.

Melody has taught herself to walk sideways. Holding onto the couch, she can walk from one side to the other! But shen she really wants to get somewhere, speed crawling is her mode of transportation.

Melody adores the cats, but they've finally grown tired of tolerating her baby antics. Bruce took his first swipe at her when she grabbed a handful of fur, and she looked more betrayed than physically hurt. Happily, she forgave him and continues to bounce with excitement when he enters the room.

As you can see from the photos, she looks exactly like Joe. I like seeing my two favorite people share a smile! Besides, my other favorite person, the boy, already looks like me. So fair is fair. :)

The Kids Storm the Children's Museum of Manhattan

It's long, but worth watching!



After the museum, we went to a diner and had our first family dinner out where Melody joined us at the table! She sat in a highchair and ate chicken and crackers. Theo loved having her sit with us. The kids were both so well behaved. Well, except for when Theo mixed his milk with his water. But at least he drank it!

Ultimate Sweetheart

Theo loved making a birthday card for Uncle Elliot on Sunday. Since then, he's been cutting out squares and writing our names and giving them to us! I'm accumulating a collection of "mommy" cards, "daddy" cards, and "Melody" cards. Sometimes he'll staple pieces of paper together to make a card. He's pretty obsessed with stapling lately, too.

But the card thing is indicative of how sweet he is. No one told him to make us cards; he really enjoys the act of giving. Sharon says he makes cards for her at her house, too! And that his "S" is backwards...so cute. :)

And I should also add that he's getting really good at writing his letters!

My Date With My Son

Theo is the most fun when we're out. He's at his cutest, most charming out, probably because he's always so excited to be out with us and not shipped off to school. Joe and I both had one-on-one dates with him. Joe took him to see the Gazillion Bubbles Show--they both wore sportsjackets for this theatrical experience. But that's Joe's story to tell. Here's an account of my date with my boy.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW FULL PHOTO ALBUM OF DATE

We grabbed hot chocolate for the train ride. Or as Theo put it--"I'll have hot chocolate, and you have tea, mommy!" Theo and I headed to Bryant Park for his first ever ice skating attempt. I've never seen anyone have so much fun falling! He never did get the hang of it, but we still had a blast. The next day I was incredibly sore--I didn't even realize how hard I worked my muscles by trying to keep him upright.


After a McDonald's lunch, we headed for the Museum of Natural History. We visited the Butterfly Conservatory. He was in awe! He really was. I didn't expect it. I also didn't expect the butterflies to be as enormous as they were! They were magnificent.



After that, we participated in a planetarium focus group. We had to watch a boring planetarium screening on a tiny TV..he was a good boy during that half hour. After answering questions, we were released with 4 free tickets back to the museum, planetarium, and all the special exhibits! Sweeeet.
A rhino! Or at least he used to be...


We visited all the animals, and he was mildly interested, but by then he was so exhausted he wanted to go home. Even the dinosaur skeletons weren't enough to keep him awake. So, next time we'll start with that.

Before we left, he picked out a cute book on caterpillars and butterflies from the gift shop. It was a truly magical date. I love spending one on one time with my little sweetheart. He's a great kid.

ONCE AGAIN, CLICK HERE TO VIEW FULL PHOTO ALBUM OF DATE!

Theo Does Yoga and Dances!

Theo was so beautiful and elegant doing yoga with me, and enjoyed it so much, that I decided to enroll him in dance. (I confess I also had just seen Billy Elliot on Broadway and pictured Theo with his long, lovely body in dance clothes and ballet shoes). He's taking a ballet/tap class once a week. So far he loves it! There is one other boy in his class. He doesn't have his shoes yet, but he's particularly excited to get his tap shoes! And they have a little recital in June--it's going to be so adorable.


The first time I saw him in class, spinning across the floor, arms out with a smile on his face, my heart jumped! And he did kicks across the floor with his characteristic focused face; It was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. I'm really glad we're doing this. I'm so proud of how well he did; he kept up with most of the girls who had been in the class since September.

Mom's also going to start piano lessons with him Monday, and he begins tee ball in the Spring. The idea is for him to have fun above all, be well rounded and find something he's really good at. I think it's important to develop something, whatever it turns out to be. The worst thing that could happen to Theo is for him to get lost. He works best when engaged. A neurologist told us that a couple of years ago, and it's very true. He needs to go to the zoo, the museum, see shows, do projects--keep his mind active as much as possible. This is true for all kids of course, but Theo really requires the sensory experiences. And he's a very visual learner, so the more he sees, the better.

Happy 8 months birthday, Melody!

This will be a quickie since, um, oops--Melody will be 9 months in 4 days! But I remember she got her 5th tooth on Valentine's Day and the 6th tooth right after. She was 18.5 pounds, and as you can see, standing very nicely!

Theo is Funny

Sharon, Theo's babysitter, just IMed me this and I had to share. (Mariah is Sharon's daughter.)


"the other day i kept sneezing and he says to MAriah "MYRIAH go get mommy a tissue pleeeaseeeee" !! lol we were laughing and Mariah said Theo thats not mommy that's Sharon and he said I know silly girl thats your mommy now get her a tissue!!! "

Tooth Number 4!

OK, this is crazy! They're coming in so quickly!

Tooth Number 3? Already?

What's with the little alien baby getting her first 3 teeth in less than a week? She must know how cute she looks, and just wants to look even cuter. The third to arrive this morning was her other bottom front tooth, the bottom right.

End of a Gummy Era

And so we say goodbye forever to a toothless smile.

This morning, Melody woke up with not one, but two teeth broken through! Her top right and her bottom left are sticking out through her gums like tiny little specks!

Snow Angels

Grandma Ice Cream made this beautiful scarf!



Need I say more?

Happy 7 Months, Melody!

Uh oh, look out, she's mobile!

A friend told me "wait 'til they start going in different directions." That hasn't happened yet. Melody goes in whatever direction her big brother goes. I predict she'll be his shadow for a long time before they start going in different directions. But when that day comes, it's gonna be even crazier than it is now!

As the family saw, Melody was really starting to crawl by Christmas. She has been gradually going from "knee, knee, plop, knee, knee, plop" a la Maggie Simpson, to real crawling.

She's still only about 16 1/2 lbs, and 25 inches. An adorable peewee! Her hair gets higher, though. Those teeth aren't poked through yet, amazingly, given how swollen her gums are. I'm enjoying my toothless baby for as long as I can, since we're still going strong on breastfeeding.

Melody rejects the Mets.

Almost all the mommies in my group are back to work, and in the cold weather, are meetings are fewer and far between, but we're doing our best to stick together and allow the babies to see each other. Melody gets really excited when she sees her little friends. These days, the babies touch each other's faces and pull each other's hair. Good times.

Melody's crankier these days with the teething, but I unleash my secret weapon--Theo. I've taken to saying "Theo, go make Melody laugh." He sticks his face in front of hers and talks to her, he brings her toys, and sure enough, she goes from crying to laughing in seconds. He's funny, too, because if it doesn't work, he gets upset. "Mommy, she's not laughing. I'm not making her laugh," he says with his little scrunched up sad face.

My favorite. Both asleep like angels, the house is quiet...ain't nothing better.

Melody's favorite toy is paper, as Theo's was at her age. But while he safely crumpled it, she eats it, so it's a constant watch with this one.

Clay recently came for a visit, so Melody got a chance to meet her other big brother. She adored him just as much! What is it with her and big brothers?? She couldn't take her eyes off him when he walked in the room. Clay fell in love with her and her baby blues. Who wouldn't?

Theo's such a scootch for pictures these days, this is as close as I could get with a smile--and that was with the bribe of ice cream afterward!

Melody enjoys solid food, but she does get distracted during mealtime. She wants to grab things around her, and if Theo's nearby, forget it. We actually have to get him to come help feed her if we want her to pay any attention at all. Her food is still all homemade--she recently had a cold, so I made chicken soup and pureed it! Only the best for my baby. :)

This girl is big on chit chat. Blahblahblahblahblah all day long! Still mostly "da da," but she did say "ba" once! She's starting to pull herself up to standing. She gets stronger every day. We're holding on, with the recognition that there's not much baby time left.

Melody's First Swing Ride

This was on her sixth month birthday a couple of weeks ago...
Big thanks to Elizabeth for taking these with her camera phone! Melody was next to her son Matthew, also 6 months and going for his first ride too! Ooooh I like this....

Lovin' His Sister

Sometimes getting Theo to apologize to mommy and daddy is like pulling teeth. But you know what's sweet? Theo has no problem saying sorry to Melody. Even if he just comes close to running into her he says "Oh, sorry, Melody!" I'm jealous but secretly overjoyed :)

But Wait, There's More!

All this talk about Smellody and I almost neglected the original subject of this blog-- B.O.

My boy recently came home with a fancy Student of the Month certificate. Go Theo!

Happy Half-Year, Melody!

Excuse me? Are we at six months already? Where did it go. Seems like I hardly remember a thing, and yet I remember every second. If that makes sense at all.

But looking at my girl at six months, my heart is full. She's beautiful, smart, funny---the girl of my dreams! Here she is...
What a munchkin, huh? She's about 16.5 lbs. As you can see, she got her ears pierced! Mom and I took her to get it done just before Thanksgiving. Nov. 23 to be exact. She's officially a girl now.
That face. It kills me. Her eyes? They really kill everyone. In certain sunlight they actually look crystal.
Aaand look who's sitting! My hippie. She is going for longer and longer stretches--at most, a couple of minutes--before toppling over. She started really sitting about 2 or 3 weeks ago. She has excellent control on her belly, and is even beginning to explore the notion of getting onto her knees.

See the drool on her shirt? Yep, that's from nonstop teething. I said a month ago the teeth would come any day...I was wrong. Looks like she just may get her two front teeth for Christmas (and that's all she wants, cuz then she'd finally whistle).

Melody continues to adore Theo. That's who has her smiling in that last photo. She also loves her baby friends. The moms take turns hosting, and last night I had 14 people in my living room. Albeit half of them were babies, but they count as people. It's amazing how animated she gets around them. They really love spending time together. (And the moms love watching them play as we drank spiked eggnog.)

She's been eating solid food every other day, but she still has the tongue thrusting reflex and makes a huge mess. That will subside soon, which will make us both happy. She wants the food so, so badly! She just needs to figure out how to get it! Now that she's six months, the official "proper" time to get her eating, I'll feed her more regularly. So far she likes avocado, banana, apple, and rice cereal. For some reason she rejected sweet potato, which was Theo's first food that he loved. Guess she wants to be her own chick.

As for toys, she loves her playmat with the toys hanging down, her teether toys, and pushing Theo's cars. She still absolutely adores books and music. I mean, she's really a typical baby there. Her favorite toy is probably a human face. She loves to touch faces. And pet the cats, who have become such good sports they both deserve a medal.

At Thanksgiving she was just full of "da da da's"! She also has the ga ga ga sound. Though she mostly just squeals her head off these days. She's starting to discover blowing bubbles, too.

Melody went on the swings today for the first time! She absolutely loved it! We were with friends. Imagine four babies swinging in a row. It doesn't get much cuter.

She loves the lights of her first Christmas tree. We all are basking in the magic of the season. It's really the best time to have a lovely little family as I do, and I'm fortunate. Now on to enjoy the next half year!

Thanksgiving 2008

Better late than never...here is a photographic look at Thanksgiving. Melody enjoyed her first Turkey Day...she even ate mashed potatoes and some rice pudding! Theo shoveled down the turkey and pretended not to enjoy it, but the rate at which he scarfed it into his mouth gave him away.Gotta love the boys on the trampoline. And Bo, ever the faithful companion, joined them. Now the Browns have a new puppy, Bailey, who we'll meet at Christmas. Can't wait!
Look at Ethan go!
As usual, Carl cooked up an incredible feast with the help of Jodi and the boys, who did a lot of the chopping and food prep. Good little sous chefs in our family!

Melody in her purple dress was the hit of the night! No one is used to having girls around.
Melody and Grandma Popcorn, looking proud! Such pretty ladies :)

Theo-Isms

This morning:

Theo: Mommy, where's the cookie jar?
Me: I hid it.
Theo: You broke it?
Me: No, not hit it. I hid it. I put it in a secret place.
Theo: Where's that?


Last night:

I was in the bedroom with Melody. Theo called from the living room in a whiny groggy voice:
"Mommmmmy! Come lay on the couch with me! Come get comfortable!"

Happy 5 Months Birthday, Melody!

As I type this, Melody is jumping in her doorway jumpy thingie and sucking on a frozen apple slice through a mesh feeder thingie. Yes, I said thingie twice. Why am I starting off with this information? Just to illustrate--sniff! My baby is growing up!

I expect her bottom teeth to appear any minute. Her fingers have taken up residence in her mouth. Any object she holds goes in there too.

Her favorite place to be is on her tummy. She has plenty of stuff to "do" while she's there, like look at herself in her mirror.

Her favorite games--there's the boring patty cake and peekaboo that I play with her. (Cuz, well, they work. She loves them.) But daddy's more creative. They have a routine where they do the hand jive, the mashed potato, the alligator, and the twist.

Her favorite person--toss-up between mommy and brother. She has to love me, I'm her mother. But the bond she has with Theo is really special. He made up a game where she lies on her playmat and he pulls it around. He's driving her around in a "schoolbus." He even tells her to put on her seatbelt! And to think we once worried that he didn't engage in imaginary play. She loves the game too, because it's an excuse to smile in awe at Theo as he walks around with her. Yesterday Theo held up a microphone to her and she broke out into wild laughter, which made him laugh. I love watching my babies! Which also includes my orange babies, who tend to sniff her periodically and then walk away. They're incredibly gentle with her...they just know.

We've taken to having Melody in bed with us when we read to Theo at storytime nightly. She loves books! She has no favorite at this stage, but she enjoys the process of looking at the pictures and the turning pages. Although again, she tends to watch Theo more than the books, with wide eyes. She likes to touch him. She grabs him and pokes him and pinches him. Like the cats, he's very tolerable around her and giggles and asks me why Melody is pinching him.

With Melody's gums still bare, breastfeeding is still a pleasure! The best part is her excitement when she knows it's mealtime. When she sees the "dinner" draw near, she flails her arms around and smiles, and her eyes twinkle! My favorite times are when she gets impatient with me and actually grabs my boob and brings it to her mouth. What a genius.

I started her on solids this week. Just a tablespoon of rice cereal here, a bit of smashed banana there. She likes everything she's had so far, but it's too soon to tell what she favors. I'm going to try to make as much of her baby food myself as I can, at least in the beginning. There is an awesome website for this: Wholesome Baby Food.

We still attend weekly playgroups with other mommies and babies in the 'hood. Melody really responds well to other babies. Like her brother, she's turning out to be a real observer.

On to stats--she's 15 and a half pounds and 24 inches long...that's 2 feet!

Now, Melody is asleep on daddy's chest. She's got him smitten, all right. He wants to build her a tower and keep her in it when she gets older. That closes my monthly report. I'm gonna go snuggle with my family!

Halloween 2008: Ocean Family

It was so windy I couldn't get my hair out of my face!
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PHOTOS OF OUR CONEY ISLAND PHOTO SHOOT.



These photos are from the Annual Halloween Parade in the village. Forget Suri and the Brangelina brats--our kids were the most photographed kids in history!

At least 5 people asked if Melody was a real baby. They thought she was a doll, especially when she was asleep. At one point, she moved her arms, and someone actually yelped, leaping backward in surprise!

This is a press photo I found on the internet.
Another press photo. Joe and Theo did the Spongebob dance along the parade route.

Unfortunately these cell phone photos are the only ones I have of me as Ursula, the sea witch.

Joe was a big hit with the kids. One kid shouted, "Squidward's mean to you! Just ignore him!"


We marched with the ASPCA and the Mayor's Alliance for NYC Animal's float.

The prettiest little mermaid.

The kids had a great time at the parade. Melody managed to fall asleep, even though we were next to a marching band. Theo eventually tired out and rode on daddy Spongebob's shoulders--also falling asleep.

Random Ramblings of a Proud Mama

Happy Election Day. I'm trying not to get excited yet. I know it's not over 'til it's over.

So, cute stuff:

Last week, Melody went to the doc for a second round of shots, having gotten them 2 weeks earlier. As soon as she laid on the doc's table, she cried! I was so proud of my smartie pants for remembering what happens on that table. I think it's true that parents will find any excuse to be proud of their kids. Theo has always liked going to the doctor and even as a baby didn't cry when we arrived. I was always so proud of his bravery. And now I'm proud of Melody for having the opposite reaction.

Said Theo to doc, who was about to give Melody her shot: "Noooooo! Don't break Melody!"

Milestone report: on October 29, Melody actually sat on her own! Unassisted! It lasted a good 20 seconds before the plop. This girl is also as mobile as she possibly can be. She manages to get from one side of her play mat to the other, even though she can't crawl yet. Chica's got places to go.