I finally strung some twine up outside on our deck and hung our pocket diapers up to dry. Today was pretty nice - not too warm - but I think it was still a bit humid; one of the sumbuns pockets was dry, but still had a little bit of moisture left. Bah.

Tomorrow, I am going to the airport. A downside to not owning a car? The El is mad slow. The easiest way for me to get to O’Hare from where we live now is to go south to downtown, then go back up north to O’Hare. We live due east of the airport.

Also, I hate O’Hare.

*hic*, originally uploaded by caseycasey.

We’re practicing sippy cup usage; I finally gave in and put the nipple attachment on because all he was doing was sucking a bunch of milk and letting it all dribble out of his mouth.

My schmoopy is almost 1. Crazy.

More baby here.

I hugged Josh tonight. “Happy Father’s Day,” I said. “You know, it means a lot to me that you are the father of my baby.”

“Awww.” Josh gave me a kiss. “Or that I was willing to let you put my name down on his birth certificate?” I snorted. “I just didn’t want your reputation to be sullied any more than it had already been.”

“Man, I was trying to have a schmoopy moment and here you are, accusing me of being a whore.”

“Who’s accusing?”

Happy Baba’s Day, Josh. I love you, and so does Matthew.

a mosaic I had printed up and framed for Josh (from both me and Matthew, of course)

footprints from yesterday at a fair we went to (compare to this)

Dear Matthew:

In less than a month, you’re going to be 1 year old and that is totally freaking me out. Aah! In other 11 month news…

If these last few weeks or so were any indication, your toddler years upcoming will have us running ragged. You are everywhere - crawling like crazy into our bedroom, into the bathroom, onto Ava’s pillow (side note, ew), into the kitchen, opening cabinets - everything interests you! You love crawling! And this last week or so has you really interested in pulling up - you are a pro at this now. Baba and I think that you’ll definitely be walking in under a month - you are so strong now!

Earlier this month, we took another trip back east - this time to Virginia so we could visit with one of Mama’s oldest and dearest friends, Auntie Diana. We stayed with her and her dog, Charlie, who loved you to bits and pieces. You loved him too, although he’s a lot more boisterous than your relatively sedate doggie Ava is.

Right after we got back, though, you were sick again, but this time it was a relatively mild virus - roseola - which just spiked itself in high fevers (103.2 at one point!) and left its rashy mark on you after it was done. You’re doing well now, though, and it would be nice if a month could go by without your getting too sick!

Your personality is really starting to shine through. You are going to be a risk-taker, I think. You love it when Baba pushes you very high in the baby swing at the park - it drives me crazy, but you love it. You love it when we chase you, or when you chase us (when in your stroller or mei tai, you “chase” us by commanding one parent to run after the other). Your legs start thrusting in circles and your happiness is too great to be contained in your smile - it infects your hands and feet too! You love it when we sniff your stinky little feet and say “pee eww!” You love it when we tickle your neck and eat your ribs and pinch (lightly, not like the way you pinch us!) your thighs.

Another way your personality is starting to emerge is with your patience - or lack thereof. You remind me of me - you want what you want when you want it - not a minute too soon or too late! You’ve discovered your voice, and you use it - much to our neighbors’ dismay. You hate wearing a bib, hate getting your diaper changed, and hate sitting still - you have to be on the go-go-go!

Thank goodness you’ve mastered the hardwood floors. Your head thanks you, as well.

You’ve learned so much this last month, it is amazing. Besides the pulling up, you said “Mama” on purpose for the first time last week. We were getting ready for bed and we said good night to Baba, Ava and then in your room, good night to Matthew and Mama. I asked you if you could say “Mama” and you did. It was amazing! We’re working on Baba now, and slowly but surely, both your Baba and I will have to watch our language more. I have a feeling we won’t be able to stop you, verbally or otherwise, now.

I can hardly believe that your first birthday is soon upon us. I vividly remember this time last year and being anxious about your arrival, and also dreading it - I knew I would miss carrying you inside me, and sometimes I do - you certainly were a lot more portable back then. But these days, when you’re in such a rush to move and explore around you and away from me, I long for those days when you and I were more together than we are now. I wouldn’t give this time up for the world - you’re so much fun to be with now that you’re mobile and your personality is emerging.

This first year thus far has been amazing. I can’t wait to see what the second will be like as well.

Always,
Mama

(11 month pictures here)

BABA ABUSE, originally uploaded by caseycasey.

Someone likes torturing his baba.

That torturer was 11 months old yesterday. I’m halfway done with his letter. I can hardly believe my little newborn is now, in essence, a toddler.

Snagged from Stacie with a meme to list 7 things about myself you don’t know.

1. I was a vegetarian during my freshman year in college, but ended up going back to the ways of the meat when my mom made grilled bratwursts after I got home for the summer. Lord, but was that a good sausage.
2. Two of my all-time favorite restaurants are in New England; my favorite sushi restaurant is in Connecticut (Japanica) and my favorite Korean restaurant is in Massachusetts Gohyang). We were regulars at both places and we were treated like family. Would that they could come and set up shop no matter where we lived - I don’t think either of us could stomach life in New England again.
3. I have been writing online for over seven years.
4. I freakin’ love those stupid lolcats.
5. I once met Judge Joe Brown. He’s kinda short.
6. I am MAD about crossword puzzles and Sudoku. It’s the only thing I do on my commute to and from work - that and sometimes I close my eyes.
7. I once ate a small box of Swedish Fish for lunch. Amazingly enough, I still like them - but not quite that many.

And then some more:

What were you doing 10 years ago?
I just finished my sophomore year in college and was spending the summer at JMU as a summer RA. No air conditioning. Man, was that place hot. I think I took 5 showers a day that summer, just to stay cool. Ugh.

Five Snacks You Enjoy
chunks of queso fresco, a juicy Georgia peach, trail mix, peanut butter pretzel puffs, and bananas.

Five Songs That You Know All The Lyrics To
Yesterday, We Didn’t Start The Fire (shut up), Cold Hearted Snake (shut up!), Power of Two, and like Stacie, all of the songs in Grease.

Five Things You Would Do If You Were a Millionaire
pay off my bills (boring), pay off my mom’s bills (boring), maybe fly to Sallie Mae and flip them off while writing that final check to them, start a scholarship at JMU, and start a community organization of some sort.

Five Things You Like To Do
Walk, run (sigh), eat Matthew’s belly, travel, eat out

Five Things You Would Never Wear Again
anything by Abercrombie & Fitch, heels, cuffed jeans, perm, Victoria’s Secret’s boosting bra. My boobs need no boost.

Five Favorite Toys
iMac, iPod, flip Video camera, digital camera, and my cell phone.

Matthew said his first official word today - “Mama” - and although he’s been saying the term quite indiscriminately as a part of his babbling, he looked right at me today and said it - and repeated it multiple times purposely when I asked him to again. I think the last time I was this excited was when I found out I was pregnant.

Later on, I lamented to Josh, “It’s the beginning of the end. Today he’ll say Mama and tomorrow he’ll probably say, fuck off!”

“No,” he said. “The beginning of the end was when he finally rolled over.” We are doomed, I say.

Stacie, I believe your twinkies have been moonlighting on you.

On the outside, smiley happy boy, originally uploaded by caseycasey.

Matthew is growing up.

Josh and I were talking the other day about how we were so excited when Matthew started sitting reasonably well on his own - around 6 months. “It’s so great!” I remember saying. “We can sit him with some pillows around him and a small box of toys and he’s interested for an hour!”

Ha!

Soon, the sitting became leaning and pulling and reaching, and then the leaning and pulling and reaching became crawling (first backwards), then the backwards crawling became forward motion and now, crawling has led to reaching up and pulling himself up. He’s so strong now - we think that he’ll be walking before he turns 1 for sure.

Before Matthew was born I kept hearing over and over again about how fast time flies with a baby, so remember those moments and cherish them. I find it’s partially true - some moments during a day move painfully slowly - but when I think back to his growth over the last ten and a half months, I am in awe. I mean, in the course of the last ten and a half months, he’s learned to smile, to nurse, to drink from a bottle, to eat food, to laugh, to wave, to recognize faces, to cry meaningfully, to hold his head up, to crawl, to crawl forwards, to eat his toes, to grow teeth, to chew, to splash in a tub and a pool, to give kisses, to sit up, to roll over, to roll into a sitting position from being flat on his back, and now he’s about to learn how to walk.

That’s pretty busy for ten and a half months. Makes me feel like a damned slacker, that’s for sure.