The End of an Era

Today marks the last day that Justin and I can take Roxanne to a restaurant and not have some sort of seating option just for her. We took her to a restaurant in Decatur this morning, and she was ALL up in our food. Justin and I passed her back and forth across the table several times, both of us secretly thinking that the other was the real problem, and that Roxanne just needed to be situated differently. This was not true. Roxanne is now way too mobile and interested in our food to sit in our laps during meals. First, she was doing this really slick and stealthy move where she was facing me but swinging her arm behind her. I saw her little hand skim over my fruit bowl, but I didn't realize she had actually gotten anything until she had a piece of pineapple halfway to her mouth. Shortly thereafter, Justin took baby duty for a few minutes, while I tried to scarf my honey wheat pancakes down as quickly as possible. During Daddy time, Roxanne repeatedly picked up and dropped several handfuls of potatoes. It was all contained to his plate, but still. To finish everything off, I held Roxanne in my right arm while trying to finish some of my coffee (it was decaf guys, and lukewarm). Roxanne, exhibiting enviable speed and maneuvering, grabbed the rim of my mostly full glass of icy water and pulled it forward. Subsequently, my lap and behind were completely soaking wet. Fortunately, I was wearing a black patterned jersey dress, so only people looking really closely would have thought that I peed my pants. Roxanne seemed un-phased, even though her left foot got all wet.

So anyways, it looks like we have finally arrived in the high chair times.

Could I please get a tooth?

Just one? Poor little Roxanne. She's having about an hour a night where she is inconsolable and howling. She tugs at her ears and rubs her eyes (occasionally jamming a chubby little finger into one or both) and just generally seems pretty miserable. I know it's got to be teething. I swear I can feel her bottom two teeth just about to break through, but I have no frame of reference and cannot exactly call myself an expert. What exactly should it feel like when a baby's teeth are pushing through? I've been giving her a few Hyland's teething tablets, and they seem to be pretty wonderful. Usually within about fifteen minutes she is calm enough to nurse and fall asleep.

Roxanne turned 5 months old yesterday and she seems more or less on track with most things. She's getting more and more grabby and interested in everything, and she LOVES to eat with a spoon. Let me clarify: when we go to restaurants, we just hold Roxanne in our laps and let her hang out and maybe play with a toy. For the most part, she's a pretty laid back lady, and just sits politely trying to grab everything on our plate or on the table. So lately I have been dipping my spoon into a tiny bit of water and putting it into her mouth. She LOVES it. I think it's a combination of cold metal and cold water on her gums, but it works for her. And it looks adorable.

The Wonders of Mother's Day

Sunday was my very first Mother's Day. I have to say that it was perfect! It started out a little rocky, since Roxanne woke up around 7:00 and didn't seem interested in going back to sleep until we were on the way to brunch at noon. I kept trying to talk her into giving her Mommy the gift of sleep, but no dice. After a lot of deliberation, we decided to just go to Whole Foods for brunch, since the breakfast bar is delicious and there isn't a wait to eat. However, on our way there, we noticed that the La Fonda on Ponce was pretty empty. I have to tell you, the brunch at La Fonda is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. Justin and I fancy ourselves brunch professionals, since that is our big meal out most weeks. We have lots of favorite spots around Atlanta, but we assumed all of them would be packed on Mother's Day. La Fonda was perfect. We sat on the roof top patio and ate breakfast food (mmm, desayuno burrito). I was tempted to have a Mimosa, but considering that these days a half a beer makes me giddy, I opted out. I didn't want to spend Mother's Day drunk. Plus, Roxanne and I are still making a great breastfeeding team, and drinking can be tricky with nursing. Sometimes Roxanne decides she's not willing to wait for two hours while my wine metabolizes.

We spent most of the rest of the day at Piedmont Park. The weather was flawless and we sat in a swing by the lake while I nursed Roxanne. If you squint a little, you can even pretend that the brush along the shore isn't littered with cigarette butts, beer bottles, and assorted drug paraphernalia. It approaches being wholesome! While we were at the park, we stopped into Skate Escape, where I talked with the counter guy (super nice and friendly) about what the best roller skates (quads, NOT roller blades) would be for a person who wanted to start outdoor skating but might eventually get into roller derby. I wrote down his recommendations, and I might be heading back over there with a small part of my stimulus check... I would love to start roller skating again. I did it ALL the time as a kid, and I was actually starting to try out for the Atlanta Roller Derby girls when I found out I was pregnant with Roxanne. I'm thinking maybe when she's two or three I'll try out again. Maybe by that time it won't be too tragic if I break an arm. I want to set a good example for Roxanne, and maybe she'll someday think I'm cool for roller skating. Although I am pretty sure she'll be embarrassed of me no matter what. For now, I'm enjoying being a mama who is pretty much as good as it gets for Roxanne. She smiles at me, giggles at me, snuggles me, and just generally is the best thing that ever happened to me (sorry Justin).

The time has come

Roxanne finally got her foot in her mouth this morning. This is kind of a big deal around here. I know it sounds sort of dull and maybe even gross, but for me and Justin who have seen it coming for weeks, it's pretty thrilling. She only did it once, and it wasn't clear whether or not she realized that the foot was not the same thing as her finger (which is ALWAYS in her mouth), but she did make a little face. Kind of like a face you make when you lick chocolate off of your finger but realize that there was some hand sanitizer on there, too. You are expecting familiar deliciousness (baby finger) but get familiar deliciousness mixed with ickiness (baby toe complete with baby toe jam). It also occurred to me that Roxanne has probably never smelled or tasted foot before.

Sometimes I think my parental epiphanies are unusual. I read about moms being thrilled with their babies firsts, and wondering about the wonderment with which their child views the world. I think about that stuff, but I also think about Roxanne tasting her foot for the first time. I wonder if it tastes like foot smells. I have a sneaking suspicion that I might be a 12 year old boy in a mom's body. At least some of the time. For now, I think it's OK, but I'm going to have to train myself not to laugh uncontrollably every time Roxanne coughs and farts at the same time. Because that seriously cracks me up. I still have vivid memories of being punished when I laughed at an accidental fart at the dinner table. So I'm inferring that parents are not supposed to perpetuate the notion that things like farts and burps are funny. Any tips would be appreciated.