29

Jon turned 29 on Thursday. On Friday, a few friends gathered to acknowledge and celebrate him! I was too busy enjoying the fact that I'd secured a real BABYSITTER for Miles to take any pictures of the guests, but I was fairly proud of the cake.

Please note: I did NOT make or decorate the cake (well, okay, I positioned the characters on the track, but that's it). Let no false rumors that I can bake or decorate cakes be dispersed.

Kroger did a fab job, though. Somehow, this angle makes it look like they're really in motion. Something about the blur on Toad's exhaust pipes...

This is, of course, designed to celebrate Jon's prowess at MarioKart, a game which delights our whole family.

Here, Miles and Papa steer their carts delightedly.

(Don't tell Miles he's not actually playing, okay?)

Aaand I'm closing with a non-sequitorious (non-sequitorial?) burst of Adele pictures.

She is such a little sprite!! I love her!!


By the way, she measured 12 lbs 8 ounces at her two month appointment, which I believe is in the 84th percentile. Her height was slightly below the 50th percentile, though. My little hobbit princess.

Siblings

My kids. Two of them.

Ostensibly, this is an experiment to see if I can get my photo edits to transfer to the blog.

But really, that would only take one picture. I'm just so astonished by the images of this new reality. Two kids. One, two.

Miles cannot wait to room with Adele. As soon as she shows signs of climbing out of her co-sleeper (repeated rolling, etc), this dream will come true. One of his favorite games at the moment is for Adele to "chase" him. I hold her by her sturdy torso and bounce her after him like she's a Veggietales asparagus stalk. When she "catches" him, he hugs her. Miles is not a gushy, fawning personality. But he loves her. She makes the list of people he wants to pray for, every night.

I like hearing him imitate her sounds. It's like mockery, though he's not actually capable of this yet. I'm sure she'll return the favor in a few years.

He's checking to make sure I'm still watching before he makes his next move....

Pow! This was actually a lot more gentle than it looks. I'm pretty sure it was intended affectionately.

"See what I have to deal with? I've only been here nine weeks!"

Real quick ending anecdote about the M-monster: We were recently at Cook-Out, which is like a glorified fast food restaurant (delicious food, though. Quite dangerous to one's resolutions). Ever minute or two, they call out an order number that's become ready. "540.. that's, 540, a chocolate shake!" etc.
Every time... I mean, EVERY time, Miles would turn around to face the source of the voice and shout quite distinctly, "I. CAN. NOT. HEAR YOU!" and then turn back around and resume whatever conversation we were having.
I laughed my whole way through that meal. He makes me so happy.
The fun, I think, is just beginning.

Patchwork

I am happy to announce the return of a functional iphoto application to our computer. And to celebrate its return: a mini-photobomb! of my kids and their blankets.

Aunt Laura was so kind as to send us a QUILT that she made for Adele (see above). I'm not yet sure how Adele feels about it, but it sent me into transports of maternal sentiment and schmultz. Quilts are such an expression of love and welcome for a baby. The idea that someone envisioned a pattern, selected fabric, cut, arranged, stitched small rows and long seams, all with someone else in mind... this is very tender, to me. Miles was the happy recipient of three quilts when he was born, and I'm so glad that Adele now has one of her very own. Thank you, thank you Aunt Laura!

When we put Adele on her quilt and told Miles that this was her Aunt Laura quilt, nothing would do but that we get out his Aunt Laura quilt as well. Here they are, a matched set:




My silly kid <3

Even the cat had to break the new quilt in. Please note, Miles took this picture (with only a little help from Papa).




I know my daughter is completely and utterly gorgeous. You don't have to point this out (please do explain to me, though, why the red eye removal we did on iphoto doesn't transfer onto the blog... nor does the picture rotation...??)

Anyway, readers, be assured that Adele is growing in strength and size as well as beauty. This child has come to ENJOY tummy time. We think she is putting herself through vigorous training. This child has been eager and ambitious to grow and develop from the beginning. She knows it's her only hope in a world that contains Miles :-)


Doesn't she have beautiful little peepers?

She's challenging the world head on. Look at the mighty little fists! Look out world, etc.

Miles' new friend

I only have one picture of this relationship so far, but this is an important development for Miles: the acquisition of an electronic device that he is allowed to touch! It's a Fisher Price Cassette player from 1980 that I acquired on ebay. It was important to me that he have one of his own, since mine was SO close to me when I was his age. It was apparently instrumental in my ability to sleep all night on my own when I was less than two years old.

I was hoping he'd find it fun to be able to listen to music on his own and to be able to facilitate it himself. I have not been disappointed: he loves it. Carries it around with him, pumping at full volume, the few stories and music tapes we've been able to round up. So far, Cinderella (the A side has the story, though the B side has been recorded over by its previous owner) and Raffi are his two favorites. He loves to look at me, Jon, Adele, and guests to the house and point to it and inform them, "This-a-MILES'"

That's right, baby. You rock out to that Raffi.
(Just please don't break it; I don't know who fixes FP cassette players nowadays!!)

We thank you, Almighty God, for the gift of water

There really aren't words to describe yesterday better than those straight from the prayer book:

We thank you, Father, for the water of Baptism.

In it we are buried with Christ in his death. By it we share in his resurrection.

Through it we are reborn by the Holy Spirit.

Therefore in joyful obedience to your Son, we bring into his

fellowship those who come to him in faith, baptizing them in

the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Adele was successfully baptized yesterday, January 8th, at Christ Church Episcopal. It was a beautiful day for us and I heartily thank Reverend Scott Russell for his thoughtful, inspiring reflection.

We're also so grateful to our family, for making the long trip to see Adele baptized in her home church.

Tim and Michaela stood as godparents. Adele has a lot to look up to!

I'm really grateful to them for taking on this role so wholeheartedly. Adele was so loved yesterday. I can't help but think she could feel it, and responded by being a complete sweetheart throughout the service, until the taking of the last photo (at which point, a mighty hunger suddenly seized her).

I'm also very grateful to my son, for being a model two-year-old through a much longer service than he's used to, and for behaving admirably in the restaurant, too. His worst antic during the long wait for his pancakes was to quietly drop each of these jelly "blocks" on the floor when we weren't watching. He was quite willing to help me put them back, though. Well done, Miles.

I did a lot of misty gazing at my daughter yesterday, too. She was wearing, by the way, not the gown her teeny brother wore at his baptism (at which he was a week older than she is now) but the gown I wore when I was dedicated-- at the age of four months! Hopefully I'll have time to take a picture of the gown, which is quite pretty and was made, I understand, by my godmother. She was getting rather cranky by the time I got around to close-ups.

This is the best of my attempted session:

Sustain her, O Lord, in your Holy Spirit. Give her

an inquiring and discerning heart, the courage to will and to

persevere, a spirit to know and to love you, and the gift of joy

and wonder in all your works.

Amen.

Innovations

I thought it was time to show you a few things that are new with this post-Christmas, New Year's season.
First, our biggest gift (for the occasion of Adele's birth, from my family: a group gift): Our double stroller!! Hooray!
See Adele being strolled for the first time in her life:

Miles gets to stand...

....or sit:


Also, Miles rides his tricycle unassisted! Go buddy! See video below.


Aunt Leah, affectionately known by my kids as "EeYaya," had a lot of fun spoiling Adele this Christmas. Which was great, because Miles did VERY well by the rest of us :-) Anyway, here's her new "crown" as I like to call it.
Also, please note new hat as crocheted by Grandma:

She's becoming a bit of a clothes horse, which is ultimately my fault :-) (It's just too fun!)


Grandparents enjoying their new role as grandparents of TWO grandchildren.

So, our iPhoto has ceased to work, and I cannot get photobucket to cooperate and rotate the picture! But I wanted to include our little baby's new physique, less little every day!

Also new is Adele's desire to be moby-ed with her legs out! I noticed one leg out and decided to make it symmetrical. She's un-curling every day from her little newborn ball. Morphing into a Real Baby.



My round-faced soulful-eyed sweetie. Coming soon: photos of her baptism, scheduled to occur this Sunday, January 8.

And, below, videos. First is my six week old rolling (okay, falling) over! I know this is not particularly advanced behavior, but she is SO much more determined about physical feats than Miles was!
Second, proof: Miles can ride a tricycle. He insisted on the helmet, actually, not us.