Seven Months

It's summer time in the Bay Area and.....

I still ain't got no teeth people!

But that doesn't get in the way of eating. T's first meal of solids-pureed carrots. Very appropriate since I craved carrots throughout my pregnancy and they were the centerpieces at my baby shower. T is a bit cautious.

She prefers her feet to solids some days. 

We've actually been pretty fortunate with the introduction of solids. G-Ro loves making T her purees and T loves gobbling them up. It took her a few weeks to get the hang of taking the food in and swallowing but she's now a little pro. Her favorites include bananas and avocado which get her dancing like this:

Gagnam syle!!!

We were blessed when a great little micro-brewery opened up in our hood. We went opening weekend with T and thought we hit the jackpot-a bar that welcomes babies and that serves popcorn drizzled with truffle oil! But no-some buzzkill informed them that babies aren't allowed in bars and the second time we went T was officially kicked out of her first bar.

But we were very welcome at the first annual Vegan Food Festical in Oakland that was luckily held on a beautifully sunny day. We were not so lucky with the food-how does a food festival run out of food? We ended up walking to lunch at Rudy's Can't Fail that day. Here's T proudly sporting her, 'Bacon Had a Mom,' pictured with one of her favorite vegans-Lisa.

GK's first Father's Day! Unfortunately we didn't get pictures during the day. The night prior we went to  a wedding while T kicked it with G-Ro & Grand-Pappy in Concord. Since we got back late from the wedding, we spent the night in Concord and made brunch on Sunday morning. However-we had a pancake fail so in some ways I'm glad there's no proof of that. Afterward GK was rewarded with a surprise 1 hour and 15 minute Thai massage in Okland while T and I shopped at Trader Joe's and walked around Lake Merritt. I made up for the brunch disaster with a delicious pasta dinner.

A few weekends later I redeemed myself with flaxseed blueberry pancakes. See T in her little high chair? She loves it and joins us at most meals-sometimes eating solids, sometimes playing.

The weather has been consistently awesome in June so we've done our best to make the most of it every weekend. Here we are pictured above at the Berkeley Botanical Gardens searching for the "Queen of the Andes," that blossoms only once in its lifetime, rarely in captivity. The plant we saw was 25 years old which is actally considered young to bloom. T loved the Botanical Gardens. Since we barely covered even half the terrain we'll definitely be back.  

With all this warm weather T loves cooling off in her new rubber ducky tub.

GK occasionally has used it to contain T while he tries to get chores done in the kitchen. While I applaud his creativity....

I'll never send him on a vague shopping trip again. I asked that he be on the lookout for cloth diaper covers since is finally outgrowing her newborn sized ones and this is what I come home to.

T is now big enugh for her Exersaucer that was a baby shower gift from her cousins Alexander and Andrew. A friend referred to the Exersaucer as a Neglect-O-Matic. We all love the Neglect-O-Matic. Anything that allows me to get the dishes done while T squeals with delight is welcome in my home.

T still loves her carriers but she has sadly outgrown her Baby K'Tan (pictured above). I'm a bit sentimental about the K'Tan since it was the first carrier I put her in-initially she hated it and cried whenever I put her in it and I feared that I had one of those babies who would refuse to be carried in a sling and thought we wouldn't be able to show our faces on the streets of Berkeley. But we gave it a break and when I re-introduced it a few weeks later she loved it and for months she was carried in it daily. T is just growing so fast and as much as I carry her I need more back support so I have packed away the Baby K'Tan to pass on to a friend who is expecting a baby any day now. I like the Piccolo and the Ergo carriers we have but there was just something about the K'Tan-maybe it was how close the material held her against me or the fact that I was the only one who could wear it. But it all comes down to this-T's growing up. 

Mother's Day

My mom once told me that we could forget her birthday or a gift at Christmas but we were never to forget Mother's Day because in her words-"I earned it." After 40 hours of labor with no pain meds and exclusively breastfeeding T-I too can say, I earned this day. GK and T did not disappoint-Mother's Day started with them taking a trip to the 24 hour Safeway while I slept in but not before he made me a latte. GK later told me that he walked up and down the aisles with T in the shopping cart nodding to all the other dads with their kids buyingbreakfast  ingredients, flowers, etc.

And here I am well rested for my first Mother's Day breakfast but not before T had her morning snack. GK made me a delicious savory tofu scramble with greens, Field Roast, avocado, and toast.

Exhausted, GK & T returned to bed to nap the rest of the morning which was almost as good as me sleeping in. I showered, did the dishes, cleaned the kitchen, and generally just straightened up around the house. 

Why is T so happy you ask? Because we're at the happiest place on earth! Timeless Cafe for my Mother's day gift.

A vegan tiramisu cake that was intended for me and G-Ro. Bad idea. Very bad idea. I pretty much ate the whole thing in about 3 days. GK took G-Ro out for a special Mother's Day lunch later that week to make up for me eating her share of the cake.

After picking up that piece of heaven we drove to Piedmont Park to enjoy the great weather. We thought  T might like a little fun in the baby swing. We were wrong so we moved to the shade and just relaxed.

T loving on GK despite his crossing guard attire.

Doing one of the most satisfying things a mom can do-putting her baby to sleep. After the park we spent the rest of our daay just relaxing at home and eating cake.

My beautiful flowers to remind me just how lucky I am to have earned T. 

Hey World-I'm 6-Months Old!!!

Tala has officially surpassed runt status! At her 6-month well child appointment she surprised me & GK by shooting up to the 14th percentile on the growth chart. This is a baby who has always been below the 5th percentile. We were so proud of her that we celebrated by pigging out on mac & cheese at Homeroom when we were done at Kaiser. T was a champ and let us eat in peace while she played with her toys and quietly observed her surroundings. 

This is what happens when GK is given the passcode to my iPad. If you've been following T on Facebook you probably think that all she does is take selfies with her dad all day long.....

While that does keep her pretty busy she is doing a whole lot more including... Grabbing her feet!

Playing the piano with G-Ro. 

Learning to cook (beets). T has definitely shown interest in food as she approached the 6-month mark, whether it was watching us eat or attempting to grab food off our plates. Her introduction to solids deserves an entire post of its own.

Trying out new hairstyles. She's still pretty bald.

And reading every single day. She tries to eat her books. No judgement.

She's also really busy spending time with friends.

Pictured above with her stylist Soumya.

At the corner laundromat with Jonathan and his dog Sam. 

Scott paid T a very special all-day visit where they discussed his coin collection.

T finally met Tara and Ash at their super fun off the grid karaoke party at the Berkeley Marina.

She also saw some old friends including people from our Bradley Method group....

Understandably a big jeweled flower on T's head is irresistible to other babies. Luckily no one was harmed.

And of course T stills kicks it with G-Ro every Wednesday. When she's not playing the piano T practices sitting up-mostly with a little help.

Here we are waiting to take BART downtown to go to the Patelco Credit Union as we decided to open a bank account for T to deposit money she's received from friends and family. T is contemplating what she's going to spend all her gift money on.

Six months marked the sad end of my maternity leave and return to work. I miss T terribly when I'm gone during the day but she's been having a blast with GK. But I think she misses me at least a little. How you'll typically find me and T on a week day at 5:30pm.

One of our favorite pics of T... GK couldn't resist buying her this dress when he was in Chinatown with his cousin. Not only does T get more and more beautiful every day, but we're getting to see her silly little personality. She's incredibly social and friendly with almost anyone she meets. We hit the jackpot with this one I tell you.

Five Months

Everyone tells you just how fast children grow up. I think it took to month 5 for me to really understand this after I tried unsuccessfully to stuff T into one of my favorite outfits. What also has gone by really fast has been my maternity leave and trying to pack in as much quality T time as I can before I returned to work.

Here T is being her curious little self. She loves playing with her toys, looking in the mirror, smiling and hugs. She especially likes to grab my bright blue water cup and tries to put her mouth on the plastic straw. 

Making new friends-This young sir is almost exactly 3 months older than Tala. Yet they weight the same. Occasionally I fear that Tala will forever be the little mascot who gets picked last for the team during PE class. But we love Dylan and look forward to future play dates with him & his mom.

Virginia took some time off from writing her dissertation to meet up with us at Willard Park in Berkeley for some relaxation in the sun. Sophie came and found Tala utterly disappointing and boorish after she took a snooze on the blanket.   

Talk about head control. And talk about getting distracted. Probably the number one sound that distracts T from anything is GK's voice, even when she's eating. If she hears him she'll jerk away with milk running down her chin to see where he is. T gets stronger and stronger every day.

"Wait-you mean I'm supposed to sleep in these thing by myself???"-during a recent trip to Babies R' Us. No we haven't bought her a crib yet and yes we're still cosleeping. Attachment parenting by default.

Watching everyone's favorite variety show "Wow Wow Weeee" with Lolo Rudy in Vallejo. T studies dance moves and lately has been practicing her high pitched squeals channeling her inner Mariah. 

Sadly this was the first time in 5 years that I did not run the 199-mile California Relay due to the Barbarian spawn but we were with the team in spirit. 

T begrudgingly taking a bottle as she realizes that I will return to work shortly. We had some challenges as I prepared to go back to work but she eventually got over herself and whatever strong feelings she had towards the bottle. I actually thought she would be a little more stubborn so hopefully this is a sign of her personality to come because the kid only lasted about 3 hours before she gave in.

And one of my favorite pics that just says it all at five months. The truth is-yes, she is really pretty much that happy all of the time these days and probably the most adorable baby that you ever laid eyes on. 

Ferry Trip to San Francisco-April 29, 2014

In anticipation of returning to work I told GK I wanted to take the ferry from Jack London Square to the Ferry Building and have lunch at the very vegan friendly Plant Cafe. I dressed T in her nautical attire for her first boat ride but the weather was unusually warm that she didn't even need her jacket with the little white anchors on it. I know-first world baby problems. We spent the trip to SF on the back of the ferry chatting with other commuters.

Here's T holding onto me for dear life as we pass the infamous cranes in Oakland.

And under the Bay Bridge we go. Beautifully clear day as we approach the Ferry Building.

I thought for a quick second I might be able to get T to nap on the ferry but she was way too excited to cooperate.

We sat outsude at Plant Cafe and I had what is probably the best veggie burger-they make it with beets so it has this great deep pink color. My burger came with kraut, avocado, and veggie aioli sauce. That's carrot, beet, & ginger juice in the back. Happily stuffed we decided to take T on a little stroll before heading back to Oaklnd.

We rolled T along the public pier on the Embarcadero soaking in the sun. T finally decided it was time to take a nap but that only lasted until we got on the ferry.

Since she appeared to have a second wind and one can never start happy hour too early, T decided to ditch her pants and join us at the Last Chance Saloon in Jack London Square for a beer. T opted for breastmilk which she promptly spit up all over my black dress. Here she is above being kind to GK.

A great way to spend the last day of my maternity leave!