Happy 6 month birthday, Zeewee!

 

She's intense

Her eyes look into you, through you. I feel like she knows me, and she's only 4 months old. She has an old soul. And she takes my breath away.

 

Ms. Thing

Holds her own bottle, thankyouverymuch.

 

Why photographs are so important to me

I've been reflective lately about a lot of things, one of which is my passion for photography and for documenting the stages of my kids' lives in close detail. I'm realizing that it's at least in part a function of the fact that so few photographs exist of my own family. Of course photography in those days was very different - more cumbersome, more expensive; digital technology allows us the freedom of image disposability. One could also argue that because I have so few photographs of my family, I treasure them more. But I want my kids to have pseudo-photojournalistic access to their lives.

Sometimes I think about photographs I wish I could go back in time and take myself. I would love to have a photograph of my parents together when they were young. I don't have a single one! And so I make sure there are pictures of just Dave and me, because I know that one day these shots will be treasures for Nick and Zoe.

 

Happy 4th month, Zoe!

Finding your thumb has been a full-time job this month ...

 

How I love that they love each other!

 

And the final favorite from today

More hamming it up! Nick sure does love to have his picture taken!

 

And another favorite from today

He's quite a ham.

 

Just the three of us ...

 

Her 1st 4th!

 

 

 

Ain't she sweet?

This is my favorite photo of the week so far. Isn't she cute? She doesn't look a thing like I imagined she would (neither of my kids look much like me IMO, and to be honest I kinda hoped my daughter would ...) but she's a beauty. When she's not crying.

 

Happier times

Not sure how we got so far away from where we used to be. We were never a perfect couple, but we were happier once.

 

We survived Disney w/a toddler and infant!

And wouldn't you know it? Nick finally gets to meet Mickey (whom he affectionately refers to as Hot Dog after the Hot Dog Song) and he freaks out, pushing him away. It had been a really long day for all of us (the first of three in fact).

Of course I got it on film.

 

More photos of the fun to come!

More etsy fun!

I found this woman in China of all places who makes words decorated with tiny clay and porcelain flowers. Look what she did with Zoe's name! She placed the letters on denim fabric with a big beautiful pink bow, ready for stretching and framing. I think I'll have it framed in white, though my plan is to go to Aaron Brothers or Michaels and see what creative ideas they have. Do you have any suggestions?

I love etsy. Where else in the world would I ever find something like this? I hope she loves it enough to want to keep it and hang it in her grown-up room one day.

 

Big brother

He's the best big brother in the world - next to my own, that is. I never fully appreciated Nick's tender spirit the way I do now, seeing him with Zoe. He truly is a kind little being, gentle and sweet.

Lucky me.

 

Buddies

Nick loves his little sister! He says "Hi beebee" every time he sees her, especially first thing in the morning when he wakes up. He kisses her and wants to hold her. I am so glad to see them bonding at such an early age. I hope they are friends forever. At least until she's old enough to steal his toys ...

 

Happy 3rd month, Zoe!

 

Zoe fast facts: 1) She's three months old today! 2) She likes feeling sunshine on her skin, holding hands, and watching her brother play. 3) She smiles a lot - much more than her brother did at this age. 4) She doesn't mind it when I put fancy headbands on her and take pictures; in fact, she seems to enjoy it and is learning how to pose for the camera.
Is it just me, or have these three months flown by?

Ten on Tuesday - the "IT guy better actually fix my d*&n computer this time" version

1. Because I can't live w/o my computer, for goodness sake.
2. And not because I need to do work; because I need facebook to feel like a normal human being with a semblance of a life.
3. Other things ... Nick's vocabulary has exploded and I can't keep up with my little "Nick to English" dictionary I was keeping for a while. My latest fave? Well, two faves? He says balloon as "bur-NUR-nay" (like with an Italian accent almost) and he also says, "es otay mama" for "it's okay mama" as well as "es otay bee bee" for "it's okay baby" to Zoe when madame is having a screaming meltdown.
4. Which happens a lot even though no one thinks or believes madame has colic.
5. I say she's melting down because she needs to shop and no one will take her.
6. I didn't lose a single pound this month and I don't care. The weight will leave when it's ready. Right now it's very happy where it's stuck.
7. My butterscotch oatmeal cookies aren't helping.
8. I stopped taking Zoloft because I hate being on any meds when I'm nursing. But I miss it. It really helped take the edge off, if you know what I mean. About as well as a glass of wine, which is probably better for me right now.
9. But I won't do that either. Kiddo comes first.
10. And on that note, I hope you have a wonderful week! Did you love the Bumbo pick of Mrs. Rose in the previous post? It's one of my new faves.

Bumborific!

Let the sitting-up-all-by-herself days begin!

 

Another favorite from week 12

 

Oh, my girl

Zoe Rose, I love you so.

12 weeks old this Sunday, where did the time go?

 

Proud of me

Every day I struggle with the fact that I'm a working mom. How can I possibly give my best to so many people, I think. Someone is going to be disappointed, invariably, and to be honest I just don't want it to be my kids who suffer.

But then on days like this - Commencement 2009 - I feel proud of myself, my role, my accomplishments, and I hope that one day when Zoe sees this picture she will be proud of me. Proud of the fact that her mom has a PhD and is a professor and spent that afternoon presenting doctoral students with their hoods, conferring their PhD degrees.

 

Building my portfolio

So I got a new lens, I've been studying photography under a professional wedding photographer, and if I do say so myself (ahem!) I'm getting pretty good! Like almost good enough to start charging people for my services! Here are a few of my recent favorite shots. Enjoy.