Ketsup

So, it's bedtime for me, but somehow blogging seems like a better idea.  I know it's been about 6 months, but here's a little summary and maybe (for sure/probably) I'll post more later.

Bean is almost 18 months old.  She has tons of teeth, says tons of words, is tons of fun.  She is also a natural born flirt/tease and is very ticklish.  Here is one of my favorite pictures of her lately:

Nothing says fashion like wearing just a diaper and a coat.

I am with child.  We have given this fetus the appellation "Steve."  It was a tiny bit funnier when the gender was unknown.  Now that we know it's a boy, people just think that's his name.  It's not.  He kicks a lot.  His expected arrival date is July 2012.  I feel great so far.

Wonderman and I are living in Idaho Falls and loving lots of minutes of it.  It is very windy.

And that is all.

Conclusion:  Life happens, whether you blog about it or not.

T Minus One Month

Well, she's gone and done it.  Bean is on her way to being one year old.  I know her eleven-month birthday was a while ago, but here's some cute pictures and descriptors anyway.

First off, her big milestone of the month is crawling.  THE BEAN, SHE CRAWLS.  Meaning, portraits this month were much harder than previous months.  I'd set her next to the stuffed animal where I wanted her and, BOOM, she was off.  It's no longer trying to catch a smile, but just trying to catch her. She also has increased her aversion to the headbands of glory.  It's a tough combination.

We did some photos naked:

 

And some not.  Even though naked has been our way of doing things, here in Utah clothes are more necessary more often.

 

 

 I did find the solution to the headband dilemma.  Distraction by Cheerios. 

 

Smiles are overrated anyway.


So, the other big news of the month is that Bean is allergic to tomatoes.  It's pretty sad.  She loves them.  And I love them.  And I have no idea how to cook/feed a family without them.  We're counting on it being an infant allergy that doesn't last.  We'll see. 


Also, she can finally frigging sit up from a laying down position all on her own.  The crawling gave her that.  I'd really given up on it.  Sad, right?  I really thought she'd be 17 and not able to sit up.  Turns out, I was wrong.  Phew.  But now she can sit up in bed and cry if I try to give her some time to "cry it out."  That sucks for both of us. 

Another addition is that she can no longer handle being washed.  There are many tears after every meal when I wipe her hands and face.  Baths are touch-and-go (To use the colloquialism; I'm not speaking literally here.  I'm not sure what the literal meaning would be, but it seems sketchy in terms of a baby's bath).  She must really love being filthy.  Also, I've learned that tortured is in the eye of the tortured. 

She still weighs about 20 lbs and is kinda tall, but not really (We haven't taken her to the pediatrician for the official stats.  We're trying to maintain our status as "dirty hippies.").  Her head seems proportional.  She looks less like a baby and more like a little girl every day. 

That's it.  When she turns one in, like, a minute, I'll tell you more.

Can you just see her asking, "Why are you doing this to me?"  Poor kid.

Conclusion:  Bigger really IS better.

Just Before Eleven

So, it's true.  Bean is ten months old.  And we left Dominica.  And we're settling back into Utah.  I keep thinking I will blog my little fingers off, telling you all about our adventures getting home (seriously, it's a funny story.  Well, funny/aggravating), and celebrating the sort-of birthday, as well as posting pictures of all that has been going on.  BUT, between the settling and the visiting and the having my power cord die, I just am not anywhere near blogging.  Maybe I'll tell you soon.  Maybe not. 

Anyway, she's ten months and some and literally cuter than ever.  Regarding percentiles, I'm sure she's 100% in everything, because she seems pretty dang perfect to me (that's what those numbers measure, right?).  Hopefully I'll get a picture of when she turns eleven months. 

Until then . . . .

Nesting

There's a tree just across the street from our house that every night fills with . . . well, Ask.com and Google tell me they are called Cattle Egrets.  So we'll go with that.  They are pretty white birds and they congregate nightly in this one tree.  They seem to ignore all the other trees.  It makes that one look pretty magnificent as the sun is setting. 

 

 

Conclusion:  It is easy to forget that what is familiar is often also spectacular.

Leather. Or Crystal. Or Glass.

Recently Wonderman and I celebrated our three-year anniversary.  It was a quiet celebration, but a wonderful day.  It is such a joy just to know what an awesome choice we made and how lucky we are to be here, together. 

The coolest thing about marrying your best friend (I know, blah, blah, blah - that's what all lame people who are "so in love" say about getting married, but hear me out) is that you really do get to spend a ton of time hanging out with the person you most want to hang out with - in the whole world.  That's pretty awesome.  Plus, when you're hanging out, you also get to make out whenever you want, which is also cool.

Conclusion:  Marriage rocks.

Neuf - [That's French for "Nine"]

That's right.  Ze bebe' is nine months old.  Intense, right?  She's getting so grown up.  For example:

Bean's basic stats are as follows:

• Weight: Heavy
• Length: Long
• Head circumference: Really?
• Percentiles:  Off the charts, I'm sure.

Can you tell we don't really go to the pediatrician here?  Meh.  She's fat and happy, so we don't worry about it.  She has one tooth that has broken through just barely, and one that will be this side of the gum-line any day now.  She is REALLY close to crawling and every day I think she's going to just start going for it, but she's still just a scooter.  However, she is an expert scooter and gets around quite well.  She often eats (nearly) man-sized portions, but is still nursing with regularity.  She is laughing harder and more often every day.  She is starting to assert some independence as she tries to get me to stop doing what she doesn't like (such as me trying to wash her arms during her bath.  She hates it.  Not sure why.  Probably because that means she can't grab stuff.).  She is very busy and is always exploring and reaching for everything she can.  In the bath (read: kitchen sink), she can pull herself up to a vertical kneel (which makes me quite nervous some days), but she still seems to have zero desire to pull herself up on her feet, or put her full weight on them.  Ever.  She babbles all day long.  She sleeps through the night, except for when she doesn't feel like it (teething has been a little tough).  She has some serious stranger anxiety and cries if someone new comes into our house and I'm not holding her.  She also cries (screams?) when anyone other than me or Wonderman holds her.  Still, in my arms she is quite the flirt and loves to interact with other people, especially other children (and especially when they should be being quiet during church.  Oops).

Oh, and here's a major milestone for this month:  She had her fist kiss!!!!!  Our friend's little boy was quite entranced with Bean and kissed her - twice! - one day when we were hanging out.  He kissed her cheek and her forehead.  It was sweet and adorable.  He's even an older man - two years old!  We're going to have to keep our eye on our little charmer. 

Conclusion:  We are blessed!

Counting Down

While we are very excited to get back to the states, and all that entails (TWENTY SIX DAYS!!!), there are some sad bits, too.  I am very excited to eat berries.  Berries of all kinds.  I really love berries.  I can't wait to introduce Bean to berries and berries to Bean.  However, it is more than a little sad that she is getting to love food like mango (and starfruit and pineapple and bananas [yes, they are better here]) so much, and realistically she may never again have the chance to eat so much (or such) delicious mango in her life. 

At least there will be berries.

Conclusion:  Everything is a trade-off.