First Snow

New Nightly Ritual: Naked Spinning

Nothing like a little altered consciousness before bed. Hopefully it doesn't presage a fondness for bungie-jumping and sky-diving.

T-R-O-U-B-L-E

What can I say...

Inner life

I don't know quite how to describe Emmett's expression in this picture:

He's goofing a bit (the crooked smile), but aso looks a bit triumphant or even cocky. One thing I've been noticing over the last few months is how self-relational he has become. He does things (posing, playing on his own, goofing) that seem to me evidence that he sees himself as doing something. That is, he's playing for an audience, and the audience is himself. I know we're a bit shy of the classic mirror stage, but I swear he's developing a self-image.

Halloween

It was very hard to get Emmett to pose, but we loved dressing him up. The costume was inspired by his current favorite story, The Grouchy Ladybug, and brilliantly executed by Will.

Autumn

Enjoying the foliage and the beautiful sweater made by cousin Kirsten.

I guess summer really is over

Thank goodness his Grandma Nancy bought Emmett this great coat for his birthday, because he shows no signs of souring on his favorite activity, even though the temperature is dropping precipitously.

Digging in the dirt

Ok, so it's more like pebbles, or rocks even, but...he's hard at work, regardless.

Model

Here is Emmett modeling his beautiful birthday onesie from Jason. It is a lovely piece from Milo in Maine. What do you think? Can he work it?

The whole fam-damily

Here we are in our finest duds, having just enjoyed our friends' Sara and Ryan's wedding ceremony.

I want to ride my tricycle...

Emmett loves going down the block to borrow toys from the yard of Lucie and Delia. We caught these pictures on one of his multiple excursions today. The fall weather has been lovely, and Emmett has been taking full advantage of it. He'd spend every minute outdoors if he could. I hope he likes snow, cuz otherwise I don't know what we'll do this winter.

Oh, and did I mention he walks?

Catching up a bit

So much has happened, so much has changed, in the three months since we last posted. Here are several pictures from the intervening time.

Emmett is ONE YEAR old!!!

I know it has been a loooong time. Will is about to add more pics and even a film of Emmett walking (yes, walking!). We are so smitten with him -- a most exquisite piece of fate. Yes, he is the best little bear in the world. I have to go back to work tomorrow and I am devastated. The birthday has prompted me to look back on the year a lot. It was really, really hard. It has become glorious, however. Emmett is so much fun, so sweet, and even seems funny. I am sure more trials await, but the birthday was definitely, unequivocally a celebration. We made it! ...okay, must work now.

Moving & Grooving

Nine Months

I am very happy to report that we have made it to nine months. Early on this seemed unimaginable, but life has been getting progressively easier and happier ever since about six months. Nine months, I can confidently say, is mostly a great joy. We are increasingly getting to know Emmett's personality and every day seems to bring changes and new delights. Emmett really began crawling with his tummy off of the floor yesterday. He saw an open cabinet and that was all of the motivation he needed. Once he got in there, he could not be distracted for what seemed like half an hour. He was proudly pulling out everything he could find.

So, what is he like now? Who is our little guy? Sometimes an outside perspective is helpful. We just visited friends and Sara and Ryan said that he is the happiest baby they have ever seen. Now I don't know if they have seen other babies, but he does seem to be really full of joy. He smiles all of the time, loves meeting new people, and Will is singularly good at making him laugh. Sara and Ryan both provoked many giggles through peek-a-boo and various intersubjective games involving facial expressions. It was really fun to see him play this way.

Our very social schedule the last week was such that Emmett also got to meet Ben and Lara, who are expecting a little bear themselves, and he got to see Mufridah again. He seemed energized by the trip and was cruising more and more with the furniture. Then we came home and our friend Jason visited us in Montreal. Jason remarked on how very "active and interactive" Emmie is. He predicted that Emmett will grow up to have some "physical aptitude," since he was so obviously striving to move and groove. Jason also named "the butt dance," Emmett's celebratory bouncing and knee bending, often accompanied by shrieks of glee. Jason and he did some dancing together, which we hope will become tradition.

I think these observations capture his main modes of being right now. He wants to move all of the time and he wants to enjoy these new powers with others. He also wants to communicate with facial expressions, noises, and co-movement, like dancing. He spent today "bouldering" around the whole apartment. It is amazing to watch him figure out how he can use grooves in the wall, a chest of drawers, a window sill, or a cabinet to move laterally about. He looks around, feels for a handhold, stretches out, teeters and restores his balance as he walks around. He is also not averse to risk. He now enjoys pulling up to a standing position in the bath and falling down back onto his butt to make a big splash. He does this over and over, such that it is clear that he lets go and purpose. So, that's our little bear at nine months: playful, adventurous, happy, social, cuddly when he wants to be, and generally raring to go.

Basic Training

Cutest. Baby. Ever.

Mama's Day

Emmett was so excited about Mother's day that he woke up at 5 am! Montreal is damp and shrouded in cloud cover, which makes for a contemplative day, tinged with a bit of melancholy. Motherhood certainly merits some meditation, though perhaps in these first 8 1/2 months it has received all too much. It might also be a good time to get in touch with other aspects of life, a time to connect motherhood to other joys of existence. I don't know. I think I probably should be taking a nap with Emmie right now instead of publicizing these non-thoughts.

I read the Wikipedia entry on Mother's day and apparently the founder regrets ever having instituted the holiday. Apparently, she found its commercialization (which is a multi-billion dollar industry in the US) to be contrary to everything she wanted to recognize in mothers. She was arrested and spent all of her inheritance protesting the very day she inaugurated. She died penniless and childless. It is a pretty sad story actually. In memory of Anna Jarvis, and her aspiration to celebrate maternal love in a sincere way, I think I will just cuddle with my little bear. He is so cute these days that it hurts (and i am referring not only to his teeth!).

Hair, and other developments

Our little bear is growing up. He has more hair, more determinate desires and projects (like walking, crawling, and stealing spectacles). He is also, happily, sleeping much better. We get 5-7 hours stretches at night now. So, nice. Still, he is pretty much against eating. He will snack on some toast (teething toast or snackbread), which he can hold himself, but rejects purees, or anything that is (a) slimy (fruit, avocado, steamed veggies) or (b) comes on a spoon. He will put anything other than food in his mouth, of course. So, 95-99% of his calories are just breastmilk and he is closing in on 8 months. He remains a willful child, but he is also a happy one. He is so very social. Smiling at strangers and even grabbing at them. People on the street are taken with him. Just yesterday someone insisted on buying our jalpenos for us.