updated

It's been hectic trying to get settled in our new home and at the office. I've spent a while this morning updating the blog. I placed events in February where they belong, so don't be surprised if you see something new where you didn't before!

Paparazzi strikes again

It's been a while, but the photogs have snapped Max doing one of his new hobbies. My brother Brett has a knack for intercepting these pictures before they make it to the magazines you see at the grocery store.

Max's first daffodil

Uncle James and Aunt Martha gave Max his first flower. It's a good thing the daffodils growing outside the office were hardy; otherwise, it wouldn't have lasted for the pictures. Max really studied his new toy in all the ways a baby does...he mauled it, chewed it and beat it...and the flower still looked happy.
My mom encouraged Max to smell it. The flower fit nicely around his nose. Being a first time mother, I expressed concern about pollen and allergies.

This was the wrong thing to say in front of my aunt and uncle who promptly started teasing me.

They started offering Max the suckers we have in the office for customers. I said my little bit about how I don't want him having sugar until his first birthday. I was serious, of course. Everyone else just laughed.

Uncle James asked if I've fed him mashed potatoes or gravy.

No. He's only received jarred baby food--organic mostly.

He said, "Flour gravy has saved more lives than the Red Cross."

Well, who can argue with that?

Who says you can't get good stuff playing Dirty Santa?

Every year at Christmas, my family gets together for a lively game of Dirty Santa. Max is modeling part of my gift from this year's festivities. It's a hat and a vase. Versatility is key, right?

I think Max likes hats.

First day in the office

Max joined us in the office today. One benefit of having a family business is that I can set up a playpen in a corner and the boss won't say I need to get a babysitter. The babysitter is Grammy, and she's right there!

Max seems to be adapting well so far. He has grown accustomed to lots of attention, though! He has special smiles just for Linda and Connie. All Connie has to do is ask if he wants "some ice cream," and he breaks into a big grin.

Hotel Review

We recently attended a convention. I've been going to them since I was a child. Although the organization is wonderful, the location was horrible. The last time we were there, it was pretty bad. (My grandmother had a space heater warming her room, and it was still cold.)We were assured it had been renovated. Garrett kept referring to the place as a "fleabag" hotel, but I was hopeful. As the weekend approached, though, I expressed my anxiety. I think my mother called me "an elitist."

By the end of the weekend, she was in total agreement.

Here's a list of grievances:
1. check in took at least half an hour, and we had reserved a room
2. second floor had no elevator
3. lampshade was cracked and stained
4. every towel was stained
5. when I took a shower, I ended up using Garrett's towel because the only other one had gunk on it
6. the countertops had an ick on them I had to scrape off
7. my grandmother didn't have shampoo or soap
8. one of the ladies we were with ordered towels and didn't get them until 6:00 that evening
9. at least four of us got sick after eating in the restaurant at three different meals
10. one of the ladies had to call security because of the fights going on outside her room in the middle of the night
11. the walls were so thin that the baby waking us up crying was not even our own
12. our room was non-smoking, but that didn't stop our neighbors from lighting up
13. a guy was smoking a joint in the hallway
14. one of the ladies had to change rooms because her room had no heat
15. our tv didn't work
16. our "free internet" didn't work
17. we had to walk out in the cold to get to the rooms for the convention
18. it smelled dirty...because it was
19. the wakeup calls weren't on time
20. I almost stepped on a roach...of the insect variety

Where is this marvelous locale? The Biltmore Hotel on Meridian in Oklahoma City. I heard many people say they will never stay there again.

Guess what?

We won't either.

Happy Birthday, Grandma!

My grandmother celebrated her birthday today. It's fitting that it is so close to Valentine's Day. She loves red, pink, and roses.

And, of course, Max.

Reading

Max is just now sitting up fairly well by himself. Sometimes he's holds his arms out to balance like a performer on a tight wire. For the most part, he regains his balance.

He loves looking out the window of his playroom. Today, I was letting him play as I read The Lace Reader. He loves gnawing on books. I hope that one day he'll enjoy reading them, too.

Sippy cup

Grandma came over for Sunday dinner a couple of weeks ago. Since Max had been so interested in taking his bottle--and sometimes even the spoon--out of our hands and into his own, we decided to offer him a sippy cup.He got the concept and immediately grasped the handles and thrust the mouth piece into the pro. I didn't want to waste any milk, so we placed only a couple of ounces in the bottom of the cup.He never figured out how to tilt it high enough to get anything out of it, but I think it's a start.

No party at the crib

Last night totally rocked.

Actually, it didn't. I didn't have to rock Max AT ALL. He slept from the time we put him down until 8 in the morning. Woohoo!

It was wonderful to sleep. The only negative aspect is that I didn't spend all of those waking hours catching up on Facebook. This is probably a good thing.

We celebrated this morning by introducing a new food to Max's diet: bananas. At first taste, he scrunched his face in the way that I feel when I drink orange juice after brushing my teeth. He was not a fan. I thought babies are supposed to like bananas! Nope. Not once did he do the little bird mouth indicating he wanted more. In fact, he had banana smeared all over his face by the time I gave up.

Cereal: likes it.
Carrots: okay.
Peas: no, thank you. He actually pushes my hand away but sometimes opens his mouth for more.
Squash: loveslovesloves
Green beans: okay.
Bananas: not a favorite. We'll try again tomorrow.

In my ignorance, I gave him green beans at his next feeding and squash at the next one. My friend told me that I'm supposed to only introduce one food a day which means that's what he's supposed to get all day. Is that right? Will some of my mommy readers let me know the proper procedures for introducing foods? Thanks in advance.

Santa's request

Santa and I have been friends for years. He dropped me an email the other day to share his concern about something and asked me to blog about it.

And when Santa asks you to do something, you do it. He's kind of like Oprah that way. So here goes...

No one, especially Santa, likes children to be disappointed on Christmas morning. Unfortunately, some children were very upset when their tiny little request was not fulfilled. (He told me that more than one tear was shed on a day that should be joyful.) I hate that this happened, and I'd like to clarify.

After reading my novel Glamour, a number of children requested their very own fairies. Since fairies are little people, Santa could not grant this wish. One can not own another, after all.

By the way, Santa's elves were miffed at this misunderstanding. They are distant relatives of the Naturals and Fayes and wanted you all to know that they work for Santa by their own free will. It's a great job, of course, but he doesn't own them. In fact, many elves go on vacation in January. Since the North Pole is so cold, you may see these elves on vacation if you live in a more tropical climate. Keep your eye out. If you see them, know that they're rather like the Secret Service or CIA. They may not be able to acknowledge that they're Santa's elves, so it's probably best not to ask.

Anyway, back to Santa's request: One of the points of my novel is that Glamour comes from within. True power—and magic—is what is held in your heart. It's what makes each person special. Like the tails of the Naturals, it's the identifier that marks us as unique.

Even though fairies can be very cool to know and hang around with, you don't want to get on their bad sides. If you requested one and it didn't appear in your stocking, be thankful. As you may recall from the novel, they don't like being held captive...and they get even.

Unpacking

It's official. We are truly moved in. We're still unpacking, but Max is sleeping in his crib rather than a pack and play--and as of today, we finally have Internet service! Sure, we still have boxes rather than a dining table in the dining room, but they're diminishing. Certainly, we still have wires from electronic equipment that isn't hooked up.

Our house is not baby proof.

Until about an hour ago, I thought we had plenty of time. That's when I looked up to discover that Max was no longer on his playmat. He was about two feet from it, lying on his back and still pushing with his feet.

There's gonna be a whole lotta babyproofing goin' on.

Yes, I look tired!

My mom dropped by and took this picture. Too bad she didn't arrive a little sooner because she'd missed all the fun. By the time she arrived, all that was left to do was take a picture and laugh at me.

I answered the door in tears. I was trying to unpack--still am, in fact--and Max wasn't interested in helping. We'd just introduced carrots to his diet, and he must not have enjoyed them much because I kept having to change his diapers.

This picture was taken after the last diaper change. I knew the situation was hopeless. I tried to use wipes but ended up grabbing a fresh diaper to help clean up the mess. I even had those disposable pads on the changing table and tried using it to fight the Battle of Poo. No use. I finally just gave up and stripped him down on the changing table. Then I took him into his bathroom. One sink already had clothes soaking from earlier that day, so I plopped him in the other sink. I looked down to discover my attempts to avoid being covered in "carrots" were all for naught.

Then the doorbell rang.

Saved by the bell!

His outfit, by the way, soaked for a week and had to be washed three times. I don't know if it's my imagination or not, but I think I can still see signs of carrot on the back of his shirt.

Papa with Max

My dad drops in often to see "the boy." It's nice. Today, he fed him. As you can see from his gaze, Max was definitely interested in that bottle!

Birthday for Gramps

We went to visit Garrett's parents to celebrate his dad's 78th birthday.
I'd packed a trunk load full of toys to entertain him during our visit, but there was no need for all the effort. He was captivated with the bee Grandma Mary had for him.
He was fed. He was entertained. He was loved.
What more could a baby want?