Just 'cause.
Showing posts with label motherhood. Show all posts
Showing posts with label motherhood. Show all posts
Thursday, 28 April 2011
Monday, 25 April 2011
My darlings, on this Motherhood Monday, I'd love to talk about baby names! Do you have favorites? When Alex and I first found out that we were expecting a child, we were so giddy (and, um, surprised:) that we couldn't sleep. So we found ourselves in our dark living room at 2 a.m. brainstorming names. Our top boy's names were Toby, Julian, Charlie, and Elliot (ahh, I still love Elliot). For girl's names, I liked Sophie, and he liked Samantha, but we couldn't decide on one that we both loved. (Girls names are surprisingly tough!)My friend Nora told us a funny way to analyze names: The Blind Date Test. Pretend someone is setting up your college-aged child on a blind date. They'd ask, "Hey, want to meet my friend Toby?" Now think: How would you picture that person, just based on the name? Would you want to meet them? It's a surprisingly good way to get a feel for the name, don't you think? :)
There are also such cool unusual names these days. Toby's friends include Zelda, Quinn, Sailor, Elodie and Meriwether. (Aren't those all amazing?) The Baby Name Voyager shows you how popular every name has been since the 1880s. (Warning: It's totally addictive.)
So, I'd love to ask: What baby names do you like? Do you prefer offbeat names, or would you stay more traditional? Would you name your child after a relative? Do you like your own name? I'd love to hear your thoughts!
P.S. This baby name book looks great:
(Top photo by Raul Gutierrez)Monday, 18 April 2011
My darlings, sorry for the late post today! I've been thinking about this one all day, and finally had a chance to write it out.
So, I'd love to ask: When you think of having children, do you ever secretly hope for a boy or a girl? Even though people don't really talk about it, I actually think it's really common to wish for one or the other.
When you're pregnant, the most important thing on your mind, of course, is having a healthy baby. Anyone who is given that gift is blessed beyond belief. I definitely did not take that for granted and felt hugely lucky to be having a baby.
But also, in my heart of hearts, when we found out we were going to have a baby, I secretly hoped that we would have a girl. I had always imagined having a daughter and doing all those fun girly things together--playing with dolls, going to ballet lessons, having heart-to-heart mother/daughter conversations, and doing all the classic (and cliched) things that are part of girlhood. I loved being a girl (and am really close to my own mom); and thought it would be such fun to raise one.
So when we found out that we were expecting a boy, I was so excited and couldn't wait to meet the little man. But part of me couldn't help secretly feeling a little disappointed. I felt really guilty for feeling that way (was I a terrible person? the gender shouldn't matter as long as the baby is healthy, right?), but the feeling remained. I had always pictured having a daughter...and now we weren't.
Plus, I kept thinking about how didn't know a single thing about boy stuff. The guys in my family are really male--they all are obsessed with motorcycles and pranks and windsurfing and whisky. Would Alex and our baby bond over sports, while I wouldn't be able to share that with them, I wondered? When we were growing up, my brother and dad talked endlessly about motorcycle parts and car racing; what if my baby boy wanted to talk about cars? I didn't know a thing about them--or care! And I'm a wuss about rollercoasters and swimming in the ocean and those types of boy-ish rough-and-tumble activities. What if he were into those things? Would I be the lame mom sitting nervously on the bench while my son bonded with all the more adventurous types?
I really worried that I wouldn't be able to connect to a boy...or, more aptly, that he wouldn't connect to me.
But then.
Toby arrived.
Once the doctor put my red-faced, wrinkly, sweet, beautiful baby boy into my arms, EVERYTHING changed.
I can tell you with all my heart, now that Toby has entered our lives, it is the most incredible, moony experience, and now I CANNOT imagine having anything other than my delicious baby boy. When he was brand new, he was so tiny, vulnerable and sweet. When I breastfed him, and he'd snuggle up and put his little hand on my chest and look into my eyes, I would just swoon.
Now that he's eleven months old, he is so lovely and has such a sweet, open demeanor. He giggles, he coos, he stands on full tippy-toe. He touches my face with serious concentration. He loves reading books and eating pears and looking out the window. Sometimes when he's asleep at night, I'll tiptoe into the nursery just to lean down and put my head near his; I love seeing his out-of-proportion body sleeping there: his big head, small shoulders, big diaper butt, and short legs. I pat his back and smell his sweet milky breath. I am totally enamored and enchanted by him. He is my little man, my lovely little boy.
Having a son has turned out to be the most amazing thing, and my apprehensions and fears seem so silly now. I'm so excited to bring him up, and previously boring things like baseball and water pistols are suddenly super thrilling, since I see them through his sweet little eyes. The other day, I was riding my bike downtown and saw a dinosaur-shaped balloon and couldn't stop thinking about how cool it was. :)
Oh, how Toby has opened my eyes!
Anyway, I thought I'd tell you, my sweet readers, since people don't often talk about their preferences for a boy or a girl (it seems like it shouldn't matter) but I think it's very normal to initially crave one over the other. And I wanted to be honest and share how needlessly worried I had been. I'm curious: Do you secretly hope for a boy or girl? How have your thoughts changed, if you've had a baby? I'm so curious to hear -- from everyone from mamas and mamas-to-be! Leave your comment anonymously, if you'd like!
(Photo credit unknown, via Abby Sharp)
Thursday, 14 April 2011
Steven Alan, one of my all-time favorite New York designers, just launched a kids' collection! (How sweet are these little bloomers?!)P.S. This is the women's outfit I want to wear to the playground:)
Monday, 11 April 2011
It's amazing how much you love your own child. Although motherhood can be hard sometimes, and the juggle of work vs. life vs. baby can feel impossible to get right, Toby and his little bald head and his powdery/milky scent and his drooly smile and his throaty laugh make me so moony every time.They say that when you have a baby, your heart lives outside you, and that phrase has come to mind so many times since Toby was born. It even feels physical: Funnily enough, when I'm away from him, like at a work meeting or dinner with friends, I often get a constant nagging feeling that I've left something behind; I keep checking my pockets for my cell phone and my wallet and my keys, and then I realize, oh, yes, of course, I left behind my Toby!
I read a great Carl Jung quote the other day: "Loneliness does not come from being alone, but from being unable to communicate the things that seem important." And I realized that I'd love to talk more about the real-life, day-to-day experiences of being a new mom. So I'm excited to start a new weekly series called Motherhood Mondays, where we can talk openly about everything from babysitters to breastfeeding (and Alex will finally share his side of our birth story). (And is there anything specific you'd like to talk about or have been wondering about?) Much love to you all! xoxo
(Photos by Alex)
Monday, 28 March 2011
This adorable video has been making the internet rounds, but I can't help reposting it! She's trying so hard! Ahh, I can't stop laughing. What a sweetie. :)
P.S. Ballet boys and marshmallow willpower.
Friday, 25 March 2011
A little video from last weekend. Apparently the word "gulp" is secretly very, very hilarious.
P.S. Toby's laugh has changed so much! Here was his very first giggle at two months old and a belly laugh at four months old.
Wednesday, 23 March 2011
My sweets, I wanted to share a little post I put together for Beso about my favorite baby bathtime products. For you mamas out there, I especially recommend the genius Puj tub, which fits into a bathroom sink and then stores flat in a closet. It made bathing a newborn so much easier. (Toby's first giggle was in the bath!:)
Wednesday, 16 March 2011
We just made this photo notepad on Pinhole Press (my friends' company) and I wanted to share. We're totally in love with it, and I can't stop staring at it on my desk. :) Now I want to make a bunch more with wedding photos and our favorite snapshots.You can make your own photopad here. (Wouldn't they make adorable Mother's Day presents for moms or grandmas?)
Friday, 11 March 2011
I'm totally in love with this nursing photo and can't stop looking at it.Moms, how long did you breastfeed your babies? And moms-to-be, how long do you imagine you will? Three months? Six months? A year? Toddler-age? Or not at all? I'd love to hear your thoughts!
(Photo by Michal Rubin)
Wednesday, 9 March 2011
My lovelies, how's your week going? A few readers have asked for an updated Toby photo, so here he is at the playground down the street. We joke that he looks like a tourist in his camera sweatshirt and taxi legwarmers. :)One sweet update: At nine months old, he's started getting separation anxiety. He wants me around all the time, and when I leave the house (or even the room), he completely freaks out and dissolves into tears. I have to say, it's pretty endearing (at least I know he loves me:). But if I'm working from home and need to go into the living room, I have to tiptoe by him and the babysitter with a pillow covering my head so he won't see me! I feel like I'm in a Charlie Chaplin movie. Mamas, have your little ones gotten separation anxiety?
(Toby is wearing a sweatshirt from Smallable, a bike onesie from A Little Lark, striped wool pants from Mabo, taxi legwarmers and the welcome hat from Oeuf. Since most of his clothes so far have been gifts, he's usually way better dressed that I am!)
Wednesday, 2 March 2011
Swedish director Johannes Nyholm made this hilarious short film, starring his baby, about a middle-aged woman on vacation trashing a bar. We were dying laughing -- even if you don't like watching videos online, you have to watch it.
(Thanks, Michael)
Monday, 7 February 2011
Now that Toby is eight months old, he has been eating more solid foods. We've given him pretty basic foods so far (carrots, bananas), and I'm not loving the baby-food jars. Then yesterday I flipped through this inspiring book, which encouraged a surprisingly wide range of real foods for young babies, including pork chops to teeth on and egg yolks with salt.Fellow mamas, I'd love to ask you: What did you feed your babies? I would be so grateful for tips!
(Clip-on high chair by Phil & Teds; kerchief bib from Bink & Boo)
Tuesday, 1 February 2011
My mom also sent us some photos of our family in Paris, right after my sister and I were born. I totally adore this breastfeeding photo, it looks so tender and made me a little teary. Here are more photos from Paris...
And I'm also amazed that her clothes look so current!
You can see Versailles in the background...
My mom delivered us by C-section at the American Hospital of Paris and stayed for a whopping ten days afterwards to rest. My mom also said the hospital food was amazing, including slices of Camembert.
The view from the Eiffel Tower...
I really loved looking through these; thank you so much, Mama! It was the best birthday present.Monday, 31 January 2011
This weekend, my mom dug out a bunch of old photos from when she was pregnant with Lucy and me. They were so much fun to see. My parents had just moved from the U.S. to France, and they thought they were having just one baby (they didn't expect twins!). My mom described what the experience was like...
"When we moved to Paris, I was already pregnant and very excited," my mom told me. "We went to French restaurants every night and explored Paris and surrounding towns on the weekends. During the day while Dad worked, I would walk through Le Vésinet, a beautiful residential district, to St. Germain en Laye, where I would have tea and a croissant and write letters home. Some days I would go swimming at a public indoor pool on the way back. I had a fitted black maternity suit--very sexy and French! Once on the way home, I was craving a hamburger, so I stopped for lunch. It was delicious. As I left the cafe, I saw a poster with an outline of a horse, saying that the special of the day was hamburger a la cheval!"
"During my pregnancy, Daddy and I called the baby 'Freddie' and whenever we visited a gorgeous French cathedral--Notre Dame, Chartres--we would always light a candle for 'Freddie.' "
"In early January, I was eight months pregnant. My belly was quite big, and my doctor was worried that something might be wrong. Dad was on a business trip, so I went alone to the Hôpital Américain de Paris for a sonogram...
"I was lying on my back with the cold jelly on my belly and the technician said, 'Je vois un bébé.' I smiled, and he kept working. Then he said, 'Ooh la la! Je vois deux bébés.' I was stunned! Twins! He kept working and then he exclaimed, 'Mon dieu, je vois trois bébés!' Triplets! He was a bit flustered and wanted a second opinion so said he was going to get a doctor and left the room. I lay there thinking, 'Hmm. I only have two arms, but I am going to have three babies!' When the two doctors came back, they took another look and finally said, 'Madame, you are definitely having two babies only!' I thought, 'Only two! That'll be a cinch!' Later I wondered if they had worked some clever psychology on me..."
"When I left the hospital that afternoon, I was so excited. I passed a little shop and spotted this cute mouse doll with two mouse babies! I bought it, and when I met Dad at the airport the next day, I gave it to him. He was perplexed and just looked at it (Why was I giving him a stuffed mouse?). Then it dawned on him, 'Oh my gosh! Are you serious?' He was shocked but thrilled. The next week we lit candles at a church for 'the Freddies!' "(Next I'd love to share a few from after we were born, if you'd like to see...:)
Thursday, 20 January 2011
Wednesday, 12 January 2011
On our Christmas vacation, after spending the four days in L.A., we headed to Palm Springs to meet Alex's mom and sister. We all stayed together at this rental house. The house was totally tricked out--with a huge pool, a waterfall, a hammock, a fireplace, and toilet seats that automatically opened when you walked into the bathroom (seriously, they had sensors!). Bonus: Crazily enough, it was actually cheaper per person than a budget motel.
We took Toby swimming for the first time. He sort of loved it for a few minutes...and then decided he hated it. :)
One morning, I took a quick shower and came outside to find Toby and Alex playing "helicopter."
I have to say, it made my heart swell a little bit :)
Here's the Toby-eye-view!
Toby loved chilling with his grandma. And check out the mountain views! The desert is so gorgeous. (We heard a freaky story about a now-infamous tourist couple who took the tram up the mountain and then decided to stroll back into town. "It's just a short walk," they figured. "Doesn't our hotel look close from up here?" All they had was a pack of chewing gum, and no maps or hiking gear. Five days later, they were rescued.)
Right before Christmas, we thought it would be cool to take a family photo, inspired by these old shadow shots. It didn't really work, but we tried!
Another morning, we went to Ruby's Diner, and Toby tried mashed banana for the first time.
Despite a valiant attempt...
...he was not impressed. (His expression cracks me up.)
Another afternoon, Alex, Toby and I snuck off for a couple hours and went to the Ace Hotel & Swim Club, which has a rad pool and is amazingly family- and dog-friendly.
Alex immediately got a beer and parked himself by the hot tub.
Toby and I hung out on deck chairs...
...and dipped our feet into the gorgeous pool. Everyone there was really friendly and chatty; it felt like being at a party. :)
And on the walk home, Toby fell asleep in the stroller... 
...and since he'd wake up if we stopped moving, we had to keep going...
...so we walked in circles around a cul-de-sac...
...over and over...
...for a half hour...
...ahhh, vacations with a baby! :) It was a wonderful, restorative trip and made us much more confident about family travel and, honestly, parenting in general. Sometimes it takes a break in your routine to show you what you can do. Thanks so much for reading! Have you been to Palm Springs? A couple other favorite things: Renting fat-tired bikes, everything on the lunch menu at Cheeky's, and the local speciality: delicious date milkshakes. Any other tips, my lovelies?
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