Zoe works her abs

Zoe is getting more and more mobile. She wriggles and pre-crawls and rolls with ease and abandon. And she now SITS UP. We had heard stories from the daycare workers about Zoe's new found ability, but had not actually witnessed it for ourselves. Last week she was crying in her crib after being put down and we went in to do the usual sniff test. Instead of a sullied Zoe we found a little Zoe sitting up looking rather confused. We quickly learned that she can sit up very well, but returning to a lying position has not been mastered yet. After manually returning her to her tummy, she quickly dozed off.

Zoe- Dangerous when wet

We played softball last weekend. While we were ridiculously out of practice (it's been 8 years since either one of us picked up a bat), we were actually not bad. I might even go so far as to call Max a ringer. I will note that Max hit a HOME RUN to right field (right field was about 50 ft. shorter than left and center, but it takes SKILL to pull the ball that much for a righty- or at least a late swing). Zoe was quite excited by the game, attention, cheering, and big bottle of formula. Max and I took turns jiggling her on our laps to keep her amused. I was up and prepared to hand her off when I felt a little warm. Looking down I realized she had managed to not only wet herself, but me as well. Oh well, I still got a double!

Our next excursion with the imp was a friend's wedding (mid-week, 5pm). After rushing there from work, we were all set- multiple aliquots of formula, baby food, copious amounts of diapers, extra change of clothes. We did our trade off of baby handling and Zoe took it all quite well. She was one of the youngest there, and with the majority of the women around grandma age, she received even more attention than usual. Maybe it's the excitement, but she managed to repeat her feat of wetting herself and a parent at the same time (this time Max). The more formal occasion necessitated strategically placed diaper bag and untucked shirt for awhile, but Max weathered it well.

Zoe goes running

I have decided to do a triathalon in the fall. It's only sprint distance, so I should be able to complete it with minimal training (3.2 mi. run, 11 mi. bike, and 400 m swim). In order to get in shape (to avoid drowning or an unseemly collapse during the final run), I have been jogging with Cristine. We went with Noelle last week and managed to run over 5 mi. While that doesn't sound overly impressive it is if one considers the fact that Zoe came along. I put her in the jogging stroller and off we went to the marina. She actually stayed awake almost the whole time (probably because it was a little chilly and I forgot her socks), but not a peep (well, a few yelps of Zoe high spiritedness, but no crying).

We went for another run today up at Inspiration Point. I had a certain amount of trepidation since if Zoe doesn't like something she let's one know by loud angry cries and higher and higher pitched shrieks, which she has demonstrated that she can keep up for over an hour. I did stack the deck in my favor by stuffing her with food, changing her right before leaving, and actually remembering her socks and fuzzy sweater. She was warm, well fed, and dry so a good start. Within about 15 minutes the imp was out. We managed to cover a little over 5 miles, perfectly timed to imp's waking up. We arrived back at the parking lot, little imp opened her eyes, looked around startled, started the pre-crying face scrunch, and then - bottle in the mouth. Her eyes rolled back slightly, and all thought of crying was gone. I must say, I am getting good at organizing my life around baby whims. A year ago I would not have been so impressed with this, but now, it's really quite the feat. Post-baby life one reevaluates accomplishment and my accomplishments are based on going for a run with a sleeping baby who is not screaming and/or covered in poop. At least Zoe is the cutest baby in the world.

Buying a house

Max and I have finally decided to buy a house. While the papers constantly recap the mortgage crisis and the precipitous descent of housing prices, the East Bay, particularly the areas we want to live in, have not seen much of any drop. Maybe 10% from their high point a year or two ago, but not enough to actually make living around here affordable. While the thought of a $500,000 mortgage is daunting, we decided that we don't want the imp to grow up in our current neighborhood and behind concertina wire. While the Macaroni Warehouse provides a little haven in an otherwise crime ridden and depressed neighborhood, there are no parks, few trees, and nowhere to walk, especially in the evenings. We found a fixer upper (i.e. needs new roof, new heating, new electrical, new decking, foundation work, new plumbing, insulation, new driveway...) for less than $600,000 in a good neighborhood, made an offer, and actually had the offer accepted! I suspect it was the "big guns" i.e. photos of baby Zoe in our cover letter that did it (or perhaps that the offer we made was 15K over asking...).

It is a lovely little house and a place where Zoe can grow up surrounded by trees, a little garden, and a village center within walking distance of the house. We are looking forward to after dinner walks together. The imp loves being outside so much, we wanted to give her a place where we felt safe going outdoors after 6pm at night.

I am trying to stay calm (or as calm as I am capable which is not very calm). I am so scared being tied to a house like this. Everyone I have talked to seems to have gone through the same feelings of terror though, so that is somewhat comforting (although most of them are about 50-60 years old and have already paid off their houses).

Everything is set-the mortgage, negotiations with the seller done, inspections complete, etc etc. Within a month we will no longer be residents of the Macaroni Factory. I am already feeling nostalgic!

Here's Zoe, upset about leaving the Macaroni Warehouse.

Cabin with the family

My mom and sister came for a visit and we decided on a day trip to the cabin. We did our usual stop at Awful Annie's on the way up. Here we are enjoying our breakfasts while the imp enjoys the rotating ceiling fans. Ceiling fans really improve the atmosphere of any restaurant when accompanied by the imp! Ceiling fans are the equivalent of Baby Xanax.



We did the hike to Bear River and the famous swimming hole. Max and I jumped off the cliff (first time is the worst, after that jumping off gets alot easier).




Christa and I discussed the merits of jumping, but somehow my arguments were not convincing. Christa opted to climb up to the log and jump off that instead. After warming up there she was a little disappointed to realize that the only way off was through the 50 degree water. No body fat has a price!





We are desperately trying to instill a love of the cabin in the imp.





While she seems more and more content to go up there and visit she is not overly happy about the long car ride there and back. She can, very impressively, keep an ear shattering scream going for two hours when she is unhappy and wants to be held. Even more sadly, she will descend into the "silent screams" when she is particularly upset. Depending on who is in the back seat this can be extremely traumatic. I experienced 2 hours of this with my dad and stepmom. Christa and my mom got to experience an hour of it as well. Not pleasant at all. Even mom's yodeling song failed to calm the imp (although it made the rest of us want to cry. The yodeling song, while pleasing to Baby Zoe, is not meant for adult ears in a confined car space). Of course once the car stopped and the imp was picked up, she was fine. It's like a switch was flipped, all smiles, trauma forgotten. Not the best end to the day-an hour of Zoe crying, but worth it!

Toothsome Imp

The imp continues her attempts to crawl- although she is not successful yet- it is imminent. She has the legs/knees action down rather well, but has not accompanied it yet with pushing up and moving her arms. Even though she has strong little legs, they aren't quite strong enough to push her along if her head is still on the floor (her head is probably responsible for at least half her total weight, so it acts like an anchor while her legs are an underpowered outboard motor on a rather large tugboat). Soon!



Zoe continues to delight with her love of all things food related. She is becoming quite the restaurant going baby (although she doesn't get to partake in the adult food unless she snags it off the table unbeknownst to us). She seems content with her applesauce, sweet potatoes, green beans while we eat. A few shiny spoons to chew on and we can actual get about 30-40 minutes at a time in a restaurant. We went to an Indian restaurant for my mom's birthday. Zoe was quite taken with the turban wearing waiter and the ceiling lights (not necessarily in that order).


Zoe is getting more teeth-lots more teeth. She is up to 6 teeth poking through-4 on the bottom and two big ones on the top. It is particularly fetching when she smiles and her little white teeth glint and gleam.