weather report today: snowing and mid 30's, four inches over night.
house projects: laundry, dishes, installed slider in cabinets, assembled shower rod for bathroom. need more parts....
Ever get the feeling that you've lived a lifetime in a week? Last week with Cally was it. Katy and I have watched her seemingly transition from small, passive, happy baby who needs us to provide everything, to an active, engaged, rowdy baby who is starting to splash, grab and jump in her bungee bouncer...all in a a matter of days! At times she seems as surprised as we are at the things her body is able to do now.
The only thing that has changed as fast as Cally this week is the VT spring weather. The old saying, "if you want the weather to change in VT just wait an hour," has rung true here in the Green Mountain State. Since my last post, it's gone from cold and snowy, to warm and muddy, to rainy, cold and raw. Yesterday we reverted back to snow once gain.
If you were here last week, these are a few of things you'd have done with us...
Trip to the Golden Dome 4/2/09:
On Thursday, Cally & I went to Montpelier for a rally outside the statehouse in support of the Gay Marriage Bill. As working life rarely allows for free afternoons with no projects or agendas (never mind a protest), we hit the road after her nap. As it turned out, the rally never happened but we had a very social and educational afternoon. We were able to sit in the state legislative chamber and hear emotional testimony live from both sides of the aisle...Cally was excited to see all the people and hear all the sounds. Me, I was proud to live in a state where public democracy for the people is alive and well. We sat in the lobby alongside the "one man, one woman crowd" and during a break, were visited by the senate leader, Peter Shumlin. Everyone likes babies and he was fascinated by how happy Cally was...and oh that red hair!
An unexpected highlight was seeing our friends Sarah and Caroline and their new baby. Katy and I met them originally in our birthing class last fall. We live only one town away and will be getting our babies together soon. We also saw another friend from our class, Dave. He was a bit busier than us for two reasons. 1) In addition to their new baby he and Katie have 2 other kids under five at home and 2) he is legal council to the legislature and helps shape the legally binding language of bills and policy. We also saw our friend Alden who's been working hard in support of Vt. Freedom to Marry...when not logging the 1,000 or so miles he's already put on his road bike this season.
Prologue: After the Gay Marriage Bill passed in both the VT Senate and the House by wide margins, Governor Douglas vetoed the legislation for ideological reasons. Justice and the beauty of small state democracy prevailed however on Monday. The Governor's veto was overridden with the Democrats scuttling exactly 100 votes...the magic number needed to win a 2/3 majority. Vermont has again made history by becoming the first state in the US to legislate for legalizing gay marriage and not having it constitutionally decided in the courts. Way to go Vermont!
Here's Milk in Your Eye 4/4/09:
One of our new favorite past times has been playing with Cally in her bungee bouncer and watch her feel her legs and walk around supported. On Saturday night I prepared to take advantage of my "dad pass" (thanks Katy!) and spent a night out in Burlington with our friend Macmo. We went to Higher Ground to see Dinosaur Jr.and waded the sea of hipsters. It felt like 1992 all over again... J Mascis is definitely not God, but getting closer every year. Now back to our story...
Before I left, Katy was practicing some "mommy calisthenics" she'd read about in a magazine. Most of these require using Cally's weight as resistance, sitting up with her on your chest repeatedly or repeatedly pushing her up over your head while reclining on your back. Just as Katy was embracing this exercise and the joy of Cal pal's smiles over head, I heard a little "Blorp!" followed by Katy's scream for me to come quick. When I looked over the from the bathroom, Katy was on the floor, intentionally still, with Cally suspended above her looking down toward her mom's eye socket smiling...now filled with a pool of cottage cheesy, regurgitated breast milk!
When we discovered Katy was pregnant, she was emphatic about one thing looking forward to parenthood. " I don't do throw-up," she explained. Not grossed out by much, I foolishly agreed to do puke patrol when necessary. After swiping the spit-up from her eye and washing up, Katy agreed that baby puke is pretty innocuous compared to the normal adult variety....well, you get the picture.
Running Back to Winter 4/7/09:
One of the challenges we've been facing is how to get exercise in a way that both satisfies our needs, has minimal impact and maximizes fun for Cally. Our Chariot has been just the tool. My parent's, Art & Peg, generously gifted us one upon Cally's arrival. We've been chomping at the bit for her to get big enough to use it. Warning: Not intended for use by children 3 months or younger...
Anyway, if the logistics of getting a run or ski in with a baby this time of year don't wear you down, the weather definitely will. With all the rain and cold of late it's been hard to motivate to get out. Yesterday Katy and I decided that even if it was raining, we had to pack up Peanut (one of our nicknames for Cally who hangs tough in the 25% for weight in kids her age) in the Chariot and run. We are sorely undertrained for the VT City Marathon we registered to run on Memorial Day weekend, now only 6ish weeks away! So, with rain coming down and temps hovering near freezing yesterday, we packed Cally into her little fleece suit, belted her into the Chariot (she hates this part) and headed up Lee River Rd. toward the Mtn. Warfare School...our typical short loop from home.
Katy and I caught up on our day and chugged up the road with Cally, taking it all in from her seat. We often wonder what the heck she is thinking as the landscape shifts around corners, cars pass, and the Chariot suspension compresses while on the shoulder or blasting over pot holes. Today the rain started getting kind of thick out of the gate and soon turned to snow. We were a couple miles from home at this point and had no choice but to keep going. Our friend Mary and her kids (who had dropped in to see us but found the house empty) stopped when they saw us on the road. Glad as always to see Claire and her and Austin's twins Augie and Timmy, we pulled up to the van window to say hi. When I looked down to check on Cally in her little weather proof pod, there was about an inch of slush on her windshield. When I wiped it away, I saw her little smiling face peeking out of her fuzzy suit and the gleaming gums of her widest smile. It's been the moments like these that have put all the little nagging things and minor inconveniences (unfinished house, dog that likes to pee in our new bathroom) of life into perspective. When we arrived back home with the snow driving, we took a family photo (above).
