Missing my little boy (and wife)

This is David, and this is my first time to blog. Ellen and Seth are leaving tomorrow to spend a week in NC. After 6 years of marriage, being apart every once in a while is not a new thing. In my last two jobs, Ellen has had significantly more vacation time than I have, so sometimes she has availed herself of a little extra time with family and friends, while I put a little more time in at work and looked forward to seeing her when she got back. And of course I will miss Ellen--I always do. But, yesterday it struck me. MY BABY is leaving me for a week. And I'm going to miss him! It struck me that my love for Seth is newer and fresher, and it is going to be harder to be away this time because two loved ones will be gone instead of one.

It also surprised me how strong my love for Seth had become in such a short three months. Three months ago, Seth was tucked away in Ellen's tummy, incapable of being held, touched, swung, rocked, strolled, flown, or pacified. Now, just a short time later, I have a hard time picturing being away from him for a week. It's amazing how love works. God starts to build it in your heart for family and others, and you don't even notice how it is growing. You think that you're just going through daily life together, but before you know it, something comes up and all of a sudden your affection overwhelms you like a flood, and the strength and depth of it surprise you. Those nights of waking up, of rocking, those days of diaper changes, holding, and praying, each little daily activity was not just a job but an act of love. And each little smile, squeal, gaze, or moment of peace melted my heart.

Well, to Ellen and Seth, I will miss you LOTS and LOTS. I hope you have fun being the celebrities for a week in NC. There are lots of friends and family who want to see you there. I will be thinking and dreaming of you and waiting till you come back to love you more.

An evening out?...what was I thinking?

A week has come and gone, and I'm able to laugh about this now, so I thought I'd post on a recent adventure in the life of a stay-at-home mom with a 2 month old. Last Thursday night, my husband and I managed to go to a fancy dinner without said baby. And it was only through sheer determination and gritted teeth on my part, lemme tell ya. I will not let a baby beat me! I will participate in some of the DC adventure that my husband experiences every day. "Hi honey, how was your day?" "Ok, but the baby wouldn't nap well today, and there's been a lot of crying. How was yours?" "Uh, I had lunch with George Will today..." He brought me home some flowers that night.

Anyhoo... Thursday afternoon comes, and I've got my battle plan. I will start putting on my makeup, doing my hair, and putting on my new black dress at precisely 4:00. I have to get all this done in time to leave so that I can get to the babysitter's townhouse in Arlington by 5:00. Seth has been napping like a little angel in his swing for half an hour. Just as I get up to go in my bedroom, guess who wakes up? And he didn't wake up happy. The next half hour involves me moving a crying baby from my bedroom to the bathroom, putting the passy in with one hand, while trying to put on mascara with the other. At one point, I grimly put on my lipstick, wailing in the background, and said to the mirror, "Why do I even bother? Huh?" Finally, we get out the door, me even managing not to forget the bottle and the frozen breastmilk. We even get to the babysitter's house on time.

The time schedule is really tight, so I have to breastfeed Seth in the parked car outside the babysitter's house in order to be done just in time to throw the baby in her direction and run away, shouting instructions and a cell number over my shoulder. I find a nice spot on the street near her house, and we're settling in for a good feed when I realize that I have parked about 10 feet from a bus stop. That's right, folks, a place where many fine professional men and women are getting off the bus at 5:00 and walking right past me. There wasn't a large sign or a bench, so I had no idea. The next several minutes involved a frazzled me trying to make sure I'm well covered with a blanket, Seth fussing that he's too hot under there, and me hoping that he's getting enough milk 'cause I'm so stressed that I'm not sure it's coming out well.

Finally, we're done, and Catherine pulls up and comes over to help me get the baby gear out of the car. As we start walking across the street to her place, I feel a pop. The entire bottom of my black heel has just come off. I look at Catherine in mute despair. She says, "I'd offer you a pair of my shoes, but they'd probably be too big." My eyes light up. My feet are huge. Thank God, she wore a size 9. I put on her black heels and ran back out to my car and sped off. Traffic was better than usual, and I managed to meet my husband and get to the dinner on time!

Was it worth it, you ask? Oh, yes. This was a $30,000 a plate dinner. No, I didn't put any extra 0's in there. (Of course, we went for free because we were guests of David's justice.) And they actually gave you the plate. I'm not kidding. We sat down at a beautiful table, and there was a lovely china plate in front of us with the organization's logo in the center. Right before dinner, the waiters came and got them, and we were given them back, nicely boxed, as we walked out. The dinner was held at the Mellon Auditorium in downtown DC. It's a beautiful, open hall with marble columns; you get the picture. As we walked up the steps into the building, a row of musicians played on either side of us. It was a really neat effect. Once inside, we quickly noticed that there was a full orchestra at the front of the room. Have you ever had a full orchestra play your dinner music before? I sure hadn't. In between speeches, soloists entertained us with Broadway tunes. One of them was hired from the Met, I believe. We had lobster and steak and a chocolate pear for dessert. It was spectacular, and I'll never forget it.

This DC experience has been totally unique and totally wonderful. In July, it'll all be over, never to be repeated. I don't want to remember that I spent too much of it home with Seth because it seemed like too much trouble to get a babysitter at the time. Being a stay at home mom is great, and I'm so thankful for the chance to be home with him. But it's important to get out and to be a part of my husband's world. I want to take the chance to experience neat things when I'm given the opportunity. I think I'll be a better mom for it when all is said and done. Even if I do have to lose a good shoe and a small part of my mind in the process.

Priceless...

1 Nikon D-50 camera... expensive

1 GB SD card...$20

2 matching rompers... $20

100 digital photos taken

Capturing that perfect image.... priceless =)

The photo shoot...

Terri and I are both shutterbugs. We both recently got digital SLR cameras, the same kind, only a different model, so we love to play with photography together and share photo ideas. I came up with the bright idea to do a photo shoot with the boys. I got them matching outfits, and we draped a white cloth over the couch. We only took over 100 photos... it was going to be soo cute, we said. An hour and two crying boys later, we gave up on capturing that one perfect photo. But we had some really good laughs in there. Children this age do not enjoy posing for the camera. We had to drag Isaac back to the shoot several times, and Seth began complaining that he was tired. And of course, there was Isaac's continued fascination with Seth's larger than usual baby nose. We loved this shot sequence. You can see the curiosity building in the shot above...

He makes contact with the fascinating appendage. Notice the fact that Seth is still clueless....

And here we have the inevitable reaction. Notice that Isaac seems pleased with himself. A harbinger of cousinly interactions to come, my friends. =)

The Minnesota Whitakers come to Washington...

From the frozen North came a balmy breeze last week... My baby brother, my sweet sis-in-law, and darling Isaac came to visit! Here we all are having a pleasant dinner together. (Notice the munchkin in his Bumpo, asleep. He loves it, and it's the only way we can all sit down together for dinner.) They flew in on Thursday night, late, and though Vance flew out on Sunday afternoon, the T-ster and Ike stuck around until late on Tuesday afternoon. The weather was a little crummy, and taking care of two under two was a little more daunting than we thought, so the weekend was pretty low key. We did manage to go out to dinner in downtown DC, though Isaac protested that event and had to be placated by a trip to pull the buttons of the vintage cigarette machine. Our lucky star was also shining brightly, because they got to meet David's justice when we all went to visit the Court. He even gave Isaac his autograph on some baby paraphrenalia! What a coup! Now both cousins have some remembrances from him.

We also discovered a baby friendly playground where Isaac could swing in our local park, and that was the scene of a wild game of David the Pony, Isaac the Jockey, and Vance the Crazy Man Who Chased Them. I think we may have frightened the other mother at the park, or maybe she was hoping one of them would volunteer to run her little boy around. =) Seeing David like this was fun, because I know that Seth is going to get just as big a kick out of his antics as Isaac did. Isaac loved it, even though he was bouncing around everywhere. He really did look like a jockey, the way he was hanging on and kicking David to make him go faster when he slowed down.

I love this shot. It's just so great to see my husband and my brother strolling their sons together. These little moments make me misty eyed. Oh, by the way, we also managed to keep all of them in our 705 square foot, one bedroom apartment, and we all actually got a little sleep! I know that we're crazy for attempting it, but it actually worked. We had a hotel reservation for back-up, though. This is how the Baby Shuffle worked. At 8:00, I would feed Seth, and Isaac would get ready for bed. We would put Seth to sleep first in his cradle in our room, since he had to cry a little bit to fall asleep. After he was asleep, it was Isaac's turn to go to bed in his baby tent on top of our bed. He didn't need to cry to go down, so it worked out. Then, when we wanted to go to bed, we cut off all the lights, and Terri or Vance got Isaac out without waking him up and transferred him to the pack n' play in the living room. When Seth woke up to eat during the middle of the night, I dove across the room and scooped him out of the bed before he started crying full throttle, and with this system in place, we only woke Isaac up once in the middle of the night. It was worth it to have them here with us, but let's just say that I'm really looking forward to living in a place with a guest room very soon. =)

Sometimes...

"Sometimes hidden from me,

In daily custom and in trust,

so that I live by you unaware

as by the beating of my heart,

Suddenly you flare in my sight,

a wild rose, blooming at the edge

of thicket, grace and light

where yesterday was only shade,

and once again I am blessed, choosing

again what I chose before."

A visit from one of my favorite little boys...

Isaac, I'm sorry. Aunt Ellen has a new favorite little boy. But you're second favorite, I promise! =) I'm really looking forward to giving you a big, big hug tomorrow night at 10:00 p.m. when you get off that plane. And thanks for bringing your mom and dad with you. I guess we still like seeing them, too. Get ready to meet somebody who's going to be your lifelong buddy! Right now, you'll probably see him as somebody who hogs your birthday cake, snags you with a fishing hook when you go out in the boat with Papa, and steals your toys, but one day, I hope and pray that you two will enjoy making mud pies together. I don't know why God decided that you would be born on the same day, but I'm guessing it means something. I hope it means that those shared birthdays will turn into something special that you talk about together with your kids when you're 30. I love you, big boy. See you soon!

"He is risen..."

" He is risen indeed!" Ahh, my favorite Easter greeting. Nobody knows it anymore, it doesn't seem, but I learned it at Montgomery Hills Baptist, and I've enjoyed using it ever since. It feels like a private benediction between those of us that know the joy of His resurrection to me. That was the first thing that Willie King, the church moderator, said from the pulpit, and I loved how everyone knew exactly what to say back. We decided to go to Montgomery Hills for church this Easter. We hadn't gotten to introduce Seth to anyone in our old church family, and we'd heard that Pastor Joel even announced his birth from the pulpit, so we figured it was time. Besides, there is something about a traditional Easter service with traditional music that I just love. Kudos to our church for many, many things, but I don't think they can do Easter the way that Montgomery Hills can. I don't know how Cheryl, the music director, does it, but she's a tough cookie, and if anybody could get a string quartet budgeted for Easter Sunday, it's her. We walked in, and there were all the people that we loved and served with for a year from 2002-2003, the last time we lived in D.C. We were about 5 minutes down the road from this church, and I remember how excited we were when we found it. I remember Wednesday night suppers where you felt like family and the ladies would keep supper warm with your name on it because they knew you'd be late coming in from work. One lovely lady made a pitcher of sweet tea just for me because she knew I didn't like it Yankee style. Nothing says love like little gestures like these. And this church was where we met our good friends, Jenny and Sean (pictured above). Back then, we were all newlyweds, married the same summer. Now we both have beautiful little boys, Ben and Seth, born within six months of each other. We took this picture, and old friends stood around and "awwed," remembering.


This is Dominick Dell'Erba. Dom used to be a pastry chef, until he got a flour allergy. I loved his stories, and he could make mean meatballs on men's Italian night. He brought me big bunches of mint from his garden when he found out that I liked to use it in my iced tea. Such an expressive face. The flower he's holding is in memory of his bride, Angelina. Such an expressive face. He's a good man, and a good friend.

We had Easter lunch with Jenny and Sean and Ben. Another lovely thing about MHBC is that I feel comfortable enough that I can stick my pan of rolls in the fridge there, and no one bats an eyelash. They finally rose in time to bake to eat with dinner instead of dessert. And what a dessert it was! That's Sean, about to decapitate the bunny cake. Poor bunny was bleeding strawberry. David had his nose, and I ate his face off. =)

After lunch, Jenny and Sean took us to this beautiful place. The picture doesn't do justice to it. It's a neighborhood near them in Bethesda called Kenwood, and in this neighborhood, there are hundreds of blooming cherry trees lining the streets. It's like a bower overhead. I don't know how they did it, but I think there's a cherry tree on the front lawn, near the street, in front of every house. There were so many people out looking that they had to post "No parking" signs all over the place so cars could get through. It was pretty darn cold, but we walked a bit anyway. At least David didn't miss seeing the cherry blossoms this year, even if it wasn't on the tidal basin.

I love this photo. There's just something about it.

This Easter Sunday, I got to sing the Hallelujah Chorus. At MHBC, it's an Easter tradition for anyone who wants to to come up and join the choir to sing it. The string quartet launched forth, and I got my part in the hymnal, and off we went! I miss singing in the choir. And I love that triumphant music. It's one of my favorite pieces. I like to think of the king standing in awe and in honor of Christ the first time he heard it. That is why we all stand whenever and wherever it's played today. Because He is risen, and He is coming again. King of kings, and Lord of lords, and He shall reign forever and ever. Hallelujah!

Thirty...

Happy birthday, handsome. =) David's birthday was acutally on Tuesday, but his day was going to be so stressful with deadlines that he asked me to ignore it until Friday. So in honoring his wishes, I waited to post until today. Now we really get to party! (As much as we can party with a child whose bedtime is 8:30... =) This is the big one for David. If you can't trust anyone over the age of 30, then I'm going to have to start eyeing him with suspicion. I asked him how he felt about the milestone, you know, outta his 20's, turning into an old fart, etc. He just smiled and said that he wouldn't really be that much older than he would've been the day before. 30 is just a number, he said. Ahh, that is illustrative of the difference between him and me. When I turn 30, I may have to dye my hair, buy a miniskirt, get a fake tan, and rent a convertible for a day to drive to a college campus to walk around, hoping desperately that I get mistaken by someone, anyone, for a co-ed. But hey, he just gets better looking and more confident every year he lives, so who can blame him for being so mellow about it?

I'm putting up this picture because it speaks of something very important about my husband. I took this on a Sunday morning before church. I was in the shower, and Seth woke up and wanted to eat, so David was holding him off with a passy until I could get out. Time being limited on Sunday mornings around here, David was also attempting to do his devotions at the same time. Hence, Bible in one hand, passy in the other. That's how this man lives his life. Every single morning, David gets up, sometimes at 5:30, sometimes at 7:00, and he takes his shower, and he does his morning devotions. If he's running late, he may do them on the Metro, but THEY GET DONE. EVERY DAY. WITHOUT FAIL. Because he knows that he can't be good at putting in the passy with one hand if he isn't good at holding that Bible in the other hand. He knows that he needs the Word in one hand to help me with dishes with the other. David is my rock, and he is my rock because he makes being a man of God top priority in his life. I know that I can count on him to put God first, and Seth and I come right after that. He works hard at his job, and he strives for excellence there, but I know that if he has to ultimately choose between work and home, he chooses us, every time. It's a tough thing to balance for him, but he does so well at it, and I want to praise him for that. How many men to do you know who work a 12 hour day, walk in the door, and immediately start doing dishes before they can be stopped by their concerned wife? I sure don't know many, but David is one. Every day that he lives, I love him more. He is the world's best daddy, as I knew he would be because he was the world's best husband before that. I love you, sweetie. Happy 30th...

Becoming...

Yesterday, I saw my baby's personality really bloom for the first time. He woke up all smiley and happy, and we had a lot of fun playing together after he ate his breakfast. That's when I took these pictures. The bottom one is his version of a big smile right now. It looks a little goofy, but I love it. =) We went grocery shopping yesterday, and he loved it. He looked around at everything, and I talked to him, not caring who saw me saying, "These are carrots, big man," because he was so darn cute smiling at them. At one point, I asked him to hold my list, just putting it in his lap in the carrier, and this girl walked past and saw the size of the baby in the carrier, and she stifled a laugh. I never said I wasn't a goober. Another big first of yesterday was that he reached for a toy for the first time. He has this little zebra thingy with little colored balls in it on his swing tray, and he kept looking at it, smiling, and rubbing it with his hand. It was so exciting just to stand in the corner of the kitchen, just out of his line of vision, and watch him, waking up to something brand new. It'd always been there before, but this time, he was really seeing it. Babies are so like us. We have many things under our nose all the time, but how many of the beautiful colored balls actually capture our attention? The flip side of gaining a personality and enjoying things is that you can get bored. I also saw Seth get bored yesterday for the first time, and it ain't pretty. Normally, when he's fussy, you know that it's because he's getting tired, and that still holds true. But yesterday, I saw that he has learned to scream like his head is going to start spinning around and his eyes are going to start glowing red... just because he's bored. It was late afternoon, and I put him in his swing, and he started screaming bloody murder. Perplexed, I pulled him out after a minute of attempting passy therapy. Instantly, the demons apparently stopped chasing him. He was all smiles and coos and giggles, just because he got to sit on Mommy's lap. Not a tired whine in sight. Uh-oh. I don't know if I like this phase. If anyone has any tips on how to deal with a bored baby who's a screamer, let me know. But all that to say, Seth is becoming Seth with all his smiles and frowns and quirks, and I'm loving watching the person he is and will be.

"Auntie Sarah"

Seth had his first visit from "Auntie Sarah" this weekend. She flew down from New York on Friday, and flew back on Sunday morning. The visit was far too short. When we get together now, we do the same things we did when we got together way back when. We talk and talk and talk about nothing and everything, and we don't ever seem to run out of things to talk about. When I picked her up at Reagan, she got in the car, and we both turned and looked at the baby in the carrier in the backseat. We sat there like sentimental goobers for a minute. It's hard to believe that one of us has a baby. =)

We strolled around the Mall, and on the way to the Museum of the American Indian for lunch, we stopped at a crosswalk, and I suddenly was just overcome by the feeling that it was so strange for us to be there, together, under these circumstances. We've known each other forever, and I guess I never thought ahead to the place where we'd be pushing a stroller together. Time moves on so quickly, and you never know where life will take you. We played tea party together, complained about boyfriends to each other, had dinner nights together in college, and were there presiding over each other's weddings. This is the next logical step, right, but it's still a little overwhelming in a nice way. =)

And of course, Sarah was a great help this weekend. She pushed the stroller all over the Mall, even slogging through deep gravel in places. When Seth was having his fussy time on Saturday afternoon/evening, she held him to give his frustrated mommy a break. And through it all, she looked so natural with Seth in her arms. You're going to be a great mommy one day, Diana. Love you.

Kite Day...

This Saturday, Seth, Sarah (she was down visiting from New York!), and I went down to the Mall for Kite Day. Each year, the Smithsonian sponsors Kite Day as part of their Cherry Blossom Festival Activities. It's become a tradition for our little family to go, starting when David and I were living in DC the first time around. That time, we went with Jenny and Sean and picnicked behind the Smithsonian Castle. It was one of my favorite things to do in DC, and it was definitely a favorite memory of mine from that time. We also went last year because David's Supreme Court interview happened to fall right after the weekend of the event, so we went again. That time, the wind was blowing hard, and we got our kite up easily, but it crashed hard into the ground several times because the wind was a little too strong. And it was freezing that day. This Kite Day was absolutely perfect. The cherry blossoms were in bloom, it wasn't too hot or too cold, and there was just enough wind so that everybody could get their kites up. We didn't take a kite this year, but we enjoyed watching. These pictures don't do the day justice, but I hope they bring you a little taste of springtime in DC.

After we checked out the kites, Sarah, Seth, and I went to the Museum of the American Indian for lunch. They have a fantastic cafeteria with food from several different Native American cultures from all over the globe. We went to the Great Plains station and had buffalo chili and pinto beans on indian fry bread. Yum...

Seth and I enjoyed some good lighting and a good photographer for this picture. We haven't gotten to take many pics outside yet because it's been so cold. Spring is here, baby boy. We're going to have so much fun outside, just you and me.

And here's some info on the Kite Festival tradition, for those of you that are interested:

The first documented Japanese kite dates back to the year 981 A.D., and kites have continued to play an important artistic and cultural role in Japan ever since. Today there are 130 different styles and types of Japanese kite, each region having its own unique shape. The Smithsonian honors the importance of the kite in Japanese culture with this year’s festival theme, Tako Age Taikai (Japanese for “kite festival”.) Colorful, traditional Japanese kites will fly over the Washington Monument grounds, and we challenge you to create your own Japan-inspired kite for our annual kitemaking competition. Special elements of this year’s festival include demonstration booths by Japanese kitemakers, displays of Japanese kite art, and a tremendous opening ceremony featuring a local Taiko drum group. This year’s festival will again feature hands-on activities led by representatives from kite organizations. Spectators can learn about kite flying, participate in kite-making activities, learn about the history of kites and the Smithsonian Kite Festival, and much more. As usual, the festival features three competitions. For those who build their own kites, you are invited to enter the handmade kite competition. Please click on “Festival Awards” to learn about our new format for the handmade kite competition. Teams may also enter into two additional heart-stopping events. The always popular traditional Rokkaku kite battle will be held at the end of the day. We are also excited to offer the third annual Smithsonian Hot Tricks competition. Kite flyers strut their stuff on the field while dazzling the crowd with trick kite moves.