High Five!!

Zoe seems so delighted by the game of Peek-A-Boo - she initiates a game of it whenever she has a handkerchief or blanket in hand - that we are keen to show her more games. Here, we are showing her "High Five."

Got Teeth?

Zoe's third tooth finally broke through today - or at least I felt it for the first time today. Just a little white thing on her upper left jaw. I think she weathered this teething process quite well. Aside from the torrential drool, she didn't seem to suffer too badly from it.

The Oops Hairdo

I gave Zoe a little hair cut today. I call it the oops hairdo as I cut her bang a lot shorter than I intended to. It was very hard as she would not stay still for the cut. I think I did a much better job the first time - a couple of weeks ago, when I sniped off a little hair on her sides and back. Oh well. I think she still looks cute.

I am putting a picture I took of her yesterday here for comparison.

New Favorite Picture of Dennis

Happy Baby

We get lots of comments about how Zoe is such a happy baby. We agree! She is a happy baby. But there are times when she is not. Shown here is a picture of baby after I refused to give her my glasses. We fear what is to come when she hits the "terrible two" age!

"I love mommy's glasses! And I will scream till I get it!"

Zoe reached for my glasses this morning. Actually, it would be more accurate to say she grabbed for them. It's not the first time, but she was most determined to have her way this morning. I let her have them at first, but decided that it was too risky. The glasses are just a couple months old, and until the latest order arrives, I have no contact lenses, which means I cannot afford to have her break them. Luckily, I remembered that I still have the old one lying in the bathroom basket. After a nice wash with soap - with Zoe yelling in the background for glasses - we arrived at a happy ending. She was most possessive of it too at first. She practically growled when I tried to reach for it!

Playtime

Peek-A-Boo!

Somehow or other, Zoe learned the game of Peek-A-Boo and loves it. She plays Peek-A-Boo by herself (she uses her blanket and entertains herself with the mobile) and with us this morning. It's her new thing. I think it shows a level of sophistication when she can understand a concept and adopts it in various settings.

'O World, I cannot hold thee close enough!'

At long last, we are finally at the stage where we - or I, principally - can contemplate a long trip and know that it is not just some fancy that is in truth an impossibility. I have been busy at it too. Checking with United about flights and rewards travel and such. Checking websites about traveling with toddlers. Reading about possible destinations.

Funny thing is, now that it is actually something that can happen, I am at lost about the destination. The problem is not a lack of imagination or desire; rather, it is the opposite. There are just so many places I can think of and want to go to. But given the reality of having a young child and limited resources, the fact that the day and age of cheap travel will certainly be over soon (on account of the predicted $200 per barrel of oil by 2009), and the fact that air travel is not exactly an environmental thing to do, we might well be limited to travels within North America soon. In short, this might be our last chance. This might well be a momentous decision!

I suppose I am being a little melodramatic about this here. But really, I am very excited about our upcoming trip. We think it would be Peru (to see Machu Picchu) or Argentina (to see Buenos Aires and Patagonia). I should clarify that there is nothing imminent about "upcoming" here. The plan is to go somewhere in April or May 2009. Why plan so far ahead? Because I plan to use the last of my miles I have with United for this trip and one needs to plan way, way ahead when it comes to redeeming miles. Besides, half the fun is the planning anyway. For now, for me, begins the trip to that faraway place! What would it be like now that we have Zoe? Would she be a sturdy and inquisitive traveler? Would she be awed by the sights? Would she embrace the winds, the sun, the skies, blue, grey or starry?

God's World

O world, I cannot hold thee close enough!
Thy winds, thy wide grey skies!
Thy mists, that roll and rise!
Thy woods, this autumn day, that ache and sag
And all but cry with colour! That gaunt crag
To crush! To lift the lean of that black bluff!
World, World, I cannot get thee close enough!

Long have I known a glory in it all,
But never knew I this;
Here such a passion is
As stretcheth me apart, -- Lord, I do fear
Thou'st made the world too beautiful this year;
My soul is all but out of me, -- let fall
No burning leaf; prithee, let no bird call.

Edna St. Vincent Millay

Update on Diet and Eczema

Zoe's skin has been, on the whole, looking good the last couple of weeks. There were one or two small outbreaks, but they cleared up after I washed her skin with soap followed by a good application of Aquaphor. Both times, I can trace the outbreak to contact with detergent. One day, it happened very swiftly after I wiped her face with a restaurant napkin. The other, I can link it to a cover that was last wash a long time ago and last washed in detergent too. Can I take these incidences plus the fact that her face is now generally clear and that she no longer seem to be allergic to everything we give her as evidence that her eczema was caused entirely by detergent?

I'm not going to be complacent though. It was so challenging - emotionally and mentally - when Zoe had the eczema, I don't want to be in that situation ever again if I can help it!

Anyhow, the following is a list of food we have introduced to her:

Food that is safe:
Avocado
Chicken
Banana
Butternut Squash
Corn
Oatmeal
Papaya
Prunes
Sweet Potato
Winter Squash

Food that is still under observation (i.e was introduced recently or not in big enough quantity yet to know for sure):
Apple
Mango
Plum
Rice

Food on hold because of suspected allergy (though not proven completely unsafe):
Flaxseed Oil

Food that I look forward to introducing to baby in the next few weeks:
Broccoli
Beef
Egg York (highly recommended, but is known to be a high probability allergenic food too. Egg white is not recommended till after one year old)
Lentil
Peach
Spinach

Bernardo Mountain Finally!

We finally made it to the peak of Bernardo Mountain today. We made an attempt a couple of months ago when Zoe was around five months old (I think she was five months old). We didn't get too far that day as she fussed angrily not long into the hike and we turned around. All went well today. Zoe did very little fussing before falling asleep in the pack. And she was mostly very cheery. We started at 8 am and got to the peak at 9:40 am. Did I mention that it was an easy hike? About 6 miles round trip, if that. It was lovely hike too. The trail was flanked by lots of lots of wildflowers - and the peak offered a wonderful view of Lake Hodges, the valley of Escondido, and distant mountain ranges. So much reward for so little work!

Our Sweetheart