Moving trucks and birthday wishes

This has been a very busy week for our family because we packed our things and hit the road. Moving to New York was one of the best decisions I ever made. It was a great place to be single and date and hang out with friends but now that we're raising a baby, the city has started to feel very limiting. We want Nathan to grow up running in open spaces, jumping waves at the beach, hiking in the mountains and breathing fresh air. But unless you have a country house to visit on the weekends or you can actually afford the monthly parking costs to have a car here, these simple dreams just aren't attainable living in Manhattan. So... here we are in suburbia.

While we know it's the best thing for our family, Will and I have very mixed feelings about the move. We are so excited for the next phase of our life to begin but there are so many things we'll miss about the city, most importantly our amazing friends. So we spent our last weekend with all the great people we've met here, laughing and smiling as we remembered all of the memories we made in New York. During our last few days, Will and I took one more long walk through the city, past Lincoln Center and through Central Park. We ate our last slices of NY pizza and before we knew it, Monday morning came and so did the moving truck.

Now we look out our windows and see grass and trees instead of scaffolding and buildings. We hear birds and crickets instead of sirens and car alarms. We love NY and we always will. But for now, it will be a fun place to visit and our home will be out here, among the green grass and the chirping birds.

Not a bad view to wake up to ... and my birthday wish today is for another great year with my family, in our new home.

Happy (belated) Father's Day

I realized I forgot to write about Father's Day. We spent a beautiful Sunday in our favorite NYC spot, Central Park. After letting Nathan have some fun in the playground, we headed up to the carousel. One of my most vivid memories as a child is riding the Martha's Vineyard Flying Horses. Riding a carousel as a kid is fun enough, but when you add the excitement of trying to catch the infamous brass ring, earning you a free ride, it's even more fun. So I was excited for Nathan to have his first experience on a carousel.

We ventured up the hill and Nathan seemed very intrigued by the music and lights as we waited our turn in the warm sun. When the time came to get on, Will put him on top of a horse and he smiled a big double dimple smile. But as soon as the ride started, he freaked out! The ride goes very fast and the music was very loud and Nathan got very upset. We were probably on there for about 3 minutes but it felt like 3 hours. We took turns trying to comfort him and he finally relaxed and seemed to tolerate the ride.

Unfortunately, we left our good camera at home, the batteries were dead in our not-so-good camera, and all we had to use was our cell phone camera which resulted in the not-so-good pictures below. But regardless of how good the photos came out or how not-so-good the carousel ride was, I know the day was a success because Will got to hang out with his best friend in the whole wide world!

Sticky Fingers

For some reason, I am so worried that this move will be traumatizing for Nathan. I keep saying I want to set up his room in the new apartment to look exactly like his room here, so he won't be confused. Will laughs at this, reminding me that I moved when I was a little older than him and do not appear to show any signs of repressed trauma as a result.

But one aspect of the move I do think would upset him is packing up all his toys so we've been avoiding his things until this weekend when he will head up to his grandparents house, leaving Will and I here to do all the last minute packing and cleaning. But last night I decided I could pack up some toys, leaving a few essentials out to get him through to Friday. However, when I started going through his toy bins, I realized he has a lot more than toys in there.

Ever since Nathan became mobile, Will and I have noticed random household objects disappearing. The hamper used to be the first spot we checked but we'll have to add the toy bin since I pulled out the following items last night:

A magazine
A binder clip
A dirty sock (gross)
Wrapping paper??
Two jewelry pouches
A dish towel
An I Pod speaker
A thank you card
And a teething ring

Time to eat

Last night we went out to eat with Will's parents at a restaurant in our neighborhood. It's the second restaurant we've been to in two weeks that didn't have a highchair. I have a hard time understanding the thought process behind that.

Does the restaurant owner not have kids? Have they never seen a child eat? Do they not understand that this.... should be contained to as small a space as possible???

Little boy, big robe

It does a body good, but only if you drink it

When Nathan turned one our pediatrician told us we could start offering him whole milk. Excited for every new milestone in his life, we filled up his sippy cup, sat back and proudly watched, ready to mentally record "the first time he drank real milk".

Instead, we witnessed "the first time he took a sip, scrunched up his nose and spit it out". It had been a struggle getting him to drink formula after I stopped breastfeeding, so we should have known it would be a struggle to get him to drink milk.

We tried everything. We gave it to him in a cup. In a bottle. We gave it to him cold, room temperature and warm. We mixed it with fruit. We gave it to him with cereal. Nothing worked, he spit it out every time.

So we started mixing just one ounce of milk into a full bottle of formula. He didn't seem to notice. Then a couple days later we added more milk and less formula. No problem. Then we did 50/50 and held our breath, sure that he would catch on.... no reaction. Last night we finally experienced that milestone we were waiting for, Nathan drank a full bottle of milk with no hesitation!!

(Of course we had to warm it and it had to be in a bottle but hey, we're taking baby steps.)

Father and son

Before having a baby, weekends were meant for sleeping in and nobody sleeps better than my husband. But since becoming a father Will makes the most of every second he has to hang out with his son and that means waking up at 7:30 in the morning, weekend or not.

Every Saturday and Sunday morning, Will takes Nathan to the playground for some father/son bonding time. With a coffee cup for Will and a sippy cup for Nathan, the two head to Central Park together, sharing a croissant along the way. Nathan gets to explore and Will gets to photograph his every move... his favorite hobby.

While it feels good knowing I'll have a couple hours to myself on the weekends, it feels great knowing I married a man who turned out to not only be a wonderful husband, but also an amazing father.

What's mine is yours

When it comes to toys, Will and I try to follow the "less is more" and "quality vs quantity" approach. We try not to buy Nathan very many toys mainly because we don't think he needs very many toys. But when you combine the following items:

• two loving and generous families
• the first and only grandchild on both sides
• Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Chinese New Year, Easter, and a 1st birthday

You are left with lots and lots and lots of toys!!!

Yet even with all those toys, Nathan would still rather collect things that belong to me and Will and sneak them into his toy bins. As much as he loves his Hokey Pokey Elmo, musical instruments, toy cars, and blocks, he seems just as happy playing with an empty makeup bag, the TV remote or a dish towel.

Feeling hot, hot, hot

Today is Day 2 of a Heat Advisory warning people not to go outside between the hours of 12 pm and 8 pm unless absolutely necessary. So Nathan and I have been trying to make the most of our mornings, getting out for a long walk and a trip to the playground or bookstore before the sun gets too strong.

Our afternoons have consisted of camping out in the apartment singing songs, reading books, playing peekaboo - but most important staying cool. Although every so often I'll realize it's starting to feel warm and I finally realized a certain little munchkin keeps turning the AC off when I'm not looking!

Moving on up

After talking about it for years and planning it for months, it's official - we're moving. Moving is a stressful situation no matter what the circumstances are but when you add a 14 month old into the mix, the logistics get a bit tricky.

We've had to arrange for someone to watch Nathan when we clean and paint the old place, someone to watch Nathan on the actual moving day, and someone to watch Nathan while we unpack at the new place.

While having a baby does make things a bit more complicated, Nathan has also been very helpful as well. Today he offered to pack up some books for me and aside from the breaks he kept taking to catch up on his Kerouac, he was very helpful!

Air Nathan

Nathan, Will and I spent a beautiful Saturday afternoon at Central Park in the playground. Nathan decided to show off his basketballs skills in the giant sandbox. Look at that form... that control.

You never know, there could be an athletic scholarship in our future!

Summer Style

Between suncreen, sweat and the awful humidity, Nathan's curly hair is taking a beating. I can totally relate to this and since it's now too hot to blowdry my hair straight most days, I usually end up just throwing my mess of curls up into a ponytail. But Nathan's got his own unique summer style.

After his bath each night, we comb his fresh clean curls straight up into the air and let them air dry. The result is kind of a Flock of Seagulls/Mullet/Fauxhawk and if you ask me, it's fantastic!! At thirteen months old, we still haven't cut his hair and the longer and crazier it gets, the more I dread the day I will watch those dark curls fall to the floor. His hair is so unique, I just can't imagine him with "normal" hair.

So until that day comes, we will continue documenting the awesomeness that is his hair!