I just came across a draft of a post that was never put up. It was an updated best/worst list (I did the first one when Zoe was just three weeks old), and it was written when Zoe was six months. It was a really fun thing to discover, and I thought I would do yet another update – to see how (or if) my views on parenting have changed.

Best thing:
then: seeing Zoe – who greets us with smiles, giggles and flailing arms/legs – in the morning.
now: cuddling with Zoe just before bedtime. (It’s usually the only time she wants to be held.)

Worst thing:
then: not being able to sleep in, ever!
now: same, though I’m grateful Zoe wakes up a little later (7 vs. 6 or 6:30 AM) these days.

Best moment:
then: tie: meeting Zoe for the first time (at delivery) and seeing her smile for the first time.
now: I don’t think anything can beat when they plunked Zoe on my stomach in the hospital.

Worst moment:
then: learning Zoe was going to have to stay at the hospital for an extra few days (because of her platelet problem) and, later, having to watch her get her blood taken repeatedly. (ouch!)
now: same. Luckily, we haven’t gone through anything as painful since.

The one thing I do that all the parenting books told me I would do:
then: frequently check on Zoe to make sure she’s still breathing.
now: same. I still listen for her breathing sounds before I go to bed each night.

Best advice:
then: time goes so fast – so savor every moment you have with your baby.
now: same. It really *does* go fast!

Worst advice:
then: none (thankfully!)
now: same. I think I tune out the bad (or stupid) stuff.

Thing that no one tells you about parenting:
then: parenting is 90% instinct. Despite not knowing much about babies before having Zoe, a lot of things just sort of came to me. (So much for all those parenting classes!)
now: same. I was really clueless about kids before Zoe, but now I feel like an old pro. :)

Cliche that has proven most true:
then: after just a short period of time with your child, you can’t imagine your life without her. (I keep asking myself: what did I do with all my time??)
now: same (I definitely have a hard time remembering my pre-Zoe days), but also: time goes so fast. I’m still amazed at how much Zoe has grown and how fast two+ years have slipped by.

Thing that has taken me most by surprise:
then: how quickly you adjust to your “new life.” And how great it really is.
now: how happy the smallest of things can make you. Zoe said “I love you, too” in response to my “I love you” the other night, and I practically burst with happiness.

-M

Back on Nov. 18, I blogged about a good friend of mine who was expecting a baby. She and her husband had been through a lot, and I was marveling over their optimism and strength – and anxiously awaiting the arrival of their little girl. Well, the wait is over! My dear friend Beth gave birth this morning to Sophia Marie. She’s about six months (almost to the day!) younger than Zoe (and, like Zoe, born with a full head of hair), and I’m confident they’ll be fast friends. Even more exciting: Sophia’s arrival gives Zoe yet another reason to visit Wisconsin!

-M

On Friday, eight of us (four moms, four babies) met for our weekly get-together. It was my time to host, so I cleared out the coffee table and threw down some blankets in our family room to create a little play-area. We spent the whole afternoon together, and us moms had a lot of fun catching up and watching our babies roll around (no crawlers yet!) and coo. At the end of the day, I headed to the kitchen to do a bit of clean-up while Zoe (see below) kept watch over the family room. I can’t think of a better way for the two of us to spend our Fridays.

In other news, tomorrow is the start of a busy week for Zoe. She gets on yet another airplane – this one heading to Madison, where she’ll spend five days. She’s especially excited to give a few of her trademark wet kisses to Grandpa Larry!

-M

Michelle, Zoe, and I made what seems like our weekly trip to Babies R Us yesterday to look for more things that Zoe doesn’t need. Well, yesterday they were having a book sale, buy and 2 and get 1 free, so of course we had to get her 3 more books. She got one Dr Seuss, one Sandra Boynton, and one called Miles the Crocodile, which included a “Cool Jazz CD inside which has sing-alongs, stories, and more!”

After playing the Jazz CD for Zoe while reading her the book, we all fell in love. She was dancing around and squealing, and both Michelle and I loved the Jazz arrangements. So, we went online and found out that this book was part of a collection called Baby Loves Jazz. Charlie Bird, Duck Ellington, Ella Elephant, Louis Lion, and Philly Joe Giraffe round out the collection. After listening to samples of the other five books, of course we bought them all! We also bought the audio CD called Baby Loves Jazz: Go Baby Go! by The Baby Loves Jazz Band (I know, she really doesn’t get enough stuff).

While Zoe only has one of these books and has only had it for about 12 hours now, we have played it several times already and I would highly recommend for kids any age. Below is a clip from the Baby Loves Jazz website, which is a video of one of the songs on the Go Baby Go audio CD (you can check out all of the videos here – http://www.babylovesjazz.info/video/). Beware, it is VERY addictive…

Jon Q

Some people think that a 5-month old has it really easy. Well, not every day is easy for our youngster!

Sometimes she is forced to lay around and play with her toys:

Then there are the days she must use one of her many playthings:

And worst is when she has to take a nap:

So, you see not all days are so rosey…

Jon Q

Zoe has finally decided to try some foods other than her rice cereal. In the past week, we have given her some oatmeal cereal and moved on to carrots! She seems to pretty much love anything you spoon to her but we learned that carrots can get a bit messy. Check out our very own carrot top…

Jon Q

A friend of mine with twins once told me that that babies hit an age where they constantly do things to make their parents laugh. I was reminded of this last night after putting Zoe to bed and hearing peculiar sounds coming from her room several minutes later. When I poked my head through the door, I saw that she was lying there, eyes wide open, laughing and squealing. I’m not sure what she was so happy about, or why she was still awake (she usually falls right asleep when put into bed at night), but it greatly amused me and Q.

Also yesterday, Elena reported to me that Zoe seemed very eager to share some cereal with Dash, one of the older babies at daycare. While Elena was spoon-feeding Dash, Zoe – who is fed only milk during the day – kept opening her mouth and trying to lunge towards his spoon. I couldn’t help but laugh at this image, also. Apparently we’ve got a hungry, happy baby on our hands!

-M

I realized that I hadn’t updated everyone on our Los Gatos Mother’s day trip. We thought it was appropriate to go there since that is where we took our last pre-Zoe vacation to.

First, Michelle got surprised with a Happy Mother’s Day song from the restaurant the night we got there (ok, so maybe they weren’t singing Happy Mother’s Day exactly…)

And it didn’t take long for Zoe to fit in. After her bath, she threw on the robe and just relaxed:

All in all, it was a very relaxing time and we can’t wait to go back.

Jon Q

As mentioned below, Zoe is a huge fan of her rice cereal. But the one thing she loves even more than her cereal is her hand. See what I mean??

-M

A dad-friend of ours recently told Q that when it comes to kids, things keep getting better and better. (If you think your kid is fun at 5+ months, just wait until she’s 8 or 12 months!) These words of wisdom were good to hear, but I have to admit being a bit skeptical (I still miss, after all, my 7-pound Zoe) – until last night. I was feeding rice cereal to Zoe, who kept making me laugh with her wide-open mouth and her I-want-more-food-NOW shakes, and it occurred to me that the joy I was experiencing was totally new. I couldn’t have had this experience with a 3- or 4-month old, and it made me realize then that Q and I have so many other new experiences (Zoe crawling, walking, talking, eating big-girl foods, etc.) to look forward to. I guess that’s one of the perks of parenthood, huh??

-M

Last year, when I was newly pregnant, I received several Mother’s Day cards and gifts. Although excited, I felt a bit like an impostor. I was carrying a baby and technically a mom, but I didn’t feel a terribly strong connection to “Sesame” – nor did I have a real sense of what being a mom was like. One year later, of course, a lot has changed – and I now happily embrace my role as “Mom.” I finally understand what the hub-bub about babies is about and what an amazing job being a mom really is, and I still marvel over the power of maternal instinct. (I used to think I was missing that “mom” gene – but that has been disproven!) I also have a new-found appreciation for all the special moms who have come before me: my mom, grandmas and many aunts; Q’s mom (i.e. “Safta”), aunt and grandma. Thank you all for being wonderful role models and for showing me how it is done. I couldn’t be happier to be a member of your club!

Happy Mother’s Day.

-M

Well, Zoe has gotten to really love her nightly ritual of milk then cereal. We haven’t ventured off of rice cereal with bananas yet, since she loves it so much. Here she is eating like a big girl (if a big girl spit half of every mouthful out…) Enjoy!

Jon Q

When I went to pick up Zoe at Elena’s yesterday, one of the little girls there told me that Zoe had a surprise for me. After playfully scolding the girl for ruining the surprise, Elena presented me with a brown paper bag with the words “Happy Mother’s Day, Love Zoe” written on it. Inside was the sweetest little homemade wooden flower frame – with a picture of Zoe in the middle! I got all teary-eyed (I’m such a sap) as I thanked and hugged Elena and, of course, Zoe. I really couldn’t have been happier (or more touched) if Elena had handed me a $100 bill, and I couldn’t help but feel very blessed: for having such a wonderful little baby, for having found a loving and caring babysitter and – most of all – for being a mom.

-M

PS – I should note that this wasn’t even Zoe’s first gift to me. On Thursday, she sent to my office flowers that she had ordered online! Now, isn’t she thoughtful – and good with the computer??

A few weeks before Zoe was due, Q and I took a child-preparation class at UCSF. I struck up a brief conversation with the woman sitting next to me – whose baby happened to be due a few days before ours – and we wound up keeping in touch after the class. When Zoe and her baby (Miles) were just a couple months old, Polly and I began meeting for walks or coffees – and now the two of us, along with a new friend, are part of a little mom’s group that gets together on Fridays.

I really look forward to Fridays now – not just because it’s my day off work, but because I get so much from my conversations/interactions with these moms and their babies – and I know Zoe does, too. Our little group provides her with built-in playmates, and I’m sure she’ll especially appreciate this when she’s a bit older. She already enjoys herself when she’s around the other babies; check out some pics of Zoe and her boy pals below.

-M

Last summer, we found Zoe an exersaucer on Craigslist. It gathered dust in our garage for many months – until finally Zoe grew big enough to play with it. Now it sits proudly in her nursery, and Zoe jumps (no pun intended) at any chance to play with it. She has so much fun (bouncing, exploring and eating) when she’s in this thing that I had to take some video. Check out below how much she’s enjoying herself!

-M