Wednesday, February 27, 2013

And so we achieve closure.

Eleanor loves being scared, but not too scared. You grab her and go ROWR and she laughs, but you're my mom and you jump out at her in a dark hallway and she cries. It's basically this:


My sister and I were talking about that the other day, and about how we hope we never forget that memory and that we tell it at her wedding.

That's what had happened with the octopus (you remember him), who has been faithfully and effectively guarding the window from those who would peel off its covering. I can't remember if I mentioned this, but every time I would sneeze unexpectedly or the stove buzzer would go off, she'd whirl around and glare at him like everything that startled her was his fault.

And then all of a sudden the other day she was like, Octopus.


I AM MUCH LARGER THAN YOU.


C'mere, friend, you have something in your eye.


Now they are besties and she likes to carry him around by his head-handle like he's her eight-legged suitcase.

Getting over the octopus has opened up all sorts of new avenues for Staring Out of Windows at Cars.


She's really super into this.


LOOK THERE IS ANOTHER CAR.


Also, hiding behind the curtain is the best of jokes.


Also, if you haven't seen Eleanor frantically greet and then try to kiss herself, you haven't seen from vanity.

Sunday, February 24, 2013

We'll be doing up French braids in no time.

Some of you were like, How do you clip that hair clip onto your bald baby's no-hair? To which I say, LOOK CLOSER.


I present to you: the fuzzy melon. Even fuzzier when you bathe it.


She is going to have the sweetest skullet.

Sunday, February 17, 2013

Nibbles and bits.

When she finds barrettes on the floor, she brings them to you and then sits very still while you put them in.

She has suddenly stopped saying 'bye-bye' and now is just sort of offhandedly like, Bye. But she has started waving frantically while saying 'hi,' as though she hasn't seen you in ages. We do it to each other from across the room. Hi! Hi! Hi!



The water in my water bottle is much, much better than the water in hers.


Her favorite new game is Putting Things on Things. The things she puts on the other things more often than not fall off, but she is very persistent.


She has figured out that the grey people walking in front of us on the sidewalk are us. Hi, shadow! Hi!


Thursday, February 14, 2013

I will be devastated when she stops letting me dress her.

It's been a while since we talked about Eleanor's wardrobe. We have this amazing consignment store called Sproutz, and I've had to restrict my visits. Usually I just peruse the 12-18 month rack, and then maybe take a peek at the 18-24 month rack, but the other day I bought her a dress that she won't need until she's THREE. It has a froufy pink crinoline, and poodles and Eiffel Towers and Arc de Triomphes repeating around the hem. In my defense, one of the poodles is drinking a cappuccino.

It's consignment, not thrift, so stuff isn't, like, 50 cents. But this sweet bashful-girl-t-shirt was, like three dollars.


Her skirt is, I don't even know what you'd call it, where it's an extra bit of fabric on top of the fabric of the shirt. It's darling, is what it is.

And then THIS shirt is actually a dress for a 3-month-old baby.


I KNOW. I mean, first of all, what was I doing even LOOKING at the 3-month-old baby racks (a lot of my friends are pregnant, alright?) and SECONDLY, how do I leave that behind? It's mad precious.

And then the other day I was looking online for cute tights and cute tights online can be up to $30, and I wouldn't spend $30 on tights for ME, but then I thought of Sproutz and lo, they have whole basketful, and Eleanor is now the proud owner of A Lot Of Tights.

Sproutz is also where I bought Eleanor's shoes, because she has tiny baby deer feet and nothing stays on them. Like, NOTHING. It's like trying to put shoes on a pair of stilts. And when I say 'nothing' I mean Robeez, which are in the realm of $30 because they are leather which is DUMB because she is a BABY. But which also means that they are excellent quality, and that second-hand Robeez are ship-shape (and strawberry-tipped).



Speaking of strawberries, I bought her a Strawberry Shortcake t-shirt at the BFM (which IS a thrift store which means it WAS 50 cents) and it is also a Shirt For A Tiny Baby. Eleanor likes it because it has eyes.


That animal-print cardigan, from her Gigi, won't fit her for MONTHS yet, but I love it too much not to wear it to pieces now.

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

I've only been able to wash him, like, once.

We've talked about how much Eleanor loves snuggles, but she also loves Snuggles, who was her first gift as a live baby (i.e. not a fetus). Snuggles is for naptimes, but sometimes if we're having a rough day we bring him upstairs. She usually abandons him pretty quickly and moves on to other things, but when she comes across him in her wanders she drops for an immediate snuggle.

You can't tell, but there's a Snuggle under this heap of person.

See?

Sometimes she wears him like a hat while she does other things.


Ok, a lot of time she wears him like a hat.


And once she spent ten minutes trying to make him sit up.


He was terrible at it.

But usually if she has Snuggles, she is sucking her thumb and trying to nuzzle you.


Here's to you, Snuggles.


Saturday, February 09, 2013

A matchmaker, this one.

Stay right here, Barrister's Wig.


No, wait. Here.


I have a surprise for you.


Come here, Giraffe. There's someone I'd like you to meet.


Barrister's Wig! I told you to stay put.


Giraffe? Don't move. I'm counting on you to make a good impression.


Alright, Barrister's Wig, there you...Giraffe!


*aggrieved sigh* Seriously, you two.


Don't you move, Giraffe, or so help me.


Good. Here we are, then.


Now kiss.


Friday, February 08, 2013

Thighs: A Retrospective

Brand new fresh baby thighs.


Mid-January thighs.


February thighs.


March thighs.


April thighs (bring May pies).


May thighs (these also bring May pies).


June thighs (the result of all those pies).


July thighs.


August thighs.


September thighs.


October thighs.


November thighs.


December thighs are year-old thighs.


Behold them in all their glory.