Ave Moose

Mathilde and I are sitting here in the early morning darkness contemplating the lit Christmas Tree. We are listening to Ave Maria and contentedly gnawing on Mortimer Moose (well, one of us is). It is amazing to think that in January 2011 we nearly lost this baby, and here we are today with a chubby, raspberry-blowing, joy-bundle. What a blessing this creature beside me is.


2011 was full of exciting events: the great anticipation of progeny, nearly nicked by a dynamic cervix and rescued by bedrest and weekly HP17 shots. We moved. We visited my family; my family visited us; D's family from Russia came and lived with us for a while. I taught 5 courses, revised and submitted one article, and delivered two conference papers. I finally read David Copperfield. Beer was brewed. Cakes were baked.

I am up way too early to write a long gratitude post, so let me just claim quiet contentment for now. My kid is getting restless.

Done

Done Grading!
Exhausted.
But celebrating.
Wine.
Packing.
Trip!
Airport.
Early.
Very early in morning.
With baby.
With 7-month-old baby who recently learned to scream as if starring in a horror movie.
...
Wine.
Xmas break.
Cookies!
Anxiety.
MLA looming.
Suit.
SALA paper looming.
Research over holiday break.
ENG 200 prep looming.
Reading for fun is dead.
Wine.

Red-wrapped Things I Currently Love

I've been so busy this term teaching my two writing classes, revising an article, showing up (online) for a faculty development writers' bootcamp, and caring for the mothersucker that I've not had any time to update this blog. SO: here I show you two things near and dear to my hear that both happen to be wrapped in red. It's a cheap occasion for a blog, I admit, but I'm stretched pretty thin right now. (Ha ha. Insert joke about pregnancy weight here; I'm too tired to make one up).

Seriously, you can expect bigger things over the holiday break. (After all, I know my loyal supporters are wondering if I'll be on the MLA Air Diet this year or not ["Is she back on the market? Is she pregnant? Is it a magical double whammy again??"])

First things first. Those crazy Bridgeport brewers in Oregon made a holiday ale and named it after a Charles Dickens character, God bless them. And it's a REALLY GOOD ALE. The blurb on the box reads:

"There are many things from which good may be derived, yet sorry few from which greatness will appear. So it is in hope, and homage to the wonders of a changed spirit, that we offer our seasonal brew. An appropriately rich and complex Winter Warmer, Ebenezer Ale is a true celebration of the season--rich, malty, and formidable enough to alter the crankiest spirit and temper the nastiest winter chill. Cheers!"

Do you think someone in Marketing actually read A Christmas Carol in order to compose that? Yeah, me neither.

Here is a close-up of the label. Check out Scrooge's grimace. Someone needs a little hair-of-the-dog post-Ghost whisper of a sweet hangover solution.

On to sunnier matters: here's a shot of baby reading a book. We think she's so precocious. Anyone with that large a forehead is clearly already studying differential equations.

After reading, she progresses to eating the book. Because that is what 6-month-olds do. The librarians assure me that it is a book-friendly behavior.


And then shooting me the friendliest "Gotcha!" grin ever. Baby wants a Scrooge Beer.

Maternity Pants, I can't quit you

"Set against the sweeping landscapes of Seattle and Oxnard, this is an epic love story of a forbidden and secretive relationship between a struggling adjunct professor-turned-mama and swishy pair of charcoal gray Gap maternity pants who meet in the winter of 2011 while navigating the shoals of a difficult pregnancy. They unexpectedly forge an unorthodox yet lifelong connection, one whose complications, joys and tragedies provide a testament to the endurance and power of love."

Professor: Maternity Pants, I can't quit you.
Maternity Pants: ...
Professor: Nine months is not enough.
Maternity Pants: ...
Professor: Seriously, it's like every day is Thanksgiving, now that you're in my life.
Maternity Pants: ...
Professor: I mean there was that time I tried to wear my pre-pregnancy slacks again, this morning, and, well, let's just say I'm yours forever, and no one else needs to know.
Maternity Pants: ...

"some kind of feminist statement"

I had a major feminist fail last week on an airplane. I had dressed my daughter in a lovely blue and gray long-sleeved one-piece outfit by Babysoy. Unlike most of Miss Matty's clothes, which are hand-me-downs or gifts, this was something I picked out to buy back when I was a few months pregnant. It is one of the softest pieces of clothing she owns. Anyway, on the flight, Miss Matty was a huge hit with the flight attendants, one of whom came over to give her a commemorative airline wings pin. This kind lady then said, "What a cute baby boy!" and I (probably shouldn't have) corrected her, "she's a girl." Then flight attendant lady scolded, "But you've got her wearing blue!" And then, much to my dismay, I totally chickened out: I shrugged, said the outfit was a hand-me-down, and pointed out that she was wearing pink socks. Flight attendant said, in relieved tone, "Oh, I thought maybe you were making some kind of feminist statement." Ugh. I actually lied to a flight attendant, rather than moxie-up and make some kind of feminist statement!

Can I have a do-over?

While you mull over whether I deserve one, here's a post that I found fascinating on this topic. It makes me wonder, if I had a baby boy, would I dress him in pink? If my next baby is a boy, he certainly is going to have a lot of pink and purple hand-me-downs! And here is Miss Matty in all her boy-clothes glory...

Dickens Board Books?

Not yet, but here's a baby counting book based on Pride and Prejudice! WANT.

Almost 3 Months! or How Academics Rear Children Merely by Reading Books About It

Overnight, this girl has grown up. As I type this, she's *enjoying* tummy time. And this morning at 4:15am I found myself *waiting* for Miss Matty to wake up to nurse. The girl slept nearly 8 consecutive hours! She smiles all the time! She can eat her fists! How did we accomplish these milestones, you ask?

Lately, because I'm a first time parent, I've been reading baby care books. Because I'm an academic, I have to read many of them, and then I have to critique them. The critical exploration of multiple and conflicting perspectives on any particular subject is the hallmark of academic inquiry, right? Right. So here are some results of my current inquiry and some swift book reviews.

The Baby Book by the Dr. Searses: (attachment parenting) "Baby-carrying is a global norm. What? You don't wear your baby in a sling (that coordinates with your sarong) all day long? Bad mommy! Do you at least nurse on demand?" I found this book guilt-inducing and slightly dated ("Tips for Dad"!!). The ink illustrations of the babies, however, are adorable.

Becoming Babywise by some jerks: (a Biblically-based "baby management plan") "Mommy decides when baby sleeps, not baby; put her down and let her cry it out. Also, if you co-sleep with your baby, you are a murderer." I found this book offensive, and not only because it made me feel incompetent (Miss Matty was not sleeping 8 consecutive hours at 8 weeks old). The book begins with a chapter about marriage: apparently, if you don't have a stellar marriage, your children will never sleep through the night. On behalf of the single moms, unmarried het-partners, and same-sex partner parents out there, I call bullshit on this register my distaste for just think that's dumb and offensive. I also take umbrage with the sexist division of labor promoted in the book (not much worse, though more blatant, than the sexist division of labor promoted in the Sears book). Also worth noting: others have found the advice in this book to be downright dangerous.

The No-cry Sleep Solution by E. Pantley (whose name makes me giggle): by far the most reasonable book I've read. Pantley begins with a chapter on safety--general safety tips, and most relevant to us, safety for co-sleeping. Then she assures me that co-sleeping breastfed babies can learn to sleep through the night. Hurray! This book is full of good advice all motivated by Pantley's absolute rejection of the "cry-it-out" method. Also, she recommends keeping sleep logs for baby, and I admit that I've always loved logging things.

What to Expect the First Year by an army of baby specialists: encyclopedically helpful. Readable in small doses, like during pumping sessions. I wish I owned a copy of this book and did not have to keep re-checking it out of the public library.

Here's the rub: each of these books had something in it that I needed to learn.

What have we been doing differently, then?
For one thing, Miss Matty now takes regular naps; we are working on getting her to do the eat--wake and play--nap routine. It's true what they say--the more regularly she naps during the day, the better she sleeps at night. It's pretty clear when she needs a nap, too. First, Jacques the Peacock ceases to amuse her. She starts looking as if she's about to wish her psychadelic bee mobile out to the cornfield. Then the genuine stink-eye begins, accompanied by low-grade fussing. If I haven't already, I swaddle her and, if needed, pop in the sucky. At last, the eyes go half-mast. That's my sign to put her in her crib. I rub her nose like you do a horse, and say in my finest Stepford Wives voice, "You might like to go to sleep now."


We are working on teaching her she can sleep by herself, by putting her in her crib for naps, and by putting her in our bed at her bedtime and keeping our bedtime separate. We are also working on giving her good, sustainable sleep associations. And we are working on recognizing when to feed her at night vs. when she's just in one of those light, active sleep cycles where she's restless but not fully awake and hungry. Learning to differentiate between sleeping sounds and awake/hungry sounds has been a challenge, but it makes a huge difference in how often I'm waking to feed her overnight.

Apart from her crib, she loves to nap in her stroller.

She also likes to nap in her sling.