ANSEL
Not long after our last post, Ansel made his first clear sound: ba-ba-ba. A few days later he added g-g-g-g (lots of effort involved in pushing this one out). He has since added lots, today’s favorite was da-da-da. For awhile, he would say ma-ma-ma when he got tired and wanted to have mama milk. But he hasn’t done it as much lately, so maybe it was just a coincidence. We love his sounds, and they make him even more irresistible to us.
Happy just-woke-up Ansel
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Ansel kept scratching his forehead open, so we had to put on a band-aid
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He is still working on that pincer grasp; in his last attempt, he got about 4 Cheerios in his mouth over the course of about 30 tries. He doesn’t really use his thumb and forefinger. Instead he paws at them until one (or a couple) get into his clammy palm, and then he tries to put his whole fist in his mouth, hoping that the Cheerio will somehow drop in there.
He loves kneeling and pulling himself up on stuff and standing. He prefers to do #2 while standing, and gets red in the face while doing so. He tries to clap. There is little noise produced, but it does get a reaction out of his parents (lots of clapping, of course); we love it.
Mid-clap clap clap
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He likes to bang his cups (or any two hard items) together or on the floor or table, or anything to make some good noise. He also really likes to climb up the stairs.
Ansel's ride to and from school (unfortunately, he is not always this happy about the helmet)
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And, we think he likes “school” (a.k.a. day care), which is really good. Hopefully that’s not just wishful thinking. We really like the teachers and the atmosphere at this place. He has only gotten sick once: he had a fever and infections in both ears, and there was a 24 hour period where he would only sleep in his parents’ arms. The bug lasted awhile, but sick only once so far seems pretty good for a kid new to day care (we’re hoping that keeps up).
Ansel with his teacher Dora and buddy Callum
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FIVE VISITORS, NOT ALL AT ONCE
Since our last post, we have had some nice visits from family. Grandpa Dave and Grandma Joanne came out for a week at the end of Feb/ beginning of March. Ansel warmed right up to his grandparents and had a great time playing with them! He got to leave school a few hours early each day they were here to play with them. We all went into San Francisco one day (Ben and my first trip into the city) and had a good time walking up and down hills and seeing sights. Unfortunately, both Dave and Joanne got sick during the last part of their trip (seemed to be some sort of food poisoning, though we couldn’t really figure out which food had caused it), but thankfully they were better before they had to leave, and still got in some more play time with Ansel.
Grandma giving Ansel his antibiotic, which he preferred in a glass mixed with water
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The day after grandma and grandpa left, Auntie Annie came for a visit! The two of us spent one day going around San Francisco and had a great time. After school/work one day, we picked up Ansel and checked out the Junior Children’s Museum nearby. Anna made salsa verde enchiladas for us again – delicious! We also spent some time at the Stanford Shopping Center, and sampled some Sprinkles cupcakes (delicious red velvet!).
Anna with a cross-section of the Golden Gate Bridge main cable
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Annie left on Sunday, and the following Friday, Uncle Derek and Amiee arrived! We got a Zipcar and checked out Half Moon Bay. It was nice but the weather was windy and cool, so we didn’t take any long strolls along the beach. The next day, we all went in to San Francisco to take in the sights. And a few evenings, we played Rock Band (Amiee is a master of the drums!). Amiee made a cool photo montage of their trip (with music!) that is posted on Derek's blog here.
Ansel in his carseat, ready for our day trip
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Thank you all for coming!!! It was great to have you stay with us! Now we are looking forward to an upcoming visit from Grumpa Tom and Grandma Barbi, and then hopefully a visit from Uncle Andy in May. And we welcome anyone else who wants to come!
BEN AND ELISSA
We’re doing well. Ben is gradually adjusting to his new job and is starting experiments. I am still working on my research, still hoping to graduate in the not-so-distant future, but definitely not this semester. One weekend, we decided to have some real fun by both acquiring a severe case of food poisoning at a restaurant (good thing Ansel couldn’t eat that food yet!). Thankfully I have blocked most of the details from my memory, but I do remember 1) feeling like Ansel weighed over 50 lbs. as I tried to rock him to sleep in my weak post-sickness state, and 2), with both parents struggling to lift limbs, resorting to another form of child care:
Can you find the baby?
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Our February and March photo albums aren't quite done yet, but close enough (maybe no captions is better!). If you want more Ansel, follow these links!
Happy Spring!
