Alburquerque & Herndon

12 Jan 16
Mom's work took her to Albuquerque right before our annual family reunion, so our family of four cashed in our Southwest points to meet her there.  We arrived late last night, tried New Mexican food at a place across campus, and slept very soundly.  The day of travel, among several charming moments, included Drakeson throwing up on the plane.
Today was much better.  While Mom went to her conference, our family went to the Albuquerque BioPark and visited the Albuquerque Aquarium, the Children's Fantasy Garden, Railroad Hill, the Bugarium, and the Rio Grande Zoo.  Tickets included the 20 minute train rides between the aquarium and the zoo, as well as the train ride within the zoo.  Everything was nearly abandoned, and we had plenty of time to enjoy the sharks, polar bears, snow leopards, and jaguars just to name a few.  Once Mom got out of her conference, we took a trip to the Sandia Peak Tramway, the longest aerial tram in the country.  The sunset lasted through our ride to the top at 10,378 feet, and petered out during our stay up there.  Riding back down the mountain over the city in the dark felt like being in a space ship.  Dinner was at a New Mexican grill next to the tram, and the evening ended with a great round of drinks.

13 Jan 16
We thought about taking a road trip to Santa Fe today, and I'm glad we didn't.  Albuquerque's children's museum Explora is easily a day's worth of activity alone.  While Mom attended the conference, the rest of us started the morning at a most cleverly designed playground in Tiguex Park (pronounced teegway).  The entire thing is built as a circular obstacle course around a central concrete platform, making it much easier for big people to keep an eye on little people.  Explora is like Austin's Thinkery, but better and less crowded.  We didn't see the entire place, but some of our favorite spots were the bubble room, an elevator that contained couches and a piano, highwire biking, and a beautiful domed picnic area on the roof.  A soak in the hottub got us all ready for nap time.
Dinner was at yet another New Mexican restaurant, and we drove through Old Town Albuquerque for a little window shopping.  We made it back to the hotel in time for happy hour, and had an early movie night before crashing.

15 Jan 16
Yesterday was just a day of travel to Northern Virginia with the trains, planes, and automobiles.  The highlight was a low-key evening of board games with my dad and our tradition of eating aplets & cotlets.  Today started with a hike at the Billy Goat Trail C in MD.  Thal and his new dog Bella met Liên, Bill, Dad, Milli, and me on the trail, but Bella was too aggressive for us to hang out together.  George and Drakeson stayed home to pick Mom up from the airport, and had their own adventures seeing animals at Frying Pan Park.
The evening was wonderful.  My 12-year-old crush grew up and now has a lovely family of his own.  He organized a small school reunion at his house and our favorite teacher, Bob, made it.  My family and Liên came and chatted until it was bedtime for the kids.  The conversation was a lot of fun, and the beer was phenomenal.

16 Jan 16

We drove around the pretty roads in Reston to pick up groceries this morning and made an impromptu visit at the Reeds.  Our family and my parents took a walk at Sully Historic Site in the afternoon, and came home to meet my siblings for our very late Christmas celebration.  A truly horrible Danny Kaye movie bridged the time before the traditional Christmas spring roll dinner.  Tins, George, and I joined my dad in a four-part version of "Greensleeves" before the evening was over, which probably made half the guests in the house feel uncomfortable.  A little beer and our love of music got us through the guilt in no time.

17 Jan 16
George made a double batch of seafood gumbo in the morning, and then our family drove out to Vienna to visit my very dear friends Jenny and Jason along with their three beautiful girls.  It was our first time seeing their new house and the gorgeous property.  A light snow was falling, the kids got along very well, the cocoa was delicious, and it was a perfect day.  The drive home was a moment I'd like to capture in the memoirs: George was driving us through the winding roads of Reston, the kids were asleep in the backseat of our warm car, and a Mendelssohn violin sonata was on the radio.  You can't buy that kind of happiness.
Drakeson's family birthday party was scheduled for the evening, and it was crowded.  There were 18 people present, including my childhood friend Angel and her family.  George's gumbo was the star of the show, but we also had Costco stuffed salmon, cranberry raspberry glazed spicy meatballs, and ribs made by Pep-Pep.  Dessert was pistachio almond cake and pistachio ice cream, which made sense, because Drakeson likes "the green one."

18 Jan 16
We went to the mall in the morning to get Cụ a new picture for her apartment.  The photographer was awful, so it's a good thing the subjects didn't need much help to look darling.  We made a quick stop at Thal's place to see his new apartment and say goodbye, and the rest of the morning was spent packing and watching our first Lana Turner film, "Imitation of Life."  Leaving my parents' house was already a bit sad, and watching a depressing drama at the same time didn't help.  I'd recommend not beginning your travels this way, should that choice arise in the future.  The travelling was what it always is - moving about in seas of strangers like a herd of cattle, hearing the annoying flight attendants and the rules they enforce, counting down the time until the next countdown, and ultimately the loss of another day.  Our warm Austin home was a welcoming sight for our tired family.

Placenta

When I was pregnant with Drakeson, I was curious about my placenta.  I didn't know if I necessarily wanted to eat it or turn it into pills, but I definitely wanted to see it, and I definitely wanted a print.  I had been listening to the "Rainbow Relaxation" meditation from my Hypnobirthing class every night, and I envisioned making a rainbow print of the placenta.  Somehow.  Then I could turn it into a jigsaw puzzle and hang it up on our walls with all our other puzzles, and everybody would know how cool I am.

Needless to say, George thought that was pretty weird.  The hospital did too.  When all was said and done, the idea of fighting my husband and filling out a ton of paperwork really outweighed the idea of my stupid rainbow placenta print.

Then I got pregnant with Millicent, and my doula asked me if I wanted a print.  I was at a birthing center, and nobody thought I was being weird.  With no real discussion, George took me to the craft store to pick out the paper.  He made the placenta print himself - in fact, he made six - and pretended not to remember that he was ever against the idea.

Original Prints 

And then today, I finally made my super cool rainbow jellyfish placenta print puzzle.

Rainbow Jellyfish Puzzle, 1008 Pieces

Pink

If you think I'm writing this post specifically for you, then you're wrong.  Every person I know doesn't understand why I won't put my baby girl in pink.

(Inspired by "The Cat in the Hat")

But that is not all.  Oh, no.  That is not all...

I won't dress her in camo or neons or pinks,

I won't dress her in leather or leopard or minks,

No polka dots, glitter, no flowers, no bows,

No skirts and no dresses, and no pantyhose.

No ruffles or leggings or flared tops with lace,

Or slick shiny shoes, so she falls on her face.

Oh dear, said the cat.  You did not like our game.

What a shame, what a shame, what a shame, what a shame.

Extreme, you might think.  But is it really?  I didn't dress Drakeson in any of that, and nobody gave me shit about it.  I don't dress that way myself, and nobody complains.  I sometimes wear sundresses when it's hot outside, but I'd gladly switch to a diaper if I could pull that off.  And I may wear tight pants every now and again, but that's for my husband.  I digress.  My first point is one of aesthetics, and aesthetics alone.  I just don't find all this clothing marketed for girls so damn cute.
Pink.  It's just a color.  It's red and white.  Pink isn't really for girls at all, so why does it matter so much to me?  Maybe I hate the fact that we've associated colors with genders in the first place.  Maybe I hate the expectation and demand that I follow a handful of clothing guidelines.  Maybe I hate the eagerness from others to make assumptions regarding my child's personality, interests, strengths, and weaknesses.  Think back on the last conversation you witnessed regarding a baby.  The first item of order was gender.  The second was stereotyping.
A lot of people ask: what would I do if Millicent ended up loving pink?  I'll tell you.  I'd do the same thing I'd do for Drakeson if he loved pink.  I'd buy her lots and lots and lots of it.  Until then, if Drakeson can be the prettiest girl on the block in a Darth Vader shirt with a cape, then so can Milli.

First Thanksgiving Photoshoot

Guest photographer Stephanie Chavez helped us with our 2015 holiday photoshoot.  Our feast was just a month old.

Pooh

In the story, "Try, Try Again," Pooh learns to spell his name.  George wanted to help Drakeson write out his name, but Drakeson wanted to write "Pooh" instead.  He didn't quite get it right at the time, but later in the day, he was thinking about it again and wrote this all by himself.

Doula's Birth Story

Guest Writer:

Doula Lacreshia Laningham