This has been the fastest moving year of my life, hands down. So much has happened in our lives, especially the sub-units' lives, that it is hard to even get started with a new entry here. My dissertation proposal was accepted about two weeks ago, but up to that point, I was either working on the proposal, doing my GSI or teaching at SFSU, spending time with my family, or sleeping. There really wasn't room for anything else. We spent last week in Denver Colorado and I am finally coming up from the fog. I didn't even take my computer along and I didn't think about my to-do list for the first half of the trip. We had a great trip and it was lots of fun to spend so much with Lucy and Cooper. Jim had a conference, so we didn't see him as much. It was still a wonderful time together. It was a weird trip in that we were neighborhood hunting for relocation after I graduate. This is the longest Jim and I have ever lived somewhere and we have specific criteria for our next location. Namely, we want to stay put there until both kids graduate from high school. That makes it feel like a bigger decision than any move before. We learned a lot about the culture and landscape of the city and are pretty set on moving there next spring.
The best part of the trip, by far, was the pool at the first hotel we stayed in. It was a gorgeous indoor and outdoor pool and we hit the jackpot in terms of weather. Lucy made friends with another little girl and the two of them swam five days in a row! Lucy got so much braver after spending so much time in the water. She is jumping in, swimming underwater, and playing in sprinkles now. We were so lucky to be able to stay somewhere so luxurious since Jim's conference was there. We didn't get to play in the woods or mountains at all, but that pool was perfect. When I was a kid I never even knew places like that existed. It is a real privilege to be able to bring out children to see and do so many diverse activities in so many places.
Cooper has grown by leaps and bounds since I last wrote. He is becoming a toddler and less of a baby with every moment that passes. I have recently become a bit more nostalgic for my tiny babies, but I am really enjoying him as a pre-toddler. He is starting to say so many words and is a very clear communicator. He isn't that into sign language, but we haven't been consistent with our use of it with him, so it is not so surprising. He is saying mom, dada (in a sing-song voice), hello, bye, and sometimes Roo Roo (for Sissy Roo). He hadn't been showing much interest in walking until about two weeks ago. We finally got him up on the walking device Jim built and he took his first steps while we were in Colorado. When he takes a couple of steps he looks up, so surprised at his accomplishment! Lucy is really into helping him (and tackling him) and loves to hold one hand while "baby goes walkin'." It is really sweet.
The two of them are starting to play more and more. Lucy wants so badly for Cooper to be her playmate. She wants to share a bunk bed with and wants him to be able to wrestle her. Lucy has a hard time keeping her hands off of "brother bear" and Jim and I are looking forward to the time when he can actually defend himself. They are playing together more and more and we want to encourage a loving, fair relationship between them. We try to give Lucy as much attention as Cooper. Balancing both kids is tough. Foster a relationship between the two of them that will last is one of the biggest parenting challenges we have ever faced. Lucy and Cooper really do adore each other, though. Yesterday a courtyard friend called Cooper dirty, and Lucy jumped in to defend him. It made my heart warm. She is also learning the art of giving him something when she wants what he has. She doesn't quite understand yet that he doesn't really care what he has, as long as he thinks Sissy likes it. So we have taught her to get something else for him to play with if she wants the toy he has.
We are sleeping more and more and more! It is so exciting. We actually did okay for sleep on our most recent trip. Cooper is down to nursing 1-2 times a day, typically between 3:00-5:00 a.m. and occasionally after his nap. I'll wean him off of the early morning nurse soon, but so far he has really weaned himself with some very gentle encouragement from me. He isn't a nursing a machine like Lucy was, which I grateful for. I am sure keeping up with his big sister has something to do with that. He is still a snuggle monster, and even though I am a bit sad that my breastfeeding days and very close to over, both Lucy and Cooper love to snuggle and be close no matter what the circumstance. The increased freedom and decreased worry for me has been great.
Obviously, Cooper had his first birthday. Sadly, it came and went with a fever and bad cold. We celebrated about a week late so that he could actually enjoy his celebration. Lucy and I made him a sugar-free, very yummy cake that he devoured. One of my favorite things to do with Lucy is to bake and cook together. We have been working together in the kitchen for a long time. Now, though, when Lucy is on the learning tower at the counter, Cooper insists on being there with her. We mostly celebrate holidays and birthdays for Lucy at this point, so it was really nice to include her in the preparation. We didn't do much else, except thank our lucky stars the first year is behind us! We survived it...with a c-section, a dissertation proposal, two childcare payments, and some health issues for Lucy. Now, onward to toddlerhood!
The summer before Cooper was born, we spent 8 weekends outside camping. It was a lot of work, but we were pros by the end of the summer. It was so much fun! This summer we are going to be back at it. Jim and I both need to get out of the city more and we want to make sure Lucy and Cooper have the chance to play outside, too. Since we are likely moving next spring, I want to do some California bucket list trips before we go. So far, in addition to some smaller state parks, we are going to head north to Redwood NP and south to Sequoia/Kings Canyon NP. We have already made an effort to get outside more than we have for the past year. We have really been enjoying the sunshine and beaches here. I hope that every weekend we can get out and do something that makes us all feel alive, is easy to do with kids, is enjoyable for the grown-ups, and helps us appreciate our current home. We had a great trip up to Tahoe this February and were able to get Lucy on skis for the second time! We went with my sister's family, so Jim and I actually got a chance to get on skis, too, while my sister kept Lucy and Coopey. We are really going to miss it here and will always look back on our time in the Bay Area fondly.
It feels challenging to write backward from now back to January, so I am going to stop writing here. This summer should be MUCH more relaxed now that my teaching jobs are wrapping up and since my dissertation proposal was accepted. I hope to do a lot more writing to make up for a bit of the time I lost recording our memories this semester.
