In Which Kanga Tells Roo a Secret

Bathtime is a great time to share secrets. Today, while I was shampooing J's hair, I told her a short story.

"Tomorrow, baby, a man named Barack Obama is going to be inaugurated as our 44th President. He is an African-American, and he is a great man. This is important. But what's more important is that you are growing up in a really, really exciting time. I will always remember that I was with you on the eve of the day everything changed."

J laughed and pulled her foam letter "E" off the wet wall of the tub.

In Which Kanga and Roo Make Room For...

...a baby sister. Roo #2 will be a girl, as evidenced today by our ultrasound.

By the way, Portland residents -- if you can get Susannah the sonographer at NW Perinatal, do it. She doesn't, of course, promise specific boy or girl babies, but she's got a darn good prediction track record and an excellent bedside manner.

I had, of course, approximately 25 boys' names and only two or three girls' names that even piqued my interest. Any suggestions, esteemed readers?

(Suggestions of "Dewey" or "Marian" -- as in librarian -- will be duly ignored.)

In Which Kanga Muses on the Year Past and Yet to Come

As we approach December 31, I wanted to jot down some of the ups and downs of 2008, while looking ahead to 2009.

2008 was first and foremost the Year of the Baby. J grew from a nine-week-old meatloaf-esque lump into a walking (running!), semi-talking, food-and-toy-throwing delight. She makes us laugh many times every day, and just smelling the top of her head is enough to strengthen me for the day.

Alan and I went from bumbling first-timers to generally relaxed parents of a toddler. Not yet required to shift to a man-to-man defense (foreshadowing!), we found that we could be good parents while still retaining time for the things we like to do for ourselves.

What could I have done better? I could have carved out more time to read and exercise. I probably could have focused on my work more. But what kind of tool lies on their deathbed saying, "Yeah, I wish I had worked more?"

As for reading and exercise, the busy nature of this year meant that Hood to Coast and most of my book groups' activities were laid aside in favor of family time. I picked up water aerobics, which I really enjoy and which are totally harder than you'd think.

Then, just as we were headed into the autumn home stretch, I'd given away all my maternity clothes and things seemed destined for the normalcy inherent to a single-child family...bang.

No pun intended.

Our second pregnancy has left us alternately shocked, surprised, angry, giddy, joyful, nervous, at each other's throats and, ultimately, eager and with a strange peace. The first few months will be difficult, and I am thankful in advance for the knowledge that I am unlikely to remember them clearly (if J's first months are any indicator). Beyond all else, I am completely confident in our ability to juggle two kidlets, love them with complete abandon, recognize their differences as people and hold them close to our hearts. I am also confident that, several years from now -- three? four? -- we will look back and say that this was the wonderful redirect that I believe it to be.

I am getting some kicks now; I'll take that as a sign that I should end here, wishing all four readers of Design Librarian -- and everyone else -- a peaceful and prosperous 2009.

In Which Kanga and Roo Enjoy A Second Thanksgiving Together

My husband and I took J to visit friends today and eat Thanksgiving dinner. These are the same friends who hosted us last year, when J was only five weeks old. The food was once again fabulous, the conversation excellent, and this year the icing on the cake was a Pilgrim play (complete with "props") performed by the host and hostess' two children. Fall-down funny.

J did great. Unlike last week, when we had to rapidly leave a birthday party before the guest of honor even opened his gifts, tonight she was all smiles, friendly and playful.

I am determined to figure out the difference. It could have been the raw amount of people (fewer tonight), the noise level (a bit quieter), or the presence of Mom, Dad AND Gram. Regardless, it made for a pleasant and even relaxing evening.

Happy Thanksgiving!

In Which Roo and The New Roo Make Two

Although most readers of this (barely read) blog know this already, Roo II will make his or her much-vaunted appearance on or around May 15, 2009.

I am mildly curious as to how J will react. I say "mildly," because I pretty much KNOW what will go down.

I may sell tickets.

In Which Kanga Makes a List

Having just returned from a six-day trip East with J, I have developed a short list of recommended dos and don'ts based on my minor mishaps and tiny victories along the way. Of course, as always, your mileage may vary.

1. More toys, fewer clothes. Really...FEWER CLOTHES. God has invented these wonderful things called washing machines, and unless you are staying with Dwight Schrute, your hosts have one.

2. Did I mention more toys? And books. Airplanes are boring, boring places, and being strapped in (backwards!) within a car seat would drive anyone to distraction. More. Brand. New. Toys and books.

3. Resist the temptation to fill your child with food to stave off crying jags mid-flight. Although this wasn't a chronic issue on the trip, I did discover to my dismay that J has a nervous stomach when traveling.

4. Prepackaged dried formula in the foil tubes = rock. Easy to pack, easy to prepare. Sold at Babies R Us, and no doubt a number of other fine establishments.

5. Despite the inherent wastefulness of the packaging, consider bottled water for preparing baby's formula when traveling. Though I don't remember it this way as a child, the tap water in Eastern Pennsylvania is downright undrinkable, and I ended up heading to CVS for bottled water to mix up J's meals.

6. Think your baby bucket / carseat doesn't hang easily off the handle of your stroller? I bet it does. (I discovered this two minutes before my final flight. I am sometimes slow on the uptake.)

7. Never underestimate the value other children bring to your baby's happiness when traveling. J really did well when other kids were in the house...they provided a familiar environment, and allowed her to take a break from the constant being-passed-around-by-strange-adults experience.

8. Apologize in advance -- sincerely -- for the havoc your child will wreak on a flight. It endears you to other travelers, and they may even pitch in and make funny faces at the baby during the trip. No one gave me a hard time, not even a dirty look, despite a ten-minute crying episode on one flight and nearly two hours of freakout on another.

9. This may seem obvious. Get down on your hands and knees, just like at home lo these many months ago, and baby-proof the house you are in. If you like, do it room-by-room, so as not to overwhelm yourself (and especially since we found we were mainly in the kitchen and the guest bedroom). It is AMAZING what people have in their homes. I just returned from a stay in a post-Revolution-era farmhouse with (1) a metal typewriter perched on a pedestal; (2) glass jars resting on wooden stools; and (3) best of all, a collection of sharpened farm and garage implements HANGING ON THE WALL.

10. Though others will, with the best of intentions, attempt to pack your schedule with new and interesting activities for baby, again resist the temptation to introduce your child to too many new things when underway. The town's Halloween parade (she would have been dressed as a clown, which was a dealbreaker anyway), the Please Touch Museum (first week reopened, on a rainy Sunday...noooooo), the Philadelphia Art Museum and the Reading Terminal Market were all carefully turned down, in favor of having J spend quality time with her 88-year-old great-aunt and have a play date with two three-year-old friends. My relatives now think I'm an overprotective bore, but I know I did the right thing for my noise-sensitive, easily startled child.

Traveling is hard enough for an adult when things go wrong. Though they may piss you off or even make you cry, you have resources, tools, and the larger understanding of WHY they happen. Children are just victims, whisked along in the experience without explanation or context. Keep that in mind, and it may help you feel a twinge of empathy next time for the kid in 22-F who won't stop screaming.

In Which Roo Steps Forward

On Monday afternoon the three of us were literally lying on the carpet on the second floor. Alan was fixing a baby gate and I wasn't. J was pulling at the gate to counteract Dad's efforts.

It was at that moment that J chose to stand up and toddle over to Dad. 1-2-3 steps, and *plop*.

I burst into excited tears, and Alan began whooping and hollering. "Oh wow," we said over and over again.

J, for her part, did not see what the big deal was.