the boy | matching tracksuits

Halloween 2012

Wednesday 31 October 2012 | 0 Comments

With the Boy just getting over some congestion, there was only one option: a quiet, stay-at-home Halloween. Which would have been horrible for the Girl, except for the fact that a neighbor offered to take her trick-or-treating with her daughter and another friend.

Apparently “trick-or-treat” was less accurate a description than “pillage and plunder.”

There was one thing missing, though: a visit to knock on Nana’s and Papa’s door. Still, they weren’t willing to break that tradition, so they came to us this year.

And naturally, Papa monopolized the Boy.

Sitting

Monday 29 October 2012 | 0 Comments

When you’re as heavy as the Boy (over twenty-one pounds at a little more than five months of age), it’s probably a little more difficult to sit up than for a more-average size baby.

Yet he’s begun sitting a bit — or rather, slouching.

Of course, it always helps to have something to grasp for support.

Babies

Sunday 28 October 2012 | 0 Comments

I understand radio and television stations had been counting down the days, but last Wednesday, the waiting ended. The Greenville Zoo tweeted, “It’s a boy! Greenville Zoo staff selected the name Kiko, meaning autumn’s child!”

To call him a “cute little boy” would be misleading: he’s cute, but he’s certainly not little, for he looks to be over six feet tall. Still, compared to Mama, he’s a shrimp.

The Girl and I set out this morning finally to get a look at him. With this tweet bouncing around Greenville, we weren’t the only ones: “It has been a zoo here today! Everyone wants to see Kiko! Tomorrow he will be out from 11am – 2pm”

The question of who had the best view changed from moment to moment as mother and son paced about the enclosure, with mother always keeping a close eye on Kiko, occasionally looking behind her to check on his progress, and frequently bending her long neck to give a reassuring nuzzle. Mothers do that, and ~~I suspect~~ they do it even when their babies are fully grown. At least we humans do it — looking at mother and son this morning, I couldn’t imagine it being any different among animals.

It’s tempting to say something like, “It’s fairly different for the giraffes and such because there’s no culture out there trying to pump their heads full of garbage” (yes, still stewing from yesterday’s post), but they face existential threats hourly in the wild: I suppose the stress level is about the same. Still, do baby giraffes do things that make their parents just cringe?

Probably. They probably even get dizzy just watching what their children do — that height probably doesn’t help much.

Still, as I watched the Girl after the zoo turning endless circles on this and that VIA( Vomit-Inducing Attraction), I started thinking that perhaps our lives are not so different, we and giraffes, or any other animal for that matter. We face our dangers, we teach our children to face them, and we hope that we’ve given them enough to survive, or thrive.

But I suppose giraffes don’t photograph their children as obsessively as we.

Pumpkin Patch

Sunday 21 October 2012 | 0 Comments

We first went in 2007: a Girl, a camera, wonderful afternoon light, and lots of time.

The next year, we took a photo that was a personal favorite picture for a very long time -- still is, in fact. Our first year in the pumpkin patch and the Girl was exceedingly playful. Giggles all afternoon.

The next year, it was the same. It was a photo shoot that almost shot itself: all I had to was point and shoot, literally. The Girl took care of all the rest. She was so easily excited, and almost everything thrilled her instantly and completely.

By 2010, she was a little lady. Photos were fine, but they had to be in some meaningful context. Gone were the days of, "Put her by that pumpkin" and clicking away. She wanted to help. She wanted to lift. She wanted to compose.

"I'll just move this one over and then sit down..."

Today, though, she had competition. And while the Boy was an easy target -- he can't move, so there's little choice; he can't talk, so there are few protests -- the Girl had other ideas.

The Boy was far too fascinated with the straw and hay to make much of a fuss about anything. The only trick was trying to get him to sit up long enough. Then we hit on the idea of holding him in such a way that the support was not immediately visible. Then we just gave up and shot.

We managed to talk the Girl into a few photos,

but she was far more interested in picking a pumpkin, and even more interested in hauling said pumpkin to the wheelbarrow.

And so I guess we'll be recreating all the autumnal photo shoots with the Boy that we had with the Girl over the last few years. I can't imagine more exciting prospects.

Autumn Saturday

Saturday 13 October 2012 | 0 Comments

Saturday morning has a new routine since the Girl began playing soccer. Up at eight; on the field by nine — it’s a busy morning.

Evenings, things return to normal.

And that normal includes a boy who loves to smile.

And does it well.

Autumn Sun

Wednesday 10 October 2012 | 0 Comments

It’s the angle — no doubt. The sun is hitting the earth at a decreasing angle as the northern hemisphere moves further and further away from the sun. Yet that astro-mechanical explanation somehow doesn’t do justice to the quality of light this time of year. We sit down for an early dinner and the light outside is simply magnetic. OneÂ must head out to the deck to get a closer look.

As the sun goes down, though, attention turns to more important things. The Girl can now read a book — a single book — to E. Perhaps in the recent past it would have been more a question of memorization than anything else, but these days, there’s no question she’s reading.