Did you get the memo?

Management didn't give a lot of advanced notice, but yesterday was Wear Your Momma's P.J. Top Around Your Neck Day. On WYMPTAYN Day, one must always have a P.J. top, preferably pilfered from the clean laundry, slung over one's shoulders. One should put it on, as best as one is able, as soon as one gets up, before even changing out of one's own sleeping garb.


One should put it back on, as best as one is able, after one is in one's first outfit of the day.



One should put it on again once one has gotten lunch all over one's first outfit of the day and required a change. Don't let activities, like helping one's momma wrap presents, get in one's way of wearing the P.J. top.

One can also make phone calls while wearing one's pilfered P.J. top.

It really makes for the most entertaining day. Management will try to give more notice of the next WYMPTAYN Day so everyone can participate.

Frances, The Helper

One of Frances's newest skills is emptying the dishwasher with me almost every morning. She's trying to master removing plates and pots, but she really excels at removing silverware. Frances used to remove a piece of silverware and then drop it on the floor - not terribly helpful - but now she hands the forks and spoons to me, one at a time. We don't win any awards for speed, but we get the job done.


Next skill to conquer: differentiating between dirty and clean silverware. It would be so cool if the dirty stuff stayed in the dishwasher.

Coolest Advent Calendar

Frances's Auntie Beka sent us the Coolest Advent Calendar ever, at least if you ask Frances's opinion. It's based on Eric Carle's book Dream Snow, and it's a Pop-Up, so very exciting for little hands.


It has doors that reveal tree ornaments and presents, then the presents go into gift boxes that open under the tree.



Mark got to see it in action for the first time on December 11th. Every night up until then he'd been at school working. He's almost done, though. Just a few more days!



Thank you, Beka. Such a good auntie you are!

Thank you again, Auntie Mim

Last year, our Auntie Mim knit a purple hat for Frances. It was a little big, due to some last minute design additions, but that just means we get to use it again this year. It fits and Frances leaves it on sometimes even when her hands aren't hindered by mittens.

Thank you, Mim. We love it.

Thirteen Months of Toddler Frances

For Frances's thirteen month birthday, she and I went for a little jog around a nearby pond. It's possible I got more out of the experience than she did, since she was in the stroller the whole time, but I like to think we both enjoyed ourselves. It was a bit nippy that day, so first we got all bundled up.



Then we got Frances into the stroller and headed off around the pond.

Two miles later, Frances was completely asleep in her stroller, which is a minor miracle these days.

I was very proud of us.

Alright, Thirteen Month Fun Facts

• Firsts: The walking is the most exciting first, obviously. She still mostly walks only to get from one familiar face to another, but she's branching out slowly. She's really keen on going from sitting to standing without using any props. She's only managed it a couple times, but she's very determined.
• Favorite Foods: My baby likes beans - black beans, kidney beans, cannellini. I think she gets it from the Uptons. She also devoured a slice of Starbucks Gingerbread Loaf by the fistful yesterday, leaving only crumbs behind for her momma.
• Frequent Comment: "She's so serious!" I get this a lot from strangers who try to get Frances to smile when we're out shopping. They are met with polite but stone-faced silence. It makes me a little sad, really, but it may just be Frances's version of stranger anxiety. At least strangers don't make her cry. And she smiles and chatters plenty when she's around more familiar folk. She talks up a storm and nods emphatically when she hears a recording of herself.
• Favorite Activity: She loves, loves, loves climbing up on our bed. It gives Mark and me little heart attacks when she heads for the edge, but so far she's done a good job - not to say a perfect job - negotiating a safety zone. We lost some Parenting Points one very sad day, but Frances survived. Frances also likes looking at catalogues while she's eating - a love of simultaneous eating and reading, she gets that from her mother!
• One word to describe Frances this month: Trooper, with a capital T. All the books tell me that she's going to start asserting her independence soon, but for right now, Frances is so good about putting up with our demands. We can ask her to skip naps, stay up hours past her bed time, run to the grocery store at dinner time, you name it, and she just keeps going. She really impresses me.
  
  
  

Unofficial Benchmark

Some developmental benchmarks are official, the type pediatricians care about, like the first time a baby rolls over or sits up. Then there are the unofficial benchmarks that mommies live with everyday, like the first time a baby crawls into an open and unguarded dishwasher or holds a phone up to her ear. Frances reached one of the unofficial benchmarks the other day when she destroyed a roll of toilet paper.

Totally pleased with herself.

I had left Frances to fend for herself while I took a shower. I thought I had moved the roll of toilet paper out of her reach, but the periscope arm prevailed. Good job, Frances!

Bjorn in the frozen tundra

Frances and I wanted to quickly walk Daddy to work before settling in for our dinner. For short trips, I usually just carry Frances in the Bjorn. Bjorn + cold weather gear =

Mom can't see anything.

Or, it could be the inevitable result of a 5' 4" woman having a child with a 6' 6" man and then trying to carry that child around. Either way, the Bjorn's days are numbered.

Frances takes Gloucester; Parents shiver

Mark needed a little study break, so we headed up to Gloucester, MA, which is pronounced "Glos-ter" or "Glaw-stah," depending on how native you are.


It may look familiar from the movie "The Perfect Storm." I have an aunt and uncle who used to live here. They now live in Florida, which says a lot about Gloucester. To summarize: cold fishermen.



The cold didn't stop Frances, though. She just kept right on walking, with some help from her dad.

We got a couple nice photos, despite the cold and a little person who would rather walk than hold still any day of the week.

This photo turned out smaller than I'd hoped, but Mark is giving Frances a little kiss. I like this photo.

And then we high-tailed it back to our cozy apartment.

I'm walkin', yes indeed!

On Saturday, November 20th, Frances took some honest-to-God steps to get from me to her Daddy. We were so incredibly impressed, you'd never know she's been working up to this maneuver for months. We celebrated on Sunday by running over to IHOP before Mark had to go to work. Frances mostly munched on crayons and Veggie Booty, but it was still a satisfactory celebratory experience.





We finished up the morning with a trip to a Farmers' Market. These people are fanatical about their Farmers' Markets up here. We like the hot apple cider and cider doughnuts that are sold at Farmers' Markets, so we aren't complaining.


It was too cold to let Frances out of her stroller to practice her walking skills, but Frances didn't seem to mind. She knows a good, cozy ride when she sees it, smart girl that she is.

New walking, IHOP, hot apple cider and cider doughnuts - not a bad weekend.

And then the circus came to town

And by "circus," I mean Beka.

My friend Beka was in town for one of her Professional Savers of the World conferences and needed a place to stay because Professional Savers of the World don't tend to work for places that can pay for hotel rooms. Fine by us, it just meant more time together.

We had to try on some of the goodies Beka has bestowed on us, like this pink tutu she gave Frances before Frances was even born.


I thought it looked particularly good with Frances's overalls.

Then Beka found Frances's tutu from Tara's wedding and needed to try it on, any way she could. Add a flower headband for Frances, and you get...


Frances wasn't nearly as amused as we were.

The finished product:

Sorry, kiddo. Haverford College assigned me to her and she's probably with us for life. Enjoy the ride.