Rock To Wind A String Around

So I think a snapshot of Astrid Meklit is in order:

I’ve always thought people who said things like, “he’s changed so much overnight” were a little delusional, or maybe not observing their little ones particularly carefully. Not True, Not True! This baby of mine changes so quickly, it’s hard to keep track of everything new. .

Talking: Astrid is quite loquacious. Her first real word, after family names (and yum), was ’stinky,’ said with tremendous passion and glee. She also shouts: DING, pretty, Asti, KEY, fourteen, fifteen, eighteen, pee, and yeah. She often issues a throaty ‘HI’ at strangers and loved ones, especially if she is pleased to see them.    New words arrive everyday–Sunday was ‘buckle’  Monday was ’sneaker.’  There are plenty of things that sound like 2 and 3 word phrases, but I think that would be the mama/therapist listening because Albert can’t hear a thing.  After the 2+ years of living with Silent Bob–this is such a welcome change.  Always surprising, but very fun…

Walking:  Astrid’s first steps happened in the airport on the way home from our Thanksgiving frolic.  She took five in a row and we all assumed that she’d be walking in a week.  Astrid instead chose to delay full ambulation until we moved to Ohio.  Why?   I don’t know, but when we arrived on December 30 she was still taking a few steps here and there;  by Elliott’s birthday on the 7th, she was walking across the room, and by the 11th, she’d get back up after falling to attempt to walk some more.  I find I lose her more easily now–crawling is a much noisier exercise, at least on the hardwood floors, but she glides silently across the floor now–in less than a minute she can scramble from underneath the desk to the forbidden  living room or more forbidden dishwasher.

Playing:  While Astrid adores playing with Elliott most, she’s quite content to read a book to herself, drive a car across the great room, or scribble on the Magna Doodle.  The other day she was sitting at my feet in the cubby under the desk, reading and drawing.  Occasionally, she’d stand up and rub her head against my knee, but that’s all the contact she wanted.  If I tried to talk to her or cuddle up when she leaned against my knee, I was soundly rejected.  We sat this way for more than 30 minutes before she was ready to move on.  So very different than Elliott who wanted constant interaction at this age…
Eating:  Although still an enthusiastic eater, mealtime has become trickier to negotiate.  Astrid refuses any food we try to feed her, but her utensil skills aren’t really up to par, and she desperately wants to eat from a spoon or fork.  If she’s feeling affable, we can spear a piece of chicken, or a lima bean for her, but the rest of the meal is a bit fussier as she tries to scoop with a spoon or gives in after great frustration and begins to eat with her fingers.  I think this unhappiness will be short-lived, but it was very unexpected; on Wednesday she ate the rice cereal and jar of spinach and carrots that we fed her for breakfast and lunch and by Friday, the idea of being fed by us was ridiculous and tantrum-worthy.  It really isn’t a problem at home, but with her list of allergies, it was so much easier to pack a jar or two of food when we were out for mealtimes, especially now that our food looks so tasty to her.

So much more could be said of Astrid Meklit, my lover of q-tips, chickpeas  and Pink Blanket.  She’s such a sweet-natured baby, even when Elliott torments her.  Now that we’re settled in, I’m sure I’ll blog more about her, and the rest of the gang and less about Mary P.  After all, Mary P is much the same after almost 39 years, but the lovely Astrid changes every 39 minutes.

So, we’ve lived in Mary P. for 10 days now. We’re mostly unpacked. The boxes have mostly been emptied (I think I have 5 left to tackle), the pictures are on the walls, the new runner and matching foyer rug were installed on Friday. In many ways, we’re more or less settled, but I’ve definitely felt like I’m living in someone else’s (very nice) house. Today, the tide has turned. The soup is on the stove, the bread is in the breadmaker—-I live here now. Earlier this week I made a quiche for dinner, and last night some DELIGHTFUL butterscotch cookies ala Martha, but really, it wasn’t until the lentils slid into the pan that this house felt like home.

Some nifty things about Mary P:

Very roomy, very roomy—-I’ve never lived in a house so large before.

A broom closet in the kitchen—-Where oh where have you been all my life, lover? Seriously, there is much to be said on behalf of broom closets–I haven’t needed to hide the broom from Astrid once this week.

The living room enclosed by French doors—-We decided to put the tv (in handsome cabinet) in the lovely living room, rather than the Great Room. An excellent decision, I think. Tv watching has dropped to nil.

The finished basement—-Ample room to house the trapeze, drop swing, and ladder swing, as well as all of the tiny toys, the elliptical trainer and the elliptical trainer entertainment (the 2nd tv). In addition, there is a huge storage room for all of the holiday decorations, camping equipment, etc. This may seem redundant after reading the first point, but a basement this astounding merits its own mention.

Some not-so-nifty things about Mary P.

A lingering pet dander issue—the basement carpet (even after its thorough cleaning) may need to be replaced sooner rather than later

A condensation pipe leak in the basement—-The day before the movers arrived, I came over to clean. Albert reminded me to check out how great the basement carpet looked after the Stanley Steamer-type fellas were here. I came down to find a sodden spot in the carpet–4 feet wide by 12 feet long. A condensation pipe was knocked loose, presumably during the move of the former owners. We’ve replaced the pad, have scheduled a carpet reclean, and are prepared to replace drywall (all of that water ran under a wall). A sad homecoming gift indeed, and again, the basement carpet may need to be replaced sooner rather than later.

A lack of dimmer switches—-The nicest thing about renting a homestager’s house is all of the great lighting. Every single light had a dimmer switch–even the bathrooms. Now I shower in a spotlight and the Great Room feels unusable after 3:30. Easy changes can be made, but I really do miss my California bathroom.

Lots of other updates in store. Astrid is walking, and saying tons of new words. ‘Fourteen!’ is a favorite. Elliott turned nine and has joined the circus. Stay tuned–I’ll be back soon!

Who  knew moving across the country without my laptop would make posting so challenging?  Our household arrived on Sunday, just two days after it was promised.  We’ve been chipping away at the unpacking for the last few days, but until last night, we returned to Ye Olde Inn to retire each evening.  Albert is back in Manhattan for a few days, so I wasn’t sure I wanted to tackle settling in with the children by myself, but with various scheduled deliveries and service appointments, it seemed easier to sleep here last night.    Of course,  both bathrooms are full of contractor dust and the alarm clock is ‘unavailable at this time’  so showering and waking were a little more difficult than I envisioned,  but we muddled through and it was nice to sleep in my own bed last night.

Back to unpacking for me–I want to get everything out of the boxes in the next few days so we can put in our claim for our damaged items.  It’s already clear that the elliptical trainer didn’t fare well in this move, and many of Elliott’s treasures seemed to take a beating too.

We’re here though, so feel free to stop by if you’re local.  This will be the only time I won’t be embarrassed to have people see my messy house. Really, drop me an email and I’ll send the address your way.  We’re home, and will be until the boxes are empty.