Yesterday, we got the letter from daycare. Zoe is moving from the infant to the toddler room in a little over a week. She will rejoin some of her buddies who were older and moved ahead of her, and she is making the transition with another little girl in the infant class, so that should help make things easier.
The letter made me a little sad. Of course I know moving is inevitable and a good thing, but it's also another sign she's growing up. (If only she slept through the night--that would be a sign I'd be more than happy to welcome!)
I also have to buy some shoes for Zoe now. The toddlers go on buggy rides a couple of times a day, and that includes going outside if the weather permits. Zoe has a couple of pairs of shoes, but since I can't even keep socks on the child I haven't really pushed shoes yet. I guess that, too, will change.
I guess the infant room teachers will miss her, because they told Nate yesterday and me today that we need to give Zoe some siblings.
Thursday
Friday
One Love
I find myself feeling about Dallas the way I felt about Midland while I was growing up: biding my time while I find a way to get out. There are things I like about this city. There are always pluses and minuses to any situation, and in many ways I’ve been lucky here. But I still find myself looking for the back door.
I’ve been reading Dawn Powell’s diaries. In one entry she wrote, “There is really one city for everyone just as there is one major love.”
I first visited Austin when I was 16 years old. In many ways, that trip changed my life. My high school boyfriend invited me to visit his family and one of the people I met was his grandfather. For the first time, I met someone who made his living as an artist. I had always loved to read and write, but never considered the fact that real people might actually be writers or artists. Meeting Charles made that kind of life seem possible, if not necessarily easy.
The visit also included trips to Deep Eddy and Barton Springs. To a girl who’d grown up in parched West Texas, swimming pools fed from natural springs seemed pretty darned great. I sampled tasty cappuccinos at Quack’s. Nowadays Starbucks has infiltrated Midland like pretty much every other American city, but back then, having a cappuccino during the height of Folger’s diner coffee was a real eye opener for me, in more ways than one. I met liberals, hippies, artists, and idealists. For the first time, I fell in love.
I fell in lust with a few other places. Then I'd get restless, move, live in different city. Eventually I discovered that I am a Texas girl at heart, but there’s really only one place in this state where I want to live. I find myself thinking about Austin the way some people dwell on their first love, wondering if maybe that first one was the real deal after all.
I’m an adult now, allegedly. I have a mortgage, a job, a child. I find myself listening to bids for an expensive custom door to replace our decades-old back door that no longer locks (expensive because our house is older and nothing is a “standard” size), and choosing colors to the paint the den, while simultaneously scanning real estate and job listings in Austin. I can see a life in Dallas. I have a life in Dallas, and it's a good one, but then there's the daydream of moving that will not go away. I go back and forth in my mind so often I’m starting to get whiplash. It’s exhausting. And ultimately seems like a huge waste of time and energy ... but I am having a hard time stopping. I was talking to Katy and asked, isn’t holding two opposing ideas in your mind at the same time a description of insanity? I’ll try to be positive and say it’s an example of integrative thinking.
I’ve been reading Dawn Powell’s diaries. In one entry she wrote, “There is really one city for everyone just as there is one major love.”
I first visited Austin when I was 16 years old. In many ways, that trip changed my life. My high school boyfriend invited me to visit his family and one of the people I met was his grandfather. For the first time, I met someone who made his living as an artist. I had always loved to read and write, but never considered the fact that real people might actually be writers or artists. Meeting Charles made that kind of life seem possible, if not necessarily easy.
The visit also included trips to Deep Eddy and Barton Springs. To a girl who’d grown up in parched West Texas, swimming pools fed from natural springs seemed pretty darned great. I sampled tasty cappuccinos at Quack’s. Nowadays Starbucks has infiltrated Midland like pretty much every other American city, but back then, having a cappuccino during the height of Folger’s diner coffee was a real eye opener for me, in more ways than one. I met liberals, hippies, artists, and idealists. For the first time, I fell in love.
I fell in lust with a few other places. Then I'd get restless, move, live in different city. Eventually I discovered that I am a Texas girl at heart, but there’s really only one place in this state where I want to live. I find myself thinking about Austin the way some people dwell on their first love, wondering if maybe that first one was the real deal after all.
I’m an adult now, allegedly. I have a mortgage, a job, a child. I find myself listening to bids for an expensive custom door to replace our decades-old back door that no longer locks (expensive because our house is older and nothing is a “standard” size), and choosing colors to the paint the den, while simultaneously scanning real estate and job listings in Austin. I can see a life in Dallas. I have a life in Dallas, and it's a good one, but then there's the daydream of moving that will not go away. I go back and forth in my mind so often I’m starting to get whiplash. It’s exhausting. And ultimately seems like a huge waste of time and energy ... but I am having a hard time stopping. I was talking to Katy and asked, isn’t holding two opposing ideas in your mind at the same time a description of insanity? I’ll try to be positive and say it’s an example of integrative thinking.
The Grandma Update
Not sure anyone else is interested in reading about Zoe's developmental milestones, but here they are:
The girl is mobile. She's been working on crawling for a while, and this past week she slept like utter crap, waking up frequently. When I'd go into her room, I'd find her on her tummy and pissed about it. I think she was "practicing" in her sleep. For the past couple of days, she's started really scooting across the room. Sometimes she's on her knees; other times she's doing the army arm-crawl.
She's also become very interested in faces. We were in bed together for a nap, and she very gently "petted" my eyebrows, then my eyelashes, sort of trying to figure out what they were. She's also interested in eyes, ears, noses, lips, glasses. Most of the time she's very gentle; occasionally, you wind up with a noseful of baby fingers.
She continues to develop a sense of humor, laughing at jokes and funny noises.
She knows her name and the dog's. When we call Walker, she turns to look at him.
She is still babbling "mama" and what sounds like "mom," but I'm not sure she associates that with me yet. "Baba" is also a favorite.
She looooooves vegetables, more than fruit, and cheerios and veggie puffs. So far meat kind of seems to freak her out (maybe it's the texture?) unless we're having Mexican and then she chows down on the chicken or whatever. She love to eat, like both of her parents.
She almost always giggles after she sneezes. Sneezes are fun, apparently.
She's very ticklish.
She doesn't like bibs and often tears off her socks.
She sometimes laughs in her sleep, which makes me wonder what she's dreaming. Whatever it is, it's cracking her up.
Update: Over the weekend, she started pulling herself up to a stand on the furniture.
Also, I forgot to say that she still constantly has her feet crossed. This makes crawling difficult at times.
The girl is mobile. She's been working on crawling for a while, and this past week she slept like utter crap, waking up frequently. When I'd go into her room, I'd find her on her tummy and pissed about it. I think she was "practicing" in her sleep. For the past couple of days, she's started really scooting across the room. Sometimes she's on her knees; other times she's doing the army arm-crawl.
She's also become very interested in faces. We were in bed together for a nap, and she very gently "petted" my eyebrows, then my eyelashes, sort of trying to figure out what they were. She's also interested in eyes, ears, noses, lips, glasses. Most of the time she's very gentle; occasionally, you wind up with a noseful of baby fingers.
She continues to develop a sense of humor, laughing at jokes and funny noises.
She knows her name and the dog's. When we call Walker, she turns to look at him.
She is still babbling "mama" and what sounds like "mom," but I'm not sure she associates that with me yet. "Baba" is also a favorite.
She looooooves vegetables, more than fruit, and cheerios and veggie puffs. So far meat kind of seems to freak her out (maybe it's the texture?) unless we're having Mexican and then she chows down on the chicken or whatever. She love to eat, like both of her parents.
She almost always giggles after she sneezes. Sneezes are fun, apparently.
She's very ticklish.
She doesn't like bibs and often tears off her socks.
She sometimes laughs in her sleep, which makes me wonder what she's dreaming. Whatever it is, it's cracking her up.
Update: Over the weekend, she started pulling herself up to a stand on the furniture.
Also, I forgot to say that she still constantly has her feet crossed. This makes crawling difficult at times.
Wednesday
RIP
Poet and activist Raul Salinas has died. I didn't know him personally, but had seen him at various book festivals and heard him read and speak a few times.
This article covers some of his work.
Updated: Two more pieces about Raul.
This article covers some of his work.
Updated: Two more pieces about Raul.