HAPPY TURKEY DAY

Happy Thanksgiving to all y'all! We are thankful for you! And of course, we are thankful for Griffin Potamus!

A Boy and His Cat

Griffin and Jez have a special relationship based on mutual respect and some weird feline/baby pheromone thing. She has known Jake her whole life and has grown to expect some rough loving. Now that Son of Jake is old enough to mob her, she is quite prepared to tolerate it.

woo hoo zoo!

Last week we took Griffin to the zoo so he could see all the animals that usually hang from his mobile, his play gym and his bouncy chair. The Oakland Zoo is pretty nice and feels more like a habitat than an animal jail. Griffin watched the animals intently, gazing at giraffes, hooting at the meercats. The animals were great but I was more interested in everyone else's babies and baby gear.

Every Mom, baby and stroller in Alameda county were there. There were teensy newborns (newborn twins!) chubby five month-olds, Griffinish boos struggling in their strollers, skilled toddlers, preschoolers and one little girl who told all the other kids on the play structure that she was gonna be "God's girlfriend" when she grows up. There were Gracos, Maclarens, tons of double wides and even a Bugaboo Chameleon (those sell for $899- it does everything but your taxes!) Between that and the meerkats eating worms out of a pumpkin, our zoo trip was terribly exciting. I got the Bugaboo Mom's digits while I coveted her sexy stroller.

Griffin was entertained by the animals and kept wanting to touch them. Sorry honey, the Sun Bear does not want to be touched. I suspected the giraffe would be especially tempting since he often likes to chew on their heads- ask Sophie or the one he ripped off his mobile. Luckily there was a petting zoo and a pleasant little goat came over and presented his rump for Griffin to pet. Please ignore my asinine commentary. I really should shut up when I film the baby.


We topped the afternoon off with two rides on the carousel (one with Mom, one with Dad) and then a family trip on the dinky little train that goes around the zoo. As usual, Griffin looked traumatized by the merry-go-round and Jake and I looked like we had been drinking the KoolAid.


Whew. Jake and I were exhausted! Griffin, however, was so stimulated he refused to nap. Its tough being a baby. Or his parents.

Matroyshka Mayhem

Did I mention that Griffin is a guy? Even at eleven months he already enjoys knocking dolls over and bouncing them around the rug. Look at the glee with which he mauls the little nesting dolls and shows them no mercy. Nest this, beeyatch! Like a tiny Al Capone, he took them all out systematically, no one left to tell the tale. He even cleaved the ringleaders in two! Griffin is nothing if not thorough.

For Christmas I want to get him a nice doll to hang out with. Not a plastic baby doll, but a cool, cloth little boy doll to be his buddy. I have a little fella in mind for him. Hopefully it will curb his aggressive, mobish tendencies (he's a chip off the old block) and maybe having a doll may prepare him for the eventuality of a sibling (perhaps in 2010.) I'd like to get at least a week of solid, uninterrupted rest before I consider reproducing for a second time. It's the little things...

The Grudge

I know I keep making the baby/horror movie connection, and this may upset some people, but it's not my fault Griffin likes to make creepy noises.

Have you ever seen the movie "The Grudge"? This is the sound the monsters make when they are up to Very Bad Things. Griffin makes this sound when he is pleased with himself. So far he has not attempted to eat our brains or steal our souls (deadbydawn, deadbydawn) but I am keeping an eye on him. Mama has seen a lot of movies and I'm prepared to call the pediatrician at the first sign of demonic possession or zombie fever.

Lovely Miss Lilah

I know we're supposed to be blogging about our own babies, but I ran into this super-cute baby and her parents at a wedding and I just had to post it! Although, if Ave objects to public posting of her nursing, I will have to remove the photo. You can, however, just wait outside Tartine Bakery for a glimpse...
Not only is Lilah adorable, but she's also functional when it comes to feeding herself! Luckily the bride has some nice tatas, otherwise she might have felt upstaged by Lilah's Mom.

Baby Einstein

Not to brag, but Griffin reads at a fourteen month old level. He is a gentleman and a scholar. He knows how to turn pages and shout at the picture of the kitten and sometimes he even likes to taste his books. Griffin is a multi-sensory kind of guy. He likes to look closely at the animals and compare them, but he only talks to the cats- the tiger, lion and kitten. He doesn't have much experience talking to zebras and I hear they're easily offended.

As a primary educator, it pleases me to no end that my little ball of fire will sit and look at his books for upwards of seven minutes, even when he isn't confined to a chair. Seven minutes is an eternity for a ten month old! He'll be reading Tolkien in Kindergarten! Every teacher mom secretly fears that their kid will be the one in the back stuffing erasers up his nose, so I'm thrilled that Griffin digs his books. Sure he likes to lick them, but I think that qualifies as early phonemic awareness.

Caught on Tape: East Bay Devil Frog

The East Bay Devil Frog was recently spotted on an Oakland carpet. A local woman unfortunately provoked the dangerous creature and much whining ensued. Don't panic! Just as our intrepid heroine was charged by the enraged amphibian, he was distracted by a floor puff. She got away, but the floor puff wasn't so lucky.

Wild America

This is how many animals (and my husband) feed their young. I can see Jake and Griffin in a few years running barefoot and feral through the Northern California wilderness taking down small deer and various orchard fruits.

HOORAY!!!

Election night was highly exciting. Even though we'd already voted through the mail, Griffin and I walked down to the local polling station to watch the voters do their thing. We watched little old ladies and scantily clad teenagers (eighteen and a half) go into the church and cast their ballots. We talked to the nice NO on Prop 8 lady across the street. Basically, we just took it all in and took a break from CNN.

Jake was on his way into to town (he was sent up to Mendo to vote) and Joell came over with a bottle of Patron and a dozen limes. Griffin decided to stay up late until after the polls closed and sure enough, at 8:01, CNN calls the election for Obama! At that exact moment, Jake pulled up in the driveway and all the neighbors began hooting and whistling. Oakland was very festive. Despite a strong desire to celebrate with the community, Griffin needed a bath. Alas.

Impish? Who? Me?

Some folks have been saying that Griffin looks a bit impish and I have no clue where on earth they might be getting this idea. Don't all babies look like Yard Gnomes?

Incoming Griffin Montage

This is but a smidgen of our Goofy Griffin collection. There is no end to this kid's goofiness. I wonder where he gets it...