Here I am

The continuing combination of travel and whatever is wrong with Dylan's digestive system is kicking my butt. I really like to post every day and put at least some thought into it, and this is the first time in a while I really haven't been able to do that without cutting into my sleep. Sadly, sleep always wins. In lieu of thinking, here are a few more pics from NYC.

Those little piggies

Dylan is generally in a good mood, but the not sleeping has caught up with even her, so the car trip down was a cranky crankfest. She has also been particularly clingy with me lately, to the extent that when I switched seats with Aaron so I could drive and put an end to several hours of carsickness she screamed and pathetically reached for me until I reached back and held onto her foot. For the next 45 minutes.

We finally figured out that making plans during our trips here usually results in more stress and less fun, so friends who want to see us may find us impossible to pin down. We are, however, usually willing to receive visitors in Aaron's dad's apartment. Call now, appointments book up quickly. We made a rare exception to this policy last night and actually went out to a bar in Brooklyn after Dylan went to bed. I am so desperate to get to bed lately that I started twitching at the thought of going out, but we actually had a lot of fun. Let it be noted here so I can receive credit for leaving the house in the evening at least once this year.

Your Moment of Zen: Snuffany and his Sniffany pillow

December 28, NYC

More lameness

I'm sorry for the lack of content. Dylan has been up because of gas for an average of two hours every night for the past six weeks and we are all so exhausted we can barely function. The travel on top of that is nearly doing us in. Therefore the blog today has been taken over by propaganda, with sinister forces again advancing their relentless agenda of promoting empirical legal studies.

We're back in Ithaca for the evening after a whirlwind 24-hour jaunt back to Rochester. Tomorrow it's on to NYC.

Christmas Day, Ithaca

Christmas Eve, Tully

Lame non-post

Sorry adoring public, I'm too tired to post anything interesting this evening. But for you fans of empirical legal studies, a hot news item.

Dylan hung out with every single one of her aunts and uncles today. And some assorted grandparents.

Get your lighters out

AND NOW...


I PRESENT YOU WITH...


DUM DUM DUM...



THE LIFETIME ORIGINALS

And the fans who adore them

Creative differences and raging drug habits are already threatening to derail this brilliant collaboration, but we're all pulling for them.

Sort of boring days of our lives

Longtime readers may remember our epic road trip during this time last year, Days 1 through 13. In reading through last year's entries I notice that, despite our enlightening spiritual progression throughout 2007, our lives in many ways have not changed. We are still playing the Wii fairly often, Dylan is still in size 3 diapers, and we still spend much of our days shoveling food into our pie holes.

We are doing a similar road trip this year, and in the next couple weeks Dylan has been slated to have quality family time with every single family member who lives in or is visiting New York State. Uncle Zach flew into Rochester and spent a couple days with us, where he got to witness the traveling circus that is our lives. Anyone who has ever seen us pack up our car for an overnight trip will be impressed to learn that we managed to fit a whole extra person plus stuff in the car for the trip from Rochester to Ithaca. Dylan is very cautious of men, and despite hours of happily playing with her uncle, every time they were separated even briefly she became deeply suspicious when she saw him again. I think they're buddies now though. I noticed that the teachers were FAR more interested in talking to me when I brought uncle Zach to daycare for a s'more party (attended by: us, the children, the teachers).

We had some crazy rain today, the kind where it looks like a car wash outside and you get soaked if you even think about going out in it. It looks like there is going to be some real flooding since all the snow is melting too.

Annie made us a traditional Moroccan tajine for dinner last night. It was amazing, although less so when I saw the 3/4 empty bottle of oil that went into it. Mmm, tajine. I have yet to decide whether that makes up for her starting every sentence with, "As someone who lives in Africa and helps the children..."

Out of Africa

The Brave Little Toaster That Couldn't

Everyone who has been in our kitchen in the past couple years has run the risk of being subjected to my simpering praise for the toaster oven. It cooks in half the time! It's beautiful! It gives massages! Well, that's all over now. It stopped working the other day in a plume of burning rubber, and we haven't been able to figure out what's wrong. Maybe it's the bears. Or something.




Luckily we have a big, beautiful backup toaster because that's what happens when you get married.

BabyFatReport 12.19.07

Head circumference: 46cm, 45th percentile
Height: 31.5in, 75th percentile
Weight: 20lbs 15oz, 20th percentile

This was a little different from Dylan's usual well child visits, which are like, "She's really cute!" "Yeah, she knows it." We spent the first half going over last week's fun little episodes and the second half with me like "please please please help me figure out what foods she's allergic to." This led directly to a large blood draw and a referral to an allergist, so I'm hoping we can sort things out over the next few weeks.

She didn't get any shots this time because she had them a couple weeks ago as part of the vaccine study she's in. She looked like a little punk after that though. And yes, that's my hairbrush.