Baby Code Words

In the last month I've seen some friends who hadn't previously met Mira. On one occasion, I was at the library when I ran into an acquaintance who didn't know we had adopted. She saw me with Mirabelle and assumed I was babysitting. I told her about traveling to Africa and introduced her to my darling baby, who was busily dismantling the "Summer Reading" display.

"Wow," she said, gazing at me with a combination of awe and pity. "So how's that going?"

"It's great!" I said enthusiastically, as Mira went careening into a shelf of books. "She's really something!"

We chatted for another ten seconds. "She's quite a whirlwind," my acquaintance commented.

At that point I was compelled to cut the conversation short to intervene in the Puppet Corner, where Mira had stolen a sippy cup from a tearful preschooler.

"Gotta go!"

Naturally, Mirabelle charmed this woman with her incredible cuteness, as she charmed the other friends she met. Yes, everyone adores Madame Baby! However, I did notice a theme emerge from these encounters, which I call will Baby Code Words.

If you've bought or sold a home, you know that certain adjectives used to describe properties are really code words. "Cozy" means tiny. "Vintage" means outdated. "Motivated seller" means desperate. Etc.

Likewise, I believe certain adjectives used to describe babies (well, my baby) are actually code words. Here's how I imagine Mira would translate these benign adjectives often ascribed to her:

Adjective: Active
Baby translation: "I will run, trip, spin, hurl and stumble precariously near sharp corners to see how many times in a minute I can make your heart stop"

Adjective: Inquisitive
Baby translation: "I will taste-test every potentially toxic item I can get my hands on"

Adjective: Athletic
Baby translation: "Let's see if I can throw this plate far enough to break it"

Adjective: A real pistol
Baby translation: "If I don't get what I want immediately I will explode. My shrieking will reach decibels that make the dog howl, and I will easily outlast your feigned calm with my anger"

Adjective: Busy
Baby translation: "Foolish woman! I will now undo all the straightening up you spent the last hour doing"

Adjective: Firecracker
Baby translation: "You will begin to age in dog years from chasing after me"

And now, some recent pictures of the whirling dervish and her sibs...

Kelly Farm

Pool

How much does it cost to save a life?

How's $40?

Meghan is a fellow adoptive parent. The following is from her blog:

"Last year, for the first Plumpy Nut Ironman fundraiser we pooled our cash and scrounged under our couch cushions to raise $14,000 for Doctors Without Borders. Doctors Without Borders pledged to buy Plumpy Nut ---a nutrient dense energy food---to distribute to children in Ethiopia – children who were suffering from severe malnutrition. At $40 per child, we were able to create the resources to save the lives of 650 babies and toddlers! And because we raised this fund through the Ironman Janus Charity Challenge and placed in the top five fundraisers, WE WON ANOTHER $2,000---enough money to save another 50 kids. Working together, we were able to create a fund that turned around the lives of 700 children and their families and their futures. And it was important, Ethiopia was gripped by a severe food shortage last harvest season on account of very very late rains and a poor harvest."

Click here to read more (please!)

I had the opportunity to support Meghan's efforts last year, as did some family members and friends, and I was amazed and proud of the impact that was made. Seven hundred children! We are excited to support the Ironman event again this year and raise more money for Plumpy Nut. Mira is from southern Ethiopia, where some of the worst famine has occurred, so this drive is especially personal for us.

Click here to donate.

The Centipedal Incident

How can a centipede bring a grown woman to her knees?
Literally. Looking for it next to the baseboard. At 1 am.

Let me say first that I have HELD a giant African millipede, as well as a tarantula. (Yes, I'm shuddering looking at the images I am posting, but still. I did it). Granted, these events didn't exactly take place in the wild (the library had a bug exhibit) and I wasn't exactly in danger (Darren the Entomologist was keeping a watchful eye on the interaction - making sure I didn't harm the insects, actually, not vice-versa). But look how gross! See how brave I am!

The night of the centipedal incident, I went up to bed a few minutes ahead of Randy. I rounded the corner of the bed just in time to see a centipede scurry along the baseboard. I grabbed a book and lunged for him, but he was too quick (Naturally. A hundred legs to my two).

He wasn't the enormous, feathery-looking variety (commonly referred to as "the dust mop") sometimes spotted around these parts, but he was, nevertheless, an Enemy in my bedroom. I spent the next 15 minutes squatting eight inches from the scene of the crime, eyes trained on the baseboard, waiting for him to reappear. Then Randy came upstairs, investigated the baseboard with his pocket knife, and convinced me that the centipede had escaped.

Remember my post about my kids' fears and their resulting inability to sleep?

Forty-five minutes later I made Randy carry the pillows and blankets downstairs to the living room with me. I could not sleep knowing HE was nearby!

Time out for a reality check:

• Yes, I know I am 1069 times the centipede's size.
• Yes, I (grudgingly) admit that there are others hiding in the house.
• Yes, I know it actually can't hurt me.

The next day when I was telling my friend Maryanna about the three hours I spent vacuuming every inch of the bedroom and spraying "Home Defense Max" along the demarcation line, she laughingly asked if I'd been worried about the centipede crawling in my mouth or something while I slept. (Apparently she is comfortable snuggling up with the creepy-crawlies ala "Fear Factor"). No way! That jaw was clenched so tight I nearly had to pry it open the next day.

He's out there...

A Study in Sprinkler

Mira's first experience with the sprinkler. As usual, she exhibited no hesitation! (So different from her siblings. I think Ethan was like five before he'd run through the sprinkler...)

Wet - and liking it!