Even though you're my summer baby, you're entering into one of my favorite seasons -- autumn. With autumn comes cool breezes, mild temperatures, and brightly colored leaves. This weekend, we went to the Farmer's Market with your Pop pop, Mimi, Aunt Barbara, and Cousin Lennox. There, we got to see the beauty of autumn first hand. Everywhere you looked you could see the evidence of autumn -- fresh apples, apple cider, and pumpkins upon pumpkins!
My Lil' Punkin Head
When you get older, I hope you enjoy autumn as much as I do. I see lots of fun things to do in your future, missy. Visits to the pumpkin patch, drinking warm apple cider, and jumping into leaves... Ah, it is a beautiful time of year. A season of change. Come to think of it, you are much like autumn because you have brought change into my life and made me a mommy. Thank you eternally...
On Oct. 8, 2011, we celebrated your 100 day birthday. In Japan, it is known as a Weaning Ceremony or First Meal Ceremony. From what I've read, it began because in ancient times, babies rarely made it to 100 days, so when they did, it was cause for much celebration. To celebrate your okuizome, you were presented with your first real meal. Of course, at three months, you couldn't really eat it, but the meal symbolized a blessing that you would never go hungry for the rest of your life.
Originally, when I asked your Mimi about okuizome, she said that in Okinawa, they just take pictures of babies on their 100 day birthday (see mommy's okuizome photo below).
But mommy wanted to do more for you. For this special occasion, mommy did research about the ceremony and even ordered you a custom kimono for you to wear at the event. When it came it in the mail, I was so pleased. You looked perfect.
Your Mimi and Aunt Barbara did most of the cooking that day and prepared a delicious meal for you of fish, kinpira gobo, miso soup, sweet rice with azuki beans, a pickled plum, and a stone. The fish, with its head and tail intact, symbolized that you would have a strong neck to hold up your head. The kinpira gobo represented happiness or joy. The miso soup and pickled plum symbolized that you would have a long life. The sweet rice and azuki beans represented loyalty and diligence. Finally, the stone symbolized that you would have strong teeth.
At an okuizome ceremony, a grandparent or elder, usually presents the baby with her first meal. In your case, your Mimi presented the meal to you. By presenting the food to you, she blessed you with the energy of a long, healthy life.
We hope you have a long, happy life filled with many blessings, sweet Izzy, for you've certainly blessed mommy and daddy just by being our daughter.
You are now three months old. Within the last couple of weeks, you've been honing some new talents.
The first talent is what mommy and daddy like to refer to as "finger toes." At first glance, you look like you have normal baby toes. But upon closer inspection, if someone tries to touch the ball of your foot... BAM! Like a venus fly trap, your toes come down to grab an unsuspecting finger. It's really quite amazing.
Your ability to grab things with your toes is almost monkey-like... And when I say monkey, I mean this kind of monkey:
The second talent you've been working on is hand munching. About a week or so ago, you discovered you had hands. At first, you were using them to grab toys or mommy's hair, and mommy and daddy were quite impressed.
But somewhere along the way, you decided your hands were also delicious (in an almost gluttonous kind of way).
Along with your new love for the taste of your hands, mommy and daddy have noticed that no matter how many times you make yourself choke by trying to eat your hands, you keep trying to stick your entire fist into your mouth. Daddy even watched you gag and spit up all the while keeping your entire hand in your mouth. It hasn't clicked for you yet that when you start to choke, you should probably remove your hand. Mommy's going to keep an eye on this development to make sure you don't grow up to be that weird kid everybody talks about...
Ah, forget it. If you're weird, you're weird. We've all got our weird thing. (Just ask mommy about her double-jointed fingers or ask daddy how he sleeps with his legs bent straight up.) Love you my little monchchichi.
Lately, you've been daddy's girl. I can already tell that there is a special bond growing between the two of you. On Thursdays, daddy has the day off and watches you while mommy works. On those days, I come home to find you both happily hanging out together. I watch the way you look at daddy and follow him with your eyes and squeal in delight. It's so sweet. And now that it's football season, sometimes I come home to find the two of you watching football as well. Daddy is already raising you to be a little Wolverines fan.
When daddy told me that you liked watching football, I was skeptical. But when a game has been on TV, I have noticed how intently you like to watch the games. In fact, you start to kick and whine when a commercial comes on, and you stop when the game comes back on.
Mommy wasn't raised to like or even follow sports, so to see this early joy you have in sports is fascinating. Maybe one day you can teach me how to appreciate them more.
Now that you're getting bigger, mommy and daddy have been doing more and more tummy time with you. Mommy read somewhere that babies that practice tummy time regularly develop the muscles needed for crawling. You can't be a blob forever, so the least mommy and daddy can do is give the training you need to crawl. Cue the Rocky theme song...
Last Thursday, mommy and daddy took you to get your two month old immunizations. We had been dreading this appointment for a while. If you're anything like mommy, I hate needles! During the whole appointment when the nurse and the doctor were performing their checks of your weight, height, head size, and motor skills, I kept thinking, "Oh, my poor baby... She doesn't know what's coming..."
An unsuspecting Izzy at the pediatrician's office
The doctor was happy with your development. Here were your stats:
Weight: 12 lbs. 5 oz. (75%-90%)
Length: 22.25" (50%)
Head Circumference: 40 (90%-95%)
After speaking with your doctor, the nurse came back in to the room to administer your immunizations. She gave you an oral vaccination first which you seemed to enjoy. Then, she asked that I hold your arms down so that she could administer the shots. I held your arms as you laid on the patient table, smiling up at me.
"Just remember that mommy loves you," I said.
Shot one. You furrowed your brows.
Shot two. You started squirming around vigorously.
Shot three. Your face turned red, you wailed, and tears streamed out of your eyes.
I scooped you up and held you in my arms and nursed you for a bit to help ease your pain. (My poor baby.) Soon, you returned to your normal self. The nurse gave you some bright cheery Band-aids which helped mommy and daddy remember what areas of your legs not to touch for a while.
You survived!
Mommy had to go to work that day, but daddy stayed home and took care of you. Your legs were pretty sore that day which made you very grumpy and unhappy. That's the day daddy learned that grape flavored children's Tylenol for infants is your friend.
We have to take you back in two more months to get more shots... We haven't broken the news to you yet. Until then, we'll just live in denial.
