The Mamarazzi

May 5, 2008

As I write this, I can hear Gia on the baby monitor … loudly sucking her fingers. We’re trying to put her to sleep while she’s "drowsy but awake," so she can learn to self-soothe and fall asleep on her own. Oops – there was a tiny yell … and a whimper. I have friends with babies Gia’s age who sleep 7-10 hours at a stretch. Gia these days sleeps 4 hours at the most, and usually less. Last night I slept for about 4 hours, split up into 6 segments. Although that’s less sleep than I usually get, last night was sadly not unusual. Oh … there’s a lot of chatter and the cry. I’ll be right back.

Attempt #2 … so far, so good.

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May 7, 2008

The story of my current life is fairly constant interruptions. Writing about Gia is no exception. I feel behind most of my life these days, but know that that’s just a part of new parenthood.

Thankfully, the camera has been repaired. And the mamarazzi, as Drew has dubbed it, is back in action. Who can resist such cuteness? Obviously, not me! I’ve been crazy about taking pictures of Gia.

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May 12, 2008

Ok, now it’s been a week since I began this journal entry. That’s just silly! However, I must say that it’s been a busy week: We’ve had a Gia fan club visitor every day: Linda, the Batshaws, Laura, Mikki, Jeff and my Mom. That means she had time with all 3 grandparents in the same week! Looking back on the past week, we are so grateful for our family and friends, for their love and generosity and the joy that they bring to all of us.

Mark and Karen Batshaw came to visit for a few hours while on a layover in LA (on their way home to DC from Hawaii). They treated us to a lovely dinner ordered in, and Gia was happy to play with and be held by Ba (Mark), who was particularly disappointed during our trip to DC that Gia was not much interested in hanging out with those other than her parents. They held her, sang to her, helped give her a bath, and she was pretty darn happy all the while. We were delighted that we could have some quality time with them, and that they were willing to lengthen their already crazy long travel schedule to be with us. We can say for a fact that we would NOT voluntarily add an extra 6 hours to a trip all the way from Hawaii to DC, so we’re especially grateful for their willingness and generosity.

Another generous soul and friend of 13 years, Mikki, volunteered to babysit for a few hours last Thursday. Unfortunately, Gia was not interested in that. Fortunately, the four of us ended up having a wonderful afternoon together talking and hanging out … Mikki even went out and brought in a delicious lunch for us to enjoy at our own table. And, it inspired Drew and me to be creative about how we can give our relationship more time and attention.

And then, we had a big weekend: My mom (Nana) came to visit and we celebrated Gia’s 4 month-a-birthday as well as Mother’s Day.

My mom’s visit was very sweet; it seemed as if Gia remembered her, and they were mutually thrilled to be together. Maybe Nana’s energy was familiar because Gia soaked it up in her first two weeks of life. Anyway, Gia woke up in her carseat and looked at Nana (who I’d just fetched from the airport), and didn’t frown, furrow her brow, fuss or shed a tear. They had a little chat for the rest of the way home. We kept leaving Gia with Nana as we made dinner, cleaned up, etc., and it was almost as if she was with one of us. Except that Nana was perhaps a smidge more excited about playing with her.

The four of us celebrated Mother’s Day with a walk, brunch out at a neighborhood Italian restaurant, naps (for Amy, Drew & Gia), and dinner in. Drew and I also had the opportunity to leave Gia for the first time we can remember, and have a couple of hours on our own yesterday. We enjoyed a leisurely dessert and walk in Culver City, kissing on street corners and focusing on our relationship, and I enjoyed receiving the sweetest Mother’s Day card from Drew (and Gia).

The other important Gia updates: She’s certainly teething … she has her hand (or sometimes both) in her mouth most of the day and in most of her pictures. I’m personally a little bit scared of when she gets her first tooth and bites me. Ouch. She’s also getting really strong stomach and leg muscles … she likes to sit and stand (both assisted). In fact, she tightens her stomach muscles when she anticipates help sitting, and gets a big smile on her little face whenever we help her stand … as if she knows she’s done something to be proud of. She continues to smile, laugh, squeal and want attention, especially now that she’s more interactive and knows how fun it is to be with others. We’re inclined to give her all the attention we can … this first year is going to whiz by, and we intend to make the most of it!

You can bet that the Mamarazzi will be busy documenting as many moments as possible, and that the stream of pictures will continue now that we have our camera back! Thanks for checking in.