Oldies.

I tried last night to get a little bit of work done which meant that Nyssa and I sat around and looked at old video. We came across these oldies but goodies: It is amazing to think that these video's are just about a year old. Nyssa is not just different than she is here, she is a whole new species.



We've had a real break in the weather recently. We've seen the sun, and the temperatures have not only approached the 30's, they have occasionally surpassed them. Which is nice. We've been able to play outside, to shovel and even go for a walk or two.

Nyssa continues to be a great great great big sister. Although now that Leila is grabbing and sucking on things, Nyssa is a little less tolerant. She is also tiring of us telling her to be careful of Leila. And maybe we tell her that to often.?. Last night Nyssa was hugging and hugging Leila so that it seemed more like she was smothering her, and I said, "careful." to which Nyssa replied petulantly, "I was just hugging her."




Otherwise, we are pretty much just moving along. The nice weather and slightly longer days help. Katy bought Leila a scrap book over the weekend, and also began to write in the journal we got for her. These will be the first notes we leave for Leila about her early life...compared to the copious scribbling we did for Nyssa. Some of that is that I have moved my writing here, and elsewhere. But also, it is consistent with the theme, of my disassociation from Leila. It is, I think, a natural separation. I spend 85% of my family time with Nyssa, entertaining her, watching her as she falls asleep, telling her to knock it off and to sit up straight and the get that god damn toy out of her mouth, that I feel like I don't see Leila all that much. The time I do see her is from 9-11pm, when she is usually sleepy or asleep. That is changing, and will continue to change, but when I was away for the weekend, it was Nyssa that I thought about, felt guilty for not being with, and was most excited to see. Again, I think this is natural. I do think Leila knows who I am, I am not positive of this, but I think she does. But I don't think she really gets presence/absence yet. "Daddy!" she thinks, when I show up. "Ceiling!" she thinks when I go away.
Unless of course food is involved. We have not given her solid food yet. We will in the next couple of weeks, but she is completely interested in food, and follows whatever you are eating from plate to mouth. It is great fun to sit at teh table, Nyssa at the head of the table in her big girl chair, Katy and I sitting across from each other, and Leila sitting on top of the table in her Baby Bumbo watching the three of us eat. Eating is to family like seeds are to soil.
The pictures embedded to the right, are of Nyssa with our dog Macy. Macy is Nyssa's favorite, although, and maybe because, it does not exactly go both ways.
The next picture is my friend Sally's child, Maya, holding Leila at the Superbowl. The next one is of Maya and her sister Mesa. We spent Superbowl with them, and the girls got along really well. Maya and Mesa are fantastic hosts.