Santa 2013!

Not quite Santageddon, but Lucky #1 was on the verge of a meltdown the entire time...

And everybody, Santa included, complemented us on our "adorable baby boy!"

At least we got one keeper.

Loved this Kerrytown "quality" Santa!

And thanks to Susan K. Photography for the free snaps...

2013 Recapped

Lucky #1 and #2, Smokers and Sushi, Ops VP, Workin' for the Wolverines, Bunches of Sticky Bellies, Beaches and Bush Gardens, Two Years Young, FUN, 65 RAKs, Lucille Marie, Ann Arbor and Additions and All the Pretty Girls... Oh what a year.

The stats: Two month well-visit

Joint doctor visit on December 9. Maizey for an eczema check and a flu shot. Lucy for her two-month well-visit (two weeks belated) and first round of vaccines. (Obviously yes, we are pro-vaccine.) 

Proud weights...

 31.5 lbs. for M.

And, for L,

~12 lbs.

While Lucy was measured 

and stats were collected, Maizey and Dad (!)

 perused some quality reading material.

 Then it was Lucy's turn to chill while she waited for the doc.

A pose she's quite good at.

Not too long a rest though. 

Doctor Kendall appeared and demanded performance.

But, then more resting while big sis got checked out.

Errr, I mean, showed off her reindeer tattoo.

Then, a little QT on the examination table while waiting for the shot delivery.

Sisterly love.

Shots provoked tears but a boob (for Lucy, not Will) and promises of ice cream and a Scooby Doo band-aid, quieted the storm.

And the results?

Lucy is 23.5 inches long which puts her in the 75th percentile for height. Her bald melon is 15.5 inches, also a 75th percentile stat. At 11 lbs., 15.6 oz., she's right in the middle for weight - 50th percentile. She has awesome neck and trunk strength and super head control, but favors her right side so is at risk for torticollis. We were sent home with some physical therapy exercises and at the recommendation of pal Linda, I've started night nursing so she faces left. Seems to be working.

Sadly, she does appear to be dairy sensitive. Not lactose intolerant or dairy allergic. Just sensitive. When I eat milk or anything containing dairy, she isn't hurt - just fussy, gassy and not so great to be around. So, to make my life easier (and harder), I've eliminated nearly all dairy. BTW - seemingly everything processed (read fast, easy and caloric) contains dairy. Wheat bread, cereal, dill pickle potato chips... Needless to say there has been a lot of hummus in my life.

The good? Lucy is an awesomely happy, chill baby girl. Bald, but happy as a clam. Not to mention a super sleeper. And I've lost all my baby weight, plus some. (The visual state of the bod is a different story, but it's winter, so who the hell cares.) The bad? I'm hungry a lot. The sight of cheese pizza and eggnog shakes brings tears to my eyes. And I spend time thinking about food and label reading - not ideal leisure activities. 

The good outweighs the bad.

Really, Lucy is great.

On a side note, things around here have been a bit cuckoo. We are two weeks into renovations and calling Ann Arbor our temporary home. I returned to work this week and Will continues to log hellacious hours at the office. Maizey is not loving this and isn't afraid to tell us. And, did I mention it's the holidays?

More on the above later. Tomorrow we're Escanaba-bound so I need to get packin'.

Gobblers and Ho Ho Hos

The Saturday after Thanksgiving is the Milford Christmas Parade, and this year marked the third annual Gobbler Gallop 4-miler. For the Spurgeon household, it was our third  MCP, Maizey's second MCP, and Maizey and Will's first Gallop.

 It was Maizey's first race, so she was slightly dubious. 

But warmed up to the idea after a Santa Dada pep talk.

Lucy and I abstained.

On your marks. 

Get set.

GO!

This was moments before Will hollered to me: "The tires on this thing are completely flat!" Love him, but imagine my holiday joy when I was able to respond, "Not my problem!"

And 38 minutes later
(he blames the tires - I blame the pre- and post-partum supportive bowls of ice cream)...

Finished!
All jokes aside, I do see more races in the Spurgeon Family future.

After the race we went to meet up with our fave parade partner.

Jack. Future Milford Mayor.

Two years ago...

 And today...

 How fast time goes.

But the cluster $%& that is our parade group never changes.

Only compounded by the parade line-up occurring on our street.

 Come on everybody!

 Hustle. Hustle.

Stroller brigade.

Despite Maizey's recent obsession with The Grinch and the Whos, 

she didn't warm up to their human counterparts.

Can't really blame the girl though. 

As they were more Edward Scissorhands than Cindy Lou.

Good thing Milford has these two spunky gals,

keeping the Girl Scouts from Huron Valley extinction. 

Happily, unlike the memorial parade,

there was candy.

 costumed weiner dogs,

Jaclyn's family,

Bundled Lucy,

And Santa.
It was a fab kick-off to the holiday season.

P.S. As an aside, Will and I experienced our first "Where's my kid?" We were settling into our parade spot when I looked over at Will, expecting to see Maizey nearby. She wasn't. I hollered to him, "Where's Maizey?" He got a confused/panicked look on his face. We started scanning the crowd, looking for a purple-clad little person. Shouldn't be hard to find. But, she was. Hard to find. We couldn't find her. For about 2 minutes, with my heart beating increasingly faster, we searched the crowd for her. Calling her name. One of our tallish fellow parade goers spotted her about half a block away, alone, looking scared and lost. The emotion I felt when I saw her was unlike anything I'd experienced before. As cousin Molly said, "Parenting. Not for the faint of heart."

Why raising girls frightens me a little...

I'm a feminist. I want my daughters to be feminists. Unlike generations past, I don't fear that they will face glass ceilings in education or the workplace. Instead, I fear they will equate sex with success. That their body image will determine their self-worth and self-love.

It's a problem I had, and still have, but I like to think I entered adulthood relatively unscathed. The question now, is, how do I help my daughters share my experience?

All the fixins

Finally, a week after the feast, I've discovered time to add some pics to our online diary.

So of course, I loaded up my Canon for our Thanksgiving gathering at Grandma Katie and Grandpa Bills, only to snap about five photos, then drink too much beer and forget I needed to "capture moments." Luckily, Uncle Paul was there to snap some shots - though unfortunately even my editing skills can't repair the disco eyes or step up the resolution of his camera...

 

It was a grand gathering, and may have marked the last big turkey dinner at the Woodsboro home. Bill and Katie believe they will be permanent Lake City residents this time next year - quite a change. But, fun to think of creating new memories in the updated cottage.

Speaking of updates... part of the reason I've been short on time is our looming home renovation. Finally. Come Monday the rough carpenters move in and we move out. Talk about amping up the stress during an already stressful season! Happily, we'll have a home in Ann Arbor to call our own. Temporarily.

Stay tuned!