The World of Mackay

The rains (and thunder, and hail, and lightning) seem to have finally gone away. They have apparently done wonders for Mackay and Owen, though - who are growing like proverbial weeds. Owen's now over 15 pounds, and while it's likely he'll need to have at least one more surgery at some point in the next year or so, he's doing well now. He is, quite frankly, the happiest baby I've ever met. He keeps busy commando crawling his way around the floor, and smiling at his big sister, who he thinks hung the moon. Mackay is mostly a joy, when she's not doing her daily imitation of the demon from the exorcist. This stops when they are three, right? We let her watch Sesame Street and Dora on our laptops occasionally, but because we almost never watch 'real' TV, she is totally unclear on the concept of commercials. Regardless, her favorite show is Spongebob Squarepants (yes, I know she's only 2). Bill was recently watching this with her on the big TV, and a comm...

A few months ago, Mackay walked by her dad in an unpleasantly stinky state, and Bill asked her, in the phraseology of her grandfather Rule, "Do you have a turd in your pants?" To which Mackay responded, "A turtle?" Since then, it has become an inside joke in our house when we need to change Mackay's 'turtle-ish' diapers. Today, Bill informed me that things have evolved, and the new lesson during diaper changes is 'Don't touch the turtle.' Ick.

If you ask Mackay how old she is, she will tell you definitively either 'five', or (inexplicably) 'two more months'. In either case, she is officially two years old -- with daily bouts of throwing herself dramatically to the floor to protest anything denied to her to prove it. She received some wonderful birthday gifts, including a karaoke machine from Papa John, a tricycle from Nana, her own 'puter' (aka DVD player) and perhaps her favorite gift -- a chocolate cupcake. Some milestones: she has officially moved from her crib to a 'big girl' toddler bed - which she seems to enjoy. However, on night two of being in her new bed, she managed to fall out of it. Fortunately it's only about 12 inches to the carpet. She seems undeterred and continues to climb into her new bed each night without concern. On the little brother front, Owen is officially a month old -- and has already gained two pounds, perhaps setting a record for newborn weight gain. Every da...

We recently made the trek to Graeagle to help celebrate my step-dad Ron's 75th birthday. Mackay, who now sings 'Happy Birthday Papa Ron' anytime the word 'birthday' is mentioned, got to get up close and personal with one of her favorite machines -- a motorcycle! We could hardly get her off of it.

I keep trying to tell her that dancing on tables is NEVER a good career move - especially when you have a feather boa...

Mackay has learned to stamp her feet. At first, it was part of her dancing. Any time she hears music (radio, tv commercials, even her dad's off key ditties), she gets this look of absolute joy. She sort of hunches her shoulders, bounces up and down, and begins to randomly stamp one foot. Sadly, she lacks any sense of rhythm, and would not look out of place in the backwoods of the Ozarks. (No offense to any of you Ozarkians out there.)  She also seems to stamp when she's excited, or she discovers a new surface (a towel on the floor, a manhole cover, a rug...) She gets both feet going really fast - frankly doing a passable impression of Jennifer Beals in Flashdance. More recently, she has started stamping when she's mad. If you take something away from her, she lets out an ear-piercing screech, balls her hands up into furious little fists, and stamps her foot for emphasis. I have to turn away when she does it, because if I laugh at her, it only makes her madder. I thought the...

A note to my beautiful daughter on her first birthday.  I can't believe it has been a year since you fought your way into this world. We knew you would be strong based on the odds you overcame just to get here. In addition to strength, you bring focused determination (can't imagine where you got that), feisty humor, and pure joy to everything that you do. Words can't describe the happiness that you bring to everyone around you.  For your birthday, we had a celebration, mostly to thank everyone who has supported you in your first year (and us, before you were born). You had friends and family here to give you kisses, and you received birthday wishes from many who live too far to travel, including family, friends, and the nurses who cared for us in the hospital. We are so very, very lucky.  As one might expect, your birthday was not without its ups and downs. We had lots of laughs with the fantastic Pinata your  Godmother Rosi brought for you. We had a few tears when partygoe...

Mackay is definitely fascinated with Halloween. She loves the pumpkins, but even more, she loves the witches. These are the witches... Mackay calls them "hhthhhhh", which generally coincides with a large volume of drool escaping her mouth. But she loves for us to hold her up to the fireplace mantle and show them to her.

For those of you familiar with Half Moon Bay, you know that October is the busiest month of the year. Some 350,000 people come to the 'Pumpkin Capital of the World' to eat, drink, ride ponies, enjoy the Pumpkin Festival, and of course, select those strangely compelling orange gourds. Mackay was in her element among the crowds at Arata Farms, and she discovered her very own Pumpkin Throne. And with our friends Jen, Lawrence and Sophie, we're proud to say we managed to complete the hay maze. Mostly by accident. And don't ask us how long we were in there.

Mackay is going to be a bee for Halloween this year - though I'm going to have to drug her to get her to wear her antennae.

She started this week with a few wobbly steps. Now, she's taking 10-12 at a time, usually while trying to carry something heavy and awkward. Here's a picture on the day of her first Cal football game in the outfit my mom bought her -- and no, she will NEVER be a cheerleader.

As I was wiping banana off my clothes and my daughter's face this morning (she has discovered the art of blowing raspberries, and is determined to practice it while she is eating,) I was struck by how 'normal' everything seems. And I was reminded of how amazing the journey was to get her here. Mackay was a twin. While I was standing in the kitchen one morning last July, my water broke. I was about 18 1/2 weeks along. I'd like to say that I handled this crisis with some sort of control and dignity, but I was an absolute blubbering wreck. A dear friend drove me to the hospital, picking up my husband, who had just stepped onto a BART train, on the way. The perinatal doctor on call determined that my water had only broken for one twin (our son), but that the other baby's amniotic sac was still intact. They gave us 0% chance of survival for the boy, and less than 5% for the girl. In fact, one doctor told us that our best chance of a successful delivery was to terminate a...

We moved. And I don't think I will ever do it again. It turns out that after 11 years in the same house, you accumulate a huge amount of crap. And the even more amazing thing is, I packed more boxes of clothing for my 6 month-old daughter than I did for myself. Anyway, after two days in the new house, I think we have uncovered most of what we need to live comfortably. We have a few dishes, wine glasses, the coffeemaker, some clothing (except Mackay - who has A LOT), a toothbrush... What do you suppose is in the 75 boxes that are still in the garage? But after a day of putting her new crib together (kudos to Pottery Barn for having decent instructions), Mackay's room is now the only clean and tidy spot in the house. Maybe I'll sleep in her crib tonight.