The World of Mackay

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...

Owen's been home for just over a week now, and things are going well. He's already gained a pound since he was born, and he's a very mellow little guy. Mackay is mostly ignoring him, perhaps hoping that he'll go back where he came from. She's had a few moments of evil, more than balanced out by doing things that melt your heart. In the car yesterday, Owen was being uncharacteristically fussy, and Mackay leans over and tells him 'We're almost home, baby.' She has also undone any angry parent karma (not that she induces much) with her favorite new phrase. After several weeks of us being gone at the hospital, she was sitting on my lap. She leaned back, gave me a little backward hug, and said 'Miss you.' Despite being a little groggy, we are settling into our new routines. I'd be remiss if I didn't pass along a huge thank you to my mom, who was chef, playmate, chauffeur, teacher and more to Mackay for the three weeks we were at the hospital....

I now understand why mothers with multiple children get a 'mom' haircut and stop all except absolutely necessary personal grooming. And Owen's not even home yet...

Mackay's world just got a whole lot more interesting. Her baby brother, Owen, was born (early, and unexpectedly, of course) on Thursday, October 8th. He weighed 5 pounds and was 19 inches long. As we did expect, Owen has a few hurdles to jump in his first few weeks, with surgery to fix some heart problems. We'll post more info as we know more, but please join us in sending positive thoughts his way. Mackay is already talking about 'baby Owen' - but we'll see how excited she is when she realizes he's not going back where he came from.

We made our second annual sojourn with Mackay to Arata Farms. She got to ride a pony, a little train, feed goats and, of course, pick out a pumpkin (or five). She enjoyed it all, and we're definitely ramping up for Halloween in Half Moon Bay!

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.

Bill and I are toasting marshmallows (Mackay's favorite treat) in our backyard fireplace. As usual, she is already wanting 'nother one' when she's barely taken a bite of her first. Bill explains, logically, that she can have another as soon as she's done with the one she has. Mackay hears this, pulls her marshmallow out of her mouth, looks around surreptitiously, and shoves it under her leg. Then she looks at us and says 'all done!' Who knew kids learn guile so early?