Coffee from a Reusable Ceramic Mug

I think Clair is tying to laugh. She is still working with the fine points of diaphragmatic control so it comes out as a loud squeak, but she is smiling when she does it, so I think it is an attempt at laughing. Observe

One of my New Year rituals is to back up the previous years digital photos and remove all but my favorite photos from that year from my hard drive. I usually end up reminiscing back through the favorite photos from the previous years as part of this process. As I am organizing things, I thought it would be cool to post the one favorite photos from each year 2000 and up as I didn’t have digital photos before then). I managed to find one favorite from 200, 2001 and 2002, but once I got to 2003, I just couldn’t narrow it down to 1 any more!! There are just too many photos that mean something special to me. So, I got up to 2005, and here is what I have…

2000

2001

2002

2003 - this is where I couldn’t pick just 1

2004 - Even worse! it was a busy year

2005 - One big thing happened this year. We got married

from this article written by one of Reagan’s staff back on the day. It is meant to discount the way many in the GOP have hijacked Reagan’s name to justify their anti-government rhetoric.

Reagan, who spent 16 years in government, actually said this:

“In the present crisis,” referring specifically to the high taxes and high levels of federal spending that had marked the Carter administration, “government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.” He then went on to say: “Now, so there will be no misunderstanding, it’s not my intention to do away with government. It is rather to make it work.” Government, he said, “must provide opportunity.” He was not rejecting government, he was calling — as Barack Obama did Tuesday — for better management of government, for wiser decisions.

There is another nice quote in there - “Certitude is the enemy of wisdom.” I’ll have to remember that one. It is at the heart of scientific thought.

Modeling the new suit!

A little skeptical about the water…..

It’s not that bad! It’s kind of like a big bathtub!

That was a lot of activity - time to sleep.

It was 1998 in Rome Italy. After celebrating my first Passover with my roommates, my boy friend and my roommates brother, I had a brilliant idea. I would finally cut off my hair! This though had actually been a long time coming, but the wine from all of the toasting (the Jews know how to have a holiday!), gave me a bit of courage. The constant attention from the Italian men in the weeks prior also helped encourage me to do it for nothing else then to be able to hide from their attention.

It was liberating, and I suggest every woman have a time in their lives when they get to radically change their appearance. After we sent the guys to their hotel, my two drunk friends and I got down to business. The results were awesome! Not because it was a good cut (the job entailed 2 inch log scissors and buzz clippers) but because I felt like it some how represented a transition.

I was right. Shortly afterward (after a stop in Germany where a Frisuer repaired the damage as best she could and left me with very little hair) I graduated from college and went on to Grad school and a new life in California. It really was the beginning of a lot of things for me.

So, after a very big year, I started having that urge again. Not to mention that the amazingly thick head of hair gifted to me by pregnancy is now shedding, and beautiful little hands are often wrapped in it. So, last week, I went to chop my hair off again. Thus time, though, I was sober and at a salon - not nearly as much fun as Passover, I must say.

Part way through the cut I had this feeling - this would not end well. A few good things did come from my decision to mark this new transition:

• My hair feels great (as long as there is no mirror around). it is WAY out of my face
• It is something totally different and fulfills the craving I had to mark this big transition somehow.
• When my hair does fall out from the hormonal changes, it doesn’t leave quite as much mess
• Every time Mattias sees me, he laughs - It makes me happy that he is amused. After he laughs, he usually says something like, “Seriously, let your hair grow back out.”

I, personally, think it looks like a cross between Olivia Newton John circa “Let’s get Physical” and the male Eloi from “The Time Machine” (1960). Needless to say, it is not my best look. I’ll post some photos once I figure out how to properly showcase this do.

From my friend Brian’s Facebook album: “America. Is there anything we can’t do? A semi-infinite line of portapotties along the reflecting pool.” He made it to the inauguration and (wisely) decided to sty on the far end of the Mall where there was plenty of space and, apparently, plenty of portapotties.

Clair and I watched Obama become President! CNN had this thing where they asked people at the inauguration to take a photo of ‘The Moment’ and send it to them. We aren’t there, but I took a photo of the moment from here. Clair must have liked what Obama had to say because she made a big poo during his speech! Then she cried when Bush lifted off in the helicopter - maybe she is a Republican!

Here is Clair’s preferred finger sucking protocol. I forgot to mention that she holds her face with her right hand as she sucks on the fingers on her left hand. It must be in her genes. Matthias holds his head when he sleeps quite often too! DNA is cool.

Here she is complaining about the injustices of the world or at least, that’s what I imagine she is complaining about. In reality, I suspect it’s something like “I’m hungry.”

Literally. Clair had some kind of freakish growth spurt today, and she nursed 10 times! They say that, at her age, she drinks between 5 and 8 ounces per feeding. With ten feedings, that’s between 50 and 72 ounces!! That’s like two Big Gulps worth of milk I produced today!! They were producing milk like crazy yesterday, and I couldn’t figure out why. I had to pump twice just to relieve the pressure. Could they have known this was coming? I am learning that they are a lot smarter than I ever would have believed. Boobies - is there anything they can’t do?

This all probably means that I will be awake around 3:30 AM starving. I had a huge helping of Asparagus risotto tonight, so may that can hold me over.

No wonder I felt tired and stupid all day (it’s good to have an excuse for that once in a while).