Changes

As usual, this period of blog inactivity paralleled a period of increased life activity in our family. In the month since I last updated, we've taken two trips (the first two excursions out of the bay area in a year and a half), and I've graduated from UCSF. A lot has changed in Ruby as well. She is much more verbal, now parroting back everything she hears and forming more-or-less complete sentences. She is far more active than she has ever been in her life. Even though in public or in unfamiliar settings she still prefers to sit stoically on my lap, at home or in comfortable surroundings, she is a constant pitter-patter of little feet. No matter where she is going, she has to run there, and if something gets her excited, she will break into a tap dance, twirling in circles and waving her arms.





This burst of development is bittersweet because it also marks the end of Ruby's "sweet baby phase." She now fits much better into the mold of a typical toddler: demanding, particular, and prone to occasional fits of whining or screaming. For several weeks I mourned the loss of my sweet, quiet baby who would only sit and passively observe. Now I am starting to come to terms with the fact that little Ruby is growing up, and with great power comes great responsibility, or something like that.

















While I will try to fill in the gaps of the last month, the next few weeks will also be filled with activity for us. Tomorrow Steve and I are leaving for our first overnight trip without Ruby. We are going to Vegas for Steve's 30th birthday! Steve is extremely excited. I am filled with both anticipation and dread. It has taken quite a lot for me to set my mind to taking this trip. I have not been away from Ruby for more than ~8 hours since the day she was born. However, in this moment, I feel the stars have alligned: 1) I know that this is the one gift Steve wanted for his birthday, 2) My parents are visiting for an extended period of time for my graduation and Ruby's birthday, 3) Ruby is not quite as fiercely attached to me as she once was, and she has developed a very comfortable relationship with grandma and grandpa. Therefore, I am confident that she will be OK. The dread is more in regards to how much I will miss her.

The birthday that may steal Steve's Big 3-0 thunder will be next week, when Ruby turns 2! We will have a joint birthday party for Ruby and Steve this weekend and will do some fun, as-yet-undetermined activity as a family on her birthday next Tuesday. These days I am wondering, how did we come to be the parents of a 2 year old???

These are only a few of the ways that our lives will be changing in the upcoming weeks/months. Hopefully I will have time to document the rest soon.