My love bug:

I know- I'm already starting to slack on this blog initiative! What an eventful last week to recap..

I took you to your four month check up and the results came in: you're absolutely perfect!! You weighed in at 16lbs which puts you in the 75th percentile of the average 4 month old babe. You're also in the 75th percentile for length and head circumference.. in case you're wondering. You still haven't gotten sick, which ::knock on wood::, probably means my anti-aversion to germs is paying off for the both of us. You bounced back pretty quickly after your shots too.We'll be back for some more of those when you're 6 months. Sorry!

We had a great weekend at a conference with our friends at the Krista Colleague Foundation for Global Citizenship. The weather, accommodations, food, and above all, company were fantastic. You made so many new friends! You charmed the women taking care of you while I went to talks and workshops on the topic of Going Public: Complex Faith within a Complex World. It's absolutely true- we live in a world of questions and very little answers. It's beautiful and painful, confusing, exciting... and so many other things. I'm sure you'll find you're place in it, though. So don't worry about challenges you might face. They'll only make you wiser and stronger.

Oh! Guess what you did yesterday?? I put you on your tummy and you ROLLED yourself over onto your back! Gaaahh! I almost died. I realized that the slight angle you were on and gravity had a lot to do with it.. but you basically did it on your own. You just know how to use your environment to get where you want to be! That's all. Great job :)

I'll make sure to post pictures of you tomorrow! Gotta wrap this up and join you in sleep land.

Love you, mi corazon

Mom

One more thing! Today an amazing woman left this earth. Please take the time to learn about her life and the wisdom she shared with love and grace. May Ms. Maya Angelou rest in power and peace.

Jamsie:

4 months ago, you were brought into this world at the University of Illinois in Chicago. It was 11:30am on a cold day during one of the most wintery of winters Chicago has seen in a while. We were both exhausted by the time you came out. Fuiste un precioso milago, y lo sigues siendo.

pedazo de mi corazon

your and dad's very first diaper change!

Today I see a handsome baby boy with an amazing future ahead of him.

Green Eggs and Ham all the way

Work it.

'nuff said.

Tonight I took you to hang out with some friends I'm connected with through Imago Dei Community Church. You were charming, of course, and so attentive to people who are speaking around you. I think you might start talking early so you can voice all those thoughts that must be going through your head. I cannot wait until we have our own conversations! I'm going to learn so much from you.

Oh! One more thing I need to share with you. Yesterday Oregon passed a law that allows two people of the same sex to have their marriage recognized under the law! I bet you'll have a hard time believing there was ever a time that two people's love wasn't respected under the law and by too many people out there. At least I hope that's the case. I like to think that we as people are moving towards attitudes that respect the dignity of every person, no matter who they are.

Love you papito.
Muah!
Mom

Jamster:

You, my friend, are not a newborn anymore. It's true- you're growing up! We visited our friends, one of which is only two weeks old, and you looked so big compared to her.

it's a baby!

You've now got amazing control of your head and prefer to be upright most of the time. Soon we'll be working on you rolling over on your own. It'll be a pretty big deal when that happens.

Did you know that about 90% of your things are gifts from people that love you?? Take that M&M shirt you've got on. Tia Tanya. And this outfit:

Lookin' good in stripes

Tia Tanya again! Your giraffe friend? Tia Martha. You've got more tias and tios in this world than you'll ever know.

airplane shirt by tio Kellen

chair from River City friends

fun pants from tia Talia

Bath robe from tia Shannon

,,,just had to make the comparison :0

outfit (incl your awesome winter hat)  from tia Mica

And so much more! We've got amazing friends and family in this world, James. Let's always remember to pay the love forward, ok?

Love you baby boy.

Mom

James:

What a great day we had! We got to see your tia Tanya and wish Mamdouh a happy birthday.

Happy Birthday Mamdouh!

Working on the walk with the help of tia

We also got tisit with our friends Martha, Brent and baby Mateo. And wrapped up your day by Skyping with dad! The sun was out and so were your smiles. I met a woman at the park who was carrying a one week old baby.. I can't believe you were that small at one point! Now I'm waking up next to a big little guy who is babbling, laughing, teething, grabbing and holding his head up all on his own. Speaking of teething.. that's basically your thing these days. Can't keep your fingers out of your mouth and your saliva in it! We can even see a little white peeking through your swollen little gum. Your gummy smile will be filling up quick.

I think there might be a tooth coming soon..

You're my very favorite :D Love you bud!

Love
Mom

My cub:

I took you to another gathering tonight.. what a busy week! This time the topic was Restorative Justice in our schools. Again, I was impressed at how polite you were the entire time. You were quiet for most of it and only got a little restless when you needed something. I'm so glad we understand each other well enough to take care of things quickly. We've really come a long way on that front. Oh and thank you for smiling at all the strangers that make all kinds of funny faces at you :) I don't think you'll have ever have a shortage of friends with that friendly demeanor of yours.

Tonight's talk got me thinking about the kinds of experiences you'll have growing up. I'm a little scared to put you in a public school.. but feel like there are many valuable experiences you might get in that setting. Valuable in a challenging type of way. My main concern would be that those challenges wouldn't necessarily help you learn the types of life lessons and skills I'd like you to have. It's a complicated situation, you see. For a long time, people of color haven't been treated the same as white people. In schools, in jails, in jobs.. in most places you can think of. They just haven't been given a fair chance to succeed in the same type of way. Why? There's not really a good reason, which is sad and frustrating. And this is the world you have been brought in to. But, you know, together we can figure out problems you might face as they come. And together, we can support other people around us that might be facing difficult situations also! I know we'll have plenty more conversations about this later on, so I'll leave it at that for tonight.

Today I really appreciated just how easily I (and anyone else who might be in the room) can get you to smile. You light up when people talk to you and it makes me so happy each time! I hope that's a quality that doesn't fade in you.

Love you munchkin.
mom

Morning smiles

After a long day

My Jam man:

Today we ran a little late to our first county budget meeting, so we didn't get a chance to sign up and talk about the importance of funding enrichment programs in our schools. BUT You were so great the entire meeting too (about an hour and a half!), no one knew there was a baby in the house until they saw your adorable little face.  And you were such a hit that commissioner Loretta Smith asked to take a picture with you afterwards! Everyone just couldn't get enough of your sweet smiles. Can't blame them!

I really can't tell you how much I love you smiling. And your laugh!! Makes me melt every time I hear it. We've been catching smiles of yours for about two months now, but it was a couple days after we moved to Portland (almost a month ago) that I heard your first real laugh and I almost died. I rushed to get my phone and captured the moment. I can't seem to upload the video on here, but I'll make sure to keep it safe for you to see one day.

Thank you for being such a joy, my little guy. Love you loads. 

Mom

 

 

4/8/14

5/13/14

James:

Today we survived a nearly 90 degree day! Big change from the epic winter you were born into just a few months ago. We got a chance to talk to dad on skype which you always love to do. You showed him you can sit up all on your own for about 3 seconds!! Then you topple over-- all on your own accord, I'm sure.

I wanted to share a couple pictures with you from Sunday. Our very first run together!

At the beginning

The End.

You were wiped out when we finished! And I just have to share one more thing with you.. you have all the qualities of a baby model. No joke. I'm not just saying that as your mother, I'm saying this as pure fact. Take a look:

Really?

The lounge

Tell me more.

Christmas in the spring.

Chicagoan in PDX.

Monkey'ing around.

Irresistible.

And there's plenty more where that came from!

Ok, baby. Hasta mañana cariño mio!

<3Mom

My Jamsie:

You are such a beautiful creature. Happy 16 weeks of life today!!

You're almost able to sit up on your own. You'll be sitting up like a pro in no time :)

Love you,
mom

Dear Jammer:

Today is my first Momma's Day :) I'm so proud to call you my son. As I reflected on the past sixteen weeks, I decided I want to record your first year of life through this blog so you can one day look back and read my daily thoughts and observations about you and your growth. Facebook just isn't cutting it on this front and my attention span for this type of project is too short for an actual scrapbook :\

The goal: post at least one picture or video of you a day and supplement with narratives. I'm thankful for every single day I get to spend with you. And I want you to know your story. I have some catching up to do since I'm starting three months into your precious young life, but I'll keep it simple for tonight.

Here is a picture of you when you were still growing inside of me.

Loved you from the very beginning :)

Mom