On June 18, the day after Theo's nine-month birthday, mother and son
hit the road for an east coast visiting extravaganza. With a carry-on
suitcase packed completely wrong for maneuvering in an airplane seat
while wearing a baby, we set out on our great adventure. As Jon was
homeramping up for his finals week, Theo and I floated across the country toward our first stop: Grandma Bobbi and Papa Kevey. Aren't they adorable?
We
had a glorious time steeping in the natural paradise of their home and
grounds, which both Theo and I were experiencing for the first time. We
saw some beautiful beaches and scenery, ate some fabulous meals, and
Theo spent some quality time watching Saturday Night Life with PapaKevey while Grandma Bobbi and I were out at a movie!
Next stop: Zeda Bryan (that means "grandpa" in Yiddish; he's
pictured later), who was meeting his grandson for the first time! It
was love at first sight for those two. We spent a few days relaxing,
eating, and admiring Theo's antics, including his persistent andirresistible flirting with pretty much everyone we came into contact with.
Next, we headed to see Tanta Marielle with her sweet sixteen-day-old
daughter Bryn (who is discreetly tucked away in the sling over
Marielle's belly in the photo below) and cousins Jack and Shane. What a
thrill it was to meet the perfect, petite little beauty of a being, and
to spend time with her adoring, so-grown-up big brothers. Sadly, we
didn't get to see Dada (Matt) who was at work.
Theo covered a lot of ground at the playground, racing on all fours
toward each group of kids, which led to his first scrape. We spent some
time drumming on the bottom of the slide. And of course he did his
requisite pulling up on everything stable and not-so-stable.
Next day: Jayne and Craig's house, where we enjoyed a boy-fest with Jayne's three sons Ravi, Lee and Cary, Marielle and her two boys (and the sleeping, snugly
Bryn), Robin and her older son Ben. My mom stopped by, and so did
Jayne's brother Ross, who was one day on the other side of his medical
school residency.Sadly, Marci and her girls could not be with us, as Hannah was sick.
Throughout the course of the day, I got a snapshot of days-to-come with the nonstop action of BOY-DOM. This
photo is representative of the blur of motion that was our day until
Theo and I, completely delighted and overstimulated, fell asleep
together on the couch. (This is Craig trying to contain the wildfires
of Cary and Theo!) I regret not taking more photos of our time
together...I must have been too busy visiting, eating, and admiring so
many beautiful children.
While
we were in New Jersey, Theo and I stayed with the Brandies family.
Robin, Alan, Benjamin and Max welcomed us into their baby-wonderland
home where Theo and I felt very much at home and very well cared for.
Theo enjoyed sampling an entirely new universe of toys and gave each
one a good chew.

But more importantly, he made his first baby friend: Max. Max is six
weeks older than Theo and full of chutzpah. When Theo first met him, he
hit Max in the face and pulled his hair--friendly, exploratory
violence. Then Max yanked a few toys out of Theo's hands--the acquired
skill of a younger brother who must defend his turf. Initiated into the
realm of friendship with a few tears, the two eventually figured out
that following each other around and playing with the same stuff was
pretty cool. This series of photos shows the dynamic duo in action. As
you can see, they're considering here a break-out of baby gate jail.

This photo just melts my heart. Look at those sweet little noggins so earnestly pressed together.
I just love this photo of Robin and Ben. I last saw Ben when he was a few months old; he's blossomed into a beautiful, kind, compassionate little person who offers his brother Cheerios, snuggles
enthusiastically with his mommy, knows exactly what he wants and how to
ask for it. I now have the sound of his new voice and words chiming in
my ears from all these miles away.
And Alan, dear Alan. Accomplice to and initiator of many acts of kind generosity. Here he is hugging Theo on the floor.
And here's Uncle Alan with Cousin Max.
Check out the intensity of these boys discovering a toy together.

While in New Jersey, I had a very special event which I regret not
photographing. My east-coast book tour consisted of a single reading at
theMarlton , NJ Barnes & Noble. The event was basically a friends
and family reunion, attended by my dearest of friends, their families
and my beloved teacher Mr. Carr. Marci and Ben andMalini traveled from quite a distance to be with us. I was grateful and honored. It was sort of like a bat mitzvah
or wedding, without the food and fanfare, vows and torah portion. It
was just fun. I felt so loved and supported. And I laughed so loud, for
so long, in the coffee shop section of the bookstoreafterward that I thought they might ask me to leave.
This brings us to the last leg of our trip -- a drive with Zeda
Bryan to Aunt Linda's and Uncle John's home at Bethany Beach where we
visited with my mom and Kevin, cousins Shari and Tom and their
daughters Lara and Cole, and cousins Daniel and Ellen, and their kids
Joe and Anya. Anya is five days younger than Theo, and those cheeks and
curls are just delicious. The babies did much parallel play...
Look at that precious face!
Lara
was quite excited about her second-cousin supervisory role of Theo. She
encouraged him to walk, supervised his play, and helped him with hisbinkie.
We
spent some leisurely time on the porch enjoying the extraordinary view
while Theo got passed around to his beloveds. Here he is with Grandma
Bobbi.
Cole started weaving her tote bag while explaining to me everything I'll ever need to know about geology.
And here's Zeda Bryan, snuggling his newest grandson! The two really resemble each other; I didn't understand that until seeing them together. Plus, Theo has inherited from his zeda a head size of stratospheric scale and an appetite to match!
Cousin Joe thought it was really cool to sit in a bucket, and Theo thought it was really cool to shake his pink shaker.
Lara helped her cousins be cool.
Are those faces beautiful, or what?
What
a pleasure to get time to catch up with cousin / Uncle / Doctor Daniel.
Now that I am a mom, it's especially fun to pepper him with my various
baby questions, as he's a gifted pediatrician.Thanks to our early-rising children, we took a leisurely 6:30 a.m. stroll to the beach together with Aunt Linda and our kiddos. Being outside in the cool beauty of morning together was one of the highlights of this visit.
And here's Aunt Linda with Joe. They're making each other giggle, as usual! I've heard so much about her relationship with Joe and it was a treat to finally see the two in action!
John,
dear Uncle John. To give you a sense of his place in the hearts of our
family, he wears a beaded necklace that Cole made for him celebrating
their relationship as well as John's various interests. When I asked
Joe what his favorite game is, he answered back in a dramatic stage
whisper, eyes wide with sincerity, "Grandpa John."
Theo explores the toy bucket.
Theo took a special
liking to Aunt Shari, who was extremely helpful in playing with and
supervising him when I needed a few minutes to myself. It's always a
treat to get in-person time with Shari, though the kiddie chaos made it
a little harder than usual to carry on an adult conversation amidst the
play!

Shari helps Theo with his bucket!
Lara helps Shari help Theo!
What
a whirlwind adventure it was visiting with so many special family and
friends! I learned a great deal about how not to travel with a baby
cross-country and came home more exhausted than I was after three days
of labor--but on far fewer drugs!
Theo and I are settling back into life at home as we adapt to our
time zone and sleep cycles in the comfort of our own beds once again.
As a working mother, I feel incredibly privileged to have had 12 days
of around-the-clock Theo time. It was such a pleasure to discover
nuances of his personality and temperament through the many different
situations, challenges and delights we experienced along the way. I
have such a deep respect for this little radiant being who is my son.
His physical and social grace, his hunger for knowing his world through
touch and taste, his quick humor and illuminating smile are the most
precious of gifts. I marvel at his evolution from infant intopersonhood. And I'm grieving a bit being back at my desk while he plays downstairs with Savannah.
We're missing you all already and can't wait to be with you
again--hopefully on our turf, next time! Come one, come all to the
paradise that is Portland. We love you.
Aloha,
Sage and Theo