In the Name of the...

Our little man was finally baptized on Sunday. It was the perfect day for it, as it was Grandpa Bob's birthday, my Aunt Kathleen's birthday and also the Feast of the Holy Family. Great homily on this topic, btw. We're all part of one, great, big family. :)

Thank you to our fantastic family for being a part of this wondrous event. It was a fun and holy day.

Jocelyn and Kevin graciously agreed to be the godparents. Hooray for us! Here the 5 of us are, hamming it up, waiting for the procession. There were 4 babies baptized that day and we were all announced just prior to entering the church (we followed the choir, and were followed by the priests). Those members of the congregation that were at the aisle took turns blessing the children as they entered the church. Pretty cool stuff.

Let's call this the "before" shot. I think he smiled way more after receiving the sacrament, as was illustrated by him dancing and clapping along with the choir. Or, OK, maybe he was just tired here...


Well, at least Jocelyn looks pretty in this one. Not so much the little dude.

Even though my son is 14 months old, I tried to convince the priest that he was just a very large newborn. Fr. Dave made a joke about the Seahawks wanting our phone number.

Baptized moment #1!
Baptized moment #2 - he really just wanted to play in the water, we think.

Here is a nice shot with both godparents and Grandma Rita. This is before Gabriel joined the group and blew out the candle (and then exclaimed, "More fire! More fire!").
Four families, 4 sets of godparents and many loved ones:

Recent Happenings

New photos are here - finally, right? :) It's taken me longer than usual to get some new photos up, but I guess it's that time of year where 'busy' is an understatement. The holidays are feeling really magical this year, as opposed to last year when I could barely lift my tired head out of my cereal bowl. Newborns are cute and all, but I really like the better sleep as they get older. We are quite enjoying watching our little man grow and develop a groove all his own. Here are some recent pix. Hope you enjoy!

Today he fell asleep in his high chair during one of his i-don't-want-lunch-just-feed-me-crackers moments. I heard rumors of this trend from the daycare when he was younger, but it's the first time I watched it happen myself. I was doing dishes and I noticed some 'extended blinks' and wondered if he might drift off at some point. Next thing I knew, this is what was waiting for me in our high chair. Pretty cute.


A few weeks ago my mom was here and we ventured to the park with cousin Gabriel. I thought it was cold that day (of course, it's waaay colder now), so we bundled up to go play outside. With baby in his stroller it was easy to snap a few nice shots.

I love the colors in this one, love that he's not looking at the lens:


"Mom, lemme take one of you next." - or maybe, "let me eat the camera. again."

Gabriel cheering Baba on!


Thanksgiving was really fun this year, especially as he had learned to walk just a couple of days before we broke bread my sister and brother-in-law's new house. Great house, you guys; thanks again for hosting!

The little man was all decked out in a seriously stylish outfit, complete with button-down shirt and a shiny new vest (courtesy of Great Grandma Flora - thank you!).

Here is a great moment. My mom is an artist and she always told me, "add a touch of Cadmium Red to any painting." I think a touch of red goes along way here too. And, sigh, this was my father's beret:

Kaleidoscope "Kali" Milici

Dear sweet, lovable, crazy, Kali,

You came to me as a replacement cat to Caspian, who was a sickly fellow never meant to stay here long, but you, you Kali, were a pistol from day one.

Tracy and I brought you home from that terrible breeder, hoping we could finally save one cat from a terrible fate, and you livened up our lives immediately. You, a little fluff ball, ran all over the house, and came to settle below the window blinds, watching the cord sway back and forth, and when you opened your cute little mouth to speak, nothing came out.

Soon you made noises, but your 'meow' was never quite a 'meow' - always more like a squeak or a cackle. People always commented on it.

People also always commented on your stunning beauty. A Himalayan tortoiseshell, your flattened face and lioness mane often made a great conversation starter. Comments such as, "is that a cat?" and nicknames like, "fluff monger."

You moved about a million times with me: born in Napa, CA. Then onto San Mateo, San Francisco, Colorado Springs, Seattle, Napa (again), Sausalito, and finally back home to Seattle. One flight, and 2 cross-country moves, you sure knew how to see the sights.

10:15 PM used to known as "the be-Kali hour" (think: bewitching hour), since you would sleep all day long, barely raise your little head to, maybe, get a drink of water, only to rise like Lazarus at 10:15 at night to run holy terror through whichever apartment I was living in at the time. It's like you could sense I was trying to settle down for a night's sleep and you knew better. You'd pause the sprinting long enough to give me a look as if to say, "c'mon, lady, break out the cocktails and catnip and let's party!"

This past week you became so frail, so tiny, and for the first time in your 16-yr life you begged me to hold you. And I held you. Wrapped your tiny frame in my sweatshirt, listened to your labored breathing and hoped that this wasn't the end. But 16 years is a mighty good run, and it was the end.

Tonight my beloved pet Kali died in my arms with the loving assistance of our vet. I won't say where she's buried because I'm not entirely sure it's legal, but if you happen to see a fantasticly blooming magnolia tree next Spring may you pause a moment to remember the strange and unusual and sweet, sweet girl that was my friend.

I'll miss you, little lady.

Kali the Gat

Durkin started saying 'cat' today. It was more like 'gat,' but he was clearly pointing to the cat and every time Kali meowed her tiny meow, Durkin would stop what he was doing and crawl to where he could see her and say, "Gat!" and point at the cat. He'd get all excited, practically jumping up and down and I'd swoop him up to take him to visit the object of his affection.

At first I wasn't sure what he was saying, but then it was so unmistakably 'cat,' and so we kept rewarding him each time with a trip to see and talk to the 'gat.' It happened while we ate dinner too. One minute Durkin is snacking on pasta and peas and then the cat meows, and Durkin lights up and points and screeches, "gat!"

Oh, man, it was sooo cute!

Dinner of Champions

Tonight's feast:

• spaghetti
• bananas
• garlic toast
• yogurt
• goldfish crackers

My kid is so random. :)

Praying for Jane

Grandma Jane, we love you, love you, love you. Prayers for you tonight, you darling girl.

Dear Mom

Dear mom,

Thank you for being such an amazing friend. Sharing laughter, music and beach walks with you are some of the best moments in my life. Humor is omnipresent, and for that I am so very grateful.

I put together a few photos from this past year. What a fun year we had! I love you. :)

First beach 'experience' with the new grandbaby. Mom and Grandma liked it a whole lot better than baby. I think this was in January. Superbowl weekend perhaps?

And, a sunnier day at the Mariners' ballpark. We love baseball. We love beer. It's so great they keep both of those things in the same place. Very convenient.

Look at how alert grandbaby is, staring straight into Grandma's eyes (or, ya know, in the vicinity of the eyes, since he couldn't focus on day 1).

Lake Pleasant. Always a wonderful treat.

I am blessed with such a wonderful, beautiful and charming family. Love you ladies!

Aww. This makes me smile all over.

Have a great day, mom!

Love,

me

Orange Lump Acquisition

Every year I trek to a pumpkin patch to partake in the annual orange lump adoption ritual. I adore pumpkins and their bright leathery orange skins, but didn't make it out last year as I was waddling around with my own pumpkin, so to speak.

This year we made it at last! And while we saw mostly sad, questionable and rotten pumpkins we sure had a fun family outing.

There's nothing quite like a red barn for a photo op:

Every promising-looking pumpkin turned out to have a rotten spot on it somewhere.

I think this one requires a caption:

Naomi: "Do I need to reapply my lip gloss?"

Toddler: "Hey, can someone please turn down that weally bwight light? kthxbye."

Finally, and after much searching, we found our pumpkin. Our son picked it out and we paid the 50 cents and made our way home.

"Which one, son?"

"Dis one, dad!"

Happy Birthday, Baby!

For you are fearfully and wonderfully made. ~ Psalms 139

(thanks for the photo, Chiko. Your little man is next.)

Mariners Game - Griffey's Last

What a gorgeous day for baseball; and what a day it was. It was Kids' Appreciation Day, so little D got a poster upon arrival. It seems no tot is too young to be appreciated.

The sun was out in all its October glory, a little chilly, but easily combated with some clever layering, hoodies and scarves.

Safeco never looked so good:

Ken Griffey, Jr. was at bat 3 times today, but it wasn't until the 8th inning that he stepped up for that final swing of the bat. See, Junior might not return next season. The crowd knew it, the team knew it and an emotional Junior knew it.

When he stepped up to the plate in the bottom of the 8th inning, every person in that crowd was on their feet. You could feel the collective silent wishes, "please let him get a hit" as he took his stance in the batter's box. And, boy did he deliver! The standing ovation went loud and wild and we cheered for several minutes as a pinch runner swapped places with Jr. at 1st base. The crowd began chanting, "Griffey! Griffey! Griffey!" And, no surprise, he came out to tip his hat. We roared our emotional awe. My father would have LOVED to see that moment. And knowing that made me tear up right along with Griffey.

Here's Griffey's 'potential' last at bat with the Seattle Mariners:

The tip o' the cap. It's moments like this that make me love baseball!

After the game, the M's took a walk around the field, shaking hands and high-fiving the fans. Near the end of their farewell loop, they hoisted Griffey onto their shoulders and we nearly missed that for trying to leave the ballpark and get our tired son home. Luckily, the adoring crowd got good and loud, alerting us to the happenings on the field.

I am so grateful we didn't leave early to miss traffic. To miss this moment would have made for one sad Naomi. Hooray for sticking it out to the final out!

And, here's our little family, enjoying the game. Love, love, love the perks of my job.

What a look!

This is the new scrunched up face D makes constantly now. Sometimes when he's eating, sometimes just because... you can find this expression in our lives now. So cute. :)

Um, cute.

Argyle

When did this toddler move into our house?? :)

Swing Time

Dude could teach us all a thing or two about how to relax.

I don't know what I love most about this photo, the cheeks, the hair, the hands or the quizzical look on his face. Love it!

11 Months

Yes, I'll say it again... it's amazing how fast time goes by when you're chasing a little one.

D's hair is really starting to come in - look at the cute little curl in the back there. There is nothing a kid likes more than a head full of curly red hair, right? =)

Little D is now crawling, pulling himself up, and self-feeding cereal bites (like Cheerios, only a healthier, veggie-packed version). It's amazing to watch how fast he's transforming. We're already planning a little birthday party for him, and reminiscing on what we were up to this time last year.

What a difference a year makes.

Happy Anniversary, Sweetie!

Gargling Gershwin

One of my favorite Muppet Shows is the Star Wars episode, not surprisingly, and part of what makes that episode so great is the Gargling Gargoyle who gargles Gershwin.

Durkin could give him a run for his money. :)

Here is the Muppet video:

Visit from Uncle Ken

A visit from Uncle Ken is always fun and exciting. We heard some great family stories and then Durkin got to drive Kenny's truck.


Thanks for the visit, Uncle Ken!

10 months

Wow, I can't believe our child has grown so much in such a short time. What a trip! =)

Snaggle Tooth

The little man has the cutest little snaggle tooth on the top row. :)

Katie and Matt

Congrats, you two lovebirds! 2nd best wedding ever. =)