Shannon Phillips

Robin took in quite a haul this year in awesome baby gifts! This festive and cozy outfit was a gift from his Pops and Mo. I think I’ll make prints of this picture and send them out with the thank-you notes…

Sam is actually working today; we had our big meal and gift-opening day last Friday, on the Solstice. I made ribs, black-eyed-peas with kale, fried okra, and cornbread, and we gnawed down on fruitcake for dessert. It was a really nice day. The baby’s too young to know what’s going on, of course: for him all the excitement was just another entry to file under “Why do all these strange things keep happening to me?”

He’s getting really big. I mean, still small by grown-person standards, of course, but so much bigger than the tiny little thing he was when he first came home. I had my first flash the other day of the ongoing process of loss that is part of parenthood. Naturally you’re always looking forward to watching them grow, to meeting them anew as their personality emerges and evolves, but at the same time, as they change, you have to say goodbye to the little critter that they used to be, and that you have loved so much. I look at him and I think, “He will never be this small again.” And that will be true again tomorrow, and the next day, and every day that follows.

He’s much more mobile now; when I set him down on his play-mat he can flip easily from back to front (although he hasn’t figured out how to do the reverse) and he can wiggle himself quite some distance, even though he isn’t properly crawling yet. He grabs things quite confidently now, and generally proceeds to put them in his mouth. He laughs easily and often, and makes friends wherever he goes. He’s brought us an enormous amount of happiness, and we are so thankful for the support of our friends and family over these past months. I hope your holidays and your New Year are filled with prosperity and joy.