Welcome to toast & cereal

Eating can be fun too

Making the mashed peas

The smorgasbord is presented

More pictures like these that remind us that eating isn't always dangerous can be found in our End of Summer album. Thanks everyone for your supportive comments on the allergy post. Viola is still doped on Benadryl, but we look forward to a return to normal in the next few days.

Greeting

Waiting

The arrival

Jumping with excitement

The New Enemy

There were the first nine and three-quarters months of being parents, when we didn't have to carry around an epi-pen, and now there's the rest of our lives as parents, when we have to have one within reach at all times.

The enemy is sesame seeds, so close to Viola in this picture taken at the Greek Festival 3 weeks ago.

Yet, she didn't ingest them until today, when Joe mixed some tahini in to her oatmeal, at the suggestion of our baby food book ("great source of protein!"). Every horrifying allergy symptom followed, including vomiting, hives, wheezing, and swelling. And then, an ambulance ride, the pediatric emergency room, more vomiting, and a lot of waiting and watching. We were all back home by noon, Viola sufficiently doped up on Benadryl and steroids. In a few hours, the swelling had subsided and she was her old self.

The next time she is exposed to sesame -- on a hamburger bun, in hummus or salad dressing -- she probably won't get off so easy. That's where the epi-pen comes in. The doctor actually referenced Pulp Fiction when he wrote the prescription.

The irony is that we've been hyper-focused on possible food allergy since the beginning -- eliminating dairy from my diet for the first six months, waiting until 6 1/2 months to introduce solids, and carefully waiting 4 days after each new food to detect signs of allergy. Joe was allergic to wheat, dairy, and corn when he was a baby, so we decided to wait until after one year to introduce those foods. We never suspected sesame; I didn't even know it was an allergen. But according to this article, sesame is now in the top ten most allergic foods in the U.S.

And now I'm staring at a blinking cursor like Doogie Howser, wondering what bit of wisdom will wrap up this post. Insert something here about working-mom guilt and the longest drive from Olympia to Tacoma, and the leap of faith that is bearing a child. I actually thought when I sat down to write this post that I might save some parent somewhere from feeding their child sesame too soon, but the chances of that happening are probably close to nil. And so, you see, I read a little too much Hermann Hesse in high school to find anything uplifting to say at this point.

Walker Walking

On her 9-month birthday, Viola learned a new trick -- walking behind this little cart borrowed from her friend Sascha.

Popular culture references for baby

You want your kid to grow up culturally literate? Skeptical of advertising? A savvy maven of underground trends? The type of person who throws around references to the Bhagavad Ghita and Taxi in the same conversation?

Best to start her off at birth, then. (Gold star to anyone who identifies the source of all references in the comments)

When nursing, announce which breast you're going to offer by chanting "Left side, left side, we gonna set this party off right."

When joining two or more toys together for the child's amusement, refer to it as a "Wu-Tang toy."

When she is trying to stand and is swaying from side to side, ask, "Viola are you ok? Are you ok? Are you ok Viola?"

Aw shoot, I know there are more, but I can't think of them right now.

Sock Trading

Hundred-year-old dust

We visited the demolition of the Luzon this morning. While we watched, I told Viola about Burnham and Root, Chicago, the World's Columbian Exposition, historic preservation, and a certain jerk named Eric Anderson.

For all the sadness, the demolition was pretty cool. There were some protesters early in the morning, but the crowd was mostly silent and sign-less when we were there.

And I finally had an excuse to take a picture of a Tacoma legend, that guy with the fancy bike and legwarmers (and, as Joe added, "ripped calves").

Still time for a last-minute save?

It seems like it's for real this time -- the Luzon building in downtown Tacoma is going to be torn down on Saturday. It makes me feel like I've been punched in the stomach, not so much because the building is so beautiful, but because it is such an important piece of Tacoma's history. The Luzon was designed by the Chicago architects Burnham and Root, who are among the fathers of the modern skyscraper. From www.historictacoma.net:

The Luzon was a transition building for the firm because it incorporated a relatively light steel framework along with traditional masonry construction. ... The property is listed on the local, state and national registers of historic places and is one of Tacoma’s foremost architectural treasures.

No time to upload photos (I'm on my lunch break), but do check them out here .

Viola's sounds

Joe's parents gave us a fancy video camera for Christmas. It later got stolen and then replaced by our insurance company. We've been using it to take a ton of video but haven't been sharing much of it with the outside world. Viola now has a few proto-words in her repertoire, so it seems an appropriate time to demonstrate them with video.

Exhibit A: "dada" (note that Joe goes by "papa," so she is probably referring to the cultural movement of the early 20th century)

Exhibit B: "mama" (note that she said this one first and that I go by "mama")

Exhibit C: "bbbbrrrrr" She has been saying this one for months, but only when she's dissatisfied. This usually has the effect of making us laugh at her when she's mad, which only makes her madder. This clip has a happy ending, though.

Waving

Today is the day that Viola said to herself, I am going to get serious about waving. She waved at grandma and her toys when Joe dropped her off this morning, and she was still waving at her toy pelican this evening when I got home. Pretty cute!