Endurance

People have said they admire our strength. What Mandy (above and below) is doing for our family requires a different kind of stamina and resolve.
Mandy is a triathlete, soon to compete in her first Ironman. In honor of Celia. That our daughter would need someone to race on her behalf is not something we'd ever imagined. That Celia has inspired someone to race on her behalf is not surprising. That Mandy is the one, that she took the initiative to train and chose Celia to race on behalf of is no surprise at all. Mandy is amazing. She gets up at 3:00 am to ride her bike, and spends her weekends in the pool. For Celia. They're both inspirational, both beautiful, both... simply amazing.

We grew up with Mandy, went to school together, rode the band bus and had sleepovers, attended summer camp and worked at the pool, tailgated at OSU games and visited in NYC. We share lots of happy memories.

That's Jenni, front middle, in the mint green dress, and Mandy to her left, in purple, with several other good friends and a favorite teacher, at Gallia Academy's senior prom, 1996.

Mandy recently set up a website for Celia where you can find details about the July 26 Lake Placid race, and a link to Mandy's Trilife team.
We can't thank Mandy enough. And we are grateful that despite the years and the geographic distance Mandy is honoring our family in such a tremendous way, that our friendship endures.

A&J

Dance with Me

Tiny Dancer. Dancing Queen. Dancing in the Moonlight. None of these song titles-turned-blog post titles is quite right. Celie is by no means tiny (and she's fine with that, as are we!) We do treat Cel like royalty; we can't help but coddle her... but she's more princess than queen. And although she's often still up when the moon is out, Celie doesn't dance anymore.
But she will dance again someday. And when we're reunited, it will be a joy to watch her recitals, and to dance with her...

JEB

Pillow Talk

I'd like to thank the person who invented sisters. Genius.

And just when I thought my sister couldn't get any better, she became an aunt. Awesome.

In the beginning, she spoiled Celia. And then she moved away, and was a really good aunt from afar, spoiling Celia just the same. And then Celia got sick, and Kate moved back. And she still spoils Celia. She's cool like that.

Aunt Kate with Celia, May 2007
Her onesie (Cel's, not Kate's), says: "Nobody puts Baby in the corner." Kate got it for her, you know, cause it references Dirty Dancing, which is cool, and because she spoils Celia...

Now that Kate's home again, she keeps Cel overnight for us about once a week (on the days she's not grocery shopping for us, or giving Colby a bath, or working her own job). They build a fort, and Sebi joins them. In fact, when Cel wakes up throughout the night, and Kate comforts her, Sebi sneaks a leg out from his own covers (yes, she tucks in her dog) to paw at Kate, a reminder that he needs attention, too. He's a tad bit jealous, but that doesn't deter Kate from being all aunt-like and making Cel her priority. Celia comes first, because... well, you've already caught my point here, so I won't beat it down.

That's Celia wedged in the far corner, Kate, and Sebi all tucked in, just a few nights ago.

If you're going to be up in the middle of the night, Kate's a fun one to be with. I imagine she and Celia share some special times in the wee hours in their little fort.
My sister, Celia's aunt...she's not like the other side of your pillow cool, but even better.

JEB

BFF

Colby is not eligible for the Red Cross babysitting course; our local list of offerings clearly indicates you must be eleven to enroll in the training class. (Colby's birthday is approaching, and he'll turn eight at the end of May). But perhaps it's a good thing he's a delinquent babysitter; otherwise I might decide to leave him in charge and head for the nearest highway, attempting escape much the same way Colby does when we inadvertently leave the backyard gate open...
Although he isn't qualified to take care of Cel and Tuck, Colby's more than qualified to care for them. He's uber-empathetic, accompanying their cries with languishing, low howls. And he's agreeable to sharing toys, will trade his red ball for their squeaky giraffe (see top). He shares his dog food too (see above), tidies up the floor around the highchair and licks messy faces clean. He even acts as a "stop" on one side, to assist with diaper changes once babies begin to roll, or as a pillow when they're working on sitting up (see below).It's true, dogs do make the best of friends.
JEB

Mr. T

No, not the "I pity the fool" Mr. T, but our own little Mr. T.
He's strong. In fact, he'sHe's just not quite big enough to wear the shirt that says so.
But, he can hold his head up really well.And he does have a mohawk.
And he did get a minor role in a little industrial video, to be filmed next week, so the potential for stardom is there...
But he doesn't accessorize with gold chains...

A&J

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Great book, beautiful art work, but an even better message - the well-known transformation is one of the first scientific miracles children learn.
One night last week when Celia refused to sleep, I thought something "familiar" might calm her. I sang her the songs of her infancy... "Baby Baluga"... our version of made-up verses to "Hush Little Baby"... you know, some standard stuff. When singing failed to produce sweet nocturne, I thought maybe a favorite story book would work... 'sept I didn't feel like getting out of bed since I'm pretty sure the clock said something like 3:74 in the morning. So... The Very Hungry Caterpillar is pretty easy to remember. (As long as you or your kids don't care what day the caterpillar ate which fruit, or which order all the treats are consumed on Saturday!) As I whispered the words in her ear, her curly hair tickled my nose, and in the retelling I discovered a different, but similar, message.
As parents, we read these stories and watch the fairy tales and dream of our sons and daughters blossoming, soaring, transforming just like Eric Carle's butterfly. My version of this story is different. Celia was a VERY hungry caterpillar (as evidenced by the circumference of her thighs!) Just like the caterpillar, everything was going along smoothly for Celia, until one day our caterpillar didn't feel too good. Unfortunately, it had nothing to do with overindulgence. Now I watch my daughter spin a cocoon around herself knowing that inside, just like in the story, is a beautiful butterfly waiting to soar. And I find myself wishing there were as simple an ending to her story as there is in the book, that she could just chew a hole in her chrysalis and get out, that there were some other miracle of science to be shared.



Andy

*Butterfly image courtesy of Google image search (please don't sue us Mr. Carle).

Yes, No

Yes, Celia loves her Grandma Rosie.

No, she didn't ever get the chance to say so with words, but there's no doubt it's true.
Yes, I'm using this post format as an excuse to share photos of Celia in her smocked Easter dress.

No, I'm not ashamed to admit that.

Yes, it's true that, on occasion, Andy calls Grandma Rosie "Grandma Clothesie," due in large part to the fact that there are a lot of outfits she "just couldn't resist" buying for Cel.

No, it's not the clothes that make the girl.

Yes, Celia's behavior in her Easter dress simply made her even lovelier.

No, I'm not sure how we ended up with the best little girl in the world.

JEB