Over the weekend, my family celebrated our mom’s 80th birthday with a big sit-down dinner party in La Jolla where I grew up.
That’s my mom, mamma Judy, circa 1940, with our cousin Sydney, who flew in for the occasion (as did many other cousins and old friends).
Image via the Contemporary Jewish Museuem (San Francisco) Flickr.
L’shanah tovah! Happy new year, everyone!
May your year be filled with joy and good health.
Tracie P and I have so much to be thankful for this year.
My goodness… Every time I feel stressed about money, work, or any of the headaches of life, I look at beautiful Tracie P and the gorgeous little girls she’s given our family and my heart bursts with immeasurable joy.
And I ask myself, borrowing a line from a favorite Kris Kristofferson song,
Why me Lord?
what have I ever done
to deserve even one
of the pleasures I’ve known?
Tell me Lord
what did I ever do
that was worth loving you
or the kindness you’ve shown?
My life’s journey has been such a trip… Sometimes I don’t really know how I got here but, man, I have so much to be grateful for and I love my family so very much…
Happy new year, everyone. Thanks for all the support and warm wishes and thoughts for our family this year.
Bless you all.
I’ll see you after the holiday…
Mamma Judy came to Texas over the weekend to meet her new granddaughter Lila Jane (her seventh grandchild) and to spend time with Georgia P.
We spent the weekend taking turns holding Lila Jane, taking Georgia P to the park, and sharing Georgia P’s favorite things to eat (chopped beef, guacamole, grilled cheese and fries).
Georgia P looked great in her new dress! Thanks, again, grandma!
We’re so glad that you came to visit: grandmas just have that special touch when it comes to lulling newborns to sleep and Georgia P had so much fun playing with you!
We love you!
In other news…
Georgia P is starting to adjust to our new life and she gives her little sister a gentle kiss every night before going to bed.
Just when you thought your heart couldn’t grow any bigger, these beautiful little girls make it overflow with love…
Money is SO tight right now, Tracie P and I are both so sleep deprived we can barely keep our eyes open (it will be a while before Lila Jane sleeps through the night), I’m struggling to keep up with work…
But, man, I love being a dad.
Georgia P and I spent an hour on the playground this morning while mommy took Lila Jane for her two-week visit at the pediatrician (she passed with flying colors, btw).
I love all three of them so very, very much…
Georgia P is becoming more and more articulate, with a larger vocabulary, every day.
People let me tell you ’bout my best friend,
He’s a warm hearted person who’ll love me till the end.
People let me tell you bout my best friend,
He’s a one boy cuddly toy, my up, my down, my pride and joy.
People let me tell you ’bout him he’s so much fun
Whether we’re talkin’ man to man or whether we’re talking son to son.
Cause he’s my best friend.
Yes he’s my best friend.
Great news yesterday: Tracie P took Lila Jane to our local birthing store, Special Addition, and weighed Lila Jane, who has regained her birth weight two days before her two-week mark.
Of all the gifts that we can give our children, none is more precious than mother’s milk.
I’m so proud of Tracie P and my love for her grows every day as I watch her suckle and nourish our beautiful little girls.
Naturally, at this point, Georgia P isn’t getting much sustenance from nursing. For her, it’s a comfort and a way to feel close to her mother.
She’s a healthy, if sometimes picky, eater.
As mommy and Lila Jane slumber this early Sunday morning, she’s enjoying a breakfast of wholewheat waffles with organic butter and organic maple syrup, organic berries, and good ol’ nothing-healthy-about-it American bacon.
We have a lot to be thankful for…
Buona domenica a tutti! Happy Sunday, yall!
That’s Lila Jane, one week and one day old, one of our little angels.
She and Tracie P are both doing well and other than some soreness, nursing has been relatively easy. We expect her to regain her birthweight by Monday, when she will be two weeks old, without any problem.
She’s starting to open her eyes and have a look around.
Isn’t she beautiful? :)
Georgia P had a fun visit with Aunt B and Niece B yesterday.
She loves to dig through my percussion bin in the office/studio. Her current favorite instrument is the wood blocks but the tambourine remains a trusty standby (even if just to stand on).
Last night, we paired a bottle of Château Ducasse 2012 Bordeaux Blanc with chicken tacos last night.
The fruit in the 2012 was a bit brighter than last year (perhaps because of a greater percentage of Sauvignon Blanc in the blend with Sémillon?).
But, man, this wine is always a winner at our house: fresh, clean, focused, with low alcohol and balanced acidity, under-$20 in our market. Great wine and the label looks cool to boot.
All in all, I gotta say, life could be worse…
At 7:23 this evening, our beautiful, precious Lila Jane will be one week old.
All things considered, we’ve had a relatively serene first week at home with her.
Nursing is going really well and she should easily regain her birth weight by next Monday (an important milestone in gauging the success of breast feeding).
Tracie P has been doing a great job of nourishing her: at this point, she feeds “on demand” and Tracie P is a 24-hour latteria (dairy bar).
Daddy can’t do much but try to keep the two of them as comfortable as possible and so these days I’m on kitchen duty (last night’s dinner: carne asada, eggplant rounds fried in extra-virgin olive oil, romaine and radicchio chioggiotto salad, and white rice cooked in chicken stock with Parmigiano Reggiano folded in) and I’m in charge of Georgia P’s recreation schedule.
Yesterday morning found us at Central Market park, climbing up and down (and up and down) the stairs.
And yesterday afternoon after lunch, we visited the Austin Children’s Museum, which really isn’t a museum at all. But it is a wonderful video-free haven for parents: its many rooms/spaces are filled with child-safe toys and activities that engage the children and encourage them to interact with one another.
We had a blast (and I highly recommend it)…
Understandably, Georgia P is still having some trouble adjusting to our new family dynamic and the attention we need to devote to Lila Jane during this tender, delicate period in her life, when all she does is nurse, poop/pee, and sleep.
But Friday morning, when she and I got back from our visit to the playground, she ran up to Lila Jane’s swing and said “hi.”
Then she paused and said, “baby” (which she pronounces bébé).
And then came an “I love you” that brought tears to our eyes as we watched on.
I’m so proud of Georgia P and even in the wake of some tough emotional moments, she never loses her ability to bounce back with her signature sparkle that makes me fall in love over and over again.
Thanks everyone for all the texts, emails, cards, and wishes on social media. It’s so wonderful to know that your rooting for us and that you share our joy.
“That’s some really good Champagne,” said my father-in-law Rev. B aka pawpaw as we sat down for a dinner of crock-pot pork loin, potatoes, and salad prepared for us by Mrs. B aka nanna last night, our first at home from the hospital with Lila Jane (above).
“Man, that’s a stinky toot!” were the next words out of his mouth.
The hospital discharged us just after noon yesterday and as you can imagine, we were eager to get home.
Seton Healthcare Family, where Georgia P was born in 2011, took great care of us and the nurses were fantastic.
But there’s nothing like the prodding and poking of newborn care to make you long for the comforts of home.
Georgia P is doing great as she adjusts to her new family life.
But when watching mommy nurse Lila P became a little too much to bear, pawpaw and I took her out to Stiles Switch BBQ (around the corner from our house) for her favorite meal of chopped beef and macaroni and cheese (Texas style).
The folks behind the counter treated her to a little Blue Bell ice cream for dessert. And by the time we took her home for her bath, she was smiling and laughing again.
After we bathed and put Georgia P to bed, we paired our homecoming dinner (thanks again, nanna!) with a bottle of Bollinger Special Cuvée that I’d been saving especially for the occasion of celebrating the Parzen family expansion.
Although we generally reserve Bollinger for special occasions, we nearly always serve it with a meal.
It showed beautifully with the salty/sweet soy sauce/honey jus of Mrs. B’s slow-cooked pork loin.
Brooklyn Guy, who often reminds us of Champagne’s wonderful food-friendliness, would surely approve.
Caring for a newborn is always a challenge. And having a busy toddler in the house adds to the mayhem.
But we’ve been so lucky to have Mrs. B and Rev. B (above) here to help us. Beyond Tracie P and me, they’re the only family members that Georgia P feels at home with. They stayed at home with Georgia P while we were at the hospital.
We’re truly blessed to have such loving grandparents in our lives.
Thanks again to everyone for all the thoughts and wishes. Childbirth is such an intense and emotional experience. To know that you’re all rooting for us means so much and it really makes a difference! :)
Today we’re also thinking of and sending lots of Texas love to friends Gabriella and Ryan Opaz who just had their baby a few hours ago in Porto, Portugal.
With the memories of our childbirth fresh in our minds, we are with you, Gabriella and Ryan! Mazel tov!
Do Bianchi 