Mother's Day, Etc.

This year was (obviously) my first real Mother's Day. We went out to lunch with Great-Grandma Helena, Robert's father, and Bridget on Lynn Beach, and Marcus got to be surrounded by doting relatives all day long. We also tried to take a nice family photo at the end of the day.

Below left, you see an attempt at taking a fun mom-baby picture, also at the end of the day; Marcus loves balls, and bouncing a ball is a great way to make him grin (he really doesn't need that much encouragement, but it also makes a fun prop)--apparently Robert's timing was just slightly off, though, since this picture was the result. Ah, ball-faced mom and happy baby!

Below right you see Marcus and Great-Grandma Helena at lunch, as he gnaws on a piece of sourdough bread and clutches the container her lobster roll came in.

A week before Mother's Day, my parents came up for the weekend and we had a really nice visit together. They helped us install a babygate on our deck, dividing it into two parts: one part with the dangerous stuff (grill + gas tank, bins of water for the plants, plants, unfenced-in side near the other roof, and door down to our apartment, and on the other side, one part with just baby-safe stuff: a nice outdoor rug on the ground, the gate, and a fun sand and water table. I think this summer we'll just fill it with water and let Marcus play around with cups and boats, but next year we should be able to add sand (we are hoping he'll eat less of it if we wait a year on the sand).

Two more bonus pictures for you: below right, baby eating steak (having also nibbled at part of a piece of asparagus) wearing a long-sleeved bib, and baby learning to level things, as Robert and my father were installing the gate on the roof.

Bonus: video of Marcus eating cheese and a pork chop!