Eko Earned His Wings in November & Eko Song 11

It was with a lot of excitement and trepidation that we brought Eko on his first airplane trip to visit his great-grandparents in Ormond Beach, Florida. Though they keep up with his changes online, it was important to us that they finally meet their great-grandson in person.

We have earned many parent merit-badges this year, but the thought of confining our wiggly little new walker to a seat on a plane, popping his ears, disrupting all naps and routines, felt like madness. In preparation, we grilled well-traveled parents and read through pages of FAA regulations. Our fears soothed, we arrived at Bradley International Airport with Jade's father, Gary, and an already under-napped toddler.

Despite concerns of having "that baby" on every flight, we knew Eko would love being around new people and cruising around the wide spaces in the airports, full of new noises and shiny objects. He drummed on the enormous windows and waved at the giant airplanes. We were grateful we'd chosen to get him his own seat, strapped in his car seat for each 2-hour flight. The car seat was familiar and it made it easier to keep him entertained with spoons, little cardboard boxes, and especially his seat's personal light.

Takeoff was fun—the big woosh seemed fascinating to Eko. Unfortunately, he drank the entire day's bottle of breast milk on that single takeoff, which was great for his ear-popping, but meant we had to get creative on the descent..and next takeoff..and next descent... After fighting a nap for the first hour of the flight, he finally gave in, which meant he was asleep for the descent. He woke crying and pulling at his ears. We tried all of our tricks to try to help him—nursing (in very contorted positions), a sippy cup, food to encourage swallowing—but Eko refused it all. Finally, a little breastfeeding after we landed soothed him. On the next flight, we had him sipping a thick airport smoothie through a straw to help his ears pop.

It was wonderful for Jade to give her grandparents hugs after so many years and to see their faces light up as they met her son. The poor little guy was exhausted when we arrived and smiled dazedly at us through dinner from his comfy rented high chair. But bright and early the next morning, Eko was excited to wake up in a new room and begin to explore his GG-Pa and GG-Ma's house. We drove a short distance to the beach where pelicans flew right above the waves and sea foam blew past in the strong ocean winds. Though the waves were long and gentle, an occasional wave was a little stronger than expected and pushed him right over, soaking the well-intentioned jacket we'd put over his wet suit. Mommy held him above the waves while he kickie-kickied in mid-air with glee.

Eko explored the entire house over and over, making his rounds from the kitchen (where he discovered a fascinating whisk), to GGMa's office (he'd wave and say 'hiii' each time he passed the door), through the living room (picking off blossoms of a fake flowering bush before mommy put a stop to it), and into the sunny sitting room where GGPa and GGMa hang out most of the time. He'd then explore GGPa's feet and tables, try to high-5 the TV, and get wrestled into hugs and tickles before taking off once more. Once he discovered the soft carpeted stairs, we had to keep a close eye on him—he quickly figured out how to slide down those on his belly! Gary lovingly and patiently followed him during his rambles. Eko became so quickly accustomed to his grandpa's presence that he'd cry whenever Grandpa got up from a chair to leave the room. Of course, Grandpa would comfort him and take him along for the walk.

Surprised with how cool and windy Florida could be in mid-November, we took a stroll around the private community. Eko pointed at the waving fronds of palm trees with wonder. Big trees were dripping with Spanish moss. Dragonflies zipped right up to our faces. Though the cooler weather made the tiny lizards shy, we spotted some in the bushes during a warm afternoon. Eko was intrigued! Suddenly it began to rain, and a giant rainbow stretched across the highway as we drove home into the little storm.

It was a short visit. Soon we were taking one last 'four generation' photo and saying goodbye to our dear GGs who had been so sweet and loving to all of us, especially Eko! The first flight home was uneventful, but at Charlotte, we had to RUN across the giant airport, all of our bags bumping and the baby bouncing in his carrier, to catch our next flight. There was no time to get the All-Important-Smoothie or let the baby burn off energy! Eko was bundled right into his next seat and made it very clear that he did not approve. Overtired and done with travel, Eko finally blew his top.

You always hear about how cranky people are on flights with crying babies, but we were lucky to be surrounded by sympathetic parents ("Oh we've all been there, he's really not that loud.") and just truly compassionate people. When all our tricks failed and even being out of the car seat and in daddy's arms didn't work, the man directly behind us drew little happy faces on his thumbs and performed a puppet show for Eko! Jade tried to nurse him into a nap in the bathroom, but Eko just wanted to do play with the faucet. Giving up on the nap, a frazzled mama passed the baby to daddy, who saved the day, somehow, with a steady stream of ice chips, crackers, songs and toys that got us through the flight.

We hadn't been back in the car for five minutes, headed gratefully home, before our sleepy, worldly traveler conked out. After this adventure, it's pretty safe to say that we all earned our wings!

Eko Song 11.

Up, up, and away in October and Eko Song 10

Eko is officially toddling!

Last June, Eko was nine months old and had just begun to pull himself up onto the furniture. It was such a startling change from four to two-legged that we wrote, "Don't be surprised if our next post begins, 'Let the walking begin.'" Thankfully for our sanity, he took the next four months to launch proudly into bipedalism.

It's been nothing short of amazing to watch our little guy learn to control his body. At six months, he figured out rolling and wouldn't stay on his back long enough for us to change his diaper. At nine months he pulled himself up from a crawl to peek into the bathtub. For the next three months he built up his muscles crawling around the house and walking along anything that would give him height - a gate, the couch, or the edge of his crib. Until very recently, Eko didn't like when we'd hold onto his hands and 'walk' him around the room. Like most things, it had to be on his terms.

Occasionally we would catch him standing independently, oblivious to his uprightness as he passed a measuring cup from hand to hand. This happened more often as his first birthday approached, and Eko began to notice. He began practicing with gusto. The night he finally stood from a crawl, he crowed and grinned and flapped his arms with joy. Then began the experimental steps. Jay and I were happy to witness his first steps together—all four of them.

We dressed him up as Super Eko for a Halloween potluck, and perhaps wearing a cape inspired him. Suddenly he could toddle across the room. The next day he could bend down to pick up his kitten toy, stand back up, and keep walking. Now, when he isn't examining the contents of the cardboard recycling bin or trying to feed Sasha treats, he's walking, walking, walking. He walks laps around our entire first floor, falling Maggie-Simpson-style and getting right back up.

What a different feeling it is to be able to set him down on his two feet and watch him take off. Or to see from the corner of your eye a suddenly much taller Eko walk out of a room, his feet tap-tap-ing on the floor. In the last few days he's begun perfecting his u-turns and even gets up speed into a kind of run. He's still working on negotiating uneven surfaces. His bear-crawl comes in handy for that. But he's very intrigued with walking (not just crawling) up and down the stairs.

For a peek of Eko's transition from four to two-limb transportation, watch our 10th installment of Eko Song.

New York City in September & Eko Song 9

Eko has been back to the big city! Our first trip to NY with Eko was exhausting for all of us and we learned a lot about traveling to a city with a baby. Mainly, drive at night! This time, he dreamed away the trip and we avoided bumper-to-bumper traffic. We arrived at Auntie Maureen’s in Staten Island, fell asleep in her amazing king-size bed, and began an exciting city weekend.

We had a lot to do! Hang out with our family. Visit the aquarium for Eko’s birthday. And meet up with our long-time Argentinian friend, Martin who was visiting the United States for the first time. We didn’t get to see our many NYC friends and their many babies, but the trip went so well that we know we’ll be back to visit before winter sets in.

Nick and Gabe, Eko’s 6-year-old cousins, have a blast every time they’re with him. The big boys are doting and sweet, crawling all over the floor after him and reading him stories. Eko watched their football practice, but was probably more excited by the constant stream of airplanes taking off nearby and the bats that circled the stadium lights. It was so good to have a lot of time to just loll around with our family and watch the kids play.

Rather than celebrate birthdays with cake and gifts, our birthdays focus on new experiences. For Eko's first birthday, we took him to the New York Aquarium. We all ooh’ed and ahh’ed at the beautiful fish, sting rays, seahorses, and funny little penguins, but the best attraction by far was the fur seals. They could be observed from above or below the water. The two seals seemed to enjoy interacting with the people, swimming and spinning in a graceful arc right up to the glass in front of us, then swooping away. To our joy, they did this over and over, their whiskery noses brushing the glass in front of our faces. We were just as awed as Eko.

We were a little worried about how Eko would handle napping on the go—it takes a lot for him to give in to sleep. He managed to stay awake for six-and-a-half hours, his longest yet, but instead of getting cranky, he became ridiculous and goofy. He nearly nodded off under the aquarium's wave simulator, and finally passed out in the car on our way to Flushing Meadow Park, his half-chewed pizza crust dangling from his mouth.

Few tourists head right for Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens, but it’s a special place for us with a lot of history. Eko had a great time crawling around in the pool that surrounds the giant Unisphere, which had its fountains spraying water straight up into the air. Next we showed him the site of his daddy's first job, Queens Theatre in the Park. But what motivated us to visit the park was the panorama model of New York City on permanent display at the Queens Museum of Art. Sadly, Martin had missed his flight and wasn’t able to meet us here, so we met Imani in the huge hall where the scale model resides. (Imani told me that working on that model was his new dream job!) We walked up the sloping glass ramp that circled the exhibit trying to find familiar places. Eko enjoyed hearing how the hall amplified his manic, over-tired giggle. Afterward, we went by Jay’s old neighborhood in Jackson Heights and finished our day at a great Indian restaurant where the lassi came in tall fluted glasses and the saag was so spicy it made Jade cry.

The next day we took the Staten Island ferry, another favorite, past the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island to lower Manhattan. Eko was wide-eyed on his first ride in the subway, but promptly nodded off. He slept for the whole noisy half-hour ride uptown to the Museum of Natural History. We were so happy to finally meet Martin outside, and the three-and-a-half of us strolled the museum's halls, past the elephants stampeding through the Hall of African Mammals, around the Tyrannosaurus Rex poised ready to bite, and under the big blue whale suspended above our heads as if it was swimming through the air.

Afterward, we walked downtown through Central Park, exiting at 59th Street, only a block away from one of the sites Martin wanted to visit—F.A.O. Swartz. Inside this immense toy store, we had the Muppet Workshop build our boy his very own whatnot (a Muppet extra), which we named Boobert. We finished our big day in the city with Eko finally crashing on Jade for an hour in the middle of Times Square (relaxing, right?). He got half the naps he should have for the day, but our little guy was all smiles and giggles... until we attempted to put him to bed... then it was all manic...

The next day, after a few last hours with Jay's family, Martin met us at the ferry and we surprised him with a stop at the Unisphere, dramatically lit in the dark. On the late drive back to New Hampshire, he summed up a century of Argentinian politics for us. We had a lot of fun introducing Martin to sites and experiences he wouldn't have had otherwise and Eko rapidly befriended him in his sweet way. I think it's pretty safe to say that Eko will be visiting Argentina at some point in his youth...

Happy Birthday little man.

Check out the
Eko by-the-day slideshow
and

weekly header project  
and 
Eko Song playlist 

Return to Eko Song

Watch our bonus video - Return to Eko Song - A collection of videos from Eko's first year on Earth, set to the Enigma song, Return to Innocence. 

Return to Eko Song Bonus from jay fee on Vimeo.

One Year Old - September 15

Eko has completed his first trip around the sun. One year ago, my water broke while I was working late at the office after a lively weekend of puppet shows and a They Might Be Giants concert under a massive full moon. We would spend the next three days trying a dozen tricks to coax Eko out into the world, but like so many things, he would do this in his own time. Though the pregnancy is a surreal blur in my memory and birth a hazy dream, I still vividly remember when our baby was placed on my belly for the first time, caterwauling away, warm and wet and so very, very real. "We have a son!" Then he peed on me, and I knew I was a mommy.

Early autumn will forever be Eko's time for us. The katydids creaking in the trees at dusk, the chilly nights, the ripe peaches on our tree, and the first yellow leaves remind us so strikingly of those weeks when we had just become parents. Now he can crawl over to the peaches and take a big bite.

For Eko, it's as if it's a new season. After a summer of crawling around in a diaper, he's not pleased that
we have to tug socks and long-sleeve shirts onto him. Eko spent many sunny August afternoons at Spofford Lake crawling through the sand, exploring the shallows, tasting rocks, and going for dips with us. The weather was so beautiful that we spent a lot of time outside with animals.

Eko rarely watches tv and is often ambivalent about what he sees, but the floppy baby animals on his petting farm video fascinate him! So this month we introduced him to farms. He happily waved to the llama at Stonewall Farm and squealed with delight as he tried to pet the chicks at the Retreat Farm. Even the Chelsea Royal Diner had pens of pigs, turkeys, and chickens that awed him. He likes watching dogs being walked, birds in the sky, and butterflies, but his adoration of our cat Sasha grows exponentially.

This month Eko became an expert kisser, even blowing a kiss once. The first time she met him, our friend Leora got a slimy kiss right on the nose. The passenger window of our car has lip marks on it from where Eko was kissing Oma through the glass. And while he'll plant a wet one on mama, daddy, and even the yoga ball, he especially loves to kiss Sasha. She endures this for awhile, but it was only a matter of time before she gave him a swipe. Eko got his first scratches, but no love was lost between them. He still crawls after her any chance he gets, excitedly whispering "szaza kee kah"—and she doesn't run away.

Eko hasn't added a lot of language to his repertoire, but he continues to surprise us with the tones and sounds he mimics while we're talking. He's signs 'more' during meal times and even, for a day, signed 'milk', though he clearly feels that tugging at mom's shirt is a much faster way to communicate this particular desire. It's amazing realizing how much he already understands. If I ask, "Do you want boo?" his face lights up. He responds to all kinds of simple questions and requests. When asked to point to mama's nose or mouth, he often does so rapidly, though sometimes he point's to daddy's instead.

It's fascinating watching him examine and figure things out. He turns off the light switch before each nap, and surprised himself when he turned on the white noise machine. After just a few corrections, he figured out the 'right' and 'wrong' way to drink from his sippy cup, and now always turns the spout the way that lets the water through best.

Eko is becoming more and more fun to play with. We got him his first set of wooden blocks, though at this point it's debatable who has more fun with them. We build towers and Eko eagerly knocks them down. Legos, however, are still more fun to chew on or carry around. He loves music and shaker toys, playing his xylophone with anything at hand, and rattling canisters of beans. If we start a beat, he'll often dance.

He entertains himself with games of his own devising. One afternoon he would painstakingly hold two toys in one hand and then tap all of the books within reach. Then he upped the ante to three toys. These patterns delight him. He flips through his books on his own, unfolding the 'peekaboo' pages, petting (and kissing) the animals in the touch-and-feel books. Another of his self-made games is chase-the-jingle-ball. He'll toss the ball, watch it roll and jingle across the room, then race after it. When he tires of entertaining himself, he crawls over to us for a cuddle.

Curiosity drives him. He explores any cupboard and drawer he can access (speeding up our baby proofing), loves to watch us as we cook, brush our teeth, and tie our shoes. He climbs anything, whether it's into a basket of laundry, up a staircase, a chair, or even right up our chests as we hold him. He loves to explore the garden beds when we pick veggies. He eagerly pulls off cherry tomatoes, green or ripe, and chews on them, spitting them out after the first satisfying 'pop'.  He likes teething on the giant green beans, too. He seems to be cutting all four of the first molars at once and is always chewing on a spoon or a toothbrush, anything that can get to those hard-to-reach sore spots.

Eko is crawling faster and standing with more certainty every day. He's wowed us with a few 'free stands' that show he's beginning to master balance. His beloved Johnny Jump Up has become passé. The last time he was in it, he just spun in slow circles, acting bored. Locomotion is much more exciting. We often take Eko for walks in the woods, but this month he began taking us for walks. He loves to crawl along the path as we follow, climbing up the banks, shuffling through the leaves, even skinny-dipping in the stream.

Eko is making more associations each day. He continues to whip around backwards to lower himself down stairs, off the couch, or down a small hill. To his father's initial fright, Eko discovered a tunnel behind our "floored" futon - his own little hiding spot. He also remembers where things are outside. When we go for rambles around the lawn, anytime we come within fifty feet of the pond (fun to splash) or the driveway (good rocks to chew) he makes a rapid b-line for them, even before he can see them.

Another neat association happened while we were reading. He has a favorite "Llama llama" baby book that he's heard a thousand times. I was reading a new 'Llama llama' from the library. He didn't seem very interested and wandered off. I kept reading. When I looked up, I saw that he had gone to his bookshelf and picked out his one and only Llama llama book from all of the other books and placed it at my feet. I was so impressed that I read it to him over and over til he had his fill. Later, while we ate breakfast, Eko pointed at the coffee mug with Sasha's kitten photo and said, "Szada kee kah!" It blows our minds.

Eko hasn't shown any of the 1-year shyness, so it's especially exciting that we've begun attending Sophia's Hearth again. It was so much fun to see what a huge difference three months away meant. He can now climb and crawl over all of the play structures and really engages with the kids and other parents. On our first day back, we found Eko had cornered his pal and was happily kissing him! He's a quick rascal. During the new snack time, Eko snuck over to the teacher's basket and dumped her pitcher of water onto the rug, then started to play in the puddle. She tried to move it onto a nearby surface while we mopped it up, but Eko got right into that, too. He doesn't quickly forget about contraband and knows when he's into something he shouldn't be.

At Eko's one-year checkup, we learned his growth is slowing down a little. He's getting taller and skinnier. With the checkup comes the first blood draw. We had heard nightmare stories about this from other parents, but remarkably Eko sailed through it. Either he's a mellow kid, or we had an excellent phlebotomist. Daddy, on the other hand, had to fast the night before for his blood draw. He was pale and faint and given a cool cloth for his neck while Eko got a sticker for bravery.

Jay is an avid follower of politics and with the election season heating up Eko is at his side watching debates and conventions online. He clapped and waved as we watched the DNC, and helped his daddy vote in the NH state primary. He was very excited to get his hands on the the "I Voted" sticker.

Eko's first birthday was a gorgeous hot autumn day with bright blue skies. We went out to breakfast with Oma and Grandpa before they headed south to his Great-Grandmother's memorial in Long Island. We began what may become a tradition of hiking mountains on birthdays, taking him up Putney Mt. As we hiked, Jay said, "Eko's first birthday is like our Katahdin." When we reached Mt. Katahdin, it was the end of the Appalachian Trail, though the mountains just kept going on and on. We had completely become thru-hikers. Now, after our year of baby, we have completely transformed into parents and our family has found its rhythm. The routines and troubleshooting are second nature. The doubts and fears have mellowed to quiet confidence and trust in one another's parenting skills.

As we reached the summit of Putney Mt, we found that the hawk and eagle migration was in full swing. Along with a dozen bird enthusiasts, we saw several hawks flying way high up in the blue. While Eko clambered on the rocks, a huge bald eagle circled right above us.

For us, birthdays are a time to celebrate growth. We love stuff and get Eko neat toys when the mood strikes or he shows a particular new interest, but intend to keep birthdays focused on new experiences. This year, we're taking Eko to an aquarium when we visit our family in NYC. He'll love the bright colors, the water, and the movements of the animals.

We wistfully announce that Eko's first birthday signals the completion of the 'Eko by the day' photo project. If we ever feel like the time 'flew by,' all we have to do is scroll through 367 moments of Eko's first year of incredible transformation. We'll both really miss the project, but there's some relief in simply enjoying the moment without worrying about documenting it (there will still be plenty of that). Eko Songs are too much fun to stop, but the Eko Blog will also transform from a monthly baby-book style update to more informal stories and photo essays.

A year ago today we were sitting in bed with Eko learning how to read his cries, realizing how content he was when he slept next to us, and learning to listen to him. That tiny baby has grown into a strong, curious, loving, and strong-willed little person. Though we sometimes miss the little bundle of baby-squish he once was, we're usually having too much fun chasing after him to stay wistful for long.

Check out the
Eko by-the-day slideshow
and

weekly header project  
and 
Eko Song playlist