This is an embarrassingly First World problem—Mari’s Passport Diaries (the blog, not me) was having an identity crisis. I am blogging about blogging—a new low.
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Chris, Isaac and I walked through some Florida swamp on an elevated boardwalk this weekend. We left our house, strolled, got home in under two hours. This is such a successful outing for us because we have to try really hard not to always cram in one more thing and take advantage of our baby’s good humor. Along the way we pointed out caterpillars, woodpeckers, fish, huge ants, lizards, spiders floating on leaves, roots that looked like alligator legs, etc etc to Captain Goodbaby, who would go from nonplussed to absolutely elated when he saw Chris, me, or his sippy cup of apple juice (the new baby crack). 
So back to the blog identity crisis. We lived with a lot of excitement and adventure in Japan. Too much, sometimes. These days we lounge around our A+ porch enjoying the swing and a pleasant breeze, and generally doting on Captain Goodbaby. It’s awesome. And apart from the aforementioned brief forays into the local landscape, a snooze to blog about.
I want to blog about how seven-month-old Isaac got his first tooth May 1, then a second one two weeks later. About how he sits up, balances, and stretches forward as far as he can to swipe things with his baby sticky fingers. About how he’s taken to giving me baby kisses, devouring my cheek or chin while giggling uproariously. About how suddenly he wants to stand all the time, balancing against my arms. About how he already hugs Chris and me so snugly. About how I hold him and think about love, and while I know I’m a more content and satisfied mom for having worked and traveled and blah blah blah, there is no accomplishment/trip/experience I wouldn’t trade in an instant for this most precious of prizes. About how I am looking forward to taking our future brood on many grand adventures, but this life season is for acquiring that brood. About how I expected parenting to be droll, but I am constantly searching for patterns (pointless, I know) in his behavior, conducting little experiments on him, and generally testing his learning capabilities. Lest ‘experiments’ sound troubling, let me clarify: If I sing this song every time we practice rolling, will he roll every time I sing the song? So far: No. If I ask him where Daddy is, does he look at Chris? Yes! If I point at something, does he look at my finger or the object? Inconclusive.
And these are fine things to blog about (after all, that is an astonishingly cute baby, if I say so myself. Which I do). But the blog title seems deceptive now that our passports have remained on file for over five months (!!!). The solution is obvious, but I was so pleased I popped open some $4 bubbly: I started Passport Diaries in Florida with many entries sub-categorized under “The Sunshine State Diaries.” And that is our new working title, giving me the freedom to blog—not about travel—but about Captain Goodbaby’s affinity for avocado, the progress of our citrus trees, and our friendly pursuit of wild alligators. From the comfort of our back porch, of course.
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| This is not our yard. |
Dark Side of Paradise
Picky Fish
Thanks to the Bunnies
Let’s Wear Yukata!
"This Is Not Our Yard." Thanks for the laugh!