Jailbreak

They thought they could contain me. Ha! First the regular swaddles. Easily escaped. Next it was the SwaddleMe. A bit of a challenge, but I managed to wriggle free. Then they broke out the big guns...the Miracle Blanket. This thing was supposed to keep me wrapped up? Not likely.

Esme celebrates her escape with a grin and a thumbs up

Rumor has it they will stop this silliness about swaddling in about a month. Can't come soon enough for this little Houdini. But in the meantime, I still have a few tricks up my sleeve in case Mom and Dad try any other fancy blankets. Hehe.

Love and cuddles,
Esme

What's in a name?

This past weekend Mom and Dad took me to shul for the first time for my naming. Now, if you read this blog regularly, you know my name is Esme. But this was for my Hebrew name, Esther Sh'Tira. They decided to name me after two of my Great Grandmothers. I never got to meet either of them, but I learned about them at the naming. Grandma Esther was my Dad's Dad's mother. I was named for her because she was wonderfully kind and remarkably creative, both qualities that Mom and Dad hope for me. Sh'Tira is after Mom's Mom's mother, Stella Wise. It was her tremendous strength and independence that Mom and Dad wish for me. I'm a really lucky girl to have such a special Hebrew name.

Esme bops along to the musical stylings of Cantor Jodi

And I had lots of fun at Shul. I got my own special service with the family. It was run by Rabbi Joel and Cantor Jodi. They both married Mom and Dad and Cantor Jodi Bat Mitzvahed Mom. So we like them both a lot. And I loved the singing. Cantor Jodi sings such great songs.

Esme, wrapped in a special Talit, takes it all in

I got to be the center of attention and was all wrapped up in Mom's Talit. They say it was the same one she used for her Bat Mitzvah. That was too cool.

Esme enjoys a Rabbinic cuddle while Mom and Dad look on

Then we stayed for Shabbat services. I was on my best behavior and really impressed everyone by lasting the whole service. Afterwards, we went back to Safta and Ronnie's for a special dinner which was lots of fun too. They said the food was super yummy, but I stuck with my usual milk since Mom's the very best caterer of all in my book. I got to see lots of family, including all my grandparents. I can't wait to see everyone again soon. But since my Bat Mitzvah is still a little ways off, next time will have to be someone else's party.

Love and cuddles,
Esme

Hard to get good help these days

Well, my dad is doing a good job as a parent. But wow does he stink as an administrative assistant. I mean, seriously, it's been almost a month since he's put up some of my posts. I know he's got the pictures cause I had to tolerate them being taken. And I dictated the written parts to him already.

So I'm cracking the whip and he should be putting up a big backlog of pics and posts. If he doesn't, I might have to fire my dad...just as my assistant.

ASSISTANT'S NOTE: After profuse apologies to my employer (Esme pays me in smiles) and posting her backlog of entries, it looks like I'll get to keep my job. I put the posts on their actual dates, so you'll have to look below.

Kickin' Off the Weekend

So I'm back in Weston with Mom and Dad. They listened to my complaints about the last trip and we took the train this time. I like the train much better. Mom and Dad can pick me up and sooth me without having to stop. We all like that. After we got to Ronnie and Safta's house, we settled in. After we had a chance to rest, we went over to Dorothea and Shelly's for dinner. It was really nice of them to invite everyone over. I got to hand out with Bubbie Lindie and Neill too, since they are staying with Dorothea and Shelly this weekend.

Look Ma, no hands!

I decided to show off for everybody. I can now support most of my weight with my legs. So I hung out standing for a little bit. All the big people were very impressed.

Esme cuddles with Bubbie Lindie

We all had lots of fun. And tomorrow I get to see my Aunties (Julia and Emily). I'm really excited and can't wait.

Love and cuddles,
Esme

Grandpa Comes to Town

So I had a very special visitor the other day all the way from California. It was my Grandpa! He's always so excited to see me and it's lots of fun when he visits. We had a really nice time. Dad promised that I'll get to see him a couple more times at least before he goes back home to San Frisco.

That's one happy Grandpa!

After Grandpa left, we just had a relaxing rest of the day at home.

Mother and daughter lost in each others' eyes

I got to spend some time on my changing pad (it's my favorite place). And Mom hung out with me there for a while. I like looking at Mom (Dad says he does too). Well, I'm off to sleep.

Love and cuddles,

Esme

Humoring the Parents

So Mom and Dad keep trying to put me in these devices that other kids supposedly like. First, it was the bouncer. That thing I hated. And I wasn't shy about letting them know that. So the bouncer disappeared and a swing appeared. I didn't like that either. Personally, I think they should both be perpetually on call to pick me up and sooth me any way I like. If I'm in the mood for bouncing, they should bounce me. If I want swinging, they should swing me. I don't see why that won't always work. But they insist on trying these contraptions.

Esme tolerates the swing and almost seems to enjoy it

So just this once I decided to humor them and not lodge a formal complaint when they put me in the swing. Actually, it wasn't so bad. Mom and Dad were super excited cause they got to do something called 'eat dinner at the table'. I don't get what was so cool about the table, but they are weird sometimes. Parents...what's a kid to do?

Love and cuddles,

Esme

Cool new décor

I got a really cool new toy. It's super pretty and makes great music. Plus it moves around. I really like checking it out when Mom or Dad wind it up.

Esme is mesmerized by her new mobile

And it adds a very stylish and mature note to my crib. I also got two cute rugs. They have squares and lots of animals. Mom told me what all the animals are, but I can't remember then all yet. That's OK though, since Dad promised to teach me about the different animals again so I can remember.  Now I just need to figure out what to do with the big, blank wall in my room. But all in all, the look of the place is really coming together.

Love and cuddles,
Esme

Great Grandpa Sam

So after our vacation on Cape Cod, we went in to Weston to stay with Ronnie and Safta for a day before driving home. It was lots of fun to see their house. Mom, Dad and I have our own room there. And I got a really snazzy Pack n' Play for the room. It is super cool.

Even better than the Pack n' Play, I got to meet Great Grandpa Sam the next day. He was so exited to see me he couldn't stop smiling.

Great Grandpa Sam likes the view of Melissa and Esme

We went to visit him at his apartment. And when we got there, he was in the dining room with lots of people. Everyone oohed and ahed over me. I guess they don't see babies very often. But all the attention was fun.

Lost in each others' eyes across the generations

After a nice visit we went back to Weston, got our stuff together and drove back home to NY. As a side note, I don't like the car. In particular, I really hate my special seat in the car. Mom and Dad tell me I have to be strapped in there for safety, but I know it's just cause they can't hope to contain me otherwise. I like to counter this move by lots of screaming. They respond by sticking some weird thing in my mouth. I suck and I suck, but no milk ever seems to come out of this thing. And when I spit it out, it magically makes its way back to my mouth as soon as I start crying again. Maybe next trip I'll figure out what it is. But I did love my vacation and especially meeting Great Grandpa Sam.

Love and cuddles,
Esme

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My Photo Shoot at the Cape

So our apartment in NYC doesn't have great light according to Mom and Dad. So when we were on vacation in Cape Cod, they used this as an excuse to take tons of pictures of me. I know I'm cute, but after a while enough is enough.

Darn, I'm a good looking kid

But they are insisting that I share my world-class cuteness with all of you. So here are a few of the endless number of pictures they subjected me to.

Esme shows off some excellent head control

I hope this photo shoot it enough for a while cause it wore me out. In fact, even talking about it is making me sleepy.

Esme strikes her cute and charming pose

Perhaps I'll go take a nap. Till next time.

Love and cuddles,

Esme

Baby's First Vacation

So I had never been on vacation before. In fact, I had never left the island of Manhattan in all my weeks. So I didn't really appreciate these things called space and fresh air that Mom and Dad kept talking about. Turns out, I really like vacation. We got to go visit Cape Cod and stay in a house that was like ten times the size of our apartment at home. And it was right next to this really cool thing called a beach.

Esme savors the ocean breeze with Mom

I spent lots of time relaxing and checking out the view of the water.

Esme ponders the ocean while chilling on the couch

We had lots of fun and went for walks in my stroller. I even got to go to the Lighthouse, Mom and Dad's favorite spot for breakfast. It looked really tasty, but since I don't have teeth yet, I couldn't try any. Maybe I'll get to have some next time.

Dad points out Martha's Vineyard off in the distance

We spent a whole week there. Ronnie and Safta (Mom's parents) came to visit one day and brought their new puppy Sadie who had lots of fun playing on the beach. I can't wait to go back.

Love and cuddles,

Esme