Elliot crawling (sort of)

Here's the little bean experimenting with his newfound skill of crawling. His major motivator? Not his parents - the remote control. We are already taking the back seat to technology. Notice at the end of this video, when Elliot is seconds away from victory, Justeen cruelly removes his assigned target away from him. Will someone please call DSS?!

Elliot's First Thanksgiving

Sadly, we weren't able to go to California for Thanksgiving this year, but we're thankful to have had a loving and welcoming home in which to celebrate. Rachel's parents, Norma and Arnold, invited us to their home for the holiday (their other home on Martha's Vineyard was featured previously on this blog). We had a lovely meal and much to give thanks for (as Rachel put it, her father began the meal with a celebratory diatribe/toast about the recent landslide victory of the Democrats). Elliot basked in the good spirits as well - despite a leaky nose, he was his typical affable self.

Here's Charlie (Rachel's husband) inviting Elliot to join us at the table.


And here's Elliot after joining the table conversation.


And one last pose from a satiated duo.

Elliot Does San Francisco

Justeen took her annual trip to San Francisco to meet her mom and sisters. Elliot went with her this year. My sense is there's only a few years remaining before Elliot refuses to go on these all-girl shopping excursions - so it's good that everyone enjoys his company now. I mean, this is not to suggest that we're going to force him into restrictive gender roles or anything, but I'm just betting odds here. Honestly, I can't much stand shopping with Justeen. She does a lot of looking through glass and not enough throwing down of plastic. It's common after Justeen has gone "shopping" for her to come back empty handed, and, most surprisingly, to be fully satisfied with the experience.

In any case, here are the photos from little e's first all-chick shopping trip. Here's the group posing for a pic.



Here's Justeen's mom when she learned what a Franciscan crab actually is.


And finally, Elliot looking innocent after a long day.

More Bouncing for Halloween

Never too tired to bounce, Elliot has a time on his friend Kathleen.

Elliot's First Halloween

Because he has long loved the song "Five Little Speckled Frogs," and because he has recently taken to the activity of bouncing, a frog was the ideal mascaraed for Elliot. When we found this "speckled frog" outfit," we decided he had to wear it.

On the Sunday before Halloween, we had a party in our community garden. Lots of people from the neighborhood came out on a beautifully blustery Fall day to parade their children in costumes, bob for apples, scavenge for junk, and beat a pinata.


Even Izzy joined the fun. He was a ladybug. And don't worry, the irony of our dog being the prey of our son was not lost on us.

Here's a group photo with all the kids. And some of the parents of those kids unable to pose.


On Halloween night (an unusually warm night here), our favorite folks (Jeannette, Guillaume and Ella) came by to help us hand out candy to neighborhood beggars (i mean, kids). As you can see, our two little speckled frogs were quite the spectacle themselves.

The Bean Family Go to Chicago

Justeen had to go to a conference. So, the whole family got on a plane and went to Chicago. While Justeen was hobnobbing, the little bean and I wandered the streets of Chi-town, looking for fun. We came across a number of things - Halloween festivals, stunning architecture, crowded sidewalks - all things that kept us occupied.

Here's the bean in his sweet ride, waiting for a sweet tour.


When Justeen was finished, she joined us in our wanderings. Here they are in Millennium Park - a wonderful display of open space and art in the middle of the city.


But, as traveling is always exhausting, it often takes a toll on you. The day we left, we decided to go to the Chicago history museum. Even before we arrived, Elliot decided he was done. He tipped forward in such a way that was temporarily irreversible. For about an hour, we walked around the city with what appeared to be a dead baby.