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My dad came for a short visit and while he was here we had some fun with Iris.

I have also made several posts recently, mostly photos. Here are the links:

• steamboat springs
• fourteen months old
• twelve months

steamboat springs

Last weekend we took a one-night vacation to Steamboat Springs. My Aunt Nancy had been painting (she is an artist) there for a week and we wanted to be sure to visit while she was in Colorado. It is a four hour drive for people with babies, so most of the weekend was spent in the car. Iris did really well on the trip and it was her first car ride facing forward.

Facing forward for the first time

Riding in the car is a great way for Iris to see her city, especially the cars, which she calls, "gaga." This is also the name she uses for dogs.

We all need our sunglasses on

Iris usually dislikes having her sunglasses put on while we're in the car, so I often show her that everyone else has to have them on, too. I think this helps. At least for a little while.

We had to take the concentrator with us but failed to bring both portable oxygen tanks and since she was on a higher oxygen flow at higher elevation, that means we weren't able to do as much as we might have on Sunday because we had to be sure we were driving home with a full oxygen tank. This was a major planning fail. 

Concentrator packed

 Shortly before this photo below was taken, we hopped in the car and took off. Then I realized I had forgotten my cell phone and we had to turn around before getting going for real.

 We managed to keep Iris out of trouble while visiting the graphics studio where Aunt Nancy was painting. (All of the above photos were taken by my dad.)

Visit with Aunt Nancy

Looking at Iris's toes

In case you're wondering, I forgot Father's Day. Technically, I didn't forget it, but I thought it was on Monday since I couldn't imagine figuring out how to celebrate while we were on a trip. I think Evan might have forgotten too, but when we saw the print shop owner on Sunday morning, the first thing she said was, "Happy Father's Day!" And this was while Evan was making eggs for all of us. Ugh. Second major fail of the trip.

I tried to make up for it by bringing home a bag of cookies from Whole Foods and some meditation magazines. So after Iris was asleep we drank peppermint tea, ate cookies, and read meditation magazines.

fourteen months old

She's getting so big!

This is the face she makes when I say, "Smile for Mama!"

Now she's giving me her bunny

the dirty projectors dance

Summer is upon us. The last week was very hot and Iris spent much of the time in diaper only. She is increasingly active and loves to run across the room. She also loves music, as you'll see below. She is dancing to "Impregnable Question" by The Dirty Projectors. 

We have a pulmonary check-up in about a month. Iris continues to have increased oxygen needs, her happy spot is somewhere between 1/4L and 1/2L. This is more than double what it was in October of last year, when she was down to 1/8L. I try not to think about this troubling fact very much because there's nothing we can do about it and the doctors are firm in saying that she will, eventually, grow out of the need for oxygen supplementation.

Iris was sick with a stomach bug again. It seemed worse than the stomach bug at the end of April, if it was in fact a stomach bug. She lost some weight and that really worried me. She's much better now, though, and has gained back the weight she lost. She really has the appetite of a horse.

When Evan feeds her, he models the deliciousness of the food by pretending to put the spoon of food in his mouth and gives a satisfied, "Haummm!" grunt that is supposed to suggest satisfaction. The effect has been that Iris has started giving the same sound effect when she eats something she likes. It's very adorable. She also has heard me say "Achoo!" after she sneezes a lot so she has started mimicking that noise by saying, "Atoo!"

The last piece of news is that we've had to confiscate all books from Iris's toddling radius for the time being. She is teething and has found books to be particularly tasty. This means that she is literally devouring books. She is usually pretty loud when she plays, if not squealing or babbling, then she is banging things together. Sometimes when I'm in the kitchen and not watching very closely, I realize that things have suddenly gotten very quiet. This is never a good sign. And recently it has meant that yet another book has been sacrificed for the sake of Iris's teeth.