I suspect that I picked up some strange new bug on the plane--I had a fever of 101.3 on Sunday morning, which was gone by Sunday noon. I had one of those "brain loose inside my head" headaches that only aspirin can cure for most of that day. Also, all food tasted wierd--like the parameters in the Matrix had been tweaked just a little bit, so chicken didn't taste like chicken anymore. Anyway, the combination of whatever I was fighting and jet lag made me not the most sociable person this weekend--I'm afraid Ralph and Audrey didn't see me at my best.
On Saturday, we spent some time unpacking, some time marvelling at the job Ralph and Audrey had done repainting our kitchen, and some time visiting the new apartment with Ralph, Audrey, and our friend Jocelyn, who came over to meet Juliet. Sorry, no pictures--I was too spaced out to remember to take any. We did, however, put Juliet into the stroller that Beth and Steve loaned us for the trip. Juliet seemed to really like the stroller experience--despite being closer to the ground, I think she enjoyed the ease of being carted around. The Baby Bjorn is probably more work for her, as she's got to be able to feel the muscle motions of whoever is carrying her.
On Sunday, Joyce and Audrey went shopping for baby supplies at the Manhattan Babies 'r' Us. In addition to bringing back the usual sets of things (diapers, bottle liners, etc.), they also came back with a bouncy swing, which Juliet loves.
I think it's improving her coordination. Also, Juliet seems to be crawling for real these days, and its much easier and neater to feed her baby food than it was only a few days ago.
Sunday evening, our friends Beth, Steve, and Annabel; Richard, Susan, Elaina, and Amy all came by to meet Juliet before going out for dinner. Amy unfortunately had an ear infection, so her parents took turns hanging out with her downstairs while the other parent came up to socialize. Annabel brought a whole set of gifts for Juliet, including a hippo that vibrates and sings "Fur Elise", a tetrahedral plastic molecule, some cool cloth cubes that make different noises when you squish them, and a mobile-like device that looks to me like a surrealist nightmare but I am assured is delightful to babies. Again, I'm sorry I didn't get any pictures due to being spaced out.
Nanny and Grampy left to return to Oregon on Monday morning, so we only got to see them for a weekend, which was far too brief. We're hoping to see them again in Maine this summer, with a more relaxed schedule to enjoy each others company.
Our last big triumph of Monday was making congee! My dad (Lowell) provided the very simple recipe: one cup rice, two cups chicken stock or water, meaty bits to taste, and simmer for two hours, adding water to maintain the same consistency as the simmer boils liquid off. We used bits of Citarella rotisserie chicken (our favorite among Upper West Side rotisserie chickens, having tried them all). Juliet appears to approve.
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