Edmund Experiences a Snow Day

Edmund Ponders His Encounter with Snow

Tuesday, January 20th was a momentous occasion in many ways. Not only did the United States witness the inauguration of its first African-American president, but so did Edmund witness his first snowfall. I must add Edmund's mommy was shouting "hallelujah" over her four day weekend. I knew there was a strong possibility of snow, but I prepared to go in for work as usual. The last two years I have been disappointed by the promise of snow yielding to a melty slush and a trek to work. I thought that by not getting my hopes up I had a better chance of snow and cancellation of school--yes I know, faulty logic. Despite my illogical thinking, I still got my snow day.

After feeding and dressing Edmund I bundled him in his snowsuit, hat, and mittens to go see the wintry white stuff blanketing our front yard. Edmund was not thrilled with being bundled and was quite a bit fussy when we made our way out the door. His fussiness turned to confusion as he looked at the white world before him and then back at me. I showed him how he could stick his tongue out to catch a snowflake. To my amazement he even tried this childhood rite of passage a few times. I then helped Edmund touch the snow with his mittened hands. At this point he looked at his mommy as if she were crazy. "Why would you think I would want to touch this strange, cold stuff?", he seemed to ask. Thus our first foray into the snow came to an abrupt end.

Around 11:00 I settled Edmund down for a nap. It then occurred to me I could watch the inauguration live. I got about as far as former President Carter making his entrance before young Master Edmund awoke. I have been very good about sticking to my "no TV" rule for Edmund at our house, but after realizing that listening to the inauguration on the radio was not the same as watching it, I decided to make an exception. I figured it was important for my baby to see this historic occasion, an occasion he will not remember, but important nonetheless.

We made two more ventures out into the snow that Tuesday. On the second trip my baby again looked at me as if I were crazy. "Why would you bring me out here again, silly lady?" On the final trip Edmund sat in the snow while daddy videotaped the adventure. The below picture about sums up Edmund's thoughts on his first snow day.

Mommy Rescues Edmund After He Topples Over in the Snow
At Least He Was Cushioned

Edmund Asserts His Indepence

Edmund Receives a Football From Granddad

A month ago I had grand visions of writing about Edmund's first Christmas upon returning from vacation. While Christmas and the holiday travels with Edmund were memorable, they are easily summed up. Edmund opened an abundance of gifts from friends and relatives far and near. Christmas day went by rather slowly as Steven wanted Edmund to open each and every present by himself. Edmund never quite got the hang of unwrapping the presents and had to take breaks in between every few presents to eat or sleep. I have a feeling next year's present opening will go by in no time, as well as commence even earlier. Let me take this time to mention that Edmund's parents did not get their little son anything for his first Christmas (shame on us), but he still raked in the gifts. The day after Christmas Edmund took a week long trip with his parents to make his rounds visiting relatives. His first stop was Harrisonburg,VA where he visited Granddad and Grandma Kay Kay. Upon his arrival, Edmund got to "open" more presents. Next he traveled to Hershey, PA to visit aunts, uncles, great-grandparents, and cousins galore. In Hershey he experienced yet another Christmas with present opening. Finally, Edmund traveled north to State College, PA. There he met his great-grandparents Casida for the first time. Guess what? Edmund got to open more presents. Aside from an exciting first trip to Hershey's Chocolate World, the above is Edmund's first Christmas in a nutshell. Edmund also proved an amazing traveler, reminding me again how blessed we are with our little man.

Since returning from vacation a week ago, Edmund has achieved two new milestones. On Wednesday night Edmund suddenly began saying "da da da da." By Thursday he was saying "da ba da ba." Now once he gets going he won't stop. Unfortunately he has yet to say "ma ma" except when he is upset. Steven likes to brag that "da da" is for happy times and "ma ma" is for sad times. I'm going to root for "ma ma" to soon take its place in the happy time category.

Edmund also recently discovered he can shake his head back and forth. He often does this at random times, smiling as he does so. This particular action is quite adorable. However, Edmund has also learned he can shake his head when being offered peas or avocados, his two least favorite foods. This has made for quite difficult, not to mention messy, mealtimes. Both of these new achievements remind me that Edmund is his own little person. He will soon be talking and asking "why, why, why" as he discovers the world around him. He has also learned that he is no longer an appendage of his parents, but an independent being who can express his displeasure. Fortunately for Steven and I, "no" is not a word that has entered Edmund's vocabulary as of yet. We're hoping "why" comes first!