10 Things...

The last page of the magazine I edit is always a story called "10 Things." Not surprisingly, we list 10 things that we think readers will enjoy learning about a particular era in design, or an architectural icon, or a historic design-related event. It's probably my favorite part of the magazine because it's like Trivial Pursuit in journalistic form.

So in honor of Hadley, here is my own "10 Things I Love About Hadley" list:

1. Her faces: She is expressive, even in her sleep. Jason and I have taken to making "Hadley faces" at each other, which is fine at home but might be a little socially awkward when we join the real world again.

2. Her noises: Hadley squeaks like a pig, neighs like a horse, meows like a cat--she's very talented. And when she's finished eating, she makes the happiest little sigh I've ever heard.

3. Her hair. Enough said.

4. The way she smells. My mom says that I smelled like oatmeal when I was a baby; Hadley smells like sweet, just-out-of-the-oven bread. I wonder if she thinks it's weird that I smell her little head every chance I get.

5. The way she snuggles into my arms. Hadley is an expert snuggler--so expert, in fact, that she prefers to sleep only when someone is holding her, though she has finally agreed to sleep in her Moses basket at night.

6. The way she stretches. She has long legs and she loves to reach, reach, reach her limbs out all at once and crane her neck like a little bird. This activity is usually accompanied by a grunt that is rather unlike any little bird I've ever heard.

7. The way she looks in Jason's arms. She was a big baby, it's true, but when she's snuggled up (see #5) on her dad's chest, she looks so tiny...and my heart breaks just a little bit because I know that one day, I'll look at her and remember when we could provide everything she needed, just by feeding and changing and holding her.

8. The way she looks at me when she's awake and alert. I put my face close to hers so she can see me, and I tell her about what we're going to do today--or what we did--and about the neighbors across the street and about the squirrels outside, anything I can think of. And she furrows her brow and raises her eyebrows, and it's almost like she's saying, "Oh, really, Mommy? Sounds fabulous. Tell me more."

9. Her screaming. Ok, I don't love when she screams, but I do love that she seems fiesty, and she's not afraid to let us know when she's mad. No demure babies here.

10. The way our house feels with Hadley here. True, I have had moments when I've thought about how easy life was when we could decide to run up to the mountains on a whim, or go get dinner at our favorite restaurant whenever we wanted. But somehow, it feels absolutely right that Hadley is here, now.

11. Ok, I'm cheating, but I've remembered one more thing that I love about Hadley. At my baby shower, my mom gave me a card in which she wrote, "Now you will know how much I love you." It's true: Hadley has taught me about this new kind of love--crazy, impossible love that makes me realize how deeply and wildly our parents love us.

All this in just two weeks. By three months, I'll have a "495 things I love about Hadley" list. THEN we'll see who our faithful readers are. :)