Coffee

Ing thinks I should start another blog about my obsession with decaf coffee. How I can only drink my coffee if it's pure piping hot. If it's really strong and dark. If it has the perfect amount of milk in it. If it's really fresh.

I have gotten into fights with the sales clerks at Starbucks because their decaf doesn't hold up to their regular. Because they let it sit around too long. Because it gets cold and not as fresh as the regular.

I don't like Gorillas in Park Slope because it's not hot enough, and when you add milk it is just downright tepid.

I don't drink regular coffee because I don't need that much caffeine, but I love the ritual and the taste of drinking coffee.

I love Fairway because their coffee is good (the decaf not as much as the regular but beggars can't be choosers), and it's $1, and I love the experience of shopping at Fairway.

There's a great new cafe on Atlantic in our 'hood, Brooklyn Bean and Tea Company, where I paid $4 for a decaf. $4, but it was a fresh French pressed large cup of coffee. It was so delicious and hot. They steamed a little bit of milk for me so I didn't have to ruin it with cold milk. When it started getting not hot, they steamed the coffee for me. The people behind the counter are charming, and cute, and it's a new business and I like supporting the local business.

Ahhhh.... Coffee. Next I'll post about my preferences in martinis.

New Entertainment Obsessions

Ingrid and I saw Michael Clayton on Saturday. A friend of ours "borrowed" Clyde. Long story. She's a single mom. Got herself knocked up by a sperm donor in doctor's office. Her daughter is 20 months now. She wants a second baby but worries it'll be too hard as a single mom so she asked to borrow Clyde so that they could "test" out being a family of three instead of two! So our friend took Clyde and Tess to a pig roast in the nabe. Apparently Clyde was very well behaved and even slept. Our friend put Clyde in the ergo carrier, and Tess in the stroller. Tess, the 20-month-old, loved Clyde and played and poked at her. Ing and I went to the movies and had a date, and drank 72 oz. of Diet Coke for $5. Cheaper than a sitter for three hours, I guess.

Then we watched the first season of Weeds on Netflix. I'm obsessed! Everyone on it is so genius. Elizabeth Perkins is my favorite, I think.

I think I need to start a blog about TV shows that I'm obsessed with, two years after everyone else discovers them: Arrested Development, Six Feet Under, 24, Weeds, Big Love. In two years, it'll be Lost, Grey's Anatomy and Heroes.

Working from home

Today, it's awesome. I had to go into the city for meetings and came home around 2 and Clyde was napping, since 1:30. She's still napping, at 3:43. Not bad. So I've gotten all my work done and can play with her when she wakes up.

Meanwhile, nanny Clare told me this week that she is going to get Clyde a library card! That babies who get cards at the Brooklyn Public Library get free books once a month, and are invited to special programs at the libraries. How cute is that???

Clyde is still not sleeping through the nights. Last night, she woke up three times before her actual wakeup time. We haven't given in and fed her yet in the middle of the night, and are trying not to because apparently babies will start waking up every night wanting food if you feed them. I guess we are lucky because she goes back down pretty easily, after we just comfort her for a minute or two, but it still feels tiring. Here we go!

Sassafras

Our tenant downstairs has a 4-year-old. He has an unusual name, Cerulean. Really creative, sensitive, sweet boy. Apparently he's decided he wants to change his name. To what, you ask? Joey? Billy? Owen? No. Sassafras. Yes, Sassafras. He gets upset, evidently, if his mom or anyone else calls him Cerulean. He insists on Sassafras. I'm like, Is that a drag name?? Our poor tenant. She said it's been hard to get used to, and she's going to see how long it lasts. Parenthood!!

Waverly Inn

Oh and Waverly Inn was OK. Kinda overrated. We had a rezzie at 930 and still didn't sit till 1030. I was cranky and tipsy and hungry, and was like, 'I'd so rather be home and in bed or holding Clyde right now!' But it was fun to see the place. Very pretty, floral, warm restaurant. We saw Gretchen Mol and Fran Lebowitz and some girls I used to work with at Vogue. But overall, it was unremarkable. Glad we tried it, don't need to claw my way back in.

Clyde, Meet Formula

We gave Clyde a bottle of formula for the first time tonight. I have been doing everything I can to avoid giving her formula, and I'm not sure why. Guilt, because I feel like breastmilk is better? It is, but formula is fine too. Our doc said, "We were all formula-fed, and we turned out ok..." And it's true!

Clyde took to the formula like it was ice cream. She's not a fussy eater. By that, I mean she eats breast milk AND formula, now. We gave it to her because she's been waking up a lot at night, hungry I think. And she eats more than I can produce in a day at work. So we'll see how tonight goes.

Today we took her to an event that Target sponsored at Columbia University called Children Read. It was author reading for kids books, little tents where reading areas were set up, coloring books and games for kids, and book sales. It was all free, and so so cool. There were so many cute families there. We'll be excited to go back next year when Clyde can appreciate it even more.

She's so goshdarn cute, it's hard to not snuggle her all the time! She's been fussy lately, I think because she is too hungry. So let's see how this new formula feeding goes. I'll still do the breastmilk, but just supplement with formula...

PS Fingerprinting

We did get fingerprinted, but it took an hour and half for both of us, and a new employee at the NYPD fingerprinted me, and it seems she used too much ink, so some of my prints are too dark. They said, "It's no problem, if the court won't accept them, you can just come back." Awesome. Can I pay another $15 money order, too?

Date Night

My mom is in town and going to take Clyde for an overnight tonight. So Ingrid and I have planned quite a night out! I am going to a work event right after work, then getting a massage, and Ingrid's getting one too. Then we are heading down to the Thompson Hotel rooftop bar to meet our friend Andrew, who has a key to the roof (it's like the Gramercy Park, you have to have a key to get access!).

We'll have drinks there, then we're having dinner at Graydon Carter's restaurant, The Waverly Inn at 9:30. When was the last time I had dinner at 9:30?! It must have been in my 20s, for sure. Andrew had to email Graydon's assistant at Vanity Fair to get us a reservation. We are excited, as this is something we couldn't/wouldn't do on our own.

Meanwhile, Clyde is growing ever faster. She's started rolling over, and grabbing her toys with her hands and holding on. It is crazy, how she advances every day. She's at 13 lbs, 11 oz now, and measures 25 inches. She's also talking up a storm, and eating 18 oz. of breastmilk while I am gone during the day! Soon we will have to supplement with formula, because I can't pump enough!