The night Nico turned nine months, Derek got the news that his company lost millions of dollars in federal funding (Trump, ugh). That set off a whirlwind of uncertainty for us. First, we thought Derek would lose his job at the end of the week. That didn’t happen, but we had no certainty about what the weeks ahead would bring. We made the tough, but smart decision, to pack up and leave Brooklyn. Derek’s parents told us we were welcome to stay with them while we figured out what lay ahead for us. We spent our days enjoying watching Nico (and Brooklyn) bloom and our nights frantically packing.
Spring days in Brooklyn were filled with beautiful cherry blossoms, mud puddles and all the ube ice cream. Nico loved to gaze up at the beautiful pink cherry blossoms that were all over Bed Stuy; it was our first inkling that he is a flower lover. Spring was beautiful, perfect weather nearly every day - or rainy days that created the aforementioned mud puddles. We spent a lot of time visiting local green spaces - the community garden, the church yard, the park a block from our house. We brought blankets, books and balls to pass the time. Nico got to meet other kids. He and the toddlers were mostly not interested in each other, but Nico and the older kids - Nico and the nannies, now that was a hit. Nico crawled and took tentative steps, spreading his wings to pick up as many rocks and crunchy leaves as he could get his hands on. He had to learn, multiple times, that dandelion puffs are not tasty. Our final weeks and days in Brooklyn were a flurry of visits from friends and loved ones, coming to bid us adieu. I was too busy to cry until the night before we left, but then the flood gates opened. Our final goodbye was to sweet Mordechai; we went to the church garden, one of his favorite places that’s filled with his spirit and said goodbye before hitting the road.
The road trip was a bit tough for Nico, to say the least. He cried and cried, for hours, and even though I was sitting next to him, I couldn’t pick him up. That was a tough first for Nico, and a tough trip for all of us. In between all the driving he had a great time. We stopped in Lancaster, where he played his first piano in a park and nibbled on goat cheese at the Central Market. In Pittsburgh, he went swimming at Grandad and GrandAnn’s, played instruments with his cousins, pet lots of cats and went to the natural history museum. He was more interested in his stroller wheels than the exhibits, but we still had a great visit! Our next stop was Charleston, WV, where we happily stumbled upon Pride. Nico’s first pride was loads of fun, with lots of beautiful colorful people and sprinklers everywhere!
When we arrived in South Carolina, we were met by the hustle and bustle of Derek’s big family- G’Nan and Pops, Uncle Jeff and Dev and cousin Paysley. Within a matter of days, Nico went from his unsteady steps to walking confidently, from room to room in his big new house, and all over the beautiful backyard. His greatest discovery was probably the hose, which has provided countless hours of fun. He fearless - he loves to drink from the hose, never minds the splash back and he quickly grew adept at watering the plants. Nico’s love of flowers also blossomed. He sweetly goes from flower to flower, sniffing them and share their sweet scents.
I don’t know if separation anxiety is a natural consequence of age, or whether all the massive change sparked some fear, but from our first night in the south, Nico slept clinging to me, sweet little arms wrapped around my neck.
-
![]()
-
![]()
-
![]()
-
![]()
-
![]()
-
![]()
New List Item
Nico’s bravery and boldness isn’t limited to the hose. He’s so curious and outgoing everyday. He digs and splashes in the mud. He plays with dogs, big and small. He weaves and runs through the yard, getting right back up if he falls. He loves wheels. He wants to know how everything works - we call him our little engineer and marvel at his inquisitiveness.
Nico loves animals. We wish there were cats around, but have settled for dogs, horses, goats, chickens, hummingbirds, cardinals, dragonflies and lizards. Nico and Buku, G’Nan’s mini dachshund are best friends, but he also loves the big dogs across the street. He loves to kiss the dogs. With time, Nico has learned to use gentle hands with the dogs, and not to go after their faces- this has, unfortunately, led to him kissing the dogs butts instead of the faces. Oops!
Nico’s new favorite food group, fitting for his birthday season and new locale, is fruit. He loves picking cherry tomatoes right off the vine. He asks every day to go across the street to pick blueberries. I’m pretty sure he learned to sign “more” just to ask for peaches and plums. And oh the corn (and corn filled diapers!).
We celebrated his first birthday, and Pops, with strawberry cake and chocolate cake, and a trip to the splash pad at the zoo. Our sweet Nico, turning one - very much a toddler, always our baby, forever the brightest light in our lives. On to year two!