ctress Annabeth Gish (Brotherhood) is a mom for the second time around. After welcoming her second son Enzo in October (big brother Cash was born in 2007... and happens to have one of the Top 10 Names of 2008!), she’s definitely put in some serious diaper duty!
In between taking care of a newborn and chasing a toddler around, Gish had the grace to answer a few Cradle questions.
The Cradle: What inspired the name Enzo?
Annabeth: My husband is Italian with beautiful names like Adelmo Mezzano and Rose Andreoni in his family. Enzo just came to him one day, and when he suggested it, rather late in our pregnancy when we had almost committed to another name, it resonated perfectly. I loved it, my husband loved it, and most importantly our first child, Cash, loved it. We had solicited Cash's opinion on a few other names and he didn't like any of them. When we asked if he liked Baby Enzo, he immediately repeated it several times and shook his little blond head affirmatively. We took that as a good sign.
The Cradle: How does it feel being a mom the second-time around?
Annabeth: I'm having so much more fun this time around. I feel more relaxed, more confident, just looser about everything from nursing to sleep to getting out and about. With Cash I don't think I left the house with him for 6 weeks, except for walks around the neighborhood. Because we have a little one running around who needs lots of attention, and parents who are present for him, we are doing more and secluding less. It's a nice thing to be more relaxed and free to really enjoy the exquisite joys of motherhood, even when there is not much sleep happening for Mommy and Daddy.
The Cradle: How is older brother, Cash, responding to his new baby brother?
Annabeth: Cash is doing amazingly well. I anticipated a much more difficult adjustment for him, but he's been open and curious and ultimately understanding. Of course he's had his moments of wanting his mommy back exclusively, especially when I'm nursing in the evening. He had to learn the difference between poking the baby and gently caressing him, but he processed it rather quickly. Just knowing that these two boys will always have each other as constants in their lives, as playmates, brothers, and hopefully best friends, makes it easy to ‘"suffer’" through momentary overwhelm.
The Cradle: Tell us a few things in your diaper bag, or nursery, that you're totally crushing on (and can't live without!)
Annabeth: After trying so many and being given more than a few, I finally found a diaper bag I absolutely love: the
Ju Ju Be - Be All Diaper Bag. It holds everything I need, the strap stays over my shoulder, the fabric is durable and not too precious, and it has lots of pockets and designated compartments.
Here are a few things that I keep inside the bag as staples...
Annabeth lives in Los Angeles with her husband Wade Allen and their two sons, Cash and Enzo. She can currently be seen in Showtimeâ??s latest hit, Brotherhood.
