Deliquent Parents

My friends Nuala and Bran have a good Mommy and Daddy. They already have a six-week update on their blog. I was born on the same day, but my Mommy and Daddy dropped the ball and haven't posted anything about me for a few days now. The nerve. So I guess I need to do it myself.

I'm still having problems with my tummy, but we saw a new doctor today and hopefully it will get better soon. I'm kind of tired of all these doctors I've been meeting lately. They're really nice and everything, but a girl can only handle so many pokes and prods. On Monday they decided to have me try soy formula, but I don't think it's working too well. You'll see in the picture below that I'm breaking out in a rash on my face, and it might be because of the formula. So Mommy may have to come up with something else for me. To quote my friend Colter, I'm having a really hard life.

Actually, most things are going pretty well for me. I'm smiling more and more now, and most of the time it's at Mommy and Daddy instead of my mobile. I can hold my head up pretty well and can lift it off the ground during tummy time, when I let my Mommy give me tummy time. Mostly I hate it and just cry until she picks me up. I like my toys more and more all the time, and tonight I had fun with Daddy on my play mat. I still don't think I like my swing or bouncy seat, but Mommy is determined I will. Maybe someday I'll decide to humor her and stay in them for longer than two minutes before I cry.

Here's a picture of me playing with Daddy and wearing my I (Heart) Daddy onesie (thank you Grandma Debbie).

And here's a picture of me in the bath the other day. I'm not embarrassed to post it since my parents made sure it's not baby porn. You might not be able to tell from this picture, but I'm still pretty skinny; Mommy said she wonders where I came from, since she never thought one of her babies would ever be skinny.

I think that's all for tonight. It's really late and everyone needs sleep in this house. Mommy told me I need to be a good girl and sleep for more than three or four hours at a time, but I don't think I want to do that yet. Maybe next week. Or not.

ISO Tall, White Male, 25-30

Sunday evening the home teachers were over when the phone rang. Not wanting to be rude to our visitors, we let the phone go to voicemail. After they left I found a message waiting from my second cousin-in-law Bryce. He was going to be out our way to visit his brother-in-law, who is in town on business, and wanted to stop by. I tried him at his home number, perhaps expecting to get his wife, Lisa. No answer. I checked my BlackBerry, but found that we only had a home phone number.

Not wanting to give up, and possibly forfeit a delightful visit from an entertaining guy, I called Lisa's cousin Mary. Mary didn't have Bryce's cellphone number, but had Lisa's. "And, oh," she told me, "Lisa is in Boston visiting her sister and her in-laws."

So, I called Lisa's cell phone. No answer.

Still not wanting to give up, I decided to try to Lisa's sister, Marci. I didn't have Marci's contact information, but knew that my brother Jared would, as they both live in Boston. I called Jared. He gave me Marci's home phone number.

I called Marci's home phone number. Her husband Matt answered.

"Marci and Lisa are over at Bryce's parents' house," explained Matt.

"Can I get Marci's cell phone number?" I asked.

"Actually, Marci's cell phone is broken. She has mine with her. Call her at..." and her proceeded to give me his cell phone number to call to reach Marci.

I called the number.

Marci answered.

"Hey, Marci how's it going? Can I talk to Lisa?"

Marci passed me to Lisa and I explained the situation. "Actually, Bryce doesn't have a cell phone on him, but he's with my brother-in-law Jim, who does. Call his number."

So, I called Jim. He answered and passed me off to Bryce, to whom I explained that, in an attempt to get hold of him, I had:

Called his and Lisa's home phone number.
Called Mary to get to get Lisa's cell phone number.
Called Lisa's cell phone and gotten no answer.
Called Jared to get Marci's home phone number.
Called Marci's home phone and talked to Matt to get Matt's cell phone because Marci's cell phone is broken.
Called Matt's cell phone and talked to Marci who passed me to Lisa, who gave me Jim's cell phone number.
Called Jim and finally got to talk to BRYCE!

Bryce arrived at the house a half hour later. We kicked him out after a few hours ... at 1:11am.
It was a grand visit.
We love Bryce.

I love Eddie Bauer shirts.

Last Friday, the 19th, Kristin and I took an outing to the mall to stretch our legs and enjoy walls other than those of our townhouse. We stopped in at Eddie Bauer to return a shirt I received for Christmas. I figured I could use the store money from the returned shirt to pick out one other shirt as their shirts tend to be a little expensive. Imagine my delight when, while browsing their wrinkle resistant dress shirts, a salesman explained that they were having an incredible sale on all winter merchandise: 50% off the already %30 off price. This meant that the dress shirts that are normally $55 and were marked down to $30 were now going for $15. I found two excellent shirts, psyched that I had gotten such a good deal.

On the way home from picking my Mom up at the airport the next day, we decided to stop by another Eddie Bauer store near us to see if they were having the same sale. They were! I ended up finding four shirts for myself, four for one of my brothers (plus a sweater, see pic to right), and two for my dad. Those ten dress shirts only cost me $150. Those same ten shirts would have run $550 full price. I so rocked that sale.

As the saleswoman was ringing up my purchases she congratulated me on my haul. "You realize you're getting a better deal than we salespeople do. The most we can get is %30 off. I thinking of having my boyfriend come in and get me some stuff at the cheaper price." Rock on Eddie Bauer, rock on.

A Visit and A Farewell

This afternoon Pat & Jack came by to visit. Was a delight to see them, show off Baby Clara, and chat about happenings. When I went to answer the door, Pat had a pack of Double Stuf Oreos and Jack had a bag of Reese Peanut Butter Cups. Pat had done her homework (this post) and knew to bring goodies when visiting. Kristin was overjoyed as she hadn't had an Oreo since Clara's birth.

We also said farewell to my mother this afternoon. It was wonderful to have her here for the week. She was incredibly helpful in the food department, cooking dinner each night (or taking us out). She also dusted the entire house, which is no small feat judging by the avalanche of dust that came off the pictures downstairs. Not knowing when we'll see her next, it was sad to see her go and look forward to her return.

Camping with the little Mormon Boy Scouts

Last night was the January Camp Out for our scout troop. Myself, Zachariah, Jared, Dave, and seven Boy Scouts headed to a local park for an evening of fun under the stars. Actually, it was an evening of freezing under the stars, but what is a little frostbite among friends?

After eating dinner (a delightful tin-foil dinner made by Kristin) and a rousing game of capture the flag, Jared and I ran to the store to pick up stuff to make Smores. The boys had neglected to plan for Smores. They are responsible for planning and bringing all the food. We decided to split the supplies into two separate bags and tell the boys we only got enough for the leaders. After eating a few smores each in front of the scouts, and driving home the point that they need to plan next time, I told them to go look in the passenger seat of the car and, Voila!, they found another bag of Smores supplies. We all ate ourselves silly, swapping music trivia, and enjoying the warmth of a campfire on a cold night.

I was pretty impressed with how well I did this time. On November's camp out, I hardly slept because my head was freezing cold. This time I wore multiple layers of clothing and had a knit cap and hooded sweat shirt. My head was toasty all night long. The only problem was my nose: it would get so cold I would wake up. I finally figured out that I could put my jacket over my face so I would stay warm. And I didn't suffocate, which is always an added bonus. I figure by the time I've learned all my cold weather camping do's and don'ts it will be spring. And I can forget everything I've learned over the summer.

In the morning we continued the tradition of making donuts over the camp fire. Eleven scouters downed 80 donuts in no time. I was impressed with this showing. That also meant that 80 donuts were hand shaped from Pilsbury Buttermilk Biscuits. Jared and I handled the cooking. He even bent a roasting skewer to make the perfect hook for flipping and pulling donuts out of the oil.

Must say, I missed Kristin, Clara, and my mom, but I'm enjoying this camping thing more and more.

Random Notes from a Tired Brain

So on Wednesday I made my first solo outing in five weeks. In order to mix it up a little, I went to Target, Wegmans, and a scrapbook store called Memories. For Christmas Oliver gave me a gift certificate for a mini shopping spree there, so I figured it would be a good chance to browse around without wondering when the little one would wake up demanding to be fed. And believe me, when this girl is hungry the entire world hears about it.

Anyway, it turns out it was a good thing I stopped by Memories because they are going out of business; in fact, tomorrow is their last day. Several months ago they merged with a competing company and apparently they announced just a few weeks ago that all Memories stores would be closing. Bummer. But fortunate for me in a way, because everything in the store was 50% off. So I ended up with twice as many goodies as I would have otherwise - behold:


Score one for Kristin.

On a completely unrelated note (see, I told you these were random), I came across the following list of completely unneccesary and sometimes highly bizzare baby products. Numbers 5, 3, 2, and 1 are my favorites.

And it just wouldn't be a post from Kristin without some sort of Clara update. She seems to be growing like a weed - yesterday she weighed in at 10 pounds 6 ounces and is 22.75 inches long - and generally seems happy with her existence here. Except when she's hungry. Like I said. She still mainly eats and sleeps her days away, although she's giving us more smiles and coos during her brief awake times. Over the past few days she's developed a dislike for her crib and only wants to sleep in someone's arms during the day...in fact, as I write this I have her strapped into our Baby Bjorn in an attempt to actually have two hands free. Any suggestions on how we get her back into the crib?

As photographic evidence, I leave you with the following...a little girl supremely happy to be sleeping in her Daddy's arms:

My Credit Card

Random Sampler

Earlier today I was perusing Blogger's Blogs of Note. On one of them I ran across a post, which linked to another post, both which I really enjoyed and thought I'd share with you all. The first is a conversation overheard while standing in line at a parking ticket machine. The second is a conversation overheard while riding on the bus, which inspired the person who wrote about the first conversation.

Things I learned from the woman standing behind me in the queue for the car park ticket machine*

Things I learnt from the girls in front of me on the bus

*For some reason this post won't load in Firefox. Try IE.

Clara's First Snow

Like many of our friends, we felt we needed to blog about the recent snowfall.

This was Clara's first experience with snow! Mind you, due to a protective mother, I wasn't allowed to set her in the snow and watch her freak out, but we did get a shot of Clara in her bucket in the snow. (It's all about compromise.) She thoroughly enjoyed it, even making a snow angel and snowman. Okay, I made that last sentence up.
Clara is doing quite well. It's been fun to see how much she is growing. Kristin turned to me this morning, after I passed her the bundle of not-quite-yet sleeping child, and commented that she is getting heavy. She's got to be over eleven pounds by now. She has also started developing head control. When we put her up on our shoulder to burp her head starts waving around. She can hold her head upright long enough to get a good look at an area, then it bobs back down to the shoulder or arm in which she is being held. She's eating almost four ounces at each feeding, and slept for five hours straight last night. Mind you, we know that was a fluke, but it is a promise of things to someday come.

Grandma is here!

Saturday my daddy's mommy came to visit for a few days. I'd been feeling a little neglected as my audience shrank from three to two when Grandma Debbie left. It's good to have another person here to pay homage to my cuteness. I asked Daddy to take some pictures of us. I think they turned out well.

Grandma and me yesterday afternoon as I slept.

Grandma and me cuddling this morning as I yawn a big yawn.

Almost an Obsession

I broke.

I couldn't handle the pressure.

There they sat on my counter. Seven boxes. One each of the seven Betty Crocker's Warm Delights.

Taunting me.
Calling me.

And I couldn't resist. They're about to become my obsession.

So I made the Fudgy Chocolate Chip Cookie. Considerably shorter cooking time than the Molten Caramel Cake. Only microwave for forty-five seconds, as opposed to one minute and fifteen seconds. I love chocolate chip cookies and I needed some.

As part of the Seven Days of Chocolate, Sara made chocolate chip cookie bars. I LOVE chocolate chip cookie bars. I could eat nothing but chocolate chip cookie bars. And I would be fat, happy, and dead in a few weeks, but there would be a smile on my face. I've
been jonesing for some since the last cookie bar was eaten a few weeks ago. That's where the Warm Delights sitting on my kitchen counter comes in. The team of Kristin, Oliver, and Sally made short work of the finished product, as is evidenced by the photo. Truth be told, Sally only one bite. Kristin had a reasonable number of bites, and I devoured the rest. The cookie was very tasty. The fudge sauce could be refined.

Afterwards I wanted more. So I started discussing the need for chocolate-chip cookies. My mother (that's Sally) is in town to help out and offered to bake some. We used these new swirl chips that Jared posted about. Ours were caramel and chocolate swirl. They turned out delightful. I have eaten way too many.

I can start back on the diet after they're gone.
Right?

Blogging During Church, Part II

Welcome to the second installment in the hopefully-not-too-regular series "Blogging During Church." For the first, please click here. Church today was memorable for three reasons:

1. David & Bonnie blessed little Michael.
2. Kristin came to church for the first time since the birth.
3. Little Clara made her church debut.

The little one was stunning in a yellow outfit with an accompanying yellow blanket, and didn't look yellow herself. As our regular readers know, this is a major accomplishment as she was pretty darn yellow/orange a few weeks ago. Everyone oohed and aahed appropriately and only one person had excessive touching - which resulted in Kristin handing me two wipes and saying, "Scour her hands. Now."

I especially enjoyed having Kristin by my side and Clara asleep in my arms. It's a nice change from the month of flying solo. At one point during the service the following conversation was overheard:

Oliver: "Should I ask David and Bonnie if they are listening or staring at their baby?"
Kristin: "I'm not listening, I'm staring at my baby."
Oliver: "That's my point."

So what, I didn't catch everything that was said over the pulpit, but I'll never forget the joy that I felt knowing that my two little girls were seated at my side.

And thus ends your second installment of "Blogging During Church."

Bring in the Professionals

A few years back, when Kristin and I were both working and had disposable income, we used to dine a little too frequently at Sweetwater Tavern. We were on a first-name basis with many of the staff there. One night one of the servers, Veronica, started discussing with us the concept of professional diners. On weeknights, those coming to dinner often ate out, understood the flow of a meal at a restaurant, and could be classified as professional diners. On the weekends, however, you would get the teenagers borrowing Mom's minivan whose eyes would widen at the sight of the price column on the menu then ask for lots of bread and a glass of water. The amateurs.

As I was driving into work today - we launched an upgrade to our website so I had to go into the office to test on a Saturday - everything felt a little off. Traffic didn't flow as it usually does. Mind you, we're talking the DC Metro area so there is traffic every day of the week, even Saturday. People were parking in lanes that are usually reserved for faster-moving traffic. Others would tap their brakes at the slightest change in roadway. Merging took a little bit longer than necessary.

Then I realized what it was: amateur Route 66 drivers. Here were people who were heading downtown for a weekend activity, not people who travel the road five days a week. They haven't learned, through experience as the seasoned commuters have, how best to use the road. I couldn't expect of them the same level of professionalism; it wouldn't be fair.

(It's the same then when dealing with tourists using the Metro system. They don't know how to purchase farecards. They clog the turnstiles. And they can't seem to get it that on Metro escalators you walk-left-stand-right. Each time I get the urge to lay into one of them for the last, which is the most egregious of these crimes, I have to remind myself that they don't know any better.)

Thanks to my newfound realization about amateur Route 66 drivers, I was able to calm the road rage brewing in my soul, turned up the radio, and relaxed as I headed in for an afternoon in our company's testing lab.

Maybe someday they can all become professionals.

A Couple of Photos

Personality say what?

A picture taken during Daddy & Clara snuggle time.

Happy One-Month Birthday To Me!

To commemorate the fact that I have survived one month on this planet (not to mention a whole month with these two), I would like to share with you a list of things that please me, things that I tolerate for the sake of my parents, and things that I despise.

Things that please me
• Food
• Sleeping
• My mobile (I smile at it more than I smile at my parents)
• Sometimes Mom and Dad
• Having my hair washed
• Being swaddled
• The sound of water running
• Being burped by the master burper, Dad.

Things that I tolerate for the sake of my parents
• Having my temperature taken under my armpit
• Swinging in my swing
• Baths
• My pacifier

Things that I despise
• The scale at the doctor's office
• My bouncy seat
• Having my temperature take the "other way"

Before I go, here is a picture of me, taken today, wearing the same outfit I did on the day I came home from the hospital. (I included the picture from the hospital below.) Enjoy!

Fairfax Connector: A Rant & A Challenge

As many of you know, I ride the Fairfax Connector buses. I love how convenient the bus is, its general timeliness, cleanliness, and reliability. I do have one complaint, however: GET FREAKING SMATRIP ON YOUR BUSES ALREADY.

We've been waiting over three years. I remember when they first promised SmarTrip on the buses back in 2004. Every few months they would update their website with a promise that SmarTrip would come by the end of the current season (Summer '05, Fall '05, Winter '06, Spring '06, etc.). I've patiently waited for the day when the cashless technology would grace my bus ride. I've staged a one-man silent protest. I've asked station managers when they have the in-station "get to know us" events. I've been a patient, good boy.

But even the patient, good boys have their breaking point.

Nothing says, "we're half-*** and aren't qualified to do our jobs like the most recent update on the fairfaxconnector.com website:

Fairfax Connector, before other transit agencies in Northern Virginia can still expect SmarTrip installation sometime in the Spring of 2007, provided errors encountered during the "dry run" with DASH are minimal and corrected in a timely manner.

I ask you is a properly punctuated sentence? Does it make sense. If you aren't going to give us SmarTrip, at least take the effort to blow us off in a manner which is grammatically sound.

Dang.

So, here is my challenge. In a comment, repunctuate the sentence in a creative manner. Points will be awarded on style, usage of as many different types of punctuation, and ability to say something coherent. Your resultant creation need not be one sentence. So create away.

It's something to do while we wait for Fairfax Connector to get their act together.

Five Things About Me (Updated)

I got tagged by Evil HR Lady to list five things you may not know about me. It's part of a long trail of people who have been tagged - I tried to find the start, but after hopping to eleven different pages, without an end in sight, I decided it would suffice to say "a really long trail". The idea is to list five things most people don't know and then pick five other people to do the same. And away he goes.

1. I have never lived on my own - from my mission, to college, to living with Mom & Dad right before I got married and moved in with Kristin, I have never lived in a house/apartment/townhouse/condo by myself. Though I am a pretty severe extrovert, and constantly need to be around people, I think that living on my own and having my own space to come home to each day would have been something fun to try. I don't feel slighted that it never happened - don't worry I'm not going to leave Kristin for a year of soul searching in some mud hut in Borneo - but would've liked to have had the experience.


2. I love new age music - It all started when I was a teenager and my Uncle Tim and Aunt Rindy introduced my family to Ray Lynch's Deep Breakfast. The cassette tape was played over and over again. I obsessed, buying all his tapes: The Sky of Mind, No Blue Thing, and Nothing Above My Shoulders but the Evening. When my eighth grade French teacher assigned the class to put on a fashion show (to practice our French and appease the predominantly female class) we used a song off No Blue Thing as the background music. Thankfully, I did not have to model anything as I was the narrator. I also listened to Kitaro as a teenager (his webpage here). I have fond memories of laying on my bed, blaring his music on my boombox, and reading Zilpha Keatley Snyder's Green Sky series. I still have a box of new age cassette tapes that I randomly pull out and rummage through. It annoys Kristin to no end.


3. I have a blog no one knows about - actually, I have two other blogs, but one a bunch of people know about. The known blog is about my relationship with food and is called, appropriately, Oliver Food. The other one, the secret one, is a place for my private musings, rants, demonstrations of my fourth attribute, etc. Don't ask for the URL; I won't share it.


4. I am incredibly insecure - I was going over my list of five things with a friend and when I told him this one he made sure I knew that he was registering an objection. I assured him that being outgoing and insecure are not mutually exclusive. On the contrary, I think many people who work to project a confident air are doing so because of a particular insecurity. In a way I think this is good because I force myself to constantly look at situations to see how I can better do things, and in school it helped me earn a near 4.0. But in a way it is bad, as I tend to stress out of getting the right answer to everything, even when almost right is more than good enough.


5. I've seen neither Forrest Gump nor Titanic and do not have the desire to - I had recently returned from South America when Titanic came out, and all the girls at school always wanted to sing "Nearer My God To Thee" in church because they sing that in Titanic, and those girls annoyed me, and I mocked Celine Dion for her hitting-the-chest-while-singing shtick, and so I decided to never see the movie. On the Forrest Gump front, Kristin thinks it's a near crime and keeps saying that we need to watch it. The closest I've come is eating at Bubba Gump Shrimp Company on Maui twice.

So who are the five people I want to tag? Hmmm, the power. I think I'll go with:

• My brother Jared because he's as into blogging as I am,
• Kate because she was the first person to comment on our blog right after I received the 'tag',
• Lisa because she's always hounding Marcie about updating her blog,
• Julia because her wit never fails,
• and my lovely wife Kristin because recursion is cool.

Update: Links to the lists posted by the people I tagged: Julia, Lisa, Kate

Mom's Update

The little Boo is sleeping right now, so I thought I'd take a few minutes to send out an update of my own.

Clara will be a month old tomorrow, and I feel like we're starting to get the hang of this. She's still not going for more than about three hours between feedings - the people who say one-month-old formula-fed babies usually go four hours between feedings are liars - but I'm adjusting to waking up two or three times each night. Most nights she just wakes, eats, and falls right back asleep anyway, so that's not too bad.

She's starting to give us real smiles, which are completely adorable. We'll have to try and get some pics and post them soon. She usually pops them out just after a good nap when I'm changing her diaper. And she's getting much better at holding her head up and just surveying the landscape. She loves the mobile in her crib...come to think of it, the mobile sometimes gets more smiles than Mom and Dad do.

We think the colitis is starting to heal up, although she still seems to be having some pain at times because of it. I love my daughter with all my heart, but anyone who has witnessed her latest trick of intermittent screaming for a couple of hours each evening would agree that she has the ability to turn into a full-on bad-tempered shrew. I'm hoping that this is because her belly is still healing and will die down soon. Please, please, no one say the word "colic."

We've been price-shopping to find out who has the best price on this liquid gold (otherwise known as hypoallergenic formula) we're now feeding her, and guess who comes through for us again? Wegmans. I have great love for Wegmans and will be devastated the day we move away from this land privileged enough to have one. For those not in the know, Wegmans is quite possibly the greatest grocery store ever built. Ever.

So that's life in a nutshell. It's a lot of fun to see her growing and changing every day and to know how much we have to look forward to. But at the same time I can't help but feel sad that my little baby isn't quite so little anymore...definitely not the same tiny newborn we brought home a month ago. I've already had to pack away some clothes she has grown out of. I'm guessing one day I'll just blink and she'll be five and off to school, then another blink and she'll be graduating from high school. But I won't think about that now...I'll just go and snuggle with my baby girl.

Farewell Debbie Lou

It is with mixed emotions that I bid Debbie Lou farewell as I dropped her off at the airport moments ago. Though it will be nice to get back into a routine with Kristin and Clara, Debbie was such a delight and a help. She's so easy to talk to that I have to remind myself that I'm very fortunate in the mother-in-law department.

So, for the three bathrooms cleaned, the 32 stairs vaccuumed, the kitchen and nook floor cleaned on hands and knees, the hours of fun conversation, the night of babysitting, the emotional support, and countless prayers and hugs we say:

Thank you, Debbie Lou.

A Night on the Town

It takes a mother-in-law with foresight and creativity to give a Christmas gift that combines an idea from this post with the fact that she would be here this month. The gift? A gift certificate to The Melting Pot and babysitting so a new mom and dad could step out for an evening.

The new mom was a little apprehensive about leaving her young offspring, but with a little hand holding by the new dad, she was able to entrust her own mother with the care of her daughter and enjoy a night out. Dad had the brilliant idea (he's so humble) to use a gift from a friend so that the mother-in-law would know what to do in any circumstance. After bidding the generations above and below them farewell, the new parents headed out to a nice dinner of excessive caloric intake in the form of fondue.

The waiter, Matt, was nice, not too intrusive, and kept the food coming at a good pace. Dinner was the cheddar cheese fondue, California Salad, coq au vin cooking style, and milk chocolate for dessert. Dinner conversation ranged from career to school to friends to baby and babies to parents and even to a little bit of silence. After two hours of eating, the parents came home to find a newborn who had just woken up (the ideal babysitting gig) and a mother-in-law who had enjoyed every minute of holding the beautiful, sleeping baby.

A Clara Update

Parents obsess over the movements of their children's bowels. Since Clara's birth I now understand why: it's one of the few ways that you can know what is happening inside a child's body. If you are one of those who would rather not hear talk of such things, I recommend you skip this post.

Last Saturday afternoon I noticed blood in Clara's diaper. I called Kristin upstairs to inspect. We didn't see any external signs of bleeding, so we decided that we should keep a close eye on it. We were over visiting some friends that evening when the next dirty diaper also had blood in it. We ended up calling the 24-hour hotline for our doctors office and talked to a nurse who took a ton of information and had the doctor call us. The doctor explained that, as Clara is formula-fed, Clara is probably having a hard time digesting the proteins in the formula and that we should switch to hypoallergenic formula and see how she does. She also told us to call the office first thing this morning and get Clara in to see one of the doctors in the practice.

Bruce and I immediately ran out to buy some of the new formula. We also picked up some Dibs to soothe the agitated mother's soul. Back at their house, we made a bottle of the formula, which the doctor had warned us is more expensive and smells like beef broth, and Clara took the bottle without fuss. We were concerned that she might not like the new formula, but luckily she cooperated. Such a good little girl.

At the doctors office this morning we saw the doctor we will be seeing for her two-month check-up in February. We came armed with the most recent dirty diaper and pictures we'd taken of the Saturday diapers. The doctor had the the diaper we brought checked for blood and it came back negative. (A good sign that the new formula is digesting fine.) He confirmed what the other doctor has suspected, that Clara has allergic colitis, which means her colon inflames when cows milk proteins are present. It occurs in about 4-7% of all babies, and most children grow out of it. He said it can also be a sign of allergies later in life, which wouldn't be surprising as Kristin has wicked hay fever. We're also to plan on using the hypoallergenic formula for the rest of the time she's on a bottle. The one option we have is to try soy formula - 40% of babies allergic to cows milk also can't handle soy - but we're going to wait a while before we try that. It should take her intestines a week or so to heal, during which time we might see traces but not as much as we saw on Saturday.

They also weighed Clara today. She's tipping the scales at 9 lbs 15 oz. That's a 22 ounce gain in 13 days! The doctor says she doesn't look chubby, so she must be putting that all on in height. At home we measured her at 22.5 inches, up an inch. Shocking that this child might be tall. {INSERT_SARCASM_TAG_HERE}

So, the good news is that Clara looks okay. The bad news is that the hypoallergenic stuff is twice as expensive as normal formula. As Kristin said to me after dropping $50 on one week's worth of formula, "at least we're not dirt poor trying to buy the stuff." For that I am grateful.

Calling All Chefs

The day has come. The hour is nigh. No, I'm not talking about the second coming, I'm talking about the long awaited, long anticipated, celebration of culinary skill and prowess that will be (drumroll please)

Iron Sketch Microwave!

Based on the popular TV show, Iron Sketch Microwave will feature two chefs armed with two microwaves, water, and seven Betty Crocker Warm Delights cakes to see if something that even remotely resembles food can be produced.

At this time, the producers (me) currently stand in need of:

• A second Iron Sketch
• A second microwave
• Three judges
• A studio audience (who will also get to try the dishes, if you are brave enough)
• An announcer and a commentator
• A photographer
• The seventh warm delights Lemon Swirl Cake (they didn't have it at Target)

If you can help out with any of the above, or would like to witness the grand culinary experiment, please post a comment to this post.Brought to you by General Mills, the look of digust on Kristin's face, and this post.

A Great Christmas Gift

For Christmas this year some friends gave us rolls. I can hear you out there: "Um, rolls? Lame." But before you start, let me esplain. (And, no, I didn't misspell that.)

These are Bonnie's freezer rolls. Every time a group of us has a potluck Bonnie is assigned to bring these rolls. They are always a hit. Here's how they work. After the dough is made and the rolls formed, you freeze them. On that day you just know you have to have hot rolls with dinner, you pull them out, place them on a cookie sheet, and let them rise for a few hours. Once they are risen/thawed, you cook them and you've got fresh, hot rolls.

Being a house that never makes rolls, this was the perfect gift. Our polenta with marinara meat sauce never tasted so good. I hope we get rolls for Christmas next year.

A lot

A friend called this morning asking if everything was okay. I assured him that we're doing well, just a little tired. I asked him what caused him to wonder. "You hadn't updated your blog," came the reply.

Touché.

Hello blogosphere. I'm back. And here is a drive-by update:

• Tuesday night I picked up Debbie Lou from the airport. Debbie Lou is Kristin's mother. Debbie Lou is my mother-in-law. Debbie Lou is Clara's grandmother. Debbie Lou isn't her real name; I just call her that. She flew from Portland, OR, via Dallas-Fortworth and was pretty wiped out from the day of travel. A good excuse to pick up Chipotle, eh?
• Monday, Wednesday, and Friday I worked. Work is work. Next Monday is a holiday. Rock on.
• On Monday, Kristin made her first solo trip out with Clara. She said everything went swimmingly well. Guess where they went ... wait for it ... wait for it ... Target.
  Shocking.
• Overheard while eating breakfast this morning: "Is it pathetic that one of our goals for today is to watch a movie?"
• On Wednesday and Thursday we took Debbie to Costco. To quote Debbie, "I went to Costco two days in a row." I think we're channeling my father a bit too much.
• We've eaten out two nights this week. Has been great to get the ladies out of the house a bit. Clara cooperated at both meals. The second meal was Indian food last night with David, Bonnie, and Michael. Kristin couldn't do Indian during the pregnancy, David and I were both jonesing for Indian, and Bonnie and Kristin were kind enough to acquiesce. Yeah for Palak Gosh.
• "Oh, boo. Can you stay little, but sleep through the night instead?"
  -Kristin to Clara on seeing Colter act like a normal boy.
• Thursday morning Debbie and I rearranged the nursery so the chair wasn't taking up the entirety of the middle of the room. Our handwork:
• Also overheard this morning:
  He said: "Poor thing has the worst parents on the planet."
  Clara smiles in her sleep.
  She said: "I think she understands more than we give her credit for."
  Clara smiles again.
• Sunday night we scrounged around to find enough for dinner. What resulted was what we like to call a themed meal. Behold the orange dinner!
• Yesterday Debbie cleaned two of the bathrooms that rarely get deep cleanings. Now I understand from whence cometh Kristin's cleaning gene. You know it's a good cleaning job when you can still smell the chemicals twenty-four hours later.
• CLARA UPDATE: She enjoys eating every hour, much to the dismay of her mother at 2am, is getting adorably chubby, and is growing out of some of her clothes. She is more alert, when you hold her upright on your shoulder she tries to hold up her head, and won't sleep in her crib except at night. She has a good temperament, only crying when she is hungry, and has started to develop a bit of gas at night that Mylicon drops seem to take care of. All in all she's pretty amazing.

Just because you can never have too many pictures of a beautiful woman. Oliver's Saturday morning hair continues to defy the laws of physics. Or maybe I'm just celebrating.

Oliver OUT.

Clara Video

Some choice video of Clara from Saturday night.


This second video is Oliver's submission for Father Of The Year. Or as Kristin put it, cannot be used against me in a court of law.

A Choice Video

Evil HR Lady posted about Dr. Sanity's Carnival of the Insanities. By far and away the best is this video about the effect of drugs on spiders.

Check it out.

The Most Important Things in My World

I Dare You ...

... to look this good two weeks after producing, in her own words, "a fully-functional, albeit miniature, human being."

Note the detritus of child on the landing and to the right of the stairs.

A Trip to the Towne

Yesterday we took advantage of the amazing weather and headed to Old Town Alexandria with David, Bonnie and Michael. It was Clara's first trip out and about. I believe it was also the first trip for Michael. They walked over to our house and we piled in our Honda Pilot for the drive. A few words on our Honda Pilot. We fit four grown adults and two newborns in car seats without issue. It was a comfortable ride and we only had one car to park. Such a lovely way to travel.
We took the George Washington Parkway to Old Town. It's the more scenic drive. Although there aren't any leaves on the trees, there was still a majesty in the tall trees forming a nave over the road. We got great views of the monuments and memorials as we drove past downtown.

[Side note on parking: We found a street parking right across the street from the spot where a coworker and I parked when we had to run an errand to Old Town a few months ago. Hello National Federation of Republican Women.]

David & Bonnie brought along their Snap & Go stroller. It fit beautifully in the back of the Pilot with the third row up, even! Kristin brought along the Baby Bjorn. Check out the pic of us all ready to roll.

We grabbed a bite to eat and hit a few stores. I was served the wrong sandwich, but finally got the right one. Oh, and I had salt and vinegar potato chips. I love salt and vinegar potato chips. David was OBSESSED with a marble game in Ten Thousand Villages. We also found the bowls that are also power chimes. Hours of fun. Also, who knew that Old Town was home to so many wig shops. I think the last time I saw a wig shop was ... well ... never. We saw three.

It was fun to be out on the streets on such a beautiful day. There were tons of people out; it seemed everyone either had a dog or a kid in a stroller. Window shopping was great. We took a break at the plaza near the City Hall and the kids had a snack. We also snapped a ton of pictures in and around the plaza.

Since the kids had eaten, to be fair, the parents needed a snack too, so we went to The Scoop. The two favorite flavors were Black Raspberry Cheesecake and Orange Chocolate Chocolate Chip.

We walked around some more, eventually making our way to the car. David felt that, as we were so close, the trip would have been a waste had we not stopped by Krispy Kreme. We headed to the source of the true and living donut and bought a few dozen. As we sat in the car, feeding babies who wouldn't wait to get home, ahem Clara, we all commented that Dunkin Donuts and Shoppers ain't got nothing on Krispy Kreme.

Nice Try Krispy Kreme

You gotta give it to their marketing department. Trying to make you feel okay about getting one tenth of your daily caloric intake via a donut.

The Five Pillars

On the way home, as we sped down the beltway admiring the marvels of modern construction before us - Mixing Bowl say what? - I realized that we had just completed Clara's very first ever, in her total lifetime, this is a huge deal, Krispy Kreme run. What a lucky girl she is to have parents that introduce her to the finer elements of life at such an early age.

I then asked, "What's on the list of things that you must do to say that you are truly a Northern Virginian? I mean, like Islam has its five pillars, what are the Pillars of Northern Virginia?"

We decided the first is Krispy Kreme. The obvious pillar of greatest importance. The second follows in the same vein: Five Guys. Visiting the Mall downtown would be the third, followed by riding the metro to get there as fourth. Fifth, we decided on that landmark of modern traffic reports*, the Washington DC Temple Visitors Center.

So now we have our pillars. Now we know the things we need to take Clara to do before we can say she is a true Northern Virginian. One down, four to go!
* It's slightly surreal to hear reference to the temple in traffic reports: "There's slowing on the outer loop from Georgia Avenue down past the Mormon temple."

Is it warm in here or is it just me?

Clara and Kristin picked me up from the park and ride tonight. It was the first time they had picked me (I got a ride home on Wednesday). I put my bag in the back seat, gave Clara a kiss (she was glad to see her Daddy), then got in the car.

As we drove home we passed a man driving in his car, a convertible, with the top down. I did a double take. Top down. January 5th. Winter, right?

It's freakishly warm here.

She's baaaaack...

(insert triumphant fanfare here)

After a somewhat prolonged hiatus, during which time I produced a fully-functional, albeit miniature, human being, I have returned to the blog. Can't let Oliver have all the fun.

It's been an interesting two-and-a-half weeks, to say the least. Very little sleep happening for Mom, but fortunately the kiddo is cute enough to make it worthwhile. Right now her longest nighttime period between feedings is about three hours at most, usually a bit less. Over the past couple of days she has started cluster feeding during the day - eating every hour or so for three or four hours at a time - so I figure she's headed for a bit of a growth spurt. It does make it a little tougher for me to get a nap in, but Oliver has been wonderful about taking her and letting me get some sleep on his days off work.

We're having a fussy night here, so I'm signing off. I'll leave you with a few pictures taken earlier today:

Colter Says It Best

If there's one thing I've learned in my thirty years of existence on this planet, it's that kids most often express ideas in the most succinct of manners. In this case, Colter says it best in this post. I'll wait while you go read it. It's a quick read.

You back? Good. I'll go on.

I get four weeks of paid paternal leave. (Thank you company!) After taking two weeks to be home full-time, I'm spreading the remaining time across January by taking off every Tuesday and Thursday. I'll also be taking off the week that my mother is in town. This way I'll be around to see Clara grow and won't annoy Kristin by going stir-crazy from being in the house for so long.

Thus, today I went back to work. Like returning to the office after any time away, there were e-mails to read, phone calls to return, and coworkers with which to catch-up. The plant that sits on the bookshelf between my coworker and I is doing well. The branch of said plant that has been labeled "the victim of Oliver's murderous exploits" (I swear it was an accident) is even flourishing and is almost ready for repotting.

As I sat at my desk that day, my mind kept flashing to Kristin and Clara. Was Clara getting enough to eat? Was she fussing unnecessarily? Was Kristin getting a nap? Was Kristin stressing over dirty dishes or taking the higher road and sleeping? What cute thing was Clara doing that I was missing sitting at my desk and cursing Microsoft Outlook and the quota that results in me being unable to send e-mail until I delete some old messages.

Colter did say it best. This sucks.

Clara Update

This morning Kristin took Clara to her two-week check-up. Everything checked out okay. We got updated stats!

• Weight: 8 lbs 9 oz (75th percentile)
• Height: 21.5 inches (90th percentile)
• Head Circumference: 37 centimeters (75th percentile)

Breakfast at the Table

With Kristin and Clara at the doctor's office, and the chair in its new home in the nursery, I had a few minutes to eat some breakfast. I prepared my bowl of cereal with yogurt and an English muffin with peanut butter. I pulled out The End and sat quietly at the kitchen table, munching my meal, and turning my back on the dirty dishes piled behind me.

It was nice to have a few minutes to relax, eat, and read a little. As I sat enjoying my few moments of sanity, I suddenly had a strong sense of déjà vu. After searching my mind for the moment I was vu-ing, I realized that I've seen this sight almost every day of my growing-up years. Each morning, my mother would pour a bowl a cereal, get a glass of juice and a vitamin, and sit at the table to eat her breakfast and read the newspaper. To high school Oliver, this was an odd ritual. Breakfast was something that should take less than two minutes, unless it involved IHOP.

However, to new father Oliver, my mother's breakfast ritual suddenly made sense. Having a few minutes to sit, a few minutes to enjoy the quiet before the noise began, a few minutes to do something I enjoy, that's what my mother was looking for. It doesn't seem so odd now, taking the time while eating to breathe a little.

Now I understand.

The Chair

I stayed home this morning while Kristin took Clara to her two-week check-up. Someone needed to be at the house for the chair delivery people. That's right, we finally got a chair!

For a few months we've been trying to decide on rocker, recliner or glider. Some gliders can break quickly. Rocking chairs aren't incredibly comfortable. Recliners can look pretty whiskey tango*. On a whim we went to a La-Z-Boy store and found a recliner that didn't look like a recliner, rather it looked like a chair. We were in love.

With a little help from the Christmas fund, we were able to purchase the chair yesterday. Originally, we were going to buy last Saturday, but the sales lady told us there was a 15% off sale New Years Day from 9am to noon. We ordered the chair yesterday and, because it was in stock, they delivered it today!

The chair looks great in the nursery. Now we have a place to sit and rock Clara while we feed her at night or just need to soothe her aching soul. Huzzah for the new chair!

*Whiskey Tango: phonetic names for the letters W and T, which, of course, stand for white trash.

Giving Up Pie in the Sky For Just Desserts

Quick read from the Post.
Check it out.
I love dessert.

Giving Up Pie in the Sky For Just Desserts