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Yesterday, we celebrated Mother’s Day. Tara said it was her best Mother’s Day ever! I believe her, chiefly for these two reasons:

1. because it was her first Mother’s Day
2. because of the awesome gift I gave her

Tara’s recently rediscovered her favorite cocktail, the Cosmopolitan. But this is a drink we’ve never been able to enjoy at home. So I got some martini glasses, a stainless steel shaker, and all the booze, juice, and fruit needed to make a professional Cosmo. It went over quite well. Nothing says “motherhood” like getting all liquored up!

I also cooked both breakfast and dinner, and tried my best to prevent her from lifting a finger all day. No question, she deserved it for all the hard work she does every single day taking care of la bebé.

I have to say, parenthood is not easy. I didn’t think it would be. But I’ve come to realized that there are extra demands placed on mothers by society, by biology, and by their own emotional clockwork. I’ve gaind newfound levels of respect and admiration for all the mothers everywhere, throughout time.

So I’d like to take a moment and wish a (slightly belated) Happy Mother’s Day to all the mom’s in my life: Tara, Betty, Michele, Meg, Nicolle, Sylvia, another Betty, Donna, Kelli, Samantha, Kathy, Nancy, Maxine, Rita, Claire, Alicé, Kate, Sophia’s Mom (sorry, I don’t remember your name!), Melanie, Maria, Paulette, Judie, Maquita, and Toni-Marie. Plus recently departed Moms Genevieve, Johanna, and Selma.

I apologize in advance for any name I forgot to include. It doesn’t mean I don’t love you!

Joel Family, General Musings, Life

I’ve uploaded some more pics to this month’s gallery. Some wicked cute ones, if I do say so myself. Behold!

This is Ellie fighting off a vicious panda attack. “Panda Attack”, interestingly enough, is the name of my former guild in the World of Warcraft. I say former guild because I got kicked out due to inactivity. The inactivity was due to the fact that I have hardly any free time to play. I have hardly any free time to play because I have a baby. Eleanor is that baby. And now the panda has its revenge.

Make of that what you will.

Joel Baby, Gaming

First of all, I’d like to apologize for the lack of updates. It feels like I just blinked, and suddenly 3 weeks have gone by without a post. I suppose that’s the same process by which kids grow up fast. I’m thinking that I should probably start mixing up the content here by including some non-baby-related posts. More typical blogging stuff such as interesting links, general musings, or other happenings in our lives. Ideally I’d like to avoid these long stretches without new content. We’ll see how it goes.

And speaking of growing up fast…

Disgustingly cute, I know. Don’t you just want to grab her cheeks and pinch away? I finally put some new pictures online. But sorry, no videos this time. I’m actually working on a much longer video project, though it may take a while to complete. I will try to post another small, easily digestible video on the blog in the mean time.

So what’s Ellie been up to, you ask? A whole bunch actually. She’s been very social, attending a play group and going on several little trips to see family. We also had a lovely visit from Ellie’s adorable little cousins, Claire and Sophie. Ellie is a hit wherever she goes. Everyone approves of her cuteness and sweet disposition.

She still enjoys many of the same playful activities as she did last month, but she is much more adept at them. For example, l’d say she’s batting about .723 when it comes to reaching out and grabbing objects that interest her. That’s pretty good considering that last month she could only swat at things. Of course her favorite pastime seems to be just staring at her hands. Well, and the TV. We really need to curtail that habit…

Her personality has continued to develop as well. She smiles broadly at stuff she finds amusing. Making silly noises and faces seems to work best to elicit a smile. Every now and then we get a little giggle too. She’s also better able to just hang out on her own and entertain herself by looking at her hands, toys, patterns on furniture, etc. In fact, she is generally much more self sufficient. She is even able to wake up in the morning and chill out for a while without needing us right away. She still requires a fair bit of attention and/or cuddling to fall asleep, though. Fortunately, we don’t mind one bit.

Her most recent doctor visit went swimmingly. Well, except for the shot. She found that to be quite uncalled for. She is a solid two feet long and she’s just shy of fourteen pounds. She is still pretty chunky, but it’s more in proportion to her body size now. The doctor basically told us (yet again) to keep up the good work.

And Finally, I would like to report that Eleanor has been sleeping through the night! She typically passes out anywhere from 6pm to 9pm and is down for a good 8 hours. She’ll often kinda halfway wake up in the wee hours and want a quick feeding and then fall right back to sleep. But we still consider that sleeping through the night. Huzzah!

Joel Baby, Blogging, Life

Today was gorgeous! It was a crisp and sunny 80°. A great day to enjoy the park with the family. My sister, Laura, also joined us. We took some great pictures that I am quite happy with. Check ’em out!

Over the past few weeks, Eleanor has really been coming into her own. First of all, she now flashes beautiful smiles at people when she’s in a good mood. It’s truly a moving sight for her mom and dad (and grandparents, and aunts, etc). She is also expressing herself verbally with various squeals, grunts, and prolonged vowel-sounds. Sometimes we know what she is trying to say. Sometimes we’re clueless.

As you can see from recent photos, Ellie is filling out quite nicely. That, of course, is a polite way to say she has totally chunked out! According to the doctor, her weight is in the 95th percentile for babies her age. But he also says that it means she is healthy and strong. He said, “Whatever it is you’re doing, keep doing it”. Sure thing, doc!

Eleanor has been fixated on her hands. Staring at them, sucking on them, whacking at things. She doesn’t exactly grasp at objects yet. It’s more of a pinching motion. She’ll pinch at our clothes, our hair, her hair, her ears. It’s so cute. (But then, I think everything she does is cute).

We’re working hard to get her on something of a fixed schedule. It’s not easy, but we’ve had some small successes. She’s also slept through the night a few times recently. We’re hoping that it wasn’t just a fluke.

Joel Baby, Family

A real post with Ellie-updates is still forthcoming. But I’ve got what you really want right here. Pics and movies!

Several adorable new pictures have been added to the newest gallery. No doubt, you’ll want to check them out.

Next is a video of Ellie chillin’ out at home in a big comfy chair:

And here’s a video with a bit more action and excitement. Xander puts in an appearance:

I hope that keeps you all sufficiently happy. Thanks for continuing to read the blog!

Joel Baby, Family, Kitties

I know I’m overdue for a real update here. But it’s been a crazy week. Work has been keeping me quite busy, and we had to attend a funeral. I will devote some time to making a post in the next few days.

Here’s a bit to tide you over. Ellie had a doctor visit on Tuesday. She weighs an incredible 12 pounds, 4 ounces! She is 23.5 inches long, and her head circumference is an astounding 40 centimeters. It must be because of her massive brain.

So thanks for your patience. Please don’t stop checking the site! If you’re good, I might even post another video.

Joel Baby, Life, Work

Eleanor is already two months old! Okay, technically she’s eight weeks today. But who’s counting?

And I can’t believe how much new stuff she is doing. First of all, she is far more aware of her surroundings than ever before. Consequently, she is fascinated with simple moving objects, preferably ones that play music. Such as mobiles! Observe:
Eleanor has also become much more aware of her mouth. She blows cute little spit bubbles and like to explore her lips with her tongue. She’ll often make fun clicking noises while doing so. And most exciting, she’s discovered that she can put her own fingers in her mouth and suck on them! There is nothing like watching her derive such pure satisfaction from munching on her hands. And it’s noisy too, which I think she also enjoys. I’ll try to get a video clip.

As you can see from the latest pictures, Ellie has finally been putting on some real weight. She’s a little chubster! We’re not sure exactly how much she weighs right now, but she’s going back to the doctor next week. We’ll let you know.

Joel Baby, Family

We recently mailed out the second batch of birth announcements and included an invitation to check out the blog. So if this is your first time here, welcome! You should definitely click here to get the scoop before reading further.

Joel Baby, Blogging

Hi folks! It’s nice to hear that so many of you enjoy reading the blog. I put a fair bit of time and love into this project, and so I’m pleased it’s been worth it.

Going back to work was certainly a shock to the system. It was hard to be totally sharp or carry on adult conversations. I also found myself missing Eleanor terribly. I had really gotten used to her round-the-clock presence. But it was nice to be surrounded by people eager to know how we were doing and to hear about Ellie’s exploits. Plus, it’s been a lot harder on Tara who suddenly had to be the sole caregiver during the days, but she’s done a great job. And I know Ellie is benefiting from some quality Mommy/Baby time.

I realized that I hadn’t put a video on the blog since Ellie’s actual birthday, so I’d like to remedy that. Here is a clip of Ellie getting ready for a bath:

Isn’t she cute?!? I certainly think so. And speaking of cute…

As most parents do, we’ve started collecting a bunch of silly nicknames for our baby. Some of the more pervasive ones are “Sweetpea“, “Beebers“, and “Squirmy“. But Tara recently came up with a hilarious one that needs a little backstory.

Many of Eleanor’s little one-piece jumpsuits have these ridiculously big collars. So she kinda resembles a miniature Elvis Presley when wearing them. And Mini-Elvis quickly got shortened to “Melvis“. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you…

Melvis

If you need even more happy fun cuteness… you should go check out the pictures from cousin Molly’s 2nd Birthday Party! Remember to breathe!

Joel Baby, Family, Life, Work

Sadly, my paternity leave comes to an end tomorrow. Happily, spring break starts in a week!

But I’ll be back into the normal routine of work soon enough. I’m going to miss having day after day after day of quality family time. I’ve really enjoyed the six weeks that the three of us have spent simply hanging out. I also know it’s going to be a lot more work for Tara with me out of the house all day. I guess I’ll just have to be all that much more helpful when I get home in the evening.

A new batch of baby pictures have been added to the gallery. There is a healthy mix of “Ellie-with-Family” shots, and just plain old “Drop-Dead-Cute” shots. I hope you enjoy!

Oh, and if this is your first time here, please read the previous post.

Joel Baby, Family, Life, Work