Don't be fooled by my black hat-- I'm a good witch.

Ellen in L.A. sent some Halloween gear for Audrey, including this sleek hat. She also has a pumpkin hat, and a cat hat, with matching socks and mittens. Oh, my.

Boo!

Pop Pop and Audrey

Pop Pop gets some rare "peaceful" holding time.

We visit Lexington Green

Aunt Christie Gives a Audrey a Bath

Taking Turns Holding

Just arrived from Dallas. Audrey meets PopPop (Scott's dad, Jim). She is always gracious for her adoring fans.

And Mimi (Scott's mom, Shirley).

Mimi and Pop-pop meet Audrey

Grandma Jean provides a convenient napping surface...

Rebecca creates a totem-pole of babies, Bethiah holding up the bottom, and Audrey, shrieking, at the top.

Breaking News: Chickpea has Reached, and Surpassed, her Birthweight!

After a lot of struggles with feedings and weight gain, we are pleased to report that Audrey weighed in at the pediatrician's office this morning a full 6.5 ounces more than she did three days ago, for a grand-whumping total of 7 lbs, 7 oz.! Yahoo! This officially puts her a little bit higher than her birthweight which is an important milestone (we are informed). The pediatrician is pleased. The way Scott and I were beaming you'd think she'd just been awarded a Fullbright or something. It may seem small-- in fact, 6.5 ounces is very small-- but it made our day.

p.s. A shout out to Aunt Sarah who sent us this great bib, and to Aunt Janna, who is back home in North Carolina after a great visit. We miss you, too!

Modeling handknits by Beth

Audrey tries on one of the only items of clothing that's actually small enough to fit her perfectly-- a handmade vest from friend Beth. Matching hat was a wee bit too small, but it fits the "Ugly Doll" beautifully. She was remarkably calm for this photo session. Usually costume changes make her hopping mad, so she spends a lot of time in her underwear and a swaddling blanket.

Welcome to the Family

Grandma Jean arrived last night and immediately got some good holding time in.
Auntie Janna wants some holding time, too!

Lexington Green

We got out of the house for a few minutes yesterday to have lunch in Lexington Center. The trees on Lexington Green are turning red and gold.
A kind stranger took these pictures for us.

Chickpea likes her new kangaroo pouch/sling. It has rocket ships and stars on the outside and a warm, cozy baby in the middle.
Daddy doesn't have the hang of it yet, though.

Happy Anniversary to Us!

Sunday was our 1st Wedding Anniversary, so we went out to the Pierce House in Lincoln were we tied the knot. It was a bright, sunny day though a bit nippy.

Kristen outshines the golden fall folliage.
Scott and Chickpea with the house in the background.Finally, lunch at Redbones, the site of our first date many years ago. There was a live bluegrass band playing, and we were seated right up front. Luckily, Chickpea seems to like bluegrass since she slept through the show. Scott and Kris are pleased to confirm that it is possible to still eat out every once in a while with a little one in tow.

Baby whisperer and a seriously unhappy customer

Usually the shushing trick works like a charm, but Audrey is too cagey to behave predictably ALL the time. This time it just made her royally pissed.

Another Walk in the Park

We took another couple of laps around the Reservoir today with our friends Rebecca and Bethiah.
... and we saw a big heron, maybe a Blue Heron (look carefully by the edge of the water).

Neko is still put out by Chickpea's Arrival

Look, kid: I'm not going to tell you again-- this is my couch, my sunbeam, my house. Beat it.

Fine. I'll just wait in the basement while you gather up your stuff. Don't let the door hit you on your way out.

General Cuteness

Monkey gown and hat from friend Lisa-- a stunning ensemble.

There's such a fine line between sleepy and slap-happy. Here we are, teetering between the two. Punch drunk love.

Lounging in my Hammock by the pool...

All things considered, her first full bath went pretty well. She cried for about half of it, and the rest of it she just looked at us like she was witholding comment until she could speak to the people who are really in charge at this joint... Surely it can't be the two bumbling fools she's dealt with so far. Like the female one, often refered to as "Mommy," who was so out of it yesterday she put her cell phone in the freezer-- I mean, who would put someone like that in charge of a newborn?

Feeding: Before and After

In the swing of things!

Here's a rare moment of "I'm awake, but I'm not eating, crying, having my diaper changed, or some combination of these three."

Borrowed baby swing couresty of friends Jim and Nicole, knit hat by Mummy. And there again is that hand that always makes it out of the swaddling.

Day 9... A manicure, and a remembrance.

Who knew that fatherhood would involve becoming a manicurist? Audrey has fast growing and very sharp fingernails that she uses to scratch her face and sometimes poke into her eyes (she doesn't know that the two flailing things in front of her face are her own arms). So, on the advice of Julie our neighbor, we bought a little matchbook of the world's tiniest emery boards to file her nails down. Much easier and less terrifying that trying to clip her nails and worrying that we'll clip her wee finger by accident.

Oh, and we forgot to note that the t-shirt Audrey is wearing in this photo is a period piece, mid-1970's, which her mother and Aunt Janna wore as babies. It was made by a good friend of her grandmother's way, way back in the day. Grandpa Skip thought he recognized the t-shirt, and wrote to ask if it was the same one. It is, indeed. Holding up pretty well for a t-shirt that is more than 30 years old!

This is Audrey with a photo of her great-grandfather Phil, who passed away on September 13, 2007. Phil (Kris's dad's dad) and Audrey missed each other by just three weeks. We wish they could have met, and we think he would have been pretty pleased with her (of course, we imagine that anyone not completely out of their minds will be pleased by her, but that is our job as her parents to think so). As I looked at this picture of Phil Sr. next to Audrey, I realized that the fish in that photograph probably weights more than twice what she does.

Dinner Bell, Dinner Bell, Ding!

"I've been leaving on my things,

So in the morning when the morning bird sings,

There's still dinner on my dinner jacket,

'Til the dinner bell rings."

Excerpt of "Dinner Bell" by They Might Be Giants

Audrey likes to be sung to, and sometimes joins in herself.

A Walk in the Park

Dad models the Baby Bjorn while Chickpea models the little pumpkin hat that Kristen knitted for her. With four straps, five strap adjustments, and 8 additional fasteners in four different varieties, Daddy had to use all three of his engineering degrees just to get the darn thing on.

Chickpea gives the Baby Bjorn her coveted "Infernal Contraption of the Week" award, then promptly falls sound asleep for the trip around the Arlington Reservoir. Mom really likes not being house-bound as well!

Audrey's friend Ben, 2 years old, made her a wonderful sign to welcome her home.

Let's take a bath!

Mom gives chickpea a sponge bath on the changing table on Saturday afternoon.

After a tiring bath, Chickpea likes to be patted dry by her faithful minions.

Dad has mad bottle feeding skillz.

After a heavy dose of milk, Chickpea is loose as a goose.

Audrey's First Doctor Visit

Audrey had has first visit with her pediatrician on Friday afternoon. Height, weight, and SAT scores are all outstanding. Early admission to MIT is assured.


Chickpea has her head examined. Only four days old and already we've given her "issues".

Audrey arrives home on Thursday morning.

Neko T. Cat checks out Audrey upon her arrival at home, then retreats to the basement and turns her stereo up to the loudest setting, just to let us know what she thinks of this turn of events.


Audrey checks out the rocking chair. Kristen is very pleased with her response.

Audrey meets her next door neighbors, Liam (one month old, at left with mother Jennie) and Ella (10 days old, with mother Stephanie).

Daddy does diapers and burping duty. What a guy!