May 15, 2008
Basically Just a Cute Photo of a Baby in a Hat
Today was going to be a day of industry, a day of progress on a number of fronts. We had a babysitter lined up (neighbor and baby-whisperer extraordinaire Dr. Donald McColl), and we had a large empty van with which to complete our errands. Since Chestertown is so tiny and lacking in major retail opportunities, we often drive to Dover, Delaware to conduct our commerce. And so we drove. About an hour, it was. We pulled up in the parking lot of the Home Depot, got out of the van, beaming with lusty enthusiasm to tackle the first item on our day's lengthy TO-DO list, and realized that neither one of us had brought a credit card. Robbi had $40 cash in her back pocket--a kind of miracle. But not nearly enough to make an honest showing at the bold schemes we had hatched. And so we drove home in the silence of the shamed.
Robbi, being far more resilient than I, decided to return to Dover. I was left to tend to the baby while nursing my wounded pride. I strapped her into the Snugli and walked about town, visiting many friends, including Tom and Sarah and Bookplate. While there, I took this photo, that is really the central justification for chronicling this story.
I love that hat, that big floppy hat.
Later, hours later, after Robbi's return, we both realized that we were desperately hungry and headed to the store in the wrong frame of mind to make rational decisions. We bought a lot of rich, filling, comforting foods. At the time it seemed like a good idea.
Alden was disgusted with the whole affair, judging us with her eyes, scornful of our apparent lust for processed meals.
I like to think she'll be the type to buy healthy ingredients and cook from scratch. I like to think she'll avoid the trap of high-fat, calorie-rich stupor that so frequently afflicts her parents, but then she has never tasted macaroni and cheese from the deli counter, or slow-roasted rotisserie chicken, or those frozen Pillsbury biscuits that rise like magic to buttery freshness in just over 15 minutes.
Her menu to date has been frightfully limited. In just over two months we'll be able to introduce her to a thin gruel, apparently, not something that will likely do much to redeem our diets in her mind.
Posted by bogenamp at 09:55 PM
May 14, 2008
USA Today, Canada tomorrow?
Well, something has finally happened in our lives that has nothing do with our child. And just in time. She is on the brink of becoming remarkably conceited.
Still beaming from our recent mention in Pop Candy, the USA Today blog of hipster Whitney Matheson, our feelings of fulfillment were even more pronounced upon receiving a copy of Canadian hipster/literary magazine Broken Pencil in the mail yesterday.
Here is the cover.
Note that the ultra-hip semi-Asian chick on the cover is not Robbi.
And here is the article on page 9 (click on the thumbnail to get a larger, almost readable version).
"Product of the Month?!" Who knew? Idiots'Books has been noticed in the great land of our northern neighbors.
For those of you who only read this blog to see pictures of babies, here is Alden aloft.
What might seem like good old fashioned fun and games is actually a very useful way to rid her tiny abdomen of gas, thus improving her mood and creating delightful baby-sized burping sounds.
As for you fine people at Broken Pencil (especially Norah), thanks for the notice.
Posted by bogenamp at 12:24 PM
May 12, 2008
Helping
The weather is terrible here tonight. Which is to say wonderful if, like me, you are a fan of rain and tumult in the skies. Perhaps as a result of the overcast, the wireless signal is weak and spotty. And so I will resist my usual inclination to the verbose and share but one image.
Robbi has been asked to pitch some illustrations to a potentially exciting project. The project itself is not "potentially" exciting, but in all ways exciting. The "potential" (or lack thereof) part of the equation comes from the fact that landing the project is something of a long shot, and Robbi is never one to count any chickens.
But given the excitement generated by the mere potential, Robbi was at her drawing table tonight, looking for inspiration. Alden insisted on getting into the mix. While her tiny, fumbling infant hands are not yet capable of producing credible illustration, her critical skills are already well honed. Perhaps she is bound to be an art director. In any case, I thought I'd share a photo of my girls at work.
Oh, the potential.
Posted by bogenamp at 12:59 AM
May 07, 2008
Art Shots
The following entry reveals why each of us needs a competent photographer to follow us around and document our lives. Christian's cousin Anthony is a more than competent photographer with a really nice camera and a tendency to document the lives of those around him. Anthony was a guest at Christian and Emily's baby bowling shower a few weeks back, and so a tiny slice of our lives was beautifully photographed. Not surprisingly, Alden captured the lion's share of Anthony's attention. It was, after all, a baby shower, and the baby being honored had yet to emerge.
And so our baby had to do in a pinch.
She spent a long time hanging out with Anthony's wife Kelly.
She had a nap. While she slept, her fingers were photographed.
I earnestly hope that no one photographs my fingers while I sleep.
This shot is for Alden's various grandparents to look at and feel misty.
After Alden slept, she shrieked. She is a baby. It is her wont.
And lastly, here is our pal Christian, the proud papa to be. Emily is due to undergo a dramatic transformation in about two weeks now. Rest assured you will be informed when the big day comes.
Posted by bogenamp at 12:29 AM
May 04, 2008
Cause and Effect
We passed a rather nice milestone a few days ago. I finally got a chance to feed the baby.
We were cautioned by doctors, midwives, and lactation consultants alike not to give a bottle to the baby too early on, lest she succumb to the dread malady of "nipple confusion." The estimates for when she would be able to keep the various nipples in her life straight varied wildly, but the most consistent time frame seemed to be four-to-six weeks. So at five weeks we decided to give it a try. Alden was not confused, I think, but perhaps overwhelmed by the bottle. There was a lot of leaking of milk all over the place. There was a lot of desperate gulping of air. There was ensuing abdominal pressure, baby angst, truly heroic belches, and, in the end, a milk-coated, ill-fed, grouchy, gassy baby.
What does one do with a baby in this state? Throw it in the tub, of course.
I took Alden into the big tub and found that she is a natural swimmer. She was able to float comfortably on her back and really seemed to like it in there. And then, all of a sudden, she started shrieking inconsolably. And family fun bath time was over.
It was nothing that the Pooh Bear jammies couldn't fix, apparently.
To make me feel better in the wake of the botched bottle feed and the sad bath, Robbi cooked up a batch of strawberry shortcake.
For those of you who don't know, the strawberry shortcake is, in the Behr home, a cross between art form and feat of endurance. The helpings are large and the ingredients are not on anyone's list of low-calorie snacks.
On a proper Behr shortcake, one gets both ice cream and whipped cream.
There's really nothing moderate about it.
Oh, and in Behr terms, the shortcake is not dessert, but the meal itself.
Though it still tastes like dessert.
Eventually we went to bed, bracing ourselves for the sleepus interruptus that had been our bittersweet plight each night for the past five weeks. Only...it didn't happen. 7:00am rolled around and we learned, to our mutual delight, that neither of us had been woken by the baby and her endless needs. We felt like celebrating. So Robbi did. The only way she knows how.
I swear I'll start writing (at least occasionally) about something other than baby antics soon. As soon as something other than baby antics happens to me.
Posted by bogenamp at 11:19 PM
May 01, 2008
Sense of Perspective
You know you're a baby when the flowers are bigger than your head.
These great big pink suckers grow right outside the door to the barn. I'm supposed to remember what they are called. Robbi reminds me constantly, but it just doesn't seem to stick. We brought Alden over to give the flowers a sniff and noticed that they outclassed her in size.
Though certainly not in volume.
The child makes a noise that belies her tiny stature.
Though already one can say that she used to be much smaller.
Posted by bogenamp at 11:14 PM
April 30, 2008
Recent Developments
It's sad to say, but Alden seems to be growing up. In addition to being generally more "with it" on a moment to moment basis (she is now better able to actually look at the person who is holding her, for example), she has acquired some new skills over the past few days.
All of a sudden this afternoon, she seemed to have learned how to grip. She grabbed Robbi's finger and would not let go.
She is doing more grasping in general: at fabric, chins, cheerful spinning Blue Devils, etc.
She's also starting to gain a bit more control over her huge wobbly head. As shown:
The progress is uneven, with lots of precarious listing from side to side, as shown:
To the left
To the right
Back
And forward
She is trying hard, it's clear. We're pleased with the sheer effort.
Another endearing quirk, which cannot be seen as a sign of progress, is her inexplicable tendency to suddenly go horribly cross-eyed.
I love it when this happens, and wonder what it means. Perhaps this picture will have to be kept in a drawer "special" moments in her life at which it might come in handy. Like when undesirable boyfriends come to the door to pick her up for dates. Or when I come in to present on "Career Day" at her elementary school. Yes, I'm going to be that kind of dad. And there's not a thing she can do about it.
Posted by bogenamp at 09:28 PM