First Christmas

Petra celebrated her first Xmas today (of course, she wouldn't do it next Tuesday or anything). Piles of presents from her far flung admirerers- fancy toys from Babystyle and Haba, puppets, clothes and books. And apparently more are in in the mail. Alison dressed her up in her cute little snowflake outfit (because it was a chilly 68 degrees or so today, and because the first outfit died in a poopsplosion). Of course, the parents primeval got the best present- Petra herself (oh, and cozy slippers for daddy).

All the new loot is just in time too. Petra is already growing out of some of her 0-3 month clothes (and some of the 3-6 are looking a little short too!). At this rate, she's all set for tennis or basketball! Of course, it means we'll be spending that much more on disposable clothing! More cheap onesies with iron-on decals!

Petra's been a good baby today, four hour nap, short videoconference with grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins, then a walk and another nap. What more can you ask for from a baby!

Happy Bath!

Another milestone! Petra's bath tonight was completely trauma free! We did without the sling in the tub, and I think that helped by making her feel less constrained. She was fine sitting in the water, and splashing about. She didn't even mind when I washed her head and face, usually the trigger for screaming bloody murder. I used the sprayer in the sink to rinse her off, and she was OK with that, though she watched it VERY warily. Next time we're taking her into the shower! (kidding....sort of).

Out of Reach

Actually, things are starting to be in reach for Petra. She's started to reach out for things, and not just thrashing wildly (and "accidently" throwing daddy's glasses across the room). She's reached out for mommy, and grabbed the ear on the lamb rattle mommy was shaking (shaking the rattle, not the baby). Such a good little baby. Add this to the fists in the mouth, and she is becoming quite dextrous. The jury is still out on whether she's right, left, or ambi (see the whorl talk in the Monkeyblog).

Petra also took a nap in her crib! It took feeding, playing, burping, changing, singing and a mobile, but she napped for about an hour! Of course, we weren't able to replicate this, so it may just be a fluke (or is that intelligent design?). We feel a little guilty every time we resort to the swing to get her to nap. Why we feel guilty I don't know, the swing is pretty comfy, and the music it plays is quite catchy!

Trauma

Today was pretty traumatic for little (or not so little) Petra. She had her 2 month (and 1 day) check-up. She is a whopping 12lbs, 15.8oz. I won the betting pool with my 13lb guess- only off by .2oz! The highly inaccurate measurement was 22.5in. The visit started out poorly though- Kaiser decided this was an urgent care visit (scheduled 6 weeks ago mind you!), and charged us $10 (instead of a free well-baby visit). Petra was well of course, but this visit included 3 shots! Poor baby! One of them tends to make the baby a bit feverish and fussy, so she wasn't in a good mood the rest of the afternoon.

We went to mommy's office party for 2 hours later in the day. Petra was fussy going, but slept in the car, and was happy baby for the coworkers. They all thought she was adorable, and she was sweet, smiling, and talky for them. We had to take her out of her holiday costume because she was overheating in her little stripy leggings (possibly due to the shot as well). She definitely has mommy's metabolism- never cold, always hot (in more ways than one).

Mohawk

Petra has already become quite the little punk. In addition to her Dead Kennedys onesie, she has this great little mohawk going! We figured the fauxhawk was the best she'd manage because of her whorls, but we're still a little surprised at just how nicely it is shaping up! Next weekend we are definitely going out with the 'hawk gelled up and the onesie!

Petra was singing christmas carols with mommy today. Daddy tried and it made Petra cry. I have that pesky hereditary tone-deafness that makes the whole family useless when it comes to the production of anything resembling music. I'll have to stick with iTunes for her.

I started passing out Petra photo Xmas cards today, and there was a trail of squeals behind me as I made the rounds. Everyone thinks she is just TOOOO cute. Before you know it she'll be on Cute Overload.

Fisticuffs

Petra turned 8 (weeks) old today, and continues to break the curve on being the little genius baby. Not only is she sucking her fist to stay calm, but she is starting to watch her own hands. Just give her some pencils and she'll stay busy for hours (to paraphrase Kliban).

She sat in my lap for about 15 minutes tonight gnawing on the knuckle of my thumb, happy as a clam (which I've also had gnaw on me, as far as clams gnaw). We also had a lovely little conversation, of which I understood not a syllable (if aoaay is a syllable).

Time flies

Now that Petra is starting high school, I should have a little more time to devote to the blog.


Just kidding. Yes, it's been a week since I posted. I feel bad about that. Deeply. But then again, I've been spending time with Petra, so how can that be bad? Right now she is with mommy in bed having a post-meltdown feed which will hopefully transform her into a nice sleepy baby.

Petra is growing like a weed. Some of her sleepers are already getting to be too short for her (luckily there are a couple with open feet for her toes to stick out of). We have tons more, but I'm shocked at how fast she is growing (but not dismayed). Milestones this week include learning to suck on her own fist to quiet herself, which, at least occasionally, can head off a meltdown. Hurray!

She is also quite the happy baby. She loves to have long conversations with us that usually run something like "aaayooooaaayyyy"? "aaaayyyoooooaaaayyy!" "aayyy!." These are often accompanied by a little squirmy dance, whirling fists and a huge smile. Daddy is thinking he might need to trade his glasses for contacts, they've been knocked off his face so many times!

Petra's stocking is hung by the chimney with care, and I've already been filling it with chewable wooden toys from Haba in Germany. Very nice rings and clicky balls that I'm sure she will love playing with. Didn't I say we shouldn't get presents for Petra this year, because she already has received so much? oh well, my bad. But how can you resist toys for your little girl?

Thanks to a post on Daddy-blog "Sweet Juniper" (via Daddytypes), I've got a new hobby: Making stylish onesies for Petra with iron on inkjet transfers. Seeing as this is the golden age of RIAA cease and desist orders, I'm not sure I should even mention that I'm doing this, but let's hope that Shepard Fairey is more forgiving than RIAA and the MPAA, and won't sue me for making an Obey giant onesie! Because she is the chosen one, we've also pillaged Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Dead Kennedys? Let's just say that without me being clueless about them, Petra may never have arrived! All in all, this transfer paper stuff is just too much fun!


And on a final note for today, my coworker points out that daddy's picture on the blog is identical in pose to this one of Petra. Like daddy like baby?

Buzz and Buzz

I suppose that I should confess. When we take Petra to the Farmer's Market, we aren't REALLY going for the fantastic mexican food at Loteria Grill, and the great jelly donuts at Bob's Doughnuts & Coffee, or chicken & waffles at Kokomo. We really go to show off our stroller! This weekend, for example, within seconds of arriving someone was stopping traffic saying to a friend "Did you see the cool stroller?" Not a trip goes by when the Quinny Zapp isn't ogled heavily. I suppose we could pretend that it's really just the attention that it draws to Petra that is important, but we'd be lying to ourselves.

The big news at the market Sunday was a Quinny Buzz spotting. Someone had one with the Dreami sleep cot attached. We made a point of sashaying past them, so they could see the Zapp and strike up a conversation (they picked theirs up in London). We'd been ogling the Buzz on the internet ourselves, but now that I've seen one in real life, I don't think I want one- it's a HUGE beast! Check out this Flickr photoset of someone trying to get it into their trunk. I think we'll stick with the nice compact Zapp!

Feed me!

Daddy can do it! No longer will we live under the tyranny of the boob! Daddy can do anything mommy can, I am all powerful!




Well, maybe there will still be a bit of boob tyranny. Mommy was sweet enought to pump a couple little bottles of milk so I could try feeding Petra. We need to get her used to the bottle before I become stay-at-home-daddy in a month. Petra had no problem with it of course. She was more than happy to snork down an ounce of milk from the bottle, even if it was daddy serving it up. I did get that loving stare in the eyes as she ate, so I'm feeling pretty happy about the whole thing.


Another first this week was Petra discovering that she can suck on her fist. It isn't quite boob or bottle, but it helps her calm down if she is starting to freak out. Anything that keeps her calm and quiet is good by me! She was even sucking her thumb for a while. Before long she'll be a buck-tooth beauty!




As I mentioned earlier, Petra is smiling and talking (-ish) quite a bit now. She loves to laugh and play a bit after a good nap and snack.

And she has quite a bit to smile about too. Christmas is coming, and she is going to get plenty of loot. She got her Hanna Andersson stocking on Tuesday, along with a VERY cute Dala horse sweater and a little jungle jacket. I got the biggest sizes avaialble, so she'll be set for a couple of years before she needs new ones! She also received a lovely hand knit blanked from Gina and Guillermo, a hawaiian print dress from Sonja, and an Oscar the grouch puppet from her aunt & uncle the big time movie editors. She's going to need a trailer or storage unit to hold all her stuff soon!

Holiday hijinks

My what a busy week it has been. I feel inadequate as a blogger to have let nearly a week pass between posts, but hey, I'm a novice daddy and blogger, so give me some slack.

Petra's week was pretty busy as well. She kept mommy company for a doctor's appointment (everything A-OK!), and then had a very busy Wednesday visiting daddy's work (she and mommy came in the morning). Petra was certainly the hit at work, with everyone oohing and aahing over her. Maybe too many people, as she obviously was geeling pretty cranky. But what a great excuse to leave work early and start the holiday!

Thanksgiving was at my cousin's house in the valley. My mom, my sister and her family, aunt & uncle and some family friends all came to make for quite a crowd. Petra was a BIIIG hit with her cousin. She had been dying to meet Petra, and insisted onholding her every chance she got (that is, until she was "squishing me"). Petra was very sweet though, and didn't melt down until the ride home. I should have been riding in back with her, instead of twisting my back out of whack trying to stick a finger in her mouth to quiet her (which worked).

Friday mom and my sister came over to hang out as well, and other friends also came to visit for awhile. Three days in a row of being center of attention is obviously Petra's limit though. She had a screaming fit for about half an hour Friday night that scared me and mommy. We had to put in ear plugs so we could get close enough to hold her and try to soothe her to sleep. She wouldn't even quiet down for the boob, bringer of all that is good in the world. Once she did settle though, she slept like a log, and was her usual sunny morning baby self the next day.

Breakfast out Saturday was all the excitement she got over the weekend, recovery time much needed by her and by us. Daddy put up a little potted tree for Xmas, and we've got the decorations up and ready for the NEXT holiday. I think we are going to stay home alone for this one!

Milestones? Too many to count. In addition to knowing her vowels (she clearly says "Aayyy" "eeeee" "ai" "Oh", but "Uuh" is a little tough), and repeating them a LOT, she is also REALLY smiling at us. Not that "it might be gas" smile, but real big "hi daddy" smiles with dimples and everything. She is also even more alert than before, and puts her head up and turns it left and righ to track the mobiles in her swing and crib. She watches everything around her all the time. The total screaming meltdown could be called a milestone, but I hope we never see another one!

Birthdays and Babystyle

Friday was Petra's 1 month birthday. Happy birthday sweetie! In some ways it feels like it has been much longer, and in others much shorter. I miss her like crazy everyday, and she is growing and changing so quickly. Her bellybutton is healed up and a cute little one it is. This weekend she has really started smiling, not just the "it looks like a smile but really it's gas" smile, but the "hey it's daddy and he's being silly" smile (well, OK, more likely "oh look, the boob!"). I measured her at 22", 10% longer than when she was born. I'll let you do the math and tell me if she's going to be WNBA material.

We took a sojourn to Babystyle in Santa Monica with our 6-months-behind-us-in-the-baby-department friends. Materinity wear for her, showing off Petra and the Quinny Zapp/Maxi-cosi for us. First a quick stop at Peet's coffee (decaf for Alison), and an "excuse me, but I haven't seen one of these..." adoration session for the Quinny. The shopgirls at Babystyle also were very interested in the stroller, asking lots of questions (one wants to order one). We might have to get rid of it though- everyone notices the stroller, and not the beautiful baby! That may explain the meltdown Petra had in the store, that and the fully loaded diaper. Luckily (good marketing I'm sure) Babystyle has a batheroom with fully equipped changing table (and wipes as well). Alison had to do a little backseat feeding before we could head home, but otherwise Petra was a gem.

This week Alison has been videoconferencing Petra to me at work each morning (usually after feeding when she is calm and adorable). This makes me a MUCH more productive worker, really! I keep calling people in to see her when I have her on the line. Everyone agrees that she is absolutely darling (that nose, those cheeks, that hairline!). I've pretty much decided that she is too cute NOT to video, so despite my best intentions I started researching camcorders this weekend. Definitely Mini-DV (the hard-drive versions are just too expensive still), but otherwise I'm open to suggestions.

Petra-fu

Petra has developed a series of wacky behaviors that are regular enough that each has been given a name. In the grand tradition of Hong Kong action films and Drunken Boxing, we introduce "Petra-fu":

The Fainting Goat: In this move, Petra goes from agitated flailing to complete calm in a fraction of a second. She lies motionless for awhile, then suddenly starts moving again. The move reminded us of the odd behavior of the "fainting goats" that go rigid when frightened.

The Bow: When Petra is tired of being held (by daddy at least), and goes looking for mommy, she stretches her self out as long as she can get, arching her back and neck looking over her shoulder. She looks like a taught bow when she does it. When she was less than a week old she would do this while screaming inconsolably, and daddy would freak out thinking it was some brain seizure or something.

Smacky-smacky: Though Petra is normally a "Barracuda" type feeder, she sometimes decides that just gumming the nipple is much more fun. The wet smacking sound that this makes is amusing during normal waking hours, but is not so cute at 4 in the morning. Luckily, she will usually settle down to business before long, or fall asleep (which is cute ANYTIME).

Others are certainly developing, so the list will grow. Stay tuned!

Bath time

After a hard day sleeping through construction noise (our street is now a big open mud pit), and a walk to the post office and the farmers' market, Petra was tuckered and ready for a bath. It's amazing how dirty a baby can get in only a week!

Petra's belly button is all healed (and a cute little inny), so we gave her a bath in the tub that Alena gave her. She handled it very well, quiet and content. Up to a point. Once I got to washing her face, she 'sploded (from both ends). Crying and pooping to make sure we knew she was very displeased. Luckily, by that point she was pretty much done, so a quick rinse, dry, and bundle into a snuggly and she was ready for mommy to quiet her down. Instant bliss, and already drifting off to sleep. Ahhh.

Overstimulated!

Petra had quite the (over) stimulating long weekend. Her grandmother Glorena came to visit, and sang her entire repetoire of children's songs, all done in a high babytalk voice. We also out to brunch at La Dijonaise, our favorite french bakery/cafe, and took a stroll on Larchmont to the farmer's market and the new Peet's coffee. Somewhere between grandmother and a double espresso on ice, Petra found it very difficult to sleep Saturday and Sunday. Twitchy, grunty, whiny, hungry. We're thinking it was the caffeine, but we can't rule out the singing! Today Alison was careful not to drink coffee after breakfast. We'll see if that helps. Petra did pass out in the swing for an hour, so it looks good.

Gifts from wonderful friends and coworkers continue to pour in. Uncle Mike & Aunt Lee's songbook was particularly welcome after this weekend (not that I can carry a tune, but it is nice to have something other than old Billy Idol songs to soothe Petra with). A wonderful Scandy knit outfit (with matching tights) from Ken and Laurel was also much appreciated, especially the fact that it is sized for 2 years. We have PLENTY of clothes for Petra for at least the first year.

Petra turns 4 (weeks) tomorrow. Such a big girl she is!

I'm missing it!

I already feel like I'm missing too much of Petra growing up! Yesterday I was amazed she could lift her head a bit, but I get home tonight and she is lifting it, looking around, watching things go by... I feel like days pass for each day I'm at work!

Today's milestone (that I was present for): She had a bath that she enjoyed! No screaming and flailing, just cooing, smiling, and wriggling. Thank goodness, I was worried my jobs (diapers and baths) would all end up being traumatizing, and mommy would just be the bearer of all that is good in the world (boob).

Tomorrow Petra gets to meet grandma Glorena. I have the feeling shopping will be involved (Nordstrom twice-yearly sale for women and kids anyone?). Tonight, she gets to just be a darling!

Heads Up!

Petra got to meet her Grandpa yesterday and today. She was such a darling little girl that it was hard for him to tear himself away when he had to leave. She slept for hours in his arms, the little darling!

Today's milestone was lifting her head up on her own for at least 5 seconds. She was laying on grandpa's chest, and wanted to see what was going on so, up her little head went and she looked around. Any day now she'll be crawling! She's already pretty good at scooting herself around with her back legs (especially when you are trying to change her of course).

Welcome to the system

Petra has now become an official person, part of the blobal bureaucratic Matrix! She received both her Kaiser card and her Social Security card last week. Kaiser I wasn't surprised about, but the SS card arriving stunned me! Such efficiency! I suppose they are hoping to start skimming her wages as soon as possible, but they are just going to have to wait 4 years before that!

Naw, I'm not going to force her into the sweatshop that young! Besides, earning power is greater if she graduates High School and College first. Alison and I are buying weekly Lotto tickets to be sure that by the time she is 18 we can afford Cal State Dominguez Hills. I don't think $20 million will be enough for Cal by then. Sad!

Not Quite Mommy

A daddy is a wonderful thing (person?), but not quite the match for mommy. Petra does love her daddy though, even if he can't give her what she really wants in life (at least not until she can drive). While a finger can temporarily quiet her, she eventually decides that only mommy will do.

Is that a look of fear or disgust? Neither really, it means "I've had enough of your stinky finger and I'm ready for mommy!" Boy can she communicate!

I really missed Petra (and Alison too) during the week. It was so nice today to get to hold her and play so much! She really does like the attention- I swear she smiles and makes faces (yes, I'm probably delusional as well). Who would have thought that Alison and I would be sharing a laugh and tickling Petra over the diaper leak that got all three of us? Pee is suddenly amusing. What's happening to me! I guess I really am becoming a daddy.

Bellybutton!

Petra's umbilical cord stub fell off today, and daddy missed the important event (well, OK, maybe not THAT important). I was going to include a picture, but close up it is pretty groady. Instead, we'll have a super cute baby picture!

Mommy is doing a wonderful job at home with Petra. They get out for walkies every day, and haven't yet gone insane from the horrendous construction noise out front (our street is now a 15 foot deep trench!).

Petra continues to be insanely cute, and absolutely ravenous! She spends so much time eating that I'm feeling a bit jealous. I only get to hold her for relatively short periods between endless feedings. Then again, Alison is probably feeling a bit put upon nursing constantly. So, take the good, take the bad.

She keeps growing and growing

Petra had an appointment with her pediatrician today. Alison walked her down to Kaiser in her Quinny (and she slept the whole way, though cried and needed changing in the waiting room). She's over the hump, and has surpassed her birth weight (she was down 6 ounces 10 days ago, now she is up a fraction to 9lbs 10oz), and is an inch longer (21 inches).

And, because everything is about the stroller, Alison told me the Doctor was impressed by it, and hadn't seen anything like it before. I tell you, the Quinny/Maxi-Cosi combo has paid for itself in ego points!

Last day of freedom

Today is my last day home with Petra and Alison. Tomorrow I go back to work. Between the 2 weeks off, leaving Petra, and daylight savings, it's looking to be the Monday from hell. I hope I can make it through the day without seeing my baby! Alison promised to email and send pictures if anything exciting happened. We need to try out the iChat videoconferencing too!

Today was a nice day, if too short. We went to Farmer's Market again with friends for brunch, and to show Petra off a bit more. Back home, we lounged in the back yard, ate delicious pumpkin spice cake that Alison made (nesting anyone?), and feasted on lamb stew that I made for dinner. Only Petra's traumatic bathtime put a damper on the evening (oh, and that whole going-back-to-work-tomorrow thing).

I'm still paranoid about the bench theft (and it turns out they stole the sleighbells we had on the front door as well!). I've rigged the iSight camera to record the gate and send me updates if anyone tries to come in, but that shotgun thing is sounding better and better!

Travelling

Petra continues to be the perfect baby. She slept well during the night (4 hours straight at one point), had breakfast with mommy, then slept while we all walked to the Sierra Bonita cafe for brunch. She was snoozy and cute the entire time, and didn't start to melt down until the last couple of blocks on the walk back. Such a darling!

Gramma Kate then took care of Petra for an hour so Alison and I could run a couple of errands (vote NO on all those pesky special election "propositions"). She was a darling for gramma even!

The minor milestone of the day: While on her stomach (on top of mommy), Petra raised her head an inch or so, if only for a second. Soon she'll be walking, and dating! Yikes!

Meet the 'rents

Petra got to meet her first grandparent today- Gramma Kate. She came down for the weekend to meet her new granddaughter and help get ready for the back-to-work routine. Now, let's not have the other siblings feeling bad by saying just how perfect gramma thinks Petra is. I'm sure she says those things about all the grand-sprogs.

We had a nice little visit to the Farmer's Market where Petra was the queen of the parade in her Quinny Zapp and Maxi-Cosi. At least 4 times people were exclaiming about the "really cool" "high-tech" "beautiful" stroller, and everyone had to come take a look. At which point they'd exclaim about the beautiful baby (strollers are first of course). As always, Petra was perfectly behaved, sleeping the entire outing, and not making a peep (a poop on the other hand...).

Petra Pictures Galore

I'm posting an electronic album of Petra pictures, as promised. The link is: http://rilindst.bol.ucla.edu/PetraPics/PetraPics.html (I've added the link to the Blog sidebar)

The pictures are 640x480, pretty big, but not really big enough for printing. If you want prints of any particular picture let me know and I can get you the original for Yahoo Photos (or any other photo service).

I'll update these pages every few days.

Thief!

The big news today is hardly Petra related. The bench on our front porch was stolen while we were napping with Petra! We have some suspicions: They are tearing up our street to put in new water mains, and the bench disappeared while the street was still closed off, and just about when the workers packed up to go home. You can see scratches on the sidewalk where they dragged it to the alley to load it onto a truck (this, despite the closed off street). I think one of the workmen took a liking to it and decided to take it home with him. The worst part is, we heard it happen, but with the other construction noise, we didn't realize it was our bench being hauled away, just something metallic clanking around. I feel violated, and a little freaked out. I don't like the idea of Alison home alone all day with people like that around. Maybe it is time to get that shotgun for home defense? Safer than a swimming pool with a baby in the house!

But, back to Petra. She, of course, is still a darling. She is so good to let us nap whenever we want! Only the occasional meltdown that requires either mommy's milk or daddy's finger to shut her up.

Chester appears to be somewhat more accepting of Petra now. At least he has co-opted her stroller and crib for his personal use! He still won't come near her though.

Into the fray

I couldn't go too long without jumping into the whole Huggies vs. Pampers debate, could I? Before Petra arrived we picked up a zillion (well, 1 bag of a zillion) Huggies. "Such a deal" we thought, in that big Midwestern way. At the hospital, the room was stocked with Pampers swaddlers, and they sent us home with about a week's worth of those. Having the Pampers on hand, and being used to them, they seemed perfectly acceptable. We had no serious containment breaches (other than those caused by daddy's learning curve) in the first week (I partly credit this little internal gasket seal they have- pretty spiffy). Then last night, we ran out of Pampers and started using the Huggies. Uh Oh!

First off, the Huggies don't seem to fit as well (they are the smallest infant size)- they hang WAY down, and have lots of extra paper sticking out everywhere. All this extra material doesn't help at all- instant containment breach, very serious! Both out the back, and out the leg holes. Pretty obvious that if you can see the baby's private parts through the gaps, they won't do a very good job catching anything coming out of them. Even worse, she managed to take a pee right out one of those leg holes WITHOUT EVEN TOUCHING THE DIAPER!

So, first thing this morning, we were off to Tarzhay to pick up some more Pampers. Maybe after she grows (!) a bit more she will fit them better, and we can try again, but for now my money (literally) is on Pampers swaddlers!!

Nap Time

Yesterday, B-day, was just a bit much for everyone. We decided to do much less today, and, best of all, take a nap. Success! Except for a couple of phone calls (aren't there always?), we had a good hour lie down. We've turned Alison's worry into a positive!

How good is too good?

Petra is such a wonderfully well behaved girl that now Alison is getting a bit nervous (and making me so). Petra is more than willing to take naps for a couple of hours at a time, and isn't particularly easy to wake up. She responds when you try, but would clearly rather stay asleep (I think it's laziness she's inherited from me). With some tickling and a diaper change (I'll never eat mustard again), she is her fine cheerful self (and usually hungry by then as well). The AAP says this is not uncommon, and that we just need to be sure to wake her up and feed her regularly, even if she'd rather sleep. And if it keeps up, ask the pediatrician.

So, we'll keep on. Hopefully we'll worry this wonderful habit out of her before too long!

Happy B-Day

The "B" here has two meanings- Birthday and Bureaucracy. Petra is one week old today (and made sure we were awake to share it with her at the exact moment it arrived), and we celebrated by taking her on her first trip through the bureaucracies that make our lives so pleasant. First was enrollment in all the various benefit packages at UCLA (e.g. we now have to pay more each month), and a visit to Alison's office to show off Petra to all the cow-orkers. Then, a delightful visit to the Social Security Administration to apply for a SSN for Petra.

Ahh, the federal government. They have an office in an office complex, but were too cheap to pay for parking, so the entrance to the complex has a "no social security parking" sign on it. Street parking it is (luckily, this isn't an issue in Culver City). Next was a door with the right address, but a sign saying "not social security", and no direction beyond that. Three doors down is a small locked door that IS social security, but they have to buzz you in, and there is no way to know that (the door is smoked so you can't see the guard inside either). Walk in, the guard says take a number and sit down. No way of knowing how far along they are on the numbers. No apparent activity behind the "service" windows. It didn't take too long though, and other than wanting two forms of ID for a newborn (?!? Luckily an immunization record with just a handwritten last name (though not Petra's) was sufficient) we didn't have any problems.

So, Petra 1 (week). Bureaucracy zero. We win! And she was such a darling the entire time. Hardly even able to get her to open her eyes for the cow-orkers! She even let us stop at Peet's for much needed espresso and coffee beans. She is such a sweetie!

(Pic is Petra in Alison's boss' office- Boss was out at a meeting and didn't get to see her).

Picture of the day

Such a good sleepy girl!

Almost Normal

That is the perfect description of the day. We had meals, did laundry, ran errands, and ate lunch at the La Brea tar pits. The only thing different (and special) was having Petra with us (very well behaved!). Maybe we are starting to get used to this whole parenting thing?

Petra continues to be a darling. She only gets fussy and cries if she isn't fed on time (whatever time that may be). Otherwise she snoozes, squirms, and looks at EVERYTHING with fascination. Now that we've discovered how easily she sleeps in the stroller and the swing, we've even got a little time when we have both hands free. Hurray!

All washed up

Such a busy day should aways end with a nice relaxing bath. Preferably one that ends with screaming, pooping, and peeing. Petra really enjoyed (not) her first bath at home this evening. Not too difficult on my part. I just had to scrub and ignore the screaming and squirming like I'm killing her. Everything is nice and clean now, and she is having a conciliatory meal with mommy.

Speaking of conciliation and meals- Alison and I actually had a sit down dinner for two tonight. We parked Petra in the Maxi-Cosi on the stroller, and she kept quiet most of the meal. The one time she did start howling, one circuit of the kitchen-breakfast nook-dining room and she went back to sleep. I'm sending the Maxi-Cosi people flowers!

That Lo-Res Beauty

Here's that picture of Petra I tried to send from the delivery room just minutes after she was born.

World Traveller (Pic of the day)

There she was, reading Sunset to plan her next trip, and she just conked out. I suppose if you count 6 blocks or so as the "world", she is a world traveller. And a very good one too (read: asleep).

Major milestones of the day: squirming up the bed to get to mommy to feed. Squirming her self over from her back to her side for same. Squirming is one of her great skills, and we hope to find a profitable market for it so she can take care of us in our old(er) age.

Picture of the day

Sometimes being a baby requires great concentration. Or is she just taking a poop?

Petra's big adventure

Wow, what an exciting day of milestones (well, exciting for a 5 day old). Petra experienced her first California earthquake today: a 3.1 shock near Santa Monica. I doubt she felt a thing on mommy's lap, but it rattled the windows.

As if the apocalypse isn't enough, Petra also went for a walk in her fancy Quinny Zapp stroller, with the Maxi-Cosi seat attached. Many a passer-by commented on how cute she is (Petra, not the stroller).

Gotta run now, diaper calls!

[Update- Make that 2 earthquakes! Another 3.0 in the same spot. Is our baby a sign of the apocalypse?]

My how things have changed

Now that Petra is Petra, it just doesn't seem right to resign her to the blogosphere as the Monkey. She may still be our Monkey, but she deserves a blogspace of her own. Therefore, we have created Petra's new blog, Petra-fied, devoted to the experiences living with our little monkey, uh, I mean baby.

Don't you just hate it when you finally get a blog bookmarked, and they go and change it on you? The Monkeyblog will now just stay as an archive of life leading up to Petra's arrival, and the first week. Everything in the future on our little girl will be in Petra-fied, so bookmark away!