Betting Pool

I think we all lost this round of bets on Petra's growth. Her doctor's appointment on Monday weighed her in at 16lbs 9 oz, 24.5" long! She is a big girl! The doctor also pointed out that her amazing sitting ability (technically "Tripodding") is quite ahead of the curve (usually at 5-6 months, not 4). As we suspected, she is indeed a genius! She has also discovered her toes (very cute!), and is loving her baths now (splashing everywhere!).

Petra and I have been taking lots of walks around the neighborhood (often the only way to quiet her down in the afternoons). Everyone we pass thinks she is adorable (of course) and is amazed at how alert and happy she is while we walk. She prefers to ride outward facing in the baby Bjorn, so my back is getting quite a workout. The stroller usually is fine- she'll sleep for quite awhile, but if she wakes up look out! I carry the Bjorn for backup!Petra and I visited the university on Friday to check on progress of some projects and attend a coworkers baby shower. This was the first day Petra didn't go to UCLA for lunch, and she handled it pretty well. Desiree babysat most of the time, and Petra was fine with that. She was held and cooed over by at least 2 dozen people, and didn't melt down for about 2 hours (and 2 bottles of milk). The good news was that the second I put her in the stroller to head for the car she conked out, and slept the whole way home. Good baby!

Not such a good drive Sunday though after we visited our friends in their new house in Valencia. She slept the whole way up (good baby!), but squalled almost the whole way back. We've got to work on that!

Friday she fell asleep in my lap for the first time, and yesterday she slept in my arms 3 times (once after each bottle). She is so cute in her little milk coma! I need to be better about planning for it though- leg falling asleep and nothing to read make for uncomfortable naps.

Milk Coma

Happy Valentine's Day!

And happy birthday to me! Petra is the best valentine a guy could ask for, even if she forgot to get me a card. Actually, having Petra made it easier to do something for mommy this Vday. Normally, the 14th comes and I don't have a chance to even get a card (well, the Thrifty down by work has a fine selection of "Mahogany" cards, but she's a little pale for those). This year though, I was able to pack Petra into the Bjorn and take her shopping for card, chocolates, and a necklace. Hardly any meltdowns at all. Next year I'm sure will be back to the same grind, but this year was great!

After all the trouble we went through to make sure Petra's name isn't too popular, we found out today that it is in the top 10 (in Hungary). Well, I suppose it could be worse. Everyone loves the name, and I doubt there will be more than 3-4 other Petra's in her class when she starts school/childcare.

Petra and I have been pretty good on the schedule thing. Up at 7:30, play until 9, bottle, nap, up at noonish, drive to UCLA for lunch with mommy, walkies, another bottle, then hang on daddy until mommy gets home. See, no room for meltdowns in such a busy schedule! The bottle feeding is going really well. Petra now grabs and holds the bottle when she's hungry (and forgets about it and drops it when not). She definitely likes to be in control. She loves playing in her bouncy chair (yet another part of that Craigslist haul) for precisely that reason, even if it is a little big for her.

Sit-ups

Petra is in much better shape for sit-ups than daddy is. Daddy had a pleasant case of viral gastroenteritis over the weekend, and is still in the recovery stage (just be glad you can't hear my stomach rumbling on the blog). Petra, on the other hand, is doing great at sit-ups. She can't quite do it herself yet, but she can stay upright pretty well now, though the balance is a little iffy.

Petra's also doing pretty good with tummy time now, starting to push herself up with her arms rather than just arching her back to raise her head and chest up. We picked up a Tiny Love playmat on Craigslist and she's having fun kicking those things about. The person who sold it to us threw in a great set of chimes for it as well, and Petra loves making them ring.

Speaking of rings, Petra has really taken to grabbing, gumming, and flinging the Haba wooden rings that we bought her. Her hand-eye coordination is just to the point where she can grab them well and pass them hand to hand to mouth. But obviously what she likes most is hurling them as hard and far as possible. She's nearly killed the laptop twice flinging the rings at grandpa during a videoconference.

Mirror Mirror
Petra also recognizes herself in the mirror. We were doing a diaper change at the Hammer Museum show "Masters of American Comics" (regrettably a short very short visit), and there was a full length mirror behind the table. When she stood up and saw herself she did a little dance and gave a sweet giggle. She's seen herself in several other mirrors, and it always catches her attention (well, unless she's crying).

Quinny 1, Bugaboo 0
Coming out of the Hammer, we were waiting to cross the street near a couple with baby in a bugaboo. They were having a hushed conversation, casting glances back at us, and finally the woman broke away and asked "where did you get your stroller?" Hah! Quinny Zapp wins again!

See a man about a horse

I just don't know how these daddy bloggers do it. There just doesn't seem to be enough time in the day to take care of Petra, do the errands that need done when she is asleep or on the boob, get work done, and build her a horse. There is never enough time to blog. We've been doing petty well with morning naps- averaging about 3 hours a day. That lets me work on the prototype for her rocking horse, and fix some leaky spots on the house (concrete and caulk, I am SO manly). As you can see, the horse is coming along nicely. I used my new saws and the biscuit joiner, but I clearly have more too learn. Getting the rockers even and smooth is going to be tricky!

Petra continues to grow like a weed, and change from week to week. She has switched from left handed to right handed and back a couple of times now. She has started real giggles when she is tickled just right (SO CUTE! I've got to get a little video of it online). She now talks up a storm when she's in the mood, far more than just Aaay ooooh aaay. She thoroughly enjoys her bath now, especially being sprayed with the hose to rinse (she tries to catch the water on her tongue). She also can scream until she is a total wreck, twitching, sweating and impossible to calm. I'm getting much better about dropping her in the swing (where she usually conks out within a minute or two), but I always feel guilty that I'm just warehousing her, rather than nurturing. Then again, going postal and throwing her in the dumpster because she wouldn't stop screaming wouldn't be very nurturing either.

Busy week as always, breakfast at Sierra Bonita with Tim and Anissa, Breakfast at Farmer's Market with Michael and Rick, a quick visit from Margaret. Between friends and everyone in the elevator at UCLA, Petra is going to be exposed to pretty much every germ there is. Good thing she has Alison's antibodies! Petra and I have also been doing lots of walking (well, rolling in her case). Sometimes it's the only way I can keep her calm (until it suddenly stops working 14 blocks from home- then I'm pretty much doomed), and I am getting to know the neighborhood much better. It's amazing how much is in walking distance when walks last an hour and a half or more!

Snot makes the baby cry

At least that is my excuse. Poor Petra, first she is stuck home with Daddy, then she gets a cold. A (cute) little cough, gallons of snot, and a cranky temper. I can't even get her to take a bottle from me to calm her down. Luckily, she still conks out after a couple of minutes in the swing, and other than boob, sleeping is probably what she needs most right now (well, she also needs to have snot sucked out of her nose with the little bulb. THAT'S what I call fun!).

We did have a pretty good afternoon yesterday though. She started her nap late, so she slept until about 12:30 or so. We had a little quality time before taking her to Mommy. She even slept on the drive over to UCLA. She got what she needed (boob), then we took a walk. Visited the new Westwood branch library (nice and minimalist), where she was adored by the librarians. Also went to see the graves of Truman Capote, Mel Torme, and Heather O'Rourke (don't walk into the light!) at the Westwood Village Memorial Park. Yeah, I'm THAT kind of parent! But in Westwood, it is the quietest place to take a stroll, and play with the baby. She was asleep by the time I got back to the car, so rather than driving home, I just read a book until she woke up about 4:45, and we picked up mommy and went home together.

Procreating

Since learning that I'd be a daddy, all my creative juices have been flowing. I built the library over the summer, repaired the wall in the nursery, patched and painted things that have needed it for years (we can finally read the numbers on the house, after nearly 5 years!). I have a hankering to build a rocking horse for Petra, and have it all planned out in my head (scary as that may be), and I blew a fortune at Amazon buying tools to do it (but there was a big saw sale! Really!). Yesterday I did dovetails for the first time with my router (just for practice), and today I assembled my Bosch table saw.

My only problem now is that my only time to work on it is while Petra is napping. I have the strange feeling a table saw starting up MIGHT interrupt her naps. Well, I suppose I'll find out tomorrow! Board ripping, here I come!