Doggies and Chandeliers

Zoey definitely loves her grandpas here in NC, but I think she'd rebel if we took away her new best friends - Gracie (the golden retriever in the pics above) and the light above the kitchen table. She can't get enough of either.

I can't say Zoey has "adjusted" to being down in NC, because she never was "unadjusted"; she just kept on doing her Zoey thing the whole time through. She's been a smiling, giggling, squirmy little bundle. The only difference for Z, and somewhat big news, is that she's graduated out of newborn size diapers. Bring on the size 1s!

Ellyn, Zoey and I would like to wish hearty congratulations to our friends Brian and Deb on the birth of their second daughter, Willow Eva, just yesterday. Zoey's going to have a great posse to run with, as soon as she, uh, can run. =)

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Zoey on the road...

Zoey Wren made her first big road trip, and came through it with flying colors. We left NJ yesterday at 6am, and pulled into Davidson, NC around 7:30. Z was AWESOME (and so was El, whose mommy skills and instincts never cease to amaze me!).

Zoey fed about every two hours (in the backseat while we parked at some truly colorful rest stops and gas stations, and one grouchy McDonald's where they turned me away at 10:31am from getting my Egg McMuffin. Bastards!) She was super mellow about us changing her in the car, too, and was happy and smiley when not sleeping.

As seems to be the case with most things, she quickly returned to "Normal" today after 13 hours in the car, and has been eating, sleeping and pooping with her normal happy, zen-like grace. Mom and dad still need a good nap. =)

The photos above are of Z in her new hat. People with anger management issues should be forced to look at those pictures; how can help but giggle?

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Mobiles are good.

Zoey got a new mobile today and it was love at first sight. Twirly things set to music are manna for babies.

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2 month check up

A quick post, for now. Zoey had her two-month check up on Thursday, and now weighs a whopping 8 lbs 15 oz. She's grown to 22" long (she insists on telling people 22 AND A HALF), and her head expanded an Barry Bonds-esque 1" since last month. Who's giving my daughter steroids?

Zoey also got her first set of shots. What a lucky set of parents we are - three shots, 5 seconds of crying, and then a look from Zoey that said "What, that's it?" She slept away the rest of Thursday, eating only sporadically, and had to be held for her to sleep that night, but by Friday she was back to her normal, active self, with nary a side-effect. We've really yet to find anything that throws this girl off, although she did freak out a bit when I tried to read her Brown Bear, Brown Bear. Bears and giraffes. Who woulda thunk it? We're not too worried about the ole Brown Bear though, last month she hated her swing, now we cannot get her out of it. But really, Z is awesome. When something bothers her, she lets us know directly, and then she's done with it. Shots not so nice? Cry for five seconds then go back to a detailed study of mommy's face. Nine week olds don't have many "character traits," but this is one we really appreciate, and it makes meeting her needs so much easier.

Enjoy the slide show below above. I created it using a different service (Flickr for those who wish to know), and it lets you have a bit more control over how fast the pictures come and go, plus I like the quality of the photos better. Let me know how it looks on your machine, as everyone's computer is a bit different. Update Some more on the slide show: by placing your mouse over the show, controls will appear that let you chose the speed at which the pictures display. In addition, at the end of the show (or if you pause it) you can click on an individual picture to view from the group shown on the bottom. Hope that helps...

Have a great weekend, everyone!

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Feeling groovey.

It's hard to remember a time when Zoey wasn't a smiling, cooing, arm flailing little person. Ellyn and I are constantly talking to Z, and using a small vocabulary of sign language, and she's responding with lots of grins and even more eye contact. The girl loves to hear us talk (good thing with me as her dad, right?). We know she doesn't really understand us, but the interaction makes it feel like we're conversing with our daughter. A definite highlight of the day.

Now that she's a bit older, Zoey is taking to her swing and bouncer more and more. E and I are trying to get a daily routine in place for her where she plays on different mats and swings and stuff throughout the day, with naps and feedings marking the time in between. We've also been giving her some "alone time" each day, so she can sort out all those important baby thoughts. All in all, it's an approach that works for Z; except when it doesn't. Then we just shrug, mumble "eh, she's only 7 weeks old," and try something else.

All in all, life is good with our mellow little girl. She's sleeping longer during the night, and she's settling into two hour and three hour feeding patterns during the day, depending on the day. All that feeding is paying off, as El and I just yesterday asked each other if we thought she was getting noticeably heavier. I can still take her in arm-wrestling, though.

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IT'S OFFICIAL!

So after a long and wonderful three years, it is with great pleasure that I say, "He's done". Today, I watched as Jeff stood with fifty-four fellow Rutgers alumni as they all took the solemn oath to become a member of the New Jersey Bar. It was awesome.

Zoey seems to be past her cold, finally. She's sleeping very well at night (fingers crossed!), and eating like she's going through a growth spurt. Which, depending upon the book you read and believe, she is. She still looks pretty tiny to us. Since she's currently going through a "cuddle-me-23-hours-a-day" phase, tiny is good - neither Jeff nor I are fit enough to be toting a 10 lbs. baby around. 8 is definitely enough. Oh boy, someone sign us up for the gym!

Enjoy the photos below, and we'll try and have another video up in the coming days.

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