Penelope's 1st Birthday!

Penelope had her first birthday party this past weekend and it was a great time. The gloomy weather took a break for the afternoon just for her and the sun came out to shine on this special occasion. We were joined by family and friends to celebrate our wonderful little girl who has brought so much joy to all of us over this past year. Plus, it was a nice time for us to have a drink and congratulate ourselves for making it through a sometimes trying first year. Granted, Jennifer deserves most of the praise and thanks for her devotion and raising of little P. I love you Jenn...you do a wonderful job with P.

Here is a little video of P digging into her birthday cupcakes. She doesn't quite go all demolition derby on them, but she certainly ends up making quite a mess in a very measured, almost thoughtful way.

At this moment, one year ago....

I am sitting on our bed with Penelope napping right next to me and I realized that at this very moment, one year ago, I was also sitting on this bed, in labor with the baby we had not yet met!

Laboring in our den, complete with pillows and birthing ball!

After a premature trip to the hospital in the morning, we came back home and I labored with P all day, until we headed back to the hospital around 6 PM. While I was terribly disappointed that I was only 1 cm dilated when we went to the hospital the first time, in retrospect, I am glad that much of my labor was spent at home. The first stage of labor was definitely the most difficult time-wise...it took the better part of about 17 hours to get through that first stage. And, if I had stayed at the hospital, chances are that the staff would have offered pitocin which would have, more than likely, necessitated an epidural and all of the interventions I really did not want. It is also a nice memory...being at home for the majority of the laboring process...among our things, with our dogs, and knowing our friends and neighbors were nearby. It's how I imagine women have given birth since the beginning to time...not hooked up to monitors or in sterile rooms. Of course, there is sometimes a need for such monitors and sterile rooms. Next time, I know that I can wait even longer before heading to the hospital...that is...if we don't just have the next baby here, at home. But that is a topic for another blog post!

Right now, I prefer to reflect upon the 24 hours of labor it took for Penelope to get here and how I seemed to find, within my inexperienced birthing self, a stockpile of strength and determination I never knew was there. I have often, particularly in those sleep-deprived, early morning, ready-to-tear-my-hair-out moments, only had to think about that stockpile to know I can get through just about anything now, having made it through the labor and delivery of little Penelope.

November with Penelope

I have neglected this blog all month so here is a quick review of life with Penelope over the last month!

We started out our month at a protest again Proposition 8, which sadly passed here in California. This was Penelope's second protest, if you can believe it! The No on Prop 8 was at City Hall and many people of faith attended, including Father Farrow, who was removed from his post at a local Catholic church for opposing Prop 8. Here is our little civil rights activist:

Equal rights for all!

The weather also finally started to get a little cooler this month so, the first time mom that I am, went a little overboard on bundling P up for an evening walk with Daddy:

My mommy dresses me funny

Penelope hit eleven months in November and along with this milestone, her personality has seemed to blossom! She is a terribly funny little girl and one of her really hilarious antics in rolling around on the dogs' bed! She just loves it, as you can see:

I'm not a baby, I'm a puppy!

Get off of MY bed, Grizzly!

I am happiest, right here!

Needless to say, Penelope has discovered all kinds of fun places in our house over the last month; she crawls (still in her own special way) with great speed and has begun to climb. She discovered the fun potential of our living room end table:

Just my size!

She cruises around our furniture like crazy, as well and enjoys walking so much, she received her birthday gift early! I couldn't resist giving her the pushcart early. Here she is riding on it rather than pushing it, although she does very well pushing it through the house and down the sidewalk in front of our house. The only downside to Penelope's mobility with the cart is Grizzly's intense fear of it; we don't know why but Grizzly seems to have a panic attack every time Penelope rolls her cart around.

It's my toy, I can sit in it if I want to!

Of course, we also just celebrated Thanksgiving, during which Penelope enjoyed pumpkin pie for the very first time. We had two celebrations shared with our immediate families: Doug's mom Sharon, brother Chris and his girlfriend Truc, my parents Nadine and Steve, my brothers Brian and Dan and Dan's wife, Catherine. Doug made a fabulous turkey: he brined and roasted it all by himself! It was a great turkey that produced many leftovers (that will become enchiladas and tamales this week). At my folks' place, she finally got the feel of walking forward in her walker (I know, walkers are bad for developing babies but she has fun in it, darnit!):

Here I come!

We are looking forward to next month and the rest of the holiday season that now includes Penelope's birthday!

Happy Halloween from Penelope the Penguin!

...who just might be the cutest kid on the block, tonight!

We had professional portraits done for Halloween and she cried pretty much the entire time. But darnit, I had gone to all of the trouble of getting her dressed and there so we took photos of a very unhappy kid, anyway. Despite the grumpiness, I think they are adorable. Of course, she'll hate us for them, one day.




I will post more tomorrow after our trick-or-treating tonight! Well, we'll be passing out candy with our neighbors Naomi, Rio and Logan; we'll wait until at least next year to pimp out our kid to get some candy for ourselves. Hee hee.

We hope everyone has a spooky good time for Halloween!

She's in the double digits, folks!

Hard to believe but it's true...Penelope is 10 months old today!

As all three of us were sitting around in our living room, I looked at Penelope who was walking back and forth between our ottoman and me, holding onto my legs for support. She and I were sharing a banana, she'd walk away from me after I gave her some, and would walk back when she wanted more. I remarked to Doug how big our baby girl is getting, only 1o months prior, she was so tiny, so helpless...and now, she walks (assisted) and eats bananas. I probably say this in every one of my blog posts, but it really remarkable how quickly these months since Penelope's birth have passed. In certain moments, usually when I am nursing her at night, I get a little panicky when I think how fast it is all going. It is also in those moments when I remind myself that I must try to enjoy every moment, or at least appreciate it, whether it be good, bad or somewhere in between.

Doug posted a video of P crawling...a funny, leg-dragging crawl that, as Doug put it, gives it a Penelope twist. Well, she still hasn't dropped that other knee but instead has learned to MOTOR around the house doing her signature crawl! In fact, I don't even notice anymore that it is "different--"that she is not on her hands and knees. Frankly, I am more worried about where she is headed than how she is getting there! Doug installed latches on our kitchen cabinets and lower drawers and we have moved things off the lower bookshelves, etc. We have a bit more to do in the babyproofing department but I am feeling much more secure about her wandering through the house (of course, I never let her out of my sight).

In addition to crawling, Penelope is talking! Well, speaking a language only her Dad and I can understand. She says "mamamamama," "dadadada," and "tatatatata," in loose reference to myself, Doug and Tara, our youngest dog. I think she says "tatatatata" when Grizzly, our first dog, comes by, as well. Most of the time she is just vocalizing but every now and then, I swear she knows exactly what she is saying and to whom. She has also begun experimenting with her vocal range...she does both a high pitched squeal and low, raspy, growly sounds. We call the latter her Halloween or devil voice...it's really hilarous to hear her say "mamamama" in this rather demonic tone! She also points at interesting things, especially balloons. I have included a couple of photos of her with her very first balloon she received last weekend:

Boon!

In addition to the more fun stuff, we've also had to deal with the not-so-fun stuff, namely teething. Penelope's two top teeth came in about 2 weeks ago and her bicuspids are nearly poking through. Once she cuts those, she'll have six teeth total. She is a teething nightmare sometimes; in between biting me while nursing, she chews on everything in sight. The worst is the nightwaking; since really the only pain relief for teething pain tends to be nursing, guess what she likes to do, all night long? I am beyond the point of exhaustion; I think I am approaching insanity now. I know that some folks are still in much worse sleep situations with their babies but it is so hard to function on 4 hours of sleep. I try my best to nap with her but, and this may sound bad, sometimes I give up the nap just so I can have a few moments to myself (or a shower!). I especially feel bad for her...the pain must be awful.

Generally, life with P remains exciting and exhausting! We are looking forward to Halloween and the upcoming holidays with her...stay tuned for off-the-hook cute Halloween photos!

You honestly think that this will keep me in here?

Crawling*

*more like a movement that is akin to crawling, but with a distinctive Penelope twist to it.

The crawling comes near the end of the video, but I included just some of her being cute, which is what she does best. Well, eating, sleeping and pooping are close contenders, but cuteness is the only thing most people see.

I'm off to San Diego tomorrow for work as is my custom these days. I have been on loan to another engineering firm for the past two months and it requires me to travel, either to San Diego or San Francisco, each week for at least a day or two. Mostly, I'm up in San Francisco as that is where the main office is, but I also go down to San Diego if they have the need. The traveling has been pretty brutal and has put a lot of strain on our family. We have kind of settled into the situation, but it still kind of sucks and I'm not sure when it will end. Jenn really depends on me at night to give her a break and I miss out on being with her and P. Also, including the hours I spend traveling, I am logging 50-55 hours a week for work and that is burning me out quickly...gonna have to make a change in the situation soon.

Anyway, back to P. She is moving around a lot these days and getting into all sorts of stuff. We are quickly finding out things we need to baby-proof in the very near future. Anything she can get to, she will grab and pull on -- she already pulled out some board games, tugged on some power cords and got a picture or two. She still prefers to stand and move around by holding on to things, and she has become quite good at stepping. Does she ever move fast, too!

Here is your gratuitous Penelope picture of the day...

"I'm not so sure about this guy..."

Nine Months!

Penelope fell asleep on the way home in her carseat (the bucket) and it reminded me of when we brought her home, nine months ago, today. So, here she is, then and now:

About fifteen hours old, 6 lbs, 13 oz, 20 inches

Nine months and about fifteen hours old, probably about 19 lbs and 29 inches

Needless to say, her days in the bucket are almost at an end; we are waiting until the end of the summer heat (we like to be able to bring the carseat indoors when it is so dang hot outside) to change it out for her "big girl" Britax seat.

She might be bigger but look at that sleeping face...she hasn't changed that much. That makes me happy...even when she is thirteen, maybe at least when she is sleeping, I will be able to catch a glimpse of the baby girl we brought home, nine months ago today.

Standing

Well, I've been trying to capture it for a couple of days now, but I've just been unlucky and/or unprepared. What am I trying to capture? Well, Penelope can now pull herself to standing and I've been trying to get video of the event. It's pretty fun to watch and she is so happy when she stands herself up. Someday I will catch it and then ya'll will get to see it.

Still no crawling nor any interest in doing so. She loves to roll, stand, and bounce, but that is about it. If we put her on her stomach she'll just stay there or end up rolling over. We've tried to coax her with toys, but she'll just lean over to grab the toy and if it's too far away she'll lose interest. Oh well, it will happen sometime.

Update: Finally! Here it is...

For Granny LaBouff

Penelope met her great-grandmother Maxine LaBouff last March, when Granny came out for Penelope's Naming and Dedication Ceremony. Like any loving grandmother, Granny spoiled Penelope with many cute clothes, including an adorable summer outfit complete with a bow. You know the which ones I am talking about: the bow/headband thingies that seem to look so goofy...mostly because they are on bald baby's heads?

I think they are silly and, at least until Granny gave her one, had no interest in putting them on Penelope's head. But despite my aversion to headband bows or whatever you want to call them, I promised Granny that I'd put the bow on her head and take a picture. We love Granny and would do just about anything for her. That's what we grandkids do for our grandmas, you know? And it is a darn cute outfit so, for Granny, just this once, no problem.

Here she is, Granny! And, okay, I'll admit it: she actually does look pretty cute in that darn bow.

Dead-Beat Blogging Dad

I'm back. Actually, I was never gone. Still, if it weren't for the pictures that Jenn posts, you would think I up and disappeared. However, that is not the case and I am returning to blogging on our little site here for the fun and amusement of everyone. This is particularly true for our little P as we can look back on all our old posts when she is older and embarrass her relentlessly.

Blogging...it's the new photo album.

For anyone who has been keeping tabs, I fell off the blogging wagon a while ago and have only made appearances here and there. I would say I have been extremely busy (which is true), but who isn't? I would say I've been traveling out of town for work for a couple of days each week (which is true), but that is what wifi and laptops are for. I would say...oh well, I've just been a slacker.

My mom once asked why I don't blog more often and I said something stupid like "I don't have the time" or "I'm so busy" or "I can't think of anything to say" and she responded: "It's not like you have to write a novel." So in that spirit, I'm going to concentrate on making my posts short and sweet (sweet = P), unlike the one I am currently writing, which is tragically all about me.

Jenn already covered this past weekend's activities and P's introduction to her future husband new playmate, so I don't have an awful lot to add. I will say it was great to see all of our friends and to watch another set of parents in action with a baby so close to ours in age. Let's just say it was reassuring.

Cheers.

Penelope's first playdate!

Lucky Penelope, her first playdate lasted two days! Auntie Tracy and Uncle Mike had all of us over this weekend for a bbq and general great visit with our old Santa Cruz pals Helen and Troy Faith Garcia and, of course, Uncle Dan (my bro) and Aunt Catherine.

We were thrilled to meet the son of our dear friends Helen and Troy, who was born only 2 weeks before Penelope. Carl is a doll...a beautiful, smiling, charming little boy! He is also incredibly mobile--crawling all over the place and pulling himself up to standing on the furniture. I told Helen and Troy that Carl had an assignment: to show Penelope how to crawl. He did and I'll be darned if she isn't moving around a lot more, now! Still not crawling (but I am in no hurry), scooting and rolling herself around quite effectively.

Tracy posted a cute photo on her blog (see link to the right) but I had to post some of the kids playing together. Aren't they adorable? Too bad arranged marriages aren't quite the fashion here in the US. hehe.

Look what Carl showed me how to do!

I think I like having a friend!

Mom, stop with the photos!

It's All About Teeth!

Little Penelope's two bottom teeth officially emerged last month and it has been all about teeth in our house ever since! At least, we think that is why she suddenly stopped eating solids (but has since begun to eat them again), became a poop and drool machine, stopped sleeping through the night (she was rarely doing this but boy those nights were wonderful) and lately, stopped sleeping somewhat altogether. Seems like her top two (particularly the top left) will make an appearance soon, her gums are really bulging and she it chewing on everything in sight! When I was giving her a bath last night, she was trying to bite the edge of the tub!

It's so much fun to watch the dogs play outside!

When her bottom teeth had barely broken through the gums, I frankly thought our nursing days were over, she couldn't seem to stop biting me. With the help of our friend Karin and Hyland's Teething Tablets, we got over that. I do have to remind her before she begins to nurse to be gentle and she complies 90% of the time. :) My mother tells me how much more it hurts when baby has both top and bottom teeth; I hope my training her not to bite will pay off when those two top chompers emerge.

I am so cute!

More behavior I chock up to teething (at least in part) is her restlessness...although I am sure it is a pretty normal developmental stage. I don't think her teething discomfort makes the bumps and whatnot feel any better: she is trying desperately to pull herself up to standing on just about everything and incurs many falls, as a result. I am really in awe of her sheer determination to MOVE! Gone is our content on laps baby...I try to hold her on my lap when I am playing with her on the floor and all she wants to do is climb all over me! She is also rolling all over the place, but no crawling yet. We have begun to babyproof the house in anticipation of her impending mobility.

Despite her teething discomfort, Penelope continues to be a happy and content little gal who seems to enjoy life more and more every day. And we continue to be two very proud parents.

I love to play with my Cheerios (and sometimes eat them)!

Official 7-Month Stats

Okay, here we go:


Penelope Marie, 7 months: 17 lbs, 1 oz and 27 3/4 inches (for real this time).

She's healthy, both physically and developmentally. Hoorah!

Going Strong at 7 Months!

Our little Penelope is five short months away from turning one year old! I write this every time I post an update, I know, but it really is amazing how quickly time has passed since Penelope was born. Tracy and I were talking just a couple of days ago about how the first few months of P's life (maybe the first three) seemed to go by slowly (perhaps the sleep deprivation was a main contributor to this) but after about month three, time has just flown! She seemed to jump from not doing a whole lot (eating, sleeping, pooping) to wanting to jump out of my lap and squealing with delight in her bouncy-seat. Experienced parents always tell us that pretty soon she'll be graduating from high school and leaving the house...I try not to listen because I have a hard enough time knowing she'll probably be crawling in the next 40 days or so--her first movements away from mama (Doug: that's gonna be a game-changer). Ugh.

I can't provide a weight/height updates because we haven't been to the pediatrician in awhile but according to my version of weighing her (I weigh the two of us together and then subtract my weight), she is around 17 lbs. She seems to have grown maybe 1/2 an inch. Her hair is what has noticeably grown; not only is it getting thicker (and filling in the back of her head), but it is developing a bit of wave. It's not hard to imagine that she will end up with wavy/curly hair, of course. :)

We spent a wonderful weekend a couple of weeks ago in Tahoe with our good friends the LeardManns, the Hannafords and the Honeycutts. Penelope had a great time: she loved all of the attention and was particularly interested in Aria, the second youngest of our group. She particularly loved to watch Aria play with her toys. Much to our surprise, Penelope slept well, even napped, pretty darn consistently the whole time we were in Tahoe. Maybe the fact that we we slept in a king-size bed sweetened the deal: ALL THREE of us had plenty of room, it was so, so nice. The Hannafords are expecting their 2nd child soon; it was so exciting to be able to see them so close to the baby's birth. I got to feel their baby hiccuping and it really made me miss being pregnant. That was the first time since having P that I actually missed being pregnant. Penelope often had hiccups and while I felt bad for the poor kid (who enjoys having the hiccups), it was an incredibly special sensation. It was a fantastic weekend and I think all of us hope we can keep up our yearly visit!

Giggling with Uncle Tim

First Solid Food!

Since Penelope did turn 6 months old last week, we thought we'd try some solid food. Our pediatrician suggested to begin her on vegetables, fruits and even proteins...no need for cereals. I bought some organic brown rice to make my own rice cereal, anyway (making your own rice cereal is sort of not worth it, as I have found out!) but we went with sweet potatoes for one major reason: we have LOTS of sweet potato around the house! Grizzly decided to develop food allergies so he is on a special diet of pinto beans and sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes are on many lists of recommended first solid food so I thought, what the heck, let's try it! After all, Grizzly shouldn't have all the fun with sweet potatoes:

Talking to the potatoes

Here comes the airplane!

Yum!

I want the spoon, Mama!

She did like them, but as you can see in the picture above, I think she was mainly interested in playing with the spoon. She has also enjoyed bananas, so we'll continue with the sweet potatoes and bananas for now. I am in no huge hurry for her to eat solids and she is not really nutritionally in need of them until she is a year old or so. That is what "they" say this week, anyway...

To Penelope on Her 6-Month Birthday

Dear sweet Penelope:

Today, we celebrate your first six months on this earth and as our daughter. It is so remarkable how much you have grown and changed since you were born: as I write this, you have been smiling and laughing for at least three months, reaching for and grabbing your toys for over two months, cooing and talking for over three months, holding your head up for over three months, almost rolling over consistently for two months, and sitting up on your own for about a week! You have doubled your birthweight (and then some) and have grown in length almost 10 inches. You've tasted both bananas and sweet potatoes and seemed to enjoy both. You have let me sleep for more than a few five hour chunks at night. You seem to charm everyone you come into contact with, and even smile for a select (and lucky!) few! You pay particular attention to other babies and children and your dogs, Grizzly and Tara. In fact, you especially love to talk to Grizzly and Tara and even have begun to offer them your toys.

As you grow and change seemingly everyday, your birth becomes that much more of a miracle: with every new accomplishment or milestone, we remember the moment of your birth with that much more AWE. At that moment, we had no idea what you had in store for us! Here's a little trip down memory lane: what Dad and I were doing six months ago, today!

Laboring at Home

Laboring at the hospital, the first time

It's a girl!

We are your parents!

Kisses from Daddy!

Introducing: Penelope Marie!

Happy six months of life among us, Penelope!

Penelope's First "Camping" Trip!

We traveled to Sequoia National Park this past weekend to commune with nature and with Dan, Catherine, Tracy and Mike. We usually car camp with this bunch once a year or so, but decided a cabin might be better this year. So, we stayed in the Wishon Cabin at Camp Wishon. It was a spartan (and a tiny bit smelly) but really well-appointed for its remote location: we had running, very hot water, electricity and even heaters...although we didn't need use them. We had a full kitchen and shared yummy meals, including Dan and Catherine's bacon/sausage fest and Tracy and Mike's Frito Chili pies. YUM!

For the most part, Penelope really seemed to enjoy herself!
She shared laughs with everybody (including Uncle Bubba above) and slept surprisingly well (although I didn't because of the gigantic spiders in our room--I thought they were going to attack Penelope while we were sleeping).

The one major challenge was the car. She HATED being in the car! I didn't blame her...the road up to the Wishon Cabin was pretty windey (sp?) and then we decided to go visit the big trees and the road there was the WORST...even as the driver I got carsick. She screamed all the way back to the cabin from the big trees...ugh. Doug was in the backseat and sang to her the entire time...she finally fell asleep about 20 minutes away from the cabin. Poor kid...we can't figure out if it was the altitude (the big trees were at about 7000 feet and our cabin was at 3000 feet), the windy roads or exhaustion, or perhaps a mixture of all.

Penelope is on Doug's back in the Kelty pack, she actually looked really cute and comfortable. But, as you can see below, she ended up with Mama. She's still a young baby after all, needs to be closer to either Mommy or Daddy than the Kelty allows.

In all, we had a wonderful time visiting with Dan, Catherine, Tracy and Mike--it is always so so nice to see them. And I think we can call Penelope's first "camping" trip a success!

Five Months!

Our little gal is already five months old! She is laughing, talking, spitting, chewing everything in sight and sits up pretty much on her own! She still doesn't have much interest in rolling over...she does it but not without complaint. :)

She weighed in at 15 lbs 1 oz today, and measured at 27 and 1/4 inches! She's officially off the charts for height and still around the 50% for weight. She's a healthy and happy little kid!

And her hair continues to grow in RED!

What a doll...

Fun in the Sun!

It has been unseasonably HOT here lately so we decided it was time for Penelope's first pool experience. Think she liked it??? Take a look:

And, of course, no new toy...no matter how big or small...has to pass the taste test:
I think we can safely say that she loved the pool! I took her again yesterday and she got an even better feel for the water. With the help of her ladybug floater, she got on her belly and kicked her little feet! She didn't exactly propel herself around the pool but I don't think it will be long before she can do so!!