Tummy time!

Ellie and Me

Jenny and I went on our 2nd date since CC was born. Today, it was to see Marley and Me.

The movie encapsulated a lot of what we - and other new parents - are going through. And it was a real tear-jerker at the end.

Sharing your life with a dog is a wonderful experience. I am not comparing it to having a child - they are totally separate things, and both are awesome.

However, dog owners know that having a dog in your life is something special, something that brings such love and joy and requires so little (comparatively speaking) effort on our parts.

I had read Marley and Me before we saw the movie, and it is a humorous and easy read - a great book. But for my money, the best book about a dog out there (and one of the best books I've ever read) is a book called Merle's Door by Ted Kerasote.

It is the definitive account of a man's love for his dog, it's a beautifully written story, and it's a must-read for any dog owner.

So while this blog is about our daughter, we should also appreciate one great dog: Ellie.

Squeals of delight in the morning

Sleep update

So lately Bean has had trouble napping during the day. She'll go for 40 minutes and then wake up because there's always something more exciting to do. She's always been an excellent night sleeper (12 hours, with 2-3 wakups of 10 minutes each), but her day naps have been getting worse.

Today, though, she's a champ. She's been going for 3 hours now, and - get this - she rolled onto her stomach on her own.

This is obviously a first. We were initially worried (because we're oversensitive to SIDS risks), but she seems to be loving it. 3 hours' worth of loving, in fact.

We're actually trying to get out for some errands, but we can't interrupt this awesomeness.

Getting vocal

Catherine loves to look at your face - into your eyes - and interact with you. It's really the coolest development yet for this young lady.

She is also discovering her hands, too. She and I have been working on getting her to grip my thumbs.

Jenny, however, grabs her hands and brushes them up against her face. This sends the bean into a happy state (we think we got our first laughs today). She also loves to chat with Jenny during the process.

Here's a video of CC having a great discussion with her mom:

Pics update

A lot has happened over the past week, and it deserves a good blog post. Instead, though, you'll have to just deal with pictures until we can gather up the time to write about the x-mas break.

Our kinda cheesy first christmas photo:


Catherine in a cute shirt from Nic:


Chris, Nancy, Mike, and Jill came to visit. Here is the baby shot. From left to right, Amelia Rector, Glendon Snow, Catie Clover, Nathan Rector:


Smiling, happy baby:


A holiday outfit:


Corpse baby after too much activity:


Dad and daughter: