Wednesday, February 23, 2005

San Francisco, then quiet time with Nana and Papa

Today the gang headed up to San Francisco. We ate lunch at our old favorite, House of Nanking, a place we once took Nana and Papa to over a decade ago. Then to avoid crowds (since Kelton shouldn't be exposed to too many germs yet) we strolled through some of the fancy hilltop homes near the Presidio and toured the Golden Gate Park arboretum. A stop at the beach and evening drive down the coast completed the trip. We were thrilled that Kelton could handle an 8 hour day like that without complaint -- just a few nursing and diaper stops -- which bodes well for future travel!

We didn't take any pictures, but once we got home we slowed things down with a candlelight dinner and family time, and out came the camera. David danced with Kelton as Ella softly sang in the background:

There's nothing in this whole world too good
For a boy so sweet and true
Gee, baby ain't I good to you


Then Papa rocked Kelton to sleep during dessert:

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Nana and Papa arrive

We're into our fourth week now, starting to pack on the pounds (well, ounces), and enjoying showing Nana and Papa the neighborhood (which they enjoy more than waiting to be de-iced in Providence...).

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But we're getting a bit ahead of ourselves here, since there's still lots of good stuff from week three to share, including pics & video of Kelton's first dunk in the tub with Dad. So stay tuned.

Friday, February 18, 2005

My first movie

Here's my first movie with footage taken by mom and dad during my first and second weeks.

[7MB MPEG VIDEO]

Wednesday, February 16, 2005

Galaxy

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Tuesday, February 15, 2005

Latest changes and news

Kelton's grasp is getting much firmer. Also, he's learning when to use it -- for example, to stop me from taking off his shirt, or to hold on to my shirt when I want to put him down. He's becoming a stronger kicker too. He's more inclined to stretch out once in a while, though still prefers to curl into a ball most of the time. He likes to walk up my chest then face as I hold him out at an angle.

He's met a bunch more folks lately: Taylor & Ron, Suji & Dan, and Caroline, Don & Elliot. And we even took him to an open-house down the street -- but probably shouldn't have since it was quite crowded with who knows what germs floating around (even though it was a dull house going for $1.9 million... sigh).

Had the diaper change from hell the other day. No less than 3 excretory events midstream (so to speak) as things unravelled. Wait, 4, he spit up too. Had to change everything but the furniture. Took a photo of the devestation but will spare you, gentle reader.

We got Kelton's toy shelf finished and installed. Mommy painted it blue and I added hooks. It's got lots of colorful toys hanging from it to entertain baby while we change him. No photos of it yet.

We have our video camera! We've taken about an hour of footage and Lisa has edited one short movie, so soon we should have them posted here.

Heavy rain the last 2 days and nights... must be payback for teasing the audience about our T-shirt February.

Saturday, February 12, 2005

Kelton House

A new twist on our chosen name, thanks to history buff Mary... As the Kelton family spread from Scotland to America one city they settled in was Columbus, Ohio -- where Dennis and Mary live. Kelton House is the historic family home which Lisa probably visited as a schoolkid as it is now a museum. In its day it was a station on the underground railroad -- so we've now got one positive association to go with the name!

Second bath

Just can't resist these bathtime pictures...

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This is from the night before but makes a good ending.

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Fixations

Already it's apparent that some visual stimuli are more interesting than others. Even before eye tracking has really kicked in.

Kelton loves the 3 hanging lights over the kitchen sink. Maybe the six-foot hanging rods lend an exaggerated 3D effect that even his immature binocular vision can perceive. He seems to enjoy when I set one of the lights swinging but that's just icing on the cake, he's mesmerized even when they're still.

His other fixation is the venetian blinds at the doctor's office. This fascinated him on both his visits. They're closed but the sun streams in between them anyway -- a nice constrasty pattern. We would run our finger up and down the blinds and with the sound plus flashing light he was transfixed.

T-shirt and sandals in February?

The weather Thursday was extra fine. While Mom was off having ice cream with her pregnant-ladies group, Kelton and I decided to hit the pavement and try out his Baby Bjorn carrier. Felt great to be dressed so light. People were out everywhere, bicycling, working in their gardens, or passing time in one of the playgrounds. We circled through some of the streets in Community Center where we'd love to find a house. Then we circled through the little redwood grove in Rinconada Park and peeked in the outdoor pool where swimmers were doing laps. It's hard to say what Kelton made of it all. On the one hand, he was zonked out or at least subdued for most of the hour's walk, but on the other hand he had been fussy beforehand.

When Mom got home she was jealous so we went out again later, this time with camera. (It was a bit chillier by then.)

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We ran in to Francisca and daughter Victoria along the way.

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Yep, certainly been enjoying getting outdoors. The day before, we took a sunset stroll around the Palo Alto Baylands.

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And in case you're wondering about the Google hat, it was part of a "new dad kit" they sent me. (Google goes the extra mile for its employees' personal lives in all sorts of ways, just as it does for their work lives.) See the full regalia below -- gotta start the branding process early!

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Tuesday, February 08, 2005

Swaddling

Kelton is mighty fidgety when you try to get him into a swaddle, but if he's got no bona fide gripes then it will soon calm him and get him to sleep. He looks so funny all bundled up that we took this photo series. Let's watch him go from livid to konked out with Mom.

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A week of change

As I sit here with Kelton soundly sleeping on my chest I can't believe he's a week old. Looking at his birth photos, I can see changes in him already. He's not the same baby we brought home from the hospital! On one hand I want to slow time down to savor each part, on the other hand he really does get cuter and develops more little traits day by day. He loves to sleep with his hand tucked under his cheek, he nurses with a very serious, intent expression, when he's quiet and awake his face, mouth and eyes become so round and wondering. Just yesterday I noticed that he's starting to grasp onto things more and more often. When he needs to comfort himself he's pretty good about getting his hand into his mouth more often and sticking his fingers into his eyes less. When he's curled up sleeping on my chest I can rub the familiar shape of his back which I used to feel in my tummy while I was pregnant and I know he's the same baby, but everything else seems to be fast changing!

Enjoying the soft glow from Mom

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Flowers for Kelton

Dennis and Mary sent Kelton some flowers to pose with while wearing his zootsuit from Nana:
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Sunday, February 06, 2005

Weekend of firsts

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This weekend Kelton has his first bath, first visit with Auntie Nikki, first ride in his stroller over to the Gamble Gardens down the street, and he met the neighbors Calvin, Cecile and baby Clea.

The bath wasn't too popular but Mom and Dad liked the fluffy hair that resulted.
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The stroller went over much better, calming baby down even though a feeding was imminent. Here we're headed out past the neighbor's redwood tree -- our yard is in the background.
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Nikki brought us a Zachary's pizza, earning considerable brownie points.
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Friends have been so helpful. Rosie and Paige rescued us with food our first night home from the hospital. Su-Lin made us a pasticio (Greek casserole) and fruit salad. Sandy, our doula, was also a great help last week, helping with the shopping and letting us get in a good nap. And great news: Nana and Papa plan to come in a few weeks! Everyone has sent so many wonderful warm wishes - friends really do make the world go round!

Saturday, February 05, 2005

Milk coma

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Got milk? This guy apparently has got enough.

We watched a video of this while Lisa was pregnant -- how babies go from fidgety, upset and just a little desperate, to a floppy-armed coma once they've tanked up. Sometimes Kelton will have a period of quiet alertness after feeding, but usually he just wants to sleep on dad.

Friday's batch of pictures

First, a trilogy in yellow (apt, considering the name of this blog...). I particularly like the composition of the first one:
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And in the evening we opened a bunch of presents from Nana and Papa, and this one from Pepere, which arrived on our doorstep from from Rhode Island:
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Listening to Norah Jones in the wee hours this morning singing the classic ...

It's not the pale moon that excites me
That thrills and delights me
Oh no, it's just the nearness of you
It isn't your sweet conversation
That brings this sensation
Oh no, it's just the nearness of you.

Friday, February 04, 2005

The story of the labor

It began just as we went to bed Sunday night. Upon teasing Lisa about how many things we still had to get done and upon revealing I'd forgotten some details of the labor process, she implored, "Get out that Birth Partner book and get reading!"

Obedient husband that I am I took it out. Two pages later, Lisa felt something pop, felt she was wet, and said "what the heck..."

(to be continued)

Pictures from first days at home

OK, here's a fresh batch of pictures.

Ready for dinner:
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Mom in pink, boy in blue:
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Dad gives kisses from left and right:
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... and rumbles on the rug:
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