Back to work...

I'm back at work today after a nice mini-break. It was tough getting back to work again after spending so much precious time with my cheekaboo. Her sleeping is all whacked out now since we disrupted her schedule with various Thanksgiving activities. Good news is she's sleeping in 7 hour stretches. Bad news is that she won't sleep until 11:30!!!

I am resisting the urge to shop online and explore Facebook. With much prodding from my in-laws (yes, you..Chris and Christine) I finally joined and will now probably waste time on Facebook that I should be spending with my child! Darn you Chris/tine!!

Turkey Week

Thanksgiving was a week-long event, not just one day. A lot of the time was spent cooking and shopping, but we were able to spend some quality time together and with both of our families. Lauren experienced the first of many Thanksgiving gorge fests to come. She had lunch at Grandma Linda's and dinner at Grandma Erlyn's. Yes, TWO turkeys and DOUBLE the pies. YUM!

Turkey #1 Turkey #2


Lauren and Uncle Chris


With cousin Tobey

I actually braved the malls on Black Friday and spent the morning finishing up my Christmas list. This time we did not go to Target at 5 am and Chris did not get run over by a shopping cart.

On Saturday, Lauren finally met her cousin Bennett, Auntie Mel and Uncle John.


Junior McPhee meets Bennett meets Lauren meets Auntie Mel

Piano Lesson

I sometimes strap on the Bjorn and let Lauren watch me play the piano. She just sits there and watches my fingers or stares at the sheet music. Sometimes she puts her tiny hands on top of mine as they move up and down the keyboard. I played the piano a lot while I was pregnant so I wonder if she recognizes the sound. She seems to like Mozart but gets fussy when I play Bach Inventions or my signature piece the Maple Leaf Rag (perhaps they are too complex or busy so they agitate her). Last time she "sang" along to a Billy Joel tune and to the soundtrack to Les Miz. Sometimes she gets this super serious look on her face as if she could actually read the music and follow along but then again, that's the same look on her face when she's about to poop.

The current piece that I'm learning is Mozart's variations on "Ah Vous Dirai-je, Maman" (or more commonly known as "Twinkle Twinkle little star" or the Alphabet song). I started learning it during my pregnancy but still haven't gotten far.

"Umm..you missed a note, mommy...."

Birthday Parties!

Lauren attended her first kids' birthday party on the 17th. My friend's daughter turned 4 and although she was too young to participate in the activities (like pin the tale on the donkey as pictured), I think she had a good time. Since she couldn't have any, I ate her share of birthday cake.

We also celebrated my mom's 71st bday. It was Lauren's first closeup view of birthday candles...I can't tell if she's excited or terrified.

Veterans Day Redux

It's a little late, but an important date nonetheless. Last weekend, we went to the Golden Gate National Cemetery to visit the grave of my dad for a belated Veteran's Day. Lauren's Grandpa was a veteran of the Korean and Vietnam wars in the US Air Force and passed away in 1999. It's been a family tradition for years to visit the site at GGNC in San Bruno as my grandparents and Uncle are buried there as well. We have pictures of our family dating back to 1960 standing next to these headstones. My mom and I got a little emotional as we stood next to my dad's grave. I was sad to think that Lauren would never know her Grandpa...she would have loved him. He was like a big teddy bear and he would have made her laugh and laugh. He will live on through us though and I'll be sure that she knows about her Grandpa Dave.

Daddy Time!

Today marks the first entry for me in Lauren's blog. At week 14 of her life, I get to watch over Lauren for the first time all day. So far so good! She woke up when Riza went to work, I fed her 3 ounces of milk, and we watched Troy, Director's Cut until she fell asleep. I used the carseat and pushing her around in her stroller to achieve this but the end result is she has been asleep for about 2 hours now.

Cheese!

So we took Lauren in for her first sitting in a studio to mark her 3 month birthday. I'm glad we were able to catch her crazy hair in all it's glory. Here are the results.


You want some cute? How about this...let me fold my hands up like this and it'll be even cuter

awww...comeon...watchoo talking 'bout Willis?

And the requisite nekkid baby pose...