Family Resemblance

Collin loves his Uncle Libero. He first met his uncle at the hospital and is lucky to see him often since he lives in town. Collin was the first newborn Uncle Libero ever held, but he looked like a natural.

One of the nurses in the hospital thought Libero was the dad - you can certainly see the family resemblance.

Here they are at Easter. Libero became a human jungle gym for my cousins Stella and Leo. Collin was watching them closely, and I'm sure he'll be climbing all over his uncle in the coming years!

Over-reacting parents

We picked up Bruno, our vizsla puppy, on a Thursday evening and took him to the vet the next day for a check-up to ensure he was healthy. He checked out and was officially welcomed into our family. But later Friday evening, I noticed that Bruno was messing with his ears. And then I saw a spot of white on his front right leg - and our vizsla breeder told us that white on vizslas' coats often correlated with blindness. So Saturday morning I called the vet to see about his ears and made Cas ask about his white spot. They assured us he was fine.

But that vet call made me concerned that I would one day be a pediatrician's worst nightmare. And yesterday we made our first of what I'm sure will be many false alarm trips to the doctor.

Poor Collin started showing signs of a cold on Sunday and had developed a low-grade fever yesterday. He was extra fussy and on several occasions was grabbing his ears. We called the pediatrician's office and they recommended bringing him in for a visit, so 10 minutes later we piled in the car. He was fine - no ear infection, just a cold. The doctor did reassure us that even with his own sons, he was only a little better than 50-50 in predicting whether or not they had an ear infection.

It will be nice when he can articulate that his ear hurts or that he just feels bad. Until then, I'm sure we'll be dropping many $20 co-pays for peace of mind.

Here are some shots of Collin last week. Grandma Libia had him grinning away.

And then he discovered his foot. I'm sure it won't be long until they're in his mouth.


And finally looking like a big boy in a newsboy hat from Amber.

Grandparent and Great Grandparent love

Collin, being the first grandchild and great-grandchild, is quite the spoiled kid. His Grandpa Brownie never stops singing him songs. His Grammy Lesa never wants to put him down, even when he's napping. And his Grandma Libia never stops taking photos of him, documenting every moment they are together. We are so grateful for grandparents that thank us for letting them baby-sit!

Grammy Lesa came to stay with us during Collin's second week when Cas went back to work. She would rock him during an entire 2 1/2 hour nap.



Grandpa Brownie calls Collin his cushla machree, a Gaelic word meaning vein of my heart, or darling.


It is fun for me to watch my parents fight over who gets to hold Collin when they baby-sit, and I love watching them read him books I grew up with using exaggerated, animated voices.

Grandma Libia comes to play with Collin every Friday. They play on the floor, on the couch, and outside in the swing.




Collin is so fortunate to have 3 great-grandmothers! Great Grandma Betty lives just a few minutes down the road and Collin loves to show off and make faces with her.


Great Grandma Jewell Rae gives him lots of hugs - and when she's not holding and hugging Collin, she's hugging anyone nearby with her excitement over the new generation.



And Great Grandma Maria (Lita) has been knitting away, starting before he was born. It seems that every time she visits she has something new for Collin - hats, booties, warm woollen blanket wraps, and more projects in the works.




We are so thankful that our family lives nearby and all are crazy about our son. What a blessing for him to grow up surrounded by his extended family, and a blessing for Cas and I to have so many baby-sitters on call.

Sleeping Soundly

Collin has devised a way to ensure I sleep soundly when Cas is out of town for work. Before Collin was born, when Cas was gone it would always take me longer to doze off. I'd often fall asleep with the tv on to drown out normal house noises that seemed suddenly louder and more ominous when I was home alone.

But the past two times Cas has traveled for business, Collin has decided to have a little party in the wee hours of the morning. Not just a feed-me-and-put-me-back-down interruption, but a wide-awake celebration lasting at least an hour and a half. The only times he has done this - except for when he was a few weeks old - has been the night before his dad leaves. This ensures that I am the one to care for him, since we don't want Cas driving early in the morning on little sleep. And the following night when it's just the two of us and the dogs, I'm exhausted and easily fall asleep.

It's a highly effective strategy, but one I'm hoping does not become a set pattern.

Rolling right along

The smell of food cooking has made Collin feisty over the last week. He's rolled over from stomach-to-back (which is easier & should be his first big move) last week and rolled back-to-front (more advanced infant stunt) last night while one of us was cooking dinner and therefore missed the action.



Our Sunday School brings meals to new parents, which is a huge blessing, and our friend Kari brought us a chicken pot pie that was so good, I've been craving it ever since we devoured hers. Cas bought one at Boston Market but it didn't compare. But last Tuesday he made one, and while he was lovingly preparing the meal, Collin rolled over. It was a surprise to Collin and me, and when he somehow ended up on his back, he started to wail.



Last night as I'm making a beef stir fry (that was just okay, so no recipe link), Cas was the one clapping for Collin. He showed me how he rolled onto his stomach, and it was a fluke. I bet it will be a few more weeks or months before he does either move with much consistency . . . but until then, I may be chopping ingredients on the dining room table so I don't miss out.

Serenaded at dinner

My friend Amber assured me that having a child would make me a faster eater, as my brother and I are among the world's slowest. I think it can be blamed on growing up with "small bites" and "don't be in a hurry" ringing in our ears at the dinner table.

But somehow having a child had the opposite effect on my meal times, since I'm entertaining Collin as I eat, so my food is normally cold by the time I'm finished. Last night Collin was in a vocal mood, and I snapped a picture of him "ooooohing" along with me to a song.



Cas quite often shoots baskets with Collin observing from his stroller in the driveway. So I mentioned that his son may be a singer and dancer, which was not met with too much enthusiasm from Cas, until I pointed out that Justin Timberlake could be categorized as a singer and dancer, and then the career path became acceptable, though still runner up to professional athlete.

Visit from Uncle Alex and Coady

Alex and his girlfriend Coady came down to visit the last weekend in March. It was the first time Alex met his nephew, and of course, Collin took immediately to both Alex & Coady. We had a great time visiting them, especially when they came to stay with us for a day.

Collin met them in the swing.

We went to the Memorial Park Arboretum.

And had fun making faces at each other back at home.



We can't wait to see them again in May!

Picnic in the front yard

Taking advantage of our beautiful, warm April weather and one of my last afternoons home from work during the week, Collin, the dogs and I headed for a rather typical picnic in our front yard. Why not the backyard where my neighbors don't see how ridiculous we look? Bruno & Fergie have claimed the backyard as their own, and for the time being, we've given up hope for grass.

Here's our normal set-up in the shade of the baby magnolia tree - bumbo, mat for Collin, towel for me, and of course, a dirty tennis ball for the dogs (Our frisbee is once again on the roof - I must have my mom's frisbee throwing genes).

Collin rotates between the bumbo to practice sitting

And tummy time to strengthen his neck muscles

(This is how he really feels about tummy time.)


And then to his back where he coos along with me to our ipod children's songs and makes faces. Normally he'd smile up until I grabbed the camera!

He does an on-the-ground tae bo routine, punching and kicking with great intensity.

In between entertaining my almost 3-month-old, the dogs chase balls around the yard.

And when I try to take Collin inside, he makes his displeasure known.

The first children - Bruno and Fergie

Our dogs have been surprisingly wonderful adjusting to their downgraded status in the family. And thankfully they haven't accidentally trampled Collin yet. So far they seem to be extra careful around him.

Bruno is pretty oblivious and is happy as long as he gets to chase any squirrel he sees and gets rawhides at the end of every meal. Fergie is more aware of the family dynamic changes, and she stuck to me like glue during my maternity leave, following me into Collin's room every time I'd change his diaper or put him down for a nap.

The dogs got a big treat in March as we stayed at my parents' home while Cas was traveling and my mom was off for spring break. They love my parents' large backyard full of squirrels and enjoy playing with their dog Rudy.

One evening at my parents' we noticed a strange smell. We searched the living room for its source, and finally determined that a skunk was in the neighborhood and its scent drifted inside as we let the dogs in from the backyard. We shut all the windows in the house, but the smell lingered.

After several minutes of the skunk scent refusing to dissipate, we discovered the source - Bruno! Though all three dogs were in the backyard, only Bruno managed to tick off a skunk and get sprayed. Then he came inside, lay on the couch and his dog bed. He went off to the shower and we began to gather everything he touched that reeked of skunk.

My poor parents. He slept in their room that evening, smelling not only of skunk, but also of bad cologne that my father sprayed on him after his bath to camouflage the scent!

Catching zzz's

I hand off Collin in the mornings after his breakfast so I can get ready for work. Quite often this is how my two boys bond in the early morning hours.

What a life! Now if only he'd go right back to sleep consistently on the weekends, we'd be in great shape! He's normally a good sleeper and at least on the mornings when he's wide awake at 6am, he's wide awake and grinning.

Today I was on a work conference call from home and hadn't mastered the mute button when switching from normal phone to speaker phone, so my co-workers heard some highly enjoyable children's music, my encouraging words as Collin worked on raising his head during tummy time and then later, a rather loud bowel movement. Hopefully the next time I'm calling in from home, someone will tell me when the mute isn't on!

Back to work

I'm fortunate that my work has let me ease back in, going half days the first 2 weeks. My goal for my first day back to work was to not bore my co-workers with Collin stories and to not cry in front of anyone. I was pleasantly surprised that not only was I 2 for 2, the first week flew by - noon came before I knew it.

The only hiccup on my first day was my wardrobe. I walked out of the house with my fly down, which can be attributed to wearing pants with elastic for the last few months. Luckily, I caught it before I entered my office building. The last time I was at work with my fly down, my all guy co-workers were afraid to tell me!

And my sweet boy greeted me at home with a big grin wearing his "I love mommy" onesie!

Ranch Hand

We headed to our family ranch / farm on Saturday - Collin's first road trip. On the way we crawled under a barbed wire fence for a photo opp in a field of bluebonnets.

Collin loved the farm. He loves being outdoors anyway, and there were so many new sights and sounds to experience.

My parents took him bumping along in the stroller while Cas flew by in my Uncle Dick's go cart.

Our cousin Stella had him giggling and gave him a ton of love and attention.


It was a wonderful day - perfect weather, great hamburgers, sweet family memories, and the excitement of introducing a new generation to the farm!