Christmas 07

Christmas is like getting a part time job that involves travel, manual labor [ie "Some assembly required"], over eating, and late nights. Last Saturday, we drove to Waupaca. Christmas Eve we drove to Oxford, WI for the Erickson family Christmas [my mother's side]...and then back to Waupaca. Christmas day, we drove to La Crosse to and enjoyed another huge meal with Kaye's family. My mom visited us from Thursday to Sunday. She and Charlotte got lots of quality time. I don't know who ran who more ragged...but I think they both enjoyed it. Lastly, we had Christmas with Kaye's immediate family on Sunday afternoon and watched the Packers.

On Saturday, Santa visited my mom's house. It was the first time Charlotte had any clue of what was going on [unlike the first time]. She had mixed emotions.


[Hat tip to Dick Cook]

Then it was off to the Erickson Family Christmas



Then back to Grandma Michael's for more gifts.



Then on to Kaye's family...



...and more presents.




Just in case that's not enough, we also have pictures.

One Year Pictures

It took two tries to get these pictures. Round one was an attempt to get pictures with her cousin, Matthew, as well as her 1 year pics. She was in no mood for this. We managed to get the picture with Matthew [even though it looks a little like a church directory picture]. We went back a week later and finally got her 1 year pictures done.


Christmas "Round One" pics & video coming soon

Matthew makes good

The other big event last weekend was my nephew's graduation from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse with degrees in Sociology and Political Science. We are all very proud of him and know he'll do good things. Dale and Chris took us all out for dinner that night. The cake he's holding was his extra special "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" cake. It was friggin' awesome.

Matthew's Graduation [click to view album]

Congratulations Matthew!

Charlotte's First Birthday

I was going to write a heartfelt post about how amazing the past year has been, but decided I'd just let it be what it is-a kid's first birthday. Unfortunately, the clowns, ponies, and carnie rides didn't show up. So we had lunch, cake, and presents.

We had lots of family around this weekend because of her B'day and Matthew's Graduation from UW-L [more on that in a post to follow]. Charlotte got plenty of cake, as you can see...plenty of presents, as you can see...and entirely too much attention. Between the attention and a few late night meals [and maybe some teething], she was awake every 30 minutes to an hour both nights. We're not the best at letting her cry it out anyway, but when you've got people staying at your house, it makes it even harder because you don't want them to have to endure it too.

Regardless, it's been a great year with her. She's taught me a lot about myself that I never knew. It's only been a year, but I don't remember what life was like without her, nor would I want to [or maybe I'm just blocking it out for the sake of my own sanity].

Finally got it on film

It took a while, but we finally got it on film. It's only a few steps, but you get the picture...


It took a few tries though

Walking update

The walking thing is coming along. This weekend she was witnessed taking 3 or 4 steps... on purpose, not just falling forward. Occasionally she forgets that she needs to use both feet to walk, so she just kind of spins in a circle. I tried to video tape it the other night but, of course, she decided she didn't feel like walking then. The weird thing is that she's taken a liking to jumping. Occasionally she'll get all worked up and both feet will leave the ground.

Seriously, though. Given the choice between taking 10 minutes to walk across the room or crawling in 1/100 the time [or having mom or dad carry you], you wouldn't bother with walking either.

Sooo close...

I wanted to post this earlier, but had some problems with the upload. The other day, I walked into Charlotte's daycare and saw this kid go running by. I peaked my head around the corner and discovered it was Charlotte. They have a push toy there that I've seen her use before, but apparently she's become fairly proficient. So, of course, we had to go get one for home. She has also been spotted taking 1 or 2 unassisted steps in the last couple days.

The last portion of the video is a little reminder that she is her father's daughter. Unfortunately, she's developing some of my eating habits. However, at the end, those are oranges Kaye's giving her. So, it isn't completely hopeless...yet.

Our first Halloween...

So, we were going to keep it pretty low key for Halloween, but since they were having a party at her daycare, we thought we'd at least Charlotte wear a costume. You know, just so she didn't feel left out.

I think she would have been fine with "left out".

Daddy's favorite time of year...

...and it's not just because of Oktoberfest. Charlotte got in on the raking action yesterday. Ok, maybe it was just to pose for a few pics, but she was there.




The posts have been few and far between lately, so I apologize. With the holidays and her birthday coming up, I'm sure things will pick up. In general things have been pretty quiet. The walking thing is coming around, with help. She's standing on her own, even without anything to hang on to. However, she's not taking any steps on her own.

It ain't pretty

but it's walking...sort of.

New pics, video...and look out, she's getting more mobile

So it's been a while since I posted last. I'd say we've been busy [and I think we have], but I'm hard pressed to make a list of stuff we've been doing that might have kept me from posting anything. I suppose between ramping up for start of the school year, which is our busiest time at work, and various other stuff, I guess I've neglected this form of communication.

We had some pics taken last week. Check them out.



I also shot some video today that isn't all that eventful.


It does, however, show that her crawling has improved immensely...and, God help us all, she's standing. Sometimes she's able to stand on her own without holding on to anything and some of those are incidents might even be on purpose. As you can see from the pictures, she's getting her teeth.

Update: Remember my plans for retirement? Well, one of my nephew's roommates works at a local Quillins grocery store and also knows the gentleman that I mentioned in that post. Want to guess how he knows him? That's right, he does the same stuff at Quillins...apparently for hours at a time. So, now I'm starting think he may be a slightly past "a little eclectic" and maybe a little closer to goofy. I must admit though, it doesn't make it less funny.

How I want to spend my retirement

This weekend, Kaye, Charlotte and I visited a few rummage sales. Yea...we go to rummage sales. Once again, don't judge me!! WE visited one a few blocks from our house. While we were there, a older gentleman was letting us all know about the deals we could get. In fairly deep and loud but monotone voice he would say, "Here's a star shaped basket for only 25 cents!" Or, "Here's ten or twelve afghans for five dollars! These would make great Christmas gifts!" At first, I thought, "Enough already. It's a rummage sale. I don't need the hard sell." However, as time went by [maybe 2 minutes], I slowly realized that this wasn't his rummage sale. He was a mere customer, just like us. It was at that point where his antics became funny to me. He didn't stop. "Here's a TV for five dollars! And it works!".

Luckily, there was another sale two doors down. Kaye and decided to check it out. Just as we were getting ready to leave, the same gentleman was walking his bike up to the second rummage sale. We watched him walking up to the driveway, already letting everyone know about the table that was available. There were people leaving who stopped because they thought he was talking to them. It was at this point, that it became downright hilarious to me.

We moved onto a third sale several blocks away where Kaye knew the owners. Just as we were about to leave, I spotted an older gentleman approaching on his bike. In my head I'm thinking, "Please let it be him. Please let it be him" The comedy gods were smiling down upon me this day. I turned to Kaye and said, "Kaye, it's him." Please understand, that while Kaye does tolerate my sense of humor, she doesn't always agree. Sometimes, it becomes necessary for her to explain or translate to friends and family why I'm laughing. So, she began to explain to the owners of the house why I was so excited. To which, they replied, "Oh, Mr. Anderson" [names changed to protect the comical]. They knew the guy. Unfortunately, I didn't stick around to learn more.

Fast forward to today. One of my coworkers frequents rummage sales more than I do. Occasionally, we discuss our experiences. Yes, we're that boring. Of course, I started telling her this story. She immediately asked, "Was he riding a bike?...Oh, that's Dave Hanson." Apparently, he's a retired guy who does this because he thinks it's funny. He's in on the joke. It was at this point that his antics became comic gold. To me, it's even funnier now that I've learned that he's doing it on purpose...because he thinks its funny. She confirmed that, while he may be a little eclectic, he's certainly not the nutty old man I thought he was. Come to find out, he's a comic genius.

That, my friends, is how I want to spend my retirement.

Deep in the groove...

Hopefully Charlotte's a better dancer than her father. By the way, did I ever mention that Kaye was a Pom Pon girl. Anyway...it's subtle, but the video below shows that Charlotte has some sort of rhythm. Check her out, right after the change from reggae to a more bluesy feel.



Oh, and here's more video of her crawling. Yes, it's that important.

She's on the move...but we're not sure about her motivation.

For a couple weeks, Charlotte has been able to move around the room a little at a time, but it was more a product of changing positions. Look out!! She's learned to crawl. Granted, it's not the most coordinated crawl in the world, but she's moving.

Just a few notes on the video below:

• The warbling music in the background is not poor audio/video quality, nor has anyone slipped you some sort of psychedelic drugs. It's low batteries in a really loud toy.
• I thought I had better footage of her crawling, but apparently there were technical difficulties [ie the idiot holding the camera didn't push the "record" button"]. I'll put some better stuff up later. It's that important.
  
• Her original motivation for crawling was to get to the TV remote control. It's like she's obsessed with it. Fortunately, in this video, she's crawling toward a toy. There's still hope for her.

10"+ of rain....and mom and dad take turns getting sick

I don't know how much coverage it's getting outside the area, but we got hit pretty hard on Saturday with anywhere from 5 to 10 inches or more of rain. Here are some pretty amazing pictures of some of the damage. Luckily, we only had a little water coming in through what appears to be an old chimney pipe in our basement. As soon as things dry out, I'll need to do a little more checking into it. All kidding aside, there's a lot of people in a very bad situation right now. Unfortunately, there' s more rain coming.

Meanwhile, on Saturday both Kaye and I got fairly ill. Charlotte has had a bit of a "digestive problem" for a few days, but seemed to be feeling fine and wasn't running a fever. The same can't be said for Kaye and I. On Sunday, we ended up tag teaming with Charlotte allowing each other time to nap and take care of assorted problems in the bathroom [sparing you the gory details]. Fortunately, Charlotte was fairly content playing by herself and/or napping most of the day, making it a little easier on both of us. By about 4 pm yesterday, my fever was breaking. Kaye, on the other hand, is still home.

She isn't alone, unfortunately. The daycare called this morning. Charlotte is still dealing with the aforementioned "digestive problem". She apparently had a major "blowout" at about 9 AM this morning. So, they sent her home. They claim it's because she may be contagious...and it probably didn't help that I mentioned that she may have given it to Kaye and I. In the end, I wouldn't blame them it they sent her home just because it's so unpleasant.

If camping is so relaxing...

why am I so tired today? Sheesh.

We took Charlotte on her first camping trip this weekend with a group of "friends" from Waupaca. I'll explain the "quotes" later. Charlotte was really only there for one night and did fairly well. We brought along a Pack 'n Play for her to sleep in. She was having none of that. She ended up sleeping with Kaye. She could sleep with me, but I get the jimmy arms so I'm not sure she would have survived the night. When I was a kid, my sister and I used to sleep in the same bunk. I think she was the recipient of a few shots to the head back then. For now, Charlotte can't defend herself, so it's best that she sleeps with Kaye.

Since we were only about 30 minutes from my mom's house, we went in to Waupaca on Saturday to spend some time with her. We ended up spending all of the afternoon there and Charlotte spent the night with her. On our way back, I received a call from a friend who was camping with us. He informed me that they had a storm blow threw the campground and our camper was now laying on its side. I repeatedly asked if he was just messing with me. He said that he was walking around my camper as we spoke. It looked like it was ok, it just needed to be righted. When I hung up the phone, I told Kaye what he had told me...but also informed her that there was a 50/50 chance he was just screwing with me. Worse yet, he'd leave me hanging for the entire drive there thinking my camper was laying on it's side. Either way, I was not happy. Meanwhile I'm going through insurance, photos, repairs bla bla bla in my head.

As we drove into the campground, Kaye noted that nothing else seemed to be wrong. Kids were swimming. There wasn't even a twig out of place. Approaching our campsite, I could see that nothing was wrong with my camper. Apparently somebody felt neglected by our absence. Everyone else seemed to think it was hilarious. Hence the "friends". Friends like these make you appreciate your proctologist.

Great time...looking forward to next year.

Things Charlotte [or her mere presence] has taught me- #1-5

1. It is perfectly acceptable to walk up to a stranger's child and play with her feet. I don't really mind and I'm by no means a germaphobe or so protective that I don't want strangers touching my child. I find her feet fascinating too. In fact, I think they're hillarious. Maybe it's because I easily scare small children, but I've never just walked up to a stranger's child and started touching them. Then again, I found out a long time ago that having a child really warps people's boundaries in several areas.
   
2. Babies are "Chick Magnets". This is something I've always known, but never fully realized. Recently Charlotte and I went out to dinner at Hooters with my friend Tim. I should explain that, although I don't dine there very often, I don't see anything all that wrong with Hooters and neither does Kaye [at least not that she admits]. Don't judge me!! In fact, Kaye was invited but couldn't make it due to work. I would have preferred that she was there so I didn't look like that guy who would bring his baby to Hooters in an effort to garner more attention from Hooters Girls. Regardless, that was the effect. She got a balloon. I've been there a few times...never got a balloon.
3. Baby spit-up doesn't taste good. Not that I thought it would, but hold a kid above your head long enough...it's bound to happen.
4. There's a huge difference between waking up at 5:30 AM and waking up at 6:00 AM. Maybe it's psychological...maybe it's physiological. Regardless, it matters. When I hear that first cry at 6 AM or later, I feel like I've won the lottery.
   
5. Traveling with a baby is like touring with a rock band. First, everybody's happy to see you. Ok, they aren't happy to see me, but it's still a lot warmer welcome than I normally get. Second, there's the equipment/logistics. It's all about packing and scheduling around naps and meals.
   

Daddy's bored...

I'm not necessarily one of those parents who takes pictures of his child for no reason. This week, I became one of those parents momentarily.

Grandma's first babysitting gig

We made the trip back to Waupaca for my class reunion this past weekend. At a picnic on Saturday, Charlotte got to meet some of my class mates. She likes to work a crowd, so she had a good time. She also got a tour of my old high school which has been renovated and is now the middle school. She was so impressed, she slept through 90% of it. Saturday night was my class reunion so she stayed home with Grandma. According to my mom, all went well. Mom got to soak up some more time with her favorite granddaughter.

Class reunions are always fun and interesting. This year it was on the Chief Waupaca. Being on a boat for 3 hours is great for those of us who grew up together. In fact, my theory has always been that it kind of forces people to mingle a little more than they might it were on land. There's not a lot of places to hide on that boat. However, Kaye said that by the end of the night you could pick out the significant others because they seemed to be checking their watches a lot more than everyone else. Regardless, we had a great time and got to see some friends that I haven't seen in 10 or 15 years.

Next up: Charlotte's first camping trip.

Fourth of July Weekend...

Grandma Michael came into town this past week for a little extended stay. She and I did the fireworks while Kaye and Charlotte stayed home. After our Airfest trauma, we decided that fireworks probably wasn't a good idea yet.

Since we skipped that trauma, we thought we'd throw Charlotte into her new pool, just to keep her on her toes. She didn't seem to enjoy it and she let all the neighbors know. I'm waiting for the visit from Child Protective Services on Monday.

Surprise Surprise Surprise

Charlotte had her 6 month visit to the doctor on Wednesday. She's over the 100th percentile in weight and around 95 in height. I know, I know, those numbers don't mean anything. Yea...if your kid isn't measuring up!! At this rate, we're pretty sure she's going to be around 9 feet tall.

Also, she's sitting up on her own. She doesn't roll over very often...mainly because she can "bridge" like a wrestler in order to see behind her. The last doctor that saw her for pink eye said it's a sign of advanced cognitive skills. I'm going to stick with that theory...because before she said that, I thought Charlotte was just lazy.

Who had "Bad Cold" in the pool?

I forgot to mention; After being sent home last monday with Pink Eye, Charlotte was sent home with a fever on Friday. A little Tylenol and all was well. Does this kid look sick to you?

First Father's Day

Click on the pics to see more of the album




We had our first Father's this Weekend. We spent Saturday night with Kaye's family...grilled out at our house and went to a Loggers Game. As I've mentioned before, she's a people watcher so she loved it, other than the 1 or 2 innings she slept through. Sunday morning we went to Old Country Buffet for breakfast. Only the best for daddy. Then, Charlotte and I spent most of the afternoon in a recliner napping the afternoon away.

The above pics were taken this afternoon after said nap.

If you don't look goofy enough...

Find a chair to make you look even goofier.

Our friends Mike and Trish loaned us one of those "Bumbo Seats". Charlotte has really taken to it. Ok...it was really just a chance to put a cute picture of my kid up.


There's a few more here. Thanks for indulging me.

The first of many gifts from daycare

Last weekend, Charlotte was coming down with a cold...or so we thought. She was congested and her eyes were "gunking up". Apparently, word went out at daycare that pink eye was going around. Unfortunately, it went out after we started. So, on Monday, I had to pick her up and have her checked out for pink eye. Sure enough, she's got her first of many communicable disease from daycare.

I'm taking bets on what the next one will be:

• Even odds- Bad Cold
• 6:1-Yet another Pink Eye
• 10:1-Impetigo
• 15:1-Lice [My personal favorite]
• 20:1-Chicken Pox
• 1500:1 Bird Flu

It's no "Gröt", but it will have to do

I just hope she steers clear of the almond when she starts eating that stuff [inside Swedish joke].

We paid a visit to my mom's last weekend. It's the first time I had been back since she was released from the hospital. All in all, she seems to be recovering quite well. She had a "little" landscaping that needed to be done. It turned into a two day project involving new trees, a small retaining wall, all new edging...and probably the coolest machine ever, a stump grinder. In reality, I'm just thankful no one lost a limb. It's not quite done yet, but should look nice when everything is in place.

This week, we're trying to start Charlotte on rice. She's been getting it in her formula at night for a while now, but now we've been trying to feed her with a spoon. I'll let you judge how well the first feeding went.


This week, Charlotte also started her new day care. She's getting adjusted to the change in scenery. Her sleep is a little off so she comes home and crashes. Not such a big deal, until she wakes up at 3:30 AM and wants to hang out. This day care came along at a fairly nice time, however. Her baby sitter [and old friend and coworker of mine, Sandy] is expecting a baby in August, so she probably didn't need the extra baby to carry around.

You can start feeling sorry for Lucy now

When I was a teenager, we had a dog named Taffy. At that time, my nephew, Matthew, was a baby and terrorized that poor dog. Back in my Heavy Metal concert days, I caught a couple drumsticks [Krokus, Great White]. Matthew got his hands on those sticks and chased the dog around the house with them. On one occasion, I was "playing" piano while Matthew and the dog were sitting quietly on the floor right below me. I started hearing this high pitched whine. When I looked down, Matthew had Taffy's ear wrapped around one leg of the piano bench and was pulling with all his weight. The dog never so much as threatened Matthew. She just looked up at me saying, "Why, in God's name, aren't you helping me?".

I'm not sure Lucy has that kind of patience. The video below is proof that I'm not helping matters. As I mentioned in the previous post, you'll notice that Charlotte is standing now. Crazy!

My apologies for the darkness of the video. I have to learn to brighten all my indoor video before uploading it to Google.

Who brings their 5 month old to an air show?

Me. That's who.

Before I continue this story, I should clearly state that I did bring ear plugs for Charlotte. Unfortunately, they didn't fit. Also, there were many other children her age there. So, I'm not the only crappy parent.

Overall, Charlotte really enjoyed Airfest. She's a people watcher and loves to show off for those around her. She's standing now [video later] so she can get up and enjoy the crowd. Until, the F-16 started it's show. Understandably, Charlotte was hysterical. The aforementioned ear plugs I brought didn't fit. A gentleman behind me offered me a pair that were smaller on one end, but by this time, Charlotte was so upset, she was having none of me trying to put them in. A well meaning woman in front of me motioned that I should try giving her a pacifier...because apparently she thought I hadn't already tried that. Eventually, we ducked behind a larger plane...not that it helped, but getting up and moving made her feel better. "Luckily", the F16 had mechanical problems and had to end it's show early. Needless to say, we didn't stick around for the Blue Angels. I'm not sure who was more traumatized, Charlotte or me...but I know who the people around me felt more sorry for.

What did I learn from this experience? First, if you insist upon bringing your 5 month old to an air show, get her a pair of those ear muff type ear protectors. It may not make it less scary when the ground shakes, but at least she'll be better protected. Second. No matter how loud a jet may be, people can still hear a screaming child above it all.

Mother's Day

Kaye had her first mother's day this weekend [more pics here]. We had a little brunch at Forest Hills on Sunday. Ok, I had a lot of brunch. For the most part, Charlotte and I tried to make it a fairly restful and relaxing weekend for Kaye. It didn't turn out that way, but we tried.

I learned that Mother's Day creates yet another one of those Fatherhood Inferiority Moments [FIM]. FIMs are those moments, as a man, where you are trying to do the right thing...trying to do right by your wife and family...and things just don't live up to what you had hoped for. Let's face it, by marrying me, we hope that Kaye has some pretty low expectations. We don't buy each other a lot of expensive gifts [if any at all]. But, there are moments where I try to do little things to make things special for Kaye. Typically, they don't work out.

Long story short, making breakfast in bed for mommy is hard to do with a kid that is making enough noise to wake mommy up. When mommy gets a cold-a really bad cold-even a restful weekend turns into an unpleasant experience. Maybe next year we'll try a trip to the races.

An odd couple weeks...

All's well that ends well, I guess. A couple Sundays ago [4-22] I called my mom to ask her if she'd be interested in visiting...and baby sitting for Charlotte while we celebrated a friend's 30th B'day. Mom politely explained that she wasn't feeling well and blew me off. By that Tuesday [4-24], she had checked into the hospital with a bowel obstruction. Thursday they operated and she wasn't released until a week later [5-4]. My sister and I spent most of that first week in Waupaca with her and then returned late last week when she was released. Charlotte and Kaye also payed a visit along with my Nephew Mathew and his girlfriend [Kudos to them for driving Kaye and Charlotte over].

Mom is recovering nicely at home and will probably be out of work for at least the next 3 weeks. People keep asking what a bowel obstruction really is. I don't have an answer so I just keep telling them she swallowed a quarter.

Charlotte's got something to say

I shot a little footage of Charlotte the other day when she was in the mood for talking. She hasn't been cooperative, though. I've been trying to get something similar since she started "talking" but, without fail, every time I grabbed the video camera, she clammed up.

Somebody's been studying daddy...

I almost feel bad, but eh...it was bound to happen sooner or later. Also note the Packer bib. I'd wear one if they made it in my size.

Also, due to some complaints from my sister about not seeing Charlotte in any of the clothes she's purchased, I give you...

Presents from Auntie Chris [click to view]

Abject Fear

I've learned that there are points in your life where people have a lot of advice. For us as a couple, it started with the purchase of our dog, Lucy. The wedding was another example, along with Kaye's pregnancy. So, of course, raising Charlotte is the latest. I wasn't prepared for the onslaught of "advice". I say "advice" because all too often, it's not really advice, it's people telling you how they do/did things and why everything else is wrong. In the end, if feels like people aren't allowing you to have your own experience. In other words, nothing you're experiencing is new or original. Typically, nothing is new or original...but it is to us.

Good or bad, I think Kaye and I went into this experience fairly well prepared, mentally. Most of this is fairly obvious...from the immediate love you feel for the child to the lifestyle changes [ala FAQ #4] to the complete exhaustion. To be honest, I fell in love with Charlotte the day Kaye and I decided we'd try to have children. I just hadn't met her yet. What I wasn't prepared for was the paralyzing fear that something could happen to her. It started the day we found out Kaye was pregnant. Both Kaye and I tried to be as careful as possible with her pregnancy, but I became almost superstitious, something I typically am not. Now, I find myself checking on her at night to make sure she's ok.

Saturday night, we picked up Charlotte from Kaye's parent's after being out to dinner with some friends. I was putting her down to change her [yes, me] and she went into what I can only describe as a "choking fit". She couldn't breath and was heaving as if she was vomiting. There was panic and crying...and Charlotte was pretty upset too. When Kaye got to the room, Charlotte was crying and still having some problems breathing. After crying for another 15 minutes, she finally settled down. I'd appreciate it if she didn't do that again and I'm guessing she feels the same way.

One more thing....

How I forgot to mention this, I don't know. Regardless, on Saturday morning Charlotte rolled over for the first time...twice I didn't see either one, but I'm told it was spectacular. Both times happened while I stepped out of the room. Of course, she hasn't done it since. Maybe I should leave the room again.

First Easter...no pictures.

Apparently we were too busy eating to take any pictures of Charlotte enjoying her first Easter. We spent Saturday night with Kaye's family and Sunday at my cousin Sue's home in Lomira. Charlotte slept the whole way down. Let's hope she keeps that habit up for future travels. Sue put on a HUGE spread-a Big thank you to her and everyone who helped her. I ate entirely too much.

My uncle Gerry commented that Charlotte seemed to be a fairly easygoing and quiet child. I thanked him for jinxing us. Like clockwork, about an hour later Charlotte entered into a screaming fit rivaling only those she had the first night she was home when she wasn't getting enough to eat. We're assuming [read: hoping] it was gas. After about an hour [may have been more like 1/2 hour...but seemed like an eternity], Kaye got her settled down and sleeping. So, we said our good-byes and ran out the door while she was in a good mood. Thankfully, she slept the whole way home.

Lastly, I'd be remissed if I didn't send a "shout-out" [yea, that's right, I said "shout-out"] to my cousin Marnie who got engaged last week. Congratulations!

That's the lucky girl in the middle.

FAQ #4 and Back to work...

I returned to work today after spending 2 weeks at home with Charlotte. How does that make me feel? I believe the video below sums up my thoughts on how it feels [don't try this at home]:

It was nice to be able to spend that time with her. Other than dropping the television remote on her head once, I think she came out none the worse for wear. It only really grazed her, but I felt pretty bad. She's sleeping through the night now [knock on wood]. She's even managing to do it in her crib...as opposed to in her car seat, which was the case for the first couple months.

Kaye's last day at Associated Bank was yesterday. She'll be starting her new job at Marine Credit Union on Monday. We're still waiting on day care. In the mean time, our friend Sandy has agreed to watch her.

FAQ #4: Boy, I'll bet your life has changed, hasn't it?
Well Duh!! However, not as much as people seem to think. Granted, she's been pretty low maintenance as far as babies go [knock on wood, again] and I know things will get more hectic as she becomes more mobile. We weren't exactly living the "rock and roll" life style before she was born. Now it's just about logistics and equipment. Any outing is planned around naps and feedings...and any trip, no matter how small, involves lengthy discussions and negotiations on what equipment will be transported and utilized. When I really think about it, we were already planning around my naps and feedings, so that's nothing new. So, in the end, it's really only about the equipment.

Charlotte was ready for today's game...

...unfortunately, the Badgers weren't.

Click for more pics

We had some pictures taken today. In addition to those in the link above, you should be able to view more here at the Sears album.

My turn to watch Judge Judy

First things first...I finally cut some video from our trip to Rockford last weekend to see Charlotte's great grandmother. You can check it out below. You'll notice that Charlotte's getting a little...um...festively plump. At this rate, Kaye and I may end up on Maury Povich.

On Tuesday, I had my first day of family leave. I'll be hanging with Charlotte until March 27th. So far it's been great. However, I've learned that there are people who had very little confidence in me to make it through one day, let alone 2 weeks. I've become fairly accustomed to low expectations. So, this is nothing new.

Kaye starts a new job with Marine Credit Union on April 2nd. More on that at a later date.

First Trip to Rockford

Click for more pics

Charlotte made her first trip down to Grandma Erickson's this weekend. We had a little brunch [ok, I had a lot] and showed Charlotte off to everyone. We also spent a little time with Charlotte's great great aunt Helga.

I took some video. Depending on how it turned out, I may post it later.

Charlotte's Baptism

Charlotte was baptized this weekend at the church Kaye and I will be joining in the next couple weeks.. No screaming. No fussing. Just pretty much sat there and took the whole thing in. After she's baptized, the minister walks her down down the aisle and introduces her to the congregation. At the end of the service, she takes the baby out with her and greets everyone as they leave church. As you can see from the video, I'm confused...as usual.



Kaye's brother Mark, my sister Chris, and brother-in-law Dale, were her sponsors. Grandma Michael was also here for the weekend. Kaye's family and my family all got together for brunch after the service on Sunday. All in all, good weekend. Charlotte was exhausted on Sunday. She slept from about 4:00 PM on Sunday until 6:30 AM Monday morning [except for a few feedings and a burst of energy for about an hour Sunday before bed]. Check out the pics from this weekend below.

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Maybe it's time to move...

La Crosse police found about 55,000 rounds of ammunition, weapons, explosives and drugs inside the South Side house of a man arrested Friday night on felony weapon charges...

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This guy lives, or hopefully "lived", less than 4 blocks away from us. It's nice to know you've got that kind of knockdown power in the neighborhood.

Update: Here's the charges.

No new boat for Charlotte

This weekend we made our first trip to Waupaca with Charlotte. It went pretty well. We went to a boat show in Green Bay. Charlotte enjoyed the $525,000 Yacht from Cruisers. However, even with the 4.9% financing, it fell a little out of Mommy and Daddy's price range. Especially considering it was for 24 mos. Interestingly, we could have financed a $55,000 pontoon boat for 180 months. How many times do you suppose the boat would be in the shop during those 180 months...not to mention the other 9 months of the year that we wouldn't be using it.

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Charlotte and Grandma had a great time. Charlotte made the transition over to formula this weekend so Mommy and Daddy were anxiously awaiting the "outcome"...if you know what I mean. She seems to have come around fine although we did go a full day without any "outcome" so there were some tense diaper changes. Hey! We're new parents! Cut us some slack!

Otherwise not much new. Kaye has 3 more weeks of FMLA remaining, then I'll be taking 2 or 3 weeks off to hang out with Charlotte. After that, it's off to school for Charlotte. I figure about a year or so after that, she can get a job and start earning her keep.

Not a lot going on...

Sorry it's been a while since the last posting. Not a lot is happening. Charlotte's growing. She's starting to smile more-which makes dad a puddle of mush. There are things that I've discovered I enjoy that I didn't see coming. Obviously the smiling part is pretty cool. Parents talk a lot about how they like watching their kids sleep. However, watching her wake up from a nap is one of the coolest parts of my day. The stretching, the faces, the noises are hilarious.

We're paying a little visit to Grandma Michael this weekend. It's Charlotte's first overnight trip. Should be interesting. A good 2 1/2 hour nap in the car en route to Waupaca should completely mess up what little sleep schedule she has. There's also a plan to go to Green Bay so Kaye can visit some friends and to spend time with Auntie Chris and Uncle Dale at the Boat Show. If the trip to Waupaca doesn't mess things up completely, the trip to Green Bay should push Charlotte right into an all night, no sleep, spiral.

In the next couple weeks I'll try to get more pics up. Until then, take my word for it. She's the cutest baby ever.

It's too bad I didn't have a jump shot...

Grandma Michael was here this past weekend. She hasn't been able to get over to see Charlotte since she was born, so it was a long time coming. I have some pics and video I'll try to put up later.

Yesterday I was treated to a very nice birthday present: a clean bill of health for Charlotte. She's in the 75th percentile for her weight and head size [wait for it...] and 90th in weight. Her shots were traumatic, there were lots of tears...and Charlotte cried too.

So, back to this head size thing. One of my co-workers informed me that they were told how tall their child would be based on the size of the child's head. That got me thinking. If head size is an indicator of height, shouldn't I be around 9 feet tall? If I only had a jump shot.

Who am I kidding? I didn't even have a layup.

Who are Colin Hay and Willy Porter, Alex.

I've received a few questions about the music in the background of the video posted after Charlotte was born. The first song is Colin Hay's, "Hold on to My Hand". Colin was the singer in Men at Work and is great solo artist.

The second song is, Willy Porter's "Water Color Sunrise". Again, great singer/songwriter and amazing guitar player. This was the song Kaye and I danced to at our wedding, not realizing that it was over 5 minutes long. I realize the title of this Blog implies we are, but neither of us are so self-indulgent that we feel people need to watch us dance for 5 minutes.

Picture Machine?

While Charlotte was in the hospital after her birth, they weren't able to take her newborn picture, because the "Picture Machine" wasn't working. I wanted to ask if that was medical speak for "camera", but I thought the staff had heard enough of my sense of humor.

So, about 2 weeks ago, she was finally able to go in and get her picture taken. They ended up giving us a free print package because we had to wait so long. Actually, I didn't even realize they sold you those pictures...but I suppose it makes sense.

The pic is also on the Gunderson Lutheran web site.

Charlotte get's a bath...finally!!

Ok, she has been bathed, but this was her first fully submerged bath. I don't think she liked it so much.



Poor kid. We just had to put up with our parents showing our naked baby photos/videos to our friends and family. Charlotte's are now on the web.

FAQ #3: Re-revisited and a few pics

The sleep thing is getting better. Charlotte wakes up once a night and even managed to sleep through one night. We've got sleep experts from Princeton working on finding out what we did right that night.

We did a little clothes shopping the other day and Charlotte decided she'd like to dress more like Dan Maglior, inventor of the "long sleeve under the short sleeve" look. We soon hope to incorporate the "North Face" Vest while we anxiously await the Danny Mag summer collection.

I wanna be Danny Mag

If you look closely at one of the pictures, she's giving the Corna or "Rock-On" sign. She already rocks!! It's only a matter of time before she's begging for her Judas Priest onesie.

P.S. For anyone who doesn't know Dan [or Judas Priest], I apologize for the obscure reference.

FAQ #3: Getting any sleep?

I'm doing fairly well in that regard. Kaye? Not so much, depending on the night. Charlotte is up every 2-3 hours for varying amounts of time to eat. She isn't a big fan of her crib yet. So, for now, she's spending her nights in a baby papasan chair . We're still pretty early in the game on this sleep thing, so we're not to worried about it yet. Easy for me to say, huh? Given my lack of the appropriate feeding "tools", there's not a lot I can do when she's hungry at 3 AM. We're working on making some "food" available for me to feed her, but we haven't reached our full "production capacity" yet...so it's a little hard. I'm pretty honest about my uselessness when it comes to late night feeding and Kaye taking the brunt of the lack of sleep. When I answer this question, people's response is funny. It's either an amused understanding or mild disgust. Then again, that's people's response to a lot of things I say.

Otherwise things are going well. Charlotte had her first visit to the doctor last week. Everything checked out. She had her first New Years Eve party last weekend. That she slept through. How she can manage to sleep through a group of middle aged men playing "Guitar Hero 2" but can't manage to give her mother more than a few hours of sleep at a time at home, I'll never know. Then again, it was preceded by a short trip in the car...which is like baby Ambien to Charlotte.

I returned to work yesterday after almost 2 1/2 weeks off with Kaye and Charlotte. Returning to work was not easy. Obviously, I'd rather be home with my 2 week old child. But just the thought of returning to work was tough. I grew up in a family of teachers. People [not me] complain that teachers make too much money considering they "get the summers off". However, now I'm convinced that they have to pay them that much just to come back after a summer off. I can't imagine having all that time off and then trying to convince myself that returning to work is a good thing.

Lastly, Charlotte and I discussed the prospect of Brett Favre's retirement and we both agree he should stick around for one more year, at least.