Snowed in -- and not minding it

It snowed here in the last 24 hours. It probably was not a storm for the record books, but a good several inches with more on the way Christmas day.
What's the young family to do on Christmas Eve, when the forecast calls for a few more inches of snow and skating-rink-like roadways after dark?
Stay put.
So that's what we did. We decided to hunker down with the baby, good food and drink and enjoy a peaceful holiday at home. Plenty of time for hustling tomorrow.
It worked out well. The mild temperature provided us an opportunity to introduce Elise to snow.
And as luck would have it, Santa went to the hardware store today after he was done working and found the best looking sled on the shelf. It's simple, plastic, red, kind of old school. It was an early Christmas gift to the ladies of the house, who were itching to get outside.
After getting pulled in the sled up and down the driveway and around the backyard, Elise seemed to enjoy -- pleasantly tolerate? -- the experience.
You have to introduce kids to snow as early as possible. That's why, after such a promising outing today, I'm taking Elise snowboarding next weekend.
In the meantime, Merry Christmas.

Womb humor

Anni, Bryan and I were doing a little armchair geneticizing today, trying to determine who Elise got her features from. You know, eyes, nose, face, etc.
Then Anni said something that would really leave you scratching your head. She was talking about the seemingly random way babies inherit looks and genetics from family:
"I picture my womb as a slot machine," Anni said, obviously getting our attention.
"Ding! 'You get Grandma's eyes,'" she said, "and Ding! 'You get Dad's ears.'"
If my genetics class in college was that easy, I'd still be a biology major. You can bet on it.

Hanging around

Bryan is home for Christmas break from balmy Las Vegas, but Elise initially gave him the cold shoulder.
It's been four months since they last saw each other. I guess if you're converting baby time, four months is like half of your life. No wonder it took her a bit of time to warm up to him, but they were reacquainted soon enough.
We all had a good weekend. The last-minute hustling before the holidays has begun, but there was plenty of time for lounging, too.

I can't explain it. I just took the picture.

Another bank-busting toy: Plastic tube that makes noise -- $1.89.

There are days when I wish I could do this. (And, no, she's not napping. Just goofin' around.)

There will never be a day when I can do this. At least not comfortably.

House party

Anni and Elise went to Laura's this weekend to make a gingerbread house with Randy and Jacob, who affectionately refer to their cousin as "Baby Elise."

Judging from this photo, it's a bit surprising they had enough candy left to decorate the gingerbread house.

Young candy artists at work.

Only Elise listened when the three were told to look to their left.

Ending 2009 at 20.02

We were at the doctor's office the other day for Elise's 9-month check-up.
We learned a few things, including that she has the preferred amount of "subcutaneous fat." I guess that's the good fat, the healthy stuff, the cute baby blubber. Given that she's already nearly 31 inches, I would have guessed she is below average for subcutaneous fat, but I guess she's right on track. What that really means, I'm not sure. I just like the term "subcutaneous fat" and said it was going on the blog, mostly because I knew how to spell it. So there.
Here's her stats: She was 30 3/4 inches long and weighed 20.02 lbs. All other health indicators they check at each visit were normal: head size, weight for length, length for age, etc.
Cut away all the clinical stuff, though, we left feeling like she's on a roll, growing like a bean, developing her interpersonal and motor skills and all of those things you often take for granted when you see her every day.
"This baby's doing great," the good doc said.

For the New York friends

Elise says thanks for the rug.

Elise, meet Fraser

Elise is digging the Fraser fir Christmas tree in our living room.
She likes the lights -- and whatever ornaments she can get her paws on.

'Hey, watch this'

More often than not lately we've discovered this scene when we get Elise after a nap. She has not yet lifted herself to her feet while in the crib, which is good because I still need to lower the mattress.
I'm not sure, but I think she's staked out a spot on the right side of the crib because she's freaked out by the make-shift window curtain visible in the background. Which reminds me: It's about time we get going on finishing the upstairs windows.

Another milestone

The crawler

Elise has been crawling for about two weeks. She has mastered it enough so that she can buzz around quickly without planting her face in the carpet. She follows us around the first floor, but is not thrilled about the tile in the bathroom. It is not heated, and she is spoiled by the heated tile in our kitchen.
In the foreground of the video you will see a stuffed puppy. (Not a real stuffed canine, of course, but that would be the only way a cat would make it in the house.) Anyway, that toy is one of her favorites. We are especially happy about that because it was cheap. But apparently you pay extra for stuffed animals with names, so this one had no name when we brought it home. Anni suggested "Cocoa," which seemed too Miami Beachish to me. So it's called Puppy. Clearly it needs a better name.
After we shot this video Anni pointed out Elise's drab outfit. Yes, I dressed her. I guess she does look a little like a black and tan. Drab or not, those corduroy pants slow her down on the carpet, which is good for those moments when she is eying the low-hanging Christmas tree branches and feeling a little adventurous.

Eyes swayed, so I should have known

When Elise was just days old, she was making a funny hiccup sound while Anni was burping her. I got in real close with the video camera to get that recorded. (We use the video recorder sparingly. Too much work, and I prefer stills.)
I nearly got too close because after doing something strange with her eyes (imagine cross-eyed intoxication mixed with dizziness) she proceeded to puke -- this was not just a little spit-up -- all over herself. Anni burst out laughing and I was just hoping that I got it all on camera. I did. We saved it. She'll see it someday.

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Elise has been a little "off" the past couple of days. This usually chipper child has been irritable. She has been eating unpredictably, unlike when she usually gobbles up everything with a smile.
And last night was just swell. She was awake every two hours, screaming in a tone (and decibel) we had not yet heard. The only way to quiet her down was to sit with her in a chair. It was a rough night.
It did not get much better for her today at school. She filled her diaper and pant legs and shirt with a chemical compound not found anywhere else in nature. And she did that four times. The medically minded would just call it diarrhea, but this is a blog so we're a bit more creative. (Creative, I said, not necessarily breakfast-table reading material.)
She followed up those four rounds with the need for a dunk in the tub and a fifth wardrobe change at home tonight. That was after we visited the clinic to have her checked out for possible dehydration, but that trip was uneventful and free of any diagnosis. (Did we overreact? You would concur with our decision had you seen the kid; she did not look good.)

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It was shortly before her bedtime. I was giving her a bottle. She was guzzling the formula at a steady clip. I assumed she would fall asleep in my arms and I would bring her to the crib.
As she killed the bottle, I noticed a few strange eye rolls, but thought that she just was tired.
I should have known better. Those wobbly eyeballs were a sign that something messy was about to happen.
Sure enough, it did. Every ounce of formula that she had just consumed came right back up and out. She soaked herself, my pants and part of the couch.
And then she did it a second time. Frankly, I'm not sure where it all came from.
Anni was grocery shopping at the time, so there the two of us sat. Covered in it, neither one of us moved for a time. That was followed by a hastily prepared bath -- her second of the night -- and several minutes of me wandering around trying to prioritize: Get her in new pajamas? Change my soaked clothing? Try to clean the couch? Call for reinforcements?
That is when I should have had the video camera running.

Not a good 12-step program

I suppose it is time to invest in a gate.
Or, would full-body armor be going too far?