Feeding peanut

Here is a video of Natalie feeling her toy dog:

Bubbi and Gramps

Kate and I recently took a fantastic trip to Paris and London, and Natalie (who turns two today) stayed with her grandparents, Bubbi and Gramps. Here is Bubbi and Gramps' account of their time with Natalie:

We felt like we had won the lottery when Kate and Mike asked us if we would take care of Natalie while they went to Europe for a week.

We were prepared to be a little more tired than usual (we napped when she did). But what we weren’t prepared for was the absolute delight that is Natalie. She enchanted us (and our friends and family) with her budding vocabulary, her contagious laugh, her sparkly eyes, her zest for life, her love of dogs and people, Pad Thai and us.

She learned the word “Kabloom!” from her Aunt “Jenji” and said it a few hundred times a day. She loved greeting the people at our favorite corner market. She made Pad Thai out of play doh. She enjoyed watching the birds while she ate her morning oatmeal. She played Grrr’s (Natalie’s way of saying Gramps) “Getaway Game” many times a day (you have to ask Grrr about this when you see him). She made friends with the Denae and Kayla next door and their squiggly, wiggly dog, Peanut Butter.

We visited the zoo, a few different parks, took lots of walks, played in the backyard, had meals with many wonderful friends and family, went out for frozen yogurt and had a “Hello Kitty” themed birthday party complete with hats and noisemakers.

And luckily we had a few fun days at the end of the week with Natalie’s parents, Aunt Sharon and Uncle Frank, cousin Stef and Aunt Jenji and we all celebrated at the most beautiful wedding of Zak and Shira.

Of course we miss our little Natalie terribly but are so grateful for the huge dose of love, joy and laughter that her visit brought. And we are busy looking online for flights…to Fort Worth Texas of course!!

Thank you Kate and Mike for giving us this wonderful gift of time with your most amazing daughter.

Below are some pictures with light-hearted captions by Grrr (who has won the Detroit Free Press Caption Contest 15 times…so be prepared):

“Aunt Jenji is my favorite because she taught me how to fall down and go ‘Ka-boom’.”

“I call him ‘Grrr’ because he growls if I stay up too late.”

“If I just wait until Mom and Dad leave, I’ll get to EAT a cupcake and not just wear one?”

“Now THAT’S what I’m talkin’ about!”

“One of us three is sooo cute…”

“Meal time again! That’s what I’m talkin’ about!”

“Gramps says that I’m the cutest little animal at the zoo.”

Natalie shows Bubbe that she prefers walking to riding in the stroller at the zoo.

“Uh, Bubbe, I thought you said this was the toy aisle.”

“Bubbe says that the secret to a successful outfit is to accessorize.”

Danae loved stopping by to do some ‘mothering’.

Accessorizing, continued

“We older girls use straws.”

“Hey Grrr, give a girl some room here; there is a reason I call it Noni’s chair.”

Putting Legos away

We are trying to teach Natalie how to put things away. So far, we have met with mixed success. The other day, we got her to put a book away by having Kate applaud vigorously for me when I put a book away (and then I did a little endzone celebration-style dance). Here is a video of us trying a similar strategy with some blocks on the kitchen floor.

Snow day meandering

So, TCU has had two consecutive snow days. Currently the temperature is 17 degrees Fahrenheit, with a "real feel" of 2 degrees. Natalie has enjoyed having both of her parents around to play with her. Here is a four minute video that capture's Natalie's play style. Wandering around, picking up things and putting them on her head, etc.:

Four months of Natalie

Today, Natalie turned four months old:


It has been another great month of Natalie. She has gotten much more expressive. She seems to enjoy playing, stories, songs, and kicking:



While Kate unfortunately has a broken arm, she is still able to hold her girl. Unfortunately, multitasking has become more difficult. Here is Kate holding Natalie before her broken arm (notice the knitting):


Here is the more recent picture:


Below are some of the recent pictures we have taken (you can also find the pictures here):

Videos and a broken arm

Unfortunately, Kate broke her arm on Wednesday, while standing on a chair to reach for something in the kitchen. It is actually quite close to the place where I broke my arm last year (and we even visited the same emergency room), but it seems that Kate will not need surgery -- she will visit the same orthopedist that I visited a week from Monday.

In other news, Natalie continues to be adorable, and her visit to the doctor yesterday found her in good health. Here are a few videos of her (we will post pictures and stats from the doctor's office later today).

In this first video, we managed to briefly capture Natalie's beautiful laugh on the video camera (usually she stops laughing when the camera comes out):



In the second video, we Natalie plays with some rattles, puts them in her mouth, and demonstrates some of her kicks:

Natalie's been working on her first academic presentation

Here is a video:

Definitely more alert

Today Bubbi and Gramps left, which was sad for all parties involved.


After dinner tonight Natalie was pretty unhappy. I swaddled her, which usually calms her down, but it did not seem to work, so we thought that she might need her pants changed. I took her out of her swaddle, and she just laid on the bed and very alertly checked out me, her aunt, and her mom. It was pretty cool.

Below are some pictures of Natalie's first few days (which can also be found here):

A few other pictures

Below are a few other pictures from Natalie's last few days (which can also be found here). While she has moved from sponge baths to tub baths, she is no more fond of the bathing enterprise (although apparently neither was her father).

Natalie Meets Bubbi and Gramps

On Sunday, my parents arrived, and we all had Indian food together, on my grandfather.

After dinner and a long nap, my parents finally decided that they were ready to see their grandchild. The pictures are below, and they can also be found here.

Natalie's First Power Failure

On Thursday at 4:45 am, the tornado alarm went off, and we retreated to the laundry room as we lost power. Natalie was totally uninterested in the storm, and slept through the whole thing on her mother's lap.

On Friday, Natalie had a few visitors -- Krista, the photographer who took those pictures of Kate and me, and her five and eight-year old children. The children were curious about Natalie, but I quickly realized that we do not have many items in this house that are interesting to children. Luckily, they found my copy of Nexus Ops, and that seemed to occupy them.

Although one astute observer has indicated that "in a matter of seven days you have taken more pictures of your daughter than have been taken of me in my 33,526 (adjusted for leap years)," below are a few more pictures of Natalie (which can also be found here).

Tuesday, Wednesday, Natalie Days

Natalie has continued to do well, and there is not too much new to report. I went to school today to run an errand, and my colleagues were extremely disappointed that I came alone.

Natalie has been receiving many lovely gifts, and thank you note will be forthcoming soon. Pictures from yesterday and today are below (and they can also be found here).

Another day of Natalie

Natalie seems to have cooled down our weather a bit in Fort Worth. It rained on her first two days, and it also started pouring today right after I finished mowing the lawn this morning (my first time mowing the lawn as a father -- it is so much better!).

Natalie continued her strenuous routine of sleeping, eating, with occasional bouts of wakeful curiosity and even more occasional bouts of tears. No visitors today, but it is possible that tomorrow Natalie will have her first visit to my university, because there is a fax that she needs to send.

Below are some pictures from today (which can also be found here).

The end of Natalie's First Week

Yesterday was a quiet Sunday for Natalie and her family, except for Natalie's morning bath (Natalie's feelings about baths have still not changed). She didn't have any visitors yesterday, except for our crazy neighbor, who came to complain that our bathroom light is on in the middle of the night. He was shocked to learn that we have a baby (he is not as much of a neighborhood gossip as he thinks he is!), and seemed a little sheepish when he realized why the light is on. But not too sheepish. The thing about "the psycho," as we call him, is that with any individual interaction, it is not clear that he is crazy. However, when you add all the interactions together, that is the only possible conclusion.

Now Natalie is sleeping, as her parents and grandma finish their lunch. Sunday's pictures are below (and they can also be found here).

On the Sixth Day of Natalie

Natalie had a nice sixth day. She was visited by her old friends David and Lucia, and by her new friends, the Cox family. Happily for Natalie's parents, both sets of guests came bearing outstanding homemade desserts -- a strawberry pie, and a peach cobbler. All of the guests were quite taken with her, although she slept through most of their visits.

The pictures of Natalie's sixth day are below (and they can also be found here).

Natalie's Fifth Day

On her fifth day, Natalie returned to the hospital so that they could make sure that she is getting enough food when she nurses (this was a previously scheduled, routine appointment). I went grocery shopping while Natalie was at the hospital, but according to her mother, Natalie ate so well that she could be the next Takeru Kobayashi.

Last night, we made Natalie her first shabbat dinner. I made some sole and quinoa, and Kate made a loaf of challah. Unfortunately, Natalie was not able to eat any of it, but she did seem a little bit interested in the food, prayers, and songs.

Here are pictures from her fifth day (which can also be found here):

The Fourth Day of Natalie

Today was Natalie's first full day at home. She spent most of the day sleeping and eating, with occasional breaks to look at things and/or cry. She is actually quite alert sometimes, and will occasionally stare at something or someone intently and adorably. The day ended with a visit with our friends Alex and Ariane, which she seemed to enjoy, and a bath. Unfortunately, her feelings about baths have not changed much since Monday.

Here is a slideshow of pictures from Day 4 (you can also find all of these pictures here):



Also, here are a few assorted Natalie pictures that I have just pulled from Kate's camera.

Natalie's Third Day

Today we were discharged from the hospital. Natalie had her first car ride, and her first view of our house and garden. She had a nap in her bassinet, and before falling asleep, she gazed at the mobile, following it as it turned. This surprised me a little, since it was probably about 18 inches away from her, and I thought that her field of vision was only about 8 inches.

Below is a slideshow of pictures from her third day, which you can also find here. I assume that we will keep writing daily blog posts until she is about 23 or so.

Natalie's Second Day

Natalie's second day went well. All of the doctors and nurses were impressed with her health, and she had a few visitors (a few of our friends). She passed her hearing test, but she still does not seem to understand much of what we say to her (in English or Japanese). She is wonderful.

Here is a slideshow of some of the highlights. You can also find the pictures here.

Natalie's First Day

Here is a slideshow of pictures from Natalie's first day (you can also see the pictures here).