Big Tree

I told Melissa this morning that I thought this year maybe we'd get a reasonably-sized tree, with all that's going on and everything.  Then I saw this puppy in the front row on the tree lot, and I realized that Sylvie's first Christmas is no time to get tree-lazy.  Sylvie is already transfixed whenever we turn on the lights.  And she's taken quite a liking to Christmas music - like her Mom, John Denver and the Muppets really do it for her.

More Company!

Sylvie continues to receive a steady stream of visitors.  Last night, Uncles Ben and Pat and Aunt Lia came by and brought us pizza.  Very nice of them!!  Sylvie said, "Thanks, but I think I'll have... milk."  

Then today, Matt, Michelle and Samantha LeBretton came for lunch.  Sylvie's mom made delicious homemade focaccia, chicken and mozzarella sandwiches.  Sylvie said, "Mmmm... smells great!  But I'll have... milk."  

I've put photos of all of our weekend visitors up in the "one month old" gallery, here.  There are some REALLY good ones of Samantha LeBretton.

Those of you inclined to follow links from the main page may already know all about Samantha, through her blog.  She's really a miracle baby.  Born with a hole in her heart, she had a really tough - and scary - first few months of life.  But she overcame a whole lot of odds and is now the beautiful, happy, unbelievably smiley little 6-month-old who visited us today. 

Tomorrow Sylvie is going to help mom and dad decorate her first Christmas tree!!  She'll celebrate with some... milk.

A few new photos

Dad subjected Syl to a little post-interview photo session.  Here are my 3 favorites.  All of them here.

Interview Number 2

Boy, was the Interview With the Baby segment ever popular.  There's a certain pair of Grandmothers out there in particular who I know are multiple-time viewers.  Having resolved my computer problems (with a new computer!!), I bring you installment number 2.  Sylvie, I am finding, only has the patience for very brief interviews...

Greeting the day

I am having some major computer issues at home this week that I hope to resolve tomorrow. So I have not been able to upload my usual volume of photos or any video - sorry! This poor-quality shot from my Blackberry is the best I can do for now. It was snapped at 5:30am as Sylvie (who slept straight through from 10:30 last night) recovered from a particularly traumatic diaper change. She's taken to peeing during the first change of the day, and we're not yet skilled enough to catch it before a full clothing change becomes necessary. With time...
Assuming I get the computer working, I'll put up some more video and photos over the weekend.
In other news, Sylvie had her first out on the town yesterday, courtesy of her mom. Melissa's plan was just to run out quickly to Fiske's, the local general store (yes - we have one of those, for real) to get some ribbon and break up the day. Although at first Melissa was nervous about taking Sylvie out of the house (given her absolute *hatred* of the car seat and, in truth, any type of restraint whatsoever), once they were underway they both settled in and the trip expanded to include visits to Restoration Hardware, Linens & Things, and even Whole Foods!! Yes, at barely a month old Sylvie is already a shopper. According to Melissa, Syl screamed blue murder for the first 5 minutes or so, then apparently decided shopping is a good time for napping and was a perfect little bundle for the rest of the excursion.
The kid really does hate being restrained though. It was interesting. For the first three days of her life she *loved* being swaddled - the tighter the better. Then, literally overnight she decided she hates to have her arms confined. She's always waving them around, touching her face, grabbing things... she sleeps with them splayed out to both sides, and wakes up the instant we try to bundle them up. She even screams when her clumsy dad gets her dressed in the morning, often catching her arms up in her sleeves. Diaper change - no problem. Naked in the bath - no problem. But the second one of her arms is tied up in a sleeve, look out. Problem. So thus far she hasn't gone in for the whole "babies love the car" thing, because in this nanny state of ours, car = car seat = restraint = Sylvie no likey.

We're going to have a smiley talker

I've gotten a LOT of good feedback on the interview video, so I will try to make that a semi-regular feature. I know those of you who met Sylvie over the past couple of weeks can already see how much she's changing day-to-day, both physically and in terms of how she's responding to and even interacting with people. It really amazes me - every night when I get home from work, there's a little bit more of a "real person" there waiting for me. She's definitely smiling now - no question of it being just gas. While it still isn't a full-fledged smile of long duration (and for that reason I've thus far been unsuccessful at capturing it on film, but for the side-view smile at Allison last weekend), it's definitely a smile. She draws in a quick breath, her eyes widen, and she opens her mouth and smiles for just an instant when she's pleased. That was how she greeted me at 4am this morning when she woke up for a diaper change and a feed and I bent over the bassinet to gather her up. Made me not mind the hour one bit (particularly since she'd slept soundly since 10pm).
Also, she's "talking" a whole lot now. Sitting in her bouncy chair or her swing or one of our laps, she just jabbers away like a little bird. This is very different from fussing and is very cute. Her hands are constantly moving about in front of her face, and while I realize it may be (probably is) accidental, twice now she's used her right hand to shove a drooping binky back into her mouth.
Finally, lest I forget, she continues to be an excellent and prolific pooper.

Landslide

Although turnout was light, with only 10 voters casting ballots, the outcome was decisive: by a (literal) 9 to 1 ratio, Sylvie's fans prefer the new Sylvie's Place to the old Bean Blog. Here we will stay. Apologies to the one voter who preferred the old page. Sylvie has a sneaking suspicion that the dissenter might have a conflict of interest related to her employer...

Interview With the Baby

More Visitors

Sylvie's fourth weekend on earth was much like her first three - a lot of sleep (often on Mom) and a lot of new friends. This weekend Allison, Jeff and Alex Liggett came to meet Sylvie, and the O'Learys (minus Brendan) came by to join us for Thai. Sylvie had milk, as Thai is still a little spicy for her. Alex reminded us of how quickly Sylvie is going to grow up - he's a real little boy now, where just a few months ago there was a toddler. The weekend closed on a high note, snoozing on Dad's chest while he watched football and drank a beer. Dad pretty much couldn't be happier.

Photos of the weekend by clicking here. You might notice in one or two of them that Sylvie is starting to smile. At first we thought it was gas (and perhaps it was). But now it's pretty clear that our little girl has found her smile.

Working out

Those who have met Sylvie know that almost from the get-go, she's been trying valiantly to hold up her own head.  At not even a week old she was having pretty good success for a few seconds at a time, and now she barely needs any help at all.  She's starting to really enjoy "tummy time," when she is placed on the floor or a bed or my chest on her stomach, and immediately starts trying to lift her head.  Here's some video of the exercise...  I realize that in some ways it looks kind of sadistic, but believe me - the noises she is making are *not* her "I'm upset" noises.  They're more like her "oh yeah, push it" noises, at least until the very end when they are her "enough of this, Dad" noises.  She's very articulate.

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