Top 5's of 2008--Monika's Turn

It is Dec 31st so it is not too late right?
1. We had a baby people, how could that not be my numero uno? It has been lovely and frightening, a little more of both at different times.
2. Costa Rica Trip. We went for Brett and Kim's wedding and it was a fabulous get away of adventure.
3. Friends with babies. People all over the place are procreating and it is fun to see people transform to parents.
4. House cleaners. What can I say? I'm a bit lazy and LOVE coming home on some fridays to a spic and span place.
5. Support. There have been a LOT of changes in our life this last year and the love and support we have received has really made me know how lucky we are.

So here is to a fun 2009. Oh and did I mention, that my top 5 is almost never about music?

This Week in Noli

Two big milestones this week.

On Thursday she started saying her first consonants. Of course I was thrilled when they turned out to be da da da. I win! She's been practicing them constantly for the last 4 days.

On Saturday we went in after her nap and she was up on her hands and knees. Maybe she was practicing in her crib all this time, but it was the first we had seen. Mon said she did it two more times during her morning play time today.

The other funny, not so funny thing that happened this week was that the daycare workers sent home a note to us pleading for help with Noli. Apparently she fusses all day and they are at their wits end. The problem is that she doesn't sleep well there and gets overtired. But we immediately became "those" parents: that can't be my child, she's always perfect at home.

Not to Beard

Since my beard post was oddly one of the most commented-on posts I've had, thought I would give an update...

I caved and shaved.

For those interested in what it would have looked like, calculate the expected amount of gray that appears in a man's beard between the ages of 28 and 31 and sprinkle that into the photo below.

To Beard or Not to Beard?

Inspired by my brother's grizzly beard and curiosity to see how much gray is in mine, I took the long-weekend growth from Thanksgiving and started a winter beard. The problem is that I keep reading in our child development books that Noli will probably develop stranger anxiety sometime soon. This begs two questions: Will she be scared of me once the beard comes in? Will I ever be able to shave the beard once spring rolls around?

Top 5's of 2008

Top 5 Albums:

As a whole, I'm not as excited about my top picks this year as last year. This might have been a down year. Around the middle of the year I reached a saturation point where very little interested me and everything started sounding the same. In the last few weeks I think the pendulum has started to swing again and I'm excited about finding some new music in 2009. On to the list...

5. Jenny Lewis--Acid Tongue: Just got this one but it made the cut for the top 5. The title track is my favorite, but other good songs are "Sing a Song for Them" and "Carpetbaggers" (with a guest from Elvis Costello).

4. Tift Merritt--Another Country: We saw a great show by Tift at Carolina Theatre this year where we were interviewed for a documentary being made about Tift. Look for us in a theatre near you!

3. Joan as Police Woman--To Survive: This album surprised me. It's basically singer-songwriter stuff, kind of jazzy with nice production flourishes. I think I learned to appreciate it listening to it during night feedings. Mel, you would really like this.

2. The Hold Steady--Stay Positive: Even though all of their albums sound the same, I like the sound. Craig Finn's songs tell stories and he has some great lines. I'm a little surprised I like this band as much as I do since most of the topics are about the dark side of rebellious youth, drinking and drug use--you know, a page out of my own book. ;)

1. Cloud Cult--Feel Good Ghosts: I just found this band this year although they've been around a while. This album was written after one of their members died, but is actually very positive in the face of death. I am a sucker for vaguely spiritual anthems of hope, especially when dressed up in busy, orchestral pop.

Top 5 Albums that Need More Listens in 2009:

5. Lambchop--OH (ohio): This is one of those bands that, based on everything I read, I should really like. I've tried some of their earlier albums, but often get bored with the pace. I think a lyric sheet would help for this band.

4. Rosebuds--Life Like: Kind of forgot I got this one a couple of months ago. Not sure I've even made it through one listen yet.

3. Vampire Weekend--Vampire Weekend: This album got lots of hype, but in spite of the high expectations I remember really liking the album. Just didn't sit with it long enough.

2. TV on the Radio--Dear Science: Always a favorite.

1. Elbow--The Seldom Seen Kid: Won the Mercury prize for best album in the the UK. I like it and it's growing on me.

Top 5 Songs:

I've already written about some of the great songs I found this year about being a father. Here are some non-father related songs that I also dug this year.

5. M83--Graveyard Girl: If you need a shot of 80's synth pop but want to stay current.

4. Okkervil River--Singer Songwriter: I loved the portrait of this rich kid born into a family of artists but with no real talent himself.

3. My Morning Jacket--I'm Amazed: As I've already mentioned, I have a soft spot for this song.

2. El P--Up All Night: Great workout song. Around March I went on a rap spree. Wouldn't you know it, half of the stuff I bought turned out to be from white guys. I'm so white I even by rap by white guys.

1. Elbow--Weather to Fly: ahh, falsetto

Top 5 Bands I Gave Up on This Year:

Critics raved, I tried, but nah.

5. The Walkmen--their entry in Popless might draw me back in, but I saw them in concert this year and wasn't that impressed.

4. Portishead--too dark, although on paper I should love everything about this band. Can I put it under "appreciate" but not love?

3. Bon Iver--too slow

2. Shearwater--ditto. Sometimes side projects (Okkervil River) just don't measure up.

1. Animal Collective--not melodic enough

Top 5 Baby Helpers:

Becoming a father this year has been amazing. Here are my Top 5 things to help the transition to parenthood.

5. Miracle blanket--Newborns like to be snuggled tight and this contraption does just that. Think "baby straight jacket" and you've got the idea. But she loved it. We had to stop at about 4 months when she learned to roll from front to back and needed her arms to get her face off the mattress.

4. Sharing night duty--Mon's outlook improved dramatically when we started giving a bottle at night, which meant I (and Mel when she was here) could take the night feedings. Divide and conquer.

3. Feeding schedule--Regardless of where you come down on the "structure" vs. "attachment" debate, a regular 2.5-3 hour feeding schedule is a great idea. It really helped us be able to interpret cries in context because they all sounded the same to us. If we knew when she ate and slept and the state of her diaper we could usually figure out the problem.

2. Happiest Baby on the Block--This guy has a simple set of things to do to calm a baby. The 20 minute DVD is supposed to be good and it would get the point across. We felt empowered that we had something we could do to help when Noli was upset.

1. A happy baby--We have been lucky to have a baby who's default mode is to smile. I'm really not trying to rub it in, but she's the best ... baby ... ever.

It's That Time of Year Again

I got my Paste this week and they had their year-end picks. Voting for top albums is open at All Songs Considered. This week's Sound Opinions is a year in review show.

That's right, it's Top 5 List time!

So get to thinking about your favorite albums of the year. And for the non-music people out there, we always do a top 5 favorite things of the year, which could be anything that's made your life better this year.

I'll probably post mine over the Thanksgiving break.

I'd love to see others' lists, so please leave them in a comment, leave a link to them in a comment, email them to me, or facebook them to me (is that a proper verb now?).

Noli has had a week of firsts, some not so exciting and some a pretty big deal. This week she decided to sleep through the night! We are awfully proud of that one and hope it becomes a standing rule. She also put her own pacifier in, knocked over her first very full drink into Justin's waiting lap and sat up for about one minute. Good on ya, Noli!

Yes We Can?

On Tuesday we elected the first black president of the United States. For me the beauty of the celebration on Tuesday, and for Obama's entire campaign, was that it was not primarily about race. The celebration crossed all lines of race, class and gender. I did not vote for Obama because he was black but because he was the best person for the job. He is intelligent, even-tempered, and eloquent in laying out his vision for the country.

And he is also a powerful symbol of what is possible in this country, even for those that for hundreds of years have been persecuted and discriminated against.

Magnolia will grow up with African Americans as friends, teachers, principals, and as president. I hope these role models will help her to see others as people first, just like her, and the color of their skin second.

However, the Hope represented in the presidential election was tempered by the stark evidence of remaining bigotry in the country in the results of several ballot initiatives prohibiting gay and lesbian couples the right to marry and adopt children. Several similar measures passed in the 2004 election cycle as well. As the mayor of San Francisco pointed out, this is the first time in California's history that the state constitution has been amended to take away rights of its citizens.

I believe this is the civil rights issue of our generation. I sincerely hope that Magnolia's generation will look back at these political results, and similar positions taken by churches, in the same way that we now look back on Jim Crow, segregation, and separate-but-equal, as incomprehensible and embarrassing signs of our recent discriminatory past.

There is always hope.

"In the end, what is called for is nothing more, and nothing less, than what all the world's great religions demand--that we do unto others as we would have them do unto us." Barack Obama

Anniversary

Last weekend, Oct. 12, was the one year anniversary of us finding out we were pregnant. It sounds cliche, but it's amazing what can happen in a year. Bro, you're in for an unforgettable ride.

Here are a couple new photos of Noli. We should be able to get more of her smiling now. She does it all the time.





*Aren't her little tears so sad?

Movie Premiere

Looks like we finally got all the technical kinks worked out. Here's our first video of Noli to share with everyone.

To put everyone at ease, she has an umbilical hernia, which is no big deal, but does make it look like she's got the world's biggest "outie" belly button. And that's not a cough, that's her laugh. :)

Update: Week 14

Noli is up to lots of new stuff. Here's a sampling.

Mon pointed out the other day that she almost always looks to her right. I'm pretty sure this isn't a sign of some developmental problem, but I would like her to grow up to be an ambi-turner.

She's giving lots of smiles, especially in the mornings. She also laughs a cough-like kind of laugh.

Not really reaching for things intentionally, but grabs anything nearby, including her feet. Today I saw each hand grab a foot, up from just the left hand/left foot a couple of days ago.

Drooling.

We're working to figure out how to get our digital video (.dv) edited and uploaded to the blog. We're experiencing technical difficulties right now. Please stay tuned.

The Dismal Science

After Monday's big tank in the markets I thought I'd go back and see what has happened since we first entered the market.

The Dow Jones index as of Sep. 15, 2008: 10,917.51
The Dow Jones index as of Sep. 15, 1999: 10,801.42

That's a return of 1.1%! After inflation, I'm probably behind.

Good grief.

Labor Days Visitors

Noli met some more important people this weekend. Uncle Trog, Mendi and Laura visited for the long weekend. She won them all over.

She also had another checkup this week, including her first shots (ouch!). She handled them well, no lingering effects. She's a wee one: 50th percentile for length, 25th for weight and head circumference. I've already contacted the Chinese gymnastics team--she'll be ready for 2012. :)

Back by popular demand

We are getting request for some more photos of Noli, so here they are. She was 8 weeks yesterday. One change we've noticed this week is that her eyelashes are getting a bit longer. Probably coinciding with her tear ducts starting to produce real tears. Crying takes on a whole new level with real tears.

Phantom Cries

It's as close to a hallucination as I've ever had. It happens on the nights that I'm "on" for the night feed (and soothing). I'll hear a distant cry, sometimes even a wail. But it's all in my head. As soon as focus my attention on my ears I realize it's not real. The biggest thing I use the monitor for is to confirm that she's NOT crying.

This Week in Noli

She's holding her head up really well.

She's finding her hands to suck on my consistently.

She has an umbilical hernia, which as Mon showed me, squeaks when you push on it (eewww).

She's sleeping well during the night but we made a lot of work for ourselves this week by trying to get a nap routine in her crib (instead of the swing). Let's just say she prefers the swing. ;)

Are Guitar Solos Back?

On a run this week I was listening to The Hold Steady's new album when what should I hear but a guitar solo. A real, 1980's power-metal guitar solo. Actually, two songs had them. Is the long-lost art of the guitar solo, lost since Nirvana killed it, back?

Has Guitar Hero had anything to do with this?

Most importantly, is this a good thing?

Evil Album?

After reading and hearing some pretty mediocre reviews and Laura telling me she hated the new album, I thought I'd try and defend My Morning Jacket's new album Evil Urges.

I have to admit I'm probably a little biased. First, once I decide I like a band I tend to give them an extremely long leash. My ears get a little less critical. Second, my first two listens to Evil Urges were during my private morning time with Noli during my paternity leave. In fact, the "Facebook" photos from a couple of posts ago most likely were taken with Evil Urges playing in the background. Let's just say I was in a good place.

Here's my secret to enjoying the album: skip the first 3 songs. Just delete them from your ipod. Two of these songs, Evil Urges and Highly Suspicious, were the first singles I had heard before I got the album. Jim James' Prince impersonation does not work.

But after those tracks, I still think the album is pretty good. The fourth trck, I'm Amazed, might be one of my favorite MMJ songs. (It was probably helped because it followed such an awful song.) Thank You Too! and Sec Walkin both have a smooth, 70's AM radio vibe. In fact, Thank You Too! even has a little Eagles feel to me. Woops, probably shouldn't have included that in a defense of the album, but I have a soft spot for the Eagles thanks to my dad.

Another MMJ favorite of mine is Look at You, a great song for those of us that love Jim James' voice. The chorus reminds me of a church worship song in the best possible way. (Is this the worst defense of an album ever?)

Then there are a few tracks that have that unique MMJ take on southern rock as well (Two Halves, Aluminum Park, and Remnant). I also like all the places that Smokin from Shootin goes.

The album as a whole gets a B-. Ignoring the first 3 tracks, a B+.

Big Week

Week 5 was a big week for Noli.

As far as the government is concerned, she's officially official. We got her social security card in the mail (her first piece of mail ever) and Mon picked up her birth certificate from the courthouse. Ahh, her first forms and paperwork!

We also snagged the only opening at the day care we were looking at. It's very prestigious but her test scores were stellar. ;)

And in this corning, weighing in at 9 lb and 4 oz, at a length of 22 inches, the Battling Belle, the Pretty Pugilist, Baby Boom-Boom... "Steel" Magnolia!

Noli had a great one-month check up on Friday. She was 50th percentile for weight and 75th percentile for length. We're both hoping that ratio keeps up.

Last, but definitely not least, I got my first social smile this morning! Next time I'll have to remember to check for dimples.

Face Book

3 songs

Since I've been home 3 songs have played in my head when looking at my little girl:

Colin Meloy: Weird but Wonderful, specifically the line "It was only me and you that made this three come out of two"

Stevie Wonder: Isn't She Lovely?

The Penguins: Earth Angel

They have come to me and are my sound track for now.

Family Traits

Now that we've had a few days to stare endlessly at Noli, we've started taking credit for some of her physical features. I'm still undecided as to who she most looks like (please vote on the right), but here are some specifics:

Eye color: blue must be from Mon
Hair color: dark, but not as dark as mine--this one goes to Mon
Hairline: Mon, high widow peaks
Cowlick: Justin, she has a swirl on her forehead that might be a nice cowlick
Skin color: Justin, hopefully this will prevent some sunburns in the future
Feet: apparently the big gap between her big toe and rest is mine

Tuft of hair on her lower back: Justin

Sweet Magnolia

Noli arrived on Jun 21, 2008! 7lb 2oz and 21.5 inches long. Everyone is healthy and happy. Mon was truly amazing through the whole labor.

We're having a lot of fun in this honeymoon stage, mostly staring and smiling at each other. I'm having trouble sleeping even when I should be; I'm too excited to be a father.

Here are a few pictures of our new one. We never imagined she would be this beautiful.

The Things You Do For Babies

As we approach 41 weeks of pregnancy, we are pretty ready to get this show on the road. We had false labor about a week ago and it has made me very interested in getting this baby to the other side of my tummy. We have tried all the wives tales and internet possibilities of inducing labor. We have tried taking castor oil twice, yeah that is right, I made Justin take it, it is his baby too. Plus walking, sex, red raspberry leaf tea, eggplant parmesan, acupressure and every other idea anyone has floated our way. Now the standard response is, you just need to relax. What in my whole life history suggests I can do that? Plus it helps to pass the days.

Weekend Update

[Standard preamble] No baby yet. We're not in labor.

Thanks to everyone for the calls and emails. It's great to be loved and cared about. Of course, returning all of the calls and emails might take a while, so be patient (as we're trying to be).

We are all healthy. There's no indication that Noli is getting too big yet. Progress has been good.

We will definitely let everyone know when Noli arrives. Keep watching the blog, facebook, gmail status updates, your email accounts, and your voicemail.

Still hoping for my first Father's Day as a father tomorrow!

Back in the Day

No news yet.

In the meantime, here's a homemade "In the year you were born" letters for Noli:

-It was the heat wave of '08. Over a week straight of 100 degree + temps and our AC went out

-Barrack Obama became the first African-American candidate for president, edging out Hilary Clinton who would have been the first female nominee

-I paid $4 a gallon for gas for the first time (remind me to tell you what gas was sometime)

-Your Uncle Matt and Aunt Mendi just moved into their new house (you know, where your 4 cousins live in Dallas)

-Sex and the City was the number one movie (yes, that's what inspired the Saturday morning cartoon series)

-Death Cab for Cutie's Narrow Stairs was the number one album

-The magnolia trees were blooming

Super Roster

Probably time to take a break from all the baby news. So ...

Here's what I was pondering as I fell asleep last night after a late night of NBA playoffs: What super heroes would make the best basketball players?

Here's the lineup I came up with:

Point guard: The Flash. Assuming his ball handling skills are decent, he could get into the paint pretty easily against most defenders.

2 guard: Spiderman. Apart from being my all-time favorite super hero, his spidey sense would allow him to anticipate and steal almost any pass. His sticky fingers would allow him to grip the ball better. Plus, he can jump out of the building. He'd be the slam dunk competition winner hands down.

3 guard: Gambit. I remember reading a X-Men comic years ago where the team was playing basketball with the rule that you couldn't use special powers. Gambit was so naturally gifted athletically/acrobatically that all of his shots would go in anyway.

Power forward: Nightcrawler. He would be undersized on defense, but his teleporting capabilities would make him unstoppable on offense. He could just pop from the block to the rim for a basket.

Center: Mr. Fantastic. I considered the Hulk here, but decided he'd get in the way on offense. Mr. Fantastic can stretch to block shots as needed.

Coach: Jean Grey. She could send messages to players telepathically and alter the shots of the opponent telekenetically.

What team could challenge this lineup?

For the Children

Your eyes and ears start to notice different things when you're expecting a kid. When we're out we notice pregnant women and like to watch cute kids do cute kid things. Our long wooden stairwell seems a little longer now when I picture Noli at the top. And I'm always perking up when I hear songs for, about, or by kids.

Be warned. Even my beginning forays into this arena have alerted me that there are a lot of ways kids music can go wrong. But sticking with artists I know, I've come across some fun things for us and eventually for Noli.

Music by children

Potentially the most dangerous genre of them all. I've heard of some pretty awful ideas out there, like children singing the Now! That's Music compilations of top 40 songs. But here's one really cool class rap project that samples Jens Lekman.

Music by cool bands for children

I consider this a little safer since I know I like the bands. Here a few promising ideas:

They Might Be Giants "Here Come the 123's"--Chris and Debbie got us this one. They have a few albums geared at kids and this is the newest.

Rockabye Baby! "Lullaby Renditions of U2"--Mel got us this one. Again, I think there are a few of these out there. Haven't listened to it yet. Curious to hear what a lullaby version of Sunday Bloody Sunday sounds like.

Barenaked Ladies "Snack Time"--just heard about this one and might check it out. Isn't great when bands you like get old and have kids too?

Regular songs with parent connection

Actually, a lot of my interest now is more about songs that have to do with being or becoming a parent. Even tangentially. Take these gems that Laura included on Mon's birthday mix this year.

"Knocked Up" Kings of Leon
"The Obvious Child" Paul Simon
"Mama Wolf" Devendra Banhart
"Mama You Sweet" Lucinda Williams

I also found a couple listening to some of my back catalog this week that put a smile on my face :

"Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)" John Lennon
"Goodnight" Rembrandts--great for bed time: "Goodnight my sweet angel. It's time to close your eyes."

But here are my absolute favorites right now.

"Magnolia Mountain" Ryan Adams--the lyrics have nothing to do with parenting whatsoever. But the chorus is good for obvious reasons. It's like when the band inserts the name of your hometown into the concert banter. "Whoo-hoo! He said Magnolia!"

"San Bernadino" The Mountain Goats--Bittersweet song that hit me for two separate reasons. First, the drive they take reminded me of our drive up the California coast in Dec. '05. Second, I love the way he references the roadsign they saw after she gives birth to their new son: "San Bernadino Welcomes You."

"Daughter" Loudon Wainwright III--Brilliant song about having a daughter (and being wrapped around her little finger). Let's just agree to ignore the fact that his daughter had a song about him on her last album called "Bloody Motherf***** ***hole". (I'm not kidding.)

"Wonder" Colin Meloy--So sweet. Must be a little dusty in here, my eyes are tearing up...

FEAR

With the pending birth of our baby, some people seem to think this is a good time to regale me with horror stories of the birth process - as happened to them, their mother, or their aunt twice removed. I'm not sure if the intention is to prepare me for the worst, and therefore seen as a service, or merely a sadistic ploy to illicit panic.
Generally I don't wish to be prepared just in case my baby turns out to have 11 fingers and toes; I'd rather just deal with problems that arise than worry about problems that may not even happen. Guess I only have to deal with this problem for a few more weeks!

The Privledged Few

I have gotten used to a few entitlements that are going to be hard to give up. You see, the larger I get the more sympathy the general public has about my "condition." I have decided not to be ashamed that I use this mercilessly now for certain things. My favorite use of the pregnant belly is trying to cross a parking lot/street. I do this little lean back and rub my rotund tummy and cars will actually slam on their breaks to let me cross. I have tested this theory over and over. Last week I came up to a group waiting for a break in traffic, I arrived, did my maneuver and instantly traffic gave way. People are just so kind when you are pregnant. I've been offered the next place in line and a chair more times than I can count. Generally, I do a nice little "Oh no really I'm fine" which endears people more and they just insist I go first.

Sadly I figured out how often the deference comes into play this weekend when I went to AT&T for a cell phone problem. I had to wait for about 45 minutes which felt really weird. Two factors did play a part, 1) people were really impatient to get their cell phone issue taken care of and 2) there was another pregnant woman there. We don't seem special when we are gathered into a group.

I did get offered one of the only 2 seats in the place. Guess who sat in the other one...

Nature or Nurture? Part 1

As far as we know, Noli is quite an active person. She seems to move all the time. Of course, we don't know how much normal fetuses move. But some have already joked that Noli will take after her mom and be a do-er.

That begs the question, is Noli's personality already set by her genes or will Noli develop a personality as she interacts with us and her world? Don't take the easy answer of "both." Sure that's the right answer, but which do you think has more influence--nature or nurture?

I lean toward nurture. I think the raw materials of personality are there early on, but those raw materials can be used in an almost infinite number of ways depending on the environment.

What do you think?

Coolest Nursery on the Block

It's been a while since a post, but we've been awfully busy lately. Part of what we've been up to is finishing the nursery. Mel came out and painted and brought all of the decorations she'd gotten as our "personal shopper." The room looks fantastic! Just what we wanted. I keep stopping in when I walk by just to look.

I've got a couple more posts in my head as soon as I take some time to write. Keep a look out.

Swaddle Practice

Which Sounds Longer?

2.5 months

10 weeks

70 days?

This is the conversation Mon and I had the other day. Why? That's all the time we have left before the due date! It's starting to feel pretty close. We're already scrambling to re-read all the important parts of the books we read 6 months ago to tell us what to do when she gets here. We are pretty prepared, but are you ever ready for something this big?

Potentialities

We had one of those beautiful moments a few nights ago. Mon sat back against me and we watched Noli move around and poke against Mon's belly.

We're excited about her coming into the world, but at this point, we can actually only be excited about the idea of her. That's one of the great things about babies, your imagination can run free. They have the potential to do anything, to be any kind of person. Will she be an artist, a teacher, an astronaut? Will she find a partner early in life or maybe never marry? A baby's whole life is potential.

Her father, on the other hand, at 30 years (staring at 31) is much less potential. I'm not going to be a poet, a pro basketball player, or an astronaut. In realizing some our potential, making it actuality, we have to let go of other potentialities. And as we get older, the more the balance tips toward actuality and away from potentiality.

I hope Noli realizes her best potential, her potential that will make her life happy and full. And I hope she learns that no matter what her age and no matter what her life experience, she always has the potential for hope, compassion and love.

Workmanship

Oh I've done it again, I've spent my afternoon grumping and griping to a bunch of inanimate objects that I am trying to assembling into the shape of some furniture piece for Magnolia. Following directions, or in the case where we have been given a disassembled something from friends, making up directions is really not my forte. I am not one of those spatial type of people. However, given a baby is arriving in my world, I figure doing frustrating, repetitive and patience draining tasks to be my training ground. Thus I have taken to getting out the tool kit and giving it a go. I have learned that assembly directions are like trick questions so I have to slow down and pay attention. This, I am not used to. I always underestimate the time it will take me to complete the task, the number of tools I will need to do it and the level of frustration I get when attempting the task. So this experiment in some-assembly-required is teaching me to focus on the details in hopes that I am not the mom who locks her keys in the car with the baby when I go into target. Is there a correlation? Guess we’ll find out soon enough.

I am just slightly worried that when we put our tiny infant into the crib, play pin or some other Monika-assembled item it will go crashing directly to the floor. Perhaps I should swaddle Justin and make him try everything out first.