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