Cutest Penguin Ever

Happy Halloween, everyone!

Aurora Smackerella Penguin

I occasionally get emails from The Picture People, a mall photography "studio" where people take their children to be photographed for cheap.

I decided to take Smacky for a quick session to record her first Halloween and we got some passable shots of Miss Penguin and some really nice shots with her smiling. Such a genial baby!

Once I figure out how to save my scans from my new scanner, I'll post some photos. Until now you'll just have to think about Smacky sucking on her bowtie as she waits to get her picture taken.

Keep Smiling

Smacky and I have been making the most of our last days together before I go back to work. Tonight we had a fun bath with strawberry soap, floating, and swimming (practically!). I even managed to keep her from crying when the shower curtain fell down. Phew!

Today we went for a walk down Hawthorne to do a few errands, and in the morning we went to babies R us for diapering supplies with Granny.

Here is smacky lying across my chest on the couch, the place that we sit for pumping and noshing. Basically, the baby kitchen. Last week we had some work started on the house which left 3-4 inch holes surrounding the back door- brrr! The weather is in the 60s this week and today our handyman sprayed insulation into the cracks so smacky didn't have to wear her snowman fleece like in this picture.

Red Haired Smack

Just so I have evidence that I, a brown haired, brown-eyed, half Japanese woman had a baby with red hair, I took a photo.

Yes, it's the back of her head, but you've seen the top- she's bald!

And you can see her birthmark, too. I thought it was a scar from the internal monitoring device they used during her birth, but my midwife told me otherwise.

Logistics

Is that toy too close, do you think?

Smacky's Motto: Be Prepared

Smacky was ready for her soup in this shot, giving a shout-out to SF and prepared for the inevitable spills with a handy napkin. (Which didn't do the photograph any good but it saved her ducky onesie.)

Swedish Sock Massage

Smacky had the opportunity to get one of those relaxing sock massages when we were in the bay area, so of course she took it.


I'm not sure, but I think it was even better than a deep tissue massage, which is my favorite.

Ah, the relaxing power of socks. (Gold Toe, even!)

Too Hot, Mommy!

It's gotten down into the low fifties at night lately, but probably not cold enough during the day to warrant this cozy snowsuit.

Smacky lay on the pillow as I carried in the groceries this afternoon, too swaddled, as you can see, to move.

Smacky Rides Bart

Smacky and I traveled yesterday to the mission district of San Francisco, over elevated platforms and through tunnels, up and down elevators and ending with her strapped to my chest and me carrying the stroller up a flight of stairs. (That stroller's heavy!) The BART (bay area rapid transit) is very organized, although if you don't know what you're doing, you could end up going the wrong way on the wrong train and almost being late for dinner.

Here is a photo of Aurora trying to suck her thumb on the BART headed to Oakland, which is the opposite of where we wanted to go. Luckily I realized in time and we got back on a train going the other way to Berkeley. Whew! Smacky did cry when she thought we were lost but got over it quickly.

Even Babies Love Hotels

Well, life in California is similar to life in Oregon for babies- drink milk, have a bath, kick and punch the air for a few minutes and eventually pass out.

Smacky was so good at Tabitha and Laurie's wedding yesterday. It was held on a terrace at a place called the Brazil Room on a mountain in Berkeley, and it was very chilly. Smacky can't wear a jacket when she is in the baby bjorn carrier, so I piled blankets on top and breathed on her head to keep her warm. After the ceremony, she spent dinner strapped to my chest, drinking milk and dozing. Then dancing and music started. The music was too loud to sleep, she said, so we waited until the cakes were served (7 different cakes- delicious!) and then headed back to the hotel.

Smacky didn't get to sleep until after 11pm- such a late night for a baby! Here she is taking a nap yesterday afternoon in anticipation of the night's festivities.

Let's Sail

Here is the most dreaded foe in America- Milkbeard the Pirate. Y'aaaar.

Here she is in the American Grill at our hotel yesterday. Isn't she tough? Her fist is approaching the camera with a quickness. Duck!

Remote Baby

I'm blogging from Emeryville, California tonight. Smacky is asleep on the bed upstairs and my mom is keeping a watchful eye on her as she reads her magazine.

We're in the bay area for my best friend's wedding, which I'm sure will be more fun than the movie of the same name.

Congratulations, Tabitha and Laurie!

This was Smacky's first plane ride, and she did a great job. She slept for most of it, only cried for a tiny bit twice (once I caught her leg in the carrier- ow!) and had a good time with Granny. Tomorrow we might explore the city and check out Chinatown and Fisherman's Wharf.

I'd better get back to the room- my snacks are calling!

Sleep, my Pretty!

Yikes! My baby's favorite way to fall asleep is with the bottle. I wonder if that's something babies can outgrow before they ruin their teeth, or only after?

Any advice, parents? It's like a magic elixir to get her to sleep, as shown here.

Not the Eyes!

I tried to capture Smacky's cross-eyed look here but the angle was wrong. I keep telling her that her eyes are going to stay that way (really it's just a fear, not a threat), but she persists.

Come on, eyes, get organized!

(My brother is hiding in the background- can you see part of his face?)

Dimly Lit Dim Sum

Whoops, maybe the baby isn't ready for a front-facing carrier yet. Either that or she really likes the tiled ceiling.

Baby Suave

How YOU doin?

The Power of Breastmilk

We brought Aurora home from the hospital when she was three days old, verbally wrestling her from the overly-helpful people at the Doernbecher Neonatal Care Center at OHSU. (Gary did that part.)

Hours after we arrived, after Gary convinced the on-call doctor that she WOULD get enough to eat and that we wouldn't inadvertently kill her with our bad parenting skills, we gently placed her in her carseat and buckled her in. Her little 5 pound, 12 ounce body was too small and the straps were loose. Too loose to leave, our nurse said regretfully.

So I drove to Babies R Us, anticipating having to buy a brand new carseat especially for preemies, which was a different brand from our hand-me-down one and which wouldn't fit either of our strollers or the two extra bases we had bought. Damnation!

Just as I was at the checkstand with two new carseats, Gary called. "The nurse who knows all about carseats found another adjustment and she fits now! Come back and let's take her home!"

I sped back downtown and up the hill and we gave Aurora her first car ride on that warm July day. Look how spindly her little arms were! (Above) She still had the wires from her monitoring devices on, too.

Yesterday (7 pounds later, right), I took this shot of her in her carseat, napping contentedly. What a good grower she is.