Thursday, May 25, 2006

Ancient Chinese Secret

Katherine and Caroline love to play with laundry.

It's probably the warmth of the clothes as they are freshly removed from the dryer, but anytime we bring a load of laundry in from the dryer, the girls will literally jump into the laundry basket and begin to toss around the warm clothes.

Nothing Like the Smell of Fresh Laundry!
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In fact, the laundry basket and a fresh pile of clothes have become our ally in keeping the girls happy. Besides, it makes a great excuse to not fold laundry! After all, we want to keep our girls happy, right?

I know it's probably not politically correct, but whenever I see the girls playing in the laundry basket, I think back to that old 70's Calgon commercial, and think to myself: "Ancient Chinese secret, huh?"

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, you're either too young to be reading this blog, or you watched far too little television in the late 1970's and early 1980's!

The Girls and Their Laundry
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We need more Calgon!
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Saturday, May 20, 2006

Lazy Saturday Morning

The girls have been eating solids for quite a while now, and each week we introduce them to new foods.

Besides quite a range of baby food, the girls are also eating: tofu, chicken, cheese, toast, ripe bananas -- anything that can be made into small, soft pieces.

Sometimes, feeding the girls can be a chore, as they have become quite particular at knowing what they do and do not want to eat.

This morning, however, was not one of those times.

The girls ate their breakfast without complaint, and at such a leisurely pace, they even allowed Daddy time to read the Saturday morning paper.

The girls, of course, wanted a bit of the paper for themselves, so we spent a lazy 15 minutes reading the paper together.

I can't think of a better Saturday morning, can you?

Enjoying the Saturday Morning Paper
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Monday, May 15, 2006

I Love The Smell Of Urine In The Morning

It is 3:26 a.m.

Katherine woke up crying, and I jumped out of bed to give her a bottle.

While getting her bottle ready, I was holding Katherine, and notice she started to squirm around quite a bit.

Being more than half asleep, I ignored her for the most part.

But then I had the vague sensation of my shirt being wet.

Still being half asleep, I figured some water from the sink had splashed on me.

Then I had notice the smell of urine.

It was getting stronger with every second.

Still being half asleep, I did what seems unfanthomable to those fully awake.

I pretended I didn't smell anything. Denial is wonderful at 3:26 a.m.

I proceeded to feed Katherine, while in my head, the thought kept repeating itself over and over again in my head -- "Boy, it sure smells funny in this room. Did I spill some milk on the couch earlier today?"

Luckily, as I began to wake up while Katherine was feeding, it slowly dawned on me . . .

"Hm . . . wet shirt + smell of urine = Katherine's diaper must have just leaked on me!"

I changed Katherine's diaper, Katherine's PJ's, and Daddy's shirt.

I never claimed to be a rocket scientist at 3:26 a.m.!

Thursday, May 11, 2006

Very Pleased To Meet You!

It's continues to amaze me how the girls continue to develop unique personalities of their own at nine months of age.

The girls are learning new things practically every day now. They are also beginning to show signs of learning routines and habits.

One of my favorite routines as their Dad is my "home from work" greeting for Katherine.

Caroline will generally smile at me when I come home from work on the days where they stay at home with Terri, but Katherine and I are much more formal with each other.

When I come home, I will go up to Katherine, hold out my right hand, and state, "Pleased to me you, I'm Daddy. How are you?"

Katherine will respond by taking my right hand with her right hand and wait for me to shake it.

Once I begin to shake her hand, she will place her left hand on top of my hand to give me what I call the "two-handed politician shake."

The great thing is that Katherine will look me in the eye while I am shaking her hand, not smiling, but maintaining eye-contact with me. Only after I stop shaking her hand will she burst out laughing.

I LOVE this age!

Katherine Practicing Her Two-Handed Handshake.
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The girls had their nine month check up last week.

Caroline is now 14 pounds 14 ounces, and 27 1/2" long.

Katherine is 16 pounds 5 ounces, and 27 7/8" long.

Caroline was fighting a cold and ear infection the past two weeks, so wasn't eating as much. But this week she's feeling fine and making up for lost time. Last night she drank 12 ounces of formula in a two hour period. Her usual is 4-5 ounces ever 3-4 hours!

Sunday, May 07, 2006

Miracle Naps!

We had a minor miracle this weekend.

Terri worked both days this weekend, so I was alone with the girls during the day.

On Saturday, both girls took an afternoon nap for two and half hours at the SAME TIME.

Today, the girls took another nap for one and a half hours, again at the SAME TIME.

I could have used that time to clean up the house, pay bills, etc.

What do you think I did?

That's right -- I napped. It was beautiful!

Thursday, May 04, 2006

The Tortoise and the Hare

"Slow and Steady Wins the Race"
- Aesops Fables

In our house, we have a Tortoise and a Hare.

The first time I saw the Tortoise and the Hare racing in our house, I was sitting on the floor in the girls room, watching them play.

I try to give them "alone" time where I watch them, but stay out of their way. The baby books say it's a good way to help babies develop independence. I think it's a great excuse for Daddy to slack off a bit -- but I digress.

The girls were playing with these little colored plastic balls -- the ones that come with this "Pound-a-Ball toy:



The little plastic balls are perfect for the girls because they can grip them in their hands but still crawl around while holding them.

However, instead of using the balls as intended -- to pound into the toy with a hammer, the girls have developed their own game of holding the balls, crawling into the hallway just outside their room, and then banging the balls onto our hardwood floors in the hallways, creating large echos throughout the house, and no end of laughter from the girls.

On this particular day, however, the ball slipped out of Caroline's hands and went rolling down the hallway.

Both girls immediately gave chase.

It was then I realized that the Tortoise and the Hare were channeling through my girls.

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THE TORTOISE


Katherine moved down the hallway as she always has crawled -- on her stomach.

Katherine crawls on her stomach.

She has never moved on her hands and knees.

Instead, she crawls by lifting her little butt into the air, then pushing off with both feet, like a caterpillar.

What is funny is that she started crawling a good month earlier than Caroline, but never saw the need to get up onto her knees.

It's a slow, deliberate pace, but it gets her where she's going.

The Tortoise
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THE HARE

Caroline is the hare.

She waited a full month longer than her sister to begin crawling, but once she got up and moved, she really moved!

Caroline crawls on her hands and knees, and once she makes up her mind to go somewhere, no one and nothing will stand in her way.

The HARE
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On this day, as both girls raced down the hall, there was no doubt who was going to win the race.

Katherine moved slowly and steadily, but she was no match for Caroline, who zipped past the Tortoise and cruised up to the plastic ball a good body-length ahead of Katherine.

Luckily, Katherine is an easy-going baby, and didn't seem to mind being beaten to the toy.

I, of course, laughed until I cried.

Since that day, I've seen the race replayed numerous times, and Caroline always beats Katherine to whatever toy they are racing to.

Lest you think that Katherine is developing a complex, however, you should know that Caroline's grip is not as good as Katherine's, so although Caroline will beat Katherine to the toy, she will often have trouble grasping the toy, allowing Katherine time to close the gap, and snatch the toy out from under Caroline's nose.

I keep trying to catch one of these races on video, but haven't had any luck yet. But it is fun to watch!

Monday, May 01, 2006

The Newest Superfriend

Growing up, one of my favorite cartoons was the "Superfriends". I loved the adventures of Batman & Robin, Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and Wendy, Marvin, and Wonderdog.

(And "YES", I enjoyed the cartoon well before those silly "Wonder Twins" -- Zan and Jayna -- stole the thunder from Wendy, Marvin and Wonder Dog).

The original Superfriends!


So I was very proud and excited when Caroline manifested her superpowers a few months ago. I am even more excited as Caroline's powers have continued to develop over the past few weeks.

I present to you: WAKE-UP GIRL!


WAKE-UP GIRL

Primary Power: Able to cry at the exact moment Daddy's head hits the pillow of his bed.

No matter what time of night, Wake-Up Girl always times her cries to coincide with Daddy getting in bed, laying down, and pulling the covers over himself. Go to bed early? Wake-Up Girl will start crying at 9:01 p.m. Stay up late working? No problem. Wake-Up Girl will sleep quietly until Daddy's tired head hits the pillow at 2:01 a.m., then begin a full-throated assault on the senses.

Secondary Power: Able to project guilt over incredible distances.

No matter how long Daddy and Mommy try to resist the siren call of Wake-Up Girl, she will persist in her cries until someone comes to get her. Especially powerful is the "sobbing/choking" cry, which (despite eight months of it), gets Daddy to run frantically down the hall, "convinced" that Wake-Up Girl might be choking. Invariably, Wake-Up Girl laughs up at Daddy when Daddy arrives at the crib after having tripped/stubbed his toe/banged his knee while coming down the hallway.


Secret Identity: Caroline Lim

Lives her secret identity as a quiet suburban baby along with her twin sister and fellow superhero, Katherine (aka, "CAPTAIN CHEESE" -- another story for another blog).


Wake-Up Girl: Waiting for Her Moment to Strike!