Back by popular demand...

Elsa was fussy today and not being able to understand her cry (we're using the Dunstan language method), I ran down the list checking her diaper (clean and dry, for once!), the clock (fed her less than an hour before, and she had napped right before that), her clothes (adorable- and not twisted or too tight), and I tried burping her. She wasn't screaming so I knew it wasn't gas so I was at a loss for what the crap her problem was. Jeff said "She's probably just bored." Maybe so?? We haven't really played with her very much because she's just a newborn! I don't know any newborn games. She has been noticeably more alert and interactive the last two weeks though so I pulled out her little IKEA play gym and parked her under it on a soft blanket. She loved it! For two minutes and then started crying, but still. We can play with toys now! Milestones every day I tell ya.

 P.S. The countdown until baby jeggings is on! She gets to start taking her harness off for 8 glorious hours of bathing and pants wearing a day starting next Wednesday!

Too much baby?

Yeah, I know, this is totally turning into a mom blog. The cats arrive on the 10th though!! Elsa will be old news then. Babies will be out and Siamese Wedgeheads will be in! Until then, here is the baby today, 7 weeks old, with a faux-hawk, big girl diapers, and cooing!!

Morning smiles

See!? Told you she smiles.

We figured out that lightly blowing on her face delights her to no end. It's pretty cute, so of course I made a video:

Two Vikings

Jan The Terrible and his niece, Elsa the Destroyer (of diapers). 

**Viking "helmets" crocheted by my awesome pseudo-Valkyrie mom Diana. Thanks Mom!

Indestructibles!

Seth and Godmomma Mandy bought Elsa the cutest and smartest books! I'd never heard of Indestructibles before, but they're pretty genius. They are made of Tyvek but feel like paper and are chew-proof, rip-proof, nontoxic, and 100% washable. Pretty brilliant, right? You can take them anywhere, even bath time! The pictures are so well done and with lots of really saturated and pretty colors. The one that they gave us last night (Frere Jacques) doesn't have any words, so you can make up your own stories to go with the pictures. They also got us Jungle Rumble and this morning I bought Mama and Baby (Karen- you have to see this one!) and Flutter! Fly! because I can already see these books coming very much in handy. Thanks Mandy and Seth!!

6 weeks old

We went for a walk in the big El Dorado park this afternoon and I rode in the back with Elsa. She makes the cutest faces, sticks out her milk tongue, crosses her eyes, and makes funny noises. We had a little photo shoot, and I shot this video of her adorableness:

Otter vase

I pinned this Leif Otter Vase on Pinterest and now I can't stop thinking about it. It's so awesome. And would be perfect with a mini succulent planted in it. Now I just have to trick Jeff into buying it for me.

The elusive smile...

So hard to capture in the wild on film! But she smiled at Jeff two days ago when he was grinning down at her and I think his world exploded. He even got teary eyed over it. Me too, it was a pretty special moment. I can't wait to get more smiles out of her, but for now, here are some of our morning shots:

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

HipstaMart

I really love the Hipstamatic app on my iPhone, despite the name. It takes such cool pictures and was only $1.99. I was lamenting the fact that we only had digital pictures of the baby the other day so imagine my elation when I discovered the HipstaMart on the app, where you can order prints of the pictures!! I was thinking they might come out shitty but I just received our order in the mail yesterday and they look SO GOOD! I got 24 four inch square prints for $9.99 which I don't think is a bad deal at all, especially since you get to select your favorites to be printed (unlike a film camera where you get what you shot, regardless of whether it was a good picture or not). You can get 96 for $34.99 (36 cents a piece for those that suck at math), and you can also get them in seven inch squares, ten inch squares, or a whopping 30 inch square! Oh the possibilities! The printing and shipping were lightening fast too, I ordered them on Monday this week and got them on Thursday in the mail. Not bad for shipping that was only $1.28.

I should be their spokesperson.

The new neighbors!

We hit the awesome neighbor jackpot! The neighbors we had to the left of us recently moved out so Jeff and I have been crossing our fingers all week for a nice family to move in, and our prayers were answered! We met them yesterday and guess what?? WE ALREADY KNEW THEM!! We met several years ago at a tiny restaurant in Long Beach where you're pretty much eating dinner and sharing conversations with everyone around you since you're seated so close together. They were hilarious and super friendly and we had a fun dinner with them. We even became Facebook friends with them but never met up again in person until yesterday! We were all dumbfounded and grinning at our small world luck. Bradford and Donnie are married and they have two awesome dogs and are already planning their new landscaping (including the plants on our property that faces their house! Score!). Every year they are known for their Halloween and Christmas decorations too so we're going to have to step up our game this year.

So now we're surrounded on both sides and in front of us with amazing neighbors. Moving to Wrigley was a good decision. :)

So squishable

I love me some baby toes...

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Still sleeping...

It's 11:00pm and she's still sleeping. Hour 4 of peaceful sleeping baby. Which makes me nervous, because now it's sort of time for us to go to bed, and her falling back asleep like a little angel after nursing after an epic nap is historically unlikely. What to do...? Wake her up to nurse, or wait for her to wake herself up? Oh babies. 

These were from earlier today:

Our friends are the best.

UPS delivered a huge box of baby awesomeness today, from our wonderful friends Joie and Matt. They have two little girls that have gotten chubby enough to outgrow and pass on their baby fashions to Elsa. There are so many cute pieces, I can't wait play dress up with her! We even got a bunch of shoes, including pink baby Uggs, which I never thought I'd like but in mini size they're pretty damn adorable. Whoever has a baby girl next in our friend circle is going to get hooked up! Thanks so much friends!!

Heart --> melt.

So snuggly!

The Bird print is up for sale!

The first edition print is now up for sale at PaperTigerStore.com! We put one of the artist proof prints in Elsa's nursery and it looks gorgeous. They came out so beautifully, all of the tiny details are super clear and the colors are super rich and true to the original piece.

Product Description

Artist: Jeff McMillan

Title: Birds Fly By Flapping Their Wings

Edition Size: 50

Print Size: 24"x36"

Signed and Numbered Edition Giclee Print

Printed on Archival cotton rag fine art paper

More shots. I hope this isn't going to the baby's head...

Happy 1 month birthday baby girl!

Elsa turned the big 3-0 (days) today and her gift was a womb chair. What a lucky baby!!

Karen is quickly becoming our family photographer. She came over today and took 7400 pictures of Elsa, who luckily was awake for a good portion of her photo shoot. She likes being in the straight jacket I sewed for her, even though her little frog legs don't fit in the bottom half. We just wrap that part up between her legs and she's snug as a bug. And can I just say... I love my new womb chair. It's so dang comfy. I need to style that corner up a bit because it's having a severe beige moment, but it will fit in perfectly with the living room when I'm done.

She loves Henry! Until he started poking her in her fat belly. She wasn't too thrilled with that.

I'm still scared of her. But love her to pieces. Happy birthday baby!!

New post on We Like Flowers!

I miss flowers. We need to get crackin' again. Check out the post on the We Like Flowers blog!