Happy Birthday, Aaron (the Rock)!

Aaron turned 28 last Friday! We celebrated in Virginia with Coastal Flats for dinner and some homemade Hostess cupcakes for dessert.

I considered making a list of the top 28 reasons Aaron is great, but decided for blog-ability to make a visual instead. I've said before that if I had to pick an advertising slogan to describe Aaron, it would be Chevrolet's "Like a Rock." So for the birthday blog entry, here's a Venn Diagram comparing and contrasting Aaron with a rock. 

Roll, Baby, Roll (and Other Fake Milestones)

We're at the stage now where Caleb is meeting some of his milestones accidentally-- which is almost as exciting as meeting them for real. 

Milestone: Rolls from tummy to back (and off play area)

What really happened: Caleb got a little top heavy and unbalanced during tummy time and toppled over. 

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Milestone: Reaches for and grasps objects

What really happened: While swinging his arms about in his usual spastic fashion, Caleb's hands connected with the rings on his "gym."

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Milestone: Squeals in delight

What really happened: Caleb does this thing where he occasionally pants with pitch. Serendipitous timing with a smile = fake laughter. In the interest of full disclosure, he wasn't actually doing the laughing thing in this picture-- I wasn't able to capture that one on film. However, I believe the swanky angle of his beanie should make up for that.

It's All About Family

This past week was an amazing breath of fresh air and reminder of what life is really all about. After working 100-130 hour weeks for several straight weeks, Aaron took a week off of paternity leave that he had saved for when his family came to visit for Caleb's baby blessing (Aaron did a wonderful job). Both sets of grandparents came out and got to spend time with our little guy (aKa Mr. Chunkers). Spending time with the people we love reminded us of how in the end, family is what life is all about, and not much else really matters.

We are so grateful to know that we can be a family forever and that not even death can separate us.

After Caleb's blessing

With Grandma and Grandpa Purcell

With Grandma and Grandpa Inouye

Caleb's first trip to the beach (Half Moon Bay)

Sucking away

Happy boy in his blessing outfit (thanks, Grandma Purcell!)

Just hanging out with Dad

With Grandpa Inouye, sporting some Christmas socks

With Grandma Inouye

Our Little Monster

Little Caleb didn't go trick or treating, but we did put him in a little costume. The original idea was to swaddle him in a reflective emergency blanket so he could be a Chipotle burrito, but as it was just me, Caleb, and my mom at home to see him that day, it didn't really seem worth the effort. It's crazy to think that by his next Halloween he'll be walking!

 

And in case you were wondering, yes, I do still dress him in this in a regular basis.

First Bath

Caleb had his first bath a couple of weeks ago, and he actually seemed to enjoy (or at least tolerate) it pretty well.

Getting to Know You

"One day you will find that you have stopped regarding your baby as an unpredictable and therefore rather alarming novelty, and have begun instead to think of him as a person with tastes, preferences, and characteristics of his own."
- Penelope Leach, Your Baby & Child

For as exciting and wonderful as having a baby is, I have to admit I was wholly unprepared for how stressful and exhausting the first couple of weeks would be. But, finally, I feel like I am in "the baby groove," and my baby is my little buddy. I've learned a lot about Caleb and myself in the past month.

1. I really don't need eight hours of sleep. It turns out I can function just as well on three if I spend at least another ten in a state of mental vegetation while feeding/holding Caleb and watching TV shows on Netflix.
2. Caleb has a "done face" when he's full. He pulls his head up, closes his eyes, wrinkles his forehead, and purses his lips. He makes this face every single time he's done feeding if he's satisfied.
3. Caleb's happiness at this point really has two primary drivers-- food and clean diapers. He seems to tolerate almost anything (being changed, having blood drawn, getting a bath), as long as these two needs are filled.
4. Caleb loves having his head petted, for lack of a better word. I don't know what it is about this, but it seems to sooth him.

Hanging out with Dad

Oh, the Humanity!

Waving to the Camera

Sleeping on Mom

"On" with Caleb

Caleb came pre-programmed with four settings: On (alert), Off/Charging (asleep), Standby (blank stare), and Impending Doom Alert (hysterical crying). Clearly, my favorite setting is "On," (although "Off" has also become a personal favorite of mine during nighttime hours).

"On" is when he opens up his eyes wide and stares around with this expression of absolute wonder as if to say, "What planet am I on, anyway?" It's fun to stare into his little face and see him stare right back at you. And true to the hundreds of five-star reviews on Amazon.com, he also love to stare at his little book with black and white pictures. Too bad "On" only lasts for about a half-hour a day. 

Welcome Baby Caleb!

Caleb Inouye Purcell
Born 8:53 PM
October 13, 2011
7 pounds 3 ounces
19.5 inches

Let Life Begin

Not to be too dramatic, but I got my life back yesterday. And I have to say, it feels pretty good. A lot of people know about the April 15th tax deadline-- but that really means nothing in our office where I work exclusively on large corporations. For us, September 15th* is the day of liberation. And being "about ready to pop," as one woman put it when she thought I was out of earshot (I'm pregnant, not deaf, people), I was EXTREMELY ready for this day**.

I already feel order coming back into my life, and you know how I like order. I like it even better when it's organized in Excel, so I decided to make a list of all the things I'd like to get done before little Caleb gets here, because getting tasks done is really so much more rewarding when you can cross them off a list.

And considering this (below) is the current state of Caleb's nursery (sadly a vast improvement over where it was a few months ago), it looks like I have a lot of doing and crossing off to do.

*For those of you who like background, September 15th is the extended deadline for corporations. Corporate tax returns are due 2.5 months after year-end, which for calendar-year corporations is March 15th. All of my clients use the six-month extension to file their tax returns (also available to individuals-- but before you get too excited, it is only an extension of time to file the tax return, not pay the tax due). Thus, September 15th.


**I am also very ready for September 22nd, which is my last day of work before maternity leave.

The Pregnant Posse

We took this picture at church because all of us are due within the next three months. Since all of us are getting progressively less mobile, what better time than this Friday to "do" a 5K? My friend, Becca, the organizer, made our shirts, and they are awesome (see evidence of awesomeness below).





Improved Logo



Actual Logo

Even though we're just walking, I count this as my first race since my last one before I stopped running after college, which was,  ironically, a full marathon. I'm already excited to get back into running post-baby. I plan on walking a lot right after, and have my jogging stroller already to go once Caleb is old enough to ride in it. I know it's probably overly optimistic to think that I'll suddenly be a lot better about certain things after I'm a mom, but I plan on doing a lot of things better after October 25 (or at least a couple months after that). Here's just a sample so you can hold me accountable, or rub it in my face when I don't follow through:

Post-Baby Goals

• Send birthday presents to people earlier (this is actually very doable since Aaron and I are historically three to five months late for every birthday in our families-- we have set a very low standard to surpass).
• Exercise everyday (I plan on walking to Aaron's office every day so he can see Caleb, in addition to starting to run again eventually).
• Eat more vegetables (some of my goals are very similar to the goals my mom had for me at age six).
• Blog more frequently (again, very low expectations to exceed).
• Keep our apartment cleaner.
• Take more pictures (from what I've seen, this comes naturally with having a baby).

25 Weeks (almost) and Counting

I think updating a blog gets harder the more sporadic you are about updating. And I have definitely been sporadic.

Since I've posted, our little guy has grown from the size of a lime to the size of [insert name of footlong fruit or vegetable here]. And you can tell from looking at me. I'm currently 25 weeks pregnant, which since I don't like quoting months pregnant* (I like to get credit for every week I've been through), is about 62.5 percent of the way through the whole process for those of you for whom number of weeks pregnant are meaningless. It is going by FAST. But even so, I am still impatient.

*But if you must have it in months, I'd call it six.

lip, ap, and bp (that's Baby Purcell)

 

ETA: October 25, 2011

Monopoly Whiz

"I always play Junior Monopoly with my mom. I always win."

I ran across this photograph of this picture I had drawn in kindergarten today. Though it's pretty obvious my mom was letting me win, I had never realized it until today, when I read what I had written.

So here's a long overdue thank you to my mom for taking one for the team and building my self-esteem. I thought I was the Junior Monopoly Whiz.