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Trouper-baby

trooper
Originally uploaded by telfandrea.

Cate and I had such a long day yesterday - nearly a twelve hour day for three hours of flying - but we're here in Richland safely. Due to a fuel issue we missed our connecting flight into Pasco but thankfully got the last seat on the next one. Cate did really well for the most part but it's not something we want to repeat... She is anticipating the arrival of her cousins later this afternoon!

Current Obsessions

boots!
Originally uploaded by telfandrea.

Behold my Valentine's Present from Telfer. I have wanted these boots FOREVER and since we are moving to NYC and after that, the rainiest place on earth, Telfer took pity and bought them for me. I decided on green, even though it makes me look I work for the forest service. But then I decided it was okay as my Grandpa Carroll worked for the forest service and I subsequently love Smokey the Bear. If you need me to sing you the Smokey the Bear song, call and I will do so. 

Orla Kiely at Target! I love her bags but so far have been too cheap to buy one, Target is so much more my price range. I bought the vase and a storage container for Cate's room.

And in case you're like me and mourning the loss of my two favorite magazines, Cottage Living and Domino, here are my favorite home-ish blogs:

Making it Lovely | Oh Happy Day | Apartment Therapy | Not Martha | Dooce.com (not home design per se) 

Also: Cate and I are preparing to head up to Richland tomorrow for a whole week! I am so excited - we are going to celebrate Alyssa's birthday, Elizabeth's new job, Jamie Willis' baby, and my parent's new family room! Pray for good flights tomorrow...

Four Month Stats

the fame look 3
Originally uploaded by telfandrea.

Cate had her four-month pediatric appointment last Friday (don't do the math - more like 4.5 months). She still doesn't like getting vaccinations. What's the deal?

The girl is an even two feet long, has a normal head size, and weighs over 15 pounds. I don't want to make her insecure later, but yes, this puts her in the 90th percentile for her weight...shhh! Chubby babies are so much cuter!

Pillow talk

Even though we have had our bad nights, or series of bad nights (and I always seem to write about those!), for the most part, Cate is a great sleeper. Dr. Weissbluth would be so proud - this book is my sleep bible. I seriously read about six sleep books while pregnant, and this one is by far my favorite. 

I love how passionate and angry and self-righteous and slightly ridiculous parents can be about their approaches to sleep. It's so interesting. I swear, you bring up sleep theories in a room full of parents, and it can go from friendly to freezing in about two seconds. There's the baby-wisers and the co-sleepers and everything in between. There's the parents who have no schedule and then there's the parents that can't think beyond their schedule. You can probably guess where I fall on that last continuum, although I consciously try to be somewhat flexible...

Here's our theoretical schedule:

6:30-7:00 a.m. - wake up!

8:15-10:00 a.m. - morning nap

1:15-4:00 p.m. - afternoon nap

6:30 p.m. - bedtime

1:00-3:00 a.m. - wake up to eat

Any thoughts on all things sleep? 

Maybe next year

eating her v-day card
Originally uploaded by telfandrea.

Cate doesn't seem to quite get the whole greeting card concept. Happy late Valentine's Day!

We spent the long weekend out in Rancho Mirage (Telfer attended an anesthesia conference). Turns out, spending the weekend in a fancy resort with a baby is not quite as relaxing as it used to be! We still had fun but I must admit, we were both a bit happy to come home...

Chubawaba

chubawaba
Originally uploaded by telfandrea.

We're having a pretty good week around here, besides the fact that Cate thinks 5:00 a.m. is an acceptable time to wake up for the day. Last night, after much discussion, we staged an intervention which basically amounted to (for you more sensitive ones out there, cover your eyes) letting her cry it out a bit. She "slept" off and on until 6:45. I seriously obsess about all things sleep now.

Mostly don't have much to say but thought this picture should be on the front page of our blog because the baby is cute and chubby - a devastating combination.

Rainy Day

bee mine
Originally uploaded by telfandrea.

It's been rainy and quiet here the last few days. We took advantage of a brief respite to go on a family walk on which Telfer and I had coffee, split a donut and then had a carne asada taco from our favorite taco stand. Now that's a walk worth going on!

Cate is still taking her afternoon nap and we are in the midst of normal Saturday projects: cleaning, laundry, going through mail, filing papers, etc. Just nice to be home together. Telfer has to work tonight, but still.

What else? I bought an airline ticket today to Pasco (love those frequent flyer miles) to visit parents, sisters, and nieces for a whole week at the end of February/beginning of March. And what else? Oh, just a little excited by this news. Once you are a parent, you want everyone to be one too!

Smile captured on iPhone

an actual smile!
Originally uploaded by telfandrea.

This is a doubly rare occasion. A blog post from/by Telfer and one of Cate's wonderful smiles caught on "film". She smiles so often - but if we get out the camera or hold up a camera phone she immediately gets kinda serious and looks straight at it like: "what's that and what are you doing with it and why are you pointing it in my direction?" Pretty funny. Pretty cute.