At the time of this post being published (a year ago), 10:11pm, we were blessed with a healthy baby girl.
In that time she's grown quite a bit, talked, walked, crawled, giggled, and been truly amazing. I'm uploading some videos, but I just wanted to share our celebration. Here's us one year apart. And yes, the same tee shirt was worn for effect.
Kacey Highchair Log: Sunday June 22, 2008
I'm shocked that da-da was able to transcribe my log so quickly. I mean, for awhile he was slacking off. I put a lot of thought into what I say, this is a historical record here. Today, I had soup for the first time, although I did mention to mommy that I liked it with a lot of a broth, she didn't listen. It was certainly fun to eat. I did get a lot in my bib though and I played with the bowl.
Daddy Note: I started to get a jump on this log, but never got to finish it. Kacey was a little miffed when I told her that I didn't finish it. But she's so even tempered that she forgave me pretty quickly. But in exciting news, she now says both da-da and ma-ma, so both parents are very happy with our little girl. In no time, we'll have a walking talking little one. I think everyone is just a little scared, but very excited.
Kacey Highchair Log: Monday May 26, 2008
Time flies by, I feel like only months ago, I wasn't even a captain. I guess that is because I wasn't. I still ruled, just not with such style. For those of you wondering, my captain's chair is manufactured by bloombaby. It is very comfortable, good for lounging, but its presence demands the respect I deserve. If only my mommy saw that some of the time. For those other aspiring captains out there, it comes in 8 colors. I command from my orange chair most often, but gramps has a gray one at his house. I didn't upgrade to the leatherette, mommy and daddy would have gotten jealous.
Daddy Note: My little girl is growing up so quickly. Each day she seems to learn something new. She definitely is already exhausting to watch after. She's always wanted to stand up, but now that she can hold onto things and quasi-walk on her own. We realize its only time before the gaps between couches won't be a factor and then the real fun will begin.
Kacey Hichchair Log: Saturday May 17, 2008
I will politely call this my experimentation with foods, but really Mommy just tries and put new stuff in front of me and I eat it because I am hungry and it's fun. Sometimes I like to kickback in the chair. Keep it casual, I mean, I am the Captain and all. The latest thing are these little cereal bits that taste like bananas and are shaped like stars. They are really hard to pick up, but I'm working on it. They get stuck in my hand sometimes, I let Mommy help me when that happens. Every good Captain realizes they are only as good as their crew. Mommy and Daddy are a pretty good crew. I'll keep them around for awhile longer.
Daddy Note: She never ceases to amaze me with her development. She seems to comprehend just about everything that is going on around her. We've been dealing with some PT/OT with her because of some tight thumb muscles and tendons, and within the first few days, there was marked improvement. Hopefully, we won't have to deal with the hand splints much longer, but we're patient. I've been behind in posting the highchair logs and Kacey's been getting on me about it, she doesn't want to let her fans down.
Kacey's Highchair Log: Sunday, April 14, 2008
It's been a little bit since I've updated my log, daddy's been busy and usually he transcribes. The parental units have recently gotten me a new bib, it's a lot harder to get it into my mouth as it doesn't bend. These solid foods were fun for awhile, but now there is so much other things to do and play with that I get bored. Ohh! and mommy tried to sneak sweet potatoes in again. I believe I told her I didn't like sweet potatoes.
I did get an upgrade to the captain's seat... check out my sweet console, I can bang out memos, surf the internet and increase the font size on the screen. And I figured out how to make a clover symbol too!
Daddy Note: Kacey has seemed so uninterested in solid foods lately, focusing on the camera, her bib, or anything else that is going on. We can get her to eat for a little bit, although it seems that feeding her twice a day nets the same amount of solids just split up. We hope that we can gradually get her to eat more at each sitting...
Kacey's Highchair Log: Sunday, March 9, 2008
Once again I find myself at the helm of the USS Parcell. The parental units have finally introduced solid foods. It's not that bad, a funny shaped toy brings drops of milk to my mouth. It is goood. Bottle seems to be missing from the equation. They seem intent to repeat this event. I'll need to keep my guard up for any shenanigans.
Daddy Note: Kacey's general gurgles and goos appear to be getting more eloquent. She smiles when she is speaking and tends to drip as her two teeth (!) have caused more saliva. She loves to chew on her toys and her zerberts pack more of a punch. Feeding her was fantastic, she seemed to take to it pretty naturally, as she has done with so many things it seems.
Kacey's Highchair Log: Sunday, February 24, 2008
I have been given the captain's chair of the USS Parcell, its comfortable and I shall become more used to the power. The parental units will shortly be feeding me a solid substance, I have heard the words "rice cereal" and "gerber" but am uncertain how they will fit in my bottle. Until then, I will continue to explore the unknown.
Daddy notes: The above was translated from a series of gees, goos, zerberts, and giggles. We can only assume that was she was saying.
My little girl is starting to respond to verbal cues and semi-understands what the word kiss means. But my favorite is when she starts zerberting...
Being a father has been amazing thus far (I know its very early on) and our little girl is absolutely fantastic. I look forward to every day with her because something will always be new and exciting and she has the opportunity to be anything she wants to be.
This is where the nature vs. nurture argument might come into play as I believe that Kacey already has her own personality but it is certainly developed by my and my wife's rearing. So here's what I am hoping:
Nothing in the above statement should come as a surprise coming from her father, except for the love of comic books. Other children may join our family and one might even be a boy, but I wanted a girl and I want her to be a little tomboy. And I plan on starting her early on comic books.
Since she has been born, I have been looking into comic books in a different light, looking at the portrayal of women and the values that could be imparted via the stories. She might not understand the artwork for awhile. Some of the all ages books out there look great and I'm excited at what is coming (saving that for its own post!), especially from The Astonish Factory. I even like where Mike Kunkel's head is at with his blog, calling it The Astonish Factory's Center for Babbling & Scribbles (I salute the terminology and goals as a fellow scribbler and occasional babbler).
In the same token, I have been saving a post in my rss aggregator because I thought it was great about Amanda Bynes and her latest movie Sydney White, in which she asked that her character be an avid comic book fan because it would help her relate better to the seven dorks of the story. It turns out that she herself is a fan and grew up reading Archie comic books. Beyond that, Amanda has not had any run-ins with the law, time in rehab, that we know of, is pretty funny and seems like a good role model for girls growing up, unlike many other stars her age, Lindsey, Paris, or Britney. And that is something I want for my daughter.
I think that Vaneta Rogers, the author of the Bynes post wrote a nice piece that gives me hope that Hollywood will continue to produce media that gives out positive messages and that stars like Bynes get more spotlight for their accessibility and right values, plus she reads comic books!
As I started, I have high hopes and aspire to be a good dad that can help Kacey along her way, and that I can find quality helps on the comic book rack, the movie screen, and of course the local bookstore to inspire her to great things.
After almost a week of our little girl, my wife and I are sleep deprived and mildly cranky. I am sure that statement came as a surprise. What! A new parent up all night?
And as much as I would love to have an iPhone to play with, I've gotten something that I couldn't function without right now, the ITZBEEN baby care timer, a simple little pager device with 4 buttons, a backlight, and a "hold" switch.
I don't really recall where we first heard about it (I'm sure my wife saw it and thought it would be good for me) but it has helped make the time pass a little easier. "It's only been 35 minutes since she last fed, let's check the diaper first. If that's not it, I guess it's time to feed her." We haven't mastered what the cries mean, but it has helped us narrow down the possibilities.
While prepping this post, I found an interesting blog that already addressed the ITZBEEN, I'll be visiting it further, maybe there are some other tricks that I need to learn. daddytypes.com They also bring up a great idea for the truly OCD dad/geek (like myself), the ability to track the trends of eating, sleeping, changing, and whatever else you want to track. We haven't figured out that yet.
Although I still don't remember which order the buttons line up on the counter, it's still been a great help come the middle of the night and in the pitch black.
