Pass the butt paste.

One of my favorite products we've discovered while tending to Mojo is Boudreaux's Butt Paste. Not because it's a miracle product and our lives have been greatly changed because of it; its the fact that, at a given moment, I can say, "Honey, where's the butt paste?" I can also call people Butt Paste as a nickname. It's fun. Try it!

We've also discovered a great children's CD, They Might be Giants' Here come the ABCs. Though it may be a bit old for Moj, I've really enjoyed the heck out of songs like Who put the Alphabet in Alphabetical Order, and the Alphabet of Nations. They go places Sesame Street never went. Its kinda cool hearing this music from a band that I liked during my High School and College years.

Tonight is Halloween - I have to pick up a pea pod costume from cousin Claire Bear before the end of the day. I hope to post photos tomorrow.

Big weekend.

This weekend, Pat, Kristy and APD came to town and met Mo for the first time. These folks are Kristin's brother and family. Saturday we loaded all the kiddos and took them to JC Penney's for a photo session - all the grand kids with their grandparents - APD, Mojo and the monkeys. We had a reservation for 12:20, but were told when we got there it would be another fifteen minutes. I'm not sure they give these people clocks because I could have sworn the fifteen minutes took an hour and change. The waiting room was a vortex of germs - I guess my OCD is getting the best of me with this germ thing - she's eventually going to get sick. I may as well suck it up and let go a bit.

Anyway, I ran into my brother Joe in the JCP bathroom, he came over and stood with us in the girls clothing department outside the photo studio as we awaited the photo session. It went without a problem and once that was over, we took a stroll down to the food court for some Chik-fillet. It was a mad-house. Mo was ok with it, but it made me antsy to get out of there.

The rest of the weekend was visiting with Kristin's family. Dinner at the in-laws, brunch at our house on Sunday morning, a quick stroll to the middle school field down the road for some Frisbee. We broke up the day with an awkward neighborhood gathering on our street then back to the in-laws. Mo did a ton of smiling and cooing for the grandparents. All in all, it was a nice but tiring weekend. I'll try to write a more exciting entry next time. I promise.

Oh yeah, this is a special message for Betty - click on the word comments below. Type in your comment and make sure you select anonymous before hitting the post button. This should allow you to post comments to the blog. You can sign your name with your message. E-mail me if you have any questions.

Up to date photo.

Photo taken at 6:49 a.m. after 2 oz of Similac, one diaper already changed (1&2). The O'Jays For the Love of Money playing in the background; temperature is 52 degrees with light rain (according the our Local on the Eight.) Kristin is asleep. I have one cup of coffee in me - I am out of espresso, so a half pot of Italian blend will have to do. Thank Allah it's Friday (TAIF?) Sorry about the little political plug in the last entry - I don't want to drive away the two people still reading this blog. I'll work on keeping religious comments out too.
Have a good day everybody.

Observation of the day: the word Blog always comes up as incorrect when spell checking on blogger.com.

A good morning.

We had a good morning. Mo was alert and we were communicating by sticking our tongues out at each other. She smiled more than she ever has. I think she likes me. We also had a big talk about the evils of the Bush administration and how America was duped into going to war in Iraq. I think she understood. She's going to grow to be a great democrat!

I believe Kristin is a bit anxious to get out of the house, but by the time I get home its dark and she doesn't feel like getting out anymore. I believe a trip to Target is in store (no pun intended) for tonight. There are plenty of things we still need to get done around our new house: we need to get and install blinds throughout the house, we need to paint more (at least two more rooms), and we need to get a bigger bed (for starters.) We have a challenge in getting a king sized bed up our narrow staircase, so we've been looking into a latex mattress - with no springs. Apparently you can fold it like a taco, and it doesn't loose its shape. The full bed just isn't cutting it anymore, and we need to have a bed in our guest room, off the baby's room.

We also need to get the house in order because Uncle Dolberry, APD and Kristy (we need a nickname for her) are coming in this weekend. They have not met MoJo yet - we are looking forward to showing her off.

Today I am off to to the race track for the day with the local cable company's advertising department. Its a nice chance to get away from work for the day (and its still considered work!!)

Guest blogger.

Standing for Tim this morning is our guest blogger, Jezebel the cat:

Meow. Mew, meow, yow. Meow.
(Translation: "Someone scatch behind my ear. I'm hungry. I think I'll take a nap...oooh, string!")

Is there a prollem ossifer?

Here's a photo of Maureen after tying one on this weekend. Lesson number one, Long Island Ice Teas may taste really good, but you probably shouldn't drink ten in one night. Boy, was she hurting in the morning.

Autumnal walk.

Mall rat.

Last night was our first trip to the mall; we met Kathy, Scott and the monkeys at California Pizza Company for dinner. They do not allow strollers in the main portion of the restaurant, so we had to park it in their stroller "parking lot". I proudly pushed our Fisher Price Rolls Royce up next to the other Pacers, Dusters, and Novas already there. We are so cutting edge its not even funny. I guarantee all those east end soccer moms left the restaurant and headed to Baby's R Us right away to upgrade their crappy Evenflows. We are the Joneses.

Maureen was a champ through this new experience, in other words, she slept right through it. Kristin surprised the heck out of me as we went to Sears after dinner and we purchased a new 10" miter saw with a laser guide as a belated birthday present. With this new power tool in my hands, nothing will stop me now, except for a severed finger or two.

Last night brought a stressful mess we wont go into right now. It just amazes me what a little baby can produce to thoroughly disgust a grown man. We made it through just fine though.

Latest poop.

Just kidding with the title of this segment. I won't go into that again, for now. No big news to tell right now. Grandma Karen and Grandpa Paul got to visit an alert Maureen yesterday afternoon. I believe this is their first visit where Mo didn't fall asleep. Grandma seemed particularly pleased with the interaction. They brought over some really good smoked pork that Paul made in his new smoker. I'm looking forward to borrowing that bad boy.

Our routine seems to be that I get to take Mo downstairs in the early morning hours before work while Kristin sleeps and/or showers. I like this time together because Mo seems awake and pleasant - she's a morning person like her parents. We usually turn on the Singers and Standards music station on digital cable - Frank Sinatra, Keely Smith, Mel Torme, Dinah Shore and the likes. It seems to calm the both of us down before we start our days.

And speaking of music, MoJo seemed inconsolable last night, so we turned on her new favorite song, Upside Down (Curious George song) by Jack Johnson. She hushed right up, and even smiled as she and her daddy (I) did our monkey dance. The monkey dance is a keeper, I may even try it when her date comes to pick her up for prom in 2024 (groan.) This is not to be confused with the Gorilla Stomp -that's a different dance all together! I'm saving that for the really big tantrum.

The splat heard around the world.

I don't want potty stories to dominate this blog, but I have to tell you that Mo successfully shat on her father twice now. Not only did she do the deed on me last night, but she also hit the wall behind us, nearly four feet away. I have the mixed feeling of disgust and pride! Funny that she hasn't done this to Kristin.

Sans cord.

Today was a landmark day - a two week birthday, the umbilical cord fell off, and Mo and Kristin took their first walk down the street in the stroller. Here are those pics I promised.

Cottage cheese and mustard.

We went to the doctors today and Maureen's weight is on the plus side again. She lost close to one and a half pounds off her birth weight, but is making her way back up. It's been hard judging just how much she has been eating, how much she should be eating, and how much food Kristin is producing. Mo grew a 1/2 inch since the last appointment, her head size has grown, and she is exhibiting all the normal behaviors the doctor listed. The poop is the right color and quantity too. You didn't think I could make it through this blog without mentioning poop, did you? I will try to shoot and post an updated photo tomorrow (of MoJo, not of her poop.) For now, it's back to work.

Two thumbs up.

My daughter is a thumbsucker; we could tell by day one (almost two weeks ago.) We knew Mo had an oral fixation out of the womb, but her brain had a tough time telling her hand, "a little to the left; extend the thumb; now, slowly bring it back." Early result might bring a brushing fist to the mouth, a gouged eyeball, or a scratch down the side of her chubby, little cheek. She would get frustrated and let out a yowl. She still doesn't have it totally down pat - latest efforts involve her whole hand covering her face like Michael Jackson emerging from a courtroom. But for now we happily welcome the thumb-suck; she is learning to console herself. Plus, it's freakin' adorable. It may not be so adorable when she's preparing for her driver's permit test at 16, but we'll bridge that cross when we come to it.

11 days old.

Maureen is 11 days old today and doing well. She is still sleeping quite a bit. We've noticed she's not gaining the weight we expected, so we took a trip to the pediatrician office yesterday to see for sure. She has dropped a few ounces, but nothing to worry about. We are supplementing some formula after her regular feedings to see if that helps, and have upped our next doctor visit to better monitor this minor concern.

Otherwise, we are still doing well and are madly in love with our daughter. We've had a steady stream of visitors this week, including Aunt Chrissy, who missed the birth due to a company meeting out in Cali. Aunt Chrissy and Grandpa Joe were a big help yesterday as they sat with our sleeping beauty while Kristin and I took a much needed nap - together. I think that two-hour nap was the longest time spent together asleep since the birth. It was very refreshing! Grandpa Paul and Granny Karen have also been steady visitors, as well as Aunt Kathy, Aunt Erin, Aunt Mickey, Uncle John, Uncle Joby, Uncle Scott and Cousins Abbey, Gus and Claire.

We are trying out all combinations of nicknames right now, including Mo, MoJo, Moj. My favorite right now is Mojohowitz - a nod to the Barney Miller show. We do not encourage any form of the reen portion of her name (definitely not Reenie!) Mo seems to be the most universally used name so far - we live in a society of convenience! We've already encountered the worst imitations of Curly Howard: Hey Mo, Nyuck, Nyuck, Nyuck!

We just unwrapped a present we received some time ago from our friend Melinda - a Wiggles DVD featuring Steve Irwin, crocodile Hunter and his family - Crikey! Steve seems to be having a lot fun with this sexually ambiguous quartet; little does he know the fate that awaits him. All I want to know is if the Wiggles got their uniforms from the original Star Trek series? I know Mo has no interest in this DVD, but we want to get used to such programming now so we are better prepared (Kristin knows the truth is that I really like the Wiggles. They are quite musical!)

Our cat, Jezebel, is moping around the house now; it's hard being demoted to #2. On the day we brought Mo home, we noticed a small flea problem and immediately whisked Jezebel to the "spa" for four days until she was flea-free. Now that she's back, and notices someone else in her place, she's become very sullen, though very curious about Mo. She seems particularly distressed when Mo cries - it looks like she wants to help, but doesn't quite know how.

This birth has definitely changed all of our lives - it will be a matter of time before we are all used to the new routines.

New gift from my boss.

I lied.

Since I'm up, I thought I'd write another entry and maybe see how long we can keep this thing going. This blog will change from a somewhat self-absorbed information source to a selfish rant about how wonderful our child is. If I were you, this would be the point where I'd stop reading.

Let me start the gushy ball rolling by saying that helping create Mo is my best accomplishment to date. How's that for total new-father babble? I am turning into something I used to detest - but she really is the best baby ever. Here cheeks are chipmunk-chubby, she has a distinct swirl at the start of her hairline, and, for a week-old, she has more expressions than Hugo, the Man of a Thousand Faces (how many of you picked up on that Reference?)

Yesterday was my first day back to the office and it was very tough to get my mind wrapped around getting work done. I had to keep checking e-mailed congratulations, seeing how many "she's adorable"s we collected. When they started to slow, I sent off more e-mails announcing her birth so more people would realize just how wonderful she is. Of course I had to print off some photos of her best poses, and then check the hospital baby site to see how many people commented on her excellence. It was hard to be away from her and from Kristin.

I felt bad that I had to leave Kristin all alone with Mo. I guess we need the salary. The last two nights were still rough, Mo is a night owl; Kristin and I are not. Kristin has been facing the brunt of the long nights because I have to go to work, but I've done a lot of early morning rocking too. Either Mo will get used to our routine, or we will for hers. Each time I look down at her innocent little face, it more than makes up for the loss of sleep.

Well it's way past morning shower time - I'm trying to hold Mo for as long as possible to give Kristin a chance to sleep as long as possible before I have to leave for work.

Now What?

We brought our new little bundle home on Saturday. I'm attaching her photo from the hospital here. According to our pediatrician, she is an exceptional baby - Maureen smiled for him and he said babies usually don't smile for a couple of weeks. Maureen lost 14 ounces off her birth weight, but she has plateaued on the losing and working her way back to her fighting weight. Right now she prefers to sleep through the day, and cry through the night - but she is so sweet it is not an inconvenience (yet.)

This will be the last entry of the blog. We just want to take this time to thank everyone who have helped us with well wishes, happy thoughts and prayers through the marvelous experience. We welcome visitors - Maureen is anxious to meet you.

Introducing Maureen Josephine - "Mojo"

Born October 4, 2006; 10:12 a.m.
8 pounds, 14 ounces
19.5 inches

How'd she do that?

The scene is set.

Mark your calendars, we will have a planned c-section on Wednesday at 9:30 am. The ultrasound, though fuzzy, yielded some important information:

1. She is definitely a she. I would post the ultrasound photo of this, but there are certain laws that forbid me to do so.

2. She's a whopper. The ultrasound estimated 9 pounds, eight ounces. Though these are rough estimates, the doctor did say she is definitely 9 pounds or over.

The ultrasound detected additional liquid, but the doctor was not concerned. She had a huge belly that filled the screen - she's definitely mine!! We will be at the hospital at 7:30 am - 2 hours ahead of time, like taking an international flight. So that knocks one middle name out of contention (sorry Carrie).

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