Halloween

I'm a little slow.  I know Halloween was two weeks ago, but I'm just getting around to posting these pictures now.  I could say that I wanted to space out our blogs, and wanted to wait a while after Gena posted the last one, but that would be a lie, I'm just slow.

For Cora's first Halloween, we were invited to join my classmate, Jeff, and his family at their church's "Trunk-or-Treat" chili cook-off.  For those of you who have not heard of this before, it involves backing your vehicle up to the sidewalk around the church, decorating your trunks, and handing out candy to all the kids (and as in our case, the Dads carrying around their babies!).  The chili was delicious, the candy was plentiful, and Cora was my good luck charm in the pie-walk, where we won a peanut butter pie.  Also delicious.  We didn't want to spend money on a costume that would only get worn once, so Gena decided to knit her a pumpkin hat.  So I guess for Cora's first Halloween, she went as a drooley pumpkin head.  Here are a few of our favorite pics from the night.

Marshmallow pictures - Month 3

Another month older, another month cuter.

It is hard to believe that our little Coco is 3 months old now. She's gotten a lot bigger and changed quite a bit. Her motor skills are improving, but her spacial awareness isn't quite there yet:

She follows us with her head and eyes when we move around the room.

She makes a lot of direct eye contact, but she hasn't yet learned to mug for the camera. I think I like it better this way.

She's very expressive. 

She can hold herself up for a long time.

She notices and explores her surroundings.

She drools. A lot.

And she tries to eat things. A lot.

She's learning to use her hands more and more. She's got quite a grip, and it can sometimes be a challenge to get her to let go.

Her hand use also includes bringing things up to her mouth.

Mostly, though, she's just a sweetie who likes to smile and cuddle. 

learning to roll

In case you haven't guessed by my increased post frequency, I had a few days off.  LSU was on fall break for the second half of this week, so I decided to stay home with Cora.  Now for those of you who don't know, this was my very first time staying with her alone for more than a few hours.  I know what you're thinking: "He'll never make it!", "He has no idea what he's getting himself into!", "He doesn't stand a chance!"...trust me, Gena was thinking something along those same lines, I'm sure.  However, I managed to keep her relatively happy (until this afternoon...but I digress), and I was also lucky enough to see her roll over for the first time!  She rolled from belly to back, but was not at all interested in repeating the feat for the rest of the day.  I thought I'd try again today, so I got out the camera early and kept it on for a long, long time, hoping to catch that moment.  Here are the results.  Be sure to click on the button with four diagonal arrows on the bottom right of the video to see it in full screen.

tired of Geoff

It has come to my attention that you are tired of seeing pictures of me.  Our technical staff is aware of this issue, and is working tirelessly to get an update out as soon as possible.  Please check back soon and often, as we hope to have this resolved very soon.  Fore those of you interested in the technical details, here's the problem:  Gena takes lots of pictures.  On the surface there is absolutely nothing wrong with this.  In fact, it's wonderful, as most of the pictures you have enjoyed on this blog have been taken by her.  However, it means most of the pictures of Cora being held are of Cora being held by me!  The first time Gena pointed this out, I took the hint and got to snapping.  Here are a few of the results.

Ok, I'm a smart guy: I can keep our cars running; I can probably still direct a choir; I can even irradiate a thermoluminescent detector, then create the calibration curve necessary to determine the delivered dose, but I apparently can't figure this out!  It's very important to Gena that I include the baby's face, and not cut off Gena's forehead.  I came very close with the last one, but Cora was not very cooperative.  Like the good student I am, I practiced.  

I'll keep working on it, but I hope you are pleased with my progress.  One thing I do better than Gena when it comes to photography is the self-group photo.  These long arms aren't just for getting things off the top shelf!

We had a nice visit with Leta last weekend.  I tried to tell Gena a few weeks ago that I thought Cora looked just like her Nana, but it wasn't until Leta showed up that Gena really saw what I meant.

Yes, that is ice cream...no, we did not let her feed any to Cora...and yes, Leta looked just like that about 10 minutes later.  :)

Separation anxiety

Cora is almost 3 months old and she's really starting to show a lot of personality. Like Geoff and me, she has a very expressive face and can say a lot with just a look. Fortunately for us, the face she makes most is a smiley one.


Yesterday morning was actually a chilly one here in Southern La, and her little lip was trembling! Geoff wrapped her in a blanket and she went to town smiling and trying to eat it.





She's growing like a weed! She's about 24 inches long and weighs about 14 lbs. The 0-3 month clothes aren't going to fit her much longer, and neither is her bassinet.





We're starting to transition her to the crib in her room. She starts the night in her bassinet, and after her 3 am feeding we're moving her to the crib. This morning she slept there until 7 am without making a peep.
Before she was born I looked at this situation in a very detached way, thinking that it's normal and would be nice to get her in her own bed and out of our room. But now that we're actually doing it, I feel a little sad. After having her sleep right by me for a full year, it's strange to move her to a room across the house.