Monday, December 10, 2007

4 months.

Eowyn turns 4 months old on Saturday, the day after we arrive in Germany. She had her measurements taken today: 16 pounds 2 ounces (7314.2 grams), 26 3/8 inches (67.3 cm) long. 95th percentile. In unrelated news, Maren was subject to "random" steroid testing over the weekend.

Some people have been wondering who Eowyn looks like the most: Maren or me. We think its Kirsten, Maren's sister (the middle of 3). The first photo Maren is holding Kirsten. The second photo, Kirsten is the dark haired girl. The third, is Maren's Oma holding Kirsten. And fourth, a picture of Eowyn for comparison...but Kirsten's eyes are darker...



...its almost as if 3-year-old Maren was holding her daughter way back in '83....





Wednesday, December 5, 2007

Our Little Mullet Girl

Someone was refusing to take a nap last evening. We'll let you guess who, but we'll give you a hint: she has a mullet, and we won't tell you her name, but the initials belong to Eowyn.

Tuesday, December 4, 2007

New Pics

The Packer Family.





Mommy's more excited about the hair clip than Eowyn...


Eowyn has discovered that she can make the same grunting noise when she's happy as she makes when she's upset.


Daddy & Daughter engrossed in that magic moving picture box thing...



I think Mommy & Daddy are more excited about the sunglasses, but Eowyn LOVES to be outside. (note daddy's fingers trying to prop Eowyn's chin up higher for the photo...)


Monday, December 3, 2007

10-1

The Packers lost, most importantly though, is whether or not Favre will be able to play on Sunday. Yes, they probably lost their chance to play the NFC championship game at home, but here's the thing, the Giants will be #5 seed, they'll beat whatever chump is #4. The 3 seed will beat 6, so the Cowboys will host, and lose to, the Giants. The Packers will beat the 3, and host, and beat the Giants, and then in Super Bowl XLII, defeat the previously unbeaten Patriots. Only problem, is...does that mean Favre rides off into the sunset...

...were you expecting stuff about Eowyn?? Well, the Packers are now 10-1 when she's wearing "the socks." I'm beginning to think that maybe she needs to be wearing the socks AND awake. Its really lousy being superstitious. I think its time to stop, but Maren's addicted too.

Photos of Eowyn later today (I forgot to bring the camera cable to the office with me).

Monday, November 26, 2007

Seasons Greetings from the Records!

Copy & paste the link for much hilarity...

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9609563581

Saturday, November 17, 2007

Celebrating 48 blogs!

We have 48 states. There are 48 flavors at Baskin Robbins. Maren's IQ is 48. Jesus was born in 48 BC. My dad is twice as old as 48 and has 48 hairs on his head. I have 48 teeth. Everyone has 48 fingers and toes. 48 days in every month. Dr. Pepper has 48 flavors. And this is my 48th blog. Coincidence?

So to celebrate the 48th blog, we give you some new pictures. Go. Celebrate. Have fun. And enjoy 48.



...right now we don't have room in our kitchen for a dishwasher....soooooo.....



...Eowyn wondering when she gets her clothes back...



I'm not superstitious...but the Packers are 8-0 when Eowyn wears Packer socks. The one loss included a Halftime bath and no socks once the sleeper was put on.



Eowyn thinks it funny Daddy's pretending to be asleep. Or maybe just gassy.





When Mommy styles the hair...



Pop quiz...how do you make a cool baby cooler???



...add sunglasses.





Whose got big eyes??

Saturday, November 10, 2007

New Videos

Here are brand spankin' new videos!

Er...maybe I should clarify first...there is NO spanking going on here. Just new videos. And "spankin'" in this context is an adjective, not a verb....Yeah.

Enjoy.



Nov 4. Eowyn sucking her thumb, then getting fussy.



Nov 7. Eowyn talking to Mommy.

Thursday, November 8, 2007

Sneak Preview

Tomorrow we get our Mac back from the shop (the hard drive quit and had to be replaced). But we have BIG PLANS for updating the blog this weekend!

First, for those of you who think that Eowyn looks more like me than Maren, wait till we put some side-by-side photos of Maren & her sister as babies up on the site!

Second, we will have a NEW VIDEO up of Eowyn tomorrow night! That's right, folks, TOMORROW NIGHT!

She's been very vocal lately and, like Maren, has a lot to say! We were able to record some of that last night. So I'll again have the ability to upload video and put that on the ole blog.

Eowyn also enjoys a good game of "I'm a big girl and can sit up with Daddy's help" and "I'm a big girl and I can stand with Daddy's help". We hope to catch those on film too.

We are excited, and you should be as well. Bring some popcorn, bring a friend.

In the meanwhile, here's some picture's of Eowyn's Oshkosh B'gosh Halloween outfit (not the costume) that Daddy picked out ALL. BY. HIM. SELF.





Monday, November 5, 2007

All Hallow's Eve

I'm not quite sure, but I don't think Eowyn the Pooh got much out of her first Halloween. First, the students here at ETBU host "Candy Fest" each year, and decorate their dorm halls for Halloween. Each hall has its own theme. I held Eowyn, and Maren held the bucket. But it was a rather warm evening, and Eowyn was wearing a rather warm costume, and that just made her tired. She didn't stay awake too long waiting in line.

Second, she hasn't gotten any candy yet, and she's pretty upset about that. She keeps reminding us there's no way for her to get any cavities since there aren't any teeth yet. We'll see, huh? I kept trying to sneak her some ribs last night, but Maren wouldn't let me.

She's also beginning to drool a lot lately...Maren is praying there aren't any teeth coming too soon.



Friday, November 2, 2007

New Home IV: A New Hope

A short time ago, in a galaxy you also live in...there was a civil war brewing on lots 22 & 23. Evil Galactic trees were bombing the rebel base with their leaves, needles, and limbs in an attempt to discourage Rebel fighters from raking.

During the battle Rebel fighters had stolen plans that would ease the removal of the debris. Rebel fighters called the Power Company to restore tension to the electric cable, and a secret weapon was received from in-laws living in a far off country through smuggled funding disguised as a "Christmas" "gift". This weapon gave the Rebel Alliance...A New Hope.


Tuesday, October 23, 2007

New Home III: Living Room Menace


The university was having a "clearance sale" about 2 weeks ago, getting rid of old furniture. We went over with the theatre in mind, but I found a couch that was in fairly good shape for $1. The support had been broken and it needed some more padding for the back, (which cost about $20). And because I was thinking of using it for the show, they let me have it for free. Its fixed, I decided not to use it for the show, its now in our living room. Now, we haven't hung up many pictures, and in fact we're pretty much just using pre-existing nails on the walls, but here you are...our living room.

Eowyn has been a joy. She can be frustrating at times, what with exploding diapers at 3 am and all. But she's talking to us and smiling a lot. She was even mimicking me bobbing my head "yes" and "no" last night and again this morning. THAT was awesome. I was changing her yesterday morning and stood her up. She surprised me by standing on her own strength for a few seconds. I had my hands for support. Maren got the camera & she did it a second time, though she was giving me her weight as the picture was taken. Anyway, here's some photos of the living room and Eowyn.







These two are going to get in so much trouble together in about a year or two...



...When daddy dresses the baby when its cold in the house.

Monday, October 15, 2007

Eowyn's 2 month checkup

Someone is a big girl. A very big girl. According to doctor office charts, 5 out of 5 doctors would call her big. My aunt Carole would call her "cornfed," but probably not to our faces. I remember when my brother was playing T-ball one very large lad coming up to bat. In her *ahem* sweet, quiet voice, I remember her saying, "THAT BOY'S CORNFED. WELL HE IS!" His parents were in the same bleacher section.

More on Eowyn in a minute.

I had the privilege of seeing my very good friend Andy marry Alicia this weekend. I had the honor of being the best man in the ceremony. It was a whirl-wind trip for me, but well worth it. I had very little sleep and a large amount of fun, and some funny stories about Chad, Rodd, Andy, Chris, Glenn and his son, and John from Friday night. I also got to see my 14-month-old nephew Isaac, who has compensated for smaller birth measurements than his two female cousins. He isn't as cornfed as Eowyn, but he's tall.

Before going to bed last night I called my mom & dad. My dad asked me if Maren had gotten bigger while I was away. I said, "No, in fact she told me she's lost some more weight recently. Why, does she look bigger in her pictures?" I thought it was rude, but this morning I'm wondering if I should have asked if he meant Eowyn instead of Maren, instead of hanging up on him.

So back to Eowyn. She had her measurements and first sets of shots today. Maren said Eowyn screamed and had lots of tears. She said it was the first time she'd heard her cry from pain. However, there was a 7-month old in the waiting room that was smaller than Eowyn, and the nurses & doctor all asked if Eowyn's daddy was an exceptionally big guy, because Eowyn's height & weight are at the top end of the chart. She's now 13 pounds, 4 ounces (6010 grams) and 23 7/8 inches (60.64 cm), and that is in the 95th percentile for her age. We're looking into Early Childhood Sumo Wrestling groups for her.

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Unwelcomed Excitement


Last night after I left home for rehearsal, Maren put Eowyn in her carrier (kind of like a backpack, but in front), put Baylor in her harness and took them for a walk in our neighborhood. A neighbor's Pit Bull was loose, and Maren let the owners know. The dog was wagging his tail & seemed playful, when he suddenly 'snapped' and went after Baylor, putting her on her back and not letting up. A neighbor ran out of her house (without shoes), grabbed a stick & beat the dog off Baylor. Maren called the police, and me, and I left quickly to see how Maren, Eowyn & Baylor were before returning to rehearsal (which had not yet started). The owner promised that, since this was not the first (or second) incident, he was putting the dog down today.

Everyone knows that Maren is a person who loves & protects animals from cruelty. But she said she saw the dog turn from friendliness to aggression with no warning. Took Maren forever last night to fall asleep...as bad as she felt for Baylor, all she could think about was "what if he had grabbed Eowyn's leg?" I hate to think about what that dog could have done so easily to my little girl.

More of Eowyn

Oma had to leave to go back to Germany today. Mommy always takes that pretty hard. And the time always goes by so fast. But we had a great time while she was here.





She helped Mommy by burping Eowyn and getting her to sleep for naps.



Played with her & got her to smile a lot.



Littlist Offenbach Kicker in Texas! Go Kickers!



Eowyn loves her jungle toy that "Uncle Justin" & "Aunt Atalie" gave her! (I know, I know...it was Rufeo's idea...)



And of course, now that we have her room set up, she takes her naps in the cradle!

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

New Home, Part II: A Work in Progress

I promised a while ago that there would be some new pictures on the way of the home and have as yet failed to deliver. Well wait no more!



Here's the front of the house. Its odd because our address is on one street, but the driveway and the front of the house sit on another street. Odd. By the way, that's Baylor laying in the front yard in front of the porch. She loves to just go and sit/lay outside, and she's very protective of Mommy & Eowyn, especially when Daddy's not there...just ask the four guys who've tried to come up looking for odds-n-ends work...

One major project we've decided to wait until spring/summer for is repainting the trim on the house. First, I despise the color. Second, it needs to be done.



One of the unique things in our yard, besides the creek, is this side yard, on the south side of the house (the squirrels from the north side avoid those from the south). If you enlarge the picture you'll see a brick retaining wall. Its actually about a foot tall. On the other side you'll see the top end of a smoker. We have an outdoor brick grill. Then you'll see the brush pile...you may not be able to see it very well, but trust me, its there. Speaking of, if anyone wants to help me clean it out in two weekends....

The tree that is leaning waaaay to the right is at the back of our property. In fact, fortunately, its our neighbors tree, so if it ever falls....



The back side of the house. Not very appealing at the moment. I'd like to get rid of that railing and install a wooden deck. Windows from L-R: Kitchen, door to kitchen, 1/2 bath, full bath.



The Forest. Or what remains. The backyard looked as though it had been avoided for a long time. I wish I'd taken some more photos, but there was a neighbor we didn't know existed until I knocked down all of the bamboo. The shed is in shambles. I don't know if it would be smarter to knock it down or replace the awful flooring. (I can't tell if it was water or termites or both that led to all of the rot.)

You see the bridge in the foreground. It crosses the creek in our backyard. Its close to 6 feet deep in spots, including the bridge.





To give you an idea of how leafy it is back there. Not much grass, mostly a forested floor. A lot of work to do because I'd like to have more grass and less forest. We like the forest, not the poison ivy.