Feeding Machine!

The science of paleontology tells us that several million years ago there lived a giant shark, over 50 feet long, 35 tons of eating, feeding, teeth-filled muscle. Today, a new father tells us that there lives a little girl, over 2 feet tall, perhaps 13 lbs. of eating, feeding, gum-filled cheeky jowls...devouring all the rice cereal her parents can shovel into her mouth (assuming we're able to push it past the tongue she keeps sticking out at us).

Here are a few pictures of her enjoying, yes I think actually enjoying, her most recent introduction to our world - warm grown-up food. If you look closely off to the side, you can just make out her parents' dread of the stinky diapers they know are just around the corner.

It's clear she enjoys the food - she inhaled each tiny spoonful; and when her mummy wasn't getting it out of the bowl and into the same area code of her mouth, where she practically lunged for it, she'd start complaining.

Hope to get some video of it soon for later, riveting viewing.

Caroline Turns Four (months...)

Awright, my co-workers have shamed me into adding to this. Not that I didn't want to put up anything, mind you, but as I know they'll attest - a baby is the epitome of the proverbial "time eater." Our lives rotate now around what I lovingly refer to as "the little dictator." What time we go to sleep, what time we awake, what time we eat, whether we go out, whether we attend the Christmas party, how loudly we talk, what music we listen to, and the list goes on. I'll bet each person reading this has their own stories to share.

So anyways, Caroline has started putting on more weight. She'd plateau'd, we feared, a couple months ago at around 10.5 lbs. Since then she's started fattening up, perhaps around the time I started lovingly calling her a little piglet. She now tips the scale at...I have no idea, her next checkup is in a couple weeks so I guess we'll find out then. Mom is doing well and isn't as worried as she was, because Caroline is clearly starting to tack on the weight. Caroline is also - cue the hallelujah choir - tentatively, knock on wood and toss the salt over my shoulder...sleeping through the night. If you count going down at around 9 PM and getting up at 6:00 AM - and her mom and I sure do - then that's that. It's not permanent, she's broken our gentleman's agreement a couple times, but she is far better than just a few weeks ago when as surely as USC's football team will continue in its mediocrity she'd wake up once or twice for a 3 AM snack.

She also is sleeping on her back - a much welcomed change from time as far back as when we were in the hospital when that nurse who I'll never forgive cheerfully suggested we prop her on her side to sleep. That became her position until last weekend, when we put her on her back and she took it like a champ. Oh, one last thing...last weekend we also gave her some rice cereal for the first time, got the moment on tape, and also successfully gave her the pacifier. It's one of those ortho-correct, latex things, made by Playtex. Works like a champ. Score one for mom, as I told her it didn't matter what kind of pacifier she used. We men have lots to learn.

Other than all that, she's cooing, talking to herself, letting loose with the occasional peal of laughter, and generally acting like a four month old. Sigh, it's almost kind of sad, in that she's getting old enough to the point where we have to start talking how old she is in terms of months, no longer weeks. Pretty soon it'll be years, and braces, and the prom, and....ah, heck, no need to rush things along.