Winter Wonderland

The view from the backyard in VT.
A bit different from our Florida vacation, but just as lovely.

Vermont, FINALLY

We're off to Vermont for the week! I can't believe it's taken us this long to take E up to New England: she's already been to Jersey, Long Island, Florida...

This week I plan to teach her the finer points of sitting by fires, sipping hot chocolate, and eating Beef Bourguignon. And hopefully apple pie. (Hint! Hint!)

I don't know how much we'll be posting, so I leave you with this wicked cute snapshot of Ellie holding hands with her Brooklyn-boyfriend, Pauly.

Cats and Babies

Sophie says: "That better not be tuna-juice in that bottle."

60 Seconds of Cracking Herself Up

Our new favorite thing ever...she laughs!

(She's also starting to roll over, but REFUSES to perform on camera.)

Welcome David Andrew!

Ellie's new best-bud (and future husband) was born this afternoon!! Congratulations to John and Becky, and a huge WELCOME TO THE WORLD to David Andrew Coburn. We can't wait to meet you.

Hands! (Part II)

"Oooooooh, look what I can do!"

Hair Club for...Babies?

3-1/2 months old, and we can no longer deny her hair loss...

Her bald spot should make George Constanza proud, and seriously postpones my visions of cute hair clips and ribbons.

Oh well, hair's well that ends well.

60 Seconds of HANDS!

Just yesterday I was lamenting to my mom-buddies that Ellie hadn't yet discovered her hands. Today? She found them! She's spent the last hour on her gym-mat giving the Purple Elephant and Parrot whacks and grabs. The Elephant totally deserves it. He's been mocking her for weeks.

In other news, I got to go see As You Like It at the Brooklyn Academy of Music last night. The big deal is that it wasn't really a big deal. Brian got home, I handed him the baby, and off I went. No stress, no anxiety, no freaking out about being away from the babe for a few hours. At the theater I chatted up an older gentleman sitting in the lobby, and it turns out he's living my dream life. Lives in Vermont (Dover, no less!) but has a time-share in Manhattan and comes down all the time to see as much theater as he can. Um, yes please! A house in Burlington, a house in Brooklyn, and a helicopter to get me back and forth. Perfection.

No Words

3 Month Stats

We did it! Ellie is finally three months old! Since everyone says the first three months are the hardest, I assume we have this parenting thing down pat. From now on it'll be sunshine, roses, and full nights sleep, right? At least until she learns how to drive?

Seriously though, the three-month-milestone feels like a big deal. Ellie's smiling and cute and interacting with us in a way that was unheard of even a month ago. She's reliably sleeping 6-8 hours in a row, and she feels like a BABY, not a newborn. The difference is hard to pinpoint, but she's so much more fun.

Ellie's fourth month is my bonus month, the extra month my office was generous enough to let me take before I go back March 1st. We have three more weeks to hang out in Brooklyn, a week in Vermont, and then one final week before daycare and work begins. According to this article in the New York Times, we're going to spend it all in our neighborhood bars.

For all you stat-conscious people, here are her three month numbers:

Weight: 11 pounds, 3 ounces (up to the 21% percentile, from the 15%)
Height: 22.1 inches (up to the 7% percentile from -1%. Yay! She's on the chart!)

Great Grandparents

Here's Ellie and her GREAT grandparents (Brian's grandparents). How cool is that?

Vacation Bliss

Yep, nothing to complain about here.

We Got a Hat!

Ellie seems unimpressed...

Tonight, her Momom and Popop are watching her while Brian and I go out for dinner. Our first date night since she was born!

Pic of the Day

Soaking Up the Sun

Ellie is absolutely astounded that it's possible to be outside without first spending 20 minutes getting bundled up. I'm astounded that we can't seem to buy an infant sunhat in Florida in January, because they "only sell them in the summer." Hello, people? It's 80 degrees and gorgeous. This kid needs a sunhat. Tomorrow we hit the beach!

Vacation Update

Well, Ellie flew like an absolute champ. She alternated sleeping and drooling (literally) over the cute college boy sitting next to us. I, however, got hit by a stomach bug and spent most of the flight with an air-sickness bag in front of my face. Awesome.

Brian's folks have a Wii, so we all know what I'll be doing the rest of the week.

Wait. What?

Really? Wow. We're going to Florida? When? Saturday? This Saturday?!?! You're kidding!

For some reason, this Florida trip never quite became real in my head. Now suddenly I'm 36 hours away from our first flight with a new baby, and OH MY GOD, what do we pack and how we do this?

But, it's true. We're heading South to visit Brian's family and soak up some Florida sunshine. Wait, what's that? It's freezing there?!?! Well, at least I won't have to try to fit in my bathing suit.

12 Weeks

12 Weeks! Oh, and Ducks!

Rolling, Rolling, Rolling

Yesterday I placed Ellie on her back, and walked to the kitchen. When I returned she was definitively on her side. Her first attempt at rolling over!

Unfortunately, she thinks repeating accomplishments is for losers. Once she knows she can do something, there's apparently no reason to continue doing it. She hasn't practiced lifting her head since she discovered she could on New Years, so I don't expect to see a repeat roll until mid-May at least.

Looking Forward

With the Eagles' loss last night, and the Patriots' today, Ellie has only one question: When's Spring Training? Go Sox!

Ready For Her Close-Up

Now that Ellie is real-baby sized, she can start to wear all the cute clothes she's received from her friends and family. Including this ridiculously beautiful bonnet made by our friend, Kathleen Virginia. Check out the flowers in the close-up. So pretty.

Contrast this with me: wandering around the house in a pair of old sweatpants and a spit-up covered pajama top. Ellie definitely wins.

Holy Smokes! 11 Weeks!

...and one of the outtakes...because it cracks me up.


Ellie's 11 weeks old today! And I am so seriously grateful to my company for allowing me to stay out of work until March 1st. I'm not sure I could bear leaving Little E at daycare after the standard 12 weeks. If any of my coworkers are reading this, "Hi! Thanks! and Get Back to Work!"

Sleeping 9 to 5

I'm sure it was a fluke, but Eleanor slept from 9 to 5 last night. A whole 8 hours in a row! I'll be singing Dolly Parton and shaking my booty for the rest of the day.

Our Little Princess

...rocking her fur coat.
(Thanks to Emily Gabler for such a rock-star coat!)

Happy New Year

We Have Lift Off!

Sure, it's a terrible picture, but who has time to focus the camera when Ellie's lifting her head?!

Not a Baby Picture

I know, there's no baby Ellie in this picture. But still, how cute is that? It's so nice that Brian's willing to take dictation for Topaz. Happy New Year everyone!

Peek-a WHO?

Apparently, we're supposed to read to Little E every single day to encourage a love of words and literature. While that's all fine and good, Ellie prefers to practice mugging in the mirror. Is there a Vanity section on the SAT?

...And to All a Good Night

Ellie had a wonderful Christmas! She met all the Jersey relatives, played Christmas and Hanukkah Bingo, and discovered Negre Blanc...the Mount Everest of holiday desserts. Happy Holidays everyone!

Click to Play the Slideshow

Merry Christmas!

Perspective

Ellie may not rate on the pediatrician's so-called "growth chart," but check out these two pictures! The first is from when she was one week old. The second was shot this morning at nine weeks. What a difference. Growth chart be damned!

60 Seconds of Smiles

Though She is Small, She is But Fierce

Ellie is two months old! We had our monthly pediatrician check-up today, and everything is going well. The nurse practitioner was smitten with her, and Ellie was a brave girl and took her shots like a trooper.

We also had her weighed, measured, and charted.

Weight: 9 lbs, 5 ounces (up two pounds in a month!) 15th percentile, up from the 7th percentile at her last visit.

Head Circumference: 38.6cm. 46th percentile.

Height: Um yeah...we're not exactly a tall family...20.4 inches, which puts her below the growth chart and in the -1 percentile. But she gained an inch in a month, and is growing at an appropriate rate, so the doctors aren't concerned. She's just small. And fierce.

And taking a nap right now in her crib, which makes me do a dance of joy!

Snow, Snow, Snow, Snow, Snow!

Yep, the Bkschnei-mobile is still alive and well...

It snowed! Saturday night was a winter wonderland. Especially for me since I didn't have to do any of the shoveling. Sunday dawned bright and clear and we took Ellie out to forge our way through Brooklyn's slush-filled streets.

Don't drop lunch on the baby!

(Apologies to John and Becky for pushing them off the top of the blog! You know it had to happen.)

Uncle John and Aunt Becky

Vermont is in the house! Uncle John and Aunt Becky came to meet Little E this weekend. Actually, they're here for Becky's baby shower; she's due February 3rd! Ellie was pleased to meet them, but was a little annoyed that David Andrew was still in Becky's belly instead of being ready to come out and play. Someday, those two are going to be trouble.

In weather news, we're supposed to get 6-9" of snow in the city today. Ellie is joining legions of New York City school kids in lamenting the fact that a major snowstorm is happening on a Saturday, and doesn't bring with it a day off from school. But still, Ellie's first snowstorm! Maybe I'll get out and take some pictures later.

The Office

For the past eight weeks I have had a difficult time concentrating at the office. What happened eight weeks ago? My favorite blog happened. That's what.

Work a little... check blog.

Work a little... check blog.

Check blog.... work? A little?

8 Weeks Photo

Ellie's official "8-week Shot"

8 Weeks (and Latkes)

To celebrate Ellie's eight week mark we were going to spend the afternoon doing a super-cute photo shoot. Instead, she spent the day squawking, fussing, and generally driving me up a wall. So, we'll have to make do with this shot grabbed yesterday while she was in her swing. Maybe tomorrow she'll cooperate...

On another note, here's cutie Cousin Leila checking Ellie out during the latke party on Saturday. Thanks again to the Posts for hosting!

When Mommy's away...

Daddy's enjoying his first day alone at home with Ellie. Baby clean? Check. Baby fed? Check. Baby sleeping? Check. Daddy on couch with feet up watching football? CHECK! (Who wants to take bets on whether or not Daddy will be able to stay awake for the 8:20pm Eagles/Giants game?)

8 Crazy Nights

Ellie studies up for the holiday...

Happy Hanukkah everyone! Tomorrow we make latkes with Mike, Sari, cousin Leila and Sari's family. Yummmmm...

Best Buds

Ellie and her buddy Paulie. Ain't love grand?

Sibling Rivalry

I always thought this was a cat cliche...but hey, if this is all they've got? I say, bring it on...

O Tannenbaum

Growing up in Vermont, getting a Christmas tree meant one of two things:

1. Hiking miles into the woods to chop down a monumental pine, then throwing out your back while struggling to drag it home through four feet of snow drifts and a beaver dam.

2. Going to the local tree farm and essentially repeating option #1.

Here in Brooklyn, we do things a little differently. The hardest part is deciding whether it's in the Christmas spirit to haggle over the price of three-foot Charlie Brown tree, and whether you should still tip the friendly French Canadian who just emptied your wallet. We must have "Baby's First Christmas" madness, since this year we didn't haggle, and still tipped.

Tonight, we decorate!

Update: Our Tree

Boys and their Girls

Our friends Kyle and Amber came to visit this weekend (all the way from Queens!) and brought their beautiful daughter, Arden.

The girls got in on the action too...

Next time, we make the trek out to Astoria...

Careful, Baby

It's a jungle out there...

Family Photo

I think this is actually the first picture of the three of us. Thanks to Rob Beiderman for coming all the way from Los Angeles to be our family photographer. Next time you visit I'll actually cook instead of just ordering a pizza.