![[]](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2514/4061597617_cb9719f3e9.jpg)
Explore the Photo Set:
photos: first halloween, washington, dc
photos: first halloween, washington, dc
October, 2009
first halloween |
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guestbook: babs! |
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![[]](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2668/4059096019_2c7e5f3fbc.jpg)
first: dupont circle |
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i had an inadvertent day off today.
i’ve been stockpiling vacation days in expectation of sparklet, but apparently did too good of a job. now i’m maxed out on how many vacation days i can save up and HR won’t let me accrue anymore unless i use a vacation day every two weeks. don’t get me wrong, it’s a good problem to have … i just wish i figured out I had to take today off before i spent two hours sitting at my desk. anyway, the lady sparkler and i are still negotiating with our work to nail down the details of how our maternity / paternity leave is going to look. for now, it looks like mommy is going to be off from now through Martin Luther King Day (that mid-january, for anyone in arizona) and i’ll be off the four weeks following (through President’s Day). once we figured that out (and shipped the notion off to our respective office places) we took a quick trip down to dupont circle to get some fresh air, and show sparklet her first neighborhood outside mount pleasant. and, needless-to-say, mommy was tickled to have an extra set of hands for the day. Explore the Photo Set:
flexday: dupont circle, washington, dc |
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![[]](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3246/4059095853_3519560876.jpg)
faces |
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week three, and sparklet is starting to wake up.
we love the fact that we are starting to see more and more eyeballs during the day, and will (temporarily) put up with the fact that we are getting more and more eyeballs at night. the big shift, though, is that sparklet is starting to expand her “face” repertoire beyond the standard “winston churchill” look. now we’re getting the “vogue-ing diva,” the “where the wild things are“, and even a preview of her very first smile (not caused by gas). I for one welcome our new overlords. Explore the Photo Set:
photos: faces, washington, dc. |
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![[]](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2535/4059098639_56384a1cd7.jpg)
“chuck norris doesn’t get wet, the water gets chuck norris-ed.” |
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![[Chuck Norris doesn't get wet, water gets Chuck Norris-ed.]](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3518/4051042281_49424244e0.jpg)
goodbye, grandparents! |
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well, the house has cleared out … both sets of grandparents are gone after weeks of dedicated service to the sparklet. the house seems a bit empty now, kind of like we have empty nest syndrome in reverse.
even emily the cat seems lost for the extra attention. but this is by no means the end: the virginia parkers are coming for thanksgiving, the spindler sisters at christmas, we’ll be in texas for a spindler-sister wedding in february, and we might even get the vermont parkers some time in between now and then. go, team sparklet! Explore the Photo Set:
photos: grandparents, part 2. |
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![[grandparents]](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2523/4048486434_2bd2070cba.jpg)
photos: baby’s first bath |
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baby was getting a little stinky, so the lady sparkler and i broke down and gave her a first bath.
now, i’ve heard legendary stories of babies first interaction with water, and i’m thankful there was no meltdown of epic proportion. truth be told, she just seemed a little confused, like “um, what’s this stuff?” well, that was until mommy inadvertently dumped a whole quart of water over her head. that part didn’t go so well … but they both recovered after the initial shock, and in the end they reached a happy place. Explore the Photo Set:
photos: baby’s first bath |
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![[sparklet takes a bath]](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2615/4051042849_27f8707d5d.jpg)
“curses! i’ll get you yet, raggedy ann!” |
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normalcy … sort of |
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neither the lady sparkler nor i really have an idea of normal is anymore, but today felt like we were creeping towards there none-the-less.
mommy tested out her new guitar hero controller (she’s so happy!) in the morning, we walked over to auntie melissa’s in the afternoon, i cooked dinner and then we had a friend from the neighborhood drop by in the evening. simple, every-day sorts of events … we just had a very small baby and a very happy set of grandparents along for the ride. so far, the “new” normal looks pretty good. |
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guestbook: ashley! |
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we obviously didn’t think that we’d have a sparklet to costume … and we really thought that the lady sparkler could go dressed up as Juno, or maybe a pregnant Mary Magdalene to my Jesus.
our beloved maid of honor actually went out and bought sparklet a pumpkin costume, but it unfortunately didn’t live up to its advertised sizing (it was “one size fits none” not “all”).
so, yesterday when we were in dupont circle, we ran to the local children’s boutique, and bought the last decent costume off their shelves (giraffe) at 40% discount.
if anybody from work asks, we picked out the costume as an ideological statement … and she’s dressed up as either (a) the Conservancy’s adopt an acre in africa project, or (b) the number one teething toy in Paris.
halloween is quite a big deal in mount pleasant, and our neighborhood shuts down streets to make room for all the trick-or-treaters who come in from around the city.
we wandered around a bit with the baby giraffe-let in her stroller, but it was way too early (5:00pm) and it was raining to boot. even so, we saw tons o’ princesses and vampires, and more than a few ninja outfits from a children’s television show that i couldn’t figure out.
no candy was purloined (she’s too young for us to keep a straight face) or purchased (our building requires card key access, and has no other kids) but it was a lovely afternoon none-the less.
oh, and a nice warm up for next year …