April 2009 Archives

Carrie complained to me today that Rachel seems to be getting her looks from me while getting the following traits from her (posted with permission from Carrie):

Dry Skin
Acne
Slopping Eating
Aversion to the Sun

She thinks that's not fair.

Yay!

Ok, back to baby things.  Apparently, new baby's are real attention magnets.  We made a little trip today and we were stopped a couple of times and were stared at by many.  Thankfully, everyone still sees her as being a new baby, despite being in the 97th percentile for weight.

People have also been asking us who she looks like, and we've figured out a few features.  Her nose is mine, which we know because Carrie's nose as a baby was quite different.  She probably has Carrie's hair, as I was basically bald with some blonde hairs as a youngster.  She also has Carrie's toes, which we know since her second toe is shorter than the big toe (I have "Morton's Toe").  That's all we've figured out so far, but we'll let you know as she starts looking less like, well, a baby.

I'll keep posting pictures to our new SmugMug account, but I just had to post this one as well.

Close up time.

(and I doubt it'll be turning off anytime soon)

I've been asked a few times if I feel different now that I'm a dad.  To be honest, I know that I'm yet to grasp the profoundly life-altering event that took place on Friday.  In fact, I mostly feel the same, just with a baby in the house (well, as much as I can feel the same with 1.5-2 hr increments of sleep).  I have noticed one thing, though, and that is that I can't stop thinking about her, which by the same token means that when she is out of my sight I can't seem to stop worrying about her.  Something tells me that little feeling is something I'm going to be living with for the rest of my life.  Another interesting thing is that even in my half-sleep, I keep thinking about her.  It's even gotten to the point where I can feel the weight of her in my arms even though she's in the next room over.

Oh, and I can also see how easy it is for married couples to become so focused about their children and forget about each other a little.  So on that note, I just want everyone to know who immensely proud of my wife I am.  I doubt any of us men understand what our spouses are capable of until they go through sometime as intense as delivery.  Carrie did an awesome job with her 13.25 hours of labor and 2.5 hours of pushing.  (We suspect the fact that Rachel weighed 10 lbs had something to do with this longer duration.)  And she continues to do a good job with this difficult transition into motherhood.

Carrie, you rock!

We've arrived home and all is going well so far.  Just have to start breaking out all that baby stuff we have and trying to figure out where we put things / where to put things.

More pictures at http://andyandcarrie.smugmug.com/

Rachel Elizabeth Lee

Stats:

DOB: 4/17/2009
Born at: 3:17 pm
Weight: 10 lbs 0 ozs
Length: 20 3/4 inches

Carrie is now 10 days out from her due date, and her doctor said he wouldn't let her go much past a week overdue, so we have to decide what name this kid is going to be saddled with pretty soon.

One of my favorites is Laura.  It's a family name on both sides and Laura Lee has a nice ring to it.  Then a friend mentioned Lorelei, which sounds even better with Lee, I think.

My other favorite is Charlotte, which is a great old English name (wife to George the III, for one), and for me it has the right combination of femininity and strength that one wants for a firstborn.  (I being firstborn take this perhaps more seriously than I ought.)  Charlotte Anne just sounds fantastically regal, much as Richard Andrew does, no?

So, Carrie and I were talking about these names (certainly not the only ones in consideration), and we decided to ask the oracle about them, i.e. google 'em.

Turns out, Charlotte Lee is the name given to doctors, scientists, attourneys, etc. (mostly Asian people).  Lorelei Lee?  Porn stars.  Or at least one rather popular porn star.  :(  I didn't bother with the image search on that one.

Still, Lorelei Lee does have a nice ring to it, and how can you argue about a name from German mythology?  The Lorelei is one of the Rhine maidens, who lures men to their doom through her song, not unlike the Sirens from Greek mythology.  I suppose, though, that doesn't bode well for the father of the Lorelei.

Decisions, decisions.