Music Apreciation 101

So Jane and I are starting to introduce Cheetah to the wonderful world of Music. We have different channels on Pandora set to different genres. Aside from never knowing what comes next the sheer variety that Pandora offers is very welcome. We are also discovering that there are a lot of pieces that we can't identify but are familiar with. One of Cheetah great aunts gave him a electronic music box that plays 5-6 famous classical pieces. The only one Jane and I recognize is the William Tell Overture. I wonder if there is an app to help identify famous pieces? Now I know what Lehi was faced with. There is just too much for one or two people to remember when it comes to raising a child without external reference sources.

Presenting Sitting Up!

 



So over the weekend Cheetah decided that he was going to sit up now. On Thursday he couldn't, but on Friday he could balance himself once we got him in position. This has opened up a lot of possibilities for him.  Now that he can sit up he can see much more of the world around him. Here is a picture I snapped of him at Primary on Sunday.

 

Have I mentioned what a piercing gaze he has? When he looks at you its like he looks right through you.

Now that he can sit up he can interact with the books that Jane reads to him. 

I can only imagine the connections he is now making in his brain. 

Being able to sit up also means that we can use shopping carts at the store and that Cheetah can use the high chair we bought him on Monday. My, things are changing fast!

Cheetah seemed to enjoy being able to sit at the table with us and it was interesting putting the chair together. Some assembly required with baby furniture is interesting. 

Thrashing Bundle of Happiness

It is so refreshing to see how positive Cheetah is about life. He default setting is happy which is frankly wonderful to behold. His smile lights up the room and now that he is gradually gaining control of his body (we just noticed him playing with his tongue yesterday) he has started using his extremities to express his joy. He gets so animated sometimes that he starts pushing himself self with his feet while lying on his back.

Daily Dose of Cheetah

As I spend so much time away from home, Jane very thoughtfully takes and sends pictures of Cheetah to me throughout the day. I enjoy these little messages of happiness very much:

I am so glad she is so good at taking pictures and that Cheetah is so photogenic. I look at these pictures whenever I'm feeling sad and its almost as good as being home.
(He's mastered 99% of rolling from back to front. He just has to get over that shoulder and he'll have it.)

Giggle Giggle Snort

I know this is not what you were hoping I'd post but it made me laugh out loud like I haven't in a while, generally because the baby is sleeping and I am hoping it lasts for more than 40 minutes:

This is me and sometimes Facebook is worth the (free) membership.

To Sleep, Perchance To Dream

Since Tarzan got his new phone he has totally taken to the blog thing and - as I did once upon a time - when he has some free time at work, he posts. I appreciate his interest because I do not have the free time I used to have.
Some of that is Cheetah of course.
Some Most of it is the lack of a complete sleep cycle I'm experiencing. And much as I would love to, I can't blame that on the baby. Not completely at least.
It isn't that I'm not sleeping, now that Cheetah is here. It's that I'm not sleeping the same as I did before he arrived.
I used to be a really good sleeper.
It took me only a few minutes to snuggle down into my pillow and I was asleep. And once I was out, I slept for the whole night. Tarzan could snore, the neighbors could party and play loud music, the cats could fight, sirens, man hunts, none of it bothered me. I didn't nap unless I was sick and I would feel loopy after having one. I couldn't understand my mother who would fall asleep seconds after sitting in a chair, particularly during movies or TV or conversations.
I apologize very sincerely to my mother.
These days I still fall asleep easily. In fact, I'm dropping off nearly every time I sit down.
Naps are a blessed gift and I take them whenever possible. But I also wake up at the slightest noise. If Cheetah coughs in the middle of the night, I'm halfway across the room before I'm conscious.
I wake up if the neighbors turn on a light in their room.
I'm pretty sure I'm missing my REM sleep or something equally as vital.
The other night I woke up convinced I had fallen asleep with Cheetah on my chest, so I carried him carefully across the room and straight into a wall. Turned out, it was my pillow I was handling so gingerly and I was disoriented enough to mistake the mirror on the closet door for the door of the bedroom.
Despite the fact Cheetah has never slept in our bed, I frequently wake up convinced I've dropped him on the floor - it's always my pillow - or sure that I'm smothering him and end up frantically digging Tarzan's shoulder out from under the blankets.
I'm not sure what the surge of adrenaline is supposed to accomplish at 2am but I've got some to spare.

This is me and I don't dream like I used to either.

Early Morning Sunshine

So as I mentioned before the best thing about me morning is waking up and seeing Cheetah. Often he will be awake and lying quietly in be until he sees me and then he stats smiling, laughing and dancing in his crib. It is soooo precious and I filmed him the other day.

I'm still very new to this whole parent filming thing. Its too dark and the orientation is off. But these are the things I see that I know we'll treasure in the years to come.

Taking Baby Pictures is Harder than it Looks!

Unfortunately because of my busy schedule I often don't get to see Cheetah awake. Its always wonderful to see him though. He sleep like an angel. I am having some trouble taking pictures of him with my new phone.

This is what he looks like in the morning without a flash.

This is what adding the flash did. Surprisingly he didn't wake up after this shot, just went back to sleep.

 

And this time I got it right. What is even better than seeing him asleep is seeing him awake. Sometimes when I get up I will find Cheetah lying quietly in his bed awake. As soon as he sees me he will flash one of his wonderful smiles and start dancing around in his crib. It is certainly the best way to start any day and it is sometimes very hard to go to work sometimes. I am also very happy that Cheetah lays around quietly and lets Jane sleep.

Opposable Thumbs

Recently I noticed that Cheetah has been gaining increasing control over his hands and has begun to use them on purpose. He can now feed himself after a fashion if we place food in his hands.

Its a bit messy and he often chomps on his hands as much as the cookie, but its the first time I've seen him do something for himself. He is a keen observer though and definitely is aware of his own self interest. He is very happy when he sees food or baby spoons coming his way.

At the same time he is also increasingly aware of food. He's eaten everything we've given him with gusto and has his sights on grown-up food. Last night Jane and I were enjoying some homemade beef stew. Cheetah spent the whole time looking at us making his Ah-Ah hungry sounds. Jane says she can't eat or drink anything without Cheetah wanting some. He is definitely learning.

I was strolling through the park one day in the very merry month of May

Recently I didn't have to work last Saturday and was able to join Jane and Cheetah on an outing to the Augustus F. Hawkins Natural Park which is just down the road from us. I've been wanting to go since we moved here in 2002. "Twas April, not May, but a very nice outing it was indeed.

Cheetah wore a very jaunty striped outfit for the first time and the weather was perfect. We enjoyed meandering along the walking paths surrounded by native California vegetation. There was a sizable pond with a large number of turtles and ducks as well. We enjoyed ourselves immensely. This was the first time Cheetah has ever been to a park and the first time for me and Jane in years.

Happiness Is

Happiness is sitting on our new reclining couch with the baby asleep on my lap, a blanket over my toes (the weather is up and down like a roller coaster over here), my phone and iPad within easy reach and nothing begging to be done today.

This is me rejoicing.

Throughout His Life

And just like that (6 weeks ago), Cheetah's love affair with the mop is over. One day he was enthralled and the next day he stopped looking at it while we changed his diaper. I think his eyes must have "set in" or something because now he follows our faces and looks at colors and is FAR more interested in seeing things than before.
Poor mop.
Cheeta's new trick is planking:

I was a little sad that his mop fetish ended when it did because so many members of our families came a few weeks ago at the end of January, to be part of Cheetah being given a name and blessing, and I wanted to show them in real life.
Alas, it was not to be.
A lot of family came for the event and it was lovely to see them:

My brother and his family made an unintended surprise arrival, as he had told our sister and our mother that they were coming down but I had never heard the news so it was a total shock when my nephew and two nieces walked into Primary that morning. A wonderful surprise.
This photo is one of my favorites from the day:

Our first 'formal' picture as a family:

In other news, Cheetah continues to grow. He's almost too long for us to continue changing him on the counter in the bathroom:

We're going to have to get him real furniture soon.
He's taken to chewing on his hands, his shirt, any handy piece of cloth:

The car seat restraints, his mother's shirt, hair or hands and everyone asks me if he's teething but I don't think so. He has no fever, he isn't irritable and he nurses with no complaints. He just likes his hands:

And he likes his Daddy:

it continues to amuse both of us how quickly he can change his demeanor. That previous picture was taken at 6:51pm. This was 6:52:

And when he sleeps he retains his "huddled masses" personae:

Which amuses me.

This is me and I'm not getting a lot done other than gaze at the baby.
P.S. Cheetah turned 15 weeks yesterday.

Frustration

It's not a new thought and it's not original to me, but I wish babies came with a digital readout, or colored buttons, or a mood ring at least, to let us know where they were emotionally.
It's fairly easy to manage physical stuff; food and clothing and a bed, pain or temperature, but are they happy here with us?
Cheetah gets this look on his face sometimes - maybe it's not indicative of his emotions, maybe babies don't have them yet? - and he looks so pitiful and forlorn, like maybe he needs something he isn't getting.
Maybe he doesn't even know he isn't getting it (whatever 'it' is) but it makes me paranoid.
I recall the LDS urban legend about the young child who climbs into the crib with his newborn sibling and asks "tell me about heaven, I'm starting to forget," which of course makes me all teary (see my previously mentioned soggy state of affairs) and I wonder.
Is Cheetah sad that he's here? Is he getting enough love and snuggles?
Does he remember heaven? Is he starting to forget? Does that make him sad?
Does he wish he picked a different family? What could I be doing better?
And I regret putting him down (on a blanket where he worked on his gross motor skills very diligently with no complaints) so I could go to the bathroom and unload the dishwasher this morning.

This is me, wondering whether he's regretting coming here.
(Good golly I'm getting maudlin in my old age.)

There is Beauty All Around...When This is What's For Dinner!!!!!

The most amazing part of this whole new baby thing is the food. Seriously, I have always loved Jane's cooking and her biggest pet peeve when she was working in an office was the fact that she didn't have time to cook. Now that she is home taking care of Cheetah, she is really hitting it out of the culinary park! This is what was on the menu last Thursday:

Bacon wrapped, goat cheese encrusted filet mignon drizzled with a balsamic vinegar reduction sauce accompanied by a dancing in the aisles, fabulously crunchy blue cheese and bacon chopped salad and a delightfully savory side of slap you in the face good, garlic and cheese mashed potatoes. This dinner was followed by tears of joy. And yet it was only almost as good as the home made cheese and broccoli soup she made the week prior. That dish was sooooo good I swear the earth moved as I relished it. Life is divine.

Rolling Over

Cheetah is not a fan of tummy time.
I know a lot of children aren't.
I wonder if it's a medical professional's ploy to get kids to work on getting out of it and thus improve their upper body strength...
Here's Cheetah avoiding tummy time:

(I sound like a moron. I apologize. You may mute me with my blessing if you wish.)

This is me and it's a first with an actual date to record.

The many sides of an O'Grady

So it is interesting to discover how multi-faceted Cheetah is. He is always wonderful to behold but in constantly changing ways.
Here is a sleeping Cheetah:

Here is Saturday Night Fever Cheetah:

And here is DEFCON 5, break the Internet, cue the sun, dangerously, charmingly cute Cheetah.

The many faces of Cheetah O'Grady are a wonder to behold.

You've Been Chopped

Sorry Tarzan:

This is me and he looks so much older suddenly.

Disturburbingly Charming Baby

So I read somewhere about how misleading social media is. People generally tend to post positive news and images which often creates a skewed version of reality.  I've been think of that as I look at Cheetah. I don't know if he is photogenic or not but we have captured some images of him that are sooo adorable (even after excluding for parental bias). He doesn't always look so cute but then I am biased. I like looking at him when he is crying or fussy since its taken so long for him to arrive. I suppose that will fade in time. Its also interesting to note that Cheetah is most cheerful, just before he cries. Interesting duality. At any rate life is definitely more enjoyable even though I spend most of my time away when I get to see this:

Not In A Good Way

There's something ironic about the "Talk To Your Baby" (or they'll grow up to be an ax-murderer) campaign showing half a dozen commercials in an hour when I'm sitting there with laryngitis and can't do more than weakly rasp out his name.
It's a good thing he won't remember these first few weeks...

This is me unable to speak.

Happy 2015!

2014 was quite a year.
The first quarter I spent oblivious and the next three quarters I spent going to doctors.
It all came out okay.
Perfect in fact:

And my life will never be the same.

This is me, thankful and looking forward to 2015.