Thursday, January 31, 2008

Fisher Price Rainforest Jumperoo is the bomb!

No, I don't work for Fisher Price but THIS is the coolest toy ever. Dorian can sit /play/jump in it for up to 45 minutes at a time, several times a day so Mama can get some of her telecommuting work done! Best piece of plastic junk I ever bought!

Sunday, January 27, 2008

Dori's Life in Pictures

Grasping anything put near him. Dori loves sitting in the vibrating chair and is able to sit there for up to a half hour so Mama can get some washing done or some food (thank you, Ransom Family!)

Teething baby, chewing on anything he can get his hands on (and those too!)




Multitasking (chewing his hand and grasping his favorite teddy rattle with another!)
Boy and toy (isn't this a beautiful shot?)
Sleeping is hard work
Playing in his new jumperoo, which is too big for him (but he loves it anyway!) We have to put a pillow under his feet and tuck a rolled up blanket behind him.

Happy baby, happy Mama (and junk in closet)
Dorian is an A student in his music lessons with Daddy (it's in the genes)
That's it for now, folks. Written update to come soon. I really should crack on and do some work (and organize that closet).

Friday, January 25, 2008

Work update and a very cool picture

I know a long blog is in order, but I have no time at the moment. I have returned to work! My bosses were so understanding about the Half Moon Bay office being too far, not to mention the fact that Dorian is still not solidly taking the bottle. I am doing telecommuting work at the moment, and will hopefully be working some days/halfdays in the small San Francisco office once Dorian can bear to be parted from me. I may also help out a few days in Half Moon Bay around the tax deadlines, although James will be on tour, so we'll need to see if that is possible. I am working about 20 hours a week. Anyway, we haven't quite figured out how to make this work (without me doing the work at night once Dorian has gone to sleep, which then cuts into my sleep time). Dorian is still sleeping horribly - he has a 2-4 hours stretch at the beginning of the night (if I'm lucky) and is then up every hour. And teething. But more on that soon, and on his nursery which is finally finished! I need to spend today working since James is home until 5pm. I will post a major update some time this week-end. We have loads of cute pictures. Here is one that Cindy photoshopped for us. Cindy is one of the Tempest fans and a NICU nurse who has given me some awesome baby advice. She saw the picture on the blog a few weeks ago (with my text "Insert guitar here") and said she couldn't pass up the challenge. By the way, it is James' guitar!

Thursday, January 17, 2008

Babies, babies, and more babies!


Yesterday was the last facilitated session of my new mother's support group. We plan to keep meeting on a weekly basis though. Aren't the babies cute??? Dorian is the youngest baby and also one of the biggest! My boy loves his milk. More written updates soon, crying baby to attend to!

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

We survived!

My TEAS exam went really well yesterday. I even scored in the 94th percentile in math, my weakest subject! :) And Dorian survived without me and even had fun and laughs with his daddy! YAY! More on all this soon. Dorian is sooooooo fussy and crying loads today. We're pretty sure it's teething again. I will write more later this week when he lets me put him down for more than 2 minutes!

Wednesday, January 9, 2008

No longer a newborn

Dorian is now 12 weeks old and a newborn no more. It has gone by so quickly I could cry. But I'm too happy so I won't. He is the cutest baby ever. His personality is really starting to shine. He "talks" all the time, smiles wide open grins, is on the verge of laughing, kicks his legs, is beginning to grab things (accidentally right now), makes eye contact with whoever speaks with him and so much more. He sleeps 4-8 hours at the beginning of the night (the 8 hour stretches are bliss for Mama) but still wakes up every hour after that. Still, it's definitely progress.

He had his 3 month check-up on Monday. He weighed 14 pounds, 14 ounces - almost 15 pounds!!! Almost double his birth weight! He was 25 inches long. He is in perfect health. He had 3 shots and screamed but James was able to calm him down really fast. Poor little guy. The doctor said he does think Dori may be teething! It is a bit early but he said it does happen in some babies and he could feel something on his bottom gums and he does have the common symptoms (drooling, gnawing on his and our hands, fussiness).

James and I have just about (but not quite) gotten over that damn English cold. Our house is a mess at the moment because the builders are working on our bathroom/laundry room. Dorian's nursery is done - we just need to have it carpeted now. James has been working hard teaching, editing videos and working on recording projects. He will resume regular gigging in a week. I have been busy preparing for an exam to qualify for nursing school. I will take it on Monday and am dreading leaving Dorian for 4-6 hours. I have never been apart from him and he still isn't taking the bottle. I have visions of him screaming his head off the whole time I'm gone (as he does when we try to give him the bottle). Hopefully he'll prove me wrong. The doctor said it will be fine to leave him for that amount of time, even if he isn't taking the bottle. Apparently, the worst that will happen is that he will cry so hard he'll eventually fall asleep. I was so worried this would traumatize him and he'd end up hating me, but everyone has been quick to remind me he does not have those kinds of feelings or thoughts yet. Thank goodness. I could use some more reassurance though, so if other parents can relate, please share your thoughts. I am really worried about Monday (and not about the exam). I love Dori so much and hate to think of him upset.

A few pics, of course...

How grown-up does Dori look? He doesn't even look like a baby - he looks like a little boy!
Okay, he's still a baby...Dori loves to eat his hand
Playing with Daddy - Dori LOVES being held up high
Visiting Grandma at the hospital so she can show Dori off to all her nurses
Watching Daddy play - Dori's eyes intently follow Daddy's fingers!
Letting Dad know he's not happy with the way hats are placed on his head
Thanking Grandpa for removing the hat
Talking to no one in particular
Insert guitar here
Still loving the sling
Mama's boy
Cute
Cuter
Cutest

Tuesday, January 1, 2008

Christmas Wrap-Up and Happy New Year!

Hi all! We're back home, safe and sound and sick and tired. This is the longest cold EVER. Both James and I are still coughing, snorting and constantly yawning to try to make our ears pop. Dorian is great! He was wonderful on the flight home...both James and I really noticed how much he has truly changed in 3 weeks. On the flight over to the UK, he slept the whole time. On the flight back, we put him on his back on the table in front of us so he could kick his legs, wave his arms and smile at nothing in particular. We walked him up and down the aisles and stood up more as he really likes to be able to see the world around him. He did sleep, though we also noticed how much bigger he seemed in our laps on the airline seats. Amazing what a difference 3 weeks can make. Dorian now holds his own head up all the time. He smiles a lot. He makes loads of noises ("talking"). He now loves his swing and falls asleep in it easily. He can sit on his own and amuse himself for up to an hour! He loves lying on his back on his play mat and looking up at his mobiles. He still loves his Mama but does allow other people to hold him for longer periods of time. He sleeps in longer chunks now and can wake up and not start crying for 15-20 minutes. He doesn't seem to be too jetlagged at the moment, though he is falling asleep around 4pm in the afternoon California time. He slept (obviously with several feeding breaks) from 4pm-6am last night! My parents threw a New Year's Eve party (my dad's birthday is December 31 so they always do). Since Dorian was sleeping, I thought it would be best if I took a little nap too around 9pm. I slept through until his next feeding session at 1am! I missed ringing in the New Year! I can't think of any other way I would have rather spent it - in bed, cuddled up next to my sleeping baby. Bliss! James was away last night at a gig (the reason we returned before New Year's from England).

We will edit our 5+ hours worth of England video footage this week-end/next week and get some video clips up for you soon. In the meantime, please enjoy a photo extravaganza!!!!

James' friend Ben playing an impromptu piece at the White Hart Pub in Bridestowe. Ben, his French girlfriend Suzanne, James and I were a team for Graham's Christmas Quiz. We came in 9th out of 15. Not bad, though the boys would have done better without us foreigners. The quiz was tough and very anglocentric. Back to Ben though - he and James used to play a lot of music together. Ben is an amazing pianist, singer and songwriter - he plays piano 5 nights a week at the fanciest hotel in Devon. He has loads of stories of celebrities and politicians (including Tony Blair) requesting songs and listening to him play.

Auntie Leggy (Ro has called me this since he started talking!), Uncle Jim, Ro Ro and Dori. James and I used to babysit Rowan all the time when he was a baby and toddler. We moved to the US when he was 2.5 years old and saying good-bye to him was the hardest thing we've ever done. Ro meant everything to us, and it so nice to see how into Dorian he is. He absolutely adores his cousin! It is so sweet.

Boy pile! Phil, Josh, Ro and Dori
Grae, Josh and Phil
James, his sister Hannah, dad Graham, and Dori
James, Jen, Josh and Ro decorating the Christmas tree
Cousins!
James with his close friend (for over 17 years!) James Hanlon. Hanlon's baby Erin Rose is 2 weeks younger than Dori - look at how much bigger Dori is though! We've got ourselves a giant here!
Doting dads
James' other close friend Nick holding Dori - doesn't look like Nick has had too much experience with babies, does it? :) Plus, the men were a little worse for wear after a night on the town!
Finally, James' last close friend Duncan is left holding the baby!
My friend Sam (who visited from London for 4 days) and Dori
My new favorite photo of Uncle Jim and Ro Ro
Joshy is a wine connoisseur already!
James' Equation bandmate Sean holding Dorian, James holding one of Sean and Kath's twins Poppy (or is it Lily?)
Equation lead singer Kath and the other twin Lily (or Poppy????)
James and Dori, asleep from too much excitement (actually, illness)
And Kelly too
The food spread for the Open House on December 23rd. Jen and Grae put this on for their friends and neighbors. We had dozens of people coming in and out all day to see James and Dorian (and me too, I suppose!)
Ro loving Dori on Christmas Eve (after the Crocker family traditional Christmas Eve walk)
We celebrated Christmas day with Hannah, Phil, Ro, Josh, Jen and Grae. It was so fun to enjoy it with Josh and Ro. They were so excited to see this many presents under the tree!
Playing games Christmas afternoon (a Crocker family tradition)
Kelly and Hannah at Christmas dinner
Josh in his new policeman outfit
Rowan in his self-made spy costume
Christmas Day 2 (celebrated on December 26 "Boxing Day") with Graham's family. This is one side of the table - James' uncle Rob, James, James' aunt Jill, her husband Roy and cousin Dan's girlfriend Charlotte (Jill and Roy have 2 sons - Dan and Stewart)
The other side of the table on Boxing Day (Dan's girlfriend Charlotte again, Dan, Kelly feeding Dori, James' mum Jen, cousin Stewart and his wife Gerry)
Christmas Day 3 (December 27th) - celebrated with Jen's family. I could not even begin to fit all these people in one picture! Jen has 2 sisters and a brother, all of whom have 2-3 kids, most of whom now have partners and kids of their own! We had around 25 people over, and not everyone was able to make it!
Jen prepared 4 big food days - one for the Open House, 2 full roasts for Christmas Day and Boxing Day and a luncheon feast on December 27th. Plus, she managed to do this while fighting The Cold, looking gorgeous, and fitting in time to spend with her 3 grandsons! Amazing.
Watching Bob the Builder with the boys
Feel like you've seen this picture before? We have loads of pictures like this, as Rowan kept wanting cuddles with Dorian. He would say "Leggy, Dori is holding my hand" or "Jim, Dori flumped on me again!" ("Flumped" means "farted" - apparently the word fart is not a nice word in the UK)
The last photo of the boys in 2007
Happy New Year everyone!!!