MVI_1536
Originally uploaded by Lincoln Topliff
What can you do with a couple napkins, a high chair and a 14 month-old baby? Play an ad hoc game of Lightning-Peek-a-Boo, of course!
Archive for May, 2009
Welcome Lee Peachey!
28
May
He bounced into the world between 8 and 9 pm last night at a healthy 8lbs 1oz. Nicole, Michael, Lauren and Sophie welcome their newest family member. The whole family is doing well. We are looking forward to meeting him.
Flying with Baby Jenny
28
May
Grace just wasn’t herself last week. Though she probably had no idea, she was known to many as Jennifer Topliff. Now that we have completed our flights under her nom de flight, I can come clean and hope American Airlines doesn’t read my blog.
Several months ago we bought pretty cheap tickets to Louisville, KY to attend our friends’ wedding. Grace would fly on our laps and wriggle around until somebody cried.
The plan was solid and smooth enough.
Then, about a month ago Jenn threw an X-Acto knife into the works. She needed to go to NYC to attend a large stationery show happening days before our planned trip.
Jenn: “I’ll just buy a ticket the NYC and then get to KY and use the second half of my SFO-KY ticket”
Me: “Uh, I don’t think it works like that.”
After several calls to American Airlines we determined that it did not, in fact, work like that. You do not “own” the seats, roundtrip tickets get cancelled if you do not show up for the first leg of the journey. We needed a new plan. Any plan that included a $150 change fee, a more expensive one way ticket and me with Grace on my lap for 5 hours sounded like a bad plan.
My proposal went like this:
I print out boarding passes at home. Then check my big bag while my Mom keeps Grace in the car. Then I get Grace and go through the TSA checkpoints making sure to call her Jenny, if asked. At the gate, I would hand the boarding passes as I whisked past the agent in a way that only a frantic and desperate single father could. She would have her own seat and I would retain my sanity (for now). On the way home, Jenn would be Jenn, Grace would become Grace again and would ride home happy and smiley for the whole 5 and a half hour trip while the flight attendants served free cocktails and warm chocolate chip cookies for everyone. I like to dream big.
If we failed, Jenn would be stuck in Kentucky and I would be stuck flying home with a screaming baby on my lap in a middle seat surrounded by people with seat belt extenders, just returning from a garlic eating contest. My paranoia runs deep.
Ultimately, the plan came together like a heist movie where all the bank security guards have been replaced by potted plants. No one asked questions (is that your baby?), no one wanted to see Baby Jenny’s birth certificate (Uh…my wife must have forgotten to pack it!) and no one looked twice at us. None of my brilliant scheming was necessary or appreciated. All it took was a printer, a baby and a look of desperation.
While my dreams of free cocktails and cookies didn’t exactly come true, Baby Jenny was a pretty good travel companion. She slept for half of the trip and charmed the nice ladies behind us for the rest. Baby Grace had a little more trouble on the return trip, but fortunately I wasn’t a single father by that point.
Safety First, then Out
21
May
I don't think Grace is a nervous flyer like her mother, but she still insists on reading the safety guidelines prior to takeoff. These are all pictures and she tore right through it… literally…right after this picture was taken.
Naptime started at about 10,000 feet, 10 minutes after we went wheels up.
So far, Bla Bla has been an excellent travel partner, even though she tried to stay on the jetway. Once we got her onto the plane and sedated (Bla Bla, not Grace), she calmed right down like a ragdoll.
Vroom
17
May
Nudity and vehicle bans may stop Bay to Breakers revellers, but BOTH are ok in OUR playroom!
Our little variant of normal
13
May
For the past month or so, Jenn and I (and many of you) have been somewhere between panicked and anxious about Grace’s noggin. Here is the short version, I will work on a longer one later.
Noticing a ridge on the top of her head at the edge of her soft spot, one of the nurses that follows her preemie-ness suggested we ask our pediatrician. The pediatrician said “Hmmm, this may have gotten worse in the past few weeks. Let’s have it looked at.” Now, 5-6 weeks later, after a laser measurement, a CT scan (under anesthesia), much wringing of hands and a clinic visit to Stanford, we are breathing a sigh of relief. What we thought might be a Craniosynostosis (an early fusion of her skull sutures that sometimes requires skull surgery) is just a simple metopic ridge that happened when the suture fused on schedule (according to the plastic surgeon). 30% of people have some sort of ridge and it is considered “a variant of normal”.
There is much to explain here but the upshot is that nothing needs to be done, watched, broken, cracked, stapled or otherwise worried about. We are left with a cute baby, a sense of relief and some cool pictures of her skull and brain. More to come.
A Special Mommy’s Day Guest Post
10
May
Dear Mommy,
Happy Mommy’s Day!
Daddy tells me that this isn’t my first one, but I don’t remember too much past yesterday so I will just have to believe him on that one. It seems like every day is Mommy’s Day, because I get to see your smiling face every morning and you sing me that song about the star every night. Don’t tell Daddy but I like that song much better than the one about letters that he sings (it’s a bit pedantic don’t you think?).
I am so happy that you are my Mommy (Lincoln and Bla Bla agree) because I love the way you smile, laugh and clap when I do stuff. I think you are the most beautiful Mommy there ever could be and I really hope those people that say I look like Daddy are wrong.
I know that sometimes I cry when you change my diaper or put me to bed when I’m not ready but I don’t really mean anything by it. I really appreciate the diaper work you do…not too tight, but not gappy at the same time. I also really love the stylish way you dress me I know looking good is important. I am amazed that there could be that many shades of pink in the world. Are there other colors too? (Just kidding)
I can’t wait to be able to say a few more words because “more”, “no” and “mama” just don’t say everything I want to express.
Love You Very Very Very Much,
Grace
PS Shout out to Grammie and Nana/Noni/Grandma Geddles/(or whatever she is going by these days) they are important mommies too.
Up, up and away
09
May
MVI_1487
Originally uploaded by Lincoln Topliff
Grace discovered stairs yesterday. To be more accurate, she has seen the stairs hundreds of times, she discovered that she could make them work. I am guessing that we will be spending a lot of time learning the words “up” and “down” in this part of the house. At the last stair, you can see her newest word/gesture combo shaking her head while saying “no” as she reprimands herself for touching the box.
You may note that the stairs were so interesting that Bla Bla was left behind looking like the recently deceased rich aunt in an Agatha Christie novel.
Zzzzzzzzz
09
May
MVI_1486
Originally uploaded by Lincoln Topliff
Grace squeezed the last possible ounce of fun out of the day but failed to conserve enough energy to finish her chicken soup.