A little more pumpkin on Halloween

Here's our ensemble from last night.

Happy Halloween Everyone

We carved pumpkins yesterday. Sophie judged since she is not knife ceritified yet. This year's contest was a draw. Photos of Sophie in her outift to follow this afternoon's festivities.

Dad's creation was a bit silly.

Mom went with a traditional design.

Afternoon birthday extravaganza

Sophie and Christie came to school this afternoon and we had cake, but Sophie was more interested in playing with some toys.



Blowing out the candle, with a little help from Mom.




Is there anything to play with in here? I'm bored with this cake thing.




This is more like it!




When I bang these two things together, they make noise.



Happy Birthday Sophie

Sophie turns one today and we left a few things out in her play area for her to find when she woke up.
She had her bottle and got very excited when I put her down and she saw the box, cards and stuff nearby.
I think her joy may be evident on her face in the photo. You be the judge.



All of this is for me? WOW!

  I'll post more pics later of the rest of the day's festivities.

Look what I've got

Our three-day Labor Day weekend got extended a few days since the school's power got knocked out. Normally, I'd be ecstatic about having a few extra days off, but the same storm knocked power out at the house as well. We are back at school, but have no power at home, but are assured by Alabama Power that we will have service restored by 10:00 p.m. Saturday night.

Sophie hasn't let the lack of electricity bother her at all. She's got a cell phone and a car charger for it, so she's fine.
I'm doing well with the lack of power and used the extra two days to redo the kitchen and stove. Take a look at what I've done since Monday. The new look is a lot more airy than our old kitchen, but it does get kind of dark after 7:00 p.m. since I have had to go with all natural lighting at this points.

Early birthday present

Sophie's first birthday is a few weeks away, but we broke into her first present right after it arrived in the mail. Thanks mom!

And we're walking

Snapped some shots yesterday of the Sophster walking around. She's getting some help, but still very pleased with herself.

Another milestone

I haven't been able to capture it on film yet, but she's walking.
A week or so ago I was on the phone with Roger and watched Sophie stand up unassisted for a few seconds before sitting back down. Rather excited at the near Olympic gymnast athleticism, I yelled the news out loud. Roger was as excited as I was. Christie apparently had been seeing such for weeks and wanted to know why I was such an absentee/unobservant father.
I was unfazed and still excited.
Over the next several days the standing became pretty common. Stand, teeter after a few seconds, sit and smile to the assembled throng. Repeat.
When we picked her up from day care on Friday they told us she wasn't standing as much as the other members of her group. I wasn't too worried. Her care takers all regularly comment on how sweet and loving she is- it's no surprise her feet never touch the floor. She doesn't stand up because she never gets the chance to do so.
Imagine our surprise Monday when we got her and found she had taken some steps that day. I wish we had been there for those first steps, but that's okay. I know there will be more.
I've been carrying the camera around the house trying to get a picture of her standing or walking. I may have better luck chasing bigfoot or Nessie. I remain faithful. Photos will be posted soon.

Our future politician

About a month ago Sophie started utilizing an ear to ear smile that many have likened to a stumping politician while others have compared it to a used car salesman type of smile.
"Same thing," I reply, but either way it sure is cute. Enjoy it. It happens right at the beginning of the video.

Lots of stuff has been happening

We've had a few busy weeks in the Parke household. My brother Nick and his fiance, Sallie, stopped by on July 1st on their way from Houston to Pennsylvania for their wedding. Sophie goes to bed by dark, so she missed their arrival but she loved on them the next morning before they got on the road.



Sophie and Sallie



Nick and Sophie, who is getting a bit restless with all of the picture taking

A few days after Nick and Sallie visited, Sophie made her first trip to the zoo and attended her first 4th of July cookout at Wael and Amy's. Christie and Sophie drove to the cookout a bit before I walked Gizza to the party. Christie told me that shortly after she got there, Wael and Amy's son Alex came up to her and asked, "Is Sophie's daddy coming?" I guess that makes it official. I am no longer Carl Parke. I am Sophie's Daddy. To be honest, I couldn't be happier.

We left for the wedding last Wednesday and stopped by at my aunt KK's house on the way. KK taught Sophie how to climb up and down stairs and loved on all three of us every minute we were there.

Sophie would move in with KK if we would let her.

We arrived in Lititiz, Pennsylvania in time for the Friday afternoon family friendly bachelor party complete with miniature golf and go cart racing. The one lesson most of us took away from the go cart racing is that anyone old enough to have an advanced college degree has no business folding themselves into a racing go cart. Our 14 year-old nephew Max is the only one of us who belongs in a go cart. While it appears my uncle Dick is flashing a thumbs up of approval in this photo, he is actually indicating the number of functioning kidneys he has left five laps into the seven lap main event of the day.

While Dick only lost an internal organ on the track, Nick lost his pride to his buddy Eamon who put him in the wall out of sight of the track supervisor on the white flag lap.

Nick and Sallie's wedding was on Saturday and both Christie and I feel it was the sweetest, most beautiful wedding either of us has ever attended, including our own. I keep trying to come up with ways to describe it and don't feel anything I can write will do it justice. If you were there, you understand. If you weren't there, you missed one of the most guileless and pure events that has happened in recent memory- of mankind.

Nick and Roger posing for photographs after the service.

On our way home Sunday, we stopped by KK's again for some respite from the 14 hour drive. My cousin Jason, his wife Susan, and their son Stellan were also there and Sophie got to hang out with them before they drove home to Charlotte. I'm a bit weorried. Sophie really likes the boys. She was smitten with Amon while at the wedding and then all over Stellan the evry next day. I am so paying for this sins of my sife.

Jason, Sophie, Stellan and Susan on the patio.

We drove home this morning and I have to point out how great Sophie did travelling. She slept for a few hours in the car after leaving KK's and played for an hour before we stopped for lunch in Chattanooga. She fell asleep in the car before we got to the interstate and slept almost the entire way home from there. I wish I had held up as well as she did.

Where's that #$@!%& Enfamil coupon?

Now that she's "all grown up" Sophie has taken it upon herself to help out with the household expenses as best she can. Unable to seek gainful employment due to overly protective child labor laws, she has worked diligently to be a coupon clipper extraordinaire.

I just hope no one ever gets a picture of me doing this in a dumpster.

And then one day,

You hear a lot as a new parent about how time flies and babies grow so quickly- one day they can't roll over and the next day, well, see for yourself-

Undaunted by her inability to see over the dashboard, Sophie plans to enlist the aid of a few buds from daycare to assist her in some Thelma & Louise style antics.

Mobility- fun for some

Sophie has gotten fairly mobile in the last few weeks.She still isn't crawling in the classical sense, but is using a modified technique where she gets on her hands and knees, lunges forward onto her belly and then scoots forward due to the momentum from her legs. It isn't what I would call pretty, but it works. It works very well.
I haven't lost her yet, but I have a feeling that day is fast approaching. I've started working on the excuses I'll throw at Christie when she comes in from an errand and Sophie is nowhere to be found. Thus far, none of the excuses I have developed have a chance of working, but I keep coming up with 'em. We'll see what happens when the dreaded moment arrives.
She is pretty creative when it comes to playing with her toys, which apparently is a trait many only children develop. She enjoys playing drums on the container the blocks came in more than playing with the blocks themselves and really seems to love the sound the lid makes as she scrapes it across the floor. She's even gone after a few of Gizza's toys, but that's okay, he doesn't mind sharing.

Tasty, tasty rawhide!

Uncle Connor

I can't really remember the first time I heard someone say that becoming a father changes the way a man looks at the world. When I first heard that said, I probably made a joke or two about the various ways I thought fatherhood would impact me. I can see myself now- firing off a few quips about the loss of my identity as a person and no longer having the time or money for things I had always enjoyed.
To be honest, I always knew fatherhood would change me, and I was actually looking forward to it. Becoming a father meant that growing up was no longer optional. There is no rationalization for a new bike or a rare bottle of Scotch when it is time to pay for day care. Incidently, a month of day care falls right in the middle of the price of a nice bottle of hooch and a decent road bike. Funny how things work out isn't it?
What I wasn't expecting was the deeper ways that fatherhood changed the way I look at the world. Dating or being married is one thing- Christie and I depend on each other, but our very existance does not depend on the other. That isn't the case with a baby. Sophie completely depends on us. I know that won't always be the case, but it is right now and will be for several more years. Having that responsibility affected me a great deal in other ways as well.
I feel much more tuned into the world and its rhythms since becoming a father. Having a brand new life in the house and watching the myriad and sundry changes that she goes through on an almost daily basis seem to make me feel more tuned in to life than I ever have been before. I think some of it is tied to our worries that as a newborn she was always so close to death. Babies are so tiny and helpless and can just die in their sleep for no obvious reason at all. The thought of it still makes me wake up at night on occasion and I lay there quietly in the dark listening for her breathing to reassure me. I guess what I'm trying to say is Sophie has taught me about the frailty and preciousness of life, even though she is perfectly healthy and happy.
The fleeting nature of our time here on Earth became all too real for me Tuesday when Roger called to share the news about Connor. I didn't have the pleasure of knowing him as I was growing up, but over the last 15 years I am really glad that I got to know him. Many of my cousins have told me he was their favorite uncle growing up and I can see why. Quick witted and jovial, chreubic in nature and appearance, he always made the room he was in come alive. He told what I consider the funniest joke I have ever heard. I told it to a friend last week who was having a really bad day. When I told her the news of his passing Wednesday morning, she asked me what he was like. "Remember the joke I told you about the Brazilian Bullfrog?" I asked. She nodded and I added, "He told it to me." She smiled. So did I.

I hugged Sophie just a little bit tighter and a little bit longer each morning this week and I had a hard time letting her go as I headed to Connor's funeral in Tennessee. She's taught me just how precious life truly is and has helped me appreciate the times I had with Connor more than I think I would have if she wasn't in my life. Not bad for a little girl who hasn't quite mastered crawling yet.

Sophie and her Uncle Connor

Happy Easter

Can I get a little help on this one

Christie's Dad and I went fishing for a few hours this morning and were on our way back to the house when Christie called and asked if I know someone named Kim Varna in Memphis. Didn't ring any bells, so I asked why and was told this person had sent Sophie a very nice gift- a personalized Easter basket and an eco-friendly egg dyeing kit from Pottery Barn.
Christie said she and her Mom couldn't place the name either. After we hung up I told Lawrence the story and he started laughing. "You just can't remember her name. You knew her, you just don't remember her." I told him if that were the case, whoever this woman is likely wouldn't be mailing Sophie an Easter present. "You've got a point, but I'm still not sure if this is somehow tied to your sordid past."
I called Roger thinking maybe one of my numerous Barbee cousins may be married to Mr. Varna, but found that we have no people in Memphis these days, and no Varna-in-law either.
At breakfast we did what any modern American does when faced with such a situation- we asked Dr. Google about Ms. Varna. When we found she works for a shipping company that conveniently listed its phone number, I called her. Enquiring minds and all.
I explained to Mrs. Varna that my wife and I had received her gift for Sophie and we were either A)Terribly embarrassed that we did not remember knowing her or B)Would gladly forward the gift she meant for someone else that Pottery Barn accidentally mailed to us. She chuckled and told me that she did not know either my wife or me and in fact the gift was mailed to the correct address. She works for the shipping company that handles a great deal of business for Pottery Barn as well as Williams-Sonoma. Apparently, her name is on thousands of packages delivered each day. She did say that once it actually was good that it was her name on the label- a relative's daughter received a gift from her and pointed out the name on the return address.
Mrs. Varna told me this happens fairly often and to call the customer service number on the packing slip. I dutifully did. I explained to the person on the other end of the line that I was trying to find out who sent my daughter a gift. She asked me for the order number which I read to her. She asked for minute to look it up, returned to the line and said proudly, "Got it. Do you know a Sophie Parke?"
"Yes," I responded, and added, "But since she is the seven-month old that the package was delivered to, I hope she isn't the one who ordered it. Because if she is, I'm going to be in a world of hurt in 15 years or so."
After checking my credit card statement online and eliminating the possibility that Sophie is a consumer savant, I am making this appeal. If you sent this very nice gift to Sophie, let us know who you are. This is the South and the proper conventions must be observed. There is a thank you card to be written and mailed.

Seven month update

Sophie is seven months old today and it really seems like just yesterday that we were loading her into the Jeep for the two hour ride home from the hospital. I was looking at pictures of her as a newborn earlier this morning and comparing them to some shots taken over the weekend and a list of all the changes she has gone through in that time would stretch for pages. Since I know most of you look at this blog for pictures of her instead of my inane ramblings, here you go:

These two shots are at a week or so old.

At the shark petting area of McWane Center last Saturday.

Christmas came early- I have my two front teeth!

Sleep training is underway

Sophie went to the pediatrician Monday and her six-month check up went well. She's still in the 90th percentile and her shots did not seem to bring on the end of the world that night.
On the down side, we were told that it was time to do some sleep training. Christie and I both tended to rock her to sleep at night and would try to get her put down without waking her. She also slept with a pacifier, so it was not uncommon to put that back in a few times a night.
We knew we were getting in trouble when we would find a crying baby with her arms held out to us when going to check on the pacifier we heard tossed across the nursery. The pediatrician confirmed that we were on a path that could ultimately lead to the very heart of darkness itself and we had to start some training, for Sophie and us, this weekend.
I'm not sure which school of thought we are following, but last night's regimen called for calming her every five minutes until she went to sleep, going in every 10 minutes tonight, 15 tomorrow and after 20 minutes for the duration starting Monday.
And oh yeah, no pacifier either.
Last night went well. She had a big day at daycare and didn't get in a nap after school. It went so well that Christie kept asking me to double check the claritin dosage information because she was sure she had given Sophie too much and that was the reason she went to sleep so easily.
I would like the record to reflect that we did not accidentally dose our daughter last night. The stars just lined up for us.
Tonight was not so smooth. Ten minutes is a really long time to listen to a baby cry. Six ten minute periods right after each other can do things to an adult's psyche.
Around 8:00, she went out, whether from exhaustion or frustration or just giving up I couldn't tell you. To be honest, I don't really care.
She just started crying again. This could be a long night. I'm glad we brought in extra supplies of beer and wine. We're going to need it.

Spring Break

Our spring break trip had an unexpected early stop- the ER. First child, some early morning difficulty breathing and a phone call to the pediatrician's answering service had us on our way. It was croup night at the ER, but we found out Sophie merely had a really congested head. The nurses utilized the Dyson class suction device mounted to the wall and opened her up and told us she should be fine to travel.
Those few days with the Barbee clan were great. Sophie really seemed to enjoy meeting everyone and was very generous with hugs and her rather sloppy attempts at kissing, or biting, we're not quite sure which.

                 



 



As you can see, our family basically ignored Sophie.







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Sophie had a few firsts on the trip- including driving the swing, sitting in the grocery cart seat and eating in a high chair. After spending a few days with family in Greenville, we went to Brevard for a few days of family togetherness. We stayed at a wonderful B&B, the Red House Inn where the owners treated us like family.

We had a great time on the trip and I'm up for another run that way, but I hope we don't have to start the next trip off with a detour to the ER.

Tastes like sweet potatoes

As many of you know, the conventional wisdom on infant care includes sterilizing the bottles after washing them. There is not much debate on this idea. The question is: how long do you do it.
Christie's Aunt Imogene said she knew it was time to quit worrying about sterilizing the bottles and accompanying paraphernalia when she found her son Wilkes chewing on the dog's ear one morning. The dog stoically put up with such behavior. I'm sure there was some sort of deal about dropped Cheerios in exchange for all access to a furry teething toy.

This part right here feels good and tender.

Sophie's days of sterilized bottles may be coming to a close. She sampled Gizza yesterday morning and declared he tastes just like sweet potatoes. It started off so innocently. Christie and Sophie were sitting on the couch and Gizza came over seeking a bit of attention. He's usually a bit nervous around Sophie, he knows those little fingers have a good grip and can pull fur as well as pet it. But yesterday, he was much like Wilkes' dog, fine with the patting and petting he was getting from both Sophie and Christie.
Very smoothly she leaned in for that first taste. It wasn't an ear, but more from the skirt steak area. It wasn't even too violent. Not really a teething bite, just more of an exploratory foray. Gizz didn't seem to mind at all. She's eating solid food now so I am sure the deal between the two has been struck. It is as it has been for untold ages between child and dog, and it is good.