Zoe wasn’t really interested in going to sleep when we thought she should tonight. Karen spent a long time trying to get her to shut those cute brown eyes, but the kid was remarkably awake. By the time I took over, the baby girl was wide-eyed and ready for play.

While I was watching her she started rolling around in the crib, slowly turning from the length-wise position she’d started until she was perpendicular to the side. And then she rolled over onto her belly! She’s rolled the other way a couple of times, belly to back, but this is the first time we’ve seen her to this. If she can put it all together, there’ll be no stopping her. :)

I didn’t get a picture, but I’m sure the baby girl will provide many more opportunities.

Karen had to do some work at the old office today, so I took that day off to do some child care. We had a really nice morning: Zoe’s nap was short, but we went for a walk up to Sara’s Market then ambled around the park a bit.

Zoe was giving me the old stink-eye when we left, perhaps because I bundled her up for an Artic adventure without realizing that it had actually warmed up a bit from this week’s chilly temps. But we had a nice walk and she napped a bit along the way.

I also got a chance to try a shot that I’ve been trying to get for a while: a view of our neighborhood from the hill in the park. This view is quite something in the right light, especially when the weather is overcast, and it was really nice this morning. I’m not sure that my latest attempt really captures what I’m talking about, but here it is anyway (click for a larger version).

You can’t really see our house from this shot, but it’s back there somewhere.

I had a really nice time with Zoe, but I can see how hard it would be to do this every day. I found myself talking to her a lot but she doesn’t really respond (beyond smiling or frowning). Once again, I’m stunned by how hard it must be to be a stay-at-home parent. While I would love the opportunity, I imagine that I’d be spending a lot of time looking for some, any, adult interaction.

Karen is doing some freelance work for our old company. She needed to spend some quality time with her MacBook. I’m working at home today, but I couldn’t watch Zoe right then. What to do?

Wear the baby, of course!

I love the Ergo. I carried Zoe around for a couple of ours at the beach the other day (more on that in the next post) and I never got tired. It’s really something to be able to strap this thing on, front or back, and get on with the day while keeping the munchkin close by.

Karen was able to get some work done and Zoe was happy to be hanging close to momma.

As an aside, I’m really glad proud of Karen. She’s doing a great job being a mom. It is very hard to stay home with the kid all day long, even is she is the sweetest thing. Zoe is cute but she’s short on adult conversation and she has a lot of demands. Karen has sacrificed up a lot to be “momma” all the time: adult interaction, the ability to get her own stuff done, and loss of identity to a role.

I don’t think that having a child has had nearly as much impact on my day-to-day life as it has on Karen; it couldn’t. I can take care of Zoe, bathe her, change the diapers, feed her, and read her books, but I’m not mom and there are times when that’s all that will do. That’s a lot of responsibility and Karen is handling it like a pro.

The incredible [in both the “fantastic” and “not to be believed” senses of the word] weather we had on Saturday translated into an experience for Zoe that I didn’t expect she’d get for several more months: a trip to the beach!

We headed up to Plum Island and the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, which is one of our favorite birding spots. I didn’t get a lot of pictures of Zoe, since I was wearing her, but Karen did. I did take a couple of “arty” shots, though. I like this one on the sea and sky because it doesn’t look at all like a January ocean shot.

I’m also pretty happy with the shot of the boardwalk to the beach; I may try to print this one for display (click on the image for a high-res version).

I also like this one of the dunes, shot from the new elevated boardwalk. You can see the old walk below, half-buried in the sand.

This was a big trip for us, since it was the first beach trip for Zoe and only the second time she’s gone birding. It wasn’t much of a birding trip, really, but it was a beautiful day. The 70 degree temps were stunning and we went short-sleeved even along the ocean. It’s hard to believe that this was Massachusetts in January. On the one hand very enjoyable; on the other it freaks me out to think that this could be a sign of things to come on the global warming front. Or it could just have been a really nice day. :)

We saw some birds, mostly eared grebes just offshore, along with a few loons. There were lots of ducks and geese in the ponds. The big event was an American Bittern, a normally secretive wader. This one was out in the open and really showing off in the lovely light. We were standing right next to Jim Fenton when he took these. The light was perfect. Even though I was carrying my Canon, I’m not really set up for great bird photos yet. I need to get hold of one of those 600mm jobs. Anyone want to contribute? ;-) I did manage a couple of grabs of a rather unremarkable Ring-billed Gull.

The big wildlife shot of the day for me came with a harbor seal that was laying out on the beach. When we got there, a guy mentioned it to us, so we walked down to talk a closer look. It’s unclear if this fella was ill or just resting; it didn’t seem to be in much distress but it wasn’t really trying to get away from people, either, which is not a good sign.

I managed to get a few shots from about 25ft. The ranger came done and set up a cordon around the seal and they said they’d watch it for a day or so to see if it was all right. It was a cute little guy, but I suspect it was ill.

All in all, it was a great day at the beach and a wonderful break from the normal winter gloom. I’m not really hoping for more days like that this winter, but it was a nice reminder of just how beautiful spring could be.

The holidays are over. Now it’s time to get back to work. And I really don’t want to go. I’ve got too much to do to waste time working. Here are 10 things I could be doing instead of grinding away at work:

1. Playing with Zoe all day.
2. Playing with Karen all day.
3. Finally getting my act together on selling some of my photos.*
4. Actually taking more photos.
5. Petting the cats.
6. Getting outside and doing some birding.
7. Replacing the kitchen cabinets.
8. Writing that killer Web application I’ve been meaning to get to.
9. Selling the TV.
10. Laundry.

* I actually sold a couple of prints to my cow-orker Nancy just before Christmas (thanks Nancy!). This was not my first sale, but the timing was nice and it spared me from having to bring home two more pieces of art that I haven’t hung.

Technically, there’s not much laundry to do, so I should probably strike that one from the list. But I still find the idea more appealing than going to work today. Maybe I should replace that with “hang all of this artwork that’s laying around”.

Oh well, it’s time to go to work.

2006 was a pretty good year. Karen and I celebrated the first anniversary of our marriage and the tenth anniversary of our relationship. More importantly, we became parents this year, with the birth of our daughter Zoe.

This is the first picture I ever took of Zoe. I can’t believe how much she’s changed in the past four months. And we still have so far to go. I don’t think I can really express how how happy I am as a husband and father. My life has had it’s ups and downs, but this is the highest I have ever been. I love my family so much; I don’t think I could ever have conceived of being lucky enough to have such great people to spend my life with. As 2006 fades into the past, I wonder what 2007 will be like. If it’s even half as good as this year, it’ll be spectacular.

Best wishes to all for a healthy and happy 2007.

Zoe’s been sleeping in her crib at night for a fews days now and that means that we can stop using our Bugaboo bassinet at night . We had our four-month checkup with the pediatrician on Friday and got the OK to switch to the stroller, so today I disassembled the bassinet and put in the stroller seat. We plopped Zoe in, threw on the rain cover and her new snowsuit (thanks, Uncle James!) and headed out into the snow.

The snow was coming down pretty good. This is the first snow we’ve had this year; it’s not really all that much, maybe a half inch, but it’s nice too see it. Of course, when we get a two foot snow storm later in the season, I’ll be cursing this stuff.

We’re really fortunate to live right next to a big park.  It’s got playgrounds, ball fields, and a huge sledding hill that we’re definitely going to take advantage of next year.

Zoe was pretty much bundled up in her suit. The “bubble” of the rain cover kept her nice and dry, but she didn’t exactly look happy about it. Of course, she was also on the edge of napping, so it could just be that. She seemed to watch the big flakes coming down for a while, but it’s hard to know what she made of it. At this point, everything is new and surprising.

As you can see, it really was pretty out there. I love walking in the snow.

The Bugaboo is pretty cool. Zoe can ride facing frontwards or backwards. This is truly the stroller of royalty. ;-)

I’ve lost all enthusiasm for work today. Time to go home.

Zoe slept in her crib all night yesterday. This is the first time she hasn’t slept in the room with us since we brought her home from the hospital.

It was a little strange not having her in the room, but the cats were happy. Both Tennessee and Poe slept behind my legs last night. I think they were ecstatic to be back in the bed with their peeps.

Sleeping in the crib will be better for Zoe; she was getting a bit large for the Bugaboo bassinet. We’ve been thinking the she needed to move up to something she can actually stretch out in. But to be honest, I know that I really liked having her near. I’m sure Karen felt the same. But Zoe slept well last night, putting in her typical all-night slumber.

Our little girl is growing up.

We had a really nice Christmas weekend at mom’s, but after a rather tiring drive. We’re home again and I’m wiped out. It’s going to be nice to sleep on our own wonderful mattress again.

Zoe did pretty well on the ride once again. Despite over six hours in the car, she didn’t cry more than a few minutes when the pumped milk ran out. I can only hope that she’s this good when we start flying in a few months.

This was a bonanza Christmas for Zoe. Both family and friend were very generous and she got some great stuff, including some nice clothes, infant toys, and a really nice quilt. It’s sort of weird to have such a young child at our family Christmas again. But it was nice, too.

Well, that’s it for now. I’m going to finish listening to the book on “tape” we’ve been listening to as I fall asleep.

Happy holidays.