Bears & baby

Baby Jude and mom went to the Chicago Bears training camp with Grandpa Scott Kline. It was an easy 1 hour trip to Bourbonnais. We were impressed by the easy free parking and free access to watch the team. Mostly Grandpa and mommy chatted in a shady spot, enjoyed some lunch and then fed Jude a bottle. It was nice to be together and be outside. I'd love to give you insider info on the Bears, but we never got super close to the team because they were wrapping up practice by the time we finished lunch.

Jude at Bears Camp 2008

Jude was only in the sunshine for that photo for about 5 seconds... so stop worrying! :-)

Grandpa Scott tended to Jude while Robbie Gould was practicing field goals right behind him. In my opinion Robbie gets a touchdown but Grandpa Scott has the real prize!

Mom enjoying Bears camp

In praise of... this crazy mobile

When we first opened the box for this crib mobile, given to us by our friends Craig & Judy, our first thought was "wow... the Krasinki's taste has changed now that they have kids". Craig and Judy are very admirable people with a good aesthetic sense (Judy went to NYU film school) but you might never know it when looking at the Tiny Love "Symphony-in-Motion Mobile - Farmyard". (FYI, they also have one of best ongoing baby blogs you can check out here.)

But, as with all things baby, we are regularly surprised by the things that get little Jude excited . This is where I have to bow to the prior parenting experience of the Krasinskis, and publicly acknowledge that I should have never pre-judged the mobile... it is wild looking to be sure, but Jude loves it. We would have not picked it out ourselves, but we'd be worse off without it.

We have attached the mobile to our pack-n-play (see Kara's "in praise of" review here) which also has a changing table. Jude will lay there absolutely mesmerized for lengthy periods of time watching the mobile spin around and play music.

Now to the music: you'll notice a theme in my "in praise of" posts for anything that makes noise. Basically, if it has decent tonal quality and plays a subtle rendition of the music--as opposed to the garish clanging of most baby toys--then I am all for it. All three pieces of music played by the mobile (by Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven) are artfully reproduced so that it doesn't drive me crazy to hear them over and over again.

The Tiny Love Symphony-in-Motion Mobile

The amazing Jude-dini

Baby Jude made quite a move of his own last night just two nights after we moved him from the bassinet in our bedroom to his crib in the nursery. While swaddled he managed to free one arm, turn his entire body 90 degrees, and move two feet in the crib. Guess he takes after his mommy...another sleeper who moves around a lot (which is easier after daddy gets up for work)

Artist rendering of amazing crib move

Jude's arm was like this in the crib

The amazing Jude-dini has 'escaped' the swaddle before

In praise of: The Combi "pack n' play"

We registered for the Combi Solutions Playard DX instead of the traditional Pack N' Play brand product because frankly we liked its sleeker look and color better. Plus it had no ruffles...a high priority for Greg. What we did not expect, was how awesome it would be.

Combi Travel Solutions DX

Usually you get a large playpen with a bassinet and changing pad that hang over the top until the baby is too big to use them. We unpacked the thing and were surprised to find it also included a separate stand for the bassinet attachment. The convenient rolling stand allows us to move Jude into the kitchen or by the dinner table. Jude was quite a fan of being able to lay around and sleep instead of sitting in his bouncy seat all the time.

How well this looks in our dining room :-)

Jude in bassinet on stand
Now that he's older it works great for his baby workouts as well. He's going to be the best backstroker I know!

Jude working out on Combi changing pad

George Regains Some Status

We have once again reduced the number of bodies sleeping in our bedroom from 4 to 3. Mr. Jude is outgrowing his moniker "Little Baby Jude" and nearly touches each end of the bassinet when stretched out from head to toe. This meant that we needed to either a) move the crib into the bedroom, or b) move the baby into the nursery we so carefully prepared for him. I vowed to only put that crib together once, so it stayed where it was.

This is a mixed bag... tremendous pride that he is ready to sleep in the "big baby's bed" already, but trepidation that he's growing so fast. I think Kara in particular is holding tight to that vision of the little 8lb. baby snuggling in her arms (and yes, I know that Jude was 9-4 when he was born, but Kara thinking of a 9lb+ newborn still gives her bouts of post-traumatic-stress-disorder, so let's allow her to fudge the memory a bit!). The little guy is moving along in life so quickly, it seems, in such a short time.

George is less concerned about the implications of the whole thing, and is preparing to "move back in" to his bed's previous location at the foot of our bed.

And, in case I haven't shouted it loudly with glee enough, the kid sleeps a lot. The majority of the past week he's gone to bed around 9:30p and wakes up at around 7:30a. Seriously... at 8 weeks! We realize how fortunate we are (trust me, it's not due to any inherent parenting skill) and don't know how long it will last, but we'll take it while we can.

Jude in his first full night in the crib

Jude's road trip

Jude, Mommy, and George made a trip to Normal, Illinois to visit Grandma Carole because Dad had to travel to New York for a conference. Mommy was nervous but Jude slept the entire 2+ hour car ride until right at the end. We arrived in Grandma's garage with the baby screaming.

George sleeps sitting up in car

Jude at Grandma Carole's

Thanks to Grandma Carole for a relaxing wonderful visit. We even took Jude to a shady spot in State Farm Park. Its the employee-only recreation facility for State Farm Corporate employees. Jude enjoyed sleeping in his stroller and eating from his bottle. Mom is not in the photos because she is riding on the lazy river intertubes and generally enjoying being outside.

Jude sleeping near water spout sitting area

Jude dines poolside

Editor's note: If you're reading this far you're probably fairly interested in the life and times of Baby Jude. I just added pictures from Brookfield Zoo to the July 4th posting if you want to check them out.

Jude's favorite thing

Let's just take a moment today to praise the pacifier. Before I had our adorable baby I was unsure whether we would ever need to use this tiny plastic item. Oh how foolish I was just 8 weeks ago. :-)

Jude with his favorite thing

quilted babies are the softest

Jude on quilt by Grandma Nancy

In his free time Jude enjoys chilling on his baby quilt and looking around. He makes noises, he kicks, and stares at whatever objects we put near him. Fortunately he owns some amazing baby quilts. Grandma Nancy spent hours making a colorful bear quilt.






We understand attaching the "layers" involved in each bear was quite a job and we appreciate and enjoy the efforts now.

Kara receiving quilt at her shower

Sherryl Marsh a longtime friend of Kara's mother also made and sent us a quilt for Jude. It is very colorful and he enjoys looking at the images.

Kara babysat for Sherryl's son Adam when he was about Jude's age. Hard to believe its been so many years since that time.

George finds the baby!

Early in our blog (see the May and June posts) we told you how George our dog kept 'losing' the baby. He would run through the house, stand up on his hind legs to see into various places the baby might be...his crib, bassinet, pack n play.
We are happy to show you one of George's baby moments captured on film. This picture would be accompanied by tiny whines from the dog as he looks at Jude.

Despite all the changes baby has brought to George's predictable world he was gracious and well behaved enough to obey our command to lay down and let our friend and photographer Laura snap a few shots.

You will soon see more fabulous photos Laura took of Jude. To see more of her work in general visit www.laurabirkey.com

barber baby

6 weeks old

Baby Jude joined our family six weeks ago at 5:04 pm. I've been writing in a journal my mom gave us. Here are snippets from Jude's first six weeks:

June 2, 2008 "I am on day 5 (Monday). Greg went back to work today and my mom is here. We have never eaten so well....
...Jude screamed, slept and fought for an hour not to feed. It is such a pain to learn this process when he can't talk and I'm an amateur.
At first pediatrician appointment I could barely talk I was so tired. I said "Jude has his c-section yesterday". Doctor and Greg looked at each other. Took me a moment to realize I meant circumcision. Ha Ha"

June 5, 2008 "Dealt with his first 'diaper rash' yesterday and gave him first real sponge bath. George (the dog) tried to help by bringing a toy. Jude love the foam bath pad but he pooped on it too.
Dad & Todd visited Jude. Uncle Todd held his nephew."

June 8, 2008 "Saturdays are awesome--Greg is here"

June 9, 2008 "Today(Monday) was my first day alone with Jude without Greg or my mom. Lord equip me to be a good mother-- to help his brain develop and help him to know you and love us. Help me remember all the things I should do to care for him."

June 14, 2008 "Baby Jude looks larger to me. I want him to stay small and cute forever"

June 16, 2008 "One of the many hospital bills arrived (insurance will cover) but its for $13,297.05 and that's just part of my expenses. Jude's alone were $2300."

June 19, 2008 "Just when I think Jude is looking at me and aware, he proves me wrong by trying to nurse the pillow instead of facing me."

June 20, 2008 "Jude is a little snorer when he sleeps. Its so cute."

June 29, 2008 "Today we are having a day of rest so mommy cries less. We are still learning how to balance each other's needs for rest and time together on the weekend now that baby is here."

July 2, 2008 "He's discovered his fist and loves to chew it, even more than the pacifier sometimes. He makes cute smiles, a few 'coos' and lots of noise. "

July 7, 2008 "Somehow he grew eyelashes and I missed it. They are adorable and blond--like his wisps of hair. He has hair all over his head but has a concentrated mop on the very top. Its like that one curl of hair they always draw on cartoon babies."

Happy July 4th

Happy 4th of July everyone. Baby Jude took in the spectacular Oak Park-River Forest fireworks show right in the stadium with the huge crowd. But he slept through the entire thing thanks to Evelyn and Byron's wonderful hearing protection headphones in baby size!
A police officer stopped us to say 'That's the smartest thing I've ever seen."
Grandma Carole came along for the show. And Evelyn brought ice cream to share. Yummy.
Earlier in the day we visited the zoo with Jude. I'll post those pictures soon.

July 4th fireworks with Jude

(7/22) Here are the added photos I promised from the zoo:

Jude at Bear Garden

Jude's patriotic bib

Jude's wardrobe & July 3rd

One of the biggest surprises to us was how many baby clothes we have received for Jude. The child size wardrobe we have in his room is now packed with adorable outfits. He even got a July 4th bib from someone.

Jude's wardrobe The other day it got chilly so I pulled out his nautical cardigan and docksiders. They are still a bit large. But it made a cute photo before he started screaming.

preppy baby

Greg got off work a bit early today in advance of July 4th. He gave Jude a bottle while I made brownies. I came upstairs to find the holiday started early for both dad and baby.

Dad & Jude nap

Notice the blog has no photos of Mommy sleeping with the baby :-)

Jude's attire doesn't stop at just clothes. Greg's acoustic colleagues gave Jude hearing protection headphones at his baby shower. We tried them on for size in preparation for July 4th. We're expecting to watch the fireworks while Jude chills in his Baby Bjorn wearing the headphones. I'm sure it will be a funny sight! Thanks to Lora, Nesita, and NBC friends for giving us the Baby Bjorn.

Jude tries his headphones

It was amazing to see how Jude calmed down immediately when we put the headphones on. I guess the sound of silence or muffled sound was enjoyable for him.

enjoying peace & quiet

aunts at a picnic

Kara's relatives, the Kline family, recently held a "Meet Baby Jude" Party in Hoffman Estates at the home of Aunt Jan. Even though lots of Klines live in the Chicago area (they were a founding family in Evanston) it is difficult to coordinate schedules and get together. Kara felt honored by all who attended to meet the baby. Jude felt sleepy.

Kara, Aunt Jan & Jude, Aunt Karen

Relaxing on the deck. Thanks Dio for holding Jude!

Kara's Great Uncle Don & Aunt Pat made the trip from Evanston

Jude continues to build an impressive wardrobe