1st Foxmas

So we had a great day - regardless of the visit to the E.R. for Ryan's cut thumb. Brighton received a Rody horse we named Sherman from Mumma which did not go over so well...sorry you have to crane your neck to view this video!

Boy's rainforest bouncer

Eating goober peas...

So this is B Dodge eating pureed peas for the first time...clearly he wasn't quite sure how to swallow food but he is quite experienced now!

Carrots!!! Brighton's first Thanksgiving...

Added for your viewing pleasure is Brighton's first foray into solid foods - his Thanksgiving meal of carrots! The carrots make a cameo in the second video as well...

More bouncing videos - new bouncer!

Just had to share these few videos of B Boy bouncing in his Rainforest Activity Center...he loves it so!

Hey Ladies!!!

What better way to weather these tough and dreary economic times than with some bouncing and a little NAKED TIME!

That's all! Just sit back and enjoy the show.

Brighton has a girlfriend at school...her name is Mirabelle. Their favorite activities are grabbing and kicking the baby gym and drooling. They even hold hands occasionally (by complete accident). Brighton and Mirabelle like to babble with each other and she is patient with his almost constant raspberry blowing!

Happy Halloween!

Look what we found at Joe's Lobster Mart! He's a juicy 15 pounder...and at $3.15 a pound (a record low for such a delicacy) he's an economical $47.25! Now for some drawn butter...

Get Out and VOTE!!!!!

See who I'm for? If you care at all about the future of me and my contemporaries, follow suit and vote for the guy on my shirt! Remember this: we are going to be the ones taking care of you, so don't screw this up! Say it with me: OBAMA!!!! Actually, say it for me because though I am brilliant, I am still only four months old and can't talk yet.

Now, guess what we did this weekend? Even though it's October we went to the beach. Check out these gems:

Once again, vote OBAMA or the next time you're holding me you may just find a little "October Surprise" leaking out of my diaper and into your lap! ADIOS W. AND TAKE YOUR CLONE MCCAIN WITH YOU!!!

School days...

Brighton is really loving school! He enjoys "circle time" where the babies listen to music - sometimes even live piano. All of his teachers are great and think he's the cutest boy around (gee, you think they say that to all the parents?)...they keep him busy with high contrast flash cards and an activity they call "hands and faces."

Little B Dodge is also doing a lot of "singing" and blowing of bubbles...it's great to watch him discover new things he can do!

Tasty New Developments

So there's a little bit of Indiana showing through in this Bostonian already, he's developed a taste for plastic corn. Could those be teeth coming through? Who can say, but he seems to enjoy putting anything and everything in his mouth.

And how about sitting up? It's pretty easy when you have a chair perfectly molded to your little bum that does all of the work for you.

Now on to the really good stuff. Let's close with a video like we always do. Being the true performer, BD keeps you hanging for the payoff at the end so stick with it.

So our little boy is almost 12 weeks old. Summer is over, and we've managed to run him all over and keep him on the most irregular schedule possible. It will be fun to see what neuroses will surface when he's 15. Most importantly this summer, Brighton took his first trip on a plane 3 weeks ago. It was a very important trip because we had to get him to Indiana to meet Jen's father. So after miraculously sleeping for the entirety of the flight, Brighton was well rested for a trip to the hospital to meet "mean Grandpa". To say the two were smitten with each other is an understatement.

Luckily we made it back home in time for the two to meet, and to get some photos to mark the occasion. Sadly on September 13th Jennifer's father Steve lost his 2 1/2 year battle with brain cancer. To see his full obituary, click here. We'll miss you Colonel.

"Cole Slaw" (Uncle Chris) and "Cod Fish" (Cousin Jax) came for their summer vacation and spent some quality time with our boy who they now call "B Dodge." During an overnight diaper changing/feeding session while Brighton was crying Jax woke up and said, "He's making me nervous!" Jax is going to be a great cousin and I'm sure he will show my son how to rock out to Queen, play lightsabers, and do "flip ups" (his very own unique exercise move).

Another nickname Brighton earned during the Dodds Boys' visit is "Gee" (hard G) because when the boy is REALLY hungry his cries sound like "Um Gee, Um Gee" while his face gets red and scrunchy, what Chris calls his "angry raisin" face.

We've been a little behind on our blogging these days...Brighton has been enjoying spending time meeting new family members on Cape Cod and even managed to dip some toes into the frigid Atlantic! Our little boy is almost 12 lbs now and has grown about 2 inches since birth.

If Only We Lived in Norway

Call me bitter, but if Jen, Brighton and I were Norwegian, not only would we have the joy of speaking either Bokmal or Nynorsk (that's right, 2 official languages), enjoying the classical music of Edvard Greig, and the vast fjords, oh the endless fjords!, but I would only be in the middle of my mandatory 6 weeks of paid paternity leave (I had to look all that up, because I knew exactly nothing about Norway). Pause and re-read that last sentence...actually, save yourself some time and just read the last point. That's right folks, in addition to a kick ass horned-helmet-fur-boot-wearing-plundering-and-pillaging Viking heritage, the Norwegians have some equally kick ass parental leave. That 6 weeks is required. Viking men are allowed 10 1/2 paid months off. I won't drone on, look it up yourself. The US is right on par with beautiful Lesotho and Swaziland in offering no paid leave for parents. Dynamite.

Yes, I'm bitter and angry and mostly sad, because tomorrow I am going back to work to spend my day at a desk instead of spending time with this kid. I've had a lot of people tell me what they think the hardest part of being a new parent is; lack of sleep, the lifestyle adjustments, the crying, and so on. I know I'm new to this, but I think the hardest part about being a parent is knowing I'm not going to see him all day tomorrow. Changing his diaper is a snap. Not being around all day to change it, that's hard.

Now, let's end on a happy note. The cord finally fell off, so it was time for his first full on bath. Enjoy.

Week 1 Re-cap

Brighton received these flowers in honor of passing through the canal. Unlike him, they looked much better the day they arrived.









An obvious look of dispeasure when we put him in the car seat for the first time. Turns out he should have trusted our judgement, because the car seat is one of his favorite things. Something tells me this won't be the last time he doesn't take our word for it.







And finally, how about a hiccup video (stick around for the sneeze at the end)?

Alright already, I'm here!

Hello everyone! Are you going to stop hassling me and my mom and dad about taking my sweet time? Good, so here's the skinny. I made my mom sit in a hospital bed for 54 hours of labor, and I popped out a healthy 9 lbs 2 ozs on Thursday the 26th at 7:56 am. And for the NBA scouts, I'm 20 inches.

Mom and dad are adjusting to life +1 so that's why they have taken a week to update the blog. I'm not really sure what the problem is, a nipple here and dirty diaper there, nothing major. So I'll stay on top of them to keep everyone updated, but in the meantime, who wants to watch a 45 second video of me stretching?

“I have noticed that the people who are late are often so much jollier than the people who have to wait for them.” -E.V. Lucas

Much like his father taking 6 years to finish a 4 year degree, Brighton is destined to take 41 weeks to complete 40 weeks in utero. On the bright side, look how well it served me to stay a little longer in my womb that was Muncie, Indiana.

So in the meantime we have settled into a routine of eating, napping, and walking, all in the aim of coaxing the little guy out. Until that day arrives (which for those of you keeping score at home will be Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. whether he likes it or not), mum and dad are just enjoying the relaxation.

"Punctuality is the art of guessing how late the other fellow is going to be"

Brighton seems content enough to stay where he is for the time being. The due date is now 24 hours in the past and we sit and wait...and eat chinese food and italian food and spicy food and wash it down with castor oil while we take walks and do squats and massage ankles and do accupressure and try out any and every other unsolicited piece of labor-inducing advice. As we were leaving the hospital today a woman stared and stared at us. Finally asking, "Are you in labor?"

"Yes, that's why we're walking away from the hospital."

We'll keep you posted.

IT'S ALMOST TIME...

Mummy and Daddy Fox are almost ready...Actually, Ryan is more than ready - he wants the baby here yesterday! The nursery is done, we have all the necessary supplies (we think), we are fully moved in and the place has been thoroughly sanitized (all pretty much by Ryan). The plan is to work until we can't work anymore so that all time off is spent with the little one. The due date is next Tuesday the 17th...stay tuned!

New Ultrasound Images!

It's amazing to be able to see his little face! Click on the image to view it up close. Don't worry about the devil horns in the top left hand corner picture - Doc says we can easily have them removed and peform an exorcism as soon as they cut the cord.

Baby Brights' Nursery

Ryan worked really hard putting all the furniture together and arranging it a few different ways, hanging the photos, and sticking on the wall pops while I folded clothing and unpacked the accessories and chattles that come along with babies! Brighton has the most decorated and planned room we have ever had...

Welcome to Brighton's Blog!

Hello! We are going to keep everyone up to date on the newest Fox (to be) with this blog. Check back every now and then to find out what Brighton Dodger is up to - check his growth, his movements (bowel and otherwise), and photos.