Family portrait

This is a first: a photo of the three of us together with all our faces visible (thanks Chris!). It seems like Kasper is getting livelier every day. He sleeps less now and rolls over constantly. His new favorite thing to do is to blow bubbles, something I'll try to capture on video this week. But right now he's asleep and I should be too, before the sound of my typing wakes him up. Adios!

Awash in Woodfords

My brother Chris and his family chose to drive 600 miles to spend their April vacation with us -- ahh, the magnetic power of a new baby! We enjoyed their company all week, and Kasper was excited to meet cousins Cameron and Delaney. They each got a little taste of the Kasper charm, along with a bit of drool on their clothes to take home as a souvenir. We were sad to see them go, but we'll try to get up to Maine this summer and see them all again. In the meantime, I have a few more pictures from their trip I'll post a little later in the week. And more pictures of Kasper, too, before the grandmas get too restless.

Plugged back in

Sorry for the long drought between posts. My brother Chris and his family were in town, and I was kept busy enough that I never sat down at the computer long enough to do more than check the status of my fantasy baseball league (my team stinks -- thanks for asking). This week is going to be different, though. New pictures every day, and maybe a new video or two. We'll start just as soon as I get home from work, I promise.

Mini safari

On a beautiful spring day in Washington, D.C., there's just no place better than the National Zoo -- unless you were able to score tickets for the Nationals' home opener at RFK (Go Nats!). So when I had a chance to get out of work early today, Meaghan met me in town with the small fry and we introduced him to one of our all-time favorite places.
Washington is punishingly hot in the summer and dark and dreary in the winter, but in the spring it's really magnificent, even if you happen to miss the cherry blossoms every year like we do. The weather was in the 60s, the sun was out and -- most importantly -- the cheetah cubs were rambunctious. The four of them were born back in November and they're just as happy to see spring as we are.
Some daredevil ducks have taken up residence a pond in the cheetah yard, so the cubs and their mom practiced their stalking techniques on them, chasing the ducks back behind the fencing the zookeepers put up to protect their nests. Kasper was too more interested in gnawing on his hand to notice the whole episode, but it was pretty cool. I told Meaghan having four babies at once looked pretty efficient. That suggestion went nowhere.
We also checked in on Kandula, the Asian elephant born here in November 2001. We saw Kandula days after his birth when he weighed a mere 325 pounds. Now he's a 2,990-pound 3-year-old. Like we needed a reminder they grow fast.
And that was about it. We used to canvas most of the zoo in one afternoon, but with Kasper, we move at a relaxed pace. And since he's already rolling over and we're convinced he'll be walking early, we're going to enjoy that pace while we can.

A man of many hats

I don't know what it is with the hats -- maybe we need counseling or something. Kasper is doing great -- he's watching a little baseball right now and trying to ignore the way his Red Sox have started the season. He rolled over for the first time this week, so it's no longer safe to put him on the floor and leave the room -- God knows where he'll be when you get back. Overall, he seems to be a pretty happy kid, which is all we can really ask for. Although sleeping more than five hours at a stretch would be a real bonus.

Put me in coach, I'm ready to play!

We've been waiting for Opening Day all year -- Kasper doesn't talk about anything else. He's already well aware that the Yankees are the root of all evil in the universe. And that Derek Jeter has a slow first step that makes him a lousy defender. And that Jason Giambi is a cheater. Etc., etc.

My son has never known a world where the Red Sox weren't World Series champions. Let's keep it that way. Go Sox!

Late for the Easter party

"OK, Mom, Easter was five days ago ... can I please take the ears off now?"

Hope everyone had a happy Easter -- and we'll shoot for getting the photo up before the holiday next time!