Happy Birthday Daniel

Today is the birthday of a very special nephew (to us) and cousin (to Connor - his first). I hear that the birthday boy was not feeling well today which is a shame. Here is wishing a very happy birthday to Daniel from his Uncle Hedgie, Aunt Erin, Connor, Annabelle and Winston. We hope to see you soon to celebrate together.

Photo Diary of Week One

Hard to believe it's already been a week since Connor got here. Obviously we could not be happier with the way he turned out and we tell him that all the time.

We are learning a lot in these first few days and he has been very patient with us. We often get things wrong and he never seems to mind. For example, it is not always best to immediately change a dirty diaper. More than once he has filled a second diaper while still on the changing table. Or a third, as he did last night.

Connor gets lots of attention these days. It's actually difficult to put him down, simply because we want to hold him. We certainly do not want to spoil him but we also want him to know that he is appreciated. I think he gets the point.

Here Grandma Landry (2.0) and Uncle Kevin take their turns.

He seems to keep his grandfather well entertained.

Connor has been remarkably laid back since coming home from the hospital. He has been about as low maintenance as a newborn baby can be. And even though he did not ask, his grandparents took him for a walk on Sunday, which Anna really appreciated.

All Systems Down

Like any good father, I decided that the best thing to do the day after we brought Connor home from the hospital was to crash our computer. After three trips to the Apple store and the installation of a new hard drive, we are now back online. I have a lot of photos and updates to post (quite a few considering the adventure we have had since we gave up the comfort one gets from having a small army of nurses handle every aspect of your child's care). We continue to learn a lot about this parenting thing, and mostly through trial and error. Everything seems to be going very well. Of course, in writing that I do so on Connor's behalf. I can only assume that he enjoys sleeping 22 hours a day and waking up to eat anytime he feels like it.

Pictures of Connor

Additional photos of Connor can be seen here:

www.bellababyphotography.com/baby/login

password: 0217connor

Some of them are pretty good shots.

Connor Strunk - Day Three

Friday morning Connor was looking even better than he did the day before. So far, he has been incredibly patient with us. He rarely cries and gives us plenty of time to fix anything that is bothering him. I guess it will get much harder when we are not supported by dozens of nurses. So far, we would not change anything.

Connor's Birthday

Yesterday at 6:20, Connor was born. He is doing really well and so is Erin. I will post more information soon, but wanted to get these photos out first.

D-Day Plus One

Still no baby yet. This is a photo of Erin on February 16, 2010. Still looking great and not complaining. I guess we will see when he decides to arrive.

Baby Strunk Countdown

Never to pass up an opportunity for a gamble or a game, some of my coworkers set up the attached pool to see when the baby would be born. They are also guessing how much he will weigh, what his name will be, future professions, pets - really all sorts of things. Some of these are good suggestions. According to this, he might be called Ralph or Terrence. Nothing wrong with those names.

But my coworkers are also very funny. As an additional treat, they decided to start a pool about how much sympathy weight I had gained in the pregnancy. Frankly, some of these estimates are insulting. Luckily they were honest enough to put their names next to their guesses. At least now I know who I can turn to when I need an empty compliment or a healthy dose of cold, hard truth. That piece of paper you see taped to the board is a receipt from a lunch I ate one day which was included, I guess, to prove a point.

Hilarious, aren't they?

Overdue

Today is the due date. It is February 15th, the day that this baby was supposed to arrive. A friend of mine told me that 95% of all babies are not born on their due date. That means that of all the days in the next week or so, this is the one to least expect that trip to the hospital. Not surprisingly, we have no baby yet. Honestly, if he was on time I would have to wonder if he and I were related.

Erin looks great and seems not to be bothered at all by the fact that she is now more than 9 months pregnant. This kid is really lucky with who his mother is (going to be).

We ended up seeing the doctor today anyway, if only for the regular check up. Each nurse we met had a happy comment when they found out today was the due date, which made the atmosphere kind of fun. The appointment started with an ultrasound where they took measurements to make sure he is a healthy baby. We confirmed that the baby is well developed, probably about 8 pounds and definitely a boy. We even got some pictures of his face, though neither of us thought he was immediately cute. I guess its hard to look good in a two dimensional black and white image when you are running out of room.

Next the doctor performed a non-stress test which gave us additional assurance that this kid was doing well. Instead of the required 2 spikes in heart rate (apparently an increased heart rate indicates fetal activity) he had 7 in the ten minute test. It was nice to hear his heart beat for that amount of time. To this point that is the only communication I have had with him. After reviewing the test results, the doctor decided that he was comfortable and safe in his current position. What a relief it was to witness positive results in a small but thorough battery of tests. In the end, the doctor decided that if the baby does not make an appearance before Friday, she is going in to get him. I guess he has been warned.

When we got home Erin's mom compared the ultrasound photos to a picture of me the day after I was born. Unfortunately, there was a striking similarity. Those ultrasound images which gave us parents some pause were carbon copies of my admittedly disturbing newborn baby photo. Here is hoping that the extra time inside does the baby some good.