Swimmin'

Another Can't Sleep Blog

Yeah...can't sleep.
Actually went out on Monday night to see a pal's band at the House of Blues. Stayed up til 2am. Paid for it the next morn...and I only had two drinks!? WTF? Daddy fatigue is a biznitch. Come on though, waking up to this face can cure any ailment!
So I'm downstairs in our living room. The AC is much more prevalent here and I'm enjoying the cool. Couldn't believe it was 104 today! And probably will be again tomorrow. Yikes. Have been up for a couple of hours now. Clark, keeps stirring and I'm thinking he's gonna be "up" up any minute. Had him to myself tonight so Christy could "Eat Pray Love" with a pal. We danced to a Prince LP, 1999 (yes, a real record). I played some guitar for him (poorly...he fell asleep). We danced, then I took him in the shower with me, oiled him up, jammied him down, and got him to bed by 8:30pm. Soooo, he should wake up any minute to eat, right? Yeah, I've been saying that to myself since 1:30. Starting to get tired now. I could go to bed, then of course he'll really start thrashin'. Murphy's Law.

Oooh, wait. Hearing a stir on the monitor. Could be any minute now for reals!

Okay, I'll wrap this up.

Had a great weekend...again. Visited a pregnant pal who's about to pop any day now. Checked out her new digs...including the sweet swimmin' hole!
The pool plum tuckered him out and he passed out on their floor (with our help of course). And when he's out cold like that...perfect time to trim those lethal finger blades of his:
I'm used to it now, but every nail trim session feels like diffusing a bomb. "Please don't cut too close, please don't cut too close, please don't cut too close!"

Clark Otis is doing some new things!
- Gurgling! Yes, he has found a way to collect enough spit to form a foam of bubbles...and he enjoys it!
- Thumbsucking! He kept missing there for a while. Inserting his entire fist, or maybe a trifecta of digits. Nope, tonight...he achieved thumbsucking cuteness!
-Rolling over! With a little help from a rolled up burp cloth under his chest, he figured out how to get from his front to his back. (Video to come)
- And just when we thought he couldn't get any cuter...he freakin' does!

Ooop? More stirring? Hearing some serious lip smacking and some grunts. This could be it. Time to rouse, change, feed, and put back to bed...then maybe tend to Clark too. ;-)

Wish You Were Here

Happy Sunday everyone from Tony's Darts in Burbank! xo

Saturday afternoon power nap

We were about to leave for a BBQ and I came downstairs to my boys all tuckered out....

6 Month Check up

Clark had his 6 month check up today. He is doing so well that we don't have to go back to the doctor for 2 more months!

Weight: 12lbs 5 oz
Height: 24 inches

He smiles so much now and is growing so fast. Often we look at him and our eyes well up with tears. He is happy. He is healthy. He is our little miracle and we are so grateful.

Clark LOVES to get all strapped into my chest and take walks...we have been doing it everyday. Look at his cute little face!!

Happy Half Birthday!!!

Today, Clark Otis is 6 months young! As a special treat, we have made him the Monkey Ambassador. Ooo ooo, eee eee!

Gaga for Clark

We successfully had our first Date Night this past Wednesday! As you can see, Christy and I got all dolled up; B.C. (Before Clark) that was a usual past time. Gettin' dressed up and going out on the town was our specialty. Of course, taking care of him is a happy trade for our once frivolous nightlife. Rest assured, as soon as he is able, we'll dress him up and he'll hit the town with us! Though these jaunts will most likely be in the afternoon/early evening.

We hired a dear and trusted friend to babysit, got ourselves a town car, and two car-garitas later, we arrived at Staples Center for Lady Gaga! And I'm sorry, say what you will (haters), but she is one of the most fearless, most talented, most real performers we've come across in a long time. The concert was spectacular! A true event! We had such a great time! As great of a time as we ever had B.C., with some minor differences:

- Our conversations almost always included mention of Clark.
- Periodically checking our phones for texts, not from friends, but
from the babysitter.
- As soon as the concert started...we were exhausted!
- All thoughts and conversations almost always included Clark.
(Did I type that already?) Yup. We even took a break to cycle
through some pictures cuz we missed the little dude so much!
- We zeroed in on any small child we saw at the concert (yes, people actually
brought their 8 - 10 year old to a Lady Gaga concert) and dreamed of the day
we can take him to see his favorite musical artist (dear Goddess, let it not
be angry-grunge-metal).

All that withstanding, we needed that night. For both of us. For the good of the family unit. I'm sure even as Clark gets older and begins to join us for fun outings, he will understand that sometimes Mommy and Daddy have to go out by themselves too. In fact, I'm sure he'll want a break from us occasionally. We're surprised he hasn't requested one already, considering
I don't think there's a moment where one of us is not all up in his grill.

Got home right before midnight and he was in his crib, asleep. We kissed him on his forehead then waited for his mid-AM feed. I think I was still a bit tipsy when I changed his diaper. I think he found it hilarious.

Christy and I have pledged to give ourselves a once a month night out, even if it's just to go out to dinner. Man, it's great that we've graduated to that. It's like we can relax now because we are so far out of the woods. We can finally allow ourselves special parent-time to celebrate us...and him...and for whatever happens next.

Mornin' Daddy!!!

Just wanted to share a special text I got this morning while I was on set. Check out them dimples!!!

"Nobody messes with this here giraffe, see!"

on being cute...

Working my new outfit...

Lounging on my giant teddy....

I kind of HAVE to be a Titans fan since my mama is from TN...

I Just Love Being a Dad!

Man o man, when the days are good...they're sweeter than Yoo Hoo! Thankfully we have many of these days. Clark is by far the best thing to happen to me since Christy. Sometimes I forget that he's actually mine. My 'son'. "Hey son!" "Alright son." "I can't right now, I'm spending time with my son." Ha! I squeal like a little girl about it. Since Clark came home, May 17, he continues to thrive. He's already outgrown the insert for his car-seat. He fills up his Moses basket. His not-so-little-anymore head surpasses the 'newborn' neck-rest of his bathtub. We've now graduated to the
bigger sized diapers and are introducing a whole new drawer of clothes that were once too big, are fitting just fine.

He cooes and gurgles. Sometimes sounding like an infant Wookie. Aarrrghghlllll. Hm, I think I might try to make that my new ring tone! He loves getting his diaper changed and loves the process of taking on and off his clothes. It just gets him so excited. I've started the habit of humming "Don't Stop Til Ya Get Enough" by Michael Jackson when I perform these tasks. The high pitched beat seems to tickle him.

Today we did some artwork. Check it.


It was trial and error at first. I realized, it was much easier to bring the paint to his feet than his feet to the paint. He seemed to love the sensation of it between his toes. I foresee the future...Clark, age 18, in the Sand Dunes of Colorado, with a huge canvas, painting in the nude.
Or maybe he'll sell pencils...whatever...I'll still love him!


This weekend we had special visitors. Two couples we befriended in the NICU. Meet Julie and Barry, and their TRIPLETS!


That's right, this play date was chock full of baby. As cute as Emmett, Noah, and Hudson were, Christy and I are certainly happy that we only have one. Julie is often on our minds when we experience something challenging with Clark, reminding us that she's probably dealing with the same thing...times three!

That was Friday. On Sunday, Katie and Lynx brought their two cuties, Malik and Kamali.


They were in the NICU before Clark and were much worse off. Poor babies went through multiple surgeries. Katie and Lynx routinely had to dress in a paper gown and rubber gloves just to touch them. Even after they were sent home from the NICU, Malik had to be re-admitted the following week to deal with further complications. But now, they too are home, happy, and family-complete!


Clark was an absolute angel during both visits, especially during a chorus of screaming, teething, triplets. He would only look on with concern. Of course, there are the challenges where all he wants is our attention, to be held, to be fed, changed. He makes these demands obvious. Politely (well, as politely as unabashed screaming can be) that our lives no longer come first. The e-mails can wait. Shower? Maybe tomorrow. That project we wanted to get to...can stand to sit on the shelf for a while. "You need to hold me, bitch!" is the look in his eye. And at first, I'm clenched at being interrupted from my task, but then I pick him up and he instantly soothes...and then I thank him.