New Video- The Release/The Voice

This first clip is short and is designed for casual viewers of the blog. It shows Lily right after waking up and being released from her nightly mummification. I love how she keeps her hands down at her sides for a few seconds even after being released.



This next one is pretty long and is designed for the avid blog readers (all two of you). It shows Lily figuring out her voice. We also do a little bit of singing with her and while she doesn't really sing along like I described below, you'll get a little bit of the idea. What the video lacks in succinctness, it makes up in substance. For those of you who really love Lily, this one is for you.

Weeks 10, 11 & 12- The Song

Maybe it was finally seeing me again after I was out of town most of the last two weeks… Maybe it was of the music she has been listening to on her iPod the last couple of weeks… Maybe it's this whole American Idol craze going on. Whatever the reason, our little Lily started singing this last week.

The first time I heard it was Saturday morning (although Ashley reports earlier occurrences). Lily was getting fussy and I was trying to calm her down so I decided to sing to her. Almost immediately after I started singing (Nine Inch Nails’ song “Hurt”) Lily not only calmed down, but started basically singing backup vocals to my lead vocals. It's not like she was carrying the tune or anything (I’ll be the first to admit that she was a little pitchy) but she was definitely making noise to go along with my noise. Each time I would stop singing, she would stop making noise and then start to laugh. Then I would start singing again and she would start her noises again. It has to go down as one of the 250 cutest things I have seen her do in her short 12 weeks if not the cutest.

I don't know...maybe the whole singing thing isn't that big of a deal. I did, however, do some checking and it turns out that Celine freakin’ Dion didn’t even start singing until she was 6 months old, so, you know, go ahead and draw your own conclusions here.

For all of you doubters, Mom was gone and Danielle didn’t answer her phone to hear it, but luckily Grandma Brown stopped by just in time to witness the duet. It would really help my case if Grandma Brown could leave a comment here attesting to my claims.

Other than the fact that I have been out of town for a lot of it, the last couple of weeks have been great for Lily. As Ashley said in the comments on the giggle post, she has started to figure out her mouth and hands a little bit more and when there isn’t a pacifier around, her entire fist quickly becomes the next best thing. She is also figuring out her tongue and, although I have yet to witness it, Ash tells me that Lily will start moving her tongue around when you stick your tongue out at her. Her favorite toy right now is the ceiling fan in our bedroom. She plays with it by laying on the bed and staring up at it for 30-45 minute stretches and laughing most of the time. I know that these are just small milestones along the way, but each one of them amazes me. The fact that she can look at my tongue and realize she has one too and then start trying to stick it out to imitate me is, in and of itself, a miracle.

On Easter Sunday, we were able to bless Lily at our church (LDS…you know….the Mormons). The whole day was great and she looked like a total babe in her little dress which is the same dress worn by Lily’s Aunts Danielle and Natalie at their baby blessings (I think it is also the same blessing dress worn by Steve Young, Mitt Romney, and at least one of the Osmond Brothers). When I took her up in front on the congregation to give the blessing and held her in my arms, she looked up at me and gave me a big smile. It was a pretty emotional experience for me and I was reminded again of what a blessing she is and how grateful I am for her. Thanks to all of you who were able to make it to the blessing, and to those of you who were not able to make it, here are some pictures taken after the blessing along with a few other pictures taken over the last couple of weeks. Enjoy.

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So This is What the Future Holds?

Danielle (of Friend/Relative of the Month fame) mentioned to me a while back that Lily looks a lot like I looked when I was a baby. I decided to check it out. I found the picture below in my baby book and have placed it next to a picture of Lily for your consideration.



Based on this comparison, I did a rendering of what Lily will look like in 25 years. To see future Lily and to try different hairstyles and colors, click here: Stellure : Members use the login email: sbrown@asphaltzipper.com and password: lilypad and then click "Browse Catalog."

Weeks 7 & 8- The Talk

There comes a time in every kids life when they naturally begin to wonder, “How was I made?” Well, that time came for Lily this past week. She can’t talk yet so it wasn’t like she just came right out and asked, but you could see it in her eyes every time she looked at you. It was a look that went beyond the normal curiosity and wonder of a new baby…it was like she was looking straight into your soul and demanding answers. The picture above was taken right after we had “The Talk.”.

Besides that whole thing, the last couple of weeks have been great. Lily had her two month checkup and everything is working and growing like it should. She is exactly average for both her height and weight. She seemed to be a little disappointed by that but I just told her, “Don’t feel bad…that just means that there is room for improvement.”

Other Developments:

• She is getting a lot better at making eye contact (unless she is getting in trouble) and she usually will turn her head towards you when you come in the room.
• She is also getting better at pushing herself off the ground when she is put on her stomach.
• As you see from the video, she is still smiling a bunch and has added a little giggle that melts me every time I hear it.

All-in-all, she remains the cutest little girl in the world, at least that I have ever seen. If you have anyone you think is close, feel free to send me pictures and I will be happy to objectively look at them and decide. Does anyone know what the earliest age is that you can start entering them into beauty pageants?

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