The June Bugs

NOLA JASPER GEORGE

Tue, 07 Jun 2005 09:29:18 -0800

Hazel has a sister, and her name is Nola!

She was born on Tuesday June 7th, at 12:15AM. She weighs 7lbs 14oz, is 20 inches long, has dark hair and eyes plus all the fingers and toes and tiny pudgy things you'd want a healthy baby girl to have.

She and mom are home and doing great. The birth was attended by Cathy McGovern CNM, our doula Cyndi, and the outstanding nursing staff at Sutter Davis. Thanks to everyone!

Hazel likes her new sister, she wants to touch her hair and hold her. She also likes to remind us that she will "cry alot, eat alot, sleep alot." We can't wait for our family and friends to meet our new daughter!

In related news, look for an updated, more sister-inclusive web address and title for The Hazel Bee with new photos coming soon!

Thanks Baby Namers!

Thu, 05 May 2005 00:05:30 -0800

Baby time is drawing near so we want to say thanks to everyone who contributed to the Help Us Name Our Baby contest. We are warmed by the care that went into your suggestions and surprised by the level of participation. Honestly we thought we'd get a few submissions from family and close friends, but we received over 180 entries from 30 people including family, friends, and plenty of people we don't even know - hooray for the internet!

I'm sorry to say that we are no longer accepting suggestions, the contest is over. The good news is we've narrowed the field to a very short list of finalists. We will make an announcement as soon as we have a little girl to go with it, so keep checking in with The Hazel Bee for word of her arrival!

Early Spring Odds and Ends

Tue, 12 Apr 2005 23:03:48 -0800

As always it's been a busy time for Hazel B. and family. Catch up with Hazel and her friends at Fariytale Town & the Zoo!

Spring trip to San Diego

Fri, 01 Apr 2005 00:32:31 -0800

Hazel went on a Spring Break trip to San Diego! Everything was pretty exciting - we got to fly on an airplane for a little while and see lots of great things like the famous San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park (separate places). She even fed a giraffe!

We spent lots of time at Balboa Park and saw almost all of the museums there including an IMAX film about rhythms of the world. It was big and loud but Hazel liked the music and learned to beat-box and play her legs like drums.

Then Hazel ate an apple and we went home.

Auntie Perrin and Uncle Marc are Getting Married!

Sat, 12 Mar 2005 23:05:18 -0800

CONGRATULATIONS!

Hazel's Aunt Perrin and Uncle Marc are getting married! We are all very excited to help them celebrate their lives together. Friends and family hop on over to Perrin and Marc's Incremental Retirement website and their new and lovely wedding site!

Marc & Perrin in San Francisco

Tue, 08 Mar 2005 09:45:34 -0800

Hazel and family received a lucky lay-over visit from Aunt Perrin and Uncle Marc on their way back to Hawaii. It was great to see them and to spend some time in San Francisco, especially at the Exploratorium where it was hard to tell who had more fun, Hazel or Marc and Kyle.

As always the visit was too short, we wish we could see them all the time but at least we can talk on the phone.

Hazel's Cousins Visit from Connecticut

Tue, 08 Mar 2005 09:44:36 -0800

February saw a long anticipated visit from Hazel's cousins Emma, Robby, & Julia all the way from Connecticut. There was a lot of playing and hugging and a special treat - ice skating at the Winter Lodge near Grandma and Grandpa's house. Hazel did a great job walking on the tiny skates (off the ice) and loved going around the rink with Mom and Dad but everyone was pretty tired afterward.

Speaking of Grandma and Grandpa, they took Hazel and family to the duck pond one breezy day and Hazel got to feed some ducks... and sea gulls and pigeons.

Sledding in the Snow!

Tue, 08 Mar 2005 08:31:40 -0800

Hazel learned a new word: SNOW!

Before the fast approaching Spring season could warm the hills and melt all the snow we headed toward the Sierras for a morning of fun at Echo Summit Sno-park. Caleb, Rebecca & Dan came along and the kids tried sledding (with dads) and walking in puffy suits and boots on the crunchy white stuff. Hazel even tried making a few tiny snowballs.

Help Us Name Our Baby!

Tue, 01 Feb 2005 00:02:22 -0800

As mentioned earlier we are accepting all name suggestions for the new baby, due May 31, 2005. We honestly appreciate your participation and, by way of incentive, would like to offer you this: A CONTEST!

!!! UPDATED !!! Guidelines
Obviously we will name our own baby, but we are looking for any helpful suggestions you might have - this can include your opinion of existing entries. Think of it as a community building experience and the beginning of your participation in the new baby's life.

Names may be submitted via comment to this site or email to Kyle. Please include your name, email, and the name you would like us to give our new baby girl with preferred spelling and meaning (if known).

Duplicate names will not be considered for credit so check the list to see what's there - and there are a few. If you do not wish to add a name but would like to vote for an existing name please be our guest! Keep in mind this is not an actual democratic process. Your vote, though appreciated, is purely recreational.

Submissions and opinions will be accepted through May 5, 2005. From that point on we'll pretty much be on full time baby watch.

The Prize
In addition to the joy of knowing that you will be forever and fondly remembered as the person who named our child you will receive (1) a copy of "Beyond Jennifer & Jason, Madison & Montana: What to Name Your Baby Now" by Linda Rosenkrantz & Pamela Redmond Satran, (2) a wallet-sized portrait of the baby you named mailed to you each month for a year, (3) a commemorative "I Named Their Baby" t-shirt, and, in the possible event of a third Baby George, (4) a seat on the Committee for the Naming of Future Baby Georges or "CoNaFuBaG".

Helpful Hints
In creating our own list we have been drawn to names that fall loosely into the following catagories:

1. Names from nature, art, music or colors...

2. Feminine but not too feminine...

3. Old fashioned but not musty...

4. Have more than one syllable but seldom more than three...

5. Original or at least not terribly popular right now...

6. Meaningful, with positive origins, associations or family connections...

7. Sounds good when followed by George (this is important!)...

8. Sounds good with Hazel

Click below to view the up-to-date list of possible names:

Dave & Carol send photos of Christmas visit

Fri, 14 Jan 2005 00:56:04 -0800

Grandma & Grandpa came to visit just after Christmas, and while Davis is hardly Hawaii this time of year, it's not Kentucky mid-blizzard either. Hazel loved having them here and took full advantage of their attention, reading and playing, and taking them on little trips to the park, train museum and the zoo! They stayed through New Years and helped us celebrate with friends into the wee hours - "wee" meaning bedtime for wee people like Hazel. Thanks for the photos, we are already looking forward to seeing you again.

Catching up for the New Year

Mon, 03 Jan 2005 00:25:32 -0800

Can you believe it's 2005? This is sure to be an exciting year with the biggest deal for us being Hazel's little sister on the way. But it was a big year for Hazel and 2005 will hold many new and wonderful things for her too. Here are a few odds & ends she's been up to since the last time we caught up... and remember, Hazel has her eye on you!

Merry Christmas!

Sun, 02 Jan 2005 00:24:33 -0800

This time last year Hazel was excited just to be able to sit up on her own and be surrounded by people taking pictures of her and all her gifts. This year was a different story. The people with cameras and gifts were all there, but Hazel was a moving target.

We started the season off with a trip to the California State Railroad Museum and a ride on Santa's Christmas Train. Owen and Genevieve were there too (with their Dads). We looked out the windows at the river, sang songs and we all got to sit on Santa's lap for pictures. Hazel discovered how busy Santa Claus could be when she visited him again at the mall a few days later.

Hazel and Amy baked Christmas cookies, then on Christmas Eve we joined Lisa, Paul, Delaney, Sophie & Gemma at the annual City of Davis Community Dinner for good food and music.

At home Hazel insisted that the Christmas tree be lit first thing every morning, helped decorate the tree (and at times gently undecorate it), and helped everyone open their gifts when the time came. Hazel received many wonderful gifts - her favorites today are a doll stroller and the Aquadoodle. Merry Christmas!

The holiday was nicely bookended by a trip back to the Railroad Museum with Hazel's friend Nate and her grandparents visiting from Kentucky. Hazel likes the toy trains.

My New Sister

Wed, 29 Dec 2004 10:39:47 -0800

I'm going to get a new sister in a few months. I am very excited, but I don't know what we are going to call her. Do you have any ideas? I think we should name her Curious, but my dad thinks that is corny.

Seriously, if you have any suggestions for our new baby's name let us know. In the meantime enjoy her first pictures!

Words!

Mon, 06 Dec 2004 22:27:45 -0800

Hazel has always been very vocal, as those who know her will agree. But it is now, with her 18 month mark fast approaching, that some of her earnestly meant babbles are becoming real words, and many of her signs are stringing together into sentences like "more banana please" or "bath book sleep" initiating our night-time routine. Below are lists of her growing vocabulary:

Spoken Words
hi, Mama, Dada, Papa or Baba (grandpa), Nana (grandma), baby, more, art, book, ball, dots, bath, night-night, poop, diaper, cat, duck, moo (cow), hoo (owl), hat, ice, juice, cheese, water, bar (granola or powerbar, not the other kind... yet), this, that, up, uh-oh

Signs
drink, eat, more, sleep, bath, wash hands, baby, music, ball, book/read, play, help, smell, banana, apple/fruit, shoes, up, down, gentle/soft, watch/time, please, thank you, hat, look/see/eye, listen/hear/ear, cereal/o's, candle, moon, stars, tree, light, cat, dog, bird, pig, rabbit, mouse, frog, fish, monkey, bear, hug/love, big, draw/write/art, diaper, phone, dance, bib, blow/wipe nose, hot, all-done, where is it?, bye-bye...

Plus she's quick to identify pretty much all of her little body parts as well as the matching parts on anyone standing within range.

Thanksgiving in Kentucky

Tue, 30 Nov 2004 00:23:55 -0800

This year we traveled to Kentucky for Thanksgiving with Kyle's family and some friends. Hazel was very happy to see Grandma and Grandpa, and we also had visits from Kyle's cousins Jessica and Kier and friends Andries and Anabelle. Kyle's Uncle Steve and Aunt Sandy, Aunt Barb, cousins Andrew & Jess, Nathan and his wife Jessica, and their little girls Emily and Sophia were all there too! It was a full house with lots of food and fun for everyone. Thanks for the good time Grandma and Grandpa, see you at Christmas - very soon!