Eli's big sister, Tabasco, is a very small dog. I say "big", but that is a bit of an overstatement since Eli already outweighs Tabasco by a pound. Tabasco, though, is older and knows more tricks. And she doesn't wear diapers. Thank goodness.


Tabasco wasn't sure what to do with Eli at first, since her favorite laps are now often occupied, but after a good thorough sniffing, she has decided to let her new little brother stay so long as he doesn't squeak her toys.

Stay tuned, Gennie the Greyhound will meet Eli in the next week or so.

Going out for a walk is one of our new favorite things to do. Eli was born at just the right time of year--the weather is PERFECT for walking.

Thanks to many generous friends with growing babies, Eli has been the recipient of several fantastic hand-me-downs (thanks everyone!). Among them: a Baby Bjorn, Kevin's carrier of choice, and a sling, my personal favorite. Eli is exceptionally stylish in either, natch. His parents , on the other hand... well, we try our best.

He's here! He's here!

World, meet Ellis Justus York-Simmons, better known as Eli.

Eli was born on Thursday, September 21 after a looong labor that ended in a c-section. He spent a few days in the NICU to adjust to the world (it was, after all, much more comfy on the inside).

Now he's home and happy as a clam. A screaming, pooping clam, but a happy clam.

Welcome Eli! We're glad to have you.

This is a shout-out to Sharon, who checks the blog regularly (hourly?) to see if the baby has arrived.

No. He hasn't.

But thanks for your faithful support. Watch this space!

This MUST be what they call nesting.

We're three days past the due date now, with no sign of arrival. This is not worrisome, but does make for a strange way of living. Kevin and I did so much work in advance to get everything as ready as we know how and now we're in an odd limbo of sorts: nothing scheduled, not much to do, can't really make plans... New territory for us.

So we've resorted to tackling some of those household tasks that we've put off for months, things that may or may not have needed to be done, but sure are nice now that they are finished.

I, for example, removed all of the vent covers from around the house, washed and disinfected them and laid them out to dry in the sun. I read the "advanced" instructions on the video camera. Kevin did many hours of yard work, including tackling an enormous privet hedge that was trying to eat the house.

If this kid doesn't come soon, I'll start alphabetizing the canned goods or cleaning the windowsill with q-tips.

Thank goodness we still have three discs of Lost, Season 2 still left to watch or we'd really be sunk.

The due date is tommorow. That is kind of scary, but mostly pretty grand. I'm definitely ready to NOT be pregnant! Here's hoping that the little guy shows up on time or nearly so, otherwise, I might start going a little bit batty.