Enough Hair for a Bow

Our little angel has enough hair to hold a bow...if she holds very still. I love watching her grow, as gradually as the hair on her head. She learns so fast!

One thing we do with our little girl is sign words as we speak them. Oh, we're no experts, but we picked up several useful day-to-day signs, like "mom", "dad", "food", "please", "thank you", "play", and so on. We started signing with her months ago, and it seemed like ages before she understood what we were doing.

Now it seems that she is hungry for more. Yesterday, she learned two new signs, "home", and "boat". She gets so excited when she can communicate. We were walking through Smith's grocery store, which is usually a delight because Abigail charms everyone she sees by calling out "Hi!" and "Hiyo!" We had finished paying for our food and Abigail started signing "shoes", which perplexed me because we were in a grocery store.

"Abigail," I said, "I don't see any shoes."

She pointed fiercely toward the camera bar and shouted, "Daa!" then continued to sign "shoes".

Sure enough, on a rotating rack were dozens of pairs of fluffy slippers. Each day something new, each day some growth, just like the beautiful pale curls growing so subtly on her head. I do love the daddy job.

 

From M. Nelson: E.R. was like that--he charmed absolutely everyone in the stores. He would say, "day-doo" (thank-you) to the checkers and they thought we had the greatest baby ever! Abigail is adorable.

From Dave Kennedy: Your recent posts almost make me want to have kids Kieth. :-)

I'm trying to improve my blog myself, but I want to do it myself. I thought 'Who do I know and respect who has their own blog? Keith Rimington!' So, I must know, how do you do it? I've recently discovered the joys of MS SQL Server and asp.net at work. I see huge potential. But I don't know if this is the best course of action or not for personal use. What do you use for your 'Home-Grown' blog?

Take Care Keith. :-)

From Momrim: Our children can always humble us! They often know more than we do! :-)

OCD

I recognize this is insanity. Who would do such a thing? But they are my glasses and they are standing on end on our wooden kitchen floor. Wow, eh?

Yummmm

Abigail was eating lunch the other day. I gave her grapes, which quickly disappeared because she loves grapes. I followed that up with some mild chili, because she loves beans. Then it was some thin orange juice, which she also loves.

You might ask how do I know she loves these things?

"Ymmmm," she'll say to the grapes. "Ymmmmm," to the chili, and "YMMMmmm," she'll say to the juice. You see, ymmmm is the sound of love.

So when I gave her two saltine crackers, she promptly started dipping them in the orange juice.

"Oh, Abigail," I say, "Let's not do that."

She then licks the cracker, looks at me, and sighs, "Ymmmm".

She dips the cracker again.

"Abigail, please, let's not dip the cracker in your drink."

Of course, the cracker goes right back in the juice. Then, without taking her eyes off of mine, she slowly licks the cracker, and then hums with a very meaningful hum: "YMMMmmm," as if to say, "But dad, this is GOOD!"

I tell you, I love the daddy job. What else can add saltines and OJ to get love?

 

From Delores Rimington: Very cute!

From Wendy: Darling! My friend's girl, who's about Abigail's age, recently poured milk in the little divet in the button on the buckle of her car seat, and then dipped her graham crackers in it until it was all gone. Kids just know what's good, y'know?

From M. Nelson: Good for you for letting her experiment.

From Stacy Haight: Hi! I'm Marian's friend Stacy! YEah... I like to blog stalk. I couldn't help but comment though. I LOVE Saltine crackers and OJ. I literally crave them. I hadn't thought to dip them.... But I do love to eat them together! You have a very smart daughter! :)

Hello!

Last week I attended a developers' conference in Las Vegas. During one of the sessions, I received a call from home--thank goodness for vibrate mode--which I ignored, intending to reply between sessions. A few minutes later, it rang again; another call from home. Thinking two sequential calls meant something was amiss, I went into the hall to take the call.

"Hello," I said, worry written on my face and voice.

"Hiyo!" shouted Abigail from the other end.

She called me.

On her own!

We chatted for some time, and it wasn't until evening that I could tell Delores of the wonderful conversation I had with my little girl who so cleverly found the redial button.

 

From Wendy: Oh that is so cute!!! What a fun interruption!

From M. Nelson: At least she called you and not someone in Japan or 911. Babies are SO observant. It's amazing what they pick up on!

Some random guy

I was walking alone alongside the Sevier river the other day. This part of the river was wide and slow, perfect for floating and swimming. Behind me a small way was a truck carrying a half a dozen teenagers and floating tubes. Due to some trick of the acoustics in the area, I could hear one person whistling Come Thou Fount as clearly as if he were standing behind my right ear.

Do you remember when, as a teenager, some things were just funny for no reason whatsoever? I hear one of the young ladies in the truck giggle: "Look! Some random guy! hahahaha!" The "random guy" was me. I turned and waved, and a boy said, "Dude, he can hear you! hahahaha!" They pass me by giggling like they had found the richest joke ever.

 

From Dave Kennedy: That's awesome. :-) So how're things?

The fun never ends

Delores picked me up from school on the south side of town one evening, with Abigail in the back cooing as she so often does. Because she was somewhat agitated, we gave her the a box of tissues to play with as we drove home. We should have known how much fun was going on in the back seat by how quiet it was. When we came home, this is how we found our little angel:

Four Teeth

Abigail reached a landmark today. After only eleven months, a fourth tooth finally gasped in its first breath of air. My how she grows. Already, her favorite word is "Hi" and her favorite pastime is bouncing up and down to the Enchanted soundtrack. A few days ago she spent not less than ten minutes bouncing herself up and down in my arms, filled with the thrill of life.

An evening or so ago, we sat in the tall grass together in our back yard, watching tiny grasshoppers skip to and fro. Abigail giggled when I would catch one in my hand and held it in my palm for her to see. In only a moment, the hopper launched toward freedom, and a delighted Abigail watched and grinned. She thought they were just great. We spent some time yesterday playing basketball and chasing roly poly bugs.

Delores is the best mom. I love watching Abigail, her large eyes full of wonder at her mother. Where Delores goes, Abigail trots along behind, babbling away and content because mom is close. Delores is tireless and affectionate to the last moment of every day. I count myself a fortunate man.

 

From Wendy: Isn't it exciting to watch our little ones grow? I am amazed every day. We miss you guys!

From Keith: Somehow I knew you would find out first. I'm so glad you visit. Abigail is growing like a wildfire, mind and body. I'm sure you see the same in your little one. We miss you to. Come visit some time.

First Fourth

We had a delightful experience during the 4th of July in Provo. The parades were enjoyable -- really. I've never liked parades. Sitting, waiting, baking in the sun, plugging ears, waiting for something, anything to happen. Not my cup of tea. Yet somehow, it was different. It was really fun. Everything is different now, and perhaps that is part of being a dad.

The family set up some inflatable pools in the yard. One pool was large, the other not so much. The rules for the were: "To play in the small pool, you must be less than *(pause while asking for the name of the oldest toddler)* four years old." This met some sighs of sorrow from the older boys, and sighs of relief from a few moms. The small pool was soon forgotten, however, for they discovered a new game: see how many pitchers of hot water need to be carried from the kitchen to make the large pool warm. It was like watching a colony of ants at work, all the nieces and nephews trotting in and out with steaming pitchers containing a few cups of hot water. It was all good fun.

Abigail, we learned, loves playing in pools of water. This was her first time. Smothered in sunscreen until a moose could pass out from the fumes, we stood her in the small pool. She sat down once, and with eyes widening at the chill, darted so quickly to her feet and to the edge of the pool that I thought we had given birth to an acrobat. After a few moments of clinging desperately to the side of the pool, curiosity overcame her and she gingerly reached over and started patting the water with her hand. Oh, she loved it!

Since then, she gets thrilled all over and begins hopping up and down in our arms at the site of a body of water, be it inflatable pool or bathtub. Her excitement about life is a thrill for me. Similar to how exciting life became when I married Delores, life is richer because of my little girl. Oh, I could be a daddy forever.

A day in the dino park

The Barker reunion rolled around again this year, and we held it at the dinosaur park at the mouth of Ogden canyon. We had quite a delightful time. Delores and I missed the turn when driving to the park, and did not realize it until we exited the other side of the canyon and had our choices of remote ski resorts for destinations. At last, doing honor to all males, I stopped and asked for directions.

My kid sister is an aspiring photographer, and she has a knack of grabbing neat photos. This picture is one of hers. If any of you are looking for a good photographer...

We also had games at the party. One game consisted of standing on wobbly wooden platforms and knocking an opponent off theirs with only a foam sword. It was rich fun. We were sad when the third sword broke, leaving nothing left for the game. It was a somewhat embarrassing truth that three different Rimingtons were responsible for each of the three different broken swords. We're a rowdy bunch.

An Announcement

As the extended Dorton clan contentedly watched Jacob and Delores open birthday presents on Sunday, Isabel enters the room from the kitchen saying:

"Everyone, I have an announcement....

"Samuel is eating Delores' cake."

The room was a sudden picture of motion.

Where did that come from?

I'll admit it. We didn't always vacuum every day (or week, for that matter); but we do much better now that Abigail's unrelenting curiosity married her budding mobility.

So how did she find a rusty old staple to eat? It hasn't been more than a day, or maybe two, since the vacuum scrubbed that very patch of floor.

Thank heavens she hasn't figured out how to use her tongue to swallow solids.

She Passed!

She did it! She really did it!

And I wanna brag about her.

Monday was an exciting day for us. Delores defended her thesis at last, and stood triumphant after a grueling hour-and-a-half. Some of the professors on the panel were quite flattering in their praise of Delores' efforts.

Abigail came along, and spent most of the time being chased away from all the tasty textbooks in Dr. Gast's office by Delores' good friend Anne. Afterward, we enjoyed some long-awaited Aggie Ice Cream.

It was kind of funny, after several waves of denial washed over us, to say, "It's done....Only three rounds of revisions left before it is finished." Three rounds of revisions, but at least no more defense.

At any rate, we're understandably happy. Next time you see Delores, give her a hug from all of us.

Baby Sign Language

Folks say that teaching a few simple signs to a child can help them learn to communicate, and thus reduce the frustrations of toddlerhood. So it is that we have a few signs that we use when we talk to her. "Mom", "Dad", "Milk", "Diaper", "Food", "Up", "Was' up, Dog?"... Only the essentials.

Well, of all the goodness, she picked up on one!

Milk, she said to Delores yesterday morning. She was hungry. Milk, she said to Delores in the afternoon when, again, she was hungry.

Hearing about it from Delores made my day!

Princesses and Bad Guys

We visited the Dorton clan for Easter. There were easter eggs. There were crafts. There was a wonderful Sabbath service.

And as we were leaving, the nieces invited me to join in their game with the nephews. Princesses and Bad Guys, they called it. The girls were all princesses. The boys were all bad guys, "except," they explained to me, "for you. You're a good guy..."

The game resembled steal-the-flag; only there wasn't any flag. The princesses would get caught by the bad guys and put in jail, which the boys studiously goal-tended. The only way to get out was to be saved by another princess or, even, the good guy.

I saved Isabel from the crowd, lifted her onto my shoulders, and ran from all pursuing bad guys who wanted to capture the princess, and pursuing princesses who wanted their turn. It only takes a half dozen princesses for a good guy to realize how woefully out of shape he is... What made it worse was saving the oldest for last. Who thought of that maneuver?

When all was said and done, I joined my two most precious princesses, and started the journey home, unable to hide the smile on my face. I love my two families. 

Deuteronomy

Abigail is mobile. Dangerously so. This message was driven home to us when she found Delores' scriptures. The tale is a good one to tell. Delores had turned to the computer for a moment to e-mail her thesis to herself. This is her method for backing up her work. In the time it took to submit the email, Abigail traversed enough of the room to get to the scriptures and spell their doom.

If mom likes them so much, then I think I will, too. She began to playfully tear out pages and fist them into her mouth. I suppose you might say she was "feasting on the word" (2 Ne. 31:20). Really, it is a heartache to see such a well-loved set of scriptures in such a state, but I cannot seem to suppress a smile.

It has been a remarkable perspective shift for us. We placed furniture in front of the bike, vacuumed, rearranged end tables, vacuumed again. She has taken interest in the power button on our little server. It glows, so why wouldn't she? She is so very curious, and we are very unchild-proof. I have a feeling that there is a great adventure only barely around the corner.

O Give Me Back My Prophet Dear

O give me back my prophet dear, And Patriarch, O give them back;

The Saints of latter days to cheer, And lead them on the gospel track.

But ah! They're gone from my embrace, From earthly scenes their spirits fled;

Those two, the best of Adam's race, Now lie entombed among the dead.

These words repeat themselves in my mind sind my dear prophet passed away on Sunday. Gordon B. Hinckley is a man unlike any alive, and had a tremendous influence on my life. He was my prophet most of my natural life. From him, I learned much about living a truly Christian life. I miss him tremendously. I am glad that, at last, he can be with his wonderful wife again and rest from the labors of this life. He was very good to her, and they seemed very much in love.

Farewell, my dear prophet. May we meet again in happier times in the home of our Lord.

First Try at Solids

Abigail is over five months old now (Hurray!). She has discovered that she can roll to the nearest plant and wreak havoc, that she can vary the pitch of her voice, and that things like telephones and keyboards have buttons for pushing. It's really quite a delight.

We are also pressing ever deeper into the question, When do we feed her solids? I had no idea this was a controversial battle-ground well worth avoiding, but we're here anyway. We sat at the table, Abigail taking an interest in the food on our plates. I suggested we let her taste some. Delores was doubtful.

We tried giving Abigail a taste of a few foods that we were eating. The first was the avacado. I knew the instant she got the flavor in her mouth that I should have had the camera ready. Her face was wrenched up in nauseous shock with an expression that seemed to scream "That's not MILK!" It was only moments before I caught it all in a handy cloth.

Then, thought I, something milder should do the trick. We had warm mashed potatoes handy, and a put a little on the spoon and into her mouth. That's when the gagging started. "I said, that's not MILK!!!" The gagging throes were so intense I traded the cloth for a bowl in case she succeeded in vomiting her whole last meal.

Delores looked at me with an I told you so look which, in fact, she had. I suppose we shall be content with breastfeeding for a while longer.

Creative Writing

Yesterday, we spent the evening together as a family. The game of the evening was a travelling story. The idea was that we would take turns adding a sentence or two to the story without looking back to remember what we had written. Both stories turned out quite funny. This one was my favorite:

Green: Keith. Red: Delores.

There was once a princess named Abigail.

She loved to sing, laugh, and flirt with the cute princes.

There was one prince that was extra nice, named Martin.

Martin lived in a big castle with lots of fast and pretty hourses.

An hourse is a horse that lives for only one hour, from foal to adult.

They came from a land that few had ever visited, and those who had spoke about it in whispers.

Abigail once said to Martin, "Would you take me to the Whispered Lands on a mighty hourse?"

Martin refused, for there were many dangers and some of the bravest knights had been killed or lost on adventures to this land.

Not to mention, it took at least two hours to get there.

So Abigail and Martin dated in their land and are still dating to this day; their parents really hope they'll get married soon! 

My Winter Angel

It is hard to express how much I love being my child's father. Today, we were listening to the speakers at church. Abigail was nestled in my lap, looking attentively forward, with her arm wrapped snugly around my tie. I felt like she wanted me around. I felt wanted and needed.

She is such a delightful child. When we are playing, she laughs musically. May I never forget how freely she smiles when she presses her hands on Delores's lips, or when she finds something amusing about the way something is, or when she has yet another small victory of growing up.

This has been a memorable winter, one that revitalized the wonder of Christmas, the pleasure of snow, and the thrill of life. That is what my little girl is to me. Pure, thrill of life.

Her Mother's Daughter

There is little doubt but that my sweet little girl is my lovely wife's daughter. They look so sweet together. I saw the photograph of Delores and thought, for a moment, that I was looking at Abigail.

A Matter of Priorities

I asked Delores to help me focus on my priorities this weekend. I am working on my thesis, and needed plenty of quiet time to read articles and whatnot despite the holiday languor that seeped into my bones.

I came home from work, and Delores was away. I sat beside my laptop and saw this note scrawled on the top.

Then, to my wonderment, another note was inside the laptop. This note, printed on a full sheet of paper in large letters with a vigorous exclamation point to boot, said: Keith! Read Your Book!

I suppose I will take the subtle hint seriously.