Category Archives: Uncategorized

Sailing

Posted on by rudy0525

Sorry it’s been so long since I’ve made a post. We’ve been so busy this past week! Daddy and uncle Bob hauled out the boat to repair the damage from the Tsunami. They worked on it for 4  days in Moss Landing, which was a bit of a holiday for mommy and me. It was fun living in the boatyard… I liked taking walks to the Haute Enchilada and the farmer’s market, and listening to the sounds of the fishing boats and fog horns. Look at the fine paint job they did:

The return trip to Santa Cruz was not much fun…  it was so rough that we had to power instead of sail, and it was too dangerous for me to be up on deck, so mommy and I stayed in the aft cabin on top of pillows to take the impact of the waves.  I didn’t get sea sick, but mommy did.

The sailing trip to Capitola with auntie Kara and uncle Ryan was a blast! All the fishermen at the wharf were so happy to finally meet me, having shuttled mommy and me from the boat to land many times when we were pregnant. Look at the pretty pictures of the Capitola wharf that uncle took with his fancy new camera:

Capitola Wharf

 

Uncle Bob sailed his boat single-handedly! Isn’t it a classic?!

Islander 32

The weather and wind was perfect. Daddy and uncle Ryan got badly sunburned, but I got just the right amount of sun. It feels so good to tan nude (to get some air “down there,” if you know what I mean). 

We had gallons of mimosas for breakfast, and then it really started to feel like a holiday! I’m going to miss auntie Kara… she is obviously more skilled at motherhood 😉

Auntie Kara and mommy

The sailing trip back was great fun! Thankfully, daddy put the peanut butter cookies away and focused on teaching auntie and uncle to sail 🙂 I loved the sea lions at the 1-mile marker, but was a bit scared of the fog ninjas.

Daddy and auntie Kara

 
Uncle Ryan has been studying the photographic arts, and clearly has a sharp eye for artistic beauty:
 

Air drying

If you’re wondering why I haven’t published photos of me, it’s because my ass is better looking than my face right now
(no diaper rash but a batch of baby acne)!
 

Row, Row, Row Your Boat

Posted on by rudy0525

On Father’s day, daddy wanted to row across the harbor for dessert at the Crow’s Nest. So he jammed me into this stupid Infant life jacket, which feels like a straight jacket. What the hell were they thinking?! Look at me! Do I look like I’m having fun? I screamed the entire time… hope they don’t try this stunt again.

 

Bloody Coast Guard regulations

 

Casting off

Happy Birthday Grandpa!

Posted on by rudy0525

Today is grandpa Roemer’s birthday… I’ll be visiting him in Summerland this summer, along with grandma, uncle Terry, and auntie Alice. Grandpa was completely shocked when mommy and daddy showed him my ultrasound picture at Christmas time… he really didn’t expect to be a grandpa again! He shook his head and pointed at mommy in disbelief and said, “No! You? YOU’RE having a baby??!!” And then he laughed and bolted out of his chair to shake daddy’s hand.

I can’t wait to look him in the eyes and smile at him. Mommy says that when she was growing up, he’d take the credit for her accomplishments or share responsibility for her mistakes. I’m her biggest achievement so far, so he should be extra proud! Mommy attributes her good work ethic to grandpa, and I’m already following their examples. I eat everything I’m given, burp on cue, sleep the required 16-20 hours a day, lay quietly for diaper changes, and never complain about my rigorous schedule. Like grandpa, I love to drive around in our big truck, I like to get my hands dirty, and I’m an outdoors person.

I can’t wait to visit grandpa’s house and enjoy his lovely yard and play in the garden with my cousins. Grandpa’s house is a little patch of paradise, overlooking the Okanagan lake and the Naramata vineyards. I’m looking forward to having tummy time on his perfect lawn, smelling steaks and ribs on the barbeque, snoozing under the big starry sky and breathing fresh BC air, and listening to the late night chatter of daddy, uncle, and grandpa!

 

Cosmetic Surgery

Posted on by rudy0525

I was circumcised this week. Mommy is stressed out about changing my diapers, so daddy’s doing  it for her.  It was pretty funny in the doctor’s office. Daddy drilled the pediatrician to see how many times she’d performed the procedure, and whether she’d ever slipped. He threatened to beat her up so badly she’d be begging for a gun to the head. Seriously. That’s the way the conversation went. We took before and after pictures, so for all the ladies out there… show me yours and I’ll show you mine 😉

I had a lot of rest the following two days… loads of lounging around trying to recover.

Cranky
 
I’m finally starting to gain some weight. The pediatrician wouldn’t give me the circumcision unless I put on a few ounces.  Mommy calls me chicken because I’m scrawny.
 

Chicken skin

 

Chicken wing

 
So I’m nursing every 2-3 hours, and I barely get to sleep and the alarm goes off for another feeding! I’ve regained my birth weight though, and I’m finally over 6lbs!
 

Feasting

I need to keep the weight gain up so I can go to Canada this summer!
 

For Grandma

 
 They didn’t let me keep the foreskin, but here’s what mommy did with the umbilical cord:
 

Umbilical cord

 
 

is now fish food

Eat, Sleep, Poo

Posted on by rudy0525

Daddy gave me my first bath this week… I didn’t like having my hair washed, but I sure didn’t mind sitting in the warm water. Now mommy keeps smelling me with big, deep inhales. My umbilical cord fell off after the bath, and my belly button is super cute!

My first bath

I sure get the hiccups a lot… just like when I was in the womb, but now everybody can hear me. Everyone laughs at my goofy expression.

All the bathing, feeding, and diapering is exhausting! Mommy and daddy think they’re tired… try being their guinea pig while they’re learning! They do have a pretty good system going though, with dad on diaper duty and mom making meals (I’m a boob man!).
 

Wiped out!

 

Tiny hands

Goofy

Baby on Board!

Posted on by rudy0525
I live aboard a 40′ Jeanneau sailboat in Santa Cruz Harbor.

Home

 
Daddy’s been customizing the boat for me, with a teak bassinette and baby bathtub. So for now, I get to sleep with mom and dad in the forecabin. When I get a bit older, I’ll have the whole aftcabin to myself.
My bassinette

The sounds and swells of the harbor remind me of being inside the womb… it’s so comforting to have the Pacific ocean rock me to sleep each night. I hear the motors of the fishing boats heading out for halibut in the morning, the chit-chat of stand-up paddlers and children learning to sail in the afternoons, and the bumpers squeaking and the rigging creaking at night.

I have many friends in the harbor, but my favorites are the otters and my bf the black-crowned heron.

The Wednesday night sailboat races bring tons of noisy excitement and color into my life. Look at the boats entering the harbor with their jibs full of wind!

Full sails

  

My Birthday!

Posted on by rudy0525

I was born on May 25, 2011 at 6:46pm at Sutter Maternity Center in Santa Cruz, California. My parents, Deb and Don, are counting their lucky stars that I’m such a perfect little boy. 

My legal name is Rudolph, after grandpa Roy, who never used his real name… but I like it ’cause it’s old-school classic!
I have grandpa’s big ear lobes and wrinkly forehead. My middle name gives me a sense of place, after the Vedder-Chilliwack river. Daddy liked to camp along its banks and fish for Chinook, Coho, and Steelhead. They thought uncle Terry would like this, and it’s also symbolic that the river flows across the Canada-US border. I have grandpa Whittington‘s last name and quiet, easy-going disposition! 

I arrived early at 37.5 weeks because I was a breech baby, but handsome and healthy at  6  lbs 1/2 oz and 18 1/2 inches long.

Small but Strong

Mommy and daddy attribute my early arrival to the Vancouver Canucks’ double-overtime win against the San Jose Sharks the night before his birth… I figured my dad wouldn’t want me to have to wait 40+ years like he did to see the ‘Nucks win the Stanley Cup! 

I came home from the hospital on May 29th… daddy’s 43rd birthday.

Daddy's birthday present

 

Happy Dad!

 
 

Recovering with mommy

I'm going to be an astronaut! (kidding... it's my hearing test)