Father's Diary - Month 20

My Experiences as a Father...
December 5, 2000 to January 4, 2001 (20th month)

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Tuesday, January 2, 2001
We are getting Maeve used to the idea that there is another baby on the way. Jill told Maeve that there is a baby in her belly. Maeve likes to put her finger in Jill's belly button to point at the baby, and sometimes even likes to look in Jill's belly button to see if she can see it.

Sunday, December 31, 2000
When Maeve does something that I think is particularly clever, I ask her how she got so smart. Today she replied, in a very declarative tone, "Daddy". Now that I think about it, that only makes sense.

Saturday, December 30, 2000
I was telling Marianne and Jill a story about an auto accident that I encountered in Boxborough. The driver had been ejected, and had lacerations on his forehead. I was saying that the EMT from the town ambulance was focusing on finding tape to put a 4X4 on the guy's head, instead of things like O2 or getting the guy into the ambulance. Because Maeve thought that I was looking for tape, she went to my desk and brought the tape to me.

Tuesday, December 26, 2000
Maeve brought her little piano with her when she woke me up this morning. I made some comment about how well she was playing. Jill said it was better than the Rock 'N Roll Elmo that she had heard "65 times already this morning".

Monday, December 25, 2000
This is Maeve's second Christmas. I don't think she understands that this is a special day. It seems like she could open presents every day and just expect it.

She got a lot of great presents. Jill really likes the electronic keyboard that we got for Maeve. Jill and Maeve spend a lot of time with Maeve sitting on Jill's lap while Jill plays it.

Our new house has a big enough kitchen, but all of the cabinets and appliances are squished into one corner. There is less cabinet and counter space than we had in the condo. Jill also thinks the light fixtures came with the house when it was built 25 years ago. Home Depot had a 10% off sale on everything in the store, so we ordered more cabinets, and got floor tile, new lamps, ceiling fans, etc. Our two day total was $3,450.18, after the 10% was taken off. Buying everything in "Tax-free New Hampshire" saved us $172 in sales tax. I've told Jill I will always remember this as "The Christmas that could have bought a car". Now I have to install everything.

Sunday, December 24, 2000
At the Christmas Eve service today, Maeve saw Bruce Officer's kids. Bruce's son has a pony tail, and Maeve said, "Jesus" when she saw him.

Saturday, December 23, 2000
I was slow getting out of bed this morning. Jill had breakfast ready and sent Maeve to get me up. First Maeve was whacking me. Then I pulled her up into the bed, thinking she just wanted attention. She started pulling on my hand, my shoulder and my hair to try to get me up.

Wednesday, December 20, 2000
Maeve came to my office for the company Christmas party today. Russ Shamayev brought his daughter who is about the same age as Maeve. They were looking at each other and Russ said they could probably communicate in their own language, like Furbies.

We met Meaghan Sparks. Her mother wanted to name her Maeve, but her husband, Chris Sparks, wanted Meaghan. When Chris walked in, Meaghan's mother said, "Chris, meet Maeve." Chris groaned and said, "Thanks, Daniel". I guess his wife holds a grudge about not getting to name their daughter Maeve.

Monday, December 18, 2000
The previous owners had 4 cats in the house. We had the carpet guy do the whole house twice (the second time he maximized the deodorizer and even went over everything twice with the deodorizer). I spent a day vacuuming all of the hardwood floors and moldings, and removing hair-filled vertical blinds.

There is a carpeted, insulated porch where the cats spent most of the time. Even after the carpet guy was done, there was still a strong cat smell in that room. I was telling Maeve about it, saying, "You can still smell the cats in this room." Now every time we go through that area, she makes the noise that she uses to call cats, and sniffs the air.

Friday, December 15, 2000
We just closed on our condo sale. I have a few tips for other potential home buyers/sellers:
* If the previous owners had cats in the house and they say they are "clean people", either:

They are lying to you
They are clean but their cats were a mess, leaving hair and whatever all over the place
They think cat hair all over the place and some crusty partially-cleaned-up cat excrement on the floor is clean

* If you have a 19 month old daughter, the transition from one house to the other might be an easy one if she gets a big play room filled with lots of toys that you didn't used to have room for. Owning both properties at once for two weeks will also let her get used to all of the new toys and space for her.
* At least have a contract on your house before you look for one to buy. It's easier to find a place to live for a little while waiting for a new home to be ready than it is to own two homes at once, or to get financing for two at once.
* Get a good lawyer and ask for their advice every step of the way.
* Don't trust your realtor. No matter what they say, their primary goal is their commission. Your lawyer is the one that is really working for you.
* Shop around for everything. There are people who offer all kinds of services. We found a realtor who offered a $1,000 rebate at closing, or you could sell it yourself and pay him nothing for all the work he had done. We also found a mortgage that offered $0 down, so we only had to pay closing costs, because we had to close on the new house before we closed on the condo.

Saturday, December 9, 2000
Maeve's fortune cookie today said "You could prosper in the field of medical research". I don't know if that means she would be a researcher, or if she would be a research subject. Maybe she will develop some incredible 6-sigma genius IQ.

Wednesday, December 6, 2000
I was getting ready to take Maeve to the store tonight. Jill was going to help her put her coat and hat on, but Maeve didn't want Jill's help. She took the coat and hat from Jill and handed them to me so I could help her.

Tuesday, December 5, 2000
Jill and Maeve stopped by Dunkin Donuts after spending some time at the new house today. Maeve was waving at everyone and being very friendly. The cashiers gave Maeve two free doughnut holes just because she was so cute.

Contact Daniel at daniel@splatcat.com or Jill at jill@splatcat.com
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