The firsts of third, or "How do you tell time with that?"

For those of you who are frequent readers of Ashford Living, you'll know there have been a few changes afoot: A new header, a few more pictures, and the crazy new "Baby D" storyline we just introduced on Wednesday. We know that not all of you will be 100% happy with the changes,  but as the series expanded, we realized that we needed a new character to keep us fresh and appealing to the widest possible variety of readers.

That's not the whole truth. What really happened is I met a girl the first week of college.

The First time I saw her, I was hooked. The first time she talked to me, she commented that I had a nice watch (Skagen, my favorite), and asked how I could tell time with that? (Skagen, no numbers)

The first time we hung out, I mooned her (what can I say, I'm classy like that). The first trip we took together was to Store 24 in my Camaro. The first time I met her Mom I drove up to Connecticut in a Blizzard (in that same Camaro).

The first time I saw her at our wedding I fell for her again. The first time I heard "Mr. and Mrs.", I was the happiest man alive. Our first dance was to "Wouldn't it be Nice".

The first thing I remember Wednesday morning was her saying to me that the contractions were 4 minutes apart. The second after that I began to panic and celebrate all at once. We rushed to the hospital as quickly as we could, and now there is a third of us.

And, on this, Robby's third day, he's been through a few firsts of his own:

First new onesie.

First trip outside. First taste of the sun. First time in the car seat.

First time on the patio.

First day at home with Mom and Dad. First time in the house. First time meeting his partner in crime.

First time in the most portable of his multiple official baby beds (thanks Grandma H. and Great Grandma U. for the get up and accoutrement).

What do you think, Robby?

Well I know how I Feel!

So this is the little guy...(warning: Sappy Content; Baby Pictures)

I was wondering a few weeks back who exactly this new fellow we'd been building a new room for was going to be. As of 6:17 yesterday afternoon (9/28/2011) the wait was over. My beautiful and amazing, hardworking and talented wife gave birth to our 7lbs, 12oz, 19" long son:

Robert James Davis

"Robby"

I can say, with certainty, that unlike his father, he's really cute!.

An we're all so excited he's arrived. Show them how excited you are about your new cousin, Dylan:

Yeah!!!

Loveable little flabby skinned, tiny human--and it just keeps getting better the more we get to know him.

Hiccups and sneezes, burps and cooing. You just can't beat it. I'm the happiest guy in town!

Here are some pictures of the sleeping beauties:

Stay tuned--I'm a new father with a blogspot account: Game on!

'Twas the week before baby

For those of you that hadn't heard:

'Twas the week before baby
and what I thought was a joke--
A call from Christina: "Hey,
here at home there's no Coke."

"I've just passed the exit
for the truck stop, baby momma.
We'll just head down to 'Cumby's
In Warrenville. Quit the drama!"

So I pick up my lady and
headed down to the store.
I night without soda,
Cried Christina: "Nevermore!"

We picked up sugar water,
and two chocolate bars,
And cruised up 89
in out Honda Fit Car.

Then out of nowhere:
A terrible fright--
Some dumbass deer ran out
and ruined our night!

Stupid rut crazy devil horned
little idiot came flying out of the woods and smashed
into our car.
Poem's over by the way.

This was Last Wednesday. And I know they're antlers, but horns sounds more fiendish.

Apparently, hooves don't make for good maneuvering on paved roads. He slid sideways, crumpled the Drivers side doors in and shattered the driver's window. I was picking glass out of my undies!



Everyone was fine. The villain survived, and squirmed into the woods shortly after this photo was taken. (Where's the justice?) We had to go down to Windham Hospital to get the baby checked and all was clear. The car is in Pomfret getting re-did, and hopefully we'll be back in action by next Wednesday (be sure to see next week's installment: "Twas the week after baby" to see if we get it back on time!




And for those of you that so patiently read through this tale, a surprise.
Here's the bundle of joy we were so keen on protecting. Introducing: Robert James Davis.

"Robby"

Many more pictures to follow!

That last weekend sans baby

As I was sitting here in the birthing ward watching the happiest day of my life transpire, I couldn't help but think back to another wonderful time in my life: Last Weekend.

With nothing to do except relax and enjoy a Sunday (while being 1 week overdue in the case of Stina) we decided to take a walk at the Westville Dam in Southbridge, MA. We found a lovely road to stroll along, with scenic views of the Quinebaug River and a few ducks riding the rapids!

I recommend this to anyone in the area.  The trail we took was flat and partially paved, meandering over the river and through the woods to Strubridge village if you're so brave.

There was, at one point, the remnants of what was possibly a grist mill (foundation and old canal) and the new damn up river a bit. If you have more time on your hands, there are additional trails following an old rail line along the river to the actual Westville Dam. We'd done that path earlier in the year. Great Fun. Enjoy!

Don't tell anyone I bought Comic Books (and I liked them)

I got sucked in by the hype: DC Comics has redone all of it's 52 series and is releasing them this month. I fell out of comics when I was a kid (wasn't hard--I never really got pulled into them) and I figure now is as good a time as any to get back in.

What could be more fun than taking a deep dive into the great America fantasy involving otherworldly powers and the eternal struggle between right and wrong. God and evil. Farm boys and city slickers. Radioactive Men and the ever unpredictable nature of a planet earth that at any moment seems to be both fighting against the encroach of human hubris while also allowing its new masters to run amok. Plus the Green lantern!

 And I can experience all of this without leaving the same couch I used to watch cable TV on before we canceled it in favor of words. But you can throw a lot of pictures behind those words--plus hyperbolistic caricatures of the human form--and the reading is suddenly a lot of Fun!

I broke down and bought Action Comics, Batman (my personal favorite), Green Lantern, and one I'd never read before (recommended by the clerk): Captain Atom. And yes, I read all of them last night before bed. And I had a big glass of milk. I missed the bus this morning, though.  

It's nice to take a few minutes an slip into a world where anything is possible. Now I just need to speed up time a bit (the Flash and Superman are out tomorrow) and get to some more reading!

Fall is here (and the baby isn't)

I was hoping to have this be a Baby oriented post, namely: Here's a picture of Christina and I's beautiful baby boy. He's got other plans (boys are lazy, I've been told) so we're still without our 7+/- lbs Diaper Devil.

(Just a Cheeseburger for fun. No relation to this post, except that cheeseburgers are delicious)

Anyway, in honor of fall and the changing of the seasons, here's a picture of turkeys in my back yard.

If you look real closely, you can see the Wee-One on the stone wall pretending like she's not there. You'd figure, since she attacks mice, chipmunks, squirrels, foxes, skunks, dogs, cats, and people, that she'd be interested in Turkeys. Appears she could care less.

And the leaves on the ground signify that it's been nearly 80 degrees and terribly humid. Just like the Harvest seasons I remember as a kid.

Soon, everyone. It will be soon.

Maryland Fried Chicken

There are three truths that every Marylander holds dear:

Bay crabs are the only crabs,

Our Flag is the only state flag worth flying,

and real fried chicken is the pan fried goodness that your mom used to make.

The only way to make it is in a big old cast iron skillet, finished off in the oven for a few minutes.

Dripping with fatty flavor--crispy skin and juicy happy bites (note: vegetables added for color only)

Thanks for the recipe Mom. We don't eat this quite as much as I'd like too. And my doctor is certainly thankful that's the case.

I know one little guy that's excited about it!

It's coming Dylan! Look at that hair!?!

What to do when you have fresh peaches...

Make peach cobbler!

What to do when the baby won't join us...

So we're still waiting, patiently, for our little addition to join the world of cold weather, eating for yourself, and getting a job. But, seeing that he's got it made in there (don't blame him for staying), we've got to see what we can do to occupy the time until the blessed day.

We had brunch this past Sunday with the family at the Water's Edge in Westbrook to celebrate Christopher's 13th birthday, then headed up to Gillette Castle to check it out. It sits atop a bluff overlooking the CT river, with Sweeping views of the river itself and the surrounding countryside. It's a very nice location, and we'll certainly be going back to take advantage of the hiking trails mit dem kleinen Jungen.

The Castle itself was nice, and the gardens were in great shape. Oddly enough, they have a welcome center and cafeteria that are larger and in better shape than the house. And Christina couldn't seem to keep her eyes open when I tried to take her picture. Goofy...

Next week we're planning on spending a few days in Windham Hospital, if all works out as planned. then spending some time at home with our own  bundle of burps, digestion and, if he's anything like his father, projectile vomiting. Why was I not told about this 9 months ago?

Here's one where she looks at the camera:

Barely.

And this wouldn't be complete without Me:

Here's to hoping the next post has baby pictures!

Spanish Omlette Magic

What do you do for dinner on a lazy Saturday night after watching the Mountaineers hold off the Terps in a heck of a football game? Frittata!

Arugula, Prosciutto, Mozzarella....delicious! Nutty greens added a nice bitter depth to the old favorite, and who can go wrong with ham!

Definitely going to be on the menu for years to come.

And in case you were wondering: It was very, very difficult to pick a favorite, but I'll have to go with WVU Football, and Terps Basketball. I was definitely happy with the game. What do you think, Dad?