Taylor, Grammy, Mira, Michelle and Matt together

Sorry I've fallen so far behind. We have a BUNCH of new pics and videos from last weekend including touring around DC with Taylor and visiting the zoo also. I promise to catch up.

Here's a quick video of Taylor, Michelle and Mira at the Washington Monument last Thursday - the afternoon after Taylor got into town.

They were having a great time...until they got to the Washington Monument and found out that they had to get the tickets (which are free!!) at 7:30am in the morning! This is crazy! I don't know if I will ever make it to the top of the monument unless Michelle and I have a late night partying in DC and get a wild idea. This is a real bummer, and anyone out there who are early risers, I want you to know that I'll buy you dinner if you'll wait in line and get Michelle and I some tickets!!

The weekend started early last week. I got a call from mom (Grammy) - her flight out of New York City was cancelled, so instead of staying in an expensive hotel in the city by herself, she hopped a train down to DC to hang out with us. She re-routed her flight back to Raleigh to leave from DC...now THAT'S a smart, resourceful lady!

She also got a chance to do something that Michelle and I have been talking about for a while - take a train from NYC to DC. She said it was very nice. Comfortable seats, could make and receive phone calls, have a glass of wine, etc. I'm definitely looking forward to trying it!

Michelle, Taylor and Mira met Grammy at Union Station in DC, and Grammy had a sweet little reunion with Mira, who was very pleased!

Later that evening when I got off of work, we headed out for dinner in Bethesda. Bethesda is a gorgeous town just a few miles from Silver Spring - lots of restaurants and bars (actually, more restaurants per square mile in Bethesda than anywhere on the East Coast!), tree lined streets with lights everywhere, and lots of shopping on the city streets. Not very cheap though!

On Thursday night, we ate at one of Michelle and my favorites - Cafe Deluxe.

Here's Grammy and Mira after dinner...

It was a late night though, and since I had to be at work in the morning, it got me off to a tiring start to our fast paced and action packed weekend.

MARCY, we love the gifts! Thanks so much. Mira has been wearing the ballerina shoes every other day. More videos will follow, but those shoes you sent made it on to Mira's feet as soon as they came out of the package. Thanks so much!!! She has LOTS of outfits that accentuate the foot gear. The only way these will be topped is when she gets her first ski boots (my humble opinion, but we're at least 2 years away from that moment.) In the meantime, we'll be sure to commemorate your fame. PS - Michelle says "hi!, love!, and THANKS!!!"

"The Day After"

The trip we took to Alexandria last Saturday was "eventful". Basically, the trip was a dry run to see what it would be like to go sightseeing with Taylor and with Mira in tow.

Long story short, it was hot, Mira got dehydrated (or hungry, or probably both), and we ran out of milk...both Mommy and the formula we brought. Needless to say, she ate very well when we got home at 2:30am, and then was just a little doll the next day...

7.22.08 update

Well, today's update is mostly uneventful. I'm posting some pictures and hopefully some videos from recent days.

We're anxiously awaiting a visit from Taylor, our niece on Michelle's side. Michelle has been extremely tight with Taylor since she was an infant. Now, she's almost 14 years old and is coming to DC to visit and maybe help out a little. Taylor is a beautiful, smart, caring and conscientious young woman and Michelle and I just think she's awesome. Taylor has two great younger brothers, but based on our space, resources, and our need to have some assistance with Mira, we're only able to bring Taylor up to DC this time. Pictures and videos of her visit will follow.

Mira had a follow-up doctor's visit last Monday, and she's gaining weight. She was at 6lb 15oz, which is a great improvement over last week's 6lb, 8oz. So, the doctor is "stepping off" a little bit since she's above her birth weight and (evidently) gaining quickly.

We have definitely noticed changes...

1. her size - she is definitely getting bigger - it seems that her head and belly are growing the fastest

2. her eyes - they are open much more now, and it appears that she is able to focus on objects better and actually recognize objects (like mommy!)

3. her appetite - she is definitely still developing a schedule but she is steadily eating more, and more frequently

4. her facial expressions - she is experimenting and building her baileywick of facial expressions - most of which successfully draw oohs and aahs from Mommy, Daddy, and other people passing by.

5. somewhat troubling, it appears that she is becoming aware of her ability to get a reaction from mommy and daddy; let's just say that over the last couple days, she has become "very expressive". Michelle and I are both perplexed that there are no marks whatsoever at the locations where the horns and the red, thorny tail emerge and then vanish.

6. on the "plus side", we feel that when the horns aren't out, our daughter's beauty, sweetness and personality grows with each passing day.

We look forward to being back in NC over Grammy's birthday - from Friday, August 8th till at least Wednesday, August 13th - and catching up with all of our friends and family. I will be travelling within my company's NC/SC territory on Monday and Tuesday, but Michelle and Mira will be "doing the rounds" in Raleigh.

...And without further delay...more pictures, etc.

Since we call Mira our little "bug", we'll refer to these pictures as "Wasted Away Again in Bugga-rita-ville" (Nana and Granddad - do a google search for "Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville" - it's a classic. If you already knew this, please accept my apology!! If you didn't already know this, you're welcome for the joke's reference!)











Please forgive the terrible vocals - I plan to break out the guitar and make a much better effort at musical renderings in the months and years to come...

Bathtime!

Hey everyone,

Yesterday was hectic, and we took all day today for rest (and a bath)...so, without further delay:

It's Friday! Here are the latest pictures

Woohoo! It's finally Friday! Michelle and I are looking forward to a fun weekend...of rest and whatever else Michelle is up for. My lovely and talented wife has been HARD at work keeping up with Mira and her demanding schedule.

I'm looking forward to lending a hand over the weekend with a "handheld nipple and a fistful of diapers". Mira was weighed at the doctor this past Wednesday, and she was at 6lb, 8oz. Although this is still 2oz less than her birth weight, it also represents a 6oz weight gain over the week before. Still, the doctors are asking that we (Michelle) feed her every two hours! So, needless to say I'm feeling pretty guilty about having to sleep at night so that I can work all week, and I'm preparing to make an attempt to relieve Michelle!

So far, my contribution has been constrained to changing 1-2 diapers per-day (on the weekdays), appointing myself as the primary camera man and technical editor, making grilled cheese sandwiches, carrying groceries, and performing the role of "heated bed". I must admit, the latter responsibility is my favorite - I experience ultimate delight when Mira gives me one of her "full-body hugs".

That about sums it up for Daddy. As far as the female contingent of the Remke family goes, Mommy has a miracle cure for post-partum depression...

...and Mira just LOVES her Mommy!

We'll try our best to have an eventful weekend. Be advised that anyone in the Miles, Easton or Remke families is MORE than welcome to drop in on us, and Southwest has cheap fares coming into all three of our airports: Baltimore, Dulles, and Reagan National!! Anyone is welcome to sleep in one of the following locations:

1. our air mattress - which Ben told me to keep and "owe him". No prob, bro!
2. our couch - not recommended if you're over 18 years old or taller than 5'10"
3. our floor - not recommended
4. my office - actually a very nice couch, and there's beer on tap. 4 miles away.
5. local hotel - if you have points and a significant other, it's worth consideration

Grammy, it's not too late to come up tomorrow!! Ben & Alana too...

Mira will be dreaming of mommy's milk, Michelle will be dreaming of sleeping through the night, and I'll be dreaming of a teleportation device that can put my family into your home whenever you'll have us.

We miss our family in NC and OK and look forward to seeing you all as soon as possible!

VIDEOS!

Hey! Thanks everybody for the feedback about this blog - we're thrilled that you like it and we promise to update it very frequently.

As promised from last time, here are some videos...

I think I've compressed these down as far as I can. I converted the videos from "mpeg-2" format to a .wmv. If anyone knows of a better way, I'm all ears.

OK. This first one is a typical evening.

This next one is hiccups.

After changing the diaper...

Waking up for food...

The Yawn...

Ben & Alana's wedding

Continuing from the last post, we had a great time at the wedding. The venue, Chateau Elan, was fabulous. We slept (not enough) in a comfortable bed, ate great food and generally had a blast celebrating with Ben & Alana. It was great to catch up with some of our closest friends.





















We were accompanied on our trip to Atlanta by Michelle's sister Jordan, who heroically agreed to come along and help out with Mira during all of the festivities. Thanks Jo! You're awesome and we can't thank you enough for everything! Here's a pic of a very tired Jordan and Michelle (who drove through the night to arrive at the Chateau after 2:30am, and a hungry Mira.


The wedding was fun, and Ben & Alana asked the photographers to take some pictures of Mira, Michelle and I. We're looking forward to seeing them.
As a super added bonus, we got to introduce Mira to my family from Oklahoma: My Nana and Granddad (Raedelle and Al), Aunt Terri, Aunt Marcy and Uncle Jeff, and their daughter (my cousin) Kristen.
The picture below is very special, as it captures 4 generations of ladies on my side of the family. My mom is on the left and Nana is on the right. Of course, Michelle and Mira are in the middle. Fortunately, I was absent for most of these pictures, but this is the only one taken with my camera that didn't have the back of the wedding photographers head in it.


After the wedding, we were tired. Mira got plenty of sleep. And basically had a pleasant ride home.

I had to wait until we got home - at about 4am on Monday morning - to get any sleep.


Michelle is still trying to get some sleep, poor thing.





So, since then we've basically been eating, sleeping and hanging out in the sun...

















Recently, we purchased a digital camcorder, so the next post will have some videos! I am clearly not an experienced html (or video) editor, so please continue to bear with me!

Till next time,

Matt, Michelle and Mira

You are looking into Mira's Crib

We created this blog for our families, friends and loved ones to share our experiences and life with our new daughter, Mira Jane Remke.

This is our first-ever attempt at a blog, so please bear with us. Our intention here is NOT to satisfy our "inner-narcissist", but to share Mira with those who want see her (and her parents) grow up in "the early years" here in the DC area.

This site is for you, Sandy, Tom, Carol, Al, Raedelle, Terri, Marcy, Ben & Alana, Jordan, Jennifer, Amy, Stephanie, Steve, Taylor, Ali, Angie...Dom & Laura, Cho & Jennifer, Russ & Joanna, Holly & Andrew, Joe & Nicole...and all of our loving family and friends.










When we first brought Mira home from the hospital, she had slightly high Bilirubin count. This is common for baby's born under 38 weeks. So, they issued us a "bili-blanket" So, Mira was our glowbug.

After the first night at home, we had to go back to the doctor on Monday after Grammy and Aunty Jen had to go home. The doctor was still concerned about juandice so she sent us back to the hospital for another blood test. The results were marginal, so it was back to the hospital for an more intense "tanning bed" session to deal with the bilirubin count.

Here are some pictures of Mira in her "tanning bed".





After another 24 hours, it was off to Atlanta for Ben and Alana's wedding. We packed up the baby and left DC at around 9pm, which (along with stops for feeding and changing along the way) got us into Raleigh at around 2am. The next day I left early for Atlanta with Chris (great friend) while Michelle stayed behind to wait for her sister Jordan who came along to help us with Mira at the wedding...

Story will continue -