Friday was our first grand day out with Colette. We took her to the University to meet my friends all over campus. She slept through most of it, but was well behaved throughout. It was especially fun stopping by the Registrar's Office, where Susan (who is expecting her own first baby in August) got to hold Colette. I think it was one of the first times she'd held an infant, and it was fun to watch the two of them.

After two hours at the University we went on to Fuddruckers for dinner. It was the first time Jean and I have taken Colette out to a restaurant. Fudd's has those high chairs that you can drop a car seat onto, and that's how Colette spent dinner. We chose a table out of the way enough that Colette wouldn't catch something from anyone, but close enough that we could watch all the other children romping around the place. Fuddruckers has some kind of children's deal; I don't know if it's free or cheap meals for children, but every time Jean and I have gone there it's been packed with families. Dinner was good – Fudd's makes my favorite burgers – and Jean and I not only managed our daughter but had a good time with each other.

Next we stopped by Babies 'R Us. Nasty warehouse of a store, but we needed to pick out a second car seat so Jean could pick up Colette from day care in her car. After carrying Colette in her car seat with a receiving blanket over it (like a covered dish) through the parking lot I plopped her on top a shopping cart. It's scary to find out all of a sudden that something like a shopping cart has been designed to accommodate a car seat. It makes sense that it would and I'm happy to put the seat down, but I'm beginning to feel like the whole world has these little secret design modifications for babies and children that I've never noticed. The planet is not the one I knew it to be.

We fearlessly continued on to Circuit City in search of a clock radio for our guest bedroom. We've had a number of nights when Colette wouldn't settle down in her crib. The easiest way to monitor her and still get a little sleep is for one of the two of us to take her into our guest bedroom and try to get some sleep with her in the bed. Neither Jean nor I get a good night's sleep in the guest bed, but it's better than sitting in the study all night. Jean and I currently work shifts: she takes Colette until sometime around 3 A.M. and I take her after that. Since the guest room has had no clock, it was difficult to know a) whether it was the other person's turn yet or b) exactly how much sleep has been lost.

After Circuit City we went to Borders, where we spent an hour browsing books and CDs. It was a great afternoon and evening overall. We were out from just after 3 P.M. until after 9 P.M. and we had fun. It was an important day because it was our first proof that we may get to live approximations of our former lives.

The remainder of our extended weekend has been largely at home. We took Colette this morning to the Goddard School where she'll start day care in a few more weeks. The teachers showed us where her stuff will go and where she'll sleep. All the other children in the infant room look like giants next to Colette. Then again, she is the first one in the room born in 1999.

After four straight days of Colette I have to admit to a certain amount of impatience. As my friends in the Controller's Office laughingly predicted, Jean and I have broken down and given Colette a pacifier whenever we thought it would help. My impatience is that I wish she would learn how to keep the bloody pacifier in her mouth. While writing about half of this entry she's been sitting in her bouncy seat next to me. For the last half hour she's been screaming for her pacifier. I keep putting it in her mouth, she sucks for oh, say, three to five seconds before it falls out of her mouth onto her lap. Immediately she loses her cool and starts screaming again. So I pick up the pacifier and calm her for another three to five seconds.

I guess it's a this point that I should put the computer aside and go someplace and sit with my daughter. Instead, I've just passed her off to Jean for a few minutes so I can finish up here. It's a difficult balance to strike between Colette and all the other things I still want to do. And I have to be fair with Jean too. Luckily Jean and I both feel like we're covering for one another well at this point. As long as we both feel that way I'm going to assume we're on the right path.