BABY FEVER

On this date some years ago, we were in the hospital, waiting and waiting and waiting

THIS WEEK:

• Gardening and new additions

• “Where Are They Now?” Baby shower gift idea

• BEHIND THE PAY WALL: Sleeping arrangement: new drawings and analysis

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Quick life update before we get started. I just ate a giant bowl of mint chip ice cream and my finger is getting better.

On Sunday, I was re-setting boulders I had originally positioned as steps in one of our gardens four years ago and I crushed my finger between two of them. It really hurt. And it bled for three hours. Fortunately, I can move it and it’s not as black or swollen as it was yesterday. Here’s a picture — of the garden rocks.

The two large rocks at the top center are the ones I crushed my finger between. I still have to redo the row to the left, add a third layer of steps as a landing on the bottom, and then rework all of the white marble rocks. See how sunken in the rocks in the lower row are? That isn’t because they sank over time, it’s just that I set them too low the first time around. It’s not just that I’ve got four years more landscaping and gardening experience and I know how to build these things better. There’s that, but I’m also four years older and I really felt the weight of those rocks between my finger on the left my still-sore arm on the right, which bore the full weight of a queen bed that I decided to bring up a flight of stairs by myself. I was all triumphant when I got it upstairs saying “See? This is why dad lifts weights!” and here I am, still sore in only my right bicep three weeks later. Cherry juice, the heating pad, and peppermint essential oils have been helpful.

I’m not trying to bury the lead and say “Oh yeah, by the way, we’re having a baby.” Spring is here and this is the time we recall having baby fever, having babies, and those blissful afternoons of parental leaves with newborn smell, no place to be, and little cries through all hours of the night.

We still don’t sleep through the night but the cries aren’t as little. More on sleep behind the paywall.

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“There’s a fire.”

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In those days, I was there to hold hands. Apparently, so are our kids. Also to play.

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Speaking of play, here are the poll results from last week…

The checkmark on Ninja Turtles and LEGO isn’t because those were the winners, it’s because that’s what DiPerri voted for. Frega voted Barbie and LEGO. Based on the stats, I’m assuming the only person other than DiPerri who voted for Ninja Turtles was Real Buddy. Good company.

Congratulations to LEGO and Barbie!

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Bring your friends!

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Here’s a cartoon from a couple years ago for expectant parents out there who have also made enemies of their neighbors.

We’ve learned a lot about captioning in the last year or so from listening to The New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest Podcast and this is an example of a caption that we wouldn’t write today. Exclamation points (three of them here), “see and say” gags, and excessive, unnecessary words make for poor captions. This one has all of that. We like the concept though.

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If you’re enjoying yourself at Buddy and Romeo’s expense so far, please consider becoming a paid subscriber. You’ll get exclusive comics and commentaries; behind-the-scenes drawings and project developments; and access to this entire Substack archive. Plus, the more coffee we drink, the more we’ll create.

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Oh, I almost forgot. I washed my hands 37 times on Thursday, March 13, 2025. Less than I expected and less than the previous two times I counted (in 2004 and 2019). Not sure if that’s a good thing or not. 37 times in one day sounds low to me. I’ll try to do better.

Why don’t Buddy and Romeo sleep in beds? Well for one, they can’t afford it. Second, there’s symbolism behind what they sleep on and with. Let’s discuss and check out some brand new drawings from this week…