28 days old and dreaming

28 days of life, 20 hours per day of sleep. What do you dream about?

How do you define consciousness? Do you follow rational thought and believe that, "I think, therefore I am?" Do you believe that the world has to be experienced through the senses as the empericists do? Is our consciousness the sum total of all of our experiences?

Western psychology calls the infant's mind a "tabula rasa", or blank slate. It is a mind devoid of judgment, opinions, and prejudice. Eastern philosophy would refer to this state of mind as "the uncarved block", or (coincidentally enough) the p'u. It is the state of mind that Taoists and Zen Buddhists strive to return to in life, but which we all possess at birth.

Why is it so cute when she stretches, gets startled, sneezes, cries (sorry Little V), burps, or sleeps? Because it's just what she does. Her only motivation is for comfort - she's just doing what she has to do. Maybe it's so cute because she's teaching mommy and daddy about what the essence of life really is - a good nap, a good stretch, a good meal (and the of course the consequences thereof).

Just be, Little V.

...and so it begins

At long last we have given into the pressure of the "blog-os-peer". That's right, Bento Box W has now been served. For those unfamiliar with Japanese cuisine served here in The States, a Bento Box is a chef's special, a combo platter, often containing a diverse array of samplings from raw tuna to tempura fried sweet potato... from octopus salad to miso soup... from california rolls to red snapper... mmmmm... red snapper... allglglglglhglhglhglhg. But I digress.

Here at Bento Box W, we strive to bring you an eclectic mix of posts, from baby photos to snowboarding; from Winnie the Pooh to Star Wars; from family fun and vacations to the least boring of our daily activities.

So let's start with a delicious appetizer of baby photos. We're starting this way for a few reasons:

1. We have this new baby. Her name's Vanessa. She was born January 4th, 2008 at 5:42 PM. As her proud parents, we think she's darn cute, so what better way to start a blog? Actually, Vanessa is perhaps the biggest reason we were finally persuaded to start a blog.
   
2. As Vanessa as born while Colorado's great Rocky Mountains were getting pounded with snow, Kevin (dad), has no snowboarding pictures to post.
   
3. Jill (mom) signed a waiver when she was pregnant absolving herself of all responsibility for anything. Citing "pregnancy brain", also known as "placenta brain" in the Greater Midwest, Jill has requested absolution from decisions, placement of items, directions, schedules, and all forms of documentation. This includes blog posts. Therefore, those looking forward to posts about Winnie the Pooh, the glory of cottage cheese, super-soft stuffed animals, celebrity dirt, and internet deals will have to wait.

Welcome to the world, Little V. We'd hoped someday you'd join us. Thank you for making your way into our lives.