Merry Christmas!

Not sure who this guy is, but everybody here seems to think he's pretty cool. He said to look for his handiwork on December 25th. Wonder what that's all about.

Peas and Carrots, Carrots and Peas

Continuing along my solid food adventure, I have discovered that carrots:

...delicious!!

Peas: ...disgusting.

Just, you know, FYI.

Chappy Chanukah!

I hope you-all are enjoying your latkes and chocolate gelt! I'm too young for those, but not for long. Know why? As of last Friday, I am the proud owner of my very first tooth!! I'm so big!!!

Maybe now that I'm so big, Mommy and Daddy will let me help light the menorah? Doubtful.

So Hungry!

I sure am a growing boy these days! I'm growing so fast and needing so many calories that Mommy and Daddy thought it might be time to start me on some solid food. My response: What the heck is "solid food?!" Turns out, it's not so solid, it tastes a lot like Mommy's milk, and is somehow related to something called "rice." It also turns out that I am a natural when it comes to eating with a spoon. Just watch me go!

Special Guest Portraitist

My Grandpa's getting to be a real wiz at PhotoShop! Not that I have any blemishes to fix, mind you. (Thank goodness, the awkwardness of baby acne is behind me.) What you see below is my naturally beautiful visage, optimally lit and surrrounded by an artistic PhotoShopped background. Every baby should be so lucky as to have a personal portraitist!

My Dog Gracie

Now that I've noticed her, Gracie is my favorite new toy! We like to cuddle together on Mommy's lap -- I pat Gracie and she gives me really gentle kisses. So far, Gracie doesn't seem to mind the attention -- it probably helps that her hair is too short for me to get a good grip. Darn for me! (Good for Gracie.)

My Village

It turns out I'm a really lucky boy. Not only do I have adoring parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, I also have lots and lots of friends. And they all show me in so many ways how very much I am loved.

For instance, my honorary Aunt Sheri is a whiz at painting. Just check this out!
Do you see the little red-haired boy on the step stool? That's me! I can't wait until I'm big enough to sit on my new little step stool or step on it to help me reach high places. For now, it's just fun to pat it!

Tummy Time isn't always bad

Musings on being 4 months old

I noticed I have a dog!
One hand in the mouth is good. Two are better!
Feet are elusive and fascinating.
There are consonants! G is good for saying "goo."
Rolling front to back: fun! Back to front: not so much.
Smiles and giggles are best used liberally:

Antiques

Apparently, my Dad never broke his toys. See?


I'm not sure how all of Dad's toys survived for 35 years (Grandma hermetically sealed them?), but they're all mine now!!! I shall do my best to make sure they don't make it another 35 years...

Halloween II

In the grand tradition of The Simpsons, here we present another Halloween special, weeks late but worth the wait:

Two smiling Jack-o-lanterns

Spooooooooky!

I'm 4 months old!!

How big is Liev? Soooooooo big!

How much red is Liev wearing? Soooooooo much!! Goes well with my 4th of July birthday cap. Still fits, even though I'm twice (!) my original size.

(Soooooooo big!)

Happy Halloween!

What did you get for Trick or Treat? I got this pumpkin hat! Guess I'm a pumpkin head now.


Not satisfied to be just cute as a bug in a rug, here I demonstrate that I am also as cute as a pea in a pod. Hope you like this picture! It's the only one we took before my dog Gracie ate my peas. I didn't know that foam peas were edible, but then again all I eat is milk, so I'm not so up on other folks' eating habits.

Hope you had a happy one, and that you didn't get sick from eating candy like Mommy and Daddy did!

My First Giggle

That Daddy sure is funny!

BEEFCAAAAAKE!!!

Like Father, Like Son

Well, the weather finally got cold enough for Dad and me to rock our wooly caps from Grandma. What a couple of cuties!
I think I'm going to stop raiding Dad's closet for his old clothes, though -- what's up with trying to put babies in bags? Is that some '70's thing? I still manage to make this look good, though.

1st day of school

Today was a big milestone for me. I went to school! I got to play with new toys and people, and see lots of babies. I ate lots of milk out of bottles and took some naps. The teachers said I liked the activity mat a lot. Mommy came at lunchtime to feed me and play a little. She also went to school today, but I don't think she had as much fun as I did.

More school tomorrow! I'd better rest so I can be ready for my day.

Nanna & Aunt Ethan

Yay! I finally got to meet my Nanna and my Aunt Ethan. I was kind of shy the last time they came to visit and spent the entire time inside Mommy's tummy. Turns out, my new relatives are pretty neat when I'm on the outside, too!

Nanna likes to talk and smile with me.

Aunt Ethan is especially fun. Maybe it's because she's 12 years old? I can't wait to get some motor control so I can play with her!

Mad Skillz

As my doctor noticed at my last check-up, all that Tummy Time is paying off. Just check out how well I can prop myself up:I must have some huge muscles!! Not only can I lift my head up well, but (not unlike the fiddler crab) I am now able to scoop objects toward my mouth -- all the better to experience them fully. Today's experiences included my burp cloth and Skwish toy, among others.

So, that's the news. I gots me some mad new skillz.

Preppy is back

Having been declared a whopping a whopping 15 pounds at my check-up yesterday, it became obvious it was time for a new wardrobe. Fit-wise, my 0-3 month clothes weren't cutting it. Fortunately, thanks to my Grandmas and Aunts, I had some pretty sweet outfits in reserve, including this one:

Preppy is back! 'Nuff said.

Happy B-day, Grandpa!

What can I say? I've had only one birthday myself, and don't remember it so fondly (lots of squeezing, bright lights, and cold air), so I can't figure out why everyone gets so excited about birthdays. Regardless, I hope Grandpa had a happy one! I wonder if he got squeezed.

Unca Sean

It turns out Mommy has something called a "brother", which means I have an "uncle!" His name is Sean, and he came to visit last weekend. He knows a lot about babies, so I liked him right away. Plus, he's super-tall, so I can see a lot over his shoulder:
We had a really fun time with Uncle Sean, and we can't wait to see him again soon.

Cutest. Boy. Ever.

There are those among you who, for your own reasons, will disagree with my claim. To you, I ask you to gaze again upon my countenance:

Now, that's just CUTE.

My new ride

Ain't she sweet?? LATCH car seat anchors for safety and leather seats for easy clean-up (some of us have been known to spit up from time to time). I even got myself a chauffeur, a little lady I like to call "Mommy." Just until I get my driver's license...

Oh, Yeah!

So, I raided Dad's closet and found some totally retro duds. They fit me perfectly! Check out my 70's style:





Oh, yeah! Just call me "Disco Liev!"

Lookie what he can do!

Man alive, I've been busy this past week! I've learned so many things...

- I've started joining in on conversations (no words, but my coos and gurgles speak multitudes).
- I found a new volume setting for when I'm really P.O.'ed (yes, I do go to 11).
- My smiles are coming more frequently and seem to be tied to actual people/events.
- And I've spent some time discovering that I have appendages. Hands. Feet. Whoa.

Turns out, the small bits on the end of my hands (fingers? My vocab acquisition is lagging) can be good for a little nosh when I'm hungry or fussy. Here I demonstrate my alternative hand positioning technique for thumb sucking. It'll be all the rage in Paris soon.

Thankyew, thankyewverymuch...

Why do Mommy and Daddy insist on dressing me in outfits with collars? Don't they know babies have no neck?



On the other hand, when I manage to get the collar turned up, and a couple of buttons undone, it makes for a pretty sweet "Baby Elvis" effect. Makes me wanna sing. "Since my baby left me..."

Hair Club for babies? Plus, a nice day

Here I am, not even 6 weeks old, and I find (to my despair) that my hair is falling out! Mommy says that if I take after her, I won't have hair again until preschool. How embarrassing! Let's hope I take after Daddy. In the meantime, I'll be searching the pharmacy for baby-strength Rogaine.



Fortunately, I had an otherwise lovely day. I showed my school spirit (apparently Mommy and Daddy met at some place called "Oberlin"),


had some laughs,


got another bath (no inappropriate photos this time) and enjoyed my comfy towel afterwards.


I'm pooped!! Off to bed...

Special Guest Photographer

So this morning Mommy and I went to the farmer's market for a date with Aunts Sue and Sheri. We had a great time. Not only did I get some cool new kicks (which you'll see later -- they're still a bit too big for me), but Aunt Sue took some nice photographs of me. She totally knows what she's doing with a camera. It's nice to work with a pro once in a while, unlike those haphazard "photo shoots" (if you can call them that) I have with Mommy and Daddy.

Here are the shots.

This is me blowing some bubbles.


Here's my foot.


This is me holding someone's finger. (We think it's Sheri's but it was such a busy morning I can't remember for sure).


Here's my hand by itself.


And here's my hand in the grass.


Aren't they nice? And Sue is just learning to use her new camera (this is her 1st digital camera), so I imagine her photos will get even better over time. Wow! Maybe she'll take some more photos of me soon.

TTFN
-lbs.

More Gender Equality

I think I remember being upside-down inside of Mommy at some point, but now I seem to be right side up on Daddy. Weird! ...but warm and snuggly.

Mommy says that now Daddy can experience the fun and back pain of carrying around a 9-pound infant (well, 12 pounds at last estimate).



Mommy's also trying to find a way for Daddy to experience 16 weeks of nausea, 12 weeks of constantly having to pee, and 6 weeks of extremely awkward stitches. I wonder what that's all about.

Gender Equality

I learned today that Daddy is good for more than diaper changes and snuggles. Turns out, he makes milk, too! Whoa. It comes out of this strange contraption that reminds me of my pacifier, but it tastes basically the same as Mommy's milk.



Hm. If I knew anything about gender roles, I'd have to rethink my societally informed assumptions.

Biscuits and (Wavy) Gravy

Today I suffered one of many insults I'm sure to endure as I grow up -- Mommy and Daddy used me to play dress-up. Oh, the humanity!! Don't get me wrong; I like the individual pieces. The tie-dyed shirt is a bit retro (at least 2 times over), and it smells a little like patchouli, but it's 'groovy.' And the sandals are super-cute, but it's not like I'm walking anywhere (yet). Even the overalls are OK (although personally I prefer SevenJeans denim). I guess it's just the combination; it's like Ben Cohen and Roy Clark were somehow merged and miniaturized. Well, see what you think:



As if that weren't enough, then Daddy decided to use me as a prop in his attempt at an "Artsy" photoshoot. Now let me be clear. Where Daddy is concerned, I'll take Artsy over Fartsy any day (sadly, I get more of the latter), but I don't like all the posing. Anyway, here's a shot:



In other news, I've had a very social week. The big thing, as I understand it, is to have an entourage, and you can never start these things too early. So, I've been putting together my own little posse. In total, there are 5 of us: Me, Peter, Alex, Will, Huxley (although little Mr. Brave New World [not his namesake, I'm told] hasn't proven himself brave enough to make an appearance. He's due in late August). Anyway, I've been visiting with everyone in the crew. I saw Huxley's mom at her dissertation defense (she rocked, BTW), and I saw Peter at another dissertation defense (do Mommy and Daddy know how to show me a good time or what?!). As for Will and Alex, we had a couple of movie dates...er, I mean screenings together. We're very into film, you know.

Sadly, I don't have a picture of all of us, but I'm working on it. In the meantime, here's a "pre-entourage" shot:


[Left to Right: Will, Me, Alex, Peter, Huxley]

So yeah, it's been a busy week. I'm pretty tired. And since I'm still a little miffed at Mommy and Daddy's about the dress-up thing, I've had to find a new snuggle partner.


Not bad. Not bad at all...

-lbs.

Chunk-Style

I know...I've been bad. I haven't been updating much lately. It's just that things have been busy. Let me try to catch you up.

Well, I went to see the doctor this week. Nothing serious, but I *did* have a bit of a rash on...well, on an area that nearly rhymes with 'rash' (especially if Sean Connery says it). The doctor didn't seem concerned, which I guess is good. Mommy and Daddy have been putting zinc oxide on it, which looks a little like clown make-up, but with any luck will help. Anyway...while at the doctor, I also learned that I'm up to 11 pounds! And Mommy was worried I wasn't getting enough milk. Ha!

Also this week we've been trying to get out a bit more. For instance, we went to "Baby Box Office," which is where the local movie theatre shows movies for moms and dads with babies or little kids. It was fun, although I got a bit of a tummy ache mid-way through the movie (and I wasn't even eating the Junior Mints...hey, I just made a joke. Junior Mints...JUNIOR, get it? Come on, it's not bad for a first joke). Anyway, it was nice to get out, and we saw my pal Alex and his mommy, Sandy.

What else? Oh yeah, this week marked a big of a milestone for me and Mommy in that we spent a little time apart. Basically what happened was Daddy took me and Gracie for a nice long walk while Mommy did stuff at home (once I think she napped and the other time she took a shower). It was hard for all of us, but I think it's good, since there will be times where we can't be together. So, best to start practicing now.

I guess that's the really big news. Besides, I know that part of the reason you tune in is for the pictures, not just the stories, so here you go.

Here I am kicking back in Daddy's arms. He has a pretty comfy lap.


And here I am crashed out on Mommy's shoulder. You wouldn't think this was comfortable, but it is. I guess her chest is posturepedic or something.


Here's a photo of me on Daddy's chest. I know it's a lot of photos of me sleeping. I don't know why Mommy and Daddy don't take more shots of me awake. I've been pretty active lately. Maybe it's just easier. And by the way, what's up with Daddy? Does he not own any shirts with sleeves? We get it Daddy, you work out; nice guns, now get over yourself!


And lastly, here's a shot of me and Mommy taking a bath. No worries for you faint of heart; I think all the important bits are covered. Not that I mind; I've got nothing to hide. But Mommy and Daddy are a little prudish about these things.


That's all for now. Thanks for stopping by. I'll try to keep the updates coming. This week looks promising: A trip to the dentist with mommy; the Simpson's Movie and who knows what else...

-lbs.