Squeeeeeeee!

How to drive your parents crazy:
1) Learn to scream a high pitched squeal.
2) Practice often.
3) Then quit napping.

In the photo above Zane is allegedly tired for a nap. For the past three days he has slept only about an hour and a half total during each day. We're not sure what is going on. The upside is that he exhausts himself and sleeps really well at night. The downside is that he gets mighty cranky. He's probably got a sore mouth from teething.

Today Zane was very talkative, and I conducted an interview which was interrupted by some gastric yuckiness:


Grandma is here! Yay! Saturday we walked out to the produce stand and picked out a little tree. Next week you get Christmas pictures. May you all survive the next week and have lovely holidays!

Four Months!

Here's Zane in his new (used) Bumbo seat which lets him sit up like a big boy. It's great for giving me 10-15 minutes to get something done.

Today we had his four month doctor visit. All is well, and Zane is 25 inches long and 13 pounds and 4 ounces. Not quite double yet. Although his health is excellent, his weight percentile for his age has actually gone down over the last couple of visits. The doc isn't worried, but just to be safe we are meeting with a lactation consultant next week to make sure he's getting enough to eat. Most likely he is just long and lean like I am and like Michael was.

The vaccinations were much easier than two months ago, and so far he isn't feverish like he was then.

We're excited to see Grandma at the end of this week! Yay!

Daddy Time

I forgot to include this with the last post. I was away for work things three times last week, and near the end of the longest time Michael called to say that Zane had cried for 30 minutes and was inconsolable. I was happy to find this when I came home. They worked it out!

Boom Boom Crash!

Last night we went to a World of Martial Arts exhibition, and Zane met many of Michael's Kung Fu friends. We didn't stay for the whole thing, but at the very beginning was a Lion Dance with a pounding drum and clashing cymbals. Every time the music would start, all of Zane's arms and legs shot out and quivered. It was pretty funny! He didn't seem at all upset, just very, very stimulated. After a while I covered his ears. He seemed more into the music than the lion dancers. Today I got out a tamborine for him, and he loved scratching his hands on the drum head and tinkling the cymbols. So far, Zane likes banjos and tamborines and hates violin and flute. Not a classical scholar so far. He also likes to play with gaudy fabrics, so maybe he needs his tastes refined a bit:This week has been record-breaking cold in Seattle (nothing for you Maine folks, just in the 20s). Bijou and JoJo have been sacked out by the heaters all day:
Tuesday Zane has his 4 month check up and shots. I'll report back!

Zane Says Ha!

This week Zane began to laugh a little! Not much, just a couple of wheezy ha-has, but it's a start! I even heard him laugh in his sleep last night, which was cute. So far, though, he mostly smiles. He has a lot of fun playing games like Blanket Burrito and Airplane:





One great development this week has been less pooping! Last night and the night before, he didn't poop at all for the first time. Today he only pooped twice. This may not be exciting for you, but it's exciting for me! His digestion change seems to have made him super hungry, though. Today he wanted to eat every hour. All of this eating is making him grow! He is pretty much double his birth weight now.
An unfortunate new development is that Zane is now a Mama's boy. He has decided to freak out and cry when I have a shower, even if he's just eaten! Tomorrow I go to work (helps with health insurance to work a little) and will be gone for 4 hours. Poor Michael and Zane! I hope they survive.

When Zane was born, he had a spot between his eyes that I thought was a zit, but almost 4 months later it's still there! I guess he has a third eye. Maybe he's a buddha or a lama! It's hard to see in the photo, but it's there...

Finally, poor Bijou. We have not been able to get her diabetes in check, and after many many vet visits (several all day), and lots of needles, she had an ultrasound. She had to have her belly shaved, and now her saggy belly looks like elephant breasts!
It turns out she also has a kidney infection and pancreatitis, so we're trying to get that under control, and then we hope the diabetes will bend to our will. It's hard being old!

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thankgiving everyone! Zane wished he could eat this year, and I promised him he could next year. He got to meet all of his Kirkland cousins (with Jaiden in the picture), and Zane did a great job not getting overwhelmed by all the attention and hubbub.

Saturday afternoon I started feeling a sore throat, and I definitely have a cold coming on. I’m not sure or not if Zane has it. He’s fussy today and extra tired. My symptoms so far are a sore throat and ears and being tired, so he could well be feeling that, it's hard to tell. Oh well, that’s life. If Zane is sick, he’s being pretty good about it so far.

He hasn't made any earth shattering discoveries this week, which is a nice break for him. So much growing is tiring! He is still growing physically, of course, as evidenced by the shed baby skins lying around the house.

It's difficult to type more as The Man is whining and wiggling. I'll just add two more photos. Love you all!

Brainsplosion

Future Atomic Scientist of America! Zane's head seems to be expanding at pretty good clip. One of our favorite hats for him no longer fits! All of the stuff he is learning seems to be making his brain explode. This week we went to a baby Q & A group for babies 3-6 months. Zane seemed to be inspired by the older kids, and when we came home he rolled over three times right away! He hasn't done it so much since then, but he can! He can also grab whatever he wants now. He's not talking as much as he did before, though. I guess he's rationing his brain power.

It's been getting cold here, and I ordered some bear paw mittens for Zane. Very scary!

Nothing much else is new. Oh yeah! We went shopping at the consignment shop and got some books with textures in them, as he seems to really like touching things these days, and some new warm clothes and other toys.

Zane is squealing, so I gotta go!

Three Months

We made it to three months! I tried Zane out in his highchair, and he fits, but he sure looks tiny! He's about 12.5 pounds and 23.5 inches long. We've been told that the first three months are really the fourth trimester where the infant needs to keep developing but can't fit in the womb any more. According to my What To Expect book, we are now entering the golden period when he is cheerful, sleeps well, and can't yet move himself into trouble.

Hmmm ... sleeps well. He does fine at night, but for the past couple of weeks it's been a struggle to get him to have naps in the daytime when I'm not holding him. He'll fall asleep but his eyes pop open when I try to put him down. Or he "nurses" for an hour; when I try to remove him or poke him to see if he's asleep, he makes a noise and swallows as if to say "I'm awake and totally still nursing" when really he's not. Little manipulator! He gets so cranky from not having enough sleep in the day that he is not always a perfect boy, although he is still way less cranky than most babies. He and I are going to a sleep workshop on Monday to see if we can get any tips.

Monday we went to see the doctor about Zane's "gross head" situation. He has red, bumpy, flaky, and sometimes yellow-crusty skin on his head, face, and arms. It turns out just to be really dry skin, and I'm putting Eucerin on him 2-3 times a day. It's already way better. The flakes and crusts are mostly gone and his skin feels soft, but it's still bumpy and a little red.

Last week when he was still in full gross head mode, he had professional photos taken. The photographer did a pretty good job of hiding it! Through 12/13 you can see the photos online. E-mail me for the link and password if you'd like to see them.

Friday I decided to try putting Zane in the big bathtub with me. It turned out to be so fun we did it again last night! I filled the tub about halfway up, and then held him. It turns out he is very buoyant, and he seems to love it. I found I only have to hold his head and the rest of him floats. At first he looked very surprised, but then he smiled and blew bubbles and thrashed around.

Zane has really gained an amazing amount of strength in the past month. He can now actually grab things with his hands. The latest breakthrough came yesterday when he finally pushed himself up on his arms instead of just lying on his belly. Next up will be rolling over!
Zane on his belly:


I like to experiment with new toys to see what he likes, and this week Zane took up the piano.
Zane's music lesson:


That's all for this week! I love you all!

Special Twleve Week Bonus Post

I reviewed the first twelve weeks of posts and came up with the seasonal Zane tune. Enjoy!

On the first week of Zane my baby gave to me
A bud on the fam-i-ly tree






On the second week of Zane my baby gave to me
Two hours of sleep,
And a bud on the fam-i-ly tree



On the third week of Zane my baby gave to me
Three bath splashes,
Two hours of sleep,
And a bud on the fam-i-ly tree


On the fourth week of Zane my baby gave to me
Four nighttime feedings,
Three bath splashes,
Two hours of sleep,
And a bud on the fam-i-ly tree



On the fifth week of Zane my baby gave to me
Five glorious smiles!
Four nighttime feedings,
Three bath splashes,
Two hours of sleep,
And a bud on the fam-i-ly tree

On the sixth week of Zane my baby gave to me
Six morning snuggles,
Five glorious smiles!
Four nighttime feedings,
Three bath splashes,
Two hours of sleep,
And a bud on the fam-i-ly tree

On the seventh week of Zane my baby gave to me
Seven spit-up stains,
Six morning snuggles,
Five glorious smiles!
Four nighttime feedings,
Three bath splashes,
Two hours of sleep,
And a bud on the fam-i-ly tree

On the eighth week of Zane my baby gave to me
Eight baby coos,
Seven spit-up stains,
Six morning snuggles,
Five glorious smiles!
Four nighttime feedings,
Three bath splashes,
Two hours of sleep,
And a bud on the fam-i-ly tree

On the ninth week of Zane my baby gave to me
Nine sit-up crunches,
Eight baby coos,
Seven spit-up stains
Six morning snuggles,
Five glorious smiles!
Four nighttime feedings,
Three bath splashes,
Two hours of sleep,
And a bud on the fam-i-ly tree

On the tenth week of Zane my baby gave to me
Ten frothy bubbles,
Nine sit-up crunches,
Eight baby coos,
Seven spit-up stains
Six morning snuggles,
Five glorious smiles!
Four nighttime feedings,
Three bath splashes,
Two hours of sleep,
And a bud on the fam-i-ly tree

On the eleventh week of Zane my baby gave to me
Eleven restful nights,
Ten frothy bubbles,
Nine sit-up crunches,
Eight baby coos,
Seven spit-up stains
Six morning snuggles,
Five glorious smiles!
Four nighttime feedings,
Three bath splashes,
Two hours of sleep,
And a bud on the fam-i-ly tree

On the twelfth week of Zane my baby gave to me
Twelve grabs at toys,
Eleven restful nights,
Ten frothy bubbles,
Nine sit-up crunches,
Eight baby coos,
Seven spit-up stains
Six morning snuggles,
Five glorious smiles!
Four nighttime feedings,
Three bath splashes,
Two hours of sleep,
And a bud on the fam-i-ly tree

The Twelfth Week Man

And so we are at twelve weeks. I think I'll stop counting weeks from now on, although I'll still try to post every Saturday. I know Zane has his family fans!

This morning I got out the detachable chair that goes with Zane's highchair, and got it set up for him as a sort of baby Barcalounger. It's a very chi-chi Peg Perego white Naugahyde chair. Zane now has enough core strength that he can sit up in it and get a nice view of the room around him. The chair is still a bit big for him, as are his nice blue fleece PJs. A month or two from now we'll look back and be amazed at how little he was! I put it next to me at the computer this morning, and he helped me edit photos.
Zane continues to amaze us with his increasing dexterity! Now instead of just whacking at things with his arms, he's aiming better and actually trying to grab with his hands. He's not quite clear on what he can pick up yet, though. I keep being reminded of the stereotype of an LSD tripper trying to pick the flowers off the wallpaper; Zane keeps scrabbling his fingers at printed pictures in his cloth books. He's keeps plugging away at his laptop, but he does still cry and get frustrated with it. As you can see here, he takes his "school work" very seriously while working on his laptop.Zane has started to pull himself up to sitting when he starts out leaning back at an incline. He can't keep himself up yet, but he can get there! He can also keep his head level if I pull him to sitting from flat on his back. Very strong and smart! We think so anyway. :)

Zane also seems to have discovered his feet, and has started to spend some time staring at them. He uses his hands, but he doesn't stare at them, so I'm not sure if he knows they're his yet.

He still has a problem with his skin that just doesn't seem to be going away. We have an appointment on Monday to check it out. He may have cradle cap on his head, and something else on his cheeks and arms. We have some professional photos being taken today, and I hope the rash can be "disappeared" a bit through lighting and photo magic.

Zane has been enjoying his green bouncy chair since he was born. There is an entertainment arch attachment that I tried on him a few times in the past, but he ignored it. Last night I tried it again, and he was completely entranced. He is able to touch some of the animals on it, and he really likes watching the rest. As with his laptop, though, too much of an exciting thing leads to grumpy fretting, so we'll have to ration it out. I got a video of him when we first turned it on. Sorry about the lighting, but it has been stormy and gloomy here for days. The annoying clacking sound is something broken on the arch that I hope to fix.