Video: Xander at six weeks

Here's our weekly update/fashion show.

Video: idle talk about Xander

At his open house, Xander bonded with his Aunt Celene as Aunt Jes, cousins Drew and Samantha, and his Mama talked about him like he wasn't even in the room.

Poor, poor frosting baby Xander

...Unfortunately, frosting baby Xander got a little squished on the car trip home.  

Meat baby Xander survived the trip just fine.

Xander and Aunt Celene

It's okay, Xander!  That's your Aunt Celene.  She doesn't think you're made of frosting.

Frosting baby Xander

Here's a close-up of frosting baby Xander.

Aunt Celene's cake

Xander's Aunt Celene is a whiz at cake decorating.  She makes the coolest things out of frosting.  Here is the cake she made for Xander's open house, complete with a little frosting-baby-Xander, who is wearing a cape.  (Meat-baby-Xander wore overalls.)

Xander's open house

Grandma Joan hosted a lovely lil' coming out party for Xander this weekend.  Other people got to hold the baby, but only just.

Sucker for overalls

This may be the first and last day Xander can wear these super-cute overalls, because already they're tight in the diaper region.  But he's so cute in them!  Let us acknowledge his cuteness for posterity's sake.  Then take them off for posterior's sake.  

Puddle o' baby

Bedtime is our favorite time because he's just so cute when he's crashed out!

Peace in our time

For those of you who were scarred for life by the video of Xander shrieking his head off in his new swing, here's a picture of him seemingly enjoying it.  

See?  We didn't line the thing in cactus needles!  He's fine.

That 97-cent coat!

If someone were to have told me a few years ago that I would be a sucker for babies dressed like animals, I would have laughed.  But now, I kind of want to dress Xander up as a different animal every day - bee, lion, whatever.

So it's very exciting to have this little grizzly bear coat for him!  His friend Norah has the same coat, so they're all set for Twin Day.  

And of course, it cost less than a dollar!  That's what we call a bargain.  

Xander's first excursion

Last week, a gang of us took our babies and ourselves to the outlet mall.  I got a fantastic jacket from Banana Republic - $150 marked down to $18! - and Xander got a 97-cent coat.  Judging from his expression, I think all the huge savings made him a bit over-stimulated.  

Video: Xander cries; parents ignore

I know I'm biologically programmed to feel this way, but my baby's cry is the worst sound I've ever heard.  It's like fingernails on the blackboard of my heart.  Watch this video and see if you agree!  

Video: Xander at four weeks

This adorable outfit, by the way, was a gift from Brenda and Jodi.  Thanks, B & J!  

Xander vibrates

Not that I'm schilling for Graco or anything, but we bought their Pack n' Play that has a built-in bassinet with vibration setting, nature sounds, and mobile.  Here's a video of Xander trying it out for the first time.

We're going to try and use it as much as we can in the next few weeks, since the bassinet part has a 15-pound weight limitation, and Xander is already at 12 pounds.  

The other voice you hear is Xander's Aunt Mandy.

Glamorous Aunt Mandy

Chris's sister Amanda stayed with us for a week.  Despite her initial concern that his head would topple off and roll away if she held him, she took to schlepping Xander around like a pro.  She also, like a champion, changed some very exciting dirty diapers and made sympathetic faces when he wouldn't stop crying.  And she has fabulous hair.

She also whipped up gourmet foodstuffs in our kitchen; we didn't know our kitchen could do all that.  We ate homemade peach cobbler, chocolate cake, oatmeal-chocolate chip cookies, and the occasional steamed vegetable.  It was delicious.  Come visit anytime, Mandy!

The whole fam damily

This is our first whole-family photo where no one is wearing a hospital gown.  

Who's cuter?

It's a toss-up, really.  

The real question is, is Xander gazing adoringly at his father out of pure love?  Or is he calculating his odds that he will also inherit Chris's Dudley DoRight-esque heroic chin dimple and gleaming, toothy smile?  I say both.

Xander covered in frogs; Megan in kisses

Xander has officially outgrown this adorable froggy sleeper, so I figured we'd better get a picture of him in it before we consign it to the back of the closet.   If it looks like he is kissing me, it is because I am his mother and he has decided he loves me best out of all the mothers.

I know: you're all captivated by my exciting new bangs.  They're very foxy, I agree.  But this blog is about the baby.  Focus, people!  

Xander, introspective

This might be my favorite picture ever.  

Yawn

Here is a poem I wrote in the third grade:

A yawn once yawned and spread to a friend.

Oh, my goodness!  It's starting a trend!

Shh!  Everyone's asleep.  Al, Lucy, and John.

Everyone's asleep by that one little yawn.

Clearly I was influenced by the Silverstein oeuvre.  Also, note my polite usage of "goodness."  I also remember debating between "Al" and "Sal."  I think both versions exist in various chapbooks.  

Stats

For you number crunchers out there:  On Xander's birthday, he weighed 10 pounds 1.5 ounces (yowza!) and was 21 inches long.  This put his height and weight in the 97th percentile.

His head circumference was only in the 43rd percentile, however, which I think was very considerate of him.

Then, as all newborns do, he lost weight and dipped down to the 92nd percentile.  But then, because he is a champion eater, he sprang back up to fighting shape!  Today he is three weeks and four days old and 12 pounds 7 ounces, which puts him back up in the 97th percentile in weight. His height has slipped to the 88th percentile (slacker), and his head circumference is a lovely 49th percentile.  

So, bottom line: big body, small-ish head, all heart.  And he may or may not be a little colicky, which is a whole other blog post.

Scary clown

This is apropos of nothing, but here is a picture of the university's mascot dressed up as a clown and parked outside the children's ward of the hospital.  

Chris and I decided he was a Nazi clown sent to scare the children well:  "I am ze clown!  I come to cheer you!  You vill be happy, sick children!  I bring you flower!"  

Hair

When his hair is wet, it's curly.  When it's clean, it's blond.  And it sticks straight up.  We can either comb it forward and he looks like a businessman, or else we can comb it back and he looks like Ryan Seacrest.  We usually opt for the so-culture-it's-counterculture businessman approach.

Not just a mammal - a person, too!

Could this half-smile be the harbinger of a burgeoning personality?  Or just nature's Insurance Policy of Cuteness?  We're tickled either way.

Xander 12 days old: the video!

In case you thought the pictures were mere Photoshopped adorableness, here's video proof that he is truly as precious as he looks!  (That, or else he's a highly advanced animatronic puppet from Industrial Light & Magic.)

All cleaned up!

Here's Megan and Xander on his two-week birthday.  Look how we can barely snap the snaps on his lil' fleece jacket.  He's a strapping lad!  

Xander & his daddy

Here's our boy, a few minutes old!  (We'll spare you the blood and goo pics.)

Xander & his mama

Here he is, just a few hours old!