Charm Offensive

Axel, 2012

Oh man, this guy was all smiles at the doctor's office.

And weighing in at 15 pounds, 1 ounce. He went from the 29th percentile for weight at his 3 month check up to the 38th at today's appointment. He seemed to have a good time showing off his latest skills, like putting weight on his feet when standing, grabbing his feet in Happy Baby pose, doing his mini push ups, and making rasberries.

It's kind of amazing to look back at his first newborn check up. At the time he seemed so robust to me, but he was such a little chicken!

He was momentarily very upset by his shots but recovered quickly and is now spread-eagled in his crib.

Our doctor encourages us to introduce solids now, skipping baby cereals for pureed versions of whatever we're eating. Basically anything but raw honey. Can't wait for the experiments to begin.

18 Weeks Old

Axel, 2012

We are busy cleaning house and getting organized for our trip to the UK.

Axel has to have his four month shots today, unfortunately, but his last doctor's visits haven't been too traumatic so hopefully it will just be a bit of momentary crying (wish us luck!)

Tree Trimming

Axel, Williamsburg, 2012

The party was a success! And Axel seemed to enjoy himself with the ladies. The best part of all? He slept through the night for the very first time, from 10 til 7.

Preparations

Williamsburg, 2012

Have been up since 8ish getting our apartment ready for our annual tree-trimming shin dig. The bar is stocked, the baby is napping, and the ham is going in the oven. See you on the other side!

Four Months Old

Axel, 2012

And feeling very pensive this morning...He's probably wondering why mama left his milk on the train.

Axel slept really well for the third night running, waking up just once around 2:30 a.m..

 I don't want to jinx anything, but it does lead me to ask whether all this talk of parents sleep training babies at four months is really just the babies figuring it out on their own (while we try to take all the credit.)

Because we really haven't been doing anything all that different and this morning I actually woke the baby up at 7:15. A very odd feeling, but I'll take it!

I can't believe this little guy has been with us for four months. He really cracks us up.

The Fuzz

Axel, 2012

So this was my morning! In Maine, Will and I raided the attic for the next size up in baby clothes (tucked away there this summer thanks to 5 older boy cousins.)

The little stars and stripes number was also a hand me down from a friend in Brooklyn. We were joking that he looks like a boy band member, especially with his deep V and spiky hair.

Had a good, productive day, until I left my little cooler full of breast milk on the F train. There's no use crying over, er, spilled milk, I suppose. Let's just hope it didn't prompt an incident with the NYPD bomb squad.

Small Victories

Will and Axel, 2012

Last night our boy slept from 6:45 p.m. until just after midnight and then again until 6:45 this morning, when he woke up happily chatting in his crib. Which I consider to be sleeping through the night, pretty much! Waking up once we can handle. It was amazing.

I've mentioned we've been light weights about sleep training, but assuming that last night wasn't a fluke, I think the secret was the 5 oz. bottle Will gave him after midnight. A round of applause for the bottle (and the baby!)

The Mondays

Williamsburg, 2012

Back to work (on a new project) that took me into the city and had me scrolling through endless photos from Berlin Fashion Week shows.

It was a balmy sort of December day and I could have quite contentedly stayed at home with Axel, but it was actually a good, solid sort of day. Felt semi-lucid after getting to bed early and had a coffee date with my boys before heading to the office. The city is all glitzed out for the holidays and it's kind of fun being right near Rockefeller Center and in the thick of it all, especially since we are leaving the city so soon.

English Christmas

England, 2009

Am getting excited for Christmas in the UK. These are some pictures of our last Christmas there a few years back. I don't know if there's anything better than a warm pub on a chilly winter's day.

The Tree

Axel, 2012

We've been checking out the Christmas markets in Williamsburg (like the Brooklyn Night Bazaar and the Homemade Cavalcade.) And it's freezing! And we have an 8 foot tall Christmas tree!

Axel has been very game about sporting his Santa hat. Plans for beef stew are afoot.