Easter

Currently, it is chilly and rainy here in Austin, though they say we should see sun this afternoon. We took pre-emptive Easter shots last night with Q in his Easter sleeper, which was fortuitous because he's already gotten some drool and spit up on it this morning.
Happy Easter to everyone.

Tradition

Even though I am a transplant Texan, having lived here for only seven years, Q is a native born, and so, I am working on adopting the traditions of the native born, no matter how odd they seem. One of the time-honored traditions that I have witnessed for 6 of those 7 years is the annual bluebonnet photos. Many people know Lady Bird Johnson is remembered for (among other things) spearheading the movement to have wildflower seeds sown along the edges of the highways. It is fairly nice to see spring come around and see the flowers bloom along the roadways. It is fairly odd to see parents stop along the highway and drag their kids out onto the narrow strip of land between the access road and the highway; on one side, cars are whizzing by at 75 mph and on the other a panhandler is asking for spare change.
Katharine brought Q up to my school this week, where there is a field of bluebonnets planted. So, we did take photos with Q and the flowers, but we didn't do it while choking on exhaust fumes, and we also did not let him lay among the weeds and ants in the sun to get his photo taken alone.

Tummy Time

Little Q has been doing regular yoga and tummy time with both his Dad and more often, with his Mom. He is getting stronger and stronger, often holding his head up on his own for extended periods of time.
I took a short video of him on his tummy last night. I will continue to practice the videoography. Clearly this is not my true calling. At the end, I turned the camera to get closer, and when I rewatched it today it looks like I am trying cheap special effects - so no, Q does not possess Spiderman-type skill and cannot climb the wall, it just looks like that when I turn the camera over. :)
Enjoy his little cooing sounds.

Smiles

Our little boy seems to be enjoying life very much. Katharine managed to catch him in the act with the camera, though she thinks the biggest smiles come right before eating.



Smiling on the yoga mat. Q must like working out.




The bigger smile comes when he finishes his workout.



Here he is hanging out all relaxed.

Clocking in at 5 weeks old 12 pounds

Q was 5 weeks old on Friday. After a fun weekend with Mom and Dad both being home, a little shopping and even some outdoor yard work (Q slept, but he was there) we decided to use our modern weighing machine to check out how much he weighed. Standing on the Wii balance board with him (and without) we have a new total - 12.1 pounds. All that eating has really been paying off.

In addition to the new weight, we are also enjoying his little smirks and smiles. He is starting to respond to our voices more and at times, will even get distracted with rings and rattles.

He has a busy week planned with a visit to Dad's school and then an afternoon alone with Dad while Mom takes care of some school business of her own. That is just Monday - who knows what other adventures Q may take part in.

At home with Mommy and doing yoga

Q spent his first day at home with Mom and not Dad today. Katharine kept him busy all day with laundry and going for a walk as well as the obligatory eating and sleeping that takes place.
Katharine also continued his baby yoga practice - and he is doing really great, check out the photo of his reverse boat pose.



Dad survived a day back at school - he is tired and missed spending the day with his family, but was thrilled to come home and nap with Q on the sofa.



We are watching for those psuedo smiles that are starting to appear. We have had half smiles and three-quarter smiles - Katharine thinks she gets full on smiles when he is going in for some food. I am still working with the sticking your tongue out game and have been getting him to copy me about once for every three times I try. I can only imagine what he is thinking about this short activity. This shot is the closest we have gotten to a photo of the emerging smile.

One Month Birthday

Our little Q is one month old today. It has been very exciting to see him grow and change. It is not as noticeable day-to-day, but we (read Katharine) went through a lot of clothes and have filtered out stuff that he has already outgrown. We also switched the inserts in the cloth diapers to the larger size there, causing less "over-flow" problems and less actual clothes changing. Ironically, it is a shame that we now wear less outfits every day, since he is outgrowing them so quickly.

We are still learning new tricks and loving the role of parents. Each day, Quin is able to show us that we are caring for him well enough and though the books say he is only passing gas - we still think he is starting to smile. I am continually in awe and impressed and can't believe how rewarding my one-month old little boy can be.


Special thanks to Jenny P. for the photo idea. We will try to take matching monthly photos with the small portion of Q's monkey collection.