Snoring Bittles

The last time that Eli was passed out, I thought it was so funny to hear him snoring, that I couldn't help myself, I had to grab the video camera. His snoring is so dainty, it's hilarious.

After this video was taken, we learned that Eli was pretty congested and had to make multiple pediatrician visits, and use saline breathing treatments to help clear him up. If at all possible, never, EVER, allow your infant to get an Xray. The contraption is like a medieval torture device. Really. Poor Ittle Bittles. But the video is still funny ... You have to turn your volume way up to hear his snores ...

Hello Cousin James!

The Lindsays made their way west for Memorial Weekend, and brought their Lil' Man along for the ride to meet his Momma's side of the family for the first time (besides his Grambot & Grandpa, who had gone to see his birth). We never see enough of these two, and miss them more than we can say, so it's really something special to have them here.

Not to mention the "Uniting of the Cousins."

Eli was very excited about meeting his cousin James (or so we like to think - it's not like he can argue the point). It was crazy to see how similar they were in size. Even though they're separated by 3 weeks, they're almost the same weight. Although, for all of the talk about how similar they are (they both weighed 8 lbs exactly at birth, they both measured 20+ inches, they both came 5 days early, they both have HUGE cheekies) it was pretty clear after getting them together how different they are too. Although, both babies look just like their Daddies - lucky little boogers.

For Taryn and I it was a really great experience to get to meet our Nephew for the 1st time. With all of the craziness that comes with being a new parent, it was nice to be able to take a step back and appreciate being an Aunt and an Uncle. James Henry Lindsay IV is so freakin' awesome! He's got one of the best smiles I have ever seen on anyone, one that lights up his whole face and shines in his eyes. He's supersonic, just like his Daddy, and babbles like no other. The gibberish is hilarious - I can't wait till he really starts talking. His cry face is fun, and we love how he scrunches it up when he gets started with the fussin'.

We're really lucky to have such a cute, cool Nephew. And even luckier to have such a great Aunt and Uncle for our Ittle Bittle. Here's a great shot of the two boys with Denise and Jay.

I had been bragging for a while about how incredible Eli's eye contact is. But when his Auntie Niser sat down with him for the 1st time and got to see it close up, she started crying. Yeah, Eli is that adorable! He loves his Auntie Niser and stared at her so hard she made a solemn oath on the spot never to ever challenge the boy to a staring contest as long as they both shall live. Way to knock out the competition early, Eli.

Alright, the following are some great shots of the 2 boys getting wiggly with it ...

I love how much fun they have with their wiggles ...

So, Eli and James' Grambot decided that it would be nice to see the 2 boys in matching outfits. Because it was their first time together, we agreed to let this slide, but a warning to Grambot: "this isn't the Patty Duke Show." Here they are together on James' changing mat (gross) wiggling around in perfect asymmetry.

Here's a perfect example of James' fantastic smile.

Money Shot, James!

This face will get you anything you want with both your Grandmas.

We think Eli got a little over-excited in this one ... pushing his cousin out of the spot light ...

And here is the proud Grambot (the 6 million peso woman! We have the technology to rebuild her!) with both of her adorable boys. Just a little happy, no?
She had to call for help within seconds of getting this picture because both boys have gotten so big.

Momma's Day

Momma's Day came out of nowhere this year. We had so much going on with Eli, getting approved for buying our 1st home, work and so on, that we hadn't given a second thought to holidays, or anything else for that matter. So when Momma's Day hit, Taryn was so focused on our Mom's that she completely forgot that she was a Mom too! It was Taryn's 1st Momma's Day!

I came home from work that Friday and brought Taryn some flowers (tulips), from both Eli and me. I cooked dinner and we had a nice evening at home enjoying each other's company - especially the Bittle's.

Cathy had a bbq at her house that Sunday, so we spent the day in Stockton celebrating with 4 generations of beautiful women. The food was great, the weather was beautiful, and Lil' Man got to rock out in just his diaper for the majority of the day.

Here are some great shots of him rolling around on the floor of his Nonni's house, staring at everybody and being entertained by her ceiling fan.

He's really great at tracking people's voices. Here he is looking for his Daddy ...

He's real close to having a full-on smile. He's had a lot of really good ones, we're just waiting for him to get comfortable enough with them to smile in response to sounds and motions on a regular basis. But his face is working hard, so any day now. We've got to get him to beat his cousin James, who has the biggest smile East of the Mississippi. And yes Jay, EVERYTHING is a competition.

Very alert and aware. Staring his Momma straight in the face.

Here's a great shot of him completely enthralled with his Nonni's ceiling fan. It's the way the light and shadows move with the turning of the blades ... or he's just weird ...

It was a long hard day of being held, being fed, and rolling around on the floor. Here's the tired Bittles getting ready to pass out on his Daddy's chest.

He was tuckered out all the way home. Here's a shot of him in his pjs getting ready to bed down for the night. I always wonder what it is he's thinking about. Just look into these eyes and tell me you aren't in love ...

Yes.

You love me.

I own you now ...

Sleepy Face Bittles

Eli's such a great sleeper that I had to post some pictures of him in action. He loves to have his arms above his head in a full-on lounger pose. But we also often see him curled up and hugging himself. Here he is tucked into our sleep number bed (which he absolutely loves. This kid can already identify the difference in matress quality and makes his preferences clear). Taryn's number is 45, mine is 30. Eli's number is 60.

Doesn't he just look too comfy?!

And then he wakes up! But being as blessed as we are he stays quiet, just very alert and curious. This is a fun shot because Taryn says you can really see how similar he and I look. What I notice are his cowlicks. We have the same two: one in back like Alfalfa, and one in front on the right. The front cowlick is very prominent in this shot. Poor guy. They're hereditary, sorry! At least I didn't fool you into thinking that they were your own doing - like my Dad did! ... grandpa buttface ...

See?
Very curious.
And when you tell him what you're doing, or show him what you're up too, it surprises the heck out of him.
So easily amused ...

Eli's 1st Real Bath

Better Late than never! These pics were taken well over a month ago (Eli turns 8 weeks/2 months tomorrow). These are from his first real bath. I say "real" bath because the other pics we posted were from his first sponge bath. This time he was in his wash basin and fully immersed in the water for the 1st time ever. He wasn't too sure at first what to make of the experience, but since this first time, he's come to really love his baths. He's recently started to kick his legs to make splashes in the water. And last time he surprised himself by tooting and making bubbles. His reaction was priceless.

Here's a shot of him experiencing his 1st full dip.

You can see by his reaction here that he was a bit wary, and a bit overwhelmed.

Eli has such incredible eye contact. He kept staring at us wondering why we would put him through such an ordeal. It was heartbreaking, but also very amusing.

He really didn't enjoy being taken out of the warm water just to freeze his little tookus off in the cold air. Luckily we splurged on a very warm, very comfy towel. And when I say we splurged, I mean Taryn splurged. And when I say Taryn splurged, I mean that she just went shopping.

When all was said and done, he was pretty satisfied, as were we, since he smelled so much better, like a botanical garden in diapers.

Fun With My Phone

I went through my cell phone the other day and realized that I had some pretty good pictures of Eli taken throughout his first 5 weeks of life. Taryn wanted me to pull one off to use for his Birth Announcement, so I figured I may as well pull the rest and post 'em on the blog for everyone to see. Here are a few choice selections ...

This first was taken in our hospital room on Eli's 2nd day. He had his chubby newborn cheeckies and wasn't too fond of the brightness. He's swaddled in the blankets that Kaiser provided, and his knit beanie is one that we got to take home with us. It's already getting too small for his big head (oh yeah, have I mentioned yet that Eli's a genius? 'Cause that's what that means).

Here's Eli and his Mommy at the 7 day mark. We were still trying to figure out how to sleep when Eli was sleeping, and only doing it half the time. For example, Mom and Lil' Man are passed out, and I'm most likely cleaning, trying to keep control over a newly messy house, stopping only to appreciate the moment.

Here's Eli at about 10 days. He finished a bottle, got his burpies out, and still wasn't ready for sleep. This is when he was just starting to stay awake longer and be more aware of his surroundings. And I can't stress enough how lucky we are. Even now, the Lil' Man is awake and aware, curious and wiggly, but doesn't fuss, doesn't cry and doesn't yell. We're sure that we got a good baby just to be lulled into that false sense of security and confidence that makes you want to have a second child - which of course will turn out to be an absolute terror. Taryn sent me this one while I was at work. Gotta love the Friar Tuck hair ...

Here's Eli at about 12 days. He loves his car seat - not getting into it, or getting out of it, just being in it while the car is running. Like most babies he enjoys the vibrations and the movement, but we've found that he's just as happy in his stroller, or even just being swung around while strapped into his seat. Two minutes and he's out for a good couple of hours.

Here's Eli at about three and a half weeks. We'd been working on his Tummy Time to help him practice his head control and provide him visual stimulation. I'm not sure if this is true for most babies, but Eli loves to be on his stomach. He especially loves to fall asleep on his Daddy's chest with both arms hanging over the sides of my belly in a big hug. But on the floor it's a different story. He has great head control - the Lactation Nurses at Kaiser even made a point to mention how impressed they were in his first three days. But after about 15-20 minutes of being on his surf board, he's done, ready for some cuddle time. This shot is great because it shows his ability to hold up his head, and shows off his amazing eye contact and level of awareness.

Here's Eli at about 4 weeks. Just sleeping. This is the outfit that we brought him home in from the hospital. It's a really cool kimono-type top, with some comfy pants. But if you look closely, you can see that the sleeves no longer reach the end of his arms, and the elbow patches rest on his triceps, not his actual elbows. The shirt barely closed over his chest and buddha belly. At his lastest doctor appointment, Eli weighed in at 9 lbs. 8 oz. and 21.75 inches - that's 1 lb. 8 oz. and 1 and 1/4 inches worth of growth over about a two-three week period. The doctor said that he was sure that Eli is in the middle of a growth spurt, with another to come at about the 6-week mark.

Here's Eli at 4 and 1/2 weeks. Taryn had tried putting him in his swing during his 2nd week, but that didn't go well (although it was at the end of a very long day that included a trip to and from Stockton, as well as Tummy Time). But he took to it pretty well this time. This is another picture that I got while at work. These are really nice to get since I can't be home with my babies each day. Taryn said that the swing didn't put Eli to sleep, instead he was bright-eyed and looking at everything he could through all the movement. Maybe he'll end up not minding roller coasters, unlike his Mommy and Daddy.

And finally, here's another shot of Eli at about 4 and 1/2 weeks. We were watching the Sharks play the Ducks in the fifth game of the western conference finals. Eli's wearing his colors because it was a Sharks home game. I think the Lil' Man is good luck. The Sharks pulled that game out, but lost the sixth - which we didn't watch, nor did we put Eli in his whites while it was on. I like to think that Eli was just as excited by the Sharks' goal as we were, but I know that's wishful thinking - that he was just excited by all of the excitement. But he's freakin adorable anyway, right? And look how big Taryn's hand is compared to Eli's head!