Merry Christmas!

Whether Christmas to you is secular, sacred, or just a day you don't have to go to work, we hope everyone enjoys a safe, happy, and peaceful holiday. As a little gift from The Burts, here is a 20-second clip of some Christmas stomping:

Sorry about the video being sideways. Still cute, though, right? The new outfit was a gift from my dad. It's a little big on him, which is fine because it's designed to fit 9-month-old babies.

They See Me Rollin, Part Two

Aiden can now roll from his back onto his stomach. He's been working on it for weeks (and his failed attempts were making him really mad), so it's really cool that his efforts have finally paid off. He still needs a little help to get into the position in the above picture, but most of the work he does on his own. I'm so proud of him.

Nephew

Aiden has lots of fabulous "aunties" and "uncles," but there is only one person in the whole world to whom he is a true nephew: my sister, Laura. She and her boyfriend visited us this week for a few days, and Aiden and Laura met for the first time. The day following their arrival was my birthday, which was a lot of fun. Here, at long last, are pictures of Aiden and his Aunt Laura:

And, for good measure, here's picture of my birthday. Hedonism at its finest, as all birthdays should be. We cracked open a bottle of port that my mom gave me over a decade ago. It was sublime.

Aiden and His Mom and His Mom's Mom

Finger Lickin Good

Time Lapse Photography

Earning himself such nicknames as "The Tank" and "Dump Truck," Aiden has grown a bit in the last 3 months. Less than 3 months elapsed between the photographing of these two pictures:

He looks kinda fat in that second picture, but he's really not fat at all. Not yet, anyway. He's BIG, but he has normal baby chub.

The First Three Months In Review

Today is Aiden's 3-month birthday. He is officially no longer a "newborn." In some ways it feels like he was just born a few minutes ago, in some ways it feels like he's been here forever. I decided I want to chronicle my thoughts about Aiden's newborn stage, before it all becomes a blur.

THE HARD STUFF
In the future, when the newborn phase is just a faint blip of a memory, if anyone ever asks me if Aiden was difficult during his first 3 months, the answer is right here: Yes. Yes, he was. I don't begrudge the little guy for it, but, damn, has he been a challenge. We kicked off his post-womb experience with a nasty case of jaundice. After the jaundice, he let us know that he hated being swaddled and he also refused to sleep on his back.

We discovered when he was around 6 weeks that acid reflux was the reason he was so miserable on his back, but many torturous nights preceded that discovery. And, in the meantime, we had developed the bad habit of him sleeping in someone's arms, propped upright, because it was the only way Aiden and I could get more than 20 minutes of sleep at a time. With rare exception, that's the only way Aiden sleeps nowadays (and it's where he is right now, as I type this). "Sleep training" is not appropriate for newborns, so we've been in this horrid limbo phase where we perpetuate bad sleep habits, but lack an alternative.

To complicate matters, Aiden started displaying teething symptoms around 8 weeks! Yes, you read that right: 8 weeks. (Most babies start teething at 4-6 months). At first, it was just some fussiness in the evenings and a little drooling. Now, it's extreme fussiness around the clock, frantic hand chewing, lots of drooling, and all the other normal teething symptoms. It sucks. He's miserable, and that makes us miserable.

THE GOOD STUFF
Aiden is thriving, there's no doubt about that. He has already gained about 10 lbs since birth. To put that number in perspective, consider this: He was 7 lbs when he was born, which is a totally average and normal weight, and he is now already outgrowing clothes made for 6-month-old babies. It was weeks ago that he was wearing clothes for 3-month-old babies, and he was only in that phase for about 5 minutes.

Although it makes me superbly happy to see my little guy thriving physically, nothing can compare to this one developmental milestone: the smile. I know it sounds like a total cliche, but there really is nothing better than when Aiden recognizes me and breaks into a huge grin. I'm pretty sure I can speak for Eric here, too. The smiles are the absolute best. He has also started cooing on a regular basis, as an accompaniment to the smiling, which is really cool.

THE FUNNY STUFF
Aiden likes to stomp. When he's lying on his changing table in our living room (which doubles as a little makeshift play area for him), he stomps his feet with great enthusiasm. He stomps when he's really excited about his toys, and he stomps when he's really mad. Both scenarios are hilarious. Also, if he's in your lap, propped up against your chest, he can put weight on his legs, and sometimes he likes to stomp there, too. So funny.

Everything about the teething really sucks, but in one aspect it literally sucks and is really funny. Aiden figured out a few weeks ago that he can gain some quality relief from the teething if he sucks on my collarbone. I'm sporting a nasty hickey on my collarbone right now because of it. Eric got a picture recently, which I'll include at the end of this post.

Finally, mixed in with his adorable cooing are some really absurd noises. Apparently, as he exercises his vocal range, the results aren't always going to be mellifluous. Yesterday, on three different occasions, he made a weird shrieking noise that I can only describe as sounding like a pterodactyl. Not sure why I think I can claim to know what a pterodactyl sounds like, but, in my mind, Aiden's version is very accurate.

I could go on and on about all the funny things that Aiden does, and all the reasons why the last three months have been so awesome. I'm sure I could even think of some more hard stuff too, if I really thought about it. But the above synopsis includes enough highlights, so I'll leave it as is, and conclude with a picture of Aiden giving my collarbone a workout:

(Note that the male pattern baldness is staying strong. Hot!)

Aiden and Grandma Kathy

Aiden finally got to meet Grandma Kathy this November. During her visit Aiden hit a growth spurt, and moved up one whole clothing and diaper size.

An Aiden Exhibition

The Comb-Over

What's a guy to do when his fair falls out on top but he has a nice semi-circle of dark locks around the back? Why, he needs to get himself a good comb-over. Lucky for Aiden, he's got a mom who is sensitive to these sorts of things, and can style his hair just right.

Making History

Here is a picture that Eric took on Tuesday morning right after he and I cast our ballots for President-elect Obama. We live in Prince William County, which was instrumental in turning this red state blue. Aiden accompanied me to my polling booth, and afterward one of the poll workers gave him his own "I voted" sticker. Even though he won't remember it, years from now Aiden can say he was there, he was witness to this monumentally historic election.

Happy Halloween!

Note the festive jack-o-lantern socks......

Aiden Has The Hiccups

What a cutie!

They See Me Rollin' They Hatin'

Here's Squirty ridin' dirty in his stroller yesterday.

(Click HERE for the song reference that, in my mind, is the soundtrack to these pictures. Yes, I'm retarded.)

No Update, Just Some Cute Pictures....

Aiden and His Namesake

Aiden's middle name is my dad's first name. Also, Aiden and my dad were both born at George Washington University Hospital in Washington, D.C. So, these guys had a connection before they ever met.

My dad visited us last week. Here are some pictures:

Chuck and Aiden

Dad was on a business trip in Chicago, and made a quick detour to our place to meet his new grandson. We caught a Nationals game vs. the Mets, and got to witness firsthand the underwhelming power of the Mets bullpen. Its no wonder the Mets failed, for the second season in a row, to make the playoffs on the last game of the season.

Why So Serious?

Aiden isn't quite comfortable yet with all of the bodily functions he needs to master outside of the womb (pooping, farting, burping, etc.), and the above picture captures one of the expressions he gets when he is struggling with one his new bodily functions. In this picture, is sitting in his baby papasan with a mean case of the hiccups. He gets the hiccups a couple times a day, and we have discovered that the baby papasan is very soothing to Aiden during these episodes. The baby papasan was a gift from my sister. (Thanks again, Queenie!) It plays lullaby music and vibrates.

More of Aiden's intense concentration:

By the way, Aiden had a pediatrician appointment last week. His jaundice is finally in retreat! His pediatrician is confident that this issue is now totally behind us. Aaah....

Aiden Yawning

... sorry, dad, you were saying something? I'm really interested in the compelling details of your job. Tell me more...

Perfection.

Aiden's First Visitor

My mom -- affectionately known to many of us as "Bunny" -- was originally scheduled to arrive in DC today, one week prior to my due date. But when my water broke on September 9, my mom was able to arrange with her job to advance her travel plans. She arrived in DC the day after Aiden was born, and her presence has been absolutely invaluable. Here are some pictures of Aiden and his maternal grandmother: