"Do these diapers make my ass look big?"

Yes, indeed, Rowan has finally gotten just big enough to graduate to the final phase of his diapering, the end-all, be-all of diapers that we have left--the Eco-Snappies. They're adjustable, so that they actually grow with him, and they come in a wide range of flattering colors and designs (even hot pink...which we have). He's shown here sporting his "multi-colored rings" diaper and displaying what, I'm sure, he thinks is one of his best assets.

Man...there's a baby stuck to me!

Winnie snapped off this shot when Rowan happened to be passed out on Dad without holding onto anything, and without being held. It was his sheer weight and size that kept him securely on top the near supine form of his father, making him look as if he were: a.) covered in velcro; and b.) shot out of a cannon, landing squarely on my chest and sticking there like a wet gummy bear to aluminum siding. Incidentally, I think he's getting a little cuter these days.

Sunday in the park with Rowan...

...although it was actually Thursday. The fam took a trip to the Chicago Botanical Gardens to see if we could find a real rowan tree, and then photograph Rowan in front of it. Although mountain ashes were available, they were of the alnifolia variety, not the aucuparia associated with British folklore. (Strangely, Chicago has a number of rowan trees around the city, though they all seem to be hiding.) All was not lost, though. We caught some beatiful pictures of Mom with Rowan, taken by Joseph, and some lovely pictures of flowers, taken by yours truly.

Baby dreams

I've often wondered what Rowan is dreaming about when he suddenly wakes up crying. Although one can never presume to know another's psyche indepthly, let alone completely, I think I have a pretty convincing dream scenario for Rowan. Let me know what you think:

DREAM SCENARIO
I'm lying on my back naked in the middle of a field. All the flowers look like nipples. I try to turn toward one, but I don't have the strength to turn over yet. Suddenly, I'm falling...falling...still falling...I land on a giant breast. The nipple is enormous. I try to latch on but it seems impossible. I begin to cry...that's when I wake up.

This baby was made possible in part by...

Here's a special tribute to the people who have helped us enormously in these first few weeks of Rowan's life. We'll start with Rowan's Grandma and Grandpa, Joan and Joseph, posing with baby Rowan, cradled comfortably in Gung-gung's arms, the park barely visible through the window in the background. Ahhhh...

Next we have Bel, our very good friend, who seems to know more about Rowan than we do. Through her magical charms, she has managed to get Rowan to pee and poop on command, sleep comfortably under her watch, and burp copious amounts of milk neatly onto the burp cloth without so much as a shirt stain. Lately, however, Rowan has wizened up, and is now, slowly but surely, getting the better of her.

Finally, we have Rowan's other grandparents, Grandma Sue and Papa Bear (Susan and Charlie). Papa Bear is the rock, unfazed by anything Rowan has to issue forth. Grandma Sue is the pillar of experience, who deftly inserted a thermometer up Rowan's ass and held it there for three minutes (!) without either of them breaking a sweat. Surely Winnie and I have a long way to go.