[Nicolas] Cooker Baby

lots of new autumn pics (sans wigs) in the flickr set .

we were so glad to finally reconnect with some dear old friends from new orleans this past weekend. our friend reneé has a new baby so it was great to get to meet him, noah, and introduce her to nicolas for the first time.

cooler weather has started to set in here and it's been a bit of an adjustment from the florida and new orleans heat, but a nice, welcomed change. the leaves are starting to turn, the air is crisp, and some days the entire brilliant blue sky just seems to be smiling down on us. for real. and on days like that, we can usually steal a few minutes away from work on the house and our contract work to both get together with nicolas and relish how perfect days like this can make you feel. it's great to be alive - just look at his smile. oh, and there's a few new pics in the flickr set for you.

6 month checkup report: we saw our new pediatrician today in nashville, dr. ladd. it was a great visit - he was super easy to talk to; he had a great bedside manner, and provided some excellent advice. the office ran like clockwork and the entire staff was friendly, attentive, and very professional. we really enjoyed the whole experience. nicolas did too, until the 4 shots he got at the end :(. here's his latest vitals: wt: 19 lbs (80th percentile) ht: 26 in (25th percentile) head circumference: 17 in (50th percentile) overall, dr. ladd thought nicolas looked great and encouraged us to keep doing what we've been doing, which was really nice to hear. we're looking forward to getting settled in here over the next few weeks and making the most of this experience. more updates soon. . .

so sorry for the long break since our last post - we've just moved to Nashville, TN and have finally started to settle in. we had an arduous move from Tampa , lots of unpacking and rearranging, but it's starting to feel like home. which is nice, considering we haven't felt that way since Aug 28, 2005 - the day we left New Orleans, evacuating for Hurricane Katrina. our new place is modest, and of course it's not very much like the home we loved so much in new orleans, but there's a nice yard, the neighbors are friendly, and we seem to be close to everything we need. nicolas seems to really like it here. he's doing great - talking more and more, laughing and enjoying some real baby food. though he is cutting more teeth too (his top ones are starting to come in now, poor little guy). so we've had a bit more crying than usual. but overall he's been really happy, as have we. we've been fortunate enough to enjoy some great moments together, like these bel...

looks like nicolas won't have to join the hair club for babies after all ... happy 6 months old!

we were totally urging him to say it, and he almost kind of gets it. either way, it was fun to watch.

WARNING: the video above contains graphic footage of post-meal, messy baby hands and fingers. we think he likes the bowl because it comforts his new teeth (on top) trying to break through.

just a nice moment this past weekend ...

we met our friend magda in tampa before nicolas was born and she's seen him a couple times a month since then. they spent a little more time together last wednesday since we're leaving this weekend, and probably won't see her again. :(

look at this little monkey crawling around ...

we may not be posting updates for the next several days, so here's one more video clip for you, taken yesterday after nicolas ate his first bowl of rice cereal and talked about it. look closely and you may see a couple teeth:

after his first bowl of rice cereal, nicolas couldn't stop talking about it . . .

today mary convinced nicolas to eat some rice cereal. after several previous failed attempts last month, he finally got the hang of it today. enjoy! there are two versions of this video: 1) just plain old eating: and 2) disco version of nicolas eating:

Unlce Lou came by this weekend to meet Nicolas in person for the first time (they'd met previously via iChat). Nicolas was a little fussy and not his normal cheery self, but they were able to spend some nice moments together, including the picture above.

we spent labor day weekend in nashville visiting relatives and introducing Nicolas to his only uncle, captain midnight. although he's staring at the camera here, he couldn't take his eyes off his uncle's face for most of the time they spent together.

yesterday was the first day nicolas sat up by himself without falling over. banal? yes. fun and exciting for us? of course. plus we added a few new pics to the flickr set.

nicolas and i attended a boot camp for new dads class today, to help rookie dads (guys about to be first time fathers) prepare for parenthood. as a former rookie dad who took the class six months ago i found it to be really helpful, so it was great to meet with the prospective fathers and answer their questions and put some of their fears to rest. i encourage any guys who are about to be dads to check it out and any guys with new babies to consider volunteering for a class - it's amazing how a little advice and support can make a positive impact on people. more info is at newdads.com .

we finally got little nicolas on some kind of a schedule and then he got this crazy idea to start crying about all this teething nonsense. so we're a little sleepy around here on some days. oddly enough (and thankfully) he usually wakes up happy and refreshed.