Hands Vs. Turkey

Great news... I have a hand!

and, and, AND - get this - it is delicious.

With everyone raving about turkey and thanksgiving, I don't think anyone bothered to give their hand a good suck. It's really too bad - everyone is missing out big time. I think I might have to add this to my top 5 list of things I am thankful for.

My grandpa Bowers arrived from Florida yesterday and I just love to show off for him. For instance, right now his jaw is on the floor while he watches me type away for this blog entry. I must admit, it is a rather impressive skill I posess. My new favorite thing is shoving my hand in my mouth when I am hungry. Dad got a good video of me showing it off to grandpa. I thought I'd share it with all of you too. I must warn you though, prepare to be blown away:

Grammy, another Grampa, and my turkey day top 5

I have to be honest - yesterday was kind of a bummer, because Grammy Bowers went home after spending a glorious long weekend here paying lots of attention to me. We did a lot together - we went grocery shopping, we danced together, and Grammy gave me lots of great big hugs. I thought for sure she'd be there on the couch when Mom brought be downstairs in the morning, but nope - she had headed back to Fredonia. Boo :( At least we have lots of pictures so I can remember the good times we had together! Here's one of my favorites to the right. And it sounds like we might see Grammy again soon - Holly, too, so that's something to look forward to.

So, like I said before, I was a feeling a little out of sorts, UNTIL Mom told me that - now get this - I still have ANOTHER Grampa to meet! Grampa Bowers! And (here's the kicker), he's flying out from Florida to meet me, and (this is the best part), he'll be here TOMORROW!!! WOO HOO! I can't believe it. Dad also told me about eating a turkey and cranberries and stuffing tomorrow, but whatever, I can't eat that stuff yet AND I can't get past this whole bit on having ANOTHER GRAMPA. I am so psyched.

I just can't wait for tomorrow. I've heard that on Thanksgiving, people give thanks for stuff - so I've been thinking, and here's my top 5 list of what I'm thankful for:

1 - Milk
2 - Mom (for giving me milk) and Dad (for giving me a bottle of milk each night)
3 - Binky (for being a decent milk substitute)
4 - The game "Peyton Fish" (for making me hungry for milk)
5 - Grammas, Grampas, + family and friends I haven't met yet (who knows, maybe they have milk)

What'd ya expect, I'm only 8 weeks old. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Laughtown, USA

Ok, so I'm having fun sharing my videos of all the games I've learned to play with Mommy & Daddy. This one is called Laughtown, USA. I've got the whole smiling thing down, but I'm still learning the ropes when it comes to laughing. Mommy and Daddy are helping me out a bit here. Daddy told a funny joke before this video that was apparently "too old" for me. Whatever. I'll be the judge of that... just as soon as I figure out what all these four letter words mean.

Oh yeah, Mommy & Daddy posted new pics & you can see them all here: http://picasaweb.google.com/Brackenstoked/PeytonQuinn57Weeks#

Virus, schmirus.

That's right folks, you heard it here first. I got my first round of immunizations today! Three shots in all, and while they made me cry like....well, like a baby - I recovered pretty quickly and lived to tell you about it. My parents were just as upset as I was by the shots. I mean, really who can stand to see a cutie like me get poked with a needle??? But we all feel better now that the drama is done, and it's way cool that those viruses can bring it on and I can now dish it back. In the photo to the right you can see me getting the second of three injections while Daddy frantically tries to shove my binky back in my mouth. Good times.

Before all the commotion with the vaccines, at today's visit I got to hang out with my favorite pediatrician of all time, Dr. Brad (see the pic of him + I, below). He is loads of fun - Mommy + Daddy seem to like him a lot, too. I got measured, and weighed, and I am OFF THE CHARTS according to Dr. Brad! I now weigh 10 pounds 9 ounces, which is less than what Mommy guessed, but still it bumps me up from the 25th percentile for my weight (where I was last visit) to the 50th percentile! Dr. Brad said he looks for a gain of half an ounce a day in babies my age, and over the past 30 days I've gained 43 ounces! That's over an ounce a day. And that's not all - I'm getting tall, too! I've grown another inch - bringing me up (yet again) from the 25th to the 50th percentile at 21 inches long.

Go me! And really, go Mom!

I'm a chilly bean

It snowed yesterday! Wow! Only a dusting, really, but hey - first snow is first snow. Daddy is happier about the white stuff than Mommy, but even Mommy was excited because it was one of my 'firsts'. The snow made the air so dry, I got all static electric and my hair stood on end! What a sensation!

In other news...it's been chilly here (obviously, see the above paragraph on snow). Mom has this obsessive compuslive thing going on about keeping me warm enough, but then as soon as she gets me bundled she worries that I'm TOO warm. It makes for a lot of dressing + undressing throughout the day. Combine that with my new favorite trick - blowing poop out of my diaper and all over my outfits - and you get a baby who rocks several different fashions throughout the day. Hey, what can I say - I like to keep up with all of the trends. Here I am 'between' outfits, in just a blanket. I like to call this 'the cozy look'.

Oh, and get this! I'm getting SO big, and SO strong! Tomorrow I go to my 7 week pediatrician appointment and we'll find out excatly HOW big I am. Mommy is betting somewhere between 11 + 12 pounds. Care to make a wager??? And my strength - I can hold my head up (although it's still a little wobbly) and I can do baby push ups on my activity mat. Pretty soon, I'll be able to wow the boy babies with my super strength...I mean, who could resist these good looks AND these guns?!?! Not Mom + Dad, that's for sure!

Dr. Jennie

On Friday I got to get re-acquainted with the very first person I ever met in this world - no, not Mom or Dad, but Mom's OB-GYN! It was great to meet up with Dr. Jennie again at Mom's 6-week post-partum check-up. It was much cooler seeing her this time - as I recall, the last time we chilled together I had just had a giant vacuum stuck to my head, and had spent the bettter part of the past 2 hours manuvering Mom's pelvis (NOT such a good time, if I remember correctly). So Friday was much more pleasant for a multitude of reasons, namely there weren't any suction devices involved, I got to sleep through almost all of it, and all Dr. Jennie wanted to do this time was cuddle me and call me cute. Yeah, not such a bad gig. And oh, by the way - Mom checked out fine and has been deemed 'fully recovered'...and here's a special moment caught on film between me and Dr. Jennie. Awwwww.

Peyton Fish

After I turned 6 weeks old, daddy gave me such a great treat. We played my favorite game that I like to call "Peyton Fish". It all started a few weeks ago when I made a very fishy face at mommy & daddy and you know how they get... Now they let me wiggle around the house face down while I pretend to be a curious fish - a Peyton Fish! Anyway, I just love to pretend that I am underwater and am swimming around the house. It really calms me down and for some reason always makes mommy and daddy laugh hysterically. Lately, its even made me smile quite a bit! Here daddy & I are playing Peyton Fish:

Let's go BINKY! I mean, let's go BUFFALO!

As of last night, it's been a whole week since our friend Coco the cat passed away. Mom, Dad + I went to the vet's office on Friday afternoon and picked up Coco's ashes. Strange as it sounds, we all feel a little better having her remains home again. We really miss our little kitty - I loved her so much even though I only knew her for 5 weeks.

Yesterday Dad + I watched the Bills get creamed by the Pats. Bummer - I did my best to root for them, but they still lost. Here I am showing my team spirit (although a true Bills fan would be holding a labatts, probably).

I was just so fussy about the Bills losing I couldn't settle down, even after eating for hours (sorry, Mommy) so Mommy + Daddy finally broke down + gave me the binky I so desired. I didn't see what the big deal was but my crazy parents thought it was the cutest thing how I would move the binky around in my mouth. They are a little wacky. Here they have, of course, commemorated it. Gotta love 'em.

Gal Smiley

Lots of the parent books my Mom + Dad read say that my smiles might not be REAL smiles, they might just be me having gas. Okay, I'll admit that I'm a pretty gassy lady - no secrets here, when I get going you can hear me fart 3 floors away - but lately, I've started grinning at Mom + Dad in a different way (WITHOUT farting, thank you very much) and they are convinced that my gummy smiles are the real thing. What do you guys think?

Fresh air, new pals, missing Gramma + milky nights

Mommy says the nice weather we've been having is 'unseasonable', whatever that means, but for me it means we get to for long walks down Church St. - woo hoo! I love my outside time (actually - I can't keep my eyes open during it, as soon as I get a whiff of fresh air I pass out in a coma-like sleep) but my parents still like to think I enjoy our walks.

After today's walk, my new pals Sara + Hillary came over to meet me. They are super rad! Sara brought me 2 beautiful books I can't wait to read, and both Hillary + Sara held me which was great. It's sometimes nice to take a break from Mom's or Dad's arms. I was very sad to learn that Sara is actually leaving Burlington for good this weekend - she is headed out of the country, to Costa Rica and Italy. Woah! Maybe next time she sees me she will share all her stories of international adventures.

Tonight was fun, but I must admit I'm a little sad because Gramma Bowers and Holly were supossed to be on their way out to visit me tonight, but Gramma came down with a nasty cold and had to call the trip off. Mommy is really bummed, she sooooo badly wanted me to see Gramma again and to meet Holly. Mom even called my pediatrician to see if there was some way Gramma could visit without putting me at risk of catching her cold, but nope...apparently my immune system is too immature until I'm about 8 weeks old, and I could even get a respitory infection - yikes! So, thanks Gramma for being honest about your cold. The three of us really miss you though + hope you guys can visit soon.

OK well I'm off to eat / poop / sleep. Oh did I mention that nighttime is the COOLEST now? I mean, nights were cool before when me + Mommy got up to eat a lot, but now they are wayyyy cooler because Daddy has started giving me a bottle of Mom's milk for my 3AM feeding! Mom + Dad were worried that the bottle might cause me some nipple confusion, but nope, not an issue with this gal. I take the bottle like a champ, and I still take the boob like a champ, too. Plus, I get to spend some quality time with Daddy, and Mommy gets some extra sleep (and BELIEVE me, we are all happier when Mommy is rested!). Now, let's just hope that tonight I don't barf up the entire 4.5 ounces right after my bottle like I did last night. Wish me luck!

Jam the Vote

Mommy, daddy & I just got back from rocking the vote and boy was I in a good mood. I just couldn't stop moving and shaking after they finally changed that diaper I was swimming in. It gave me a chance to wave hello to everyone. I hope you like it!

My daddy gives you all a tour of my butt-kicking nursery.