If you're happy and you know it

Clap your hands!

Alexander figured out how to clap today, and was very pleased indeed. In fact, he's so taken with it, he was trying to clap as he was falling asleep tonight.

Also new today: zooming away on the bed whenever he's undressed, giggling hysterically. Maybe the giggling has something to do with our playing along, "Oh no! Naked baby escape! Get him! Get him!"

Watch out.

He's growing faster than I can see. One minute he's a baby in my arms, the next he's trying out being a kid.

We just got back from a four day trip to Boston, one of my conferences. Flying was better than expected on the way out, and as bad as I thought it might be coming back.

Baby Benadryl, by the way, is a lie.

It wasn't that bad. He cried and fussed for three hours, and slept for three hours. In my arms. Even with a sling, it still hurt.

Boston was funny; apparently, the bug has powers of zapping random people on the street with his cuteness. This never happens here. Either the kids there are not so cute, or there aren't any kids there.
And then there's this picture below: What?


We just ditched this table. Not to prevent delinquency, which from the looks of this photo, seems like a good idea, but because the top is glass and it's all super sharp corners in a very small space. Also it was spacky and had to go.

He understands "no" and won't come into the kitchen (one of the rules). He'll stop if you call his name: here he was reaching for something dangerous, and I called him. Hence the look.

Thanks to Tia Pita for the fabulous attitude appropriate T-shirt. Y que, indeed.

Zoom!

Once he figured out crawling, it's been full-speed ahead. Last weekend he was rocking back and forth on his knees and apparently sat up by accident. During the week, he started sitting up on his knees pretty deliberately, and pulling up on furniture, his crib, and me to his knees. This weekend he's been pulling up to standing, unassisted, pretty consistently. Today, he was able to pull himself up on the edge of his play-yard and started taking little steps towards the wall he was leaning on, and according to his Tio Johnny, took a couple of steps sideways, while holding on to the top of the wee plastic wall.

He is minutes from walking.

Before I know it, he's going to be running away from me, shouting nononononono. He already shakes his head and squeezes his face shut when he doens't like something.

Apropos the picture: isn't he a sly bunny?