"How is your baby?" "He's awake."

Sorry for the lack of updates. Elliott has taken to what Jess refers to as the Vicious Cycle of breast feeding every hour, before spitting up and then pooping. It takes him about 10-15 minutes to breast feed and then he'll spit up for about half an hour before pooping for 20 minutes. That of course is slightly more than an hour to finish the cycle, but since the next cycle begins on the hour, it will often overlap before the previous cycle is done. We're pretty much at the point where he'll be spitting up and pooping while breast feeding. We're like Lucille Ball in the chocolate factory. We're Mickey Mouse in a wizard hat.

Every now and then he'll also fly around the room, from one corner of the ceiling to the other, laughing at us maniacally while terrorizing the cats by flinging yellow wet naps at them.

But he's our little angel and we love him.

Here are some photos...

When Elliott's awake, his arms and legs are normally a little flurry of activity. He's always grabbing around and making cycling motions. When he's about to poop however, he gets a very contemplative look on his face and drops his arms to the side. He holds perfectly still.

It all looks very serene and tranquil until the terrible squirting noise begins.










There's Elliott on his little changing table. You see all those diapers, clothes and wet naps at the top of the photo? Yeah. That was Tuesday.















There's Elliott in the middle of some tummy time. We're slowly but surely training him for Baby Races, Thanksgiving 2007. He is quite the competitor already.

That photo also shows how he's developing a butt crack. For the first week or so, he didn't have a butt crack. It was like one big cheek with a dimple in the middle. I was starting to worry it would never show up. Jess didn't say anything, but kept giving me looks like, I know I have a butt... This lack of butt is Dex's fault.





Last one for now. That's Jess there with the baby at a park near our house. Look how cute mom and baby are. Elliott's very hit and miss with the stroller. Sometimes he falls right asleep and looks super comfy. Other times, he screams like we've thrown him in the iron maiden.









I'll try and throw more photos up more regularly. We'll let you know how the Vicious Cycle works out. Personally, I don't think Jess should have named it anything at all. It's like the Axis of Evil. Better to leave the pooping, spitting up and breast feeding alone to their own devices. Associating them with a name only gives them a starting point to coordinate their diabolical schemes.

Seriously though. Breast feeding is going good, but I'd be lying if I said the poop doesn't smell. It's not a dry heave stench, but there's definitely an odor.

First hospital visit and some photos

We took Elliott to his first hospital visit yesterday. Doctor Walker said that he gets an A+ for health, which is his first A+. Jess and I gave each other a little wink as the grade was handed out. Valedictorian, I thought quietly.

Elliott's not jaundiced and he's starting to gain back some of his lost water weight. His poops are progressing normally. I remember when I was in college, after spending 60 hours straight in the computer lab working on a project, when such a diagnosis would've come as a welcome relief. Alas, no Dr. Walker was nearby to give me an A+ (on my health or the project).

But I digress...

Here are some photos:

That's Elliott getting ready for his trip, all strapped into his car seat. We just woke him, which is why he looks like such a wise little gnome in the hat. In fact, once we had him in, he started making gurgling, gravelly noises like he was talking, but it was nonsense.

"You must listen to the prophecy! The basilisk prince must be abated with lemondrop teas and cookies baked with the milk of a unicorn from the azure forest on the cloud!"

See? Nonsense.







There he is in the waiting room. Waiting patiently. Some might think he's sleeping. I think he's meditating on the deeper meaning of wearing a blanket with cartoon monkeys on it.










There's Jess holding him while we wait for the doctor. If he (or Jess) looks a little yellow, it's because the color of the walls is so purplish-pink. I can't think of another place where you would find walls with the color of a slightly moldy plum, but I've never been much for decor.










And this last one is of him making a super cute face while pretending to be sleeping. I know he knew I had the camera on him. Sometimes, if Jess is mad at me, I'll pretend to be asleep. If she's onto me, she'll usually say something like, "I know you're awake." At that point, I'll put my fist up to my cheek and make a really cute face while discretely putting my finger in one ear.

Works every time.

Treats!!

We were surprised this morning with a delightful fruit basket from Uncle Dar and Auntie Missi! Thanks guys...we've been snackin on it a ton already!!
Love and Thanks,
Dex, Jess and Elliott

Baby comes home

Baby and Dad enjoy the sunrise before heading home.












"I am very disappointed in you..."

















"...And now I contemplate my revenge. Maybe some extra dirty in the diaper."
















Mom bringing baby home. Elliott was so good in his car seat.












The happy family. That's the jacket the cats peed on in the airplane.

The bun is out the oven

Here's a photo of Elliott about to get his hair washed. He seemed to enjoy it so much. He kept lavishly tossing his head around while the nurse ran the warm water over it. At one point, he even shouted in his little baby voice, "O the earthly pleasure! O the heavenly delight!"

Not really, but that's what I imagined in my mind.

E didn't like his first sponge bath nearly as much. To be honest, we could've gone without the bath as he came out of Jess pretty clean. When I first saw him come out and I saw his nipples, the thought ran through my mind, "I can't believe I created something that has nipples." I'm used to writing software and marketing projects. Neither of those things have nipples.

That's Elliott with his mom. He's ridiculous cute. And by that, I mean it's a little ridiculous how cute I think he is. That picture was actually taken before his bath, so you can see that he wasn't really messy at all. When I first wake up in the morning, it takes me hours to clean up to the point that the sight of me doesn't frighten children and small animals.

There's E with Grandpa Jer. Elliott's been really aware and he scans the room whenever he's awake. He fixated on Jer's mustache pretty good for a while. If Elliott is the reincarnated spirit of an old west cowboy, then he probably felt right at home while grandpa was holding him.

Elliott is here :)

After months of waiting, Elliott Lloyd Bustarde decided to show up and start hanging out with his folks. 19 inches and 6 lbs 12 oz of pink baby. Both mom and baby are tired, but doing well. Jess was a trooper and went through the birth without an epidural or any drugs. Thank goodness too, as Dex almost fainted when they tapped Jess for a heplock (in case they needed an IV). Who knows what would've happened if they stuck her with any other big needles.

Look at that kid! I was all set for him to come out all wrinkly and covered in muck, but instead that photo is pretty much what he looked like when he rolled in. Except his eyes were open and he was glaring at us. Jess was able to breastfeed right away, which tells me that either he's like his old man and he catches onto foreign concepts quickly or that he's like his old man, and he's into boobies.

In any case, Elliott can't wait to meet everybody as we make our way around to family and friends. I'll add more photos from my other camera later. OH MY GOD! I'M A FATHER! I PLAY TOO MANY VIDEOGAMES TO BE A FATHER!

*breath* *breath* i'm cool. i'm cool.

Still waiting....

These are pics from this past week...
Dex, my parents and I went to the National Whitewater Center here in Charlotte. There was an area for rafters and kayakers with class III-IV man-made rapids and there were tons of hiking/biking trails. We took a short hike down to the Catabwa River. Quite a pretty spot. Other pic is of mom and I unwinding and getting pedis a few days later. Waiting for a baby isn't all that tough after all..

Waiting for Elliott..

Dex taking his role as "birthing coach" very seriously by reading about the power of the placenta : ) in "Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering"

Mom and Dad perfecting the Southern art of "porch sittin"

Mom and Dad treated us to dinner at famous Charlotte steakhouse, "Beef N' Bottle"



Dex got the surf and turf...the steaks were quite a treat..the best we've had in Charlotte so far