Nurse Nose

Elissa leaned to give hungry Killer a kissy, but he had different plans.

We've Encountered the #4 Al Qaeda Operative

His name is Mohammed Al Graham, a.k.a. "The Killer Graham".

He was discovered in a spider hole in the wasteland on the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan, sucking on the side of one of his hands. Fear not, he's in custody and responding well to breast-milk-boarding. He's already divulged the formula for Similac and told us the precise location of Osama bin Laden.

He's 1/4 years old!

Killer Graham Roche has hit the 3 month mark like a giant gorilla hits a bunch of bananas. He's right on track with most of the head/hands/eyes/ears milestones, but he's destroying the sizing convention for kids' clothes. We just got back for shopping for 6-9 month clothes, because he's stretching the 3-6 month pajamas. Meanwhile, he's not really a fattie like you'd expect. He's just very efficient at applying his food to make his bones longer (or something).

This month Graham totally discovered his hands. He's grabbing at everything, working on his precision. He's also taken to the 'Slinky' jingle (what walks downstairs, alone or in pairs) and the song from the old 'Perfection' game (push the plunger down, set the timer, fit the pieces in place, don't be slow). If you had to rank him among the other babies we know, he qualifies as a giggler.

That said, enjoy this month's pictures!!!! Link!!!

Fit Like a Fiddle

Graham had his long-awaited 2 month appointment today, and he's, in the doctor's overused terms, 'solid'.

Significant to the last post claiming his bigness, since October 15 he grew 2.5 inches, gained 4.25 lbs, and added 4cm to his head circumference. Where he was in the 65 to 75 percentile in height & weight last time, he's now a 'solid' 90th percentile.

Here's what Graham doesn't like: shots. He arrived at the office asleep, and started crying when we got him naked. Right when the doctor walked in, he was a flirty angel. All nice and everything. He stayed that way after he left, and gave the nurse with the needles a little goo goo. Then she stuck three needles into his thighs and he went into tomato mode. He turned red from the top of his head to the base of his tummy like a thermometer on a hot day. The crying didn't really stop until about 25 minutes ago, so we're talking about almost 6 hours of cranky.

He's fine now. We're cooking dinner while he's on the table in his car seat with the hiccups. For all intents and purposes, outside of the screaming we'll hear when we tear off his band-aids, he's unphased.

By the way, the doctor in the photo is not me, it's the real doctor. We have a couple friends who take their kids there too, and all of us get the same 'solid' keyword to describe our healthy children. Solid.

Graham is Big

The boy is big. Month #2 spanned from Halloween to Thanksgiving, and he trooped through the month slowly learning how and when to sleep, and, more importantly, how to smile.

Graham's favorite song is one that I made up over the course of a couple smile fits. It goes like this, and you make him rub his hands together like a mad scientist for the 'yes yes' parts.:

Sittin' on a rocket (poke him in the booty)
With money in your pocket (stick your finger in his fake-pocket)
Singin' yes yes yes yes yes yes yes (wringing his aforementioned hands)

Ticklin' your tummy (tickle his tummy)
And taking back my money (stick your finger in aforementioned fake-pocket)
Thinkin' yes yes yes yes yes yes yes (wring hands again)

[Repeat]

Here's the link to the pictures from the month. There are a lot of repeats, but they're all cute like buttons.

"Graham Grunts"

Boy Roche's latest nickname is "Graham Grunts". He grunts when he's happy, he grunts when he's sad, he grunts while he's eating and when he craps his pants. There's an increasing ratio of other sounds to his grunt count, but the grunts are winning by a mile. On that note, here are links to his week 3 and 4 slideshows. From here forward, I'm classifying his progress by months. Click on the links to see the respective weeks (1 thru 4):
	Week 1
	Week 2
	Week 3
	Week 4

Graham's First Two Weeks on Earth

We have all the photos of Killer Graham up on flickr, so you can look at his huge biceps in a slideshow. Enjoy!

Week 1

Week 2

Killer Graham vs. Big Shirley

In the orange corner, standing one foot 9 inches and weighing in at 8 and 3/4 pounds... Hailing from the mean streets of Seattle, Washington... Killer Graham Roche!

And the champion, at 2 feet 5 inches and weighing a solid 45 pounds... Pulled out of a steaming car in downtown Everett, Washington... Big Ass Shirley!!!

Shake paws and come out fighting...

Success! Graham Lucas Lives!

Thursday came and went without a hitch. The c-section surgery was without complication, and resulted in a healthy Elissa and a beautiful and sturdy Graham. He's a delight, for real.

The movies below were taken immediately after he came out. There's an initial video where he's covered in blood and jizz, thank me later for sparing you the convulsions.

Since we've had him, he's been 50% delight and 50% devil. The first night, he slept no longer than 30 minutes or so, none of which was outside of Elissa or my hands. 2nd night, angel. Third night, angel. Last night, things were so bad I felt I had to try every trick in the book to avoid criminal neglect charges. He wouldn't eat, cried for almost 7 hours non-stop, and we eventually had to feed him some formula just to keep his fluids up. After his first suckle, though, he's back on the good foot. I'm confident there's nothing he can do that will perplex us similarly, until he starts stealing bikes.

Please pardon the audio on the movies. When he was handed to me, I said something akin to "Welcome to Earth, Killer" and cried like a sissy not knowing what to say until we got back to the hospital room. Also, the 2nd video ends with the nurse saying "OK. This is the most dangerous...", and I can't for the life of me recall what was so dangerous. Maybe she knew he has the kung fu kick to end all kung fu kicks, and was about to say "OK. This is the most dangerous set of feet the human race has ever seen." Time will definitely tell.

Today is the Big Day!

After the longest year of our lives, today is the big day for Elissa and me. We're due at the hospital in an hour, and at 11:30ish, we should have the baby in our hands. Thanks to everyone for presents, prayers, and patience. Elissa's really happy to be transitioning from pregnant lady to Mom, and I'm happy for her (and for myself of course).

We'll be in the hospital from now until Sunday or Monday, and I'll be updating everyone as news comes through. Fingers crossed!