March 22, 2000

Alex has another cold. Or maybe it's the same cold he had three weeks ago and we've been passing it around among the three of us. He is not a happy little person this week. Thankfully -- and I don't know if that's for him or for his parents -- he is not completely congested and we haven't had to resort to saline nasal drops and the bulb syringe. The swing has been a godsend. He is very comfortable in it and can get some sleep there when he's not feeling well.

It's Alex's 10-week "birthday" today! We celebrated by retiring the newborn diapers and diaper covers. They just, umm, weren't serving their intended purpose any longer, if you get my meaning. We keep telling Alex that he gets to wear Big Guy Diapers now. He hasn't seemed impressed by this.

Alex is talking up a storm these days -- vocalizations of various sorts. He obviously has a lot to say and Daryl and I are scrambling to pick up the vocabulary. Daryl and Alex play a neat game. Daryl holds Alex in his lap and says "Ooooh, Ahhhh" in a sing-songy voice. Alex squeals and smiles and tries to "Ahhhh" along. It's very cute.

In the last two weeks, or so, Alex has started showing some of the early signs of teething (drooling, chewing on his hands, etc.). No teeth, yet, but it looks like they're in there. He is also learning to play by himself a little and has started being able to go to sleep without help from us. We've even had a couple of nights where he's slept all the way through (the pediatric definition of five to six hours, anyway).

It's been beautiful here this spring and we've been trying to get out to enjoy it as much as possible. Alex loves going for walks (well, ok, they usually put him right to sleep) and we feel like there is a lot to show him "out there."