Kofi's Growth Charts

The pediatrician said that he is still growing at the maximum allowable rate. I'm afraid of what this might mean... 14lb today at 9 weeks!! He suggested that I start him on a little rice cereal to make him less hungry... 

In the meantime, the adoption agency in Texas has been less than communicative with me about the status of my legal wranglings in TX. Now they've decided that they need to send a certified letter to Nigeria to contact the biological father... and while I think that is reasonable, I just wish they would tell me these things prior to my calling up and asking why we don't have a court date scheduled (to terminate the parental rights of the biological parents). I'm not that worried, just a bit frustrated.

Meanwhile, he's beginning to smile and be playful. And that, my friends, is priceless.

Valentine's Update

Well, I think I have a nanny. She's a lovely woman from Mexico (but has permanent residence -- read: she's legal -- here) and after a series of emails (in Spanish -- with some help from my secretary!) I think we have reached an agreement. Un acuerdo, as they say.

In the meantime, I'm back at work now and feeling pretty good about that, liking the 3-day work week (until May), and trying to get things done around the house (like setting up Kofi's room) (and laundry) (and the dishes) during my days off.

Kofi is exploding with neurologic development and physical heft. He must weigh over 13lb now (at least that's how much my scale went up when I put him in my arms); we go to the pediatrician next week, so I'll have an accurate weight then. He sleeps between 3 and 5 hours in a row at night. If I only have to get up once to give him a bottle, I consider that a resounding success.

The weather is warming and we've been venturing out in his stroller (that is, in one of his four strollers) and still socializing as much as possible. The picture above was from a party last weekend (I barely saw him after we walked through the door because EVERYONE wanted a turn holding him). Last week we went to Drag Bingo and he met his first drag queens. His father won a t-shirt by answering a trivia question, but didn't do so well at Bingo...

Simply put, he remains a joy. Cute as a button, smart as a whip, and, well, pretty much perfect.

The Chronicles of Nannia

15 hours.

That's how long my first nanny lasted, a mere 900 minutes to discover he had lied about his immigration status and his ability to work legally in the US. It turns out that it's expensive to be a student in the US and he needs to work to stay here and study. It's enough to push me left-of-center.

Luckily, Kofi slept 5 hours in a row last night so I'm approaching this headache with less sleep-deprivation than usual.

Luckily, Parents in a Pinch exists and I have a babysitter for tomorrow (my first day back at work).

Luckily, Amy is coming over after work to babysit so I can go to my class (Health Care Finance -- *yawn*).

Luckily, one of my friends from the School of Public Health has agreed to be my temporary nanny and I'm only working Tues-Thurs for the next 3 months.

And, in case you're wondering, yes, Kofi is STILL the cutest.