Yes, it's been a while.

Here are the vitals: 6 months, 21lb (on the bathroom scale... pediatrician's scale next month), cuter by the minute. Eating solid (well, pureed) foods with appropriate changes in his poops (yes, I'm one of those parents that thinks everyone wants to know about his kid's excretory achievements). Sitting-up well, great hand coordination, not really interested in rolling (yes, too heavy, I think). Babbling, babbling, babbling.

And he loves it when I sing especially "The Kofi-man Song":

Who can be born in Texas,

In 2008,

At 9:42 in the morning,

December 19th was the date?

The Kofi-man!

Yes, the Kofi-man can!

The Kofi-man can 

'Cause he fills your heart with love;

He's a perfect kinda guy.

Who can sleep for hours,

Wake up with a scream,

Suck down all his formula,

And be his father's dream?

The Kofi-man!

Yes, the Kofi-man can!

The Kofi-man can 

'Cause he fills your heart with love;

He's a perfect kinda guy.

His weight is off the graph,

I love to hear him laugh:

It's satisfying and delicious.

Oh, well talk about your fatherhood wishes:

Can't wait 'til he can do the dishes!

Little Kofi Benjamin

Came as a surprise.

But, who could put such joyful tears

Into his father's eyes?

The Kofi-man!

Yes, the Kofi-man can!

The Kofi-man can 

'Cause he fills your heart with love;

He's a perfect kinda guy.

I should definitely be working, but I had to post this picture... Kofi is not just getting cuter, but his cerebellum seems to have kicked in and he is now reaching for objects and generally acting more coordinated. We took him for a walk this weekend and received countless "Oohs" and "Aahs" and "*sighs*" and even one "That's the cutest one yet!"

I have to start thinking about suncreen. It's supposed to be 90 degrees here today...

In the meantime, his birth has been published in the Richmond, Texas newspaper and as long as no one comes forward claiming to be his father by May 18th, we should be able to go to court (well, not we, but they... I don't have to go) to terminate the parental rights of the birth father. It was kind of sad to see Kofi's name in the legal announcement: it seemed like an invasion of his privacy, and an absurd step to have to take when he is so clearly mine! As my friend Jonathan says about his adopted son, "There's nothing you can say to convince me that I haven't given birth to him." The upside is that they sent me a copy of the announcement so I have his birth father's name in case Kofi ever wants to go searching for him...

Naming Ceremony

Kofi had a naming ceremony last weekend. Here is a picture of Rowan singing a song he wrote for the occasion. Kofi was very well behaved during the ceremony and it was attended by my parents and my brother Jonathan and my niece Madeline.

I've posted the ceremony on YouTube... you can find it by searching for "Kofi's Naming Ceremony"; it's about 28 minutes total. Parts 4 and 5 are my favorites and the sound quality is best on these parts too...

And, yes, I have not updated this site in a while... he is sleeping mostly through the night now and is generally quite perfect and loving and soft and cuddly and smiley and adorable. If you call me, I'll tell you about the little spill he took from his swing today: he wasn't hurt and it was a great stress test for my heart.

Thanks to Marsha for the Obama onesie. Sorry I've not posted in a while: life is busy. But last night, he slept from 8pm to 4am (5am with daylight savings, but I'll take 8hrs of sleep in a row). Of course, he has been simply ravenous this morning having skipped a meal (or two) last night!

Oh, and of course, he is still perfect.

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.