Noah Revisited - Part 2: Bris through Month 2

More of our continuing catchup series. Here is our little guy at two weeks old:

Here he is on the day Osama bin Laden was killed. When the news broke, Noah just happened to be wearing his most patriotic onesie.

Here is a VIDEO of Noah, dreaming of breastfeeding, taken a few days before his one month birthday. Keep an eye on his mouth...

Noah at one month old:

This is Noah and Carin on her first Mother's Day.

THE EAST COAST TOUR #1

We flew east in late May/early June to visit family and friends and attend a wedding. The pictures below are not comprehensive highlights by any means (none of these posts are; I don't have the time for that now), but they are a few photos we happen to enjoy.

Here is our happy family at the rehearsal dinner for Ali and John's wedding in Massachusetts.

I forget the context of this picture, but Noah sure does look cute here.

Noah meets his great aunt Liza.

Here's the part of the trip where Noah got to meet new baby friends and be photographed awkwardly with them. Here he is....

...with a bewitching young Olivia Haas (posing with mother, Danielle):

...with that dazzling charmer Tori Emsley (seen here with mother, Rachel):

...with the dynamic up-and-comer Leo Fox (in the arms of mother, Michelle):

...with the foxy and feisty Sonia Souppa (hoisted by mother, Rina)

An important milestone. Noah's first Dim Sum at China Pearl in Boston.

It's tiring to be the center of attention.

In Connecticut. Baby's view of his adoring fans.

With his proud Great-Grandma Ruthie (or GG).

Four generations in one picture.

With the whole mishpacha...

A happy, well-fed boy.

Noah with his new cousins.

A great series.

2 months old.

Noah Revisited - Part 1: Birth through Bris

Noah Aron Folman was born on April 8th, 2011 in Santa Monica, CA, weighing 7 pounds, 11 ounces and measuring 22 inches long. This is his first picture, taken moments after his birth:

These next two were also taken moments after his birth as his lay under the warmer.

The new family.

This video was taken when Noah was only two hours old. He was alert and adorable right from the very start.

Noah and his Mommy.

Noah and his Daddy.

Noah and Giraffe.

With Grandma Barbara

With Grandpa Howie

On the way to his new home...

Just home from the hospital.

With Grandma Toby

and Grandpa Bob

and Uncle Dave

and Auntie Trish

Noah's first bath.

At the bris. Rabbi Brous, blessing Noah.

Noah, in the kippa Mommy made him.

Noah with his new cousins.

The familia, post-bris:

So we had this son...

Carin and I have neglected the MiniFolman blog for the last 4 months. Let's see, what have we been up to these last few months? I'm trying to remember...Ah yes, being parents. An occupation which has been thrilling and wonderful, if sometimes challenging. And it has left precious little time for blogging. We've been living life, as opposed to journaling about it, and this has left us several months behind the ball.

This wouldn't bother me so much if a certain spouse of mine (not naming any names here) hadn't posted one singular blog post that has remained at the top of the queue for all these months--and if that singular blog post hadn't had the unfortunately melodramatic title: "Languishing." Hardly the headline with which to hearken the birth of our precious child. She can be forgiven because weeks 2 through 4 were particularly challenging ones with Noah, but I feel the need, for the sake of our internet record, to try and recap Noah's first few months in a manner that more accurately expresses the joyfulness, wonderment, and nuclear powered cuteness that these months have comprised.

This leaves me in a bit of a pickle because I happen to still be a parent, in addition to being a writer--and husband, cooker-of-dinner, scooper-of-kitty-litter, etc.--and frankly, I don't have the time to work backwards and properly chronicle the last 4 months and 3 weeks of our lives--not with words anyway. What I'll offer instead, in these next few posts, is a brief recap of our recent history in pictures and videos. For most of you, these pics and videos will be old news, so please bear with me. Once we are caught up, then we can start posting the new bits of cuteness as they happen. In the meantime, please enjoy this trip down recent memory lane...

Languishing

I promise I haven't forgotten about this blog altogether. It's just... this s@&* is HARD. The hardest thing I have ever done. Harder than getting a PhD in Biomedical Engineering.

Thank goodness the payoff is worth it.

Noah - in a rare state of relaxation that WASN'T swing-induced

I promise I'll be back soon with some updates on how this little man entered the world.

41w1d

Right. So I am now 8 days overdue. Here are the things I have tried in the past week:

• walking
• "The" salad at Caioti Pizza Cafe in Studio City
• spicy food
• the "insert euphemism here" method

I'm scheduled for a non-stress test and an amniotic fluid check at the OB tomorrow morning (if I don't go into labor before then). So we'll see.

In the meantime, I'm getting lots of nice family time with my parents, who arrived on Wednesday, and my brother's family who live in AZ. They were conveniently on a cruise last week that left out of LA, and figured they'd be returning yesterday to a new nephew/cousin. Sorry folks!

Bill and my nephew "playing basketball":

Me and my nephews having a belly contest:

Finally, here are some fitting fortunes that we all got when we went out for Chinese food last night:

• Your lucky number for this week is the number three. (April 3rd????)
• You will be showered with good luck tomorrow!
• Your blessings will multiply this coming month. Good luck!
• An enjoyable vacation is awaiting you very soon. (Ummmm...)

Come out, baby! We want to meet you!!

"1 Day To Go!"

It's pretty wild to look at our baby ticker this morning and see "1 days to go!"

We are VERY excited here in Folmanville. Any day now could be the day. The picture above was taken last night. Note how far down OLG has dropped. He wants out, and we can't wait to see him.

A few links to share today:

First, for those who didn't get the word on Facebook, Carin has set up a baby pool. You guess OLG's birthday, weight, etc. Today is the last day to make your guesses and enter. You may just win a shipment of tangerines from the tree in our backyard. If you're interested in playing, you can enter here.

We've also had a bunch of people ask about where we are registered for baby stuff. The answer: a few places: Diapers.com, Babies R Us, Target, and Amazon.com.

Finally, here's a link to a video I find quite funny. Dave, I fully expect you to be rocking this tune when I see you next.

Today, we continue to get our house (literal and metaphorical) in order, and I'm looking forward to getting some more writing done. But we are also at the ready. At any moment, our little guy may decide to make a break for it. We'll keep you updated when he does.