Children Make Liars of Us All

Our friend April was right when she said "children make liars out of you." We told her that Andrew is generally well behaved and loved being held, even by strangers. We explained that while he may not go to sleep immediately when we try to put him to bed, at worst he would just look around with his big eyes until he falls asleep. Of course while visiting April & family, Andrew had to prove us wrong! He refused to be held by Ramesh, April, or April's mom. When we tried to have some adult conversation after dinner, Andrew decided to upstage everyone by testing out his new piercing cries. Little Mary tried to console Andrew by giving him his pacifier, which he spat out immediately. Nothing seemed to work, even pats on the bum (which usually do the trick). Jim, desperate for a reprieve, took Andrew out for a drive around Ramesh and April's neighborhood. We thought it would work since Andrew loves car and stroller rides, but Jim had to cut the drive short because Andrew's cries became so loud and shrill that Jim was afraid the neighbors would think that he was committing bloody murder. Embarrassed by the scene that Andrew was causing, we finally decided to call it a night and leave Ramesh and April's place. Andrew stopped crying as soon as we put him in the car seat to go home. All we could figure was that he was especially gassy from whatever I had to eat earlier in the day.

I think it is good that we are taking lots of pictures and videos of Andrew. The videos help us document Andrew's growth and progress. More importantly, they vindicate whatever claims of Andrew we make to our friends. I know Andrew is trying to discourage us from boasting too much about his "achievements" by doing the complete opposite of whatever we tell friends. Luckily, we have videos to prove that we are not the liars he is trying to make us out to be!
We sent the following video to a few friends and family earlier in the week. This video was taken right before we put Andrew to bed. Andrew has been smiling at us since he was three or four weeks old. His cooing (he really seems to be trying to speak to us) only started in the last few weeks when he began recognizing faces. Jim and I talk to him a lot, so I think Andrew is trying to mimic us. His paternal grandparents (pop-pop and Grandma Lee) also spent a good bit of time when we were in Bethany Beach, DE holding and speaking to him. His smiles and coos really melt our hearts, but his precocious attempts at speech have me concerned that Andrew is going to be a real talker like his dad!