What's Cuter Than a Sleeping Baby

What's cuter than a sleeping baby - two sleeping babies!



Our friends Natalie and Charlie came over last weekend for dinner and to trade new parenting stories (we met them at our local prenatal course). They brought their son Lars so the boys could have some bonding time. After dinner we alternated bath time and play time, and after a quick feed Natalie and Sheri successfully put both boys to bed in Aiden's crib. They lasted nearly 3 hours while we all socialized downstairs; with the occasional grunt and squeal... if Natalie and Charlie hadn't left they boys would probably have made it a true sleep over; which is incredible given Aiden's tendency to kick and punch in his sleep and Lars' ability to effortlessly move about the crib. Video confirmed our suspicions that the boys were only 'pretending' to be asleep and were probably playing Truth or Dare before we interrupted their shinanigans.

Nearing our second month as parents, our boosted confidence prompted us to enjoy the neighborhood Cinco de Mayo party down the street while Aiden slept in his crib... a first for parents and baby alike that went well (despite our nerves). We took turns checking on him via our video baby monitor to make sure he hadn't crawled out of his crib. We were using 10 minute intervals at first, but quickly realized our man is a heavy sleeper and are proud to report that he survived for nearly 3 hours without realizing we had gone (although when we returned home he figured things out and Sheri paid the price with far less sleep than the typical night).

Since our posts seem to come less frequently as Aiden becomes more active I'll include some other tasty updates for our viewers at home:

1. Aiden is growing like a weed (specifically like a weed in our sideyard when daddy neglects his yardwork)... already kissing 0-3 month clothes behind and fitting nicely into his 3-6 month outfits. Thankfully we have enough 3-6 clothes to get us to our summer holiday, because the options in Doha are limited and VERY expensive!
2. Accordingly, our boy has grown out of the second tier diapers and is now in 'active baby' diapers, which I had incorrectly thought would be used when he was crawling, not when he was 7 weeks old. We've learned that the decision to upgrade diapers or clothing sizes is often driven by the recurrence of 'blowouts', which naturally signal the progression from one level to the next.
3. Aiden is also growing less picky in his eating habits... taking 4oz of bottle milk straight out of the fridge with few complaints. This means good things for Sheri - since dad can help share the load on the weekends (especially Mother's Day).
4. Two weeks ago Brandon was 3 weeks into a terrible sinus infection and 1 week away from a very important budget presentation, Ha'bibi was spayed (small dog + large incision = long recovery), Zona's energy level tripled following her 'annual' haircut, and poor Sheri was stuck taking care of the whole circus. We survived on her strength and care... kudos to my wife for not booking a flight home!
5. Speaking of flight home, Aiden and family all have valid visas and exit permits, giving us the green light to book flights back to the USA this summer... our first legitimate vacation in over 8 months, first trip as an expanded family, and something to focus on as the heat cranks up in Qatar (where did the double digits go?).