I feel a little like Jane Goodall. Not because Isaac is hairy, which he is, but because of all the close observations I have been able to make over the week and a day he has been with us. Even when he is sleeping he is still interesting.

Speaking of hair, Isaac is as hairy as a little monkey. Funny thing is I had a dream about two weeks before he was born and he was super hairy in the dream, so I focused on that detail. When he came out and was hairy I rejoiced. Even now, when I point it out people saying things like "Don't worry it will go away." I think they don't understand that I think it is AWESOME. Here is a hairy little shoulder shot:



He reminds me a little of Sonny from the Godfather with the shoulder hair. Here is Sonny:



Sorry, back on topic: interesting things Isaac does. The Sonny comparison is just too funny.

One of the things he does is what I have termed "sleep karate". He will fall asleep and enter active sleep. Then, he practices his ninja skills. There are karate chops and side kicks. Every once in a while he will let out a full-fledged flurry of kicks and punches decimating his imaginary opponents.

Isaac also likes to "ride his bike." Sometimes, especially when I am changing his diaper or cleaning his little belly button, he will rotate his legs in the air as if he were riding a bike. Then, for no real reason, he will stop and rotate his legs the other way, as if riding the bike backwards.

He also does "poop meditation". He will get very quiet and then scowl or purse his lips together and pause. He won't breathe (which is how I first noticed) and he would change his expression. His little face gets red and then--butt bubble. After that he lets out a breath and he needs a change. I suppose we all do this, it is just funny to watch a little one do it and focus so much.

Finally, there is the jetstream pee. He hit me twice today with it. He will be on the changing table, hangin' out with his lil' bitz getting cleaned and then BOOM pee. It is not a little bit either. It is a good 15 or 20 second stream. And he is so nonchalant about it. Do da do, he seems to be saying, as the pee goes everywhere. And I mean everywhere. Nanna found a sprinkle behind his ear today. He hit me twice today because I caught the first one and thought "that is it". A few seconds later he looked at me and then let loose another blast soaking my t-shirt. I could have sworn he giggled.

Oh the things he does.

Isaac Anthony is one week old today. My mom, Bianca, and I gathered in the kitchen and sang happy birthday to him. He gave us Cap'n Stinkeye.

It is funny how, in one week, I have become so attached to that beautiful boy that I cannot even really remember what it was like to not have him around. Of course I can remember when he was not here, but it is hard to think about a time when I was not, in some way, looking forward to being a Dad. Now that I am happiness abounds.

Unfortunately, grandpa had to leave us to go back to Ohio. He is very busy trying to secure the legacy of the Wright Brothers and Dayton. To that end he had some unavoidable obligations, but even in the few hours that he has been gone we all miss him a ton. Nanna is still here, providing invaluable assistance as our sleep patterns change dramatically and bonding with her grandson. Both grandparents should take comfort in knowing that Isaac will be as awed with them as I was.

All sorts of things that I did not really understand or chucked up to sentimentality over my life were elucidated as unavoidable truths. I could not, of course, see them as such before becoming a Dad. Having my Dad around as this realization dawned on me was an amazingly great experience. I have apologized for no less than a dozen things I did as a kid, such as not posing for a picture when I graduated from high school, walking on and destroying the plexiglass lenses for the kitchen lights, and not tying my shoes.

Being in the Dad club has certainly been fantastic.

Blah, blah, blah...too much sentimentality.

Here is a video of us singing Happy Birthday:

In the sing song-y language of caring for a newborn nicknames proliferate with each poop. So here are some of them, with their historical antecedents or factual origins.

Stinky Pete: this is for when he farts or poops which is all of the time.

Cap'n Stinkeye: again, for farts and poops. Cap'n Stinkeye is the captain of the Dirty Turd. Here is a picture of the seafaring gent:



Other nicknames:

Mr. Poo Poos: wow they are all voiding related names.

Dr. Pee Pees: he get the honorific because he did his first "jetstream" pee in the pediatrician's office. It went everywhere.

Chicken Wing: because of his little legs are the size of chicken wings

Sugarfoot: this is a Nanna based nickname, because every once in a while his feet bust out of the bottom of a swaddle.