Francis with his great-grandparents, our Christmas tree, etc.

8 weeks

Francis is definitely getting older and his temperment has changed some in the past week. While he's still having trouble with waking up every 45 minutes, he surprised us last night by sleeping for 6 hours straight! He's calmer during the day and has been able to stay entertaimed on his own for short periods of time (such as by watching the mobile over his crib). He's been smiling and talking more as well, and it's actually in response to the hilarious things we do now, rather than at the invisible things he sees on the ceiling. Francis is getting bigger as well, and we're guessing he'll be at least 11 lbs when we go to the doctor this Friday. Some of his clothing doesn't fit any longer, and he looks cramped in his Moses basket.

As you can tell from the pictures below, Francis favors facing one direction. The locations and poses are ones you've seen before, but the baby is forever changing.

6 weeks

It's been a rough week for the Grice family. Francis went from sleeping at least one 3-4 hour period each night, to literally waking up every 45 minutes. Will and Jess were like ships in the night, taking turns rocking back to sleep a baby who kept waking up. He would grunt and thrash around and sometimes scream and cry before he even woke up. Last night we put a folded towel under his mattress and he only woke up 4 times between 8pm and 8am! While it may be too soon to say Francis has turned over a new leaf, Jess and Will are hopeful. It seems like Francis may be a victim of reflux, which a lot of babies get as their stomachs get bigger around this time.

Here are a few highlights from the past week. Francis's stubborn belly button finally came off after 5 weeks so we can give him an actual bath now in his super-cool whale tub- there are probably parts of his body that have never been effectively cleaned. (Notice his receding hair line). Is it an innie or an outie? At the moment it's a little of both. Francis made his first successful trip out in public to a restaurant (well, coffee and bagels at 3pm on Sunday while he was asleep and no one else was there). Also, we managed to trick Francis into sitting in his swing while he was already sleeping, but he quickly woke up and let us know he was not happy. Finally, enjoy a short video of Francis smiling and talking.

My, that's one good looking baby

What do you call a baby who grunts in his sleep, hates his stroller, and gets milk in his ears when he eats? Francis! You'd never believe that the adorable baby pictured below sleeps only 7-8 hours a night and wakes up ready to be played with at 3am. Francis is not the type of baby that you see quietly sucking on a pacifer in the grocery store- he requires constant stimulation in the form of singing, dancing, rocking and bright lights. On most walks in his stroller Will ends up having to carry his car seat while Jess pushes an empty stroller down the street, both feeling ridiculous. These are the ends we go to to keep Francis happy, and we're doing a pretty good job. Enjoy these recent photos from Halloween, a successful stroller trip, and a short video of his enduring superior neck strength.

one month in and doing well

Francis turned one month old yesterday, and despite being very small and unpredictable, we've come a long way in figuring him out and taking care of him. We made his first "to do" list last week, and while he still needs to work on some things (such as losing his umbilical cord, learning to love his swing, and taking naps), he does most of his sleeping at night, has learned to use a bottle so long as Jessamine is not in the room, and grunts much less in his sleep. Francis is looking forward to learning how to smile and taking lots of walks before the weather gets too cold.

Getting fat (but unfortunately losing his pretty hair).































First international travel.




















Francis still has some growing to do before his overalls fit.


















A face Francis makes a lot.
















After 45 minutes of driving around, this was as close as we got to putting Francis to sleep.














Will's milk finally came in, but Francis was too smart for him.




















Success feeding Francis (who is full of air) once Jess stayed out of the room.
















A glimpse of things to come (that's spit you're looking at, not a tooth).
Francis is such a joker.

Major events in the life of a baby

Francis is not like other babies, as he has demonstrated over the past 26 days. He has gone from being a night owl, to an insomniac, to a night owl that doesn't even sleep much during the day. We are in need of an older baby to act as a mentor for Francis- teaching him that things like wearing diapers, using pacifiers, and going for a walk in the stroller are all things babies are supposed to enjoy. Even an hour-long car ride was insufficient to make Francis fall asleep several days ago. Nonetheless, he's supercute and usually good-tempered and we've decided to keep him.

Here are some of the recent major events in the life of Francis:




Photo shoots




Staring at lightbulbs

Acting theatrical

Going to the doctor

Car rides

Occasionally sleeping.

Should a 19-day old baby be this strong?