Baby Update - 26 September 2009

Yesterday (Friday, Sept. 25) was Elsa Lynne’s one-month birthday, as well as her one-month pediatrician checkup. So before getting to the photos, I thought I’d update everyone on the stats…

August 28th weight – 3.18 kilos a.k.a. 6 pounds, 14 ounces
September 25th weight – 4.41 kilos a.k.a. 9 pounds, 11 ounces (slightly above average)

August 28th height/length – 50 centimeters a.k.a. 1 foot, 7.7 inches
September 25th height/length – 59 centimeters a.k.a. 1 foot, 11.2 inches (way above average)

And by the way, I don’t know if those are Mexican averages, or worldwide, or what – so Elsa’s stats may skew high down here, where people are generally smaller than in the USA. (Interesting aside - while Mexico has long been #2 to the USA's #1 on the list of the world's most obese nations, I recently heard from a friend in the know that Australia may be about to pass them both! I was surprised by this, because when I think of Australia, I think of Crocodile Dundee and other such hardy folk...) But regardless of the relative numbers, based on my calculations, by age three Elsa Lynne will be ten and a half feet tall and weigh a little over 118 pounds. Oh my goodness she will look like Shawn Bradley! Haha! But seriously, the doctor says Elsa is very, very healthy. He, like all doctors, is a big, big fan of breast feeding vs. formula feeding. Turns out that the system God designed is far superior to the pre-processed human substitute! Note: I am aware that some babies won’t take to the breast, some moms’ lives and jobs make breast feeding more of a luxury, etc. – so I’m not dogging on anyone who chooses out of preference or necessity to bottle-feed. But I am saying that, in my opinion, breast-feeding is the way to go if at all possible! And I’m so thankful both that Erin is so strong and that Elsa is such a good eater.

And boy, is she a good eater! The books all say that at this point she should be eating about six times per day. Our little princess is going strong at eight to ten. But our attitude is that as long as she’s actually eating (vs. just hooking on in search of comfort or whatever), we’ll keep feeding her! Basically, her job right now is eat, sleep, grow, rinse, repeat. And her prodigious appetite has earned her a new nickname from her daddy: “Kobayashi”, after the world-famous world-champion competitive eater whose small stature belies his ability to eat incredible amounts of food.

In other baby news, we took Elsa to the campus house for the first time on Thursday, to our weekly devo lunch called “Pozomida” (photos on facebook - just befriend El Pozo). It was really, really fun to have her there and introduce her to 70+ of her newest buddies. We really look forward to the way that our growing, changing family will enhance and multiply our ministry, and we pray not only that Elsa will grow up immersed in and surrounded by the love of her Creator, but also that she will be "salt and light" from an early age, drawing people closer to God just by being who she is.

Also, I’ve been meaning to do this – I finally looked up important events that took place on August 28th, as well as notable people who share Elsa’s birth date. Here are my top ten most interesting of each – and I must say that the “events” list is much, much stronger than the “births” list:

Events:
10. 1609 – Henry Hudson discovers Delaware Bay (I can’t think of the hilarious moment involving Delaware in the classic movie “Wayne’s World”.)
9. 1996 – Charles, Prince of Wales, and Diana, Princess of Wales, divorce.
8. 1349 – 6,000 Jews are killed in Mainz, accused of being the cause of the plague. (We have a buddy who lives in Mainz (Germany) and have visited there.)
7. 1862 – American Civil War: Second Battle of Bull Run (a.k.a. Second Battle of Manassas)
6. 1981 – The National Centers for Disease Control announce a high incidence of pneumocystis and Kaposi's sarcoma in gay men. These will soon be recognized as symptoms of an immune disorder, which will be called AIDS.
5. 1991 – Collapse of the Soviet Union: Ukraine declares its independence from the Soviet Union. Mikhail Gorbachev resigns as Secretary of the Soviet Communist Party. (We have some friends in the Ukraine.)
4. 1990 – Iraq declares Kuwait to be its newest province.
3. 1937 – Toyota Motors becomes an independent company.
2. 1961 – Motown releases what would be its first #1 hit, “Please Mr. Postman” by The Marvelettes.
1. 1963 – March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom; Martin Luther King, Jr. gives his “I Have a Dream” speech.

Births:
T10. 1958 – Scott Hamilton, American figure skater (Shout out to my friend Brad Griffies, my only connection to the figure skating world.)
T10. 1965 – Shania Twain, Canadian singer (Can’t say I really listen to her music, but I respect the fact that she’s making it…)
8. 1971 – Janet Evans, American swimmer
7. 1999 – Prince Nikolai of Denmark (Shout out to our Danish buddies Claus and Jannick! If pressed I think I would rank Denmark #1 on my list of “percentage of people I’ve met from that country whom I enjoy being around”. Nice country, Denmark. Home of Vikings, LEGOs, industrial design, a town called “Middelfart”, etc.)
6. 1957 – Daniel Stern, American actor (I think it’s a pretty weak celebrity birth date when the #2 crook from “Home Alone” ranks #6 on the list. But I really love that movie! A Christmastime classic.)
5. 1982 – LeAnn Rimes, American singer (I like her voice better than her music.)
4. 1969 – Jason Priestley, Canadian-born actor (Brandon! Also has appeared on “My Name is Earl”, one of my all-time favorite shows.)
3. 1828 – Leo Tolstoy, Russian author (I admit that I’ve actually never read any of his stuff, but I couldn’t rank TOLSTOY lower than Brandon Walsh.)
2. 1943 – Lou Piniella, American baseball manager (Sweet Lou edges out Tolstoy for the #2 spot!)
1. 1969 – Jack Black (The only one on the list I actually got excited about. If you can’t come visit us in Mexico, I think the next best thing you can do is rent the DVD of “Nacho Libre”.)

Last but not least, we’re very excited about the upcoming visit of Grandma (my mom) and Grandpa Doug (my stepdad). Can’t wait to see them loving on their granddaughter!

Okay, without further ado, some more photos of la princesa…


Family snuggle time. Lucho has been great with Elsa so far.


Nap time on "el quince" (Sept. 15th, the eve of Mexico's Independence Day). Next year is Mexico's bicentennial, by the way.


Working on that neck strength. She's holding her head up more and more each day. This time she went for almost a minute before the inevitable head butt to my clavicle.


I don't think it's exaggerating to say that the Boppy is among the greatest inventions in the history of mankind. Usually, it is used to spare arms and lower backs a great deal of weariness. Here it's being used to improvise a little rest nest on the sofa.


For better or worse, it looks like she's got her dad's crooked grin. (Also, I'm not sure why this one photo refuses to turn the right way...)


Elsa getting checked out on her one-month birthday. Praise God for a great health report.


All swaddled up and nowhere to go. The nurse wrapped her up for the ear piercing that ended up not happening because the earrings our friends gave us for her have screw clasps, and we need to get pointy ones for the first go-round.


Snuggled up in the car seat. The rumble of the VW diesel puts her right to sleep.


Play time with Mommy. So fun.


Elsa kicks back and joins us for our Saturday LOST marathon.

Thanks for the prayers!

Much love to you all from the McTrio (which, by the way, is what McDonald's value meals are called down here; sandwich, fries, drink - trio)!!!