For Those About to Rock

These too-cute Robeez were part of D'Arcy and Tom's welcome gift to Truman, along with a much-needed sun hat. And how appropriate that Paul's band, Militant Babies, is about to release its third CD. It's called We'd Rather Have Nothing Than Settle For Less, so be sure to check it out. After all, we need to keep Truman in diapers. (My personal favorite? "Mullets on Parade," which is a super-great ballad that I think of every time I look at the back of Truman's hair. It all falls out, right? Right?!)

Friends & Neighbors, Part Two

Leslie and Ziv stopped by with dinner from Whole Foods on Saturday. Great choices, guys! Pre-Truman, we often met L and Z for dinner and/or movie screenings, and Alison would often pal around with them during SXSW. Maybe Truman will have his own badge next year. Do they offer discounts for kids? Anyway, we decided to mix things up and have them pose with Truman in the backyard. Ah, it's the little things that make our life so exciting these days.


D'Arcy and Tom came by on Sunday. I've known them for years, and the fact that they live around the corner from our new house was one of the reasons we decided to buy it. Truman loved being held by D'Arcy. Hmmm, have we found a potential babysitter?

Truman's Trip Out

Truman's been with us for three weeks now! So we decided this past weekend it was time to get him out and let him see the world. There's a new attraction here in Austin at the old airport. They've built a small amusement park next to the Austin Studios with an Austin theme to it, I guess to attract more visitors. One of the things they have is called the Austin High Rise. It's a tower thing that takes you up so you can see the city and then drops you back down. They say it's 30 stories high:



At the park, they are letting the kids from Johnston High who are majoring in Carnival Arts at the tech school there work all the rides. They were a great help in getting Truman on to the ride. We think he really liked it. There was no sound on the camera that was attached to the capsule they put him in, but you get the idea of what a great time he was having dropping out of the sky.




Okay, just kidding. But he did take a ride in his stroller, which is still a big deal.

How Cool Is This?

The Bartons (Chris, Casey, Sage and Fletcher) gave us this amazing kids' book about film funnyman Buster Keaton. What a great gift for us! And it came "wrapped" in a reusable grocery bag, so the Bartons are doing their part to keep us green at the same time. (As Paul says, Truman's carbon footprint is pretty large these days, what with all the diapers, laundry, etc.)

Friday

Joellen stopped by this morning on behalf of the Peters clan. Although this was her first visit, the Peters (Joellen, Brian, Paul and Emmett) welcomed Truman at the hospital with an e-card and quite possibly the world's biggest chocolate chip cookie. (We're STILL eating it!) She came bearing gifts again today: a photo album, a toy guaranteed to raise Truman's IQ (in my mind, at least), and a bib/art smock for when Truman's a bit older.

Friends & Neighbors

Wilson, our good friend and former David Street neighbor, stopped by for his second visit with Truman (second photo). This time he brought relatives from NH. The Woods were enjoying Austin's warm temps and a break from the snow. Siblings Andrew and Allison (first pic) proved particularly adept at soothing a fussy Truman.

Grandmommy Returns!

We were lucky enough to have a visit from Grandmommy (a.k.a. Joyce, Paul's mom) midweek. She cooked, cleaned, soothed (mommy and Truman!) and even watched the T-man so Paul and Alison could have a lunch date. Best of all, she wasn't scared away. She and Granddad (Harvey) will be back in a couple of weeks.

A note about Truman's other grandparents: Unfortunately Grand Judy and Pop George can't fly down from NJ right now, but they've been staying in touch via phone, mail and UPS. We appreciate it!

Tuesday lunch

Teri stopped by with pizza and salad for a relaxing lunch today. (I think it helped that Paul took care of Truman while Teri and Alison visited.) Then Truman ate and took a three-hour nap. Yes!

Close-up of T-shirt

A close-up of Truman's tee, which Jeff's new silkscreen company made. Ten points to anyone who guesses the t-shirt's movie reference. (Although Jeff made the t-shirt, Truman has to take credit for the stain in the center.)

More Visits

Cara, Jeff and Mavis stopped by on Saturday to meet Truman and deliver a veggie Mexican casserole, which was quite tasty. The chocolate cake is awesome, too. Thanks, guys! (Love the puss on Mavis, who may be "pre-living" her future as she looks at Truman: Cara is due in June with their second.)

The Outside World

One of the benefits of moving into a new house in time for spring is the surprise of discovering what's growing on the property. The previous owner lavished attention on the landscaping, and we're reaping the benefits (and hopefully not killing anything in the process). This flower bloomed a few days ago. Is it me or does it resemble a giant peppermint candy, like something out of Willy Wonka? Anyway, we couldn't resist the photo op. The placement of the leaves on Truman's head is just a lucky (he might say unlucky) accident.

Close-up of MB Onesie

Cool. Yet creepy.

The Newest Militant Baby

Geoff and Netta brought us pizza from Homeslice. Geoff is in the Militant Babies band with Paul and Davis (see below). The onesie Truman is modeling is from Cara, Jeff, and Aimee (designed by Jeff's new t-shirt co.) and features the MB's first CD cover. It's a little big still, but hey—you're never too young to rock.

More Visits

"Uncle Vincie" meets a camera-shy Truman. Unbeknownst to us until after Vince left, the half-opened box to his left is actually a present from him and his mom, Caren. They gave Truman a sweet overall/shirt/cardigan combo AND a stuffed cat, who now resides in Truman's crib.

Gravy Train Kicks Off

Davis and Rae meet Truman. They were the second of our many generous friends to bring dinner. (Stephanie and Ted stopped by on Sunday, but we forgot to take their photo with Truman. So much for that digital camera.) Unfortunately Alison had to excuse herself midway through to tend to fussy Truman, but Rae's ziti casserole was delish. Thanks, guys!

You Would Think....

a name like Truman would be fairly error-proof. But from the looks of this UPS mailing label, I guess not. Gruman. It's growing on us.

Let the embarrasment begin

Here's a video of a bath we gave Truman yesterday. I still haven't gotten the hang of the new video camera, and for some reason I lost the sound on the transfer, so I added some background music to give a feel of what it was like to be there.

Welcome, Truman!

Here's our first family photo with Truman; we look proud, he is already bored with the paparazzi:


Note my spiffy hospital scrubs. They were out of the paper ones they usually give to dads, so I got a set of doctor's scrubs. When I walked into our hospital room wearing them, a nurse's aid saw me and rushed me down the hall, yelling something about an emergency. Long story short, there's a set of twins in Austin now named "Paul" and "Mitchell."

And here's something for the archives:



More later when we have more time. Thanks!