Rafi's Visage, Take Forty-Seven

Rafi is, perhaps, the most photographed baby in the world. At right is an assortment of my favorite portraits of Rafael Henry, posted today, his four month birthday! They are all from the past month. Sigh...

August was a prolific month: I completed my master's degree from the LBJ School of Public Affairs (FINALLY and with many thanks to all those in Austin who scuttled about to make it happen long distance), Nicole returned her edited book manuscript; and I went back to work!

But most of all, we're relishing the many Rafi developments that happen seemingly every day. He is almost rolling over on his own, he has belly laughs now, he loves to play airplane (the biggeest, dimple-est smiles erupt in the air), and he has slept through the night three times! 7 pm bedtime, 6 am wake time. He's a wonder baby.

Cutest Baby Ever

I've shared this photo with many folks already, but it's too darn cute not to post here. I love the Don Ho outfit (which he wore in the family photo in Houston).

Greetings from Maine!

Happy 37th birthday to Nicole! And happy three month birthday to Rafi! To celebrate, we packed up the car and drove to see Great Grandma Phyllis in Maine where Nic has been going since she was, well, about Rafi's age. It was a fun trip -- Rafi went swimming in the ocean for the first time! Well, sort of -- he put his feet in a tidal pool. I worked diligently on my LBJ final project, and got ever closer to finishing... and we took lots of walks on the beach with the baba. We love the Bjorn (thanks, Gretchen!)

From top:

Adorable Rafi going to the library

Great grandma with a smiling Rafi

Mommy and Rafi post-swim (sun hat courtesy of Aunt Stacy)

Mama and Rafi on the beach on a chilly day

Texas Fun

A few images to capture the incredible family-fest that was our Houston trip at the end of July. Rafi was an angel (called so by several passengers around him) on the flight down and back, and many hugs and kisses were given by his cousins (Truman, Cameron, Anna, Jourdan, Georgia, and Jenna). It was a wonderful time for all, and we are so happy Rafi made his first trip to the Lone Star State!

From top:

Cousins Anna and Jourdan with Rafi (on the day of the family portrait)

Self portrait with cousins Anna and Georgia, Aunt Tirza, Paige, Nicole, and Rafi

Saying goodbye to grandma, July 30

Welcome Rafi shower (and yummy cake) with Grandma and Grandpa in the background

Rafi returns from Texas!

Many wonderful photos from this great family excursion to the heat of Houston, but this one picture will have to do for now: Rafi in his cowboy hat from Aunt Stacy. He wears it well.

More soon, but scary computer action (God help me if I lose all 800+ photos of the baby!) prevent me from posting more. My iBook is 6+ years old and is acting its age...

Fauxhawk

As we all know Rafi has a gorgeous head of hair. But what many don't know is that Rafi's hair has transforming abilities: when he's just out of the bath, it's very curly. Then it dries perfectly straight (see pics below of his clean cut, Beaver Cleaver look). And sometimes his hair is wavy, landing somewhere in between the two extremes.

Rafi is amenable (most of the time) to my hair brushing and styling. The look in this picture -- hip, urban casual -- occurred naturally after Rafi woke from a nap. I fluffed it a just a bit to make it into a semi-fauxhawk.

Lech Walesa comes to visit

Texas friend (now a landscape architect in L.A.) Lech (aka Alexa) visited Rafi and his moms in mid-July. This photo is from an outdoor concert. I love this shot of both of them -- power to the people.

A later occurance: my computer DID crash; RIP to the iBook. A new one is on the way and, hopefully, the computer tech guys were able to back up all our files (including those 800+ pics of Rafi!). Then, once my final LBJ project is done, I'll be back with lots more photos of the Houston visit to see the family...

RAFAEL HENRY SMILES

Not much else to say except here's the boy, finally showing his big grin and a couple of shots of him in various stages of smiling. Heartbreaking, really.

The smiles come fast and furious now, so I will try to rotate the Rafi smile photo often.

Two months old today!

Happy birthday to Rafi! He turns two whole months today. Here's a photo of him at the ripe old age, already looking very wise.

We've been enjoying the summer (thank God the heat has broken and we are now enjoying the summers as they should be, which is mid-70s and no humidity.) -- taking long walks at the lake with Stella and Rafi, eating ice cream, sitting in the hammock w/ Rafi while he naps. Pretty nice.

Aunt Kimmy was here for a visit and we had lots of fun. Here's a shot from her stay.

Documentation of the smile coming soon...I can feel it.

Summertime (and procrastination)

It's summertime in the Berkshires! I should be working on my final LBJ project but instead I'm writing about Rafi.

It's HOT today -- 92 degrees -- which doesn't sound too bad for July, especially if you're from Texas, but if you don't have A/C (which we don't) it's pretty toasty.

Here is a pic of Rafi in his summer gear -- his diaper and that's about it. He would probably prefer to lose the diaper as well, and we do occasionally give him a break from wearing it. But for those of you who have baby boys, you know this can be a dangerous venture.

In other news: Rafi took his first road trip last week to Philly. We drove down for my b-day and to see dear friends Christian, Sunila, and Sahil. He had a good time. Rafi will take his first plane trip to Houston to meet the whole Bartels family including all his cousins, aunts, and uncles at the end of the month -- he can't wait! He's especially excited to meet Grandpa Ralph and see Grandma Wanda again.

Aunt Kimmy arrives tomorrow. More fun for Rafa (another nickname I like).

The many faces of Rafi

Rafi is six weeks old today!

He's beginning to develop quite a range of sounds, coos, cries, and facial expressions. The most coveted of those expressions is, of course, the elusive smile, which comes at unexpected times and is hard to catch on film. It's a bit like whale watching -- you catch a tail end every now and again but when you develop the film, the pictures show something that is only identifiable to the person who was actually there...

Until I triumph and get the timing down, with my finger on the button at exactly the right second, these three rafilicious faces will have to suffice.

Rafael's family members

Some friends were wondering just where the other family members are on this blog. So we decided to make an appearance.

Speaking of appearances, being (ahem) in my fourth decade -- and operating on a fourth the amount of sleep I am accustomed to -- means the photo ops are not the appealing moment they once were. But here's a pic of me at the grandmas' lake house, by the pond when Rafi was just a 10 days old.

Nic's photo is from last week, and I think she looks luminous. I think motherhood agrees with us.

And let's not forget Stella! She's loving Rafi, too. Lots of licks to the head. Here she is resting quietly while Rafi does the same...

Next up (hopefully): a glimpse of Rafi's elusive smile!

Newsbreak: Rafi takes a nap!

Rafael is a very good morning sleeper (well, any time of the day really).

These photos were taken out on the porch this morning (his preferred spot for morning snoozes, usually on one of our chests). It's a pretty nice routine, really: coffee (for his parents), a few books (current favorite: "Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See?" given to him by his Aunt Kimmy), a gander at the garden, then sleep.

The second shot looks pretty psychedelic. I think he likes all the bright colors -- for those of you who've not seen the porch, it's colorful but not that crazy.

Rafi turns one month old!

Rafael had his one month check up today with his pediatrician, Dr. McDermott. He did not enjoy himself. This shot, which I happen to think is the most sublime photo of him to date, was taken just hours before the dreaded appointment.

The good news is that Rafi gained a pound this week! He's now weighing in at 8 lbs, 3.5 ounces. He's also shot up in height, now standing 21.5 inches tall. Watch out.

Rafi's friend Sahil comes for a visit

Rafi's friend Sahil came for a visit last weekend. Here they are in the garden in our backyard, checking out the flowers. Sahil sweetly gave Rafi a few of the cherished and rare clover flowers he picked from the yard. Sahil's mom then made him a bracelet from the bouquet which Sahil wore for a minute then promptly broke in two.

Rafi yawns

This picture was taken when Rafi was very tired. Given that he sleeps a lot, the yawns should be easy to catch. But not so. There's a myth in Hinduism that when baby Krishna yawned, his mother saw the entire universe in his mouth. All I saw was Similac on his tongue.

The Raf Star!

Let us introduce to you, the one and only Rafiloo! The amazing and divine Rafael Henry, born May 16, 2007 and ecstatically welcomed into our home three days later...