That Adorable Abe

Abe had his first formal photo shoot a few weeks ago. (Yes, I know, it's not like he's been neglected on film since birth, but we needed some pictures for the grandparents, uncles and aunties!) He was a bit tired for the shoot (you try to time these things just perfectly, but babies don't always consult your schedule), so we didn't get his biggest smiles. His sweet spirit shines through, though.

We paid for the digital pictures (rather than prints) so you are free to order from Picasa whichever pictures you like. I didn't realize the cheesy cartoon background was going to stay in the pictures, so I tried to do a bit of my own editing. I'm not so wild about the Looney Tunes effect that Asians seem to love.

Our little guy is keeping mommy and daddy on their toes. He's Mr. Speedy Gonzales Scooter, using his left leg to propel the rest of his body around the room (like a kid riding a scooter). He hasn't quite figured how to get the right leg to bend underneath his body for a full crawl. But we're not rushing it! He quickly discovered the cords in the apartment and is getting well acquainted with the words "Don't touch." We're working on baby proofing things, but really want him to learn to obey our warnings since we will often be in environments we can't control.

He saw the pediatrician this week, and is growing well (in the 50% percentile). 23 plus pounds!

We're looking forward to the visit of a German colleague that works in a neighboring language group (not far from our village area). Christine is in dire need of a rest after a grueling schedule with translation, and little sleep in her village house due to bullfrog mating season. Hopefully she won't mind the constant clatter of the city here.

My laptop is officially in full rebellion... it only beeps when we try to turn it on. I hadn't succeeded at a full back up before this last protest, so we'll probably need to take it to a tech to recover some hard drive files. Pray for wisdom about its replacement and patience in the process. I'm still looking for a replacement language tutor too.

Much love from the privileged parents of this adorable guy...

Abe & Family portraits

Note: I added some Burke family pictures taken in November while I was posting Abe's photos. Click on the photo directly above to access the web album. Select slideshow view for full screen viewing.