Today we saw the pediatrician and had a very good visit. That is to say, Aaron and I had a good visit as we were not the ones getting shots.
Here are the basics: Zeke is now 26 pounds and 33 inches and still has a big head. At his last visit, Zeke was under 22 pounds (in part due to a stomach virus) and about 32 inches. Yes, we grow them big around here! He actually had some sort of growth spurt recently as he practically skipped a whole size last month, so his measurements weren't much of a surprise to us. I don't know what percentiles these measurements put the boy in, as The Good Doctor never tells me these things and I then have to look on the Internet. Zeke also got two shots, one for each meaty leg. The Good Doctor pronounced Zeke exceptionally healthy and sent us on our way.
Just a few things of note:
* The doctor asked a few questions about Zeke's development like whether he talks or says any animal sounds. Zeke has not done these things more than a few times, but I did note that Zeke has been signing a lot these days. In fact, I said this twice, I guess because I am proud of this and because the doctor did not respond. Well, we now have our first disagreement with our laidback pediatrician! He told us that he has mixed feelings about teaching babies to sign (really meaning he doesn't like it) because he feels that babies do what is easiest, signing is easier than talking and babies should practice talking! In my house, however, language acquistion is language acquistion is language acquistion. Today, using signs, Zeke told me he was looking for Maggie when we got back from our walk, he told me the cats were hiding under the bed and he told me when he wanted to drink. I think he is doing a great job learning to "talk" and cannot imagine this hindering his verbal development.
* Zeke was exceptionally well behaved. We walked into the examining room and Zeke climbed up on a child's chair and was so pleased with this that he let me undress him without a fuss. Normally, our doctor is a one-man show. He has a receptionist, but otherwise he doesn't have a nurse and he is the only one to have contact with Zeke during a visit. Today, however, the doctor had an interning nurse practitioner who was observing our visit. When Zeke meets someone new, he gets very shy and has to watch them for a few minutes. So, he was quiet, busy watching everything and highly cooperative. He didn't squirm at all and he barely cried when he got his shots. The Good Doctor says that pediatricians superstitiously believe that the first patient of the day sets the tone for the rest of the day, so he was thrilled to have Zeke there. When Zeke was being perfectly still during measurements, I asked if the doctor was available for babysitting. I don't know if my insurance will cover it, but it practically takes me half an hour to get the little bugger dressed so I was very much in awe. For being a good boy, Zeke got a sticker and another appointment in three months. How big will he be then?!
...gone today! Baby got his first haircut today. I've been wanting to get it done for awhile, but as his curls are the center of much adoration, I waited until the hair started getting in his eyes. 
He did start to get a little antsy, however, when the woman cutting his hair put a smock on him. She gave him a cookie and then he realized at that moment that this was something new and possibly terrible! I didn't get many photos in as I had to help keep Zeke calm so that he didn't lose an ear. When we got home, I realized Zeke had a temperature, so there were probably a few reasons for him to be grumpy other than just his haircut.
