The Visitors Arrive

Now begins the onslaught of aunties and uncles who come bearing red envelopes and parenting advice.
"Why is his head drooping? You're not supporting his neck!"
"Don't go to him when he cries. Just let him cry. It's good for his health!"
"Oh, he's a naughty one. He knows when he's being carried. See how quiet he is now that I'm holding him?"
"Put him in the bouncy here (in the kitchen). He should be around noise and activity."
"He's too cold. He needs a blanket."
"He's too warm. He doesn't need all those blankets."
"Feed him water if you don't have enough milk."
"His name is so complicated! I'm going to call him 'bao bao' (precious)."

My aunties kept exclaiming how "clean" his face was (in Chinese). I guess they meant that his face was clear of blemishes & marks.

Auntie Helena discovered that he has two swirls on the back of his head. Just like his mother! She says that it means that he will be good to his parents (filial piety & all that). When my grandpa found that the part in my hair was shaped like a "Y", he predicted that I would turn out to be naughty. My mom said that Atticus's large nostrils meant that he would be a big spender. I don't know how much stock they put into these Chinese superstitions, but they're fun to listen to.

They all remarked how much Atticus looks like Robby. My mom noted that "Atticus" is misspelled because it gets the red squigly line in Microsoft Word.

More relatives arriving tonight. & I am ready to eat my pigs' feet stew with ginger - a traditional Chinese stew for recovering new mothers.