Oh-Bla-Di

Angela Mildon came back to our house when Noah was exactly a week old to do his newborn shoot.  As expected, she did a fantastic job and we got so many great shots that we love.  We acquired the digital files, so can share them here with you as well as hang them all over our house.     Not really much to say except, thanks, Angela, for the great work and enjoy everyone!

And, now, what may be my two most favorite pictures ever.

Dear Noah,

It’s been four weeks since you became a part of our family. I can’t help but wonder what you think of it so far. If I had to guess, I’d imagine you think it’s pretty noisy, but otherwise ok. Certainly, you’ve spent the last month being loved, adored, and documented to within an inch of your life. Hope that doesn’t leave you too terribly grouchy.

So far, you’ve been a pretty chill baby. You sleep a TON during the day…pretty much the whole time your big sister is gone to school. Your awake hours are conveniently after your daddy gets home from work, so we all get to enjoy seeing your bright eyes in the evenings. You’re just starting to really wake up and take a look at the world around you, so we’ve been spending more time with the playmat and working on tracking toys with your eyes and putting in some tummy time.

You’re still a champion eater and are gaining weight at a pretty good clip. We had a day last week when you decided it would be fun to spit up enormous amounts of the contents of your stomach, which wasn’t really so awesome. I spent the evening researching acid reflux and dairy allergies and then a very long night trying to get you to nurse on a different schedule than you wanted. Turns out you’re probably not really bothered by anything I have eaten, but have a “full line” like your daddy. If your tank is too full, your little tummy will do what it has to get rid of the excess. This will become even more interesting when you eat your first cotton candy or too much pizza. So much fun (and laundry) in our futures!

Although you were an amazing sleeper for the first couple of weeks we had you home, you’ve slowly transitioned to a two-hour stretch kind of guy. Guess you really are one of our kids after all. Hopefully, we’ll find a way to stretch your sleep back out to four hour experiences…especially when I go back to work in a couple of weeks. You’re still pretty cute, though, when you snuggle in and sleep on your pillow on the couch. Kinda wish I had the stamina to go without sleep to allow that kind of cute behavior for longer. But, you’re going to have to learn to sleep at night sooner than later, buddy boy.

Just wanted you to know, Noah, that you’re a loved baby boy. We’re all so excited you’re here! Happy one month, little guy.

9/28/10 Edit:
Stats from one month checkup: 10 lbs, 10 oz & 22 in. Doc says, “Wow. He’s a big baby!”

These two are such good buddies these days. Right now, they’re at her coloring table, drawing her monster, the one she hides from and plays with every day. What an imaginative girl and what an awesome daddy.

9/21/10 Edit:

And here are the drawings…from her words to Matt’s markers….

And these things just “keep her company.”  Not scary, not something she’d rather not see….these are her friends!  What a gal, huh?

Another lesson in parenting two children….equal blog time.    Here’s a little update on our favorite girl.

*******

Now that we’ve all had a couple of weeks to adjust to the idea of having another person in our house, Ava’s begun to settle down into her new normal.  She became quite the high energy kid for the couple of weeks while she was home with us, but she’s gone back to school this week and is getting a bit more back to normal.  Having a baby come to class twice a day with her has made her a bit of a rockstar at school, so I think she’s enjoying a little of that attention as well.

She’s still dressing up into a variety of costumes any time she has a chance.  Whoozy has a very active imagination and we hear all kinds of stories about princesses, monsters, spiders, and various other creatures all day long.  A few days ago, she asked for a magic wand at breakfast.  Ten minutes later, Matt & I had managed to cobble something together for her.  Seriously, happiest kid on the planet.

In spite of some of the early challenges, we’re really excited that Ava loves her baby brother so much and has found her space in our new family of four.  She’s a great helper with his diapers and she chooses his outfit every morning.  She gets excited when he’s awake to look at her and is even ok with his crying.  Just yesterday, she reminded me as I tried frantically to get him to stop before we left in the van, “Mommy, he’s ok.  He just needs a little cry.”

Our girl is wise beyond her years and turning into a wonderful big sister.  So, so proud of her.  Love you, Pappers.

So, we’re two weeks in to this two kids thing and it’s going pretty ok so far. Of course, we’ve had lots of help in the form of delivered meals and visiting grandparents, but Noah’s also been a pretty chill kiddo. Since Noah’s hit a milestone that requires a doctor’s visit (so many of those in our future!), I thought it might be time for a little list to share all about him.

At two weeks, Noah…

*Is a champion eater. No issues and that has made all the difference in my frustration levels. Feeding was the most challenging part of the first two weeks with Ava, and I’m so grateful that we’ve been able to work this important function out so quickly.

*Definitely looks like he’s gained a good bit of weight…and, we found out at his appointment today that he has!  Noah weighed in at 8lbs, 12 oz, and was 21.25 in.  Baby boy is getting big!

*Is staying awake for longer stretches during the day. Doozy’s now able to keep his eyes (which we think are going to be blue) open for hour long stretches two or three times a day. We try to make sure one of those hours is between 7pm and 9pm.

*Goes to bed at 9pm and usually wakes up to be fed between 2am and 3am. Glorious. It’s not even so bad that he’s usually up at 6am, since that’s when we get up with Ava anyway.

*Is getting more comfortable with the idea that his arms are attached to his body and, sometimes, they flail around. He sleeps in a Woombie at night (thanks for the tip, Sara!) which seems to keep him very happy, but he’s getting better at sleeping unswaddled during the day.

*Has giggled at us….twice! Noah is very ticklish and will laugh when tickled. He also smiles quite a bit. And, yes, I’m certain it’s not just gas.

*Sleeps right through his sister’s hooting and hollering, but also doesn’t seem to mind her Eskimo kisses and affection when he’s awake.

To sum it up, we sure love our little guy and we’re excited that he’s growing so well and so happily!  Looking forward to sharing more again soon!