Monday, April 26, 2010

Callie's Just 'Cause Giveaway

My friend Callie is having a giveaway of some pretty sweet items over at Through Clouded Glass.  You should go check it out. :)

Thanks for being such an awesome blogger, Callie! :)

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Parenthood: Week 7

Ah, seven weeks have now passed.  Crazy!  Things are going very well.  On Monday I went to the doctor for my 6-week postpartum checkup and was taken off all restrictions, which was pretty exciting.  Krewson is smiling more and more and becoming more and more responsive.  He's started batting at the toys hanging from his playmat with his arms.  I don't know whether it's on purpose or by accident, but I like to pretend he knows what he's doing. :)

He started occasionally sleeping through the night this past week, which was completely unexpected but absolutely wonderful.  I've gotten chunks of seven hours of sleep.  I don't think I'll ever take chunks of sleep for granted again.  Once you've been deprived, you understand how truly important uninterrupted sleep is.  Seven hours of sleep added up over 9 or 10 hours cannot ever compare with 7 hours of sleep in a row.  If you don't believe me, go ahead and try it out.  Set your alarm to go off a couple times a night and stay out of bed for 30 to 45 minutes each time.  The next day you'll understand what I'm talking about. :)

I had read that babies get fussier and fussier until they are 8 to 12 weeks old, and I'm definitely seeing this with Krew.  Thank goodness he's sleeping well at night, because the days are often less than fun.  Although he smiles a ton when things are going his way, "his way" entails eating every 2 hours and being held at least 80% of the time in between.  Otherwise he fusses or screams his head off.  His lungs are clearly getting stronger with the rest of his body, because his cries can be ear-splitting.  I actually once covered his mouth with my hand because I thought my eardrum might burst.  I can't imagine what it sounds like inside his little head.  Poor guy.  Probably gives himself baby headaches all the time.

At seven weeks old on Friday, according to my at-home measurements, Krew weighed about 12 lbs and was around 24 inches long.  That means he's gained around 3 1/2 lbs and grown 3 inches.  In seven weeks.  That's some fast growing!  No wonder that all babies want to do is eat and sleep.  Producing that much body in that little time has to be exhausting.

Alright I think that's about it for week 7.  Enjoy the pics. :)

Grandpa Todd, Grammie, and Uncle Danny came for a visit.





one of Mommy's favorite sleepers

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Talk to Me Tuesday: God Refresher

Ever since Krewson was born, my relationship with God has very sadly gone by the wayside.  I need to move it back up to top priority, but I'm having difficulty finding the motivation.  I don't know where to start.  I know I need daily time with Him, but I'm lacking the conviction I need.

Any suggestions for refreshing my relationship with God?  What has worked for you when you've been at a point like this in your life?

Friday, April 16, 2010

Parenthood: Week 6

The past week has gone pretty well. :)  Krew has begun looking us in the eyes and responding with big grins, which is so wonderful.  It's so great to get a little love back. I can also tell he's getting smarter.  One night he was fussing in his crib, and I walked into his room to find him making lots of little wails. As soon as he saw me, however, the wails stopped and a big smile spread across his face.  It melted my heart.

He also seems to be discovering his hands.  He'll open and close them, open and close them, over and over.  He's also started sucking on his fist, which is great because it means he's learning self-soothing techniques.

Last weekend he and I went with Emily and Ellie to our first playgroup.  Krew wasn't quite ready to crawl around the room with the other kids, but it was nice to be around other babies nonetheless.  Emily and I found outfits for Krew and Ellie a couple days earlier that matched, so we dressed them in the outfits for playgroup and made sure to take some pictures.  You can see them below. :)

I'd say the other big event for this week is that I got mastitis.  (For those of you who don't know, it is a breast infection from nursing, with symptoms that include feeling like you have the flu.)  I went to the doctor yesterday and got a prescription, but I've been fighting chills, fever, and all-over body aches while I'm waiting for the meds to kick in.  It's honestly been quite miserable.  Dave had to come home from work yesterday to take care of Krew, and he's home again today.  Thank goodness for a caring, loving husband.

Alright I think that's about all for this week.  Enjoy the pics. :)

My daddy's belly is super comfy.

At playgroup with Emily and Ellie!


The whole playgroup

This outfit was super baggy on me when I came home from the hospital!





Hanging out in Daddy's arms while he's home taking care of me since Mommy's sick.

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Mobile Time

This is a video for all our family members who miss the new littlest member to the family tree.  Entertainment from the wonderful Krewson Lee himself.  He loves you and misses you!

Friday, April 9, 2010

Parenthood: Week 5

Today Krewson is five weeks old.  The days are flying by!

Last Sunday was Krew's first Easter (obviously :) ).  He had a great day.  We went to an outdoor church service in the morning and then had Easter dinner with our friends.


Easter afternoon through Wednesday evening, my friend Audrey came to visit.  It was so wonderful to have her here.  We had tons of fun and she was an amazing help with Krew.  I got to take a couple long showers and even a nap one day. :)



Baby with an attitude.

Krew still loves his cuddle time with Mommy and Daddy.  It was so hot for a couple days that we stripped him down to his diaper to keep him cool.

He's begun getting really fussy in the late evenings.  Last night he had to be swaddled and sitting in my arms or he was crying.  Well, it was dinner time and I was starving, so I just ate while holding him.  Apparently I need a bit more practice.


Ooops!

Monday, April 5, 2010

One Month Old

Krewson turned one month old today!

I want to take a picture of him at each month "birthday".  I think I'm going to make sure his giant alligator stuffed animal is in each picture so we can see how he's grown from one month to the next. 

So here is his one month picture. :)

Saturday, April 3, 2010

Parenthood: Week 4

Our baby boy turned 4 weeks old yesterday!

Things are going very well. :)  Krew continues to grow and develop and we see him doing new and exciting things every day.  (Well, ok, whether or not they're exciting to you may be up for debate.  But they're definitely exciting to us.)  He "talks" all the time, and I love responding to his grunts and squeaks and having conversations with him.   He got his first real bath last weekend, and to our delight didn't seem to mind it.  At least he didn't scream for it like he would for the sponge baths we had to do before his umbilical cord stump fell off.  He continues to bless us with more and more smiles, and he now occasionally stands on his feet when I hold him under the armpits.  He's also getting better at holding his head up.  He's a strong little boy! 

The most challenging thing this past week was probably his eating schedule.  The boy wanted to eat all the time.  During the day he ate for 30 to 40 minutes of every two hours.  Which means I was spending over a quarter of my waking hours feeding him, and I had about an hour-and-fifteen-minute window where I could take him somewhere, go on a walk, try to get him down for a nap, etc.  It was insane.  At night he would go 3 to 4 hours between feedings, which wasn't great but at least gave me a little rest.  Luckily he's slowed down with the eating over the last two days.  I'm praying it'll stay slow for a while and that he was just going through a growth spurt.  I was starting to feel like the child and I were permanently attached.

Here are a few pictures to share.  :)

My first bath!!

Towel time after my bath and dressed in my snazzy overalls for church.

Feels like home to me...

I like naps with Daddy.


This is how Mommy's been carrying me around lately.


We went on a picnic at the park, and it was really hot.  Mommy stripped me down to my diaper to cool me off but I was still really crabby.  Mommy's pretty good at soothing me, though, and before long...

I was cool as a cucumber. :)


Thursday, April 1, 2010

Newborn Photo Shoot

When Krewson was 9 days old, our friend Jen Quirk did a newborn photo shoot for us.  I wanted to be sure to write a post and share my favorites.  She did an amazing job. :)  Check her out (Jen Quirk Photography) at jenquirkphotography.blogspot.com. :)