"Real Time" Smiles...

After seeing a glimpse of his first smile a few weeks back... we are now getting regular smiles in response to our talking and cooing to Andrew. Here's a little sample! Try to ignore the silly baby talk on my end... or just mute your speakers! ;)

Ode to my husband...

While you never truly know how you'll react to a situation until you're there, I really did know that Brandyn would be a great Dad. Anyone who's seen B around kids can see how patient, silly, and loving he is with them. In fact... I used to be the "kid" person in my family. Little kids always wanted to play with me... that is... until Brandyn came around... then they found a new "toy."

So long before we were even pregnant, I knew Brandyn would be a great Dad. What I didn't expect, was what a great partner he would be for ME during it all. Amongst many things he does for me, he...
- Wakes up with each middle of the night feeding, changes Andrews diaper, lets me shake off the sleep for a few minutes, and brings Andrew to me for his feeding.
- While I'm feeding, he regularly checks with me to see if I need water, food... or the TV remote!
- Has cooked/prepared more meals in the last few weeks than he has practically in our entire marriage! :)

And so many, many more. Love you Babe!

Adventures in baby feeding!

I'm relieved to say that so far, feeding Andrew, has been a relatively non-complicated task. I'm breastfeeding... and we've been very lucky not to run into any issues (latch or supply). However, "easy" as it may be, breastfeeding is still the hardest part of motherhood for me so far. Yes, the sleepless nights are hard... trying to interpret his cries, his needs... but even more than that is the fact that for the last month, I have been "attached" to this little being 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For someone as independent as I am... that is REALLY hard.

Brandyn has nicely suggested on several occasions that I run out to Target for an hour or something... but Andrew is still feeding so irregularly, that I'm too nervous to leave, as I assume Andrew will throw a hung screaming fit, and poor Brandyn will be stuck listening to it.

I know that eventually I'll have to leave him... I mean, I will be going back to work mid-June. And so, that is why this week, I started pumping. On Wednesday we attempted our first try with a breastmilk bottle. For whatever reason... it was a disaster. Andrew screamed and cried, but Brandyn kept at it until we couldn't handle Andrew's cries anymore.

Yesterday, I reached out to several of my friends who breast/bottle feed for advice. They suggested that I not be in the room when Brandyn feeds... that we try to feed Andrew before he gets too hungry... that we make sure the milk is body temperature... and that the Playtex Drop In bottle seems to work best. Well, I'm not sure which of those factors did it... but it worked like a charm!


Watching Brandyn feed Andrew was a GREAT moment for me. Not only was it fun and sweet to see Brandyn interact with Andrew in such a nurturing manner, but also... Brandyn's feeding Andrew... means FREEDOM for me!!

Happy One Month Birthday Andrew!!

Today is Andrew's "one month" birthday! I've seen a lot of blogs where people write "milestones" each month to say what the baby has been doing, etc. Well... at a little over 4 weeks... not a whole lot has changed here. But... here's what's new.

- Andrew has started smiling (as you can see below).
- He tracks/follows noises, like when we shake a toy in the air and move it from side to side.
- He gets some belly time each day... and is getting better and better at holding his head up and moving around.
- His legs are also pretty strong. When Brandyn sets Drew across his lap... Drew kicks B's stomach until his little head is hanging off B's legs.
- He's eating like a champ and growing, growing, growing. Our home scale says he's 10.4 pounds!

(For those who're interested... the onesie came from my friend Meg at SerendipityGoods).

SMILES!!

Ok, so I admit, the ceiling fan is getting just as many smiles as I am... but still they are SUPER cute none-the-less! Here are a few I was able to capture on camera...

Easter celebration!

Did you know that babies get candy at Easter time too? Thanks Grandma & Grandpa C - Andrew's Mom and Dad liked that VERY much! :)


We spent the after noon last Sunday at my brother's house. Here's a pic of our newly expanded family!

It Won't Be Like This for Long...

Last week I wrote about "Living in the moment"... and today I heard a song the reflected those very feelings. On today's Oprah one of her guests was country music star (and former Hootie and the Blowfish lead singer) Darius Rucker. His new song "It won't be like this for long" truly touched my heart. (And made me cry).

A few recent pics!

Last weekend my friend Janessa and her family came to visit Andrew. While they were here, Janessa pulled out her camera and took a few shots of Andrew and us. Here are a couple of my favorites.

Andrew meets his cousins!

Last weekend Brandyn's brother and his family came to visit. It was great seeing Bryan and Shelly, Leslie (age 6) and Alex (6 mons)! Andrew loved it too!


This past weekend my brother and his family came. Ryan, Katie, Evey (almost 3) and their dog Pip! We had a very nice visit... and enjoyed all of Evey's songs, "pets" and coo's for Baby Andrew. Turn up your speakers - this video clip is adorable!!

Living in the momment... is hard!

When you're living a child free life... but wanting to start a family, all you can think about is being PG. When I first got pregnant, all I could think about was watching my belly grow bigger and bigger. When my belly DID get bigger, all I could think about was the arrival of our baby. And now that he's here... and he's two weeks old... all I can think about is when he's 3 months... and eating better... or 6 months... and sleeping better... etc., etc., etc.

Living in the moment is hard. And while I appreciate all the people who through out my pregnancy tried to remind me to "treasure this time"... its so very hard to... when you're in the middle of it all.

And so, I'm taking this moment... stepping back... and trying to "live in the moment" of having a precious two week old son.

If I wasn't sleep deprived, I'd sit back and treasure... the sleepy eyes and sweet, sweaty head sticking to my chest as Andrew and I lay together late into the night and early in the morning.

If I wasn't counting down the minutes until he is hungry again, I'd sit back and treasure... Andrew's beautiful blue eyes, his button nose, and his plump lips as he nurses at my breast.

If I wasn't worrying at every minute if I'm doing this parenting thing right...I'd sit back and treasure... Andrew's adorable coo's, grunts, and groans as he fights sleep, laying in my arms.

If I wasn't itching to get on the computer and write my next blog entry, And I'd walk out to the living room and cuddle with my two boys... who are currently sleeping together on the couch..

How many Mommies does it take to care for a newborn?

The answer is TWO.

Earlier this week, the principal at Brandyn's school called him and asked if he could make B a "deal" on his time off. B was supposed to have this week off... but the principal really needed/wanted B to come in... so he offered that if B worked Thur. and Fri. this week, he could have all next week off (since they are only doing SAT testing). GREAT deal!

So we called up my mom, who was supposed to come up and stay next week and asked if she could come a week early. She's been here since Wednesday, and BOY has she made our lives easier. She's been cooking, cleaning, holding Andrew, entertaining Andrew, and most of all... watching him from 9:30 p.m. until his next feeding (around midnight or 1 a.m.)... allowing BOTH Brandyn and I to get a VERY nice chunk of sleep.


What ARE we going to do when she's gone?!?