Andrew's 1 Month Birthday

Today we are celebrating Andrew's one month birthday. The days truly have flown by. I am excited to announce that Andrew has gained weight! As of Monday, he weighed 8.03 lbs so he is now back over his birth weight. We were also told that we can stop supplementing his feedings.

He is staying awake a bit more these days. He actually enjoyed laying on his playmat for about an hour today. The picture below was taken today.

Andrew is already on the move!

Week 2 of Andrew's life proved very eventful. On our first attempt to start "tummy time," Andrew within a minute of being on his tummy rolled from his tummy onto his back. Ben and I were amazed! This task which took Caroline a whopping 7 months to master only took Andrew days. We thought it was just a fluke at first and that folks wouldn't even believe us...but every single time we put Andrew on his tummy, he just rolls over...so can someone tell me how we are to accomplish tummy time or if he even needs it? Last week, we managed to capture this milestone on video (see above). Caroline of course wanted to join in the fun, so you'll be amused by how our TWO "babies" can rollover :)

WEIGHING IN ON ANDREW:

As of last Friday Andrew weighed in at 7.03 lbs...still not up to his birth weight of 7lbs 10oz. I am supplementing an ounce of formula with each feeding and we have another checkup tomorrow. He looks to be gaining some weight. His face seems a bit fuller and he actually has a little bit of meat on his legs (as opposed to the skeleton legs he had last week). He is a great eater, so I can't imagine that he is not picking up weight (I'll keep you updated).

Andrew is now sleeping 5 hours and then 3 hours at a time during the night. He is also staying awake a bit more between feedings. Aside from rolling over, he has also started batting his toy on his car seat carrier and his sporadic smiles are coming more frequently (love those). He is a bit gassy these days and the bubbles in his tummy sound just pitiful (I plan to check w/ the doc about this). So far, he appears to be even more laid back than Caroline was as a baby (very few crying spells and he even deals well w/ his constant tummy bubbles, hiccups and blowouts).

Score on diaper changing sprays (to date):

Ben: 2 (too slow during diaper changings)

Barbara: 1 (diaper wasn't fixed right and he peed out the side during a feeding -- yep, even my jeans got wet).

LIFE WITH A 2 YR OLD:

Caroline continues to be a great BIG Sister -- fetching diapers, holding Andrew's paci in his mouth, bringing Andrew toys and looking after him when they ride in the back seat together. She genuinely LOVES her brother. Caroline likes to call him "Baby An-rew" (I wonder how long that will last...wouldn't it be funny if she still calls him this when they are older--doubt it will stick).

Balancing two is fairly easy at this point, especially when one sleeps all of the time (Andrew) and the other sleeps all through the night and takes great naps (Caroline). Most of our attention is actually devoted to Caroline at this point since she has recently found her free will :). This week's challenge: Caroline can lock and unlock doors. She is helpful with this new skill (she loves letting Dixie out the back door); but unfortunately, she likes to use her new found skill without permission. This week's conversation went something like this:

(Caroline unlocks the back door)

Caroline: Dixie wanna go outside? Ok...here you go (door opens then slams and is locked)

Ben: Caroline, you can't let Dixie out without mommy or daddy's permission (daddy goes and calls Dixie back inside). Caroline, do you understand.

Caroline: But, Dixie wanted to go outside. I can let her outside all by myselfs. (yes, she adds and "s" sound to the end of myself).

Ben: Caroline, what did daddy tell you. If you do it again, you are going to time out. Do you want to go to time out?

Caroline: Yes, I go to timeout.

Ben: I said if you do it again, you are going to time out. Understand.

Caroline: Crying, but I do wanna go to timeout!! (now total meltdown phase).

Oh, the joys of a 2 yr old! And the other fun announcement this week: when we go to change her diaper (which we are trying to head toward potty training)...Caroline: But I do wanna wear a dirty diaper! (Argh!!) Gotta love 'em!

BREAKING DOWN ON MY FIRST OUTING OUT:

I enjoyed my first outing with the two kiddos this past week by venturing out to the mall to grab a quick bite to eat with my mom. Fortunately, I was meeting my mom, because after lunch I returned to head home and discovered my van battery was dead--what luck! (and I was blocked in on all sides so I couldn't even have it jumped off). So on my first outing, my mom had the pleasure of getting to shuttle us all back to my house--thanks mom!

MEETING MORE OF THE FAMILY:

This week Andrew also got to meet his Aunt Ansley and Uncle Larry. I don't think I have ever seen two people enjoy holding a baby as much as they did -- my how your emotions and feelings change toward babies when you are expecting one of your own! Aunt Ansley is 17 weeks pregnant and looked beautiful as ever...she definitely has the prego glow. We can't wait to hear the gender of baby Mays in a few weeks. This is definitely shaping up to be an exciting year for our family.

Andrew's Two Week Review

It's hard to believe that tomorrow Andrew will be two weeks old. These last two weeks have flown by. Andrew has endured a lot of first in these past two weeks:

First Nail Cut:

Yes, I had to cut Andrew's nails the day we got home from the hospital. For some reason he came out w/ a nail set as long as mine. I have honestly never seen finger nails on a baby this long. I wish I had an up close picture of his nails, but even without a picture his nails are something that I will always remember.

First Car Ride:

We came home from the hospital on Friday, Feb 20th. After I was released by my doctor and Andrew by his Pediatrician, we were sent home to begin our new life as a family of FOUR. My parents kept Caroline over the weekend so that Ben and I could get adjusted to having a new baby in our home before Caroline came back home. Andrew seemed so small in his carseat. It was strange placing him in what once was Caroline's infant seat. In some ways it seems like only yesterday that we were bringing Caroline home the hospital.

First Night in His New Home:

We gladly welcomed Andrew into our home. Although his nursery is all ready, we are keeping Andrew in a bassinet in our room for these first few weeks (it just makes the night time feedings much easier). Andrew had a good first night. He slept in 3 hour spurts. The second night home, however, he just seemed to want to cuddle (meaning he was fine sleeping in your arms, but the minute you went to put him down, he would cry). As we struggled to get some sleep, Ben finally had an old trick from our first sleepless nights with Caroline come to mind...the idea literally was like a light bulb going off -- Turn on the lamp is what Ben remembered we should do...and with one click on the lamp, miraculously Andrew was immediately silent. We've determined both of our children seem to have a fear of the dark (at least when they are sleeping in our room). So yes, for those of you that are wondering, Ben and I are sleeping each night with a lamp on in our room. I'm wishing I still had my night blinders to use, but Ben thought they were silly years ago when we first married so he threw them out...Argh!

First Trip to the Pediatrician:

On Saturday after being released from the hospital on Friday, Andrew met his new pediatrician. At this appointment we discovered that Andrew had dropped an entire pound...he now weighed in at only 6lbs 10oz. The doc was a bit concerned about his coloring and sagging skin, not to mention the huge drop in weight, so we were sent back to the hospital for another billirubin blood test. The doc thought his condition had probably peaked, but wanted to continue seeing us for weight checks. Since his initial appointment, Andrew has been 2 more times and has gained 3oz. As of today, he is no longer losing weight but is not gaining either, so I will have to take him back "again" this Friday for another weight check (they want to see this lil' fellow pick up the weight).

At Andrew's first pediatrician's appointment, we discovered that in addition to dropping a pound, Andrew shrunk in size...yes, I said it, "he shrunk." When the doc measured him, she said he was 20" and I said, "how can that be, he was registered as being 21" when we were in the hospital." The doc measured him again, and finally concluded that the hospital staff had to have been mistaken in their measurement, because he was definitely NOT 21"...perhaps 20-1/2" but NOT 21". So from here on out, Andrew will always have the mistaken length printed on his birth certificate...but we will all know the truth :)

First Bath:

Andrew's umbilical cord fell off and he was ready for a bath. We used our aquarium bathtub w/ the sling to accomplish this task. Like most babies, Andrew was not so sure what to think about the warm water that we kept ringing out on his head and body. He was startled at first and then started scratching his face. He finally mellowed out and tried to enjoy it. He was definitely relieved when Ben lifted him out and into my arms where a warm towel awaited him. Of course we bathed Andrew while Caroline was napping. I can't wait until I can put the two of them into one tub...fun times ahead!

Andrew finally calmed down and started to "endure" his first bath. He was all too happy that snuggle time wrapped in a warm blanket was what awaited him after his bath.

While in some ways the past two weeks have been a blur, in other ways they are days that I will always cherish. I think with your second baby you work less trying to survive and more trying to enjoy the "firsts." We are so blessed to have Andrew in our lives. We just pray that he picks up his weight gain and beats this border line jaundiced issue without having to endure photo-therapy (like Caroline had to undergo in her first weeks).

Fun in the Snow!

Caroline showing off her snowman. Yes, the nose is a zucchini and the eyes are grapes (all we had!). Five minutes after it was built it fell over and in Caroline's words, "snowman go boom?"

Photo collage of all our snow pictures:

When the snow started falling, I don't think Caroline quite understood what it was. Ben and I enjoyed watching it fall, and I even propped Andrew up in his carseat so he would have a good view of it all :) When Caroline awoke from her nap on Sunday afternoon, she was amazed at how "white" her backyard had become. She was ready to go out and "PLAY!" We layered her up w/ fleece pants, slick pants, 2 pair of socks, baggies over her tennis shoes, a warm coat, hat & mittens. She really didn't want all of the layers on, but if it meant she could go out and play in the snow, she was willing to appease us. Caroline and daddy built a snowman, had a snowball fight and chased Dixie around the backyard. I was mainly the photographer and videographer. I did manage to bundle Andrew up for a quick pic outside (I know what is a week old baby doing out in the snow...shame on me, but it was a photo op I wasn't willing to miss).

Caroline watching the snowflakes fall on her eyelashes.

Ben teaching Caroline to make snowballs.

Andrew's first snow!