Two Months Old!

Ah, peace and quiet! I finally got Nicklas to go down for his afternoon nap...it's 5pm and he's been fighting it all afternoon. We tried walking in the stroller and vacuming the house (while holding the baby) and he's now asleep with his little head squished into the corner of the crib. He's still breathing, so I'm not moving him...

My chunky boy now weighs about 12 pounds, or so we estimated on Mom's scales this afternoon. We're going to his 2 month well baby check-up next Tuesday, where he gets his first set of vaccinations...I'm not looking forward to this. At least Robert's coming with me, so maybe he can help me out.

I went back to work for a day last week, on Thursday. It was my first day away from Nicklas for more than, say, three hours. They called that morning and asked if I would come in, and I almost said no, but Mom was available for the day and Robert insisted that I go. It was nice, having adult conversations all day and my patients no longer asking about the baby ( since I wasn't carrying him around with me anymore). You get tired of telling the same stories over and over again. But I missed Nicklas so much! I was almost afraid that I wouldn't miss him and then feel guilty about it...but I was so happy to see him when I got home and vice versa. I'm working another day this week, its kinda nice to go back into work slowly so we both can adjust.

Nicklas is sleeping through the night about every two or three nights now. From about 9 pm to 7 am or so. The other nights he gets up just once to feed and usually can go right back to sleep. I say usually b/c sometimes he gets up at four AM and wants to play when mom and dad want to sleep. I guess that's normal. He's still very fussy in the evenings, especially if he doesn't nap well during the day, but it's slowly getting better ( I think). Some days are awful and some days he's just totally happy. Are all babies like this? I wish things were more predictable, especially with me going back to work, but I think I'm just wanting things to happen too fast. Like I want him to start laughing and playing with toys, etc, and one day I'll be wishing for him to be little again.

We had a good weekend with family. My in-laws, including Robert's brother Russell came down for a few days and Robert's grandmother and aunt drove down from Ringgold for Nicklas's church dedication Sunday morning. Jonas and Melissa are here as well; she had a baby shower in Winder on Sunday afternoon. Nicklas was bored at the shower...he slept the whole time. That figures :-)

Who's got colic??/We slept through the night!

This post has both good and bad points to it. Last night Nicklas slept from 9 pm to 5 am without getting up once! We usually have to wake up around 2 or 3 for a feeding, but he totally missed it...I, however, was up by 3:30 listening for the monitor and wondering why he wasn't crying yet! All you breastfeeding mothers will know, when you go over 8 hours without feeding them, I was really ready for him to wake up! Maybe tonight will be just as good; he's been sleeping most of the day (despite my best efforts to keep him awake) so he may not want to go to sleep tonight at all...

On the flip side, its pretty clear that Nicklas has colic. He's very gassy and unhappy, mostly in the evenings. He usually fusses from about the time Robert gets home from work until we put him to bed around 9 or 9:30. It's 8pm right now and the only thing I could find to calm him down was to strap him in his stroller and push him around the house...he's still sitting in it, watching me type as I push him back and forth with my foot. When you're desperate, you're desperate... He's a very pleasant baby during the day, he's starting cooing and smiling and all these cute things, I just feel so bad because Robert misses so much of it while he's at work. I know he thinks that Nicklas is just the fussiest baby, but he's really not, only at night. (Well, except for today, if he wasn't asleep he was crying...and I've been alone all day. Yuck.)

My parents left today to go to Niagra Falls for their anniversary. I'm so jealous! Next weekend, my brother and his wife are coming down from Wake Forest for the long weekend. Melissa is having a baby shower here in Winder on Sunday afternoon, which I'm very excited about...then my in-laws are also coming to visit and see Nicklas next weekend. Talk about a busy couple of days! I'm excited because my days have gotten so monotonous I'm ready for something different. I will be going back to work next week (or as soon as I pick up a shift at either of my jobs). Since I work PRN, I can work whatever days I need to , so I'll be working Wed-Fridays and some weekends while my mom keeps the baby...isn't she great!

I'm trying to include some portraits we had made of Nicklas a few weeks ago. They were done by Jessie Murray, who came to our house and did the pictures in our own living room. She did a wonderful job, and if you would like to check out some of her work, go to http://www.morethanamemoryphoto.com/.

Some new pictures...

What's going on??

My new game day outfit...Go Dawgs!!

I wonder who made this cute onesie for me...I almost don't fit in it anymore!

I love my daddy's chest for a nap.

Bath time is fun...except when I get cold!

What's red and black and cute all over??

My Review of Sound Sleeper

Originally submitted at Toys R Us

The Sound Sleeper by Dex Products provides soundscapes to soothe and relax you and your baby. Instantly turn your surroundings into a calming sea of tranquility. Choose from over 30 unique sounds including babbling brook and soothing rainfall.

Sound Sleeper

Great Product!

By First Time Mom from Georgia on 9/23/2008

 

4out of 5

Pros: Portable, Convenient Use

Best Uses: Infants, Mothers

Describe Yourself: First Time Parent

I use the Sound Sleeper every time I put my one-month old in his crib. He especially likes the womb/heartbeat sounds, but the machine has a variety to choose from. He went from crying for hours on end when we put him down at night to wimpering for awhile and then falling asleep. Plus, I also hear the sounds through my baby monitor, which I like, but can keep you up if you're a light sleeper.

(legalese)

What?

I just heard on the news that Larry Munson will no longer be calling any home games for UGA football! Retirement, effective immediately, they said! Now listening to the games won't ever quite be the same...especially now that we aren't going to as many!

Weekend with Family

They could be twins!!

There's my pouty face!!


So this weekend, we got to see several people we haven't seen in awhile, including Uncle Jonas. He flew down from NC to drive his Xterra back up to Wake Forest, just until they come home again in May (they're selling one of their cars). So he was only here like, two hours, but came over to visit with me and Nicklas. I got a good picture of them pouting together. Nicklas is a great pouter, just like his Uncle. (Jonas is famous for it).



On Sunday we finally got the Williams family together for dinner and to meet Nicklas. He was passed around but was generally content with anyone to hold him. He also got to meet his cousin Alexis for the first time. We tried so hard to get a picture of them together and have no one crying but it didn't work so well. Every time one of them would start it up once I hit the button! Plus, Nicklas was ready to eat at the time, so it really was a lost cause. Nicklas is almost six weeks old in this picture and Alexis is nearly four months, but they look almost the same age...Alexis was born six weeks premature but is gainly weight like a champ.



Here's my precious boys, I am so blessed!

Someone likes their UGA Bulldogs mobile! Starting him off right...

One Month Old!

Our first trip to church (2 weeks ago).

I'm just happy to be here!
Somebody hates baths, but sleeps well afterwards!

Today we had our one month check up with Dr. Hogan. Luckily, no shots today (I'm dreading the first immunizations, just because I know he's not going to be happy...good thing he won't remember!) Nicklas weighs 9 pounds and 9 oz. and is now 20 1/4 inches long. He's definitely growing more rounder than taller! He was so good at the office, just as awake and alert as I've ever seen him. He's getting to where he tries so focus on bright colors and things that light up. I've almost got him to focus on our faces, he's still working on it. He can pretty much hold his head up when upright, and lift a little bit when laying on his tummy. The funniest thing is his legs are so strong, he'll kick and crawl up your front while your holding him!

We're definitely sleeping better at night. We've discovered the wonder that is the sound machine, which makes rain or ocean or womb noises (like a heartbeat under water) and it just lulls him to sleep (most of the time). It's made the difference between putting him in his crib and he screams for an hour to putting him down and he whimpers for 15 minutes then falls asleep. And anytime he's sleeping for 3-4 hours in a row is heaven...who would like I'd be grateful for 4 hours of sleep! Funny how things change...I can't wait until he's sleeping through the night. I'm sure it will freak me out, I'm so used to listening for the crying that I barely sleep anyways.

We're going to Atlanta tomorrow to meet some friends of mine from Radiography school and go to Ikea to look at entertainment centers...we might be getting a new TV! (actually, it's a hand-me-down from the parents, but who's complaining?)