Jack smiling!

I have been trying to successully capture Jack smiling on camera for awhile now, and finally got a few halfway decent ones last night. He is a super cutie when he smiles, and he mostly does it right as he's about to breastfeed (understandable!!) Here are my action shots:



Today we went to the Children's Orchard, a secondhand clothes store for kids in Westborough. I picked up three fleece winter coats / snow suits for Jack, a little fleece hat, and a fleece sleeper for cold nights for only $25! The cutest one is light blue fleece, and it has a little bear hat and baby bear feet. I hope he will enjoy his first snowfall in it (even if I am dreading winter myself!) How is it already fall??

Lots of love!

We've come a long way, baby!

Looking back, our journey to parenthood was great and we are so lucky to have a happy, healthy, beautiful baby boy. Enjoy our walk down memory lane!

Jack's one-month checkup

This morning Jack and I visited Dr. Shah for his one-month checkup. The biggest news is that he now weighs 10 pounds even!! He has also gained 1/4 of an inch and is up to 20 3/4 inches total.



They were very impressed that he weighs 10 pounds, as babies are supposed to typically gain 1/2 - 1 lb a MONTH at this age! He has gone up about 3 1/2 from his birthweight. As you can see from this picture, he is a porker!!

Dr. Shah kept asking, "are you SURE you aren't supplementing? With anything? Not even a little bit of formula?" I said no. He said, "this is one of the best, healthiest breastfed babies I have seen!" Which is great! It gives me a lot of confidence that I am doing all the right things.

The one thing I asked him about was if Jack will get a swine flu vaccine. Since he will be starting daycare in October, at the height of flu season, I want to make sure he is protected. Dr. Shah said that most babies under 6 months don't get the flu vaccine, and if I get it and I am still breastfeeding, he will get the needed antibodies from me. Which is even more incentive to keep going!

Also he said Jack's hips look great - no need for further evaluation at this point.

His next appointment is September 28, and he will get his first round of shots then. Poor thing!!

More updates soon! I am very thankful to have a happy, healthy, baby piggie :)

Jack's Favorite Things

Tonight Mom asked me what Jack's favorite things were. I laughed, and said, "eating, sleeping, and pooping!" But then I thought harder. He has developed so much in the last month! He can hold up his own head for extended periods, and he follows us around with his eyes as we talk and walk around him. He is sleeping for longer periods now, and usually goes to sleep around 9 and stays asleep until about 2:30 or 3am. I can take that! He loves to ride in the car and look at the shapes and colors going past in the window. And he LOVES bathtime! It's amazing how he has his own little personality and shows it often!

Aunt Courtney and Uncle Ryan get to meet Jack!

I know it has been awhile since my last update. Right now, Jack is asleep in his crib (yay! He takes naps in his own bed! Hopefully soon he will sleep there at night too.) We are waiting until we have to go pick Courtney and Ryan up from the airport. We are so excited to see them and have them meet their new nephew!

Jack is 4 weeks old tomorrow. How is that possible?? It seems only yesterday we were bringing him home. He does well now, and although we occasionally still have a bad night (like last night, when he woke up at 12:30, 2, 4, 5:30, and 7....eek), he does fairly well on a regular nap and eating schedule. He really is a good baby and although I am so exhausted that I cry sometimes, it is all worth it. He is adorable and every time I look at him, I am reminded of how blessed we really are.

Lots of love, and more updates to come soon!

Some pictures now...more later

Hanging out - finally sleeping in his crib! (Even if it was just for a 20-minute nap!)


Watching TV with Mommy...

He's heeeerrrreeeee! July 24, 2009, 8:45pm. 6lb 8oz, 20.5 inches long. His first glance at his Mommy's face!

In the Hospital...Story Part 2

And now I will continue where I left off.

The second day, Saturday July 25, dawned early. Justin had gotten a few hours of sleep but I really hadn't gotten any. I was having horrible night sweats as the anaesthsia wore off, and I felt totally trapped in bed. I wasn't in any pain (apparently they put morphine in the spinal that took about 18 hours to wear off) but I was wearing extremely itchy hospital underwear. All I wanted was a shower!

We spent the day with Jack, learning how to breastfeed (somewhat successful, somewhat not.) I had my first walk to the bathroom (with the assistance of the nurses) at about noon, and they took the catheter out at about 2pm and the IV out shortly thereafter. The hospital food was actually really good! The first day passed in kind of a blur, and we were prepared for another nice night with new baby Jack.

Wow, were we wrong! By the second night, my milk had not yet come in, and Jack was HUNGRY. He cried and cried, and we did everything we could think of to soothe him. At about 3am, Justin took him to the nursery and said "please take him, we need to sleep for just an hour or two!" I promptly fell asleep. About an hour later, the nurse brough Jack back, saying that he was frantic and he was so loud that he was waking up all the other babies in the nursery. We tried again to console him and he finally slept, for an hour on Justin's chest, but it was a rough night.

On Sunday morning, my milk finally came in (apparently fast for a c-section, but it felt like forever because my little guy was so hungry!) Sunday was also the day he was scheduled to be circumcised. Also, all 4 grandparents were on a flight early in the morning to Boston (as Jack was originally scheduled to be born on Monday July 27.) We all had breakfast, and he went off to the nursery to be circumcised at about 10:30am. Dr. Fretts said that he didn't even cry! What a strong little boy, because just the idea of it made his Daddy cringe. :)

The grandparents all showed up at about 12:30, and we all had a great day bonding with Jack. I even convinced them to get my cotton underwear and a razor and shaving cream so that I could feel human again! (Thanks Mom for helping me!)

On Monday, we visited with Justin's parents in the morning before they left for Maine. My parents came around lunchtime and we hung out all day. I spent much of the day trying to learn how to breastfeed (we both struggled, mother and baby, but eventually got it.) Justin got to go to work for a few hours since he had left so abruptly on Friday, and it was a very relaxed day. We were so thrilled because we were all going home the next day!

Tuesday morning came, and first thing, the pediatrician stopped by. He said he was a little concerned about Jack's bilirubin levels (the cause of Jaundice) and wanted to do light therapy for 24 hours. I cried - I really, really wanted to go home - but got over it quickly because it was really best for him. He spent 24 hours in the nursery "getting a suntan" and we were discharged early on Wednesday morning.

And THAT is when all the fun began :)

We have been home now for just about 8 days and it has been a steep learning curve, that's for sure! He keeps us busy and entertained and I feel like my whole life revolves around feeding him right now. But with a face like his, I just can't deny him! He's so cute!