Happy 2 Weeks

Charlie, I think you are losing your newborn look.  You are still so cute though so don't worry about that.  We love to just hold you and look at you close up.

Your Mim and Aunt Meredith left on Friday which meant that yesterday and today, your mommy has been on her own to take care of you.  This also meant that you had to be put down a little more so mommy could have some hands to get things done like eating, showering, etc. 

You and Mommy are still learning what it's like to be on our own.  We definitely look forward to Daddy getting home everyday.

You had a few firsts this week.  You lost your umbilical cord on Thursday.  Your mommy and daddy were happy to see it go because that means one less step when doing diaper changes.  It also meant that you could get a bath instead of the sponge baths.  You weren't a fan!  Hopefully that will change as you get older.  Since you were screaming, there really wasn't an opportunity for picture time.  After the bath, you were alert and a happy baby.

We took you on your first walk.  Your brother, Wally did great and was very happy to go on a walk.  You slept through the walk.

Your mommy also took you out by herself on your own.  You went with her to Babies R Us and you cried in the store.  I don't blame you though.  That store overwhelms your mommy as well.  We will plan to try it again sometime soon (but to somewhere different).

You've had some visitors this week and I'm sorry that I didn't get pictures with everyone. 

You are very precious.

2 Week Appt

Charlie isn't technically 2 weeks until tomorrow but his pediatrician wasn't going to be in the office closest to our house on Tuesday and was there today so we went a day early.  So far, Matt has gone with us to every appointment and he joined us for this one as well.

Charlie got a great report.

His weight was 9 pounds and he is 21.5 inches long which makes him in the 75th percentile.

We go back in July for the 2 month check up.

Goodbye Mim and Aunt Meredith (a very random post, again)

Last night, my mom suggested that Matt and I go out to dinner.

 It was so nice for me to put on real clothes and get out for a few minutes.  Matt and I had a nice dinner.  Charlie was well cared for at home with Mim and Aunt Meredith.  It was weird after a week of being around him all the time for a week to be away.

We have had a busy day.  Charlie has decided to change up his feeding schedule a little.  It was working out that he would feed at 1:30, 4:30, 7:30, and 10:30 which was working well for us.  I found a sleep schedule that was working for me (go to bed after the 10:30 feeding and then be up for the day after the 7:30 feeding).  It typically takes me about an hour for a feeding which probably means I'm slow but after changing his diaper at least once (sometime twice if he decides to go again before getting him back to bed), burping, and nursing, the time has flown by.  Now Charlie is eating a little more often at times but I'm still trying to only feed 8 times a day so I just don't ever know when he's going to want to eat.  Let's just say that I think we are in the clear with all the feeding problems we were having.  He weighs 8 pounds 11 ounces and the lactation specialist told us that she didn't think she needed to continue to follow us unless we started experiencing problems again.

Today, we had a repair man come look at our washer this morning.  It's been making some weird sounds and the thought of being without a washer would be pretty bad considering how often I'm laundering his clothes (well, his Mim was laundering his clothes).  :-) Luckily, our washer is fixed and Charlie thought it would be a great time to pee all over EVERYTHING!

Also, this afternoon, Matt, Charlie and I had to say goodbye to his Mim and Aunt Meredith. 

We are definitely going to miss them.  They have been so much help and support for me over the last week.  However, I think it will be good for Matt and I to try to figure things out and it will work out nice for us to have this weekend to do just that.  I know we are definitely going to miss them like crazy and Charlie may actually have to be put down some.  :-)

Charlie has been a little fussy today so has spent quite a bit of time being held. 

and swaddled

His umbilical cord fell off yesterday so I was planning on bathing him this weekend.  Since he peed all over himself and me and his pack and play, we decided a bath tonight would be a good thing.  He hated every minute of it.  But right afterwards, our sweet boy was happy.

He's hanging with his daddy while I finish up this blog post.

We are looking forward to a low key weekend.

This is the life!  I love my sweet boy so much.

Weight Gain

Per request of grandparents, I was told that a daily picture would be nice so I thought that a blog post would suffice for today's daily picture.  :-) 

Charlie had another weight check at the pediatricians office.  He now weights 8 pounds 8 ounces.  He doesn't love weight checks because they involve diaper changes and taking clothes off.  The doctor thought our boy is doing great. 

I'm not sure where the day has gone.  It's already almost 4pm and I haven't had a shower yet.  :-)  Charlie and I are going to work at establishing a routine next week.  However, right now, I do realize that I'm working at Charlie's schedule.

1 Week Old

Charlie, Your mommy isn't sure that she is going to be able to keep up with weekly blog posts because she has to make sure to have plenty of time to enjoy you and would much rather be doing that then being on the computer.

Your mommy can't believe it's already been a week since you were born.  You melted your Daddy's and Mommy's heart from the first moment we saw you.  Your daddy had this look in his eyes was so sweet and precious when he first saw you.  (I remember the same look on our wedding day.)

Your mommy had this giddy little laugh and smile and couldn't stop smiling (even when you pooped on your mommy seconds later!).

We are definitely very proud of you.  You did great at the hospital.  You had no jaundice and were one of the bigger babies in the nursery.  Your nurses said you slept very well.  They said they had to wake you up when it was time for me to nurse.  I elected to let you go to the nursery at night because I was trying to sleep.  Although, I don't know that my sleep was great in the hospital.  I am very happy with that decision because the nights right after you came home, I learned what an hour of sleep was really like.  However, sometimes after our 5am feedings, I just couldn't send you back so I would keep you until the pediatrician came and was anxious to get you back to my room.  Your mommy had a great hospital stay as well.  The nurses took such good care of us.

We left on Thursday and by that time, your mommy had crazy hormones and was very nervous about coming home and being left to take care of you.  You didn't seem too stressed abou thte thought of going home.  Here you are in your going home outfit:

Luckily, your mommy had help from you daddy and your Mim. 

Also, your Aunt Meredith and Pops came to see you that night and stay with us for a few days. 

Your Aunt Meredith will probably not forget the day you were born because she broke her foot on that day.  Since she has been out of work, she has been able to stay with us and mommy doesn't think she's tired of holding you.  Your Mim has been here and your mommy doesn't know what she would do without her.  She has cooked, cleaned, laundered non-stop.  Your mommy cried about as much as you did on the first day/night home and felt a little panicky when it was time to go to bed.  (You will learn that your mommy has refined the worrying skill.)  By Friday morning, your mommy was ready to go back to the hospital so the nurses could reassure her that everything was okay with her and with you.

You weren't the best nurser for the first few days.  Friday morning, we had a weight check at the pediatrician to learn that you lost more weight and were down under 8 pounds.  Your mommy cried through the entire pediatrician appointment.  Your mommy really felt like she wasn't doing as good as a job as she could.  Breastfeeding is a challenge and your mommy didn't realize the amount of work it would take for you and her both.  The pediatrician recommended that we go to a lactation specialist since your mommy's milk wasn't in yet.  So, Friday afternoon, your mommy and daddy went to that with you in tow.  The appointment was helpful and the lactation specialist thought you were being a little lazy.  (Mommy blames that trait on Daddy.) :-)  Both your daddy and mommy couldn't believe that they would ever have a child that didn't care about eating.  Anyways, we had to start supplementing you with some formula for a few days to get your energy back up to nursing properly and your mommy had to pump to try to get her milk in.  Luckily, that happened by Saturday.  We made several trips for weight checks which meant you got used to the car seat and the car.  So far you seem to be like riding in the car.

Over the next couple of days, things got significantly better.  Your mommy started feeling better physically and emotionally.  You started eating more and more and are now a champ!  At your appointment on Monday, you were back over 8 pounds again.  You started opening those beautiful eyes more and more.

Your mommy and daddy think you are pretty advanced because you have wonderful head control.  You really do a great job with tummy time.

Your daddy had to go back to work on Monday which was super hard for him.  He missed you as much as you missed him.  And I missed him too.

You love your swing.  While it's hard to put you down during the day, you use it while we eat.

Your Aunt Meredith and Mim think your hair has lightened a little and may be growing.  You seem to be a little longer.  Hopefully, we will get a length on you at your 2 week appointment.  You did develop diaper rash already which looked super painful, but your doctor recommended that we get some Triple Paste which we hope will do the trick as Desitin wasn't cutting it.

You wear a lot of clothes during one day and so does your mommy.  It seems that you like to pee, poop, and spit up on whoever is holding you (you aren't picky).  You have so many cute clothes to choose from.

We have found that Huggies diapers aren't fitting you and leak so we are only using Pampers for now.  We haven't tried any other brands yet because we still have diapers from shower gifts.

You are a great sleeper.

Your mommy and daddy love to snuggle with you.

Your Grammie and Grandpa are also very proud of you.

They have been over a few times to visit with you.  You have had a few visitors and your mommy and daddy don't do a great job taking pictures.

You have many more visitors that want to meet you soon.  It's just been a fast few days and there haven't been enough hours in the day. 

Happy one week birthday my little man.  I love you more and more every day and look forward to the weeks/months/years ahead.