Six Weeks and Counting...

Six weeks have come and gone since the birth of our Little Man.  I cannot believe how quickly time has flown by.  Samuel is growing like a weed, is daily becoming more alert and interactive, and has just started smiling his so-called "Social Smile."  However, I think this term is completely inappropriate because Samuel doesn't smile at Mike and me much, he smiles at things.  I caught him grinning at the wall where Mike and I hang our university diplomas the other day and he smiles at his new play mat, but neither his Mommy nor Daddy get many direct smiles.  It is rather elusive at this point.  His natural sleep schedule is becoming more clear, but he's picking up some unpleasant nighttime habits.  He has started to bat his pacifier out of his mouth with his hands, which leads him to try to suck on his fist.  His lack of hand control causes him to get frustrated, wakes him completely, and he starts to cry...usually within 5 minutes of him initially falling asleep.  I come in to check on him and his little eyes are WIDE OPEN.  It's really annoying for a tired Mama.  Anyway, here are a few of my favorite 6 week pictures.

 

Samuel looking cute in an outfit from Mike's coworkers

I think Samuel is a Mini-Mike, what do you think?

Samuel staring at his new "developmentally appropriate" playmat.

Look Ma, No Hands

A.K.A. "FREEDOM"

Baby Bjorn - Best invention EVER.  Now Samuel can snuggle with me and I can do the dishes, laundry, take out the diapers in the diaper pail...you name it...  Exciting, isn't it?

One Month Pictures

Taken at home again by my excellent photographing spouse :)

 

 

 

 

Family Photo

We had my parents take a few snapshots of our little family a few weeks ago.  This one is our favorite.

Cousins!

Samuel was so excited to have Cousin Addison and Uncle Andy come visit the last two days!  Addison was such a big helper!  She helped give him his bottle, she rocked him in the rocking chairs, she made sure he had places to play and sleep, she helped give him a bath, and she even helped put on a new diaper.  What a great helper!  It was so fun to see her give him so much attention and think about his needs the whole time.  She really wanted him to play with her toys and eat the foods she could eat, but we decided that will have to wait until later.  She figured out how to do some age math.  Samuel is "0" and Addison is "4."  When Addison turns "5" (and is allowed to eat bubble gum), Samuel will be "1."  When Samuel is "4," Addison will be "8."  What a smart little gal.

Addison and Samuel got to play outside in lots of snow for the first time together.  Aside from a little hesitation at first, Addison LOVED the snow and played in it three times in two days!  She made snow angels, snowballs, a snow fort (including a snow couch), and we made snow ice cream.  Samuel made a snow angel and sat on the snow couch, but otherwise, he snuggled up against Mike's or my chest to stay warm.  We also went to the botanical gardens to see a special display of glass sculptures.  It was cold, but Addison stayed warm by running from sculpture to sculpture.  The only warm place was the Conservatory...we tried to take a picture, but everyone's cameras fogged up so much that all we got was a blur.  What a great visit!  We hope we get to see them again soon!  Maybe next time, we can meet Cousin Emme and Aunt Kerry, too!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One Month Today!

I cannot believe our big boy is one month old! We've survived this far and we hear it just gets better. Our observations of Samuel at one month:

Samuel has been getting fussier, but we've read that fussiness usually peaks at 6 weeks, so we're anxiously awaiting 7 weeks! He is becoming much more alert and seems to like being around people and snuggling. He does not like being in a room alone. He still has a pretty sporadic schedule, and lately his eating schedule has become more random. Samuel can take a bottle nicely from Daddy. Sometimes Samuel sleeps well at night (last night, he slept for 3 hours straight after two of his feedings and 1.5 after the next two) and sometimes, not so well (like the nights when it takes more than an hour to get him back to sleep after each feeding). He seems very content during his bath and is usually calm when we diaper and dress him now. He is starting to focus on things more and is much more alert. He can hold his head up and he is still gaining weight nicely.

That's Mommy's overview of Samuel at one month. He's a sweet little baby and we think he's adorable :) Wouldn't trade him for anything!

 

Bumbo

Someone told me that the Bumbo chair could be used as early as a baby could hold their heads up.  I've noticed dramatic improvements in Samuel's neck strength this past week, so I decided to try out the Bumbo chair.  He did really well for his first time!  He sat in it like a cool little dude for a few minutes.  However, even though he can sit in it with his head up, he still can't lift his head very well if it falls to one side or the other.  So, we aren't quite the Bumbo chair experts yet, but we were still very proud of our little man.

Mommy's favorite game

Blowing in Samuel's face results in amusing responses...  Sorry the pictures are so fuzzy.

 

Happy Birthday, Grandpa T!!!

Dear Grandpa T -

I haven't met you yet, but I hear you're a pretty fun guy.  My Mommy and Daddy let me wear this special shirt just for you...but Mommy says "Don't get too excited!"  I'm not going to be allowed to ride a Harley for a loooong time!  Bummer...  Oh well.  Happy Birthday, anyway!  Can't wait to meet you!

Love, Samuel

Happy Birthday, Grandma M!!!

A few things that make Grandma M special:

She makes me special blankets and pillows (see below) and fixes my clothes when my head is too big.

She's always ready to play with me.

She thinks of lots of ways to help keep me happy.

She loves to cuddle with me (even in the middle of the night when Mom and Dad have had it with me).

She's been a great role model so my Mommy knows how to be a good mommy to me.

Happy Birthday, Grandma!

Love, Samuel

BIG Boy

Mommy and Samuel went to the Newborn Parenting Group today.  Samuel was the second youngest baby there.  One baby was three days younger, another was one day older, two were two weeks older, and then there were some much bigger babies.  Samuel looked HUMONGOUS compared to all the babies 6 weeks and younger.  He was chubbier, his head was bigger (for the extra brains, I'm sure...), and he might have even been longer than most.  I weighed him and he weighed in at 11 lb 1 oz!!!  Oh my goodness!!!  No doubt he's eating well.  The lactation consultant at the class said that's normal for a baby from tall parents, so I won't worry.

Samuel's doing pretty well.  We're still dealing with some sleep issues.  He seems to hate sleeping in his own bed at night (but we still try because we do not sleep as well when he's in our room).  He may be in the midst of a growth spurt based on his eating habits the last day or so.  We still think he's adorable :)  He was admired by all at the newborn class and at my office today, so this Mama was proud...