3 Month Pics

Already Working on the Computer Loving his Horse Outfit
Just needs his boots and a cowboy hat.

Brother from another mother.

Perfect blue eyes.

Aunts & Uncles

Just got N.J. down for the night so here is a quick post before I hit the hay (Jeremy went to do a night shift at Target).
We are so glad that Noah got to meet Uncle Caleb and Aunt Lisa this weekend and that he gets to see his Uncle Ryan about once a week. Thank you Caleb and Lisa for driving all the way from Indianapolis to let Jeremy and I run a few errands on our own:)
Congrats to Uncle Ryan for going 4-0 in yet another debate tournament! On to regionals!
Mom, Mimi, and Papa had a big day serving the physical and spiritual needs of hundreds of people at the Marci Wintz Memorial Clinic.
Tomorrow= 3 month pictures for N.J. Be on the look out for the photos soon.

Oops!

Oops! I can't believe we are getting close to a month since our last post. Sorry to all those that have been patiently waiting. We have had a busy few weeks.
I have started back to work on the 10th and Bible Study on the 4th (studying Hebrews). I worked two twelve hour night shifts the first two weeks and this week I am working three twelves. I definitely did not miss the stress that work adds to my life. The first week that I was back we were only using 6 nurses and had 18-21 babies and things were pretty slow and laid back. This week we are just about full and are working with 10 nurses- the most our little unit can muster. They are calling for us to work overtime and the Type A/never sit idle person inside me says "Yes, work overtime," but I refuse to be apart from N.J. anymore than I already am by working full-time. Overall the transition so far has gone better than I was thinking it would. We will definitely be busy and the house will never be quite as clean as it was, but we feel blessed to both have jobs right now.
One more tid-bit on the job front. Jeremy was offered a part-time position with security at the hospital. He can pick up shifts whenever they fit into our schedule and can work at Baptist, Southwest, Yukon, and the Cancer Center. He already has some security experience, but this will allow him to get some more and hopefully be a better candidate for the police department. Plus, this will bring in a little more income to pay off student loans and maybe allow me to cut down to part-time sometime in the future.
N.J. is down to one night feeding now! We are so thankful and feel like totally different people now that we are getting more than 3 or 4 hours of sleep at night. He began sleeping longer stretches on his own for the most part just a few nights before I started back to work. I am very thankful for this because I was worried about Jeremy being up at night a lot with N.J. and then having to go to work.
N.J. is smiling, laughing, and cooing a lot now, especially in the mornings. I guess he takes after his mom in this aspect (I am the morning person. Jeremy is a night owl). N.J. even rolled over from his tummy to his back for the first time on the 12th! I was so excited. He acted like it was no big deal. Didn't even look surprised.
Well, sounds like N.J.'s nap is over and so is this post.
Love you all. So glad to have you in our lives.

2 Months Old

I can't believe that NJ is already 2 months old! Today we went to the pediatrician for his two month check-up. Sadly he had to get two shots. He only screamed for a minute or two. I am hoping that in two years he will take his shots just like he did today. I know it is a long shot though, pun intended:)
His new stats:
12lbs 9oz (75th percentile)
24.5 in (80th %)
16in Head circumference (50th%)
He is getting so big! He still wears 0-3month clothes thank goodness. I am going to have to go on a major clothes shopping trip for this boy soon.
He is also becoming very alert and more and more aware of his surroundings. I never understood why parents took so much pride in their children and how you could let your kids become your whole life, but every time NJ smiles and/or coos at me my heart melts and I understand completely.

Newborn Photos

The prints from his newborn photo session have arrived. Here is a sampling:

Bath time and future Prune Boy

NJ absolutely loves bath time. It is the one thing we can count on him enjoying and not screaming through. We can't wait until he can sit up on his own and play with his toys. I have a feeling I will have a very hard time getting him out of the tub in a couple of years. He is going to look like a prune all the time!

Modern Mommyhood

Modern Mommyhood has brought about several inventions that mother and baby alike appreciate including the Bumbo and the Baby KTan carrier.

"Doesn't this thing come with bottle holders?!"

NJ's favorite position. Just wish he would learn to sleep on his back in his crib sometime.

7 weeks

I can't believe that my baby is 7 weeks old today! I am absolutely dreading the 2 month mark. He is allowed to start sleeping through the night, but he is not allowed to grow up and get big. Don't you wish we could stipulate which parts of different life stages they can and can't do? Can't we mix the independence of a school-age child that can make fix their own bowl of cereal at 6am and brings home "beautiful" art projects they made for you at school with the cuteness of a baby's first smiles and coos?!

On another note, NJ seems to be slowly outgrowing his tummy troubles (as Mimi would put it). Although his progress is too slow for Mommy and Daddy it is progress. About every other night is a "good night" now.

My definition of a good night:

NJ fusses from 7pm to midnight.

12am He eats and diaper change

1am He finally falls asleep

3am He eats and diaper change

4am He finally falls asleep

5:30am He eats and diaper change and we are up for the day

A good night = 3.5 hours of sleep for Mommy and Daddy

J and I both naturally require a lot of sleep. I never thought I would be able to function for weeks on only 4 or less hours of sleep a night, but we are both still surviving and haven't gotten into any big fights yet. God is good! I won't deny that we have had our moments when NJ is screaming for the 8th hour in a row at 3 or 4 in the morning and we are both exhausted. As Mimi says having kids is a "bonding experience" for a couple.

New Pics

NJ standing and trying to walk!

Mommy loves to cuddle!

NJ is the new sheriff and man in charge around this house.

We are so glad that Daddy made it to Mimi and Papa's for Christmas Eve.

5 Generations

What would we do without our play mat?

I Love Gripe Water!

This mom officially loves gripe water. We have now given Noah gripe water mixed in a bottle of breastmilk for the last 3 nights. He is still getting used to eating from a bottle and Jeremy is still getting the hang of feeding him, but this stuff really works. I don't want to jinks myself for tonight and nights in the future and the nights still have not been excellent, but we have all gotten a little bit more sleep and Noah is uncomfortable with gas pains for only a couple of hours instead of 1/3 to 1/2 of the 24 hours. Noah has now been waking up to eat at about 11:30pm, 1:30am, and 5am. Each session still takes about an hour, mostly because he has to sit up for 30 minutes after each feeding to decrease his reflux, but at least Mom and Dad can sleep from before the 11:30pm feeding and from 12:30am-1:30am because Noah is not screaming in pain. It makes your whole day better and more productive if you get more than 2 or 3 hours of sleep. Can I say it again? I Love Gripe Water!

Smiles and Coos

Noah smiled today at me when I kissed his cheek! He has been smiling randomly and in his sleep for almost 3 weeks now, but this was the first time he smiled in direct response to a stimuli. And he didn't do it just once, he did it 3 times to the same stimuli. He must like kisses which is good because this mommy likes to dish them out. Now the challenge is to get a picture of him smiling!
Noah has also been making lots of noises in the last two days in addition to screaming. He is especially talkative from 5:30-9:30am. He genuinely thinks he is having a great conversation with you. It is so cute.

My New Friend

NJ enjoyed his first playdate ever with GL. NJ appears much larger, but the two boys were actually born only 2 1/2 weeks apart. NJ is two pounds heavier and two inches longer. In his defense though the outfit and the camera add a few pounds. And no, NJ did not beat up on GL and make him cry. GL was merely intimidated by NJ's size:)

Sleep

Noah is over a month old now and I finally got 3 hours of uninterrupted sleep last night for the first time!! I couldn't believe it was 5am and not 3:30 or 4am when Noah woke me this morning. Even though I only got 5 hours total (from 10pm-6am) I feel incredibly refreshed and better than I have in months. I have so much energy now. I feel like a functioning human being. I am loving gripe water!
Sorry I just had to share my elation this morning.

GI (Gastrointestinal) Issues

At first I was going to include this in the last post title "One Month Old" but it was so long and discusses a topic that has dominated our lives the last two weeks that I thought it needed its own post.
We are still challenged by reflux and colic. Obviously he is gaining weight well so he is not spitting up large volumes, but the reflux is painful (he lets out a sharp cry even in his sleep)and adds to his crabiness along with the colic. Speaking of colic, I hate the term colic. So many people use this term when referring to a baby that is simply hungry, difficult to burp, constipated, or just wanting to be entertained. I strongly resisted using the term colic, but after two weeks of screaming and sleepless nights that is precisely what Noah (and Mom and Dad) are struggling with. The pediatrician said, "tell me what you mean by colic".
"Well, he in completely inconsolable from about 5:30pm to 2 or 3am every night, he draws his legs up, screams in pain, the light is gone from his eyes, and he won't even look at us. This is after we have determined he isn't hungry, dirty, bored, tired, or overstimulated. And he is a completely happy interactive baby during the day."
The pediatrician says, "Yep, this is definitely some bad colic we are dealing with."
After going over my diet with a fine tooth comb we decided he is just going to have to out-grow this, but there may be something better to deal with it than the Mylicon we have been giving him 3 and 4 times a night.
The pediatrician suggested separate trials of Gripe water and chammomile tea. Your grandmother's remedies and something the Native Americans love she said. More like my great-great grandmother's remedies in my case. My grandmother and great-grandmother had never heard of gripe water. She said the main ingredient is sodium bicarbonate and it wouldn't hurt to try either of them. Jeremy says they have people ask him for it at Target all the time and he never knew what it was. Desperate for anything to relieve my son's pain, this Mom headed to CVS right after our appointment.
I picked up Gripe water and erythromycin ointment at CVS. We are still battling a clogged tear duct that began at birth and a subsequent eye infection. We were instructed to try the gripe water for 5 nights and then the chammomile tea for 5 nights and then decide what works the best for Noah. Maybe by then he will have outgrown the colic all together. Wishful thinking I know.
Wish us luck tonight with a feeding from a bottle of milk and gripe water! Hopefully we won't be walking tracks into the carpet, going for a drive at 1am, or turning on the vacuum for hours again!

One Month Old

Noah is a month old as of yesterday. We went to his one month check-up with the pediatrician this morning and he weighs in at 10lbs even! He has gained almost 3lbs in the first month of life! That is unheard of. Obviously breastfeeding is going well. We only hope that Mommy's milk supply keeps up as our linebacker's appetite grows. He is still in a higher percentile for his length than his weight (length 80%, weight 60%, head circumference 50%)so we are not overweight yet. And we don't have a big head. Yeah!

Noah also got his second Hepatitis B shot. He tolerated it well. Only a little screech came out. No major melt down. Hopefully this is predictive of how he tolerates shots in the future, but I am not counting on it.