week 18

Danny is 19 weeks old today and I'm updating about his 18th week. Pretty eventful week, especially the past few days.

First an update medically. He went in last Tuesday for his sonogram (I can't remember if I added this in last weeks post or not). Worst experience for him ever. Ugh. He screamed and screamed for nearly 20 minutes. I think he was just mad since he couldn't really squirm as much as he's accustomed to. His sonogram of his head came back fine thank goodness! We did however, have our first trip to the ER on Sunday evening. While he was nursing he began to shake. This lasted a few seconds, stopped and then happened again. Freaked me out! He did not seem phased by it all but I called the advice nurse anyway and of course we were told to go into the ER. Everything checked out fine of course. They think it was probably a spasm of some sort. Since he's still young his nervous system is still developing. I was worried they were going to run a bunch of tests but I'm glad they didn't. He had no signs of seizure or anything so we're good!

So over the past few days he has really started reaching and holding on to toys (not to mention how much he loves grabbing his right foot during diaper changes)! He puts them in his mouth and seems to be enjoying this new found skill. Very exciting :) Just the past couple of days he has been reaching out and touching my face and he gets a big old smile! He is also perfecting his hand sucking skills. In particular he seems to prefer sucking his 2 or 3 fingers (like his mama!). Not really interested in his thumb.

Lots of smiling and more beginnings of a laugh. Daddy is super funny these days. He likes it when you play peek a boo and he gets just a little scared.

This past week he has been standing on our laps and loves it! He seems so proud and smiles a lot!

This week he continued to eat 5-6 times per day. I noticed though a few days he was only interested in eating on one side which is different. He got very fussy and screamed when I tried to feed him on the left side. This went on for a day and was very odd. He was fine by the end of the day. Weird.

Sleeping at night went well. This week he continued to go to bed around 9 and woke up between 6:30 and 8. Naps are still all over the place. No regular time or place.

Yesterday I put a bunch of his 0-3 month clothes away. He can still wear quite a few of them. So he is wearing both 0-3 and 3-6 month.

This is my last week of maternity leave! I cannot believe how fast, and yet at times how slow, it has gone. I start my new job on Monday and I will be in training Monday-Friday for 8 hours so I am going to be away from D a ton the next couple weeks and I hate it! I have been pretty emotional these past few days just thinking about it. It has kind of been consuming my thoughts. I keep thinking only "x more days left to do...". I know he will do just fine in daycare (oh, we officially decided on one, btw) but the thought of him wanting his mama and I'm not there just kills me. Luckily he is a pretty easy going guy and I'm sure he will be okay. So we are spending this last week doing nothing! I did all my errands yesterday so that we can just hang out for the rest of the week. Just this morning I brought him back to bed to nurse after he woke up then we slept til 10 :)

While I'm trying to relax and enjoy this week I can't help but feel anxious about this new job and making sure I have as much in order as I can. Kind of like that first day of school jitters. Luckily though since I've worked for this agency before (and actually been through this training before) I kind of know what I'm going to be doing. While this initial 2 week schedule sucks, I'm kind of glad that I will be in training. I think it will ease me back into a work mindset. I just wish I could find a way to make money while staying home!

So I'm hoping that I will still be able to update this blog regularly, who knows what it will be like returning to work. I will eventually be off on Tuesdays and hope I can keep up with the weekly updates but my more realistic goal will be monthly updates. And I suppose I should add pictures. One of these days!

week 17

Danny is 18 weeks old today, and what a sleepyhead! It's 7:30 and he's still out!

Yesterday was his 4 month appointment. He weighs 14 lbs 9.4 oz, is 25 inches long and his head is 17.25 cm. Big old head! I think it's in the 82 percentile or something. Anyway, Dr. Z is very pleased with his weight gain! Yay! We talked about starting solids and I don't plan to start them until he is 6 months. She said as long as he continues to be satisfied with breastmilk and isn't waking up in the middle of the night to feed it's fine to wait. Of course I went in with my list of questions and concerns but most everything is fine. Dr. Z is a little concerned that his soft spot is still so "open" and wants to do a sonogram to make sure everything is developing okay. Great, no worries mom..just want to make sure your son's head is developing normally! Ack! I'm sure it will be fine but I'll just be glad when it's over and we know that to be true :) She was pleased to see his head/neck stregnth and to see him roll over. I was just thinking all this time that it was his big head that was toppling him over. Nope, indeed his rolling over since he was just a few weeks (maybe around 6 or 7?) is in fact developmentally rolling over! Oh and he got a couple vaccines yesterday. Dtap and rotavirus. I don't remember him being that fussy after the last round (hib and pc) but I do remember it after his 1st round of dtap and rotavirus. Anyway, he was unusually fussy last night but seemed to do better with a bit of tylenol.

Eating and sleeping at night continue to go well. He ate about 5-7 times per day this last week. A little more than he had been. Sleeping is the same too, although we did have a couple shifts in his routine this week and he did great. He is still going down around 9 and wakes up anywhere from 6:30-7:30. Although on Sunday he slept until 8:45! I fed him on one side at 8 like normal then since we were still out we had him hanging out. Put him in his jammies for the car ride home. He slept all the way home and we got home around 9:45. Barely fed him on the other side (hey, I just wanted to make sure the kid was good and full before he went to bed) and he was in bed probably by 10:15 or so and slept all the way to 8:45. I was kinda bored in the morning..didn't know what to do with myself! Ha! Naps this week were still inconsistent. Some days he only took a couple cat naps. Some days he did take a 2-3 hour nap in the late afternoon around 3. A couple days it seemed like were spent just trying to get him to sleep.

He continues to be very chatty this past week. He is also squealing and what the doctor confirmed to be a start in laughing. When he's smiling sometimes he takes in a bunch of air and makes a funny sound. Hard to describe in words. Anyway, yay for laughing...almost! He has just been thinking mommy saying "hi" and this fast breathing thing that sort of sounds like I'm making the H sound repeatedly..he loves it! So many smiles and so cute!

In other news I got a job! I will be working back at Seneca Center but this time I'll be working for their Mobile Response Team. My schedule will be Wednesday to Saturday from 12-10pm. It will suck since me and Randy won't see much of each other these days but it will really limit D's day care to about 15-20 hours a week which is great! I am also happy that Daddy and Danny will have so much one on one time to bond. Plus I will have 3 days off and get to spend every morning with him. So I think it will be a good fit for us for now.

The challenge now has been to find someone good enough to watch our little man. Guess what? They don't exist! Shocking I know. I am lucky though that I think we have 2 good possibilities that I checked out this week. We are visiting one hopefully tonight and I hope to make a decision by the end of the week. It's stressing me out and I just want to have it done so I can enjoy my time left with D. Oh and the worst part about the job..the start date! 8/24! So I have just about 2 weeks left. I'm so sad. But I guess at some point he would have to make this transition anyway.

Sounds like he's waking up now!

week 16

Little D is 17 weeks old today! This past weekend we took our first overnight trip together as a family. We went up to Grandma's house in Clearlake. Daniel did great! He slept the whole trip up. I was a little worried how he would do sleeping all night in his pack n play in a strange place but he slept right through! He enjoyed watching the ducks with Daddy and meeting Grandma. He gave out lots of smiles. On the trip home he woke up about an hour away from home and was a little fussy but it wasn't too bad.

This week also appears to be the end of his swaddling days. On Thursday when I went to put him to bed I realized his miracle blanket was still in the dryer..and no where near dry. So I put him in a sleep sack and hoped for the best. Little guy slept straight through! And he appears to be enjoying his new found freedom to suck away at his hands :) He's growing up!

Sleeping and eating continue to go pretty well. He has been eating 5-6 times per day with the exception of yesterday. He was a little extra fussy and ate closer to 7 or 8 times and his last night feed lasted nearly an hour and a half! So I'm wondering if maybe he's going through a growth spurt. He still goes to bed around 9 and wakes up between 6 and 7. A little earlier this past week.

I noticed yesterday while doing some tummy time on the diaper changing area that he is getting so strong. He is now really pushing himself up. He still seems to favor one side and leans which results in rolling over a lot.

I also started looking at day care options. Not happy about this! But I guess it's a reality at the moment. I don't have to go back to my job until the end of September but I am looking for something else. I interviewed last week for a position and they are hoping to have someone start "as soon as possible" so I wanted to at least have some ideas of what is out there. They haven't called me back for a 2nd interview yet but have started checking my references.

week 15

I'm writing this late again but there isn't much new to report. Except that little D Lud is getting cuter and cuter by the day. He is just so alert and makes lots of eye contact and smiles so much. He loves to sleep like his mama and daddy. He has been waking up around 6:30 but he just hangs out in his crib until I get him around 7. He smiles when I come in and unwrap him from his swaddle. Love it!

Grandma came to visit him this past week and she just loves him so much. Grandma bought D some 6 month onesies from Carters and he's starting to wear them. So bittersweet. He's growing which is great but also makes me sad at the same time. He is wearing 3-6 month jammies and seems to be quickly growing out of size 1 diapers. He is still in between sizes though. He can still wear his 0-3 month stuff as well.

Sleeping and eating continue to go well. He is sleeping about 10 hours straight at night. I am so thankful. We have such an easy going baby I just hope it continues. He is eating 5-6 times per day. I'm trying to get at least one feeding from a bottle per day, but it's not consistent. We have a freezer full of breastmilk that is about to expire so we've got to use it up! I worked hard for it!

week 14

Danny is now 15 weeks old and it's been a fun week. It seems like there has been a few new things happening for D Lud.

Let's see, where to start. In the past week we've taken professional pictures twice. We got a coupon for a free picture package and decided to take advantage. We weren't planning on doing professional pictures just yet, but who can pass up free? Not me! Unfortunately, the first time we went the pictures just didn't turn so good. I think we had a newer photographer and the top of his head was cut off in some of them. Just not very good. So I called and they invited me to come back again. This time we got 2 "experienced" photographers and the pictures turned out much better. Plus they gave me a sweet deal on pictures so we ended up getting quite a few. Danny seemed to really like the camera (not the flash so much) and we got some cute shots. He's not a big fan of being on his belly though. He got fussy and toppled over pretty quick.

Developmentally, this week has been exciting. D continues to straighten his arm out which I guess is him trying to reach for stuff (like my glasses. apparently bad investment for me it turns out). Randy was playing with him and Danny started mocking him. Randy was smacking his lips together and Danny was doing it back! Not consistently. But boy was he trying and he got several "smacks" in back. Danny also seems to be feeling around for his toes. When I am changing his diaper, he puts his arms towards his feet and I move his hand so it touches his feet. He seems to like it. We usually get smiles :) And while, technically this happened last night which means he was really in his 15th week and I should post this next week, I'm excited so I'm posting it now. Randy said Danny laughed last night! So sad I missed it, but I'm sure there will be lots more. D is really starting to use his voice cooing and letting out little screams. So cute!

Eating continues to go well. He's still eating about 5-6 times per day from both sides usually.

Sleeping also continues to go well. He is going for longer stretches at night and pushing towards 7:30 the past few days! Naps continue to happen whenever they happen. No schedule. But I try not to keep him awake for longer than 2 hours at a time and that seems to work well. We are working towards getting him to nap in his crib instead of the swing. So far..he's not liking it so much!

week 13, whoops...

I'm a couple days late in posting this update. No real reason. Tuesday, the day I try to write I had a job interview in the morning and it kind of threw the day off. Anyway, here we go.

D Man is now 14 weeks old and I'm giving an update on his 13th week. It seems a little silly going by weeks as there isn't typically much different, but I think looking back on this I'll be glad I'm doing it weekly as much as I can.

Sleeping is still going well. He seems to consistently be sleeping longer in the mornings. He is still going down around 9 and his wake up time has been closer to 6:30 or 7. Naps continue to be what they will. After his first feeding he then goes back to sleep for around 2 hours, wakes up and plays for a little bit. I usually put him in the bouncy seat to let him kick around and look at stuff. Sometimes he falls asleep in here. If we are out, he will also usually take a little cat nap. Then he usually wakes up to eat again between 11 and 12, more play then nap in the swing for 2-3 hours. I really need to try to get this nap into his crib as it is the most substantial nap of the day. I'm working on it. In my head, I'm working on it :) Then the rest of the afternoon is really hit or miss. He eats about every 2.5-3 hours the rest of the day.

7pm continues to be when the fuss bus goes into frown town. It's like clockwork. No, it's like Kona..she knows exactly when it's time to eat and her behavior changes. Danny knows exactly when it's 7 and he is just fussy. It's really not too bad. It just requires mommy and daddy to entertain him a little more hands on. He seems to like walks, going outside or being held and walked/bounced around. In my head, I'm toying with the idea of moving up his last feeding from 8pm to this time and putting him to bed a little earlier. But I really don't want him waking up any earlier. We'll see.

Not sure if I mentioned this before. But he has learned the frown. His little bottom lip sticks out and it is just the saddest/cutest thing ever.

Still working on that tummy time and strengthening his neck. He still requires a bit of guidance to keep that big head up!

Oh and new this week..hands taste good! Hands in the mouth all the time! And the drool...

We went to the Corn Fest in Brentwood this past weekend. It was hot. We ate a little bit, drank a little and people watched. Danny didn't tolerate the heat for too long so we left. We thought we were there for much longer than the 2 hours we were!

Oh yeah..and I had a job interview Tuesday. It seemed to go pretty well and I feel hopeful yet really guilty at the same time. I really don't want to leave Danny in day care. I really really don't. Yet this job would be a pretty good fit and I think I would like it a lot. We'll see if I get an offer.

week 12

Well the Dan Man turned 3 months yesterday! We went for 2 more shots yesterday, the Hib and PC and we got a weight check. 12 pounds 10.5 ounces. He's a little chunker for sure. It's amazing to think that the milk I produce is what is helping him to grow.

I feel like this past week he has really gotten more alert. I feel like I say this every week. But he should be getting more and more alert every week. Anyway, more eye contact and more social smiling. I just can't get him to smile for the camera! Soon though. I hope.

Sleeping continues to go well. In fact, he's finally started sleeping for longer periods after I get him up for his first feeding. He goes to bed around 9pm and wakes up between 5 and 6, eats, then goes back to sleep for 2-3 more hours! It's great! I notice he does get a little fussy about an hour into this sleep but I've found that by leaving him to work it out he goes back to sleep for the most part. I just hope that he keeps up this good sleep pattern.

Development. His head continues to get stronger as well. Tummy time is going better for him. He keeps his head up for longer periods of time and is starting to become interested in a toy that hangs from his little floor gym. Although, still not much compares to his blinds and his "corner" which is the fireplace and picture frame area. So much to look at! He seems to make lots more eye contact and I get more smiles when we are changing his diaper. He does in fact like it when we sing to him. Brings a smile most times.

Oh and this past week I've noticed how long his eye lashes are! Still no eye brows but boy are those lashes long like his Daddy's :)

Eating continues to go well (see above weight!). He eats 5-7 times per day. We are trying to get him to have a bottle for one of those feedings so that he can stay familiar with it as well as try to get through some of the frozen milk that is about to expire at the end of the month.

He is in size 1 diapers now. We've been using a couple different type of Huggie's but I'm not a fan. I thought given the elastic part in the back this would prevent the "poop-up-the-back" explosions but not so much. We've had about one every other day. Still no where near as bad as "poop-out-of-the-leg" opening explosions but yucky nonetheless.

That's pretty much it for now!