Pure Determination

We love watching Henry struggle to accomplish something that he really wants to do and then finally be able to achieve success. Right now his biggest accomplishment is lifting his head up when he is on his stomach. While this might not seem very impressive, to watch him try and try and try really makes us appreciate how difficult a seemingly "easy" movement is for him. Here are a couple pictures I took of him trying to do just that - lift his head up - if they don't say determination I don't know what does. (Although, one picture just kind of says 'I might be drunk.')

9 Weeks Old

The weekly pictures! The onesie he is wearing here is one of the ones we had to buy after he was born because the newborn clothes didn't fit him. It still fits, but it won't for much longer! The pants that he is wearing are borrowed from Kati's son, Daniel, and are also just about too small. When Kati was here, these pants were so big they had to be rolled up at the bottom and the waist barely stayed up...even though they have an elastic waist! I told Brett the other day that Henry is gaining weight faster than my arms are getting stronger - and it's true, I'm going to have to start lifting weights I guess. :) [Or wear the wrist weights Mike got me for Christmas.]

Sleep is still eluding me on a pretty regular basis. Other than on the weekends or when someone is here visiting, I only manage a couple to three hours overnight and then maybe another two to three sprinkled through the day. I'd say I average 4-6 hours over a 24 hour period. Obviously not enough; and it's taking it's toll. All I feel like doing is sitting or lying around the house rather than getting out and doing things. In the morning after Brett leaves at about 7:30 I am so exhausted that I try to convince Henry he needs to stay asleep for awhile longer by pacifying him (literally) and then collapsing back into bed. Invariably he starts fussing after about 10 minutes and I try to pacify him again, and so on and so forth for sometimes up to two hours, throwing in a diaper change and feeding into the mix at some point. The best thing I can do is to just get up and get moving, but that is a whole lot easier said than done. Actually I am of two minds on the sleep issue...part of me thinks I should just grab a few minutes whenever I can - whether it be 10 minutes at a time or an evening nap when Brett gets home from work even if that means I'll be awake later. On the other hand, part of me thinks that it would be better to try and make myself get up and stay up in the morning so that when night comes I will be so exhausted that I'll just pass out. Of course, that will be the night that Henry is up all night long with an upset stomach or something.... ahh well, at least I have lots of experience in the no sleeping arena.

2 Months Old

Yesterday was Henry's two month aniversary of being born! We went to see Dr. Ramos for his two month check-up today. He has really grown! He now weighs a whopping 9 pounds, 13 ounces. He is 21 3/4 inches long and his head is 15 inches in circumference! The doctor said the weight gain was really good - that he expects babies at this age to be gaining between 1/2 ounce and an ounce a day and Henry has gained slightly over 1 ounce a day for the last two weeks. He said there is definitely no problem with my breastmilk supply any more!!

Here is a video of Henry playing on his new playmat with a cameo by Wilbur (of course), who cannot stand to not be the center of attention. The video is really not very exciting, but Henry is awake and moving around which pretty much the most we can ask of him at this point!

Memorial Day

War Deaths From Revolution to Present
Revolutionary War - 4,435
War of 1812 - 2,260
Mexican War - 13,283
Civil War - 364,511
World War I - 116,516
Spanish/American War - 2,446
World War II - 405,399
Korean War - 36,574
Vietnam War - 58,209
Persian Gulf - 382
Iraqi Freedom (2003 - present) - 4,083 [29,000+ wounded]

plus many more involved in myriad conflicts and/or incursions and day to day military activities

8 Weeks Old

Here is Henry's weekly picture. This time we've opted for a semi-nude pictorial to show off his tummy and chest. His diaper looks disproportionately large because it is a cloth diaper rather than disposable. I've made the switch to cloth during the day but we're still using plastic over night. We'll get to 100% cloth soon though.

Nana and Grandpa are here visiting (Brett's parents). They'll be here through Tuesday and are really enjoying spending some quality time with Grandson!

Best Buddies

Here are a couple pictures of Wilbur and Henry on the floor together. At first Wilbur just came over and sat near Henry....then he moved a little closer and laid down....then he moved even closer and started licking him....then he stood up and stepped on Henry. At that point I realized that Wilbur still doesn't fully understand the limitations of his relationship with Henry, so floor playtime ended. It's obvious that Wilbur just wants to play with him, but he doesn't realize how gentle he needs to be.

Wilbur has finally reached his breaking point in terms of sleep. For the last week or so he starts out in the bedroom but at about 2 or 3 in the morning when Henry wakes up and is crying, Wilbur quietly gets up and leaves the room settling instead on the couch or the guest bedroom. It's really rather funny because given the way he slinks out of the room it's as though he thinks he's doing something wrong and has to sneak out. I guess for a dog that's used to getting probably 18 hours of sleep a day, the new round the clock schedule must be especially gruelling.

7 Weeks Old

Here's his weekly picture...getting big!

Packing on the Pounds

....well, packing on the ounces. We went in to the doctor's office for a mid-month weight check....since he was early they want to keep a closer eye on his weight gain than they normally would. GREAT news - he'd gained a whopping 14 ounces in only two weeks! Unbelievable! So, given this, we are weening him off formula and going for exclusively breastfeeding. We go back again in two weeks and so we'll get to see if we can continue with only breastfeeding at that point or if we still need to suppliment.

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there!

We had a great weekend - I had a massage on Saturday and then we went out to dinner to The New South Cafe Saturday night...that is probably our favorite restaurant here. Really great food. Henry got me a silver heart necklace with an H and an aquamarine stone on it (his birthstone). Dad sent me a beautiful bouquet of roses to wish me a happy first mother's day. I'm wearing the necklace and sitting by the flowers in this picture.

The Saturday night into Sunday morning we were on a tornado watch so I had a pretty sleepless night. Brett took over at 5:30 in the morning on Sunday and the watch changed to a warning. At about 8:30 we had a super strong thunderstorm pass through and at one point it was raining so hard you couldn't see more than 10 or 15 feet. The system passed through and by the afternoon it was sunny. However, they issued another tornado watch from about 3pm to 8pm. None in our immediate area, although this storm system did kill at least 21 people.

6 Weeks Old

Where did the last six weeks go? I cannot believe it's been that long. He is still so small, but when I look at pictures or videos from when he was only a week or two old I realize just how much he actually has grown.

I laid him on my chest last night on his stomach and he lifted his head up and held it up for almost a full minute while looking around. Crazy! He's so much more active, kicking his legs and moving his arms up and down. He loves to take baths with me (thank you Kati!!) but not on his own. He sleeps the best when he is right next to one of us in bed rather than on his own. He loves to be carried around in the wrap I got, nice and snuggled in close. I can take him and Wilbur on walks using the wrap. Taking the stroller is only possible if Brett is walking with us and one of us takes the leash and the other the stroller; but with the wrap both my hands are free so I have no problem with the leash.

Videos, take two

Here is another video of Henry that I took today - one day shy of six weeks old. It is in two parts but the second part is just a continuation of the first. It's really not very exciting, but hopefully gives you a good idea of what he looks like now. (I just realized that he's in his Kabbalah baby outfit....just missing the red string.)

Videos!

I hope this works... here is one video of Henry. This is of his first bath at home when he was 11 days old. There was supposed to be another video, but for some reason I can't get it to upload...stay tuned.

Quick Update

This picture was taken today in our backyard. Henry is wearing another newborn sized outfit I bought him since I couldn't resist having a couple outfits that actually fit him. It is really amazing to watch him grow and change on a daily basis. He really looks at objects now and turns his head to see where our voices are coming from. We went out to dinner tonight and he spent most of the time just staring at the booth and his carseat. Right now is the perfect time to be taking him places since he usually just sleeps through the outing. (Except for when I took him to Target yesterday...he screamed and screamed...I guess he doesn't like Target.) He loves to sit in his bouncy chair that we are borrowing from Kati. The swing we got him isn't his favorite place to be yet. I have a feeling it's because it doesn't fit him very well yet - he doesn't look very comfortable in it. Hopefully once he grows a bit more he'll enjoy sitting in it.

The heat seems to have arrived. Today was about 85 and cloudy - the rest of the week is going to be between 80 and 88 with the lows in the 60s. It's supposed to start raining tonight and rain on and off until Tuesday. It's odd to know that just when you guys in Portland are getting ready for the nice weather, we are getting ready for the extreme heat and wet weather.

5 Weeks Old and Happy May Day

Here are Henry's weekly pictures. We went to the mall today so I could get some nursing friendly tops and I broke down and bought a couple pairs of pants that are size "newborn." I was trying to just wait until he grows into his 0-3 month size stuff, but I found some on sale (plus the discount from mom!) so I went ahead and got them. He is wearing them in this picture. They are still big on him as is the onesie he has on (size 0-3)...but at least they don't fall off him.

Last night I had a very vivid dream that Henry and I were at a labour union rally/protest and I was explaining to him about the labour struggle in this country and the Haymarket Riot, and all that we have to thank unions for (e.g. 40 hour work week, standardized work regulations and conditions, no child labour, minimum wage...etc., etc.). When I woke up and was reflecting on the dream I thought it odd since labour day is still 4 months away. It wasn't until later in the afternoon that I realized it is May Day today. So I guess my subconscious is smarter than my conscious mind right now...not surprising given the sleep deprivation. Anyway, happy May Day - thank a union worker today, if for nothing else then for bringing us the lovely concept of "the weekend!"