14 1/2 Weeks

Well, I missed my friday post, but I am going to do one today since I took some cute pictures, and I feel like Matthew has really grown this week.

He is starting to hold his head up so much more, and his tummy time today he was really holding it up, and I got this cute pic of him. When he holds his head up he looks like a different baby than when I take a pic of him laying down, he is so cute!
A good smile! Today I slowly put him in his bath, his feet for a little bit, then had him sitting in the water, then laid him down... and he didn't even cry, yay! He has been crying again in the bath, and I couldn't figure out why, but I noticed he was kind of shocked when I put him in the water, so I decided to gradually introduce it to him, and it is much better. He was liking it, and kicking, so he was in a little longer, and he got wrinkley toes.
I had to buy a few 6 month sleepers cause he is getting pretty tall, and his toes were curling in all of his 3 month outfits, so here is one of them. Almost all my pics have fuzzy arms since he flails all the time.


I believe he is starting to get teeth, he has 2 tooth buds that I can feel, and is drooling a ton more than he has in the past. The teeth are his fangs, and he might look like a vampire if they come in first, I have put arrows on the pic below to show where I feel them, since they aren't that visible. He started spitting up a bunch more also, and I was getting concerned since it was unusual for him, but looked it up and I believe it is because he was swallowing more spit from his teething, and so it was in his tummy and he was throwing it up. He is starting to figure out his hands a bit, and today he was really getting his hands up to his mouth, and chewing on his thumb. There was one tiny second he sucked on it, but mostly he just gnaws. It is so fun to watch him grow up, and it is getting so exciting that he is about to figure out how to grab things and use those hands. He bats at the toys hanging on this playmat, but I'm not sure it is on purpose yet.
Today he was having a bad nap day, I think every single nap he only slept in his bed 30 min, but one time after holding him for the rest of his nap, I set him down expecting him to wake right up, but he stayed asleep that way. This pic cracked me up. Sometimes he can't go to sleep if there are any lights around he loves them so much, so I flop a burp rag over his face when he is on my chest and he goes right to sleep. Have no fear, I took the rag off... and he woke right up. Ha.

Laughing

Matthew gets night drunk around 10pm and I have been able to get a few laughs. Last night we got this quick video of it. Cracks me up!

3 Months old, Videos

I decided I wanted to post some videos this week, but I have been trying the last couple days to figure out how to get them loaded from my video camera, and still haven't figured that out, so I am just putting some on from my regular camera (if they work). This is mainly because this week Matty finally started liking the bath, and he has started kicking a ton, which is so fun, especially since a bath was pretty much the only thing he didn't like.

Matty is 3 months old. In some ways I cannot believe it how fast time is flying, but in other ways it feels like he has been with us forever, and I can't hardly remember life without him. We have quite the routine figured out, and it seems pretty smooth right now. I have been told that that means we are about to have some growth spurt, or something that will throw the good thing we have going, but right now here is our schedule:

7am - wake up, eat (which also always means pump), diaper, play for a bit
8am - nap, Matthew always does well this nap and will sleep by himself in his bed the whole time
10am - wake him up, eat, poopy diaper, bath
11:15am-11:20 - nap
12:30 usually he wakes up about now and I hold him the rest of his little nap while he is in and out
1pm - eat, diaper, play
2:20-2:30 Matthew goes to sleep and I put him in the stroller for a walk
4pm - get back from walk, eat, diaper, make dinner (Brian will scoff at this, it IS my goal but doesn't always get done)
5:20-5:30- nap
6:15-6:30 - wakes up from nap too early and I hold again, sometimes even earlier, this is his worst nap time.
7pm - eat, diaper, play, keep him awake as long as possible
9pm - eat, diaper, go down for the night

Everyone has been telling me lately that Matthew looks exactly like Brian, so we tried to take a side by side. What do you think? Haha!
He is starting to grow out of his 3 month clothes, I think he has been getting taller lately, it seems like he is going up not out to me.
A good face shot, he makes the craziest faces.
I put him under his little toy thing, and he was staring at this little lion for a long time, and just smiling at it. So cute.

Here are the videos. I have some disclaimers to make here. First of all, I hate my voice, and I apologize for blabbing on in a crazy high pitched baby talk voice, but that is the only way I know to talk to Matty, and it gets good smiley results. Secondly, I am a horrible videographer, very wobbly, especially when I am playing with the babe. Brian took the bath video, so that isn't as bad.


This one is of him babbling and smiling, but is a couple weeks old. Lately when he does his big smiles it is almost too much for him (like Ezra) and he has to look away, and his arms flail up in front of his face hiding it. Cracks me up.

12 Weeks, photo shoot

This week has been pretty uneventful, just doing the same things we always do. My back is still messed up, but slowly getting better... very slowly. I actually think my hips are the main problem since I went on a walk today and they are very sore, but I am doing my stretches, and hopefully my back will eventually not hurt.

As for Matthew, he is awesome. I should stop there since I don't ever want to be accused of complaining, so I will just say I am documenting his progress. He still sort of has day/night confused just a few hrs, so he wakes up at 10pm and will be awake the longest period of time for the day (2-3 hrs), and will go to bed around 12-1. He sleeps till 7, then goes right back to sleep until 10. If he would just go right to sleep after his feeding at 10, then he could wake up for the day at 7, but we can't seem to change his mind yet.

His first nap, (from 11-1) he will sleep all by himself in his crib, which is awesome and I try to get as much done as possible. The rest of the naps he will sleep an hr, and I rock him the rest. I feel like he hardly has awake time, since it is taken up by his eating, bath, and diaper changing, but then I also feel like I can't think of what else to do with him other than blabber in his face.

Lindsey wanted to do a quick photo shoot when she came over to Mom's, to have a picture for her wall, but her children are very wiggly, it was pretty funny watching a bunch of adults try to corral 2 kids for a picture. They sure are pretty cute though right!?

We tried to get the boys together, I wonder if Matthew's eyes will lighten up like the Ez, or if they will stay darker blue.

Now they are just mocking the shoot. Since the background was up, I figured I would pop Matthew in, and he was very good, except he just kept giving me his bug eyed look.



We went on a walk today, and he slept the whole time, but whenever we would stop walking his eyes would open, it was pretty funny. I guess there is a motivator to keep going. Another bug eyed look, I love it!

11 Weeks

This week has been a great one, full of smiling, baby talk and pretty good sleeping. The only bad part has been that I got a cold (mainly in my left nostril) and threw my back out, which has made it hard to do normal things like pick Matthew up. Once I am up, if Brian hands him to me it is fine, but it is the bending down and standing up that hurts.

Last Saturday we went to Ashley's piano recital, it was right at Matthew's nap time so he would sleep through the song, and then when people clapped he would wake up, so after a few songs we went out in the hall.
Here are Mom and Ash playing their song (Mom was filling in for Ashley's partner). Their song was first so we got to see their debut.
That night we also went to a basketball game, to see Ashley cheer during half time. Rah Rah Rah.
It was sooooooooooo loud during the game, I was worried that Matty wouldn't like it, but he was totally fine, even when the big buzzer would sound. I personally thought it was too loud, but he fell asleep for quite a while, and slept during all the noise. I couldn't believe it! It was such a fun game too, we played Royal and WON, right at the buzzer. Go Warriors!
I am always trying to get a good smile on camera, I think this is the best so far.
He is starting to really fill up the car seat, what a funny face.
I tried to get a pic of us together, since I am rarely in pictures, but now you can see why. What a crazy smile... I look like a psycho, and you can't tell me I don't, look at Matty's face, he thinks I am weird :)
This is the main way I can tell how much he is changing, I like to put the bathtub pictures side by side. I have started giving him his pacifier during the bath, and he has started to like them more.
Another smile.
This picture cracked me up. I put him in his bumbo for a while, and he was just kicking it. Haha.

2 Month Shots/Stats

Monday we went to the Dr. and got Matty's shots, and stats. I couldn't handle how sad he was when he got the shots, and I cried too. That is the worst. They gave him 3, and said the babies usually don't cry from the first one... yeah right. I was holding him, and I felt him jump when they put the needle in and that just broke my heart.



When he was first weighed at my Dr's office at about 1 week old he was in the 5th percentile. Things have changed.

Weight: 13 lbs 84% (percentile) ~I thought he had some oz, but they didn't put any on my chart
Height: 23.5" 66%
Head: 39 cm 23%

The last couple days he has been going backwards a bit in his sleeping, he is harder to put to sleep for naps, he will only sleep 30-45 min in his crib, and struggles to sleep on my chest after that just sort of fussing and restless. I wonder if he might be a bit sick from the shots, although he doesn't really have any other signs of sickness so maybe he is just going through a phase.

In the middle of the night when I pump I get a lot of milk, and I thought I would document it since it is interesting to me. When you pump the first milk is called foremilk and the later milk is hindmilk, and it is a lot fattier. The 2 bottles on the right are the first milk I pump, and then I get 1/2 bottle more on each side, and have combined them in the bottle on the left. It is hard to see in the picture, but it looks to me like pure cream. You can see the fat in the bottles on the right has separated to the top, but the whole left bottle is practically fat. No wonder my boy is getting chubby :)


Matthew is getting so responsive, and smiles easily when you speak to him (if he isn't tired or hungry) it is so fun trying to get a good reaction out of him. Here are some faces I have captured this week. He cracks me up!

My 30th Birthday, 9 weeks

My first try at a family photo. Wow.
Matthew sporting his FSU binky, we are starting him young :)
Lindsey's family came over for my "birthday extravaganza", and Darcy was really enjoying the Christmas candy that we had out... as you can plainly see. Haha.

Grandma and Grandpa enjoying the party, with Matty's buddy Ezra.

Brian planned the meal, tiny hamburgers and hot dogs. I was in charge of making the small hot dog buns, which seemed like they took forever rolling out, but it was worth it... look how cute!.
Brian enjoying his meal. It was funny to talk about how much I had eaten, saying I had a hamburger and 4 hot dogs really sounds like I was a pig.
My delicious cheesecake. We were a little low on candles so Brian suggested I blow it out 30 times. I really had to take a deep breath for that one!

I took some pics on Matty's 2 month birthday, I can't believe how time is flying. He is really starting to kick a lot, especially when he is happy and smiling. Here is an action shot.
Big boy face.
Sneeze.
Today when I was making some noises, he started doing this bug eyed, funny face. I took a video of it, but my noises are so embarrassing, I just couldn't post it, so here is a pic.
I have noticed this week when he starts to get tired, his eyes start to get red, you can kind of see it in this pic.

We have been doing better on him sleeping in his own bed for naps (on his side), and he will usually make it at least an hr now. A couple times I have been able to put him back down and he will sleep the rest 30 to 45 min or so, but otherwise I have to rock him for the 2nd part of his nap. That is better than just a week ago when he would only sleep 30 min by himself, but I am just fine holding him if that is what it takes. We also have extended our sleep at night to 5 hr increments, we go to sleep around 11 and wake up around 4, then go to bed 4:45 to 5 and wake up around 10am. I am loving this schedule. Everyone told me I wouldn't be able to sleep in in the morning after I had a baby, but he is definitely a morning sleeper, which I love.

Here is a short video of him hiccuping and smiling. Normally he doesn't like the hiccups and cries when he has them, but he has been super happy today. Please excuse my babbling, I am just going to have to get used to it since all of the videos have me talking in them, but I still can't hardly stand to hear myself.

8 Weeks

I had promised Kay that I would update with pictures every friday so she could see how much he is changing, but as you can see I have already failed a bit, but I have finally gotten caught up, so here is the latest. He is totally excited about his new duds Kay got him, see? Haha.

Happy boy. I love that he can smile now, and lets me know he enjoys my baby babble.
Another shot.
I think this was just a funny expression, after he is full looking up at me. Pretty content.
In the middle of his arms flailing out, and looking up at the light in the bathroom before a bath.
In the bathtub. He basically doesn't care either way about a bath, not really happy or sad, except at the end when I wash his head, he starts to be sad at that point so I do it quickly.
Here he is after the head washing, such a cute sad face, but usually I cuddle him up and he pees on me so I make sure and shower after his bath :)
I cut the back of his hair a tiny bit, cause it was looking kind of like a mullet, party in the back!
Another smirk.
I have put him on his tummy for a nap a couple times in the living room where I can watch him, and he sleeps so much better that way, but his face does this, which totally cracks me up. Big lips.
Here he is today, in his newest outfit, and his shoes that already barely fit. I love them though! He looks like such a little man. Awww.