Week 5 Update

I missed week 4, where did it go? We had two playdates since I last wrote - visiting Jen K's daughter born a month before Matthew, and just this week visiting Brad & Beth's son born just a day before him. Playdates at this age involve a lot of sleeping but it's fun to get pictures of the kids together. We also visited St. Paul to see the work gang and have lunch at the River Room. Mmm, tasty mandarin chicken salad and popover. On Monday, Matthew was officially a month old. He started cooing and smiling in the last week. He seems especially alert and content when changing his diaper so we play a lot during that time. I have been attending the New Parent Connections class held Tuesday's at Woodwinds. This Tuesday, he weighed 12 lbs. 9 oz.! I have been going through my mom's pictures and momentos and found my baby charts. At two months I was still in the 11 lb. range. We need to get hold of Jeff's baby pictures and details to see how Matthew compares. This weekend we travel to Kansas City to visit my family. It was previously a 6-7 hour drive; we'll see what "new normal" is with the little guy along. Lindsay and Lauren agree we have to eat Stroud's, so I know I've taught them well. I am really looking forward to seeing everyone.

Week 3 Update#2

On Monday night Matthew had his first bottle, given to him by Jeff. He did pretty well and we will keep giving him one a few times a week. Lauren has offered to watch her brother on Valentine's Day so Jeff and I can have a dinner out alone. I'm sure we won't go far, yet it will be nice to get out together. Wednesday we went to the Mall of America with Rebecca and Carly and had a great time. Carly was very intrigued by how Matthew gets to eat and my favorite line was "So, if you eat crackers does the milk taste like crackers?" Only from the mouth of babes! I loved the Nordtrom's lounge and Rebecca showed me all of the elevators and gave lots of great advice on being out and about with a stroller. Today, we had Matthew's doctor appointment. The little tank weighs 11 pounds and is 23 inches long. It was a bittersweet visit since our doctor is leaving his practice to go to the hospital side. We can only hope to find a new doctor half as special as Rolando. We were blessed to have him be part of our pregnancy and birth. Today is nap day, meaning Kristi needs to nap with Matthew. It's true you SHOULD nap when the baby is napping. Making yourself do it is the hard part.

Week 3 Update

Matthew is 17 days old and changing each day. He is more interested in his surroundings while he is awake, still loves to be swaddled and is a great sleeper. We hit a 5 hour sleep run last night. I know, I won't expect that to happen every night. His favorite book so far is "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?" Probably because I can actually mimic most of the animals, although what does a bear sound like? Jeff shaved his beard off and Matthew seems to like the new look and feel (easier on his baby face). Saturday he had his first big outing - breakfast at the Hastings American Legion and then a lengthy shopping trip to Menard's and several stores in Woodbury. I nursed him in the backseat while Jeff made a Home Depot stop, and that worked out just fine. We saw quite a few people we knew inside World Market and found a mirror for our back entry. Sunday night we went to 6pm church. After a minute of fussing when we first arrived, Matthew slept the rest of the time. It was great having Jeff home this weekend. I got into the hot tub for the first time since pregnancy, and we made it in twice - together. The monitor is a wonderful device and really you only need 20 minutes or you get too water-logged anyway. Jeff made one of our favorite meals, the halibut dish from Harborview Cafe in Pepin. This week we have Matthew's 2nd doctor appointment (Thursday) and I am very excited to see how much he weighs. We have several visitors planned and I very much look forward to the adult interaction those visits bring. The biggest outing planned for this week is meeting Rebecca and Carly at the Mall of America on Wednesday for lunch. I look forward to a "stroller" walk with my little man. Have a great week everyone, I will report again soon!