Birthday Pictures

Will was trying to eat his hands, so that explains the arm blurs. But, I thought the pictures were too cute.

We Have a One Month Old!

How crazy is that?! I can't believe Will is a month old. Today was our first outing, just the two of us, and I think we did very well. We saw Dr. Barfield this morning, and he was very pleased with Will. He is up to 8 lbs 10 oz and is one inch taller. This is not nearly what I thought he would weigh based on how much he eats, but Dr. Barfield thought it was a good number. Will was quiet and awake for Dr. Barfield, and the nurse today was also a lactation consultant, so we got a good report on his nursing too.

Will got all kinds of compliments from the nurses and other moms. What I heard most was how much he looks like a tiny grown up instead of a baby. I think it is because he looks so much like Gus.

In the next few weeks, we should expect for Will to start sleeping through his 3 am feeding...can't wait for that! We should also expect a lot of fun awake and smiling time.

The three of us had an awesome weekend. Gus and Will hung out together on Saturday while I had girls lunch...and got a terrible sunburn sitting outside for an hour long lunch. Sunday, Gus had a nice bike ride, and the three of us spent the rest of the day playing and snuggling.

I'll take a one month birthday picture when Will wakes up from his nap, but these pictures are from this weekend.

Bottles and Bouncy Chairs, Oh My!

This week, we have discovered two things that make life even happier and easier for all three of us. Our pediatrician recommended we wait until Will was 3 weeks old before we introduced a bottle. After checking in with the doctor again, Gus gave Will his first bottle of breastmilk on Monday. Will is adjusting very well to taking the bottle and continuing to nurse. He's actually latching and feeding better. And, it gives me a break a few times a day and gives Gus another opportunity to bond with Will. Thank goodness for the bottle!

Also, we discovered that Will loves his bouncy chair! The bouncy chair gives me time for a shower and things like this blog post. He's been so happy in it this morning, and he's trying to reach the hanging toys.

We'll go back to the pediatrician on Monday for his one month check up. We'll let you know how much he weighs, etc.

Daddy's Little Music Man

I know the exact moment in 2001 when I knew that Gus would be the best dad in the world. I can see the moment in my head like it was yesterday. And, not to toot my own horn or anything, but I was totally right.

The whole time I was pregnant, I dreamed about the moments our child would share with us. And, the minute we found out we were having a boy, I knew instantly that Gus and Will were going to have a great time together. I spent hours imagining all the things that they would enjoy together, first among them, music.

Gus, as you know, is a music connoisseur. In fact, thats probably an understatement, but knowing Gus, you already know that. When I was pregnant, we were both so excited to feel Will dancing around in my belly every time we put on the Red Hot Chili Peppers. We continued going to concerts, and Will always danced along.

Gus made several cds for Will's room. And, just as we had hoped, Will is quite the music fan. When Will gets fussy, you can bet that music will settle him down. And, oh my, his taste is already so varied. We've done the Dave dance to Ants Marching. We've rocked out to the Chili Peppers. We've explored the room to the likes of Outkast; we shook like a Polaroid picture.

This is a picture of Gus playing Ben Folds Five for Will. He loved the Ben Folds concert in February, and you would never know that just minutes prior to this picture, Will was screaming. Gus started out playing Lonley Island's "I'm on a Boat" for Will. That in itself was hilarious.

I'm so thrilled to watch my boys share this love together.

New Pictures

For Will's 3 week birthday, enjoy some new pictures.

2.5 weeks

Unfortunately, Gus did have to go back to work on Monday. Will and I totally miss having him at home, but we are adjusting to a schedule of our own during the day. And, Gus takes great care to have Daddy time as soon as he gets home from work, and he gets up early to hang out with Will and let me catch a nap before he heads off to work. What a great dad and husband!

Right now, Will's most active awake time is between 4 and 11 am. Its not the most ideal, but it could be worse. And, I know it won't last forever, so I'm actually enjoying our morning conversations and play sessions.

(On a side note, when did The Fresh Prince become a Nick at Nite show? We've watched quite a few episodes around 4 am. Remember when Nick at Nite showed things like I Love Lucy and not shows we grew up watching?)

Will is starting to smile in his sleep. Its so much fun to watch and try to imagine what he might be thinking. His smiles are just beautiful, and I can't wait until he's smiling all the time. He's also working on a great smirk. He is starting to coo a little bit when he is awake. Little bits of his personality are showing through every day. Its so awesome.

Will also had his first real bath on Monday evening. He wasn't so sure about the baby bath tub, but we can tell he's going to be a water baby for sure. He loves to have his hair washed as much as I love to do it. And, he loves the sound of the water. When I was pregnant, he was always so calm after I showered. It'll be so much fun when we can take him swimming and to the beach.

This is SportsCenter

Will is such a great snuggler. Gus and I could hold him all day every day. Unfortunately, that doesn't work so well at night. And, really, thats when Will likes to be awake. We got a little more rest last night, and he was only up from 2:30 to 6. Baby steps.

But, when you are up at all hours of the day and night, you settle into a routine. You find what works for you. For instance, when Will is nursing, I need to keep track of the time, and in the middle of the night, I need something to keep me awake. SportsCenter shows the time of day during the broadcast, so I probably watch 12 hours of SportsCenter a day. (Will eats a lot.) If Lebron had an awesome dunk, I've seen the replay enough times that I can act it out. And, if you weren't aware, Tiger is playing in the Masters this weekend. I can quote the interview with him.

My dad would be proud of the amount of Discovery Channel we've watched, even though most of it has been Deadliest Catch reruns and Cash Cab. And, from the time we checked into the hospital, I think almost every Adam Sandler comedy possible has been on tv. Will's first days of life have been marked by Happy Gilmore, Billy Madison, 50 First Dates, The Wedding Singer, Big Daddy and Mr. Deeds.

Its been a great adventure so far. We're loving every minute.

Doing It Our Way

Sometimes, even Dwight Schrute is wrong...actually, make that most of the time. My assertion that Will would be delivered by Dr. Michael Scott was totally wrong. And, I couldn't be happier about it. Not that Dr. Scott isn't a lovely doctor--I really have no idea. I never once saw a doctor when we were in the hospital, and it was great.

As you know, we were scheduled to be induced on the morning of Will's birthday. The hospital called to say they had a room for us beginning at 9 pm the night before. We were very excited to know that Will's arrival timeline was in place, but I couldn't help but feel bad that we were missing the excitement of my water breaking and labor kicking in as normal.

Around 8 pm, as Gus and I made final preparations to leave for the hospital, something funny happened. My water broke all on its own. An hour before we were scheduled to arrive at the hospital for induction. As Gus said, we are one prompt family. So, we left the house a bit early with a bit of added excitement after all!

Though my water was broken and I was having contractions, I wasn't making any progress. With the help of the midwife on duty Thursday night, we made the decision to try to get some rest before starting Pitocin at 6 am.

To make a long story short, the Pitocin worked well, but so did my own body. At some point during the morning, not only was the Pitocin triggering contractions, but I was having contractions based on my own level of oxytocin. Between the two, I ended up having one long 20 minute contraction. There was no time to stop and catch my breath, and at that point, I was ready for my epidural. Afterwards, I was able to get some rest and progressed very well. Later that day, I only pushed for about 30 minutes before Will was born.

I had always planned on having an epidural anyway, but I can't say how glad I am that it was an option. I know some people say terrible things about it, and to each her own. But, before the epidural, I was in so much pain that I couldn't concentrate on the experience. With the epidural, I was fully aware of everything going on. I could feel contractions without the pain. I was able to experience everything so much more fully.

And, what an experience it was. I can't say enough about the nurses we had that day. One of them even came to visit us the next day in recovery. But, more importantly, I am so thankful that Mia the midwife was there to deliver Will. She was absolutely amazing and once Will's head and shoulders had been delivered, Mia had me pull him out the rest of the way. I helped to deliver my own child. How awesome is that?

I can't begin to describe how amazing Gus was during the whole labor and delivery process. Furthermore, you cannot imagine a more natural and loving father than Gus. Will and I are so lucky.

One Week Later

Hard to believe that Will is already a week old. I'll try to post another time about the hospital experience. I really can't say just how amazing it was. Northside is wonderful, and our birth experience really couldn't have been better.

We marked Will's week birthday with a trip back to the pediatrician. Looks like our little man has some acid reflux problems, so the doctor prescribed a small dose of Zantac for him. Hopefully, this will help.

Getting into the Groove

Things are moving along quite nicely. Will and Daddy are enjoying a nap on the couch together. Gus has been great about staying up with Will during his most active time of the day...midnight to 3 am. We're all eating and showering regularly. So far, so good.

Will has enjoyed meeting his grandma, great aunt and uncle, Tim and Alesha, Alana and David, Brian and Candy, so far.

Will is starting to spend more time each day awake. It is so much fun to watch him looking around the room. He is a fabulous snuggler, and Gus and I are both really enjoying that.