Daily Cuteness

Anderson is such a fun little guy these days. He will be 11 weeks old on Saturday! Here are some things our little guy is up to:

He smiles, especially when you put him in his crib
He tracks us with his eyes when we leave the room
He grabs his toys
He giggles
He enjoys tummy time and is keeping his head up for quite awhile
He looks at the pictures in books
He still doesn't like to wake up
We are going to James' work party on Friday night and our friends are going to watch Anderson. It's nice because they have a one year old so we are going to swap babysitting nights at least once a month. On Saturday our friends invited us to stay with them in Breckenridge. We are going to enjoy the beautiful mountains, cook some chilli, James is going to ski, and we might do some shopping. Fun, fun!

Anderson posing for the camera


Anderson is working out in his Mizzou outfit (Thanks Tori)


Anderson enjoying his daily tummy time

Anderson enjoying his Daddy snuggles before bedtime

Ahh.. the shirt is stuck!

So Thankful

It was wonderful to celebrate Thanksgiving with Anderson at our friends' house. This time last year we were feeling so down and just wanted to get away. This year we are so happy. What a difference a year can make. We feel so blessed this year and have so much to be thankful for. We are thankful for our sweet baby boy, our new house, jobs, dog, family, friends and each other. Really, life can't get any better than this.

All turkey'd out!

Time is flying by...

It is amazing to us that Anderson is already 2 months old. The time has flown by and things are so much better than they were the first few weeks. I'm loving my time with him each day. My goal has been to get out of the house almost every single day. He likes to go places and usually sleeps, so it is pretty easy thus far. He has been sleeping so much better at night and during the day. I'm loving the routine he is on and he is such a happy baby. This week he had his 2 month appointment and had to get his vaccinations. I was amazed at the fact that he weighed 12 pounds 11 ounces! He was such a happy little guy for about an hour and then the last 5 minutes he was a sad little guy. :( I felt so bad for him. When we got home we had to give him some tylenol because he wasn't feeling good and his legs were swollen. The next day he was back to his happy self. This week I also took him to school so that I could help my long term sub with the first trimester report cards. To be honest, it was difficult to get into the school mode. I don't want to be in the school mode but I will have to be in January. The time is ticking so fast and I just don't even want to think about leaving my little guy with someone else for 8 to 10 hours each day. :( If you are a working mom, please tell me that things won't be as bad as I think they will be...

Our 8 week sweetie

We can't believe that Anderson is 8 weeks old today! Last night we were talking about how incredibly lucky we feel to be his parents and have him in our lives. The first few weeks were really rough but now things are wonderful. We feel so truly blessed. Anderson has changed so much in the past 8 weeks. Here are some highlights:
1) He coos and smiles in the morning when we get him out of his crib
2) He is sleeping longer stretches at night (last night he almost slept 6 hours straight)
3) He loves to watch us and it seems like he knows when we go in his room while he is going to sleep
4) He is so much more alert. He is so happy when he is awake and I think it is all because of the E.A.S.Y. schedule.
5) He will let us know if he is overstimulated
6) He is a great eater. He is over 12 pounds now!
7) He seems to like bath time now
8) He gets excited to play on his mat
9) He doesn't mind tummy time and is doing great at lifting up his head and turning it from side to side
10) He isn't a huge fan of naps but is getting better about sleeping in his crib. He is a master at unswaddling himself!

Yesterday I took Anderson to my school to have lunch with my team and to meet my class of 2nd graders. He had a lot of fun but I think having 23 kids staring at him was a little overwhelming.


We LOVE his smile!



Hanging out before we left to go to school.





Oh look who is unswaddled. He was in there tight too!

11 pounds 7 ounces Oh My!

On Friday I had to take Anderson to the doctor because we thought he had an eye infection. He got some ointment and will be fine. Our doctor weighed him and couldn't believe that he was 11 pounds and 7 ounces. He is going straight up on the growth curve! He LOVES to eat!

This weekend Anderson smiled for the first time awake. He is so adorable and we just think he is great. We took him hiking on Sunday for the first time and he had a good nap in the Bjorn. He loves to ride in his carseat and with our routine it works out pretty well to get out as long as we follow it. Really, as long as there is food he is fine! I have been trying to get him out about every day since it has been beautiful. Last week we even went downtown and met James for lunch and Anderson got to meet his coworkers. I'm having so much fun with him that I can't even think about going back to work.

Have a great week!

Anderson's first real smile. So cute!

Our cute little monkey!

He loves to ride in his car seat.

Mommy and her baby boy!

He's getting chubby!

First time in the Bjorn.

What a great daddy!

Nice day for a hike!

Fun Halloween!

We had a great Halloween weekend. On Friday we went to my school's Trunk or Treat and when we got home we carved pumpkins while our little guy slept. On Saturday we enjoyed the beautiful weather, and went to our friends' house to enjoy a Halloween dinner and trick or treating. Anderson slept through his first trick or treating experience but he sure looked cute as a tiger.

Sleepy tiger!

Our little squirrel.

Molly's pal Lucy was a banana!

Happy Halloween (early)

This morning we woke up to A LOT of snow! The great part about it is I didn't have to drive in it. My poor friends who work at my school didn't get a snow day. My district was one of the few that had school today. Anderson, Molly, and I relaxed and poor James had to go to work. Luckily the weather will warm back up to the 50's and 60's by this weekend in time for Halloween. That's why we LOVE Colorado!

This is what we woke up to this morning.

I had to make Anderson wear his Mommy's Little Pumpkin shirt today.

E.A.S.Y

Anderson is sleeping well at night besides waking up with congestion. I wish the congestion would just go away. We have a humidifier and James did some research and ordered a Nose Frida. I was grossed out at first but it really has helped. Sometimes nothing works and that is when his sleep is restless. We can't blame him, poor little guy! The naps during the day are what we are struggling with a bit. Normally Anderson falls asleep eating and then I put him down for naps. He sleeps so well and so long but I have read that it will come back to haunt me sooner than later. I have been reading The Baby Whisperer and am now trying the E.A.S.Y. schedule. It is not easy by any means! My main goal is to try to help Anderson differentiate between eating time and sleeping time. I also think he was overstimulated because we kept him up too long between naps. I'm exhausted trying to get this little guy to go to sleep on his own without eating but we have had two successful naps after trying the four S's from the book. I have read it cover to cover and it has some great information.
Last night Anderson and I picked up James from work and we met two friends at our favorite sushi place near our old rental home. We hadn't been there since I got pregnant and it was more fabulous than I remembered. Anderson slept through dinner and did great! It was nice to get out. Tonight we are having four friends over and they each have one year olds. It should be fun. I hope everyone has a great weekend. We had to get outside because the weather is supposed to get icky for the next few days. James went for a bike ride, I took Anderson for a walk/run, and I kept James company for a few minutes while he raked leaves. So far a great weekend!

One Month and Out and About

Anderson is one month old today! Yesterday we took Anderson to the pumpkin patch for some picture abuse and then we headed to Boulder to eat dinner out. That was the first time he had been inside a public place. He did pretty well throughout the day. It was so nice to get out. We must have worn him out because he slept for two 4 hour stretches and another 2 hour stretch this morning! We have seen him change so much in the past month.
He definitely has much more alert awake time
He will track objects with his eyes
He will make eye contact for longer periods of time
He reaches for the toys that hang down on his activity mat
He will hold on to my shirt when I pick him up
He lifts his head and can turn it to the other side when on his tummy
He is starting to coo just a bit (mostly in his sleep and when he is eating)
He is getting heavier and longer (we had to adjust the straps on his carseat because they wouldn't fit him!)Things are getting so much easier and are starting to feel more normal. Wow, having a baby was a huge adjustment but I'm loving it!! I'm really enjoying my time home with him and will love it more now that we can get out and do things!


Grandma holding him


We love the double chin!


Riding in the carseat


Pumpkin pic abuse

Our little pumpkin


The family


The mountains looked gorgeous with the snowcapped peaks.

Sleep.. What's That?

The last few nights Anderson hasn't slept well. James had a headache the other day so I forced him to sleep in the guest room to get a little sleep. Anderson has been congested and has napped quite a bit in the early evening. During the day he is awake more and so much more alert. In the evening we do everything we can to try to keep him awake but sometimes NOTHING keeps him awake. We got a humidifier and a sleep positioner to help him stay propped up but now I'm wondering if the congestion is really the reason for his sleeping issues. He usually falls asleep while eating during the night and then I lay him down to sleep. He would prefer to be held and knows immediately when he is put in his crib. Last night I kept picking him up but putting him down before he fell completely asleep. This really didn't work out too well. Does anyone have advice about this issue?? We don't want to let him cry since he is not even a month old and he needs to feel secure and know that we will meet his needs. We need sleep though. Before the last few nights he would eat and then go right to sleep so I was only up for 30-45 minutes. The last few nights I have been up for an hour to two hours each feeding which does not leave much time for sleep. Any advice would be appreciated!

Awake and Alert

Asleep..nothing can wake him up!

These Are the Days of Our Lives

Boy has time flown by. Anderson was three weeks on Saturday and is a hungry, growing boy. He is more alert, still squeaks instead of all out cries (most of the time), and has at least one accident a day. We bought a wee guard but sometimes we forget to use it and we get a nice surprise. Anderson enjoyed his first Mizzou game on Thursday but unfortunately it didn't turn out like we wanted it to. This weekend it was really cold so we didn't really venture out of the house. We had some friends over on Sunday and Molly really enjoyed the attention. It is safe to say that we are all adjusting well, including Molly. Each day she seems to be a bit more comfortable around the little guy and a little less sad. We are getting 3 to 4 hour stretches of sleep at night but still feel somewhat tired since it is interrupted sleep.

Here are some cute pics (we have taken over a 1000)

Anderson sporting his first pair of jeans.

Mizzou family.

Anderson having a great dream.

Fun Day

Today was a milestone for me because I got out of the house with Anderson (without James). I just started driving again on Sat. and now am feeling good enough to go out and about a little bit. Today was a beautiful day so we wanted to make the most of it before the cold front moves through and brings us frigid temps. Anderson and I went for a long walk and then we met my friend Kathleen and her baby at a great park nearby. Each day things seem to get easier and easier for all of us. We are learning what works best with Anderson's schedule and I have to say that I'm really enjoying mommyhood at home with him. I wish James could be home too! I think Molly's demotion in the household (not intentional) has made her a little depressed but we are making more of an effort to pay attention to her. Here are some cute pics from the last few days.

Cuteness

We are loving life with our little Anderson.

• He is sleeping 3-4 hours stretches at night and is awake a little more during the day.
• He loves his hands as you will see in many of the pictures. He is starting to turn his head when he hears a familiar voice and loves to roll from side to side. We took him to the pediatrician for his two week check-up and she didn't believe that he could roll from side to side until she saw him do it at the office.
• He has gained back all his birth weight and is healthy.
• He still dislikes baths
• He still loves to sleep! Yay!

Go Mizzou!