19 week (belated 4 month) update

Hi Everyone!

Sorry for the delay in updating... I've been back to work for a month now and the catching-up never seems to end! While I'm sitting here at my desk, I'm constantly reminded throughout the day of how I am super jealous of Eric who is on leave and gets to spend his mornings like this:


and spending his days with our cute, giggly little boy. (It's cute how often I find them doing striking similar poses, even in their sleep - Everett really is Eric's "mini-me") . Eric's been super-dad to Everett. He's so patient with Everett, and he finds new ways to make him giggle and laugh every day. Eric's staying home with Everett until the week after Christmas, at which point I'll be home for the week and Everett will then start daycare on January 3rd. It's coming up so fast!

Everett had his 4 month check-up last week and he's weighing in at 15.2 lbs and measuring 25 inches tall. EJ got his 4mo booster shots and Eric said he handled them like a champ and only cried a little bit. He's back to the 50th percentile for both height and weight. They say on average that babies double their birth weight by 6 months and triple it by one year. Everett is ahead of schedule, but not gaining weight as fast as he did the first 2 months. Lengthwise, I knew my little baby was getting bigger, but it's getting really obvious now that he's grown 6 inches since birth. His feet almost hang over the side of the rocking chair while I feed him, and his 3 month pants fit more like capri pants now. Everett is just starting to wear his 6 month clothes now, although the tops are a bit baggy and the pants are a little bit long - he just looks a little bit asian ghetto stylin' :)

Everett still hasn't learned to enjoy tummy time, and is lazy about flipping over although he can do so more easily when he puts his mind to it. He's starting to prepare himself for flipping over from back-to-front, he gets about half-way there and would be almost over with a kick of the legs. Now that his upper body is getting a lot stronger, we have him doing more activities sitting up, like in his Bumbo:


The first time we put him in this chair, I just laughed and laughed he looked so funny. He's not comfortable sitting in there for long since it's more of a padded bucket than a seat. After a couple minutes he'll start arching to push himself out.

What he does love is to be in his jumperoo. He'll jump and squeal with happiness, spin around and play with all the toys... it's a good babysitter:


Except he's not quite tall and heavy enough to touch the ground... so we had to modify the set-up a little by putting a box under his feet like this:


Yes... that's a box of kitty litter. I did find another box that was better suited later on :)

The days have gone by fast the last month. We've all taken turns being sick a couple times this past month. First we all had a stomach bug, which thankfully Everett only seemed to get a mild version which resulted in him refusing to eat as often as he should for about 5 days - but he never got dehydrated, thank goodness. And just this past week, we've all had a bit of a cold. Everett's nose went from being runny to being very stuffed up - so much so that we had to aspirate his nose every time he needed to eat, but luckily his appetite wasn't affected. Sleep-wise, Everett went from sleeping 7-8 hrs continuously to going to bed at 9pm-ish, waking up at 3am, and then again at 6am... it's been rough with me being back at work full time and having to wake up twice early morning to feed him. The doctor said we could try and wean him off the 3am feeding when Everett gets closer to 6 months of age.

It's also been a busy month at the house. Eric has been working on the weekends to wrap up our new wood floors, they're almost done! We spent Thanksgiving at my grandmother's care home in Escondido to celebrate with my aunts and uncles on my Dad's side. We also put up our Christmas decorations this weekend, went and bought a tree and strung up some lights and garlands. We're sad that this will be our first Christmas away from our family in Illinois, but also excited to be starting a new tradition with our new little family. Christmas pictures will be the next update! Until then, enjoy these photos:

update 12-06-2010

Happy Halloween!

My Uncle Mark says I looked like a carrot instead of a pumpkin :)

3 month update - rolling over!

Everett turned 3 months today! And he started rolling over! Today was Eric's first day watching him solo (I'm out of town for a whirlwind business trip) and Everett rewarded him with hitting a big milestone today. Eric said he placed him on his back and he kicked and flipped himself over. Thinking it was a mistake, Eric put him back on his back and saw a repeat performance! The little boy never did like tummy time, and now he'll never have to spend any time on his stomach unless he wants to. Video to follow soon...

In the picture link, you'll see that Everett likes doing his ab exercises, getting ready to flip from stomach to back. If you put him sitting in his boppy pillow, he spends the whole time trying to sit up and eventually doing one long stomach crunch just frustrates him and he'll cry to be put flat on his back. If you use the boppy to do tummy time, he'll launch himself over the top with his constantly kicking legs and face plant himself into the ground... so I think we're going to have to call it quits doing activities with the boppy!

Everett still isn't grabbing onto things by himself yet. He'll hold onto toys if you put them in his hands and bring them to his mouth to try and eat them. He'll swing at his toys on his playmat, and he really wants to hold onto them but hasn't quite got the coordination down. So far the only things he's good at grabbing are his hair (leading to bald spots!) and clasping his hands together like a little opera singer.

Our little boy is also a giggle machine. He loves sitting on his dad's stomach, and thinks it's hilarious when you clap his hands together. Also, saying "Yay, Everett!" is a pretty sure fire way to get a laugh or smile out of him if he's well rested - which is great for getting some good pictures.

Everett's happy, so we're happy.

And here are the pictures to prove it :)

10/26/10 update

11 week update

Hi Everyone!

Everett had his 2 month appointment on October 6th. His measurements confirmed that the little babe is growing up a LOT. At birth, he was in the 25th percentile for height and weight and now at his 2 month appointment he's jumped over the 75th percentile. He's 23.5 inches long and 12 lbs 13 oz. Since his last doctor appointment at 1 month, Everett gained 3 lbs again - so the little boy is definitely eating really well. Everett's thighs look enormous (like white turkey drumsticks!) and he's got multiple chins :-). He's fitting well into his 3 month clothes with a little bit more room to grow into, but his legs are so fat that I'm having trouble finding socks that will stay on his feet but not cut off circulation.

At his doctor's appointment, the doctor checked his head shape and Everett's not in any danger of getting a flat head - which I knew since he tosses and turns throughout the night and is constantly moving his head. Everett's also got a strong neck, the doctor pulled him up from lying down to a sitting position and he held his head steady and didn't let it flop back - which she said was a milestone that usually isn't achieved until around 4 months. Also, although his appointment was at naptime, Everett was very attentive and cooing at his pediatrician the entire time - proving that he's hitting all his important milestones on time.

Everett then got his vaccinations, 1 orally and 3 shots. The nurse was great and moved very quickly so by the time Everett screamed from the first injection (and man, did he turn super red!) the nurse got the other shots done before he even took a breath to scream again. He whimpered a little bit while I got him dressed, but by the time we walked out to the elevators he was fast asleep. Everett took a couple longer naps during the afternoon but had no other ill effects from the vaccinations (ie, no fever, fussiness, etc) except leg soreness at the injection sites that bothered him during diaper changes. What a champ, he's a tough little boy!

Here's a G-rated photo from his appointment, unhappy that he's naked and not being carried:



For other updates, Everett's started to get very particular about getting put down. He likes to be on his back to play on his playmat, where he could spend hours. He has, however, decided that he doesn't like to do tummy time on his playmat - he'll fuss after 5 minutes and want to be turned over to play on his back. He'll only agree to do tummy time for longer if he's laying on mommy or daddy's stomach - which is fine by us since he's so darn cute when he plays with us :-).

Everett also does not like to be put down for naps - it's very rare that we can get him to sleep unless he's being carried. All the books says it's impossible to spoil a baby under 4 months, but that's what all the signs are pointing to! Everett will nap in his baby carrier and in our arms most of the time. I mentioned this to his pediatrician, and she said it might just be easier to let him nap and get his much needed sleep while carried instead of wasting time fighting with him and letting him cry trying to put him down in his crib. He's napping in my arms right now as I type this! I'm just thankful Everett doesn't need to be carried to sleep at night.

At nighttime, Everett is now sleeping in 6.5 - 7 hour stretches. Every once in a while he will get up at 4am and fuss a little bit, but will usually go back to sleep quickly. Now, just because Everett is sleeping 6.5 - 7 hours straight, that doesn't mean that I am. Everett is a really NOISY sleeper. From 3am to 6am, Everett will grunt and sigh very loudly and toss and turn, even though he's pretty soundly asleep. I'll wake up when I hear him on the monitor and watch to make sure I don't need to go and soothe him back to sleep, and this happens every 30 minutes or so - ensuring that I'm still pretty tired when his day starts at 6am.

Overall, Everett is very happy baby. He loves to coo and chat with people, which makes him a big hit with the relatives at parties. He smiles and laughs a lot. He's especially happy now that he's learned how to get his fists to his mouth to suck on, and he's starting to reach out and either bat or grab onto his favorite toys on his playmat - which gets him really excited.

I go back to work in 3 weeks - too soon! I'm jealous that Eric will get to be home with the Everett for 7 weeks, especially since he's so much more interactive now. Sigh.

Here are some more pictures of Everett to tide everyone over until the next post. Take care until then!

10/11/10 update

8 Week Update!

Just as I was starting to worry that Everett wasn't meeting his milestones, I went to go get him from the crib yesterday morning and the little guy waited until exactly on his 8 week birthday to start smiling at us. He normally doesn't like waking up to find himself swaddled tightly, but this morning was different - he was cooing, laughing and smiling like crazy. Up until now, his smiles have been random (and probably gas related) but for sure this was the real deal. See exhibit A below:


Everett's neck is definitely getting strong so his head isn't flopping all over the place anymore, and he's been holding his head up for longer periods of time when you put him on his tummy. He'll reach out occasionally to grab at the toys on his mat when you put him on his back, but still would rather stare and talk to them.

Some more pictures and a couple short videos (I don't have any really good videos yet of him "talking" with us, so I'll just have to keep trying and remember to keep the recorder handy!)

update 09/18/10

Everett's 2-month appointment is a little late, Oct 6th - that'll be our next update. Not looking forward to his first big round of vaccinations...

Love,
Kristine

1 month update

Everett had his 1-month birthday on Thursday. Looking back through pictures, I can't believe how different he already looks! He had a doctor's visit and is weighing in now at 9 lbs 12 oz... we knew he was gaining a lot of weight since his newborn clothes no longer fit him and we had to bump him up to the next size and diapers, but I was not expecting to hear that he had gained almost 3 lbs from his last doctor visit (he started at 7 lbs 1 oz and then lost some weight to 6 lbs 14 oz, as expected, the next couple days after leaving the hospital). Then again, I guess I shouldn't have been that surprised, the little guy sure does like his milk, and he likes to drink it often!

Milestone-wise, his neck is getting stronger - he can carry his head a little better and if he lays on our chests, he likes to push himself up and look around. He's just started to focus on things, and likes to look in mirrors. Every once in a while, he will coo at you when you talk to him... all little things, but all really exciting to us!

Everett feeds about every 1.5-2 hrs during the daytime, and every 3-4 hours at night. I've been pumping once daily so that Eric can help out with one nighttime feeding. It took a couple trial runs with different bottles, but we finally found one that works (ie, the nipple flow isn't too fast, so the baby isn't sputtering or dribbling when too much milk comes out). From the bottle, Everett drinks about 3 oz in 25 minutes. Eric's glad he gets to share in the feeding-bonding time, and I'm thankful that I can get a little extra rest at night.

My mom was here for 12 days, she just went back to Chicago this morning. Boy, was it awesome having her here! Everett loved being carried around by Grandma Elsie, she learned the secret of soothing him to sleep by stroking the hair by his ear, and calming a fussy baby by carrying him while doing her physical therapy leg strengthening exercises :). And, in addition to being super-grandma, she helped replant our garden and also made all my favorite Filipino foods - my freezer is nicely stocked in case I crave some more homemade cooking in the months to come. I'm a little afraid of how I'm going to take care of everything now that she's not here to help me out... we'll have to find a way to manage. We all miss her already, especially Everett.

Uncle Mark is also here. Little Everett amuses him with his funny faces and noises, and will only let his Uncle carry him when he's sleeping :). Don't worry Mark, the next time you visit us, your nephew will be a whole lot more fun!

While my mom was here, we also went to go visit Great-grandma Prisca a couple times. My grandma is having a hard time remembering our names these days, but she seemed to remember me and was very excited by the baby. All the ladies in the care home were happy when Everett came by to visit and eat lunch with them. By the last day, Great-grandma felt strong enough to carry Everett for a short while and she kept commenting "nadagsén!" or "he's heavy!" while she cuddled with him and kissed his head.

Next week, Grandma Heesook, Grandpa Sungbae, and Gomo Anne (I can't remember the long Korean names for Grandma/Grandpa!) will be here to visit us - Everett is excited to finally meet all of you :)

Here is a picture of Everett sleeping peacefully with Daddy from the beginning of August, it's amazing how much he's grown up already!


And here's a link to a couple more photos:

update 8/27/10

38 Weeks and Nursery

Hi Everyone!

I know I've been lazy at updating the blog. Aside from wishing I had taken weekly, or at least monthly, pictures to keep track of how huge I'm getting - there really hasn't been much to update.

The pregnancy has been going smoothly, the little baby boy regularly kicks like a soccer champ, I've been gaining weight and measuring at the doctor specified rates, and we've been trying to get the house cleaned and reorganized for the arrival of the little one and all the family to follow. Baby-wise,

I don't get anymore full ultrasounds for the remainder of the pregnancy. They check the baby's heartbeat every week, and then I did get scanned very quickly the past couple visits to make sure the levels of amniotic fluid are where they should be, and also to confirm that the baby is head down - which he is, and happily reminds me whenever I get punched in the bladder! I get kicked in the ribs a lot... actually the baby makes me have better posture since I have to sit up straight to avoid getting kicked hard.

At the latest doctor visit, I was measuring at 3 cm dilated, and supposedly my belly has dropped. I was excited and thought that I'd be going into labor early, but then when I went to read up on the subject, being dilated early doesn't always equal early delivery or faster labor (which I was . I still think I'm carrying high, but Eric and others have commented that my belly definitely looks different. Supposedly I look tiny for 38 weeks... but I think that's just a polite thing to say to pregnant woman, because I definitely don't feel tiny! I've gained about 33 lbs and haven't had any weight gain the past couple weeks (and I've been going to the doctor weekly now for the past 3 weeks) I'll let you judge for yourselves: I'm still pretty mobile, haven't had too many issues with swelling or any other pregnant discomforts. I think it helps out a lot that I'm still exercising, though really low intensity. My back gets sore occasionally, and I can't stay away from salt for too long - so when I indulge (yum, pizza!) I pay for it in the evenings, but is solved easily enough with propping my feet up and drinking tons of water.

It's hard to believe my last day at work is going to be tomorrow. I almost feel a little guilty taking off before my due date since I've been able to manage pretty well at my desk all day, just feel a little bit tired towards the end of the day - but who doesn't feel like that? For the most part I'll be spending my last couple free days straightening up around the house and relaxing, although work has already asked if I could call in for a couple meetings over the next week.

We've pretty much finished working on the nursery and we wanted to show you the final product - even though you'll see the room for yourselves in the next month or so. So I'll stop blabbering for now, enjoy the rest of the pictures.

We're getting close, take care for now!

Love, Kristine