Monday Night

This is a picture of the boys relaxing and hanging out.
(Doesn't he look like a little man!)

SUNDAY 9-26-08

Today Phin is 7 weeks and 2 days old.

On his birthday,
his height: 19 1/2 inches;
his weight: 6lbs 15oz.

At his 8/19/08 checkup,
his height: 20 1/4 inches;
his weight: 7lbs 3oz.

At his 9/24/08 checkup,
his height: 22 inches;
his weight 9 lbs 7oz.

Even though he has continued to get bigger and bigger. Dan and I don't realize it until we visit friends who don't have infants who are so small. They then talk about how small he is. Here is Phin and his Daddy - hand in hand.

See, I told you

I would get some more pictures up today! It's just 8:30pm!
:)

3:30am

Ya, so I have not been good with updating this week. Sorry about that - but as most of you know, I have been out of the house every single day this week at this and that doctor. I have awesome carpal tunnel splints to wear "a night" which is usually 1.5 hours at a time...
Moving on - I am multi-tasking each moment of my day. For example, right now, Phin is sleeping next to me as I pump milk for later (he's full/finished for now...). With my right hand, I am typing this and working the camera card to bring you two pictures! (My mommy cam is in the diaper bag across the room... so it will have to be "in the morning".

Oh, and, I am having a terrible craving for waffles!

Riiiiight, those pictures. Enjoy!


This picture is SPECIFICALLY for LeaAnn! ;)

Phin as "Turtle"

This is my latest favorite picture!

This is the picture REALLY showing Phin as "Turtle"

And this reminds me of a bull fighter or a tango dancer or something!

Grammie Allen comes to visit!

Grandmother Allen stopped by for a few hours today to visit our favorite baby Phin after going to her TKD tournament. So, we had to grab a picture while we had the chance!

Sometimes things are difficult...

Last night is a good example. I was able to cut his little razor finger nails earlier in the day - which was helpful. But then in the evening, after his stroll through the neighborhood, things got difficult. My baby pulled my glasses practically off of my face. He was punching me in the neck and pulling my hair and when I thought I had his hands under control, he would ninja style whip them out and punch and pull some more.
He cried for almost an hour straight. He was having a ton of gas (is that from what I was eating or what) and it seemed that no matter how much we fed him - he was still hungry. Even after resorting to some bottles of expressed milk.
Around midnight, I went to get him from his crib and I found that he had become a cottage cheese factory and it was all over his clothes. I got him changed and cleaned up and ready to be nursed. He then nursed for a just long enough to get half full and get those really awesome hiccups. He threw up in my hair and all over the top half of me and the hiccups wouldn't go away and he was very frustrated between hiccuping and crying. And the whole time - from yesterday to the early hours of this morning, all I could do was look at his chubby fingers and his double chin and his tiny little finger nails and feel nothing but complete amazement and love for this little baby.
Even during a bit of a difficult time, I am so very blessed to have him.

Dan's birthday present!

9-12-08 was Dan's Birthday.
This year, the cap "Rocket Retreat" fell during Dan's birthday - so Phin and I went to visit him for Lunch. We had a strawberry cake and a chocolate cake. One of the cadets decided that the strawberry would be the lunch birthday cake.
Dan got to blow out is "32" candles! (Phin is wearing his "major cutie" outfit from Grandma Susie!)


Phin didn't actually get to eat any cake, but as you can see, Daddy was trying to sneak him a bite!

Day to see the doctor!

Today, Phin had to accompany me to the doctor.
We got there earlier than expected, so I took him for a 30 min. stroll.Once I got back, I thought maybe I shouldn't have done that right before they took my blood pressure - as it has been high last time. However, it as FINE.
Doesn't he look so CUTE in his outf it!

While Phin was in the hospital, they gave him a little blue and white striped hat to wear. It was cute and I loved it and then we lost it! They had also given him a knitted hat - but his head was too big for it - so I asked Phin's daddy to pick up a hat or two at the store on his way back up to the hospital. Phin's daddy actually found a three pack of hats - which impressed me a LOT! The thing is, the hats were bigger than Phin's head.
Grandma Susie will remember - we had hats that were too small and hats that were too big...

Today, I tried one of the hats on Phin. You see, it got pretty cool here last night and I left some of the windows open in the house and I was afraid he may get too cool. I put one of the hats on him and GUESS WHAT! Now, at 5 1/2 weeks old, the hat fits like a charm! It's too bad it's supposed to be warm for the rest of the week. I would have a hat on Phin EVERY DAY!


Then, this afternoon, I took Phin for his first stroll. I made him ride in the stroller like he was a big boy or something because I could not figure out how to get the car seat attached to the stroller (though, I figured it out immediately when we got back from our walk!)
Phin enjoyed the walk, I think. He slept the whole time - except for once when he woke up without his binki in his mouth. We fixed that quickly and he was again out!
I am not sure about SUN SCREEN for Phin - as in what to use. He has my complexion and I don't want him to burn up! Luckily, we visit the pediatrician next week - and I am sure they can tell me what to use. Until then, we'll just do the best we can!

Bath Aftermath

Ethan has a "cowlick" that makes his hair a little unsettled. It's got some wave (body) to it and I have tried letting it go "natural" but I am afraid it just looks a little crazy!(as you can see in recent pictures of him).

Tonight, after his bath, I put tons of baby lotion on his head and made him look like a little gentleman. I am curious to see what we will end up doing with his hair styles as he gets older!

Sunday:

This was Phin's nap time.
His face changes every day.




Dan got home around lunchtime from "rocket retreat" and I got a picture of the boyz together!

Phin's rocking out on his own!

Look how strong he is!

Phin is a strong boy.
He is five weeks old today and he's holding his head up like a big boy!
Go Phin Go!


AND
Phin has a little "hello" message for Uncle Ron.
Grandmother Allen came to visit for a bit today (for an early Happy Birthday Dinner for Daddy [Dan].) Grandmother Allen translated the hello for Phin. Have fun!

A mother's mantra

I have never been a mother before. However, from what I have seen on TV, mothers spend a lot of time saying the same things over and over. They have a mantra, if you will, that changes as necessary for their children. It may be "Clean your room" or "Put your shoes away" or maybe "Put your dishes in the dishwasher" (come to think of it, I say those kinds of things to Daddy!)
Getting back to the subject, I realized today that I have my own, first mantra. It is "Hands out of eyes please!" See, Phin has this nasty habit of poking at his eyes while he's nursing... So, over and over every three hours, I say "Hands out of eyes please."
I often see the most touching faces when Phin is nursing. Sometimes, he has the most sincere look on his face and I just wonder what he must be thinking. I mean, it's probably thoughts about poo or something, but it looks completely sweet... I have this urge to photograph these faces, but can't bring myself to share my cleavage with the internet. So, this is the next best thing.

Phin as "Turtle"

Phin does this thing with his neck that is hard to capture in a picture because he's usually on our shoulder when he does it. He kinda hunkers down and extends his neck out. This is as close as I have ever been able to capture with the camera. Enjoy!



(Also, check out Phin's double chin. So cute!!!)

Phin's lazy Saturday:

Phin has been working hard to gain weight and chunk out.
See his progress below!

Phin's first FOUR GENERATION photo!

Phin was so very lucky to have four generations of family welcome him into this world on his birth-day. We were unable to get a picture of the whole family that day as the policy of the hospital was three visitors at once.

When we traveled to Kirksville for a doctors appointment, Phin's great grandparents came up to visit him and we were able to get the picture!

I DON'T know HOW it happened!

I have these pictures of my pregnancy from when I just found out I was pregnant

to the day I left to go to the hospital to have the baby.

I have pictures of his first ultra-sound at DMU

and the ultra-sound through my gyn/ob.

And then I have pictures of the day my baby was born - the actual moment he took his first breath

and his first swaddle in the arms of his daddy for the very first time.

I remember how just one single tear drop rolled from my left eye as I touched my baby for the first time without the skin of my belly in between us.

I have watched my Ethan P. - unable to stay awake though his first ten minute feedings where grandma Susie had to pick him up and help wake the little boy so he could finish his meal

to today, where he's actively looking at me and using his tiny little hands to explore his hair, his ears and those same tiny little fingers wrapping around my finger as he's so very content and able to stay awake though the whole feeding.

I remember the first week home from the hospital while I took a long hot shower while Grand-ma Susie was with Phin. I stood under the hot stream of water thinking about how I am thirty-one years old and I could not remember a time that I have been so happy since I was a little girl (the youngest child at the time) playing patty-cake with my mommy in the old farm house while she rocked me. At the end of the patty-cake, MY mommy would tickle me and I would immediately say "Do it again!" We must have played patty-cake twenty times. So many years had passed between then and now. Tears filled my eyes as I was again able to see and feel that safety of my mother around me and also had the privilege of being able to hold the warm little body of the guy I helped make thinking of the future when I could play patty cake with him over and over and over again.
I swear I have over a hundred pictures of Phin sleeping - each one just as important as the last, as his face changes every single day.







Today, when we left the house to visit Grandmother Allen and the Great Grandparents in Kirksville, and I noticed that there were leaves that had dropped to the ground.

On the car ride to Kirksville, while I was so very tired from a lack of sleep, Dan and I talked about how today at 12:32p our baby would be one month old... and we don't know how it happened. All of the things I have listed above are things all parents experience. The thing is, I don't want to forget any single moment of it. I feel so very lucky to have Phin and each member of my family who has gone out of their way to meet my little baby.









Today my baby is one month old.
Phin is one twelfth of one year old and while that certainly isn't even a mile stone in the girth of the whole long life I hope he lives, it's significant for me. It's important enough for me that I want to share it with you.
Happy one month Phin! We all look forward to many, many more!