Grandparents

Little Q loves a little grandparent love, whether it is live and in person or hearing excited comments over Skype. Of course, it is a lot easier to fall asleep on a person than on the computer.

Q with his Grandpa Roy


Q with his Grandma MJ


Q with his Pops


Q with his Mossil


Q with his Dad using Skype to visit long distance.

The Classics

Katharine commented that I have not been making as many posts recently. Not for lack of things to write about, just lack of new material. I don't know how many times I need to write about the fact that there is ongoing laundry and random, extra, changings. Last night I was diligently using "the drop cloth" to cover the front area but there is this split second opening when the drop cloth needs to be removed in order to fasten the diaper closed - Q, with all of his talent, was able to use that split second to freely spray as far and wide as he could. Not only did he need to be changed, but I did too. Not bad for 2 AM. So, even with all that I (we) have learned through trial and error with changes, there are still random crazy moments where everything needs to be washed, including Dad.

We spent some time this morning organizing clothes that Q has already grown out of. He spent some time with his mobile, which we haven't used yet. He seemed to be very involved and lay quietly watching it spin and listening to the selection of classic music. His schedule still consists of sleeping, eating, and dirtying his diaper, but he is adding very engaged moments of eye contact and special parent time.

Heel pricks and cold stethescopes...

...at the second visit to the doctor. The moment of triumph for little Q was getting onto the scale and weighing in at 9 lbs and 15 ounces. That is one ounce shy of 10 pounds. Two weeks ago, at Q's first appointment he weighed 8 lbs and 5 oz, so that is an increase of one pound 10 ounces....he is an eating champ.

I stopped the video just shy of Dr. Eady pronouncing that everything was awesome and "he is perfect." Hmm...now we already knew that, but to hear the doctor say it - :) All systems are go and unless he gets sick he doesn't go back until April 20th.

Tummy Time and Bathing

Thanks to Grand-Mossil - Q has an official "Tummy Time" Quilt, which enables him to begin his baby workout regime. He spent a few minutes yesterday thinking about picking his head up and moving his arms and legs around a little bit. Little Baby Cobra movements for anyone with a yoga vocabulary. You will notice the hat on the floor. He seems to have enough energy that hats routinely end up on the floor near him, either that or he is trying to show off his locks. We are still waiting and watching but are pretty sure he will be an active one.


The other big event yesterday was the falling off of the remains of the umbilical stump, which resulted in his first "pseudo-submersion" bath. You will notice the obvious lack of documentation of the stump. We prefer to think of that as one of the passing moments that we are better off not remembering.



He did well with only some initial screaming and was thoroughly cleaned. He did better with the warm water, but we needed at least 3 and a half hands since his little body kept slipping down his bath mat. Thus the video is post-bath and not actually of the bath.

Laundry :)

Of all the things people prepared us for before Q came along, laundry was not one of them. Granted, we knew we would be doing a lot more than normal, especially with our cloth diapers and the need to keep those clean, but the sheer amount of clothing that Q makes dirty amazes me. We seem to be doing a load of diapers once a day and then a load of clothing every 2 out of 3 days. Not too bad, but amazing, still. Here this little dude is, I can hold him in one hand, and he is using more clothing than I do. This is even after we learned we needed a drop cloth above and below him for changings, to keep from wasting extra clothes that aren't even on him yet.

Amazingly, after Katharine went through the birth, she is now enjoying watching the tv show "A Baby Story" here at the house. To me it is sort of like flashbacks, but it reminds her of how awesome the human body is and what she is capable of. It is true, that she watched the show prior to giving birth (or even being pregnant) but now there is a new light from which it is viewed.



We are loving our time together, our small family of three. Q is enjoying being the center of attention and I am getting used to the new slower, more relaxed schedule. So much so that I am writing this at 1:15 in the afternoon, having had breakfast but not yet lunch or getting dressed for the day. Ahh....pajamas.

The One Week Birthday

Q turned 1 week old this morning at 6:42 - we were asleep and missed it, but were sure to tell him Happy One Week Birthday when we got up later.

He seems to be changing so much each day, and Katharine and I are both learning many new things as well. Most noticeably, Q seems more comfortable stretching out. After being cooped up inside Katharine for so long it was no wonder he wanted to keep his arms and legs in. He still holds them close frequently, but is reaching out and up with his arms, and using his little legs to push off anything he can reach. He is also starting to focus in on things, or stare blankly past them . . . it is hard to tell which. The first video here shows him in tune with Mom and Dad who are hovering, a common new parent symptom, watching his every move.




This second video is much more "Youtubable". I was warned that when little babies get hungry, they are not too particular where they get their food. I have noticed that he makes a little sucky face and does these little sucking kisses type things on your shoulder as I carry him to his Mom to feed him. This afternoon he was conked out on my chest, asleep for quite some time. He woke up and decided he was ready to eat, and didn't care who he ate from. Mom, the quick thinker, decided that it would be better to quickly film him to share this moment with all of you. She did then turn off the camera and allow him the real deal.

Parenting time . . . the trials of new parenthood.

Today we had lots of fun times. After Mom did a little experimenting with the breast pump, Dad got to give Q a bottle first thing today. Quin did great and we are glad to know that works, but we're hoping to hold off as long as possible. It was a new first thing for Dad and Quin to experience together.




Later on we had another mini-cleaning after yet a new diaper experience: something about making sure the absorbent middle is in the right position to make sure that it really absorbs.



We took a long afternoon in bed. Q hung out with Mom and Dad, and Mom was able to rest a little bit. Q has been showing off his strong arms and neck when he is on his belly, picking his head up and trying to look around.