What we're up to

We've discovered all kinds of new things to do with Mr. Caiden these past few weeks. He really does love to go on walks in the Baby Bjorn. These past few weeks I've probably taken him out two or three times a day. Sometimes he'll fall asleep in it which can be a challenge when I get home and I want to get stuff done because when you try to take him out he wakes right up. He's also desperately trying to stick his whole fist in his mouth. He can entertain himself for quite awhile trying to figure out how to keep it in there and suck away. He really likes to be outside or I'll prop him up on the chair so he can look outside. Sometimes when the wind is blowing and the plants outside the window are moving he'll watch them and giggle to himself.

He's become a slave to the pacifier when he's tired and wants to nap or go to bed. The minute you put it in his mouth his eyes roll to the back of his head and he's out. The problem is if it falls out too soon he wakes right up and isn't happy. Not sure how I'm going to break that down the road. I wish I could leave his hands free without the mittens so he could find his fingers at night but he will scratch his face because his eczema is still pretty bad. I've tried almost all eczema products out there and none are working. I have a feeling it's what I'm eating and everything I've read says I need to cut dairy out of my diet. It's almost impossible, I realize almost every single meal has some sort of dairy in it. I feel so bad for him because I see him trying to scratch his belly and legs but we keep him pretty lubed up so his nails just slide off.

On a brighter note the thrush seems to be going away. At our last appointment the doctor said it will probably eventually just go away and it has! We did an entire round of the antibiotics last month and it didn't do anything. We finished it 3 weeks ago and just this week I noticed its almost gone from his tongue.

Also at our last appointment the doctor said we need to keep him off his back as much as possible, only keep him there when he's sleeping because he's developing a flat head and may need a helmet :( if it gets any worse. It's exhausting carrying him around all day or trying to get him to do tummy time. I think, like all newborns, he's not a big fan of it and if the wind isn't blowing in exactly the right way he does not like it. We'll see what happens at his four month appointment, if he's going to wear one earlier the better so it will probably happen right after that.

Visit from Grandma

My mom came out to visit while Marc went to Montana on a hunting and fishing trip with my Dad. We made chili and watched the Husker game, took my Mom out for her first good experience with Indian food and fish tacos and I was able to do some shopping for myself while she watched Caiden. Success!!!

My cousin Lauren also came into town earlier in the week. She lives in Yuma as a travelling nurse and we are hoping that she makes it to San Diego for a job sometime soon. Love her!

And just some super cute pictures of mister Caiden doing really cute things.

Random pics of the week

We had a play date with Miss Sophia Santoro. So happy these two are only nine months apart. It feels like forever right now but in a few years it won't matter.

Took him for his first walk in the baby bjorn and he fell asleep, it's a keeper!

Pretty much the best aunt on the planet!

Seriously people! How am I ever going to say no to this face?!?

Caiden's 2-month check-up

Caiden had his 2-month check-up this afternoon. He did very good in the beginning, especially for the pretty blond nurse. When Dr. Roberts came in and started inspecting his body he got a little irritated though. Then he became really pissed off when he had to get four, yes FOUR shots. He pretty much screamed bloody murder until a few minutes after he got them and we were able to calm him down. Wow, and we have to go through that 2 more times, at both his 4 and 6-month appointments, lovely.

He has a few things we're still trying to work on. The Dr. said his eczema is still pretty bad so we need to keep applying the Vaseline or Aquaphor. Pretty much keep him lathered up all the time, which means we have Vaseline all over everything all the time; him, me, my clothes, his clothes, blankets, his car seat...everywhere. My elbows are sliding off my knees as I type this right now. We also discovered he has a stork bite on the back of his neck. We thought it was just a dry patch but nope. And, since I know some people will call and ask what it is, here is medicaldictionary.com's definition:

A stork bite is a common type of birthmark seen in a newborn. It is most often temporary. Stork bites occur in about one third of all newborns. A stork bite is due to a stretching (dilation) of certain blood vessels. It may become darker when the child cries or the temperature changes. It may fade when you push on it.

He weighed 14 lbs. 0.5 oz. (93rd percentile), 24.25 inches long (89th percentile) and his head is in the 65th percentile (yes, I would have thought that last one was a little higher, too ;). All in all another great appointment and we have a big, happy, healthy baby.

I love this picture, it looks like Caiden is saying, "Daddy why are you letting this man mess with me so much, HELP already!"

Hands to the face

Caiden has found his hands. Well just his right hand so far. Yesterday I started noticing he'll put it in front of his face and stare at it until he goes cross-eyed. I got a few pics of it today.

Smiley baby

Warning: this post is picture heavy. We had an amazing visit with my Aunt Sue who flew in from Nebraska this week. We did lots of shopping for Caiden's room and she was able to spend some quality time with us. Thanks for everything Aunt Sue!

At the Catamaran Resort looking at the ducks.

He is smiling like crazy this week. I couldn't help but post this succession of ridiculously cute pictures of great aunt Sue making him smile.

Bottle time

We introduced the bottle this week, at 6 weeks! The first night was pretty good. He played around with it for about 10 minutes, but then he drank all 4 ounces! Marc was so excited and happy, he came into our room with a big grin on his face saying how happy he was that he was able to feed our baby. It was so cute. As relieved as I was that he took the bottle and that I now get out of one of the feedings it was still a little sad to see him taking the bottle and not needing me. But really, it's so nice that I can go to bed a little early and Marc can take care of putting him down in his crib for the night. Now I just need to go to bed instead of sitting there watching him eat the bottle, haha. 

The second night was a little different. It's the one right before we go to bed, between 9-10pm. Caiden is sleeping during this time so it's supposed to be a "dream feed", where he doesn't really wake up and just starts sucking. But that night he did not want to eat and just slept. Marc gave up and tried about 30 minutes later and viola! Just had to wait till he was ready I guess.

Overall I think it's totally going to work, we've used a couple different bottles because we wanted to do 5 oz instead of 4 and the first bottle we were using was only a 4 oz bottle. But he doesn't really seem to care about the nipple shape or bottle or whatever so that's good. I still have to pump before I go to bed otherwise I'm in some pain by the time he wakes around 3am to eat again but that's okay.

It's also the start of the NFL season which means Sundays are now reserved for the couch and the tv. Marc's team, the Washington Redskins played the Saints and they won, 40-32!