7 Weeks

Our little angel is already 7 weeks old, and he continues to grow in size and personality. Overall,  Isaac is a very happy baby - as long as he is fed, dry and held.

 

Since he has filled out quite a bit in the past 2 weeks I have new outfits that I can dress him up in, and he spits up all over the place quite often, so he has plenty of opportunities for wardrobe changes (the poor little guy - it is much more fun for me than for him).

 

Isaac isn't the best sleeper, but what he lacks in sleeping time, he more than makes up for in his zeal for eating. I've been told that babies are supposed to sleep an average of 16 hours a day, but I highly doubt that Isaac gets anywhere near that. In the middle of the night, he wakes up every 1-3 hours. The nights that he wakes up hourly are rough, and it is amazing how rested I feel when I get those 3 hour stretches in. Who would have thought that only 3 hours could actually feel restful?

 

Our little guy is quite the cuddler - he loves to be held, and tends to cry immediately when we try to set him down. His pediatrician recommends that he hold him as often as he wants to be held to make him feel safe and secure, and wait until he is closer to 4 months before we "let him cry it out." And so we do hold him pretty much all the time. The Moby Wrap is quite a life saver for me- it allows him to feel comforted by snuggling up close to me, and it allows me to have my arms free to do things around the house with him. The Moby Wrap seems to mesmerize Isaac - as soon as I put him in the body sling, he calms down and either falls to sleep or silently looks around scanning the horizon with his wide eyes.

 

Below are some pictures we've taken in the past week:

 

He was being quite fussy, so daddy tried "Rocket Ship" with him for the first time tonight, and it certainly did the trick. He stopped fussing immediately, stared at daddy with his big eyes wide open, and waved his arms and legs. I think he likes the noise and the motion.

 

 

On Sunday, Great-Grandma, Grandma, Grandpa & Uncle Marky stopped by for a visit.

 

 

Uncle Marky got to meet Isaac for the first time.

 

 

Isaac dressed in his Hippo outfit

 

 

And he wasn't very happy about being set down for the picture.

 

 

Photos during "Rocket Time" with daddy

 

 

Such a sweet face!

 

 

Although he doesn't do it for too long in the middle of the night, here is proof that our little Milk Monster does in fact sleep!

 

Week 6

It is absolutely amazing to me just how much Isaac has grown in the past 5 weeks - you can visually see his growth! The photo on the left is of Isaac at 1 week old (the night before he was released from the NICU), and photo on the right is of Isaac in his car seat at 6 weeks:

We have learned just how much Isaac loves to be cuddled and held close to us in the past few weeks. When we try to put him down, he cries, and he is immediately placated the moment we pick him up and hold him close. This makes sleeping somewhat of a challenge, but everyone tells me that he will grow so quickly so to enjoy his cuddle phase while it lasts. 

Brennen and I switched rolls this week - he had surgery last Wednesday and was stuck in bed for the past week, and I was officially cleared by my doctor to be able to live my life as normal (in other works, I can work out for the first time in over 3 months!) Thankfully, grandma Lesli came in town to help take care of Brennen and Isaac. Not only did she take Brennen to his surgery so I could stay home with Isaac, but she also held Isaac after his feedings in the middle of the night so that I could get some rest, and she also spoiled us with her cooking. I honestly don't know what we would do without our mom's - they are amazing and wonderful! 

I started working at the salon on Saturday. I will be working 2 days a week this month - Monday's and Saturdays. Isaac will spend Monday's with grandma Carol and grandpa Rick, and he will spend Saturday's with his daddy. He enjoyed his first day with grandma and grandpa Howell on grandpa Rick's birthday this past Monday. 

In the past week we have received Isaac's Birth Certificate in the mail, completed Isaac's Baptism Class, and Alisa and Greg agreed to be his godparents, so we are officially all set for his Baptism. His Baptism is scheduled for Saturday, October 12 at St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church in Phoenix. Morning Mass will be celebrated at 8:30 a.m., the Baptism Ceremony will directly follow, and then we are inviting everyone over to our house to celebrate with us and enjoy some refreshments. 

6 pounds 6.5 ounces

Isaac had his 1 month check up with his pediatrician this morning, and it's official - he is a growing boy!

At birth, Isaac weighed 5 pounds 4 ounces, dropped to 5 pounds 0 ounces at 3 weeks, and today at 5 weeks he is up to 6 pounds 6.5 ounces. He measured 20 1/4 inches in length, up exactly 2 inches from his birth measurements. He measures in the bottom 5% for infants his age, but he should technically be a new born baby and not compared with babies who are 5 weeks in age since he was born so prematurely. His doctor is pleased with his growth and progress.

Photo taken on September 6 - 1 Month Old

Isaac and mommy go on morning walks together

Isaac, all ready for Mass

What a sweet little face

 

One Month

Today Isaac is 1 month, and it is also his due date.

Although we don't go back to the pediatrician for his one month check up until Tuesday, with all the milk he is eating, I wouldn't be surprised if he has put on at least a pound since his last visit. We've given him the nickname, "little milk monster," which aptly describes his eating habits. He seems to eat constantly - some days he wants to eat every 1-2 hours, and we are lucky when he will sleep 2-3 hours at night. His newborn onsies are still too big on him, but he is finally starting to fill them out.

Isaac makes the most adorable faces - from his smiles, yawns, and grumpy face to his classic "zoolander" face:

Sweet Smile!

Baby Yawn

Isaac's "Zoolander" face

He is quite an active little newborn. He has a lot of head strength and he loves to wiggle and to roll around on the floor during "tummy time."

Here's a video that I captured of our little "Wiggle Worm"

Isaac playing in his swing :-)

Isaac's Nursery, Before the grandmas painted it

Isaac's Nursery, Completed

Little Isaac looking tiny in his crib

Isaac's First Bath

Daddy & son relaxing with some Skin-To-Skin time

Handsome little fellow