Catching up - The best shots!

It's been far too long since I've updated this site and so today, while we are all snowed in (save Michael who somehow trecked through a foot of snow and quite dangerous conditions to go to work, trooper that he is), I will try my best to get as much up here as I can. Below are a batch of some of the best shots we've taken of our rapidly growing little boy who will be four months old on Christmas day and is somehow getting ready to start donning 12 month sized clothes! How much our little one has grown and grown up! He now has great control over his hands. He plays with his toys (his favorite are his glow worm and worm rattle - posts on that to come soon). He gets such a kick playing on his playmat! He has also discovered his feet and went so far the other night to put his foot into his mouth! He has a whole vocabulary of words like "agoo" which he can say with various inflections and ennunciations as well as early versions of "mama" and "dada" which are so precious. He is such a little character!

He still LOVES bathtime and loves it even more now that he has learned to splash which is always fun (until clean up time comes!) :) And he gets such a great big kick out of his jumperoo!

But the most exciting milestone to date is that Noah has found his laugh! I am not as talented at Michael as getting him to go into full-on belly laughs but I do get some good laughs when I sing him Christmas carols (his favorite is my mish-mashed version of Holly Jolly Christmas and Frosty the Snowman during which "thumpidy thump thump" occurrs every other verse lol). He also laughs when I tell him that "mommy is going to eat his feet" before I gobble them up. But when Michael has Noah on his lap, he just gets absolutely hysterical. I was so thrilled to capture this laughing fit on video a week or so ago! Whenever I am sad I play this back for myself and it always makes my day. Enjoy!

Aunt Chrissy & Uncle Anthony's Wedding

During the first week in November, we took our first family road trip up to New York to be in Aunt Christine and Uncle Anthony's wedding. The night before the wedding, Noah stayed in his first Park Avenue hotel in the big city and the day of the wedding he got to wear his very first tux. He looked very handsome! Aunt Christine could not have looked more beautiful. Noah also got to spend lots of time with Aunt Michy who could not get over how big he had gotten since the last time she saw him. While in NY, Noah was surrounded by lots of beautiful women who could not wait to shower him with affection! Sadly, I don't have many pictures (how I don't have a shot of the bride and groom is beyond me) but when I get more I will surely post them!

3 Months Old Today!!!

more photos to come...

Happy Halloween!!!!

Good Grief, it's Noah's First Halloween! He's been a fussy boy today but we managed to get some photos of him in his costume where he is not crying lol. No trick or treating this year sad to say. Better luck next year!

HAPPY HALLOWEENIE!!!!

Love, Noah

2 Months Doctor's Visit

On the date of Noah's two month milestone, the two of us had a lot to celebrate and we did so by watching the Yankees seal the deal to play in their first world series since I moved to Virginia. Noah stayed in my arms the whole time and had lots of big grins to display as I bounced him in celebration each time the Yankees did something good. We have had a lot of fun watching the games together. :)

Yesterday, however, was not so fun. It was the day I've been dreading for weeks: Noah's first round of shots. Michael came with me and thank God he did because it was a truly awful experience for Noah -- and for me.

Amazingly, this was the first time Noah has been to the doctor where he wasn't screaming. Michael did a wonderful job with him and he was extremely calm the entire time. He was weighed, measured, and examined from head to toe and there were no tears. Then the doctor left the room for us to wait for the nurse to come in with the shots. Noah sat on his daddy's lap so peacefully and having no clue what he was in for. It just made me feel so sad.

The nurse came in and had Michael lay Noah down on the table and then asked him to hold down Noah's arms. I could see Noah's little face all happy and unsuspecting and then at rapid speed, the nurse began stabbing his chubby thighs. I wish to God I had not watched and that I could stop replaying it in my mind. With the first shot, Noah's happy face turned bright red and by the second he was crying out. By the third and forth he was absolutely hysterical and screaming louder than I've ever heard him scream before (and believe me, I've heard him scream a lot). As soon as the nurse was done, I ran to him and picked him off the table and just held him as close to me as I could while he wailed and wailed and wailed. The nurse joked that I was as red as he was but it didn't seem very funny at the moment. I was able to calm Noah down enough to get him to nurse for a few seconds but he was pretty inconsolable and eventually cried all the way home in the car. It was heartbreaking. I tried telling myself that it's for his own good but it's so hard to believe that when you see your baby go from being so happy, trusting and content to being so unhappy and in pain. I know it sounds silly (because deep down I do know that it's a necessary evil) but it felt like betrayal. I just thank God it will be another two months before he is subject to that again. :(

Aside from Noah getting his needles, we also got some new stats to report!

Noah is almost 14 pounds and is 2 feet tall! He is in the 90th percentile for both height and weight. (At his first visit he was 75th for height and 50th for weight.) He certainly takes after his daddy! And of course, I've had to laugh that at 2 months old, Noah is almost half my height. (ha ha).

Here is a quick glimpse of how our little guy has progressed:

Birth: 7lbs, 6oz
1 Week: under 7lbs
2 Weeks: 7lbs, 12 oz
3 Weeks: 8lbs, 12 oz
4 Weeks: 9lbs, 10 oz
6 Weeks: 11lbs, 8 oz
7 Weeks: 12lbs, 7 oz
9 Weeks: 13lbs, 7 oz

As for Noah's reflux, it continues to be a big problem. He is still very fussy and obviously uncomfortable and there seems to be so very little that we can do to make it better. Once again, the doctor adjusted the dosing on his medications. For the time being, we are keeping him on the Zantac and we are also going to try some natural remedies to see if they will give him any comfort. I look forward to the day when we can stop giving him medicine altogether. I hope that day comes soon...

2 Months Old Today!!

It's so hard to believe that two months have passed since we first met our baby boy, but the date on the calendar tells me it's true.

In these two short months our little boy has grown SO much and developed such a personality. Each day that passes shows more growth on so many levels. From his reactions to little things he didn't notice before to the sweet sounds he makes when he has "conversations" with us, he is just a little joy in so many ways.

Sadly, as sweet and wonderful a baby as he is, Noah has been having a very hard time with his reflux. On the 16th, he had to go back to the pediatrician to get checked out and have his medicine adjusted. I was shocked to learn that at just 7 weeks, Noah was almost 13 lbs! (12lbs, 7 oz to be exact). Given that he had gained 3lbs since starting his medicine a few weeks earlier, it was necessary to more than double his dose. (We're obviously thrilled that he's not losing weight as a result.) Unfortunately, upping his medicine has not shown any relief in our little boy. He seems to cry constantly and there is very little we can do to console him. These days it seems that Noah is either being held, eating, sleeping or crying.

Though it feels like a desperate situation most of the time, Noah does have his moments where he is all smiles and full of laughter -- particularly when his daddy spins the fan for him, which has him watching with wide eyes and a huge grin! As soon as the fan stops, he sticks his lower lip out in a full on pout. It is the cutest thing. (He is laughing at the fan as I sit here typing as Michael is distracting him from the fact that I'm doing something other than holding or feeding him!)

Today to celebrate Noah's two month milestone, we took him out for a drive to enjoy the beautiful weather and scenery. While Michael, Vanessa and I enjoyed the ride and the views, Noah spent most of the time asleep in his car seat. It was nice to see him resting so peacefully... while it lasted.



Noah goes in for his two month check up -- and first round of shots :( -- on October 29th.

More updates to come...

Our Rapidly Growing Little Guy

Noah is now only a little more than 6 weeks old and he is almost 12 pounds! Our little guy has been growing more and more every day. By now he has big slate blue eyes, which seem to grow wider and more amazed with each passing day. I am also happy to report that in addition to his daddy's lips, he also has his daddy’s long eyelashes. His eyebrows are also starting to come in!

This week, Noah began noticing things that he didn't seem to in previous weeks. For the first time, he noticed the mobile on his little lamb swing and it was very comical to watch his reaction. I had suspected that he would notice it and was armed and ready with my iPhone. I was fortunate enough to catch his first response to it on video (below)!:

In addition to noticing new things, Noah is learning more and more about his hands. Not only has he mastered taking his pacifier out of his mouth, but a few days ago, he took it out of his mouth and threw it! He also grabs onto the strap of his changing table when he is unhappy to be getting changed and holds on to it for dear life until I am done changing him. Lord knows how much of my hair he has pulled out or how many times he has nearly ripped my necklace off over the last few days. He’s quite a little character just as we all suspected he would be. Noah still sleeps with his hands and arms in an array of funny positions. When I wake up in the morning, I never know what I am going to find!



Aside from beginning to find his hands, Noah has also been finding his voice. He sounds a little like a magwa (baby gremblin). Listen for yourself below. (On a technical note: You can shut the music on the page off by scrolling up and clicking pause in the side bar on the right hand side of this page.)

Aside from becoming cuter and cuter, Noah has not been doing so great these past couple of weeks. His persistent tummy troubles have made him very uncomfortable and he is now on medicine that doesn’t seem to be helping much aside from making him smell like a toasted marshmallow, which is very nice. He has been on another feeding frenzy which I suspect can be attributed to his recent growth spurt. The nights have been very long indeed for the both of us… and we've been trying our best to make the days as fun and happy as possible for him.

Please keep our little guy in prayer!

One Month Old Today!

I can hardly believe that Noah has been with us a month. Sometimes time seems to fly and other times, I feel like I cannot remember life before him. I'm starting to understand what my good friend Sherry means when she says "the nights are long, but the years are short." I hope they won't be. Either way, I know I'll treasure every single moment... even those where the crying is incessant or I'm so tired I can barely stay awake to feed him...

It has certainly been an eventful first month for baby Noah. The last few weeks were especially hectic for him. Suffice it to say that he has been to the pediatrician at least once a week every week since he was born, and yesterday he had to go for an ultrasound to rule out pyloric stenosis, a disorder which would have made surgery necessary had he tested positive. Fortunately, he didn't, but he continues to struggle with his tummy, which seems to be bothering him quite a bit. Poor little guy. I'm hopeful that by adopting a strict diet, I can help him feel better quickly. He has been crying a lot lately for no apparent reason and it's just been so hard to watch him seem so uncomfortable. At the pediatrician's office earlier this week, he cried real tears. It was heartbreaking. Fortunately, Noah is usually a very happy baby. Michael and I have certainly done the best we could do to keep him that way!

Over the past 4 weeks and 3 days my little baby has had some significant growth. It will not surprise you to learn that he is in the 75th percentile for height for his age. (Certinaly not something he got from his mommy!) Here are his weight stats:
Birth: 7lbs, 6oz
1 Week: under 7lbs
2 Weeks: 7lbs, 12 oz
3 Weeks: 8lbs, 12 oz
4 Weeks: 9lbs, 10 oz

He is a very long and skinny baby but for all his growth, he is still a little peanut!

It's amazing to watch him grow everyday. Everyday he becomes more alert, his eyes are more focused and he learns more about how to use his hands. It amazes me to think of where he'll be at in another month. I hope it doesn't fly as fast as the first...

Noah's First Bath!

This weekend, my sister and her fiance came all the way from New York to see Noah and take part in one of his first milestones: his first bath! Given that my family lives so far away, it was really important to me that we "save" one of Noah's firsts for a time when they could be here. It was well worth the wait. So far, as shown in the pictures posted last week, Noah has not enjoyed being wet. He absolutely hates sponge baths and sadly, he has needed many as he now regularly pees as soon as his diaper is unfastened. (We are going through about 4 outfits a day so hopefully my reflexes improve quickly and/or I find a way to stop him from soaking himself instantly). Now that my sister has visited, I know that it's not just me that Noah does this to, as he did this every time Christine changed him as well. So far, Noah has been very kind to his daddy and has not yet put his reflexes (or patience!) to the test as he has mine!

Aside from the fact that I wanted my family to share in one of Noah's milestones, I also had another motivation. My sister, Christine, is a pediatric nurse, and so, I just assumed that she would know more about how to bathe a baby than I would. Long story short: it took four of us (Michael, Christine, Anthony and me) to give Noah a bath and not one of us knew what exactly we were doing or supposed to be doing! Areas where we struggled: getting the water the right temperature, getting the excess water out of the tub, figuring out how much water belonged in the tub, holding him up in the tub, using the right amount of soap, keeping the soap from getting where it did not belong, rinsing him off... need I continue?

To begin with, the four of us crowded into Noah's bathroom and ran the hot water in the sinks and tub to steam up the room. Then we had to figure out where to change and undress him. A towel on the floor over Noah's rug seemed to be the only logical place. Noah, of course, did not appreciate being undressed. It's one of his least favorite things in life. Anthony had been saying up until that point that he had not yet seen Noah cry (or turn himself into a "killer tomato," as I call him when he gets truly hysterical). Within seconds of undressing him, Noah did not disappoint and showed Anthony and my sister the full extent of his lung capacity. Noah did not fully show how much like a tomato he can appear until Christine attempted to dry his ears after his bath... He was not a happy boy.

Fortunately, Noah didn't seem to notice that none of us really had a clue as to what we were doing... He slipped easily into the tub and seemed extremely relaxed. He even looked at himself in the mirror -- something Michael has been teaching him to do this past week and something that generally calms him down when he is fussy. He did not cry once during his bath and even briefly fell asleep in the warm water... If only the aftermath of bathtime (as illustrated above) had gone as smoothly, it would have been a better night for my precious little one.

Noah getting his first bath! (video)

After it was all over, we dressed Noah in one of the new outfits his Aunt Christine and Uncle Tony bought him (his puppy pants!) and I allowed Noah to nurse away his sorrows. He had a very good night sleep afterwards. It may be a while before we attempt to give him a full bath again but at least now we know he likes it -- and that we have a lot to learn! :) Next time, I will be ready!