Happy Halloween!

So, this week has definitely been a lesson in patience so far. Jack had a rough time of it at the beginning of the week. Despite our vigorous burping efforts, Jack seemed to have a bad gas problem. You know, he just doesn't always want to burp but that leads to other issues in his system. After three or so nights of Jack screaming bloody murder at times and pulling his legs up to his chest, I called the pediatrician, yet again, and asked if we should switch formula. Of course we are on the sensitive formula that is supposed to help with gas, but it just didn't seem to be doing the trick. We had been giving him gas drops, but those also didn't seem to work for him. Rather than switch his formula yet again, they wanted to try a prescription gas drop first. Wouldn't you know that yesterday he didn't seem as bothered by the gas after they called in the prescription. It was definitely still there, you could feel it in his tummy when you held him and hear it coming out, but there weren't as many screams. We only had to use the drops once last night, so maybe he is learning to manage the problem better. Who knows. All I know is that it must be really frustrating for him not being able to communicate what is wrong. He is depending on me and Justin to be mind readers, and I hate to disappoint you, but we are awful at it. I am still bewildered every time he cries and frustrated by trying to figure out what he needs, especially now that he seems to be having different time periods between his feedings. We are getting to the point where sometimes he will go almost four hours or three and a half and other times it is right at three hours when he is hungry. I just wish it was a little more routine so that I wouldn't fret so much. We are getting much enjoyment out of watching his little turtle head move about. He just wants to be able to hold his head up on his own so badly that he is doing his exercises any chance he gets. It's really funny when he is feeding and we have burped him and he wants the bottle back and that little head just starts moving from side to side frantically while his eyes get real wide. When he finally gets the bottle, he makes a little smile like it was just what he was looking for and goes back into hungry, hungry hippo mode. Now that his dad has gotten a little rest, maybe his mom can get some rest at some point. At least I can hope, right?

Attack of the Mombie

So, it is official. Today I am in Mombie mode. Mom Zombie. Very little sleep for two nights in a row combined with lots of caffeine makes for an interesting Katie. Jack slept well Saturday night, but it was just that I was a little nervous since I was going to do all the feedings for Justin since he had to work Sunday morning, so of course I woke up much more than I needed to. Then last night Jack had slept quite a bit during the day and he just wasn't quite as tired at times. He would wake up and be alert for an hour and then go back to sleep. At 1 a.m. he woke up with bad gas and just wanted to be held for a while and then went back to sleep until 2:30 a.m. when he got hungry. Of course between 1 and 3 a.m. I was up and alert and checking on him every few minutes after I laid him back down for the little nap in between. Up again at 5:30 a.m. when Justin went to feed him and Jack wasn't really ready to eat yet and he had some impressive vomit/spit up. We are talking out the nose. It was great. Then Justin had to go make a hospital visit at 7, so I just stayed up with my now quite alert and ready to go baby. There was a brief period around 7:45 when he decided that he might like to nap for a while in his bouncy chair, but by that time the coffee was made and I was up and at 'em. Jack thoroughly enjoyed his picnic yesterday in the Pumpkin Patch, despite the fact he slept through the entire event. The cat hat was a hit so he thinks he might just bring out some more Halloween duds. While I can, I am going to make the most of being able to dress him in seasonal wear. I know the day will come when I try to put a pumpkin shirt on him and he will tell me he is way too old for such a babyish item and it will probably break my heart. Other than that, Jack is doing great. Seems like he is eating his way through house and home, but maybe it is just a growth spurt. Otherwise, I am going to have to consult the doctor about our little greedy gut.

I'm a little behind, so here are the updates

So, I haven't updated in a while, but things have been a little crazy here. On Wednesday night, Jack and Justin slept in the living room so that I could get a little sleep, which was much needed. Big thank you to Justin for that since he was not able to ever fully fall asleep in the living room. I ended up relieving him of his duties about 5:30 a.m., but I was definitely more rested. On Thursday, Jack went to a MOMS group run by Methodist Germantown. It was interesting even though the other babies there were 8 and 10 months. I think maybe as he gets a little older and a little more interactive it could a good time. Later that day, Justin and I took Jack for his first store outing - Walmart. You should have seen us. We were trying to figure out how to hook the carrier into the cart like other parents do, but we just couldn't seem to get it secure. We were going around the store scoping out other parents with their babies in carriers and trying to get the logistics down, but we ended up just putting his carrier in the main cart part since it never seemed quite secure enough to make his nervous daddy comfortable. We'll have to work on our technique. Thursday night was a lesson in patience for me. I took the first feedind shifts since Justin had been up the night before and it just seemed like Jack never wanted to go to sleep. When he did sleep, it would only be for 1 1/2 to 2 hour periods, so of course I was panicked on Friday morning. He was soo fussy all night and morning and nothing seemed to soothe him and I knew he had been having bad gas, so I called the pediatrician. We switched formula on Friday to Similac Sensitive. I'm not sure if I jumped the gun there, but he does seem to feel a little better and doesn't seem to be having quite as much gas. We are talking the gas was bad...you could feel it in his little tummy and then hear it when he was sitting on your lap and he would poot. Every time we couldn't tell if it was him pooping or farting so we would trudge on back to the changing table and usually waste another diaper. We went through quite a few Pampers for a while there. Also, Friday he was quite active most of the day and by that night, I was exhausted and had a little melt down. It just seems like I am going backward in my mom development. For a while there I was thinking I was starting to understand what his cries meant, and now, I am just lost. I know that they don't always mean he is hungry, but I am confused because if they are that he is hungry and I'm not feeding him, am I hurting him? Yeah, that is my mind all the time, just think about it. On Saturday, after a night and morning of crying when he was done with his 3.5 oz. of formula, we decided to up him to 4 oz. I thought this might slow him down, but he is taking all of those 4 oz. in on a regular basis. If he starts crying again when we are done, I'm going to call the pediatrician to ask what to do about my endless hunger pit son. Saturday his Gram - Jane - came over because she had a Jack attack and just had to see him and we had a great time. She even took care of him for a little while and Justin and I tried to get out for a little time to ourselves which ended up just making us both nervous wrecks who couldn't wait to get back hom to make sure Jack was okay. I am sure Michael Clayton was a great movie, but my mind was definitely somewhere else. Jack is still trying for that Mr. Olympia baby title. He keeps rolling over from his back to his side and when he is on his tummy, from his tummy to his side. The other day he went from his tummy to his side, back to his tummy, back to his side, pause, onto his back. Wow. Also, that neck is like a little turtle, poking up at every opportunity. I am attaching a picture from Thursday when Jack wore his first set of overalls - they were a little big, but he seemed to like them.

First Outing!

So, today was the big day, Jack met the world outside of the doctor's office and our cars. I took Jack up to see Justin at work and to let everyone who works at Emmanuel meet the little guy. Justin had told them this morning that there was going to be a Jack siting today and the excitement was high. He did not disappoint. From what Justin said, Jack was a big hit. They want him to come up there more often. Of course, preparing for this outing was not nearly as easy as I thought it would be. Jack was asleep and so before I woke him up, I found his outfit, got his diaper bag all packed, and made sure I had everything ready to go. Wouldn't you know when I went to wake him up, the diaper was soaked. At least it gave me an excuse to get him naked so I could redress him. Of course as soon as I had his new outfit on, he decided that a little spit up would make the outfit much more presentable. A little warm water managed to get rid of this attempt at accessorizing. So, we finally get in the car - after about 30 minutes of preparation - with a pacifier in his mouth - he was a little upset after the wet washcloth attacked his face to clean it up - and we are heading down the road, just having turned on Poplar, when - horror - the pacifier falls out. You would have thought that the world had ended from the cry he let out. I tried singing to him and making shushing noises, but finally, the motion of the car did it's job and rocked him back to sleep. It was a little nerve wracking tacking him out not only for him, but for me. I can't believe how nervous I was about the whole outing. Well, that's all for today. Just for a little tidbit, tonight his dad is going to try to let me get a night's sleep and is proposing that he and Jack sleep in the living room so that I won't hear when he cries. I'll let you know how that goes.

First Visit to the Doctor

Today was our first visit to the doctor - Dr. Lana as everyone calls her - and it went great. Jack is back up to 7 lbs. 14.5 oz. which is right where he should be since most babies lose weight after they are born and it takes about two weeks for them to get back to where they were. Dr. Lana commented that Jack is very strong - he demonstrated his strength for her by rolling over from his back to his side. All in all, he took the visit quite well. There were no prolonged crying sessions and the pacifier seemed to do its job while he was being poked and prodded. I would like to say that Dr. Lana was very patient with me and my list of neurotic questions about whether or not his behaviors were normal, if the formula was okay, etc., etc. My husband, however, thought it was hilarious how much I overthought everything and got a good laugh out of my anxiety. Well, now it's just me, Justin, and Jack. It's a little scary to think that we are out here on our own now, but I have a feeling that things will slowly start to become more comfortable and routine. Just keep us in your thoughts and prayers. We go back to see Dr. Lana at his two month milestone on the Monday after Thanksgiving.

Funny Video

Okay, make sure your sound is turned up when you watch this. Jack was sitting in his dad's lap when he produced this little gem.

Sunday, October 7th

Okay, so I know it's not Sunday, but I had to post this information as it occurred on Sunday morning at 9:15 a.m. We had put Jack on his stomach on his play mat and he seemed quite content curled up on his belly when all of a sudden, the legs started kicking out behind him like he was going to try to scoot up and he pushed off and rolled onto his side. I screamed I think and Jane came running and was lucky to catch him in mid roll. It was amazing! Of course, we just chalked it up to the fact that he is way advanced. Didn't I tell you that next week he will be starting his French courses and is already gearing up for the ACT? Jack, after this tremendous feat, just sat there looking a little startled for a few minutes and then when back to being fascinated by the ceiling. I wish I could still get such enjoyment out of staring at a black and white surface. Also, we learned today that White Cloud diapers are not worth the money that is put into manufacturing them and that Luvs do not have the leak guard that they advertise. Back to Pampers or Huggies and a slap on the wrist to me and Justin for being a little cheap. Here is a picture of Jack right before he rolled over.

Jackson is here!

So, I decided to start something up so that if you want to know what is going on in Jackson's life you will know. Hope you enjoy. Most of you will probably find this pretty mundane, but I am sure the grandparents will love it. I can't believe he is almost two weeks old! Well, hopefully I will update every few days, but if you know my track record, you may know that this is probably wishful thinking. Hope you all are doing well!