Home visit

Matt had a healthy start home visit today. The visit was more of an informational meeting with someone who gave me info on resources in the community as well as facts about things like SIDS, breastfeeding, etc. With the visit, the lady weighed Matt... he was a whopping 11 lbs, 5.5 oz... wow! What a chunk! It kinda makes the "gift" they give (a swaddle blanket thing) silly since it only goes up to 12 lbs...

In other news, he is still being a great baby (of course). He really doesn't cry all that much - and when he does it isn't for long and was just because he was either hungry or wanted a diaper change (and there are plenty of those!). He hasn't had many gassy problems recently (yay) and doesn't like to be swaddled (never really did... he'll fuss if he feels too constricted but stops if I loosen the blanket a little). He still enjoys the pacifier, but doesn't suck on it a ton, which I would say is probably good. He still gets hiccups but they're not as frequent. He really enjoys his little vibrating bouncy seat - he sits in it every morning while I'm in the shower - and for a while after while I finish getting ready. It's wonderful. He also likes his swing and remains fascinated with his red/black/white contrast book thing. He also has mastered the alphabet and is an avid reader. Okay, that last sentence was a lie... maybe. How do we know he isn't reading silently to himself?

Below is a video of Matt in his swing. Enjoy. :)

Bath time!!!

Today was Matt's first bath (other than his sponge baths, of course... I'm not gross...). He did GREAT! He didn't cry - not even when he got out (since you'd think he might have been cold) and seemed to enjoy it a little. He did pee, which was pretty funny - and he pretended to be a bit bashful at times, covering his "manhood" with his feet. All in all, tonight was fun - a good ending to the day. Here are some photos:

Bashful Matt, mid-bath...
Probably my favorite picture from bathtime... he's just so cute!:

Drying off, with his hooded towel:
Lotioning up:

Random pics

Serious Matt (Darn that baby acne! It's just getting worse...):

Mischevious Matt:

The beginning of a yawn...:

Excuses excuses

I figured I'd give a little "excuse" for why I haven't posted daily or replied to emails very quickly... I swear Matt knows as soon as I sit down to the computer and demands something... the feedings are still about every two hours - and sometimes more frequently (yikes!) which I read is normal at about 2-3 weeks b/c there is a growth spurt at this time and they want to eat even more... so that's pretty much what we're doing - all the time. He has moved up to the #1 diapers instead of the newborn swaddlers... and he's currently working on his triple chin (he's got the double chin down already). He still gets gassy, but not too bad. The mylicon drops seem to work a little - or maybe I just tell myself they help... Anyway, that's about it.

I got my breast pump - but not sure I want to use it just yet... At least not sure I want to bottle-feed just yet - I'd like Jimmy to be the one to first feed him other than me... I read that it helps with bonding for dads - and since Jimmy isn't even here for Matt to hear his voice daily, I want him to be "first" in that sense. We'll see if I can hold out that long... Fingers crossed.

Okay, that's all I have time for... it's about feeding time and I'm sure Katie isn't going to want to comfort him too much longer - since nothing seems to work when he's hungry... kinda like when I get hungry, I guess... :)

More photos

Here are some recent pics...

Matt watching the Lakers play:Look at those cheeks!:

Pudgy fingers, holding Mommy's finger...:

Updates

Matt had his 2 week check-up today... and it's official - he's a beast. He's gaining weight very nicely. He's up to 9 lbs, 4.5 oz, and is now 21.5 inches long. Everything looked good (belly button still has some drying to do, but it looks fine - and his circumcision looked good), and he's definitely eating well and having plenty of diaper changes...

I would say that Matt was a perfect gentleman at the appointment today, but in all honesty he let out some pretty man-sized farts that were kinda embarrassing. I know people have to wonder if it's me passing gas because I would never believe that much noise could come from such a small baby. Other than that, he was good though - no crying... just cuteness.

In other news, his social security card came today, so he's ready to head off to work anytime now. Child labor laws, pffft. Whatever. Also, I think he's starting to like the sound of his own voice, as he's beginning to make more grunts and moaning sounds while he's awake, and especially while eating.

Ring and monkey

Matt's circumcision ring fell off (and all looks good). Rather than show a picture of that (ew), here's a picture of him with his sock monkey. It's as if he was trying to look like the sock monkey, opening his eyes super wide... makes me laugh.

Belly button

Matt's umbilical cord fell off... Yay...

Video attempt

I figured I'd attempt a video while he was awake... I cackle and sound evil at one point... but I suppose Jimmy would say that's normal and representative so whatever... and I was moving the webcam a lot (sorry)... Anyway, enjoy... :)

Random cute pictures

Random cute pictures...

Coming home

We came home from the hospital on Sunday. Matt travels well in the car - and has completely made himself at home, using many of his new toys...

Jaundice

Matt has some jaundice... so while we were at the hospital he was put under the billirubin lights... some of those pictures are below. His billi levels are fine now - he's been sun bathing (when possible given the crummy weather we've had lately) and pooping up a storm (which is great since it helps move the stuff out of his system), so no worries. Pics of him will likely still look orange-y for a while and his eyes will have some yellow for close to a month, apparently.

The Birth

I guess I'll start from the beginning (without too "icky" of details... you're welcome, Suzanne!). Matt was born on Thursday, April 2, 2009 at 9:47pm. He weighed 8lbs, 14 oz (this is an ounce more than I originally reported - they rounded up...) and was 20 inches long. I originally thought my water broke on Tuesday night but when I got checked out, I "passed" only 1 of the 3 tests for the water breaking. I was, however, contracting apparently (but had no idea). Wednesday we walked walked walked and by Thursday morning at 3:30am I was definitely feeling the contractions. Unfortunately, when we went back in (~6am) I was still only 1 cm dilated (and in tears thinking 'how could contractions hurt this much and do NOTHING... I'm going to be pregnant forever'). So we left and walked some more before my 9am group appointment. During the 2 hour appointment, my contractions became more regular (~4 minutes apart) and hurt like a... well, they hurt. So after the meeting they decided to check me out once more... As soon as I went back to the room, my water (definitely) broke, they realized I had progressed to 4cm, and I was admitted (at about 11:30am). From there, the contractions became worse and more frequent... thankfully the anesthetist came and adminstered the epidural fairly quickly. At this point I no longer felt the contractions (oh thank God) and told the anesthetist that I loved him (sorry Jimmy). From here, life was good (minus some issues with my blood pressure, oxygen intake, and baby heartrate... eek... somewhat scary at times but wound up okay so we'll ignore that stuff...) Anyway, eventually (after a heckuva lot of pushin'), Matt was born (with a nice pouty face... understandable considering his arduous journey). He was quickly cleaned, I got to hold him, they did all their little checks on him (all good), and took his feetprints. Some pics from immediately after his birth are below.

Welcome to the page...

Hi All:

I've decided to start this blog to keep family and friends updated on Matt's adventures (including Daddy while he's still in Iraq). I hope to continue to do this even after Jimmy returns... so feel free to come here to see up-to-date photos, videos, and general updates on his life.

Oh, and please note that this is where the majority of updates will go (not to facebook or myspace or individual emails) - so check back here when you need a Matthew fix... :)

Tori