4 months (and one week) old!

I'm probably going to say this every month, but it's hard to believe that our little Jameston is already FOUR MONTHS OLD!! This past month he has really started to show us his personality, albeit sometimes temperable, and we are of course falling more and more in love with him with each passing day (just when we think our hearts couldn't possibly have any more room)!He makes the cutest sounds in the world, especially his big yawns and little giggles. I could listen to a soundtrack of those noises all day long! We recently found out that Jameston is ticklish, so we often exchange laughs and smiles while tickling him during a diaper/clothing change or when blowing raspberries on his feet.

We went to the pediatrician today, and his stats are:

Weight: 16 lbs., 1 oz. (75th%)

Height: 26 1/2 inches (90%)

Head: 42.5 cm (50%)

The doctor said he is "long and lean," just like his daddy! Size three diapers here we come :)

And we started rice cereal last week! Mommy was so excited to be able to supplement (and also hoping it would help him sleep better at night; more on that later in the post). With both bottle and spoon-fed, so far he seems to like it!

As you can see, most of it ended up on his bib :)

At this age Jameston loves:

• Looking in a mirror, either on his toys or throughout the houseHe just recently discovered his feet, so he'll move them about vigorously and grab onto them. We are currently playing the "sock game," as he has quickly become a pro at taking them off!

• Baby Einstein DVD's...enough said!
• His activity mat: He's enjoyed it for several months now, so we are glad we registered for it. Some of the other baby items, on the other hand, we think we could have done without!

• Putting everything he can get his hands on (even his new found feet) in his mouth! And grabbing onto everything in sight, especially mommy's hair and jewelry!
• Going on walks in his stroller or the backpack
• His bumble bee rattle and monkey chime: We catch him "talking" to them often
• Taking baths because he can kick and splash to his little heart's content

This past month has been filled with many firsts. Here are a few:

• Rolling over from stomach to back several times in his crib...yes, our little guy seems to prefer sleeping on his stomach to sleeping on his back. And he's rolled from back to side twice in the last week. We caught him in action:

• Sitting with some support and standing while holding hands (so a lot of support!)
• Moving his arms in a circle like he's pitching a softball backwards, mainly his right arm...it is so cute to watch him! Here's a short video of him in action:

• Daycare: As I mentioned in a previous post, our little guy started going to The Whistle Stop, a daycare located several blocks from our house in Rowlett, at the beginning of the month. It is a WONDERFUL, Christian-based facility that we have trusted to watch after our little angel four days a week. As I also mentioned, this transition has been difficult on all of us (but especially me), so we are still adjusting. He is in a room with nine other babies under the age of 10 months. Who knows how long it will take us to get in the swing of things, but one thing is for certain, Jameston's teachers are in love with him!
  Of course, one downfall of daycare is the likelihood of kids getting sick. And just two short weeks into his stay, Jameston got RSV. Poor little fella...he was congested and had a cough (but no fever, thank goodness!). Thanks to the virus, he had trouble eating (he would wear himself out) and sleeping. And about two weeks before he started daycare, he had a head cold. So we have spent some LONG, late nights bonding over the last month! Thankfully, he is now feeling much better,

so no more snot bubbles for the time being!

We have been blessed this past month with the addition of our niece, Aspen.

She wanted to tell him goodbye before we left Grandpa's and GG's

Enjoying some time with Daddy after workHAPPY baby boy in his Bumbo. He's come a long way in this regard over the last month!I usually sit him in it while I am cooking dinner, and he'll track me walking around the kitchen

He is getting to be so good at controlling his head/neck movements. And the doctor said he has great trunk control. What a big (drooling) boy!

The most common question we seem to be getting lately is, "How is he sleeping?" Well, we have unfortunately had a tough time in this area. Starting at about 2 months, he began sleeping in his crib like a champ (after only a couple of weeks of transitioning from a co-sleeper in our room to his nursery). He would sleep 5 or so hours, wake up to feed one time in the early a.m., and then go back to sleep for another 5 hours.

BUT with the holidays and traveling coupled with him being sick, it seems we are back to square one and he's waking up every two to three hours at night again. Because of his congestion, our pediatrician recommended we have him sleep elevated, so he was snoozing (not for long) in his bouncer up until last week. I think maybe he has developed a habit of waking up several times throughout the night, so we are in need of some serious sleep training. Don't get me wrong, we love all the time we get with him (even in the middle of the night), but mommy would LOVE to be able to sleep for a stretch longer than four hours :( We hope this quickly passes now that our little guy is feeling better! I asked Jameston what he thought about his sleep progress, and below is his reaction:

Listen hear, Mom...I'll sleep through the night when I'm good and ready!

This past weekend, Brett and I were talking about our lives now as parents and how things have changed so much in just a short amount of time. Although some days go by way too quickly, we are enjoying every minute of it. So, please bear with me as I indulge and blog about our little boy...he's the highlight of our lives!!

Silly Saturday

Since he's feeling better now, Jameston has been FULL of energy. Once thing is for sure, our boy likes to make a lot of noise! And he LOVES his bath...here he is splashing and marching in the tub:

Also, he is a chatter-box! His "talking" lately consists of squealing, making gurgling sounds, chuckling, and sing-song noises. We are loving every high-pitched minute of it! In fact, we went to Target this morning, and several people stopped me so they could see the baby who was making so much noise. One guy said, "What a happy baby! I could hear him several aisles over and it just made me smile." Here he is one night this week talking and kicking like crazy!

Fun photo reel

Brett took Jameston to the pediatrician last week due to some cold-like symptoms he was having. Even though he was feeling under the weather, Jameston still managed to have a good time in the room waiting for Dr. Smart...and I think Brett had fun capturing it!

"Dad, are you ready for this?"

"Whew, that was fun!"

Happy Friday!

Wonderful Wednesdays!

At the beginning of the year, I became a full-time working mom. This transition has been more difficult on me than I could have ever imagined, but I am taking it one day at a time. As the story goes, I started back to work part-time in mid-November when Jameston was 2-months-old. Our family was ever so kind to watch him for us at home for the remainder of the year those three days a week that I was working.

Thank you Mimi,

Granny,

GG and Grandpa,

and Brett (who worked from home the weeks of Thanksgiving and New Years)! After what he called "Daddy Daycare," he mentioned that he had a more profound respect for stay-at-home parents. These guys had a wonderful time together!

On January 4th Jameston started daycare (a separate post to come on that very soon). And his mommy is now working four days a week, with Wednesdays off. I figured Wednesday would be the best day to take off during the week (besides the usual pick of Monday or Friday for a longer weekend), so that it would break up my days away from him to a maximum of two. So, at this time, Wednesdays are my favorite days of the week because I get to stay at home and soak up all the Jameston time I can get!

A post on our little guy turning four-months-old will be quick to follow this one. We have to wait until next week for his visit to the pediatrician. I'm excited to get his stats and start him on rice cereal, but not so ready to see him get another rounds of shots :(

Video fun

Brett gave me the Kodak Zi8, a pocket video camera, for Christmas. Well, he originally bought a Samsung, but we found out it was not compatible with our Mac (and the point of having a Mac is for all the photo and video projects, right?). So we did a little research and exchanged it for this one. Best Buy had it on back order, and we did not get it in until late last week.

Ever since we found out we were expecting, I've wanted a camcorder of some sort. With video capabilities being integrated into cell phones and cameras, we've caught a couple of cute moments with Jameston. However, with the little Zi8 (I can carry it everywhere with me in my purse or the diaper bag) we can capture and watch it on our TV or upload to our computer right away. Technology never ceases to amaze me...

It's so much fun! Here is a clip of Jameston "talking," but not as much as I had anticipated. He saw the red light on the camera and stared at it, distracting him from our "conversation."

Oh, and Jameston wanted to redeem himself from the last blog post! So, here is the first video on our blog...hopefully they will get better! ENJOY :)

Dirty Jobs

**Blog-reader discretion is advised. The following is not yet rated, and it is definitely not for readers with a squeamish stomach!**

Dear Dirty Jobs,

My husband is a huge fan of your show on The Discovery Channel, and over the years we've watched Mike Rowe travel around the country to chronicle some of the filthiest occupations that exist today. Mike has searched high and low (oil rigs and sewers to name a few not-so-clean places) to find some of the most downright unappealing jobs. But I'm here to tell you he needs to look no further!

As new parents, my husband and I have definitely experienced our fair share of memorable moments over the last several months. However, some of those experiences have not been the "Oh-that's-so-cute, let's save-it-for-his-scrapbook" type of moments but more like the "Oh-my-goodness! That-much-came-out-of-someone-that-little?" bloopers which have mainly revolved around just how messy babies can be. More specifically, we are constantly amazed by our son's "output" (to put it mildly).

Furthermore, it's not only the quantity but also the diversity of the output that a baby makes on a daily basis that keeps our washing machine and dryer in what seems like constant operation these days. Please excuse my bluntness, but I have been spit up on, peed on, and pooped on more times than I'd like to remember!

Often times we pack an extra set of clothes in the diaper bag in case Jameston has a "wardrobe malfunction," but there have been occasions when we wish we had a change of clothes for ourselves because of the spit up on my blouse or poop on Brett's dress pants!

These pictures say it all:

Case in point. Please don't let the diaper distract you from noting the spit-up on the onesie. We call these "blowouts" around our house! Oh, and we wanted to show you the black/white version to spare you the cRaZy color :) Wish you could see the looks on our faces!

Wear it proud, Jameston. We love our 'lil Pooper!

I am sure you can find new parents everywhere who share these same sentiments. This being said, I'd like to clarify and state that being a parent is not a "job" at all. After all it is part of a parent's love to look back on all the dirty diapers one day and be able to laugh about it, right? After describing this daily dose of dirtiness in a satirical way, I must say that we are embracing our new and messy role as parents with open (and disinfected) arms!

Aspen

My middle sister, Lynnlee, and her husband, Thomas, welcomed a baby girl into the world on Tuesday. Aspen Iloa Crow was born at 4:05 pm on December 29th, weighing in at 7 lbs., 4 oz., and measuring 19 3/4 inches long. She is absolutely beautiful, just like her parents! Aspen has great skin and a full head of long, curly brown hair (Mr. Bald-headed, Jameston, is jealous :) And what a fitting day to have little Aspen...while Lynnlee was in labor, Dallas was being blanketed with snow!

Aww, so precious...we think she has Lynnlee's (and my dad's) eyes and nose, Thomas' complexion and facial structure, etc., etc. Only time will tell :)

The proud momma!

Ms. Aspen, you are blessed to have such wonderful parents and family who already loves you so much! We are blessed by you and cannot wait to watch you grow up. We have a feeling you and Jameston will be like two peas in a pod...oh what fun you two will have!

Brett, Jameston, and I meet baby Aspen!

The newest addition to the Stewart family, alongside her older (and seems like much bigger) cousin, Jameston

Lynnlee and Thomas, thank you for allowing us to be a part of your special day. It was an honor for us to be there on Aspen's birth day and to witness the miracle of life! We are so proud of and happy for you guys :)

The first family-of-three picture...so sweet!

First White Christmas!

As many of you DFW-ites and Wichitans experienced, we had a white Christmas this year! Jameston does not yet realize just how lucky he is that his very first Christmas was snow-filled and how rare that is in Texas, but we'll be sure to tell him in the future. To celebrate, we drove an exhausting 9 hours to Brady, north of Austin, on the eve of Christmas.

We were planning to leave early Christmas morning, but with the horrendous blizzard-like weather that hit Wichita Falls, where my mom, sister and brother were planning on leaving from, we cancelled my side's Christmas festivities so that we could leave for the Austin area before it got too bad on the roads. Well, we were wrong in our estimation, because despite leaving only an hour after the really cold weather hit Dallas, the roads were already in bad shape. We drove anywhere from 10-40 mph during the 250 mile, white-knuckle drive. We saw plenty of over overturned trucks (semis included) and cars in ditches that we were so thankful we made the trip safely.

And Jameston was a traveling trooper! He "talked" and played, ate three bottles, and slept off and on during the trip...he's an experienced traveler these days with about 47 road-trip hours under his belt with visits to Austin (times two), Lubbock/Plainview, San Angelo and Wichita Falls! Here he is, all tuckered out, around midnight on Christmas Eve...ready for bed!

About 55 of us gathered at the Heart of Texas Bible Camp in Brady for Christmas festivities this year. It was a big turnout even though not everyone was able to make it. The two days were filled with fellowship, fun games, yummy food as always (with the annual Danish delicatessens), and great memories!!Christmas day started with Jameston playing with his second cousin, Ashlyn, whom he met back in October in Austin. She's an absolute doll! And JW was able to meet many of his relatives! Here he is with his Great Aunt Melanie, and another second cousin, Luke. Relaxin' on Great Uncle Larry, who is a towering 6'5" (give or take an inch or two)! Jameston enjoyed the view! And fast asleep in cousin Holly's arms... And sleepy-eyed with cousin Brent (who was one of the five guy cousins who grew a mustache for the gathering :) And asleep again on cousin Leah, who is expecting a boy in April :) As with all Turnbough gatherings, there was lots of dominoes and card-playing going on. And baby Jameston was right in the thick of it! Here he is wanting to get in on Daddy's hand of 42: Pondering their next move... Dad, let me help you! Letting mom hold him before Christmas night activities: meeting Santa for the first time, and taking pictures with his cousins! Sitting in Granny's lap, along with his cousin Layne, 4 1/2 months old A bunch of cousins on the floor! The Turnbough crew has welcomed five babies since May. Here is a shot of four of them (we just missed Brady, 6+ months old, who was with the family Christmas Eve before we arrived :(

Clockwise from top: Luke, 6 1/2 months; Jameston, 3 months; Ashlyn, 2 months; and Layne, 4 1/2 monthsLuke directing the babies! Santa (Uncle Lonnie) and the babies in their coordinating Christmas onesies! Posing with the big cousins (L to R): Kalyn, Lauren, Landon, Ethan, Autumn, and Nathan (in front) Gigi and her grandchildren posing with their children (and baby belly, in Leah's case :) Jameston got lots of practice unwrapping this year...We would hold the gift in front of him, let him grasp the paper, and then we would pull or turn the box so the paper would tear. His hand/eye coordination, although getting better, is not THAT good yet! Orajel...thanks, Aunt Melanie Reed! With all the drooling and slobbering he's doing lately, this may come in handy sooner than we think! Gigi opening her gifts...she is such a wonderful person and deserves being showered with gifts! Cousins checking in on each other...Layne and Jameston. They just stared at each other at first, and then they held hands...awww! And then Luke joined in on the fun!We packed up and headed out from Brady and went to Spicewood/Lake Travis to Brett's parents' house. Here is baby J in his "Baby's First Christmas" hooded onesie! "Sitting" in front of the tree at Granny and Papa's Opening an awesome gift from cousins Riley and Ruby Thank you, he loves it!Riley and Ruby opening a few gifts The whole crew (minus Aunt, Kayla): Brett, me and Jameston; Bryn, Jared and little Layne; Cade, Jessica, Riley and Ruby

We hope you and your loved ones had a wonderful Christmas! With a little one this year, it was more special than ever for us. And we know that it's going to keep getting better and better!