26 weeks!!

This week, Dean had started pulling himself up! It's mostly only when we are laying in front of him and he can pull on us. It's not on the couch or anything. While in the crib he can pull himself to his knees, which is adorable. He pulled himself up all the way once but at like a 45* angle haha. That didn't last long but luckily I was hovering.
*so since his tongue clipping, Dean eats more efficiently. He still has the same problems-needs to be sleepy to finish or else he only does a half feeding. Only now the full feeding is about 7-8 minutes and a half is 3-4. We are going to try something new next week though. Standby....
*KR started his second half of this rotation. He's doing the same thing, internal medicine, but now at st. Vincent's (where dean was born!) Instead of ohsu. This week we were spoiled though! Monday he started at ten, found out he only had orientation and was home two hours later! Tuesday he did have a fancy dinner and wasn't home til 9 but but then Wednesday he was done by noon, came home and then had to go to ohsu for some lecture from 3-5. Thursday I think was normal. Then Friday was home by like 4 and Saturday was home by 2!! Sunday was is day off again too! Next week he has Thursday off! Which happens to be a special day for us. Again, standby. The only downfall of that is he has to work next Sunday and also that his next day off is not until the following Saturday. Oh well.
*dean is getting good at rice cereal and although he didn't love sweet potatoes and wouldn't eat them at first, he at least tolerates them now. I also may have let him lick my pear and he may have loved it. We tried it again in his mesh thing and he liked it but didn't quite get the concept of holding it himself. That doesn't make sense cuz everything goes in his mouth usually. So we had to hold it for him haha. This week coming up, we will puree them and see how that goes.
*another major thing: teeeething. Ah! So I've mentioned it a lot. And I truly believe he has teethed here and there. But now its the real deal. We see the bulge, he's reallllly cranky and his hands alllllways in his mouth. Lots of drool, tears and very little sleep. Like, up every hour and 15-30 min. Yikes. Needless to say, its been a hard week. I feel like i say that too frequently. But its true. Between nursing issues, sleeping issues, tongue clipping, teething, sleeping issues(yes I said that twice). I try not to complain but I do. Too much. It's just I knew they said motherhood was hard, I just didn't think for these reasons. I mean, these things, besides teething, aren't normal so I keep thinking its only hard because we are abnormal. If eating wasn't an issue, motherhood wouldn't be so hard (notice I didn't say easy). But then I remember the mothers going through way harder health issues with their babies, or worse, the very deserving mothers without children of their own. I'm grateful, and I truly try to keep perspective. But this trial has definitely gotten the worst of me. My biggest regret already is time not well spent. I have lots of chunks of time that are sweet and wonderful, but I hate how overshadowed this time in our lives is by his nursing issues. I recognize that and try to focus on the sunshine instead of the storms, but its really hard when feeding your baby is such a huge part of motherhood the first part of their life. Ok tangent done. Sorry. Journaling, right?
*anyway, like I said, next week has something new in store and we will see how it goes. Assuming teething isn't the death of me!
*Monday is the big 6 month mark!!!!!! One more, "standby"!!!!

25 weeks

*well the Dr didn't call Monday but Tuesday. Dean was off his med since Saturday so he pretty much went back to his normal. She called tues and referred him to the ent and a speech specialist. That is to check anatomically to make sure things are going down properly.

*the last few weeks, dean it's a very into boxes!! Perfect distraction haha.
*this week he has really discovered tags. Haha I knew it would come eventually.
*Thursday we went to the ent and he decided to clip Dean's tongue. He definitely cried but not like with shots. It wasn't the cry where they don't breathe. It was a more mature, sad cry. I nursed him immediately and he would go off and on with nursing and crying for a few minutes and then he was ok. Later nursing seemed to hurt and was a bit of a struggle for him but then he did ok later. The next day, Friday, I made the mistake of stretching it right before nursing. It hurt to nurse so it was a struggle. Since then, I've been stretching it after, when he's full and happy and he recovers very quickly. So quickly that I'm worried I'm not doing a good job stretching it... But he seems to nurse for shorter and I haven't pumped to see if he can still last three hours-I'm hoping he is more efficient now and that's why he does the shorter time. For the most part it might be true. However, last night was not fun. He ate great before bed so he went three hours. But then he kept only eating 5 minutes or so and then would get up every 1 1/2 to 2 hours. And I could not get him to eat longer. Lips pursed, head turned. And a few times it took more to get him back to sleep. I can't complain though because after his bed time feeding, we stretched his tongue, which woke him up. He was so wide awake and perky, I laid him down to wait til he played it out. I've done this a couple times to conserve my energy (usually I bounce him through the hyper stage up to the tired fussy stage, and then I'm soo tired of bouncing. Now I lay him down until he gets fussy and is more ready) but once in a great while lately, he will find the monitor camera which has red lights, he will stare until he falls asleep. He put himself to sleep last night at bedtime, so again, I can't complain. I know it will take time before I know if this helps or not but either way, I don't regret it because at least I know. That might make me a bad mom, but I saw a quote the other week that said something about motherhood and doing the right thong even when we don't know what the right thing is.
*we went to the zoo with Katie and ruby on Friday and he was so good the whole time. And such a tender mercy, it had been 4 hours and on the way home, traffic was the worst I've experienced with him in the car-he slept the entire way home. I was so so grateful because it could have been a disaster.
*we went for a walk along the waterfront and over bridges on Tuesday with Emily and Reagan. It was really cold but nice. Half way through though, dean got upset so we had to run the rest. I was fine with that since I wanted to run anyway. But Emily didn't even have a jogger stroller so I felt bad. She was so nice about it though. It was her idea even (to run).
*Halloween! Tuesday night we went to our old wards trunk or treat. It was fun to see friends! KR and Dean wore lettermans jackets and I was a fifties cheerleader.

We got lots of compliments. It was really fun. And I'm glad we did that since we didn't do anything on actual Halloween. We watched Charlie Brown. But we didn't even carve pumpkins this year and I'm kind of grumpy over it. KR was just too busy.
*speaking of that, KR finished the first half of this rotation on Friday. He has the whole weekend off and doesn't start Monday until like 10. The next five weeks aren't on the hill but at st. Vincent's (where Dean was born!) So hes going to have to drive. We are grateful for the second car at times like this. The downside to this next half is that he still has 6 days a week but we never know which day will be off. Hard to plan plus.I will have to do Sunday's alone and he will miss church. Oh well, we'll get through it!

24 weeks (do you like how generic these titles are?haha)

*he's starting to push his butt up and pull his knees under!!! I have gone off his cues and so now that he seems ready, I'm helping him by pulling him up on his hands and then he tucks his butt and knees and will be on his hands and knees for a few seconds. I've also noticed a few scoots backwards! Not far at all, so far. Barely noticeable. But its movement. And he rolls all over the place!
*he also tends to lean forward and flip on to his stomach from a sitting position. He does it quickly so I have to watch what's in front of him!
*he does this adorable head tilt. When he's in his car seat, still looming forward, he will just tilt it to the side. Sooo cute!!
*did I mention last week that I put him in the stroller without the carseat?? Facing forward?? (Sorry if I did, but its too much work to save and exit and check, so I will post again). We went running along the waterfront a few times and since he was wide awake, I figured its time to let him look out and enjoy the view! He loooved it!! He didn't like the sun in his eyes towards the end, which is the only bummer because the shade didn't cover him that late in the day. That and I was scared his pacifier would fall out. Without the carseat to catch it, I finally need to get a pacifier clip. But! It was so much lighter to push!! Haha. That thing gets heavy with the stroller, carseat AND a 17 almost 18 lb baby!! So excited for this next stage!!
*he has started sleeping on his side! Haha. It's so cute. I will lay him down, asleep, and he will instantly roll to the side. It's only a bummer if he rolls away from the camera and I can't see his face haha. But if he's awake, he's always moving, so I just go off that and his breathing.
*we've been trying the new medicine. I wasn't noticing a positive difference with his frequency of spitting up. Then it went negative! He was still spitting up frequently but more volume! Then, the volcano returned!! It was happening every morning right after his 4-5am ish feeding. Then he would re-eat. The full amount again. So it was only 2-3 days but I emailed the dr. They suggested giving it in the am rather than pm. So I skipped Monday night and then went to give it Tuesday am but there wasn't enough for a full dose. (They gave me 5 days worth while they ordered the full prescription). So Tuesday afternoon I went and picked it up and he had his first full dose Wednesday am since Sunday. He seemed to spit up less in that period he didn't have it, but he didn't sleep as well Tuesday night. I'm not sure if its correlated but we will see. Poor kid though, apparently it tastes nasty. At first we were alternating it with his vitamin d drops so we might try they again. Otherwise, he has learned a new trick-spitting. Like full on spitting. Not just a raspberry haha. It's a lot of medicine to give him too!! He gags on it! I feel awful!(reminder, this is sort of a journal for me so if this is boring, don't feel obligated to read)
*we finally hung his frames and banner a few weeks ago and I finally got the "d" up this week. Completion!!


*KRs sweet generous mom added me to her zoo pass! So now I can go and even take another adult whenever I want!! I'm so excited and so grateful! She also showed me this idea online and proceeded to give me the supplies to make it!!




(since I wrote the first part of this post mid week, the rest is the update since then....)
*so the medicine did seem to make a little difference for a few days. He burped easier so although he was spitting up still, it seemed to be a little less. He even did some good sleep stretches of up to 5 hours a few nights. But then Saturday I had to pump every feeding because he was stopping at 3 minutes or less. Up until then, his feedings were about the same as always. Then he also couldn't poop. That night. He woke up like every 1 1/2 to 2 hours. He was starving but wouldn't/couldn't eat. I felt awful and didn't know how to help him. So Sunday I quit the medicine and left a message for the dr. We will see what happens next.
*next week is a five day week for KR!!! He has Saturday off and it marks the half way point for this rotation (which is ten weeks. All the rest are five)

23!

this week wasn't super ground breaking but still happy nonetheless. :)
*rolling a ton more! He's doing much better going from tummy to back. He learned that first and has known how for a long time, he just doesn't do it. Well he does now, at least a bit more.
*we finally tried rice cereal again and he seems much more ready! I still have to time it right (not full, not starving, not grumpy, not over tired) but yay!! While at the Drs (I'll get to that), I asked and got a little more info about solids! I have been itching to go find some baby food cookbooks!! Barnes and Noble didn't have much!!! But for now, he's getting rice cereal 2-3 times a day and its not replacing any meals.
*ok Dr appt. I emailed the Dr about his tongue and lip tie. She was on vacation. By the time she got back and responded, I had a new question about silent reflux. We set an appt to address both. She agrees there is a problem!! Finally!! Someone acknowledges that although he's gaining weight and is healthy, its from lots of hard work ans stress and its not normal!! She also agrees with his lip tie but wants us to try antacids medication first because its less invasive. After a few weeks, if no improvement, she's sending us to the ent. I was disappointed (although this is what I wanted just two days earlier, but I changed my mind haha) because I think its just treating a symptom, not the cause. But I figure we should try the less invasive just to cross it off the list. Besides, at this point, what's a few more weeks? It would be nice if this helped. But probably not... We will see.
*we took dean to the pumpkin patch! He liked it, but mostly just being outside and with daddy haha. KR worked reallllly hard to get off a little early yesterday. Normally a full load is two patients for one student. He had three!! So I'm grateful for how hard he worked! And he still did a good job and didn't rush it. It was worth it for the fun time we had and just time together as a family.
*Well this week really didn't have too many little milestones. Although I guess he did grab the side of the changing table this morning!! I hope he doesn't start trying to roll while changing him!!
*oh and this morning I had him in his cradle bed and he was being a little fussy but I was being lazy. It was 5am!! Poor KR, his alarm was going to go off soon. I hate waking up before the alarm but that close. Anyway, so I finally roll over to Dean and he was like arching and twisting!! He seriously could get out if he worked at it long enough!! So I got up ans bounced him to sleep and put him back in the crib (I always start him out there at bed time. The first time he wakes up, I give him his pacifier. The second time, which is usually like 5-10 min later, I try the pacifier one more time. If it happens one more time, I bring him in to his cradle because there is no way I'm doing that all night!! Haha.
Well if I think of something I missed, I will write it. In the meantime...

I remembered two more things....

*when we go to sit dean down, lately he won't bend at the waist ha ha. He just keeps his legs straight.
*he is really really reaching for things!!
*he does this grunting /growling thing lately. Not sure if it's only when hes frustrated or not
*teething is starting to hurt him :( he is sucking on his lip and I feel so bad!

22 weeks

*he's so bendy! He's in to his toes all over again but in an edible way haha.
*I finally gave in and tried the crib all night. It was just about the same as his cradle-still woke up several times-but hopefully that changes from the new things I'm trying. Only time will tell and since I'm doing no cry, it will take a bit longer but its worth it to not just let him cry. (Update:I typed that up early in the week. We did the crib all week and it progressively got worse ha ha. So last night, we hit reset, had him sleep in his cradle and we will try again. Oy with the poodles already!)
*going along with the bendy, he is sitting up and then leaning forward, all yoga-like and its hilarious.
*while laying down, if he sees something to his side, he will roll over as he reaches for it. One step closer to mobility! He seriously has exploded with guys rolling in just the last few days.


*he started up his 'doy doy' thing when we give him his pacifier.
*bathtime is so fun!! KR usually gives him his bath because it's like right when he gets home and wants to spend time with him. So he bathes him in the mesh hammock thing and then takes it off, sits him up and let's him play. He kicks so much (as always. When does he not kick?) and loves his ducky. He is starting to realize, we think, that when he kicks it splashes with his arms, he is the one causing that sound and the water to splash (sometimes in his face, which he seems to be ok with!)
*even though sleep isn't going the best, we have settled in to a night time routine. At 7pm, we start the bath and he had bath time. Then we put his pjs on and lotion. (He has started screaming during this and im wondering if it's because he is mad we took him out of the bath.) Then KR reads him stories until Dean starts fussing (usually about 1 1/2-2 1/2 books). I usually do dishes while they are doing all that. Then when dean starts fussing, I come in and take him and wrap him up in the swaddleme (just his arms) and then bounce him to sleep while KR reads scriptures to us. We pray and either put him down or I feed him, depending on how long its been. We are trying to stick to the same time line every day, regardless of his eating times, since that varies so much.

21 weeks

This week, KR started his new rotation. He is doing internal medicine for ten weeks. He's really liking it and its keeping him busy but the hours are pretty long and its Monday through Saturday. So dean and I have a lot of alone time lately. We miss KR though.
*dean has been noticing shadows. He doesn't understand them of course but he stares and tries to grab them.
*we tried solids! Haha. He's just been having his issues finishing eating and now waking up several times a night, we thought maybe he needed more substance. Well, he wasn't quite ready. We tried sweet potatoes and his face was priceless. Nope, not yet. The next day we tried rise cereal. I think he did a little better but still not quite ready. We are going to try a little tiny bit again but have done more research of how to try and see if he is ready. We definitely arent trying to force it on him. Just giving him the opportunity.
*his grasping is getting so good. He can occasionally transfer from one hand to the other.
*I took him for his first picnic in the park! He loves outside. It was such a beautiful day and we were able to walk to our new park-less than half a mile, right passed the library!!