4-1/2 months

Joshua is now 4-1/2 months old! We had his 4 month well baby doctor appointment this morning. He weighed in at 18lbs, 1 ounce and is 26 inches long. That means he's in the 95% for weight and 75% for length; he's a big boy!

I had thought we would be starting him on food pretty soon, but due to the family history of asthma, we were told we should hold off until he is 6 months. Apparently, the longer one is breastfed exclusively, the less likely one is to have asthma or allergies. Learned something new! So we have another 8 weeks to go. I already bought rice cereal, fruits and veggies, bibs, and his chair, so at least we'll be ready when the time does finally come.

He just recently started reaching for things and really playing with his toys. He can keep himself entertained for 10-15 minutes at a time. That really opens up my day a lot!

Merry Christmas!

4 months

Today is Joshua's 4 month birthday! He's become really vocal - I don't know if he's trying to communicate or if he's just experimenting with his voice, but either way, it's super cute. He makes all kinds of noises. He also has learned to blow bubbles with his spit. He's been drooling a lot and for awhile had a little rash on his chin from the drool. We think he may be teething. He's been a bit more irritable than usual and is gumming his hands and mine more. Sometimes he enjoys the frozen teethers, but mostly he likes to suck his finger and/or his thumb.

He's basically on a three hour schedule now which gives me a little more time to get things done between feedings. He's slightly better about going down for naps. He still won't nap in his crib but he will nap in his bouncer meaning at least I don't have to wear him to get him to nap. He usually gets tired at night around 8 and is asleep in bed by 8:30 or 9 which gives me and Brian a little grown up time in the evenings. We still bounce him to sleep. We have to figure out how to get him to fall asleep on his own, both for naps and at night. He generally sleeps until around 5, wakes for a quick meal and then is back to sleep until 7 or 8. He's gone all the way through the night a few times.

He really enjoys sitting up and is pretty good at staying that way when propped up. He hasn't quite rolled over yet but he's working on it. He gets his bottom pretty high up in the air when on his tummy! He holds on to anything that is around him but he's not yet reaching out to grab things. I expect he'll start that any day now!

We went to the Christmas tree farm to pick out our tree. Here are a couple pictures.

As his mom I know my opinion is biased, but isn't he just so cute!?

3 month update

Our little baby Joshua is growing up so fast! He's already 3 months old. (He was 13 weeks old yesterday.) He's really becoming more of a baby-baby as opposed to a newborn baby. He smiles all the time, especially at me and Brian and he watches us as we move around the room. He puts his hands in his mouth all the time and makes some really loud sucking noises! He will also lick anything that comes in contact with his mouth, including blankets, clothes (mine and his), stuffed animals, and toys. He also puts his little hands, which are still usually in tight fists, together.
We moved him into his room a few days ago. He is a really loud sleeper and would keep me up. Plus I think our moving around woke him up sometimes too. I was really nervous at first, having him so far away (like 20 feet down the hall!), but now I'm glad to have my room back! For the past two nights he's slept for 8 hours straight! Prior to that his longest had been about 6-1/2 hours.

He's been slightly better about being in his carseat. I hooked up the mirror in the backseat so I can see him and he can see both me and himself. I think that maybe just feeling bored and alone led him to scream. I'm really glad he's screaming less because car rides were intolerable! I was dreading every drive, but especially the one to Bakersfield.

He's really good at balancing his head when he's sitting. I have to work on giving him more tummy time. He can pick his head up but cries a lot! He also likes to stand. He has really strong legs that support virtually all his weight; we just have to balance him. He's pretty good at sitting when his hips are supported although he sometimes flops over.

He's not a very good napper. We're working on that. I try to put him down in his bed for a nap, but he just cries. He'll only nap in his bouncer chair, in his swing, or if I'm wearing him, and sometimes not even then. He'll get so tired and his eyes will be so heavy but he fights the sleep! I guess he's like his daddy in that regard.

Happy Halloween!

Joshua was a chili pepper. The costume was a little tight around his tummy and it was really hot so we didn't fasten him all the way in.

Pumpkin patch

11 weeks

Joshua is 11 weeks old today.

He's been doing much better with the sleeping and actually went 6 hours a couple nights. He is interacting with us much more and will watch us as we move around the room. When Brian gets home from work, Joshua is usually having his late meal and he'll stop eating to smile and interact with Brian. It's really sweet. He likes putting his hand to his mouth and sucks on it. He doesn't like his carseat which makes going anywhere not fun.

2 months

8 weeks

Joshua is 8 weeks old today. He had his two month checkup this morning. He now weighs 13lbs, 8oz and is 22 inches long. That puts him in the 91st percentile for weight and 23rd percentile for length. He's like the little teapot - short and stout! He also had his first round of immunizations today. He did great and has spent the afternoon sleeping.

He has been smiling a lot more. It's hard to get the camera ready in time to catch him in the act.

He is also getting a lot better at holding his head up. He has held himself up on his forearms a couple times even.

He spent his first extended amount of time in his swing the other day. He even took a nap there.

I started back at work this week. I took him with me to the office on Monday and he was really good. I carried him around in the front carrier and he took a couple naps there. We were at the office for 4 hours. Then yesterday Brian was at home with him for a few hours while I went into the office. I was a little nervous cause he hasn't been very good about eating from a bottle, but he did a good job yesterday and ate 7 oz while I was gone.

He's becoming a lot more alert and interactive which makes this whole experience a lot easier and more enjoyable. Those smiles make it all worth it!

7 weeks

Joshua is 7 weeks, 2 days today. He has found his tongue in his mouth and makes funny faces. He's also discovered his hands and has been putting them in his mouth. He has started smiling but it's hard to capture in a picture cause it seems I never have the camera ready.

I start back at work part-time on Monday. I'm not sure how that's gonna go considering I'm still not getting much sleep at night.

6 weeks

Joshua is 6 weeks, 3 days today. Last night he went to bed at 11. He stirred at 1:00 but I rocked his cradle and he went back to sleep until 3! That's his longest stretch yet! (Of course, he then woke to eat again at 5 & 7, but still, it's definitely progress!)

5 weeks

Joshua is 5 weeks, 2 days today. I bought a scale yesterday and weighed myself and then weighed myself while holding Joshua and the difference was 12 pounds! If he keeps growing like this he's going to be a giant!

So, I thought I'd tell you a little bit about him. He is happiest when he's eating. He likes to be held all the time and fusses when he is put down. He does like his bouncer cause it vibrates. We've tried putting him in the swing but I think he's still too young for it. He likes to be rocked and bounced and jostled though, so I think he'll really like the swing.

He's really good at holding his head up when he's vertical but he still has to make an effort to pick it up when he's on his tummy. He spends much more time awake now than when he was a newborn. He focuses on faces and likes to look out windows and stare at lights.

4 weeks

Today is Joshua's 4 week birthday! Time has just flown by! I don't have a weight this week cause we haven't been to the doctor. We won't be going back to the doctor until October 8 barring any emergency visits.

Joshua is definitely getting bigger but I think his weight gain has slowed down considerably, thank goodness. He's gotten longer though. Some of his newborn clothes are a little short so we've incorporated the 0-3 months sized clothes into his wardrobe. Those clothes are a little big, but probably not for long.

He's still not sleeping much at night. He's kind of fallen into the routine of being awake in the evening and fussy until around 10:30 or 11 at which point he goes to sleep for about 3 hours. After that he's back onto his every two hour schedule. He seems to be having his longer sleep periods during the day. I try to nap during those times, but it's hard sometimes cause I also have to find time to eat and pick up the house a little bit. I've been putting him in my sling and wearing him around the house while doing the housework and that's been helpful in getting things done.

3 weeks

Today is Joshua's 3 week birthday! Tomorrow is his original due date. Brian and I are both so glad he's here already! I can't imagine still being pregnant!

2 weeks

We had Joshua's two week appointment today - he's now 15 days old. Here's a shocker - he now weighs in at 8lbs, 4oz! That's a gain of 1lb, 6oz in 8 days! We had to weigh him twice to make sure! Brian and I knew he had gained weight but I was thinking he'd weigh like 7-4. I was a whole pound off. But I guess that's what happens when you eat every two hours!

Joshua's been on a two hour schedule. No matter what I do, he wakes up to eat every two hours - day and night. Which means by the time he eats, has his diaper changed, and settles back down, I've got about an hour until he's up to eat again. That doesn't make for very recuperative sleep for any of us! It'll just take time for Joshua to figure things out. But, hopefully it'll be sooner rather than later!

1 week

Joshua had his first doctor's appointment on Wednesday. It was his first outing. He now weighs 6 lbs, 14 oz. That's a 2 ounce gain since birth. He's also grown 1/4 inch. He has met all the well-baby goals for 1 week (i.e. he poops and pees the way he's supposed to). He's eating every 2-3 hours for the most part, except for the 3 hour window when he eats about every 1/2 hour. We're still working on having more wake time during the day. It seems he just likes to sleep when the sun is out. I'm going to take him on a walk today and see how that works for him.

Besides being sleep deprived, Brian and I are both doing well. Brian went back to work on Sunday so it's just been Joshua and me at home. Brian does what he can in the evening and at night but since I'm breastfeeding he's limited to changing diapers and walking Joshua to put him to sleep.

The Joshua Story

Joshua Pierce Crocker, who was due to arrive on September 4, made his debut 3 weeks early on Wednesday, August 13, 2008 at 6:18 a.m. He weighed 6 lb, 12 oz and was 19-1/2 inches long.

I was awakened in the early morning hours of Tuesday, August 12 with mild cramping. I figured it was either false labor or early labor and definitely wasn’t painful enough to keep me from going to work, especially since the woman I was training to fill my position while I was away had only started training on Monday! I spent the morning dealing with cramp like pains which subsided by the afternoon. I also felt like I was “leaking”. When the leaking sensation didn’t subside, but the cramping did, I decided to call the doctor who said I should come in to check to see if it was amniotic fluid.

So, I went to the doctor. She ran three different tests and when all three were positive for amniotic fluid, I was told that I would need to go to the hospital that night. Apparently, my water had broken and due to the risk of infection, the baby would need to be delivered in the next 24-48 hours.

I was upset by this news since I wasn’t actually in labor. I went home, called Brian, and started putting together the stuff I would need at the hospital. Brian arrived home from work and we went out to get some food and some things (like diapers) that we didn’t have.

We arrived at the hospital at around 7:45 p.m. and were checked in by the doctor. We were told that I would have Cervidil, which is an insert used to “ripen” the cervix. The Cervidil would stay in for 12 hours at which point the doctor would then start us on Pitocin, a labor inducing drug.

My ideal labor included as few interventions as possible, so learning that I would have to be induced was quite upsetting. The Cervidil was inserted at around 8:30 p.m. and I was told to try to get as much rest as possible that night since tomorrow would be a big day. I started having contractions around 10:00 p.m. but I was able to talk through them. They then started getting worse – so much so that I wasn’t able to rest anymore and had to walk around and breathe through the contractions. By 3:00 a.m., I was definitely in active labor! By 4:30, I decided that I could no longer do it without some help and asked for Fentanyl, which is a narcotic analgesic used to “take the edge off”. I was given the Fentanyl around 5:00 a.m. at which point the nurse checked me and I was 6 cm dilated. At around 5:40, after some intense contractions and feeling a lot of pressure, I was checked again and I was fully dilated.

Since no one expected this, the doctor wasn’t around and had to be called. I had to resist pushing and do some hee-hee breathing for about 20 minutes until she arrived. I started pushing at about 6:00 a.m and Joshua was born 18 minutes later.

He was immediately put on my chest and I was able to start breastfeeding. He was left there for over an hour at which point the nurses weighed him and gave him a bath. He was checked out and everything was working as it should.

We stayed that night at the hospital and came home on Thursday afternoon.

So, even though he was three weeks early and I was initially going to have to be induced, it couldn’t have turned out more perfectly!

34-1/2 weeks

Just 5-1/2 weeks to go.

According to the books, the baby should be around 5 pounds. At the doctor's, she couldn't find his heartbeat for awhile and she said that she would have started to worry except that she could see him moving around in there. She then found the heartbeat (it was fainter due to the baby's positioning) and said it sounded great. Besides that, the appointment was standard issue.

We finished the painting of the room. And we sanded and painted the dresser that we'll be using as the changing station. I started putting things away in the dresser yesterday. We seem to have quite a few really cute outfits! We're still waiting for the crib to be delivered. There was a glitch in that the one we picked out was out of stock and we had to choose a different one. It should be delivered sometime next week. Then we can unpack all the bedding. We plan on putting the cradle together this weekend.

We had a tour of the maternity center last Wednesday as part of our childbirth class. It's really nice. It's more like a hotel than a hospital room - except that there's a hospital bed in the room. I've made a list of things I need to buy at Long's to pack my bag for the hospital and figure I'll do that in the next few weeks. I don't want to wait too long, but I think looking at a packed bag will make the days that I don't need it drag on!

I'm feeling pretty good overall - except for being tired all the time! But I guess that's to be expected since I'm carrying a bowling ball around all day everyday! It'll be nice to be able to bend in the middle again. Virtually all my shoes are slip-ons since I can't really get to my feet to tie laces. And I have to use my toes to turn on my work computer since it's on the floor and I can't really lean down to push the power button. Plus, it just takes me longer to move around. I know that getting exercise is important but I don't go far since just getting down the street takes like 3 times as long as normal!