Oliver 2 months

Stats: 11lbs. 4oz.(30-40th percentile)
           22 1/2 inches long (30-40th percentile)


He was actually 2 months on the 15th of November but I'm finally getting around to posting this. Little boy is growing like crazy! He is quite possibly the best baby. He smiles so much and it's especially cute at 4 in the morning :) He's not exclusively breastfed any more. Instead, I exclusively pump and bottle feed. After his feedings (pain and length) not getting any better like everyone says it should, I went to the lactation consultant. He is tongue tied but not enough to get it clipped (which didn't really matter because my pediatrician wouldn't refer me to an ENT or dentist to get it done) but he was tongue tied enough that it was extremely painful for me and he would take up to an hour to eat. So after doing some crazy mouth exercises, feeding not getting any better, being exhausted for a few weeks, Elijah going crazy and acting up, and Matt tired of seeing me sobbing at 3 in the morning we've decided to just pump and give it to him in a bottle. I make enough for him, so I figure as long as he's getting breastmilk who cares how he's getting it. It's a little more work, but for now it is working and my goal is to do it til he's 4 months. Then if I feel we can do it longer I'll go for 6 months. Matt has been so supportive and helpful. Love him. Elijah is still impartial to the baby. He will occasionally hold him or help make him smile. And if he's crying he lets me know and runs to grab his binky and shove it in his mouth. Here are a few things about our little Oliver:

-Sleeps really well. Down for the night around 9 sleeps til around 4, eats, then sleeps til about 7. He'll sometimes wake before 4 with gas but is easy to put back to sleep.
-He is the gassiest baby. He can rip some serious toots and sometimes they really stink.
-Loves looking around at the new world he can now see.
-Hardly ever cries. And if he does it is the cutest thing you'll ever hear.
-Is starting to coo and babble a little.
-Loves to be swaddled.
-Has had his head colored on by his big brother

And now for an Instagram dump.

Listening to Enya with Grandpa A.

Elijah being Thomas the Train for Halloween

Cutest Superman you'll ever meet!

Oliver-2 weeks

Stats: 6lbs. 8 oz.
           19.5 inches long

He is growing like a weed! He out weighs Elijah by almost 1 lb at he same age. And I'm so proud to say it is all breast milk! Yoohoo! We had a small rough patch for a day or so but we've worked out the kinks now. He is such a good baby. I'd have 10 more like him if I could. Makes me realize that Elijah was kind of a difficult newborn for me. He rarely cries and just eats and sleeps all day. He only cries when we take his diaper off, then as soon as you put it back on he quiets right down. I've been holding off giving him a pacifier but in reality he really never needs one. So sweet. We are so happy to have him in our home. He has such a sweet spirit. Here are a few facts:
-Eats every 3 hours, with two stretches at night of 4 hours each. Takes about 30-40 mins to eat.
-Makes the craziest noises when he sleeps. I've resorted to putting an ear plug in my ear so I can muffle the noise at night while he sleeps in our room.
-Burps and poops like a champ
-Spends most of his day in the pack n'play propped up on a boppy. Elijah helps me wheel him around sometimes from room to room.
-Loves to snuggle.
-Sucks his fingers really, really well.
-Elijah loves to give him kisses before bed

First Bath- Didn't like it for the first 20 seconds, then decided it was kind of fun.

Welcome to the World Oliver James Anderton

Born Sept 15th 2011 at 11:36pm (2.5 weeks early!)
5 lbs 15 oz
17" long

    Oliver's birth was exciting and happy! On Tuesday the 13th, I had my normal OB appt. I was dilated to a 3 almost a 4. Doctor said, could be any day now! So basically I told my mom to hop on a plane and Matt had me stay in bed for a day so the baby would stay in til she got here! We wouldn't have been so panicked except Elijah came down with a 102-103 fever THAT day. So I didn't feel comfortable just dropping my sick kid off at our friends house if we needed to go all of a sudden. My mom got here Wednesday afternoon. Luckily Thursday morning his fever broke and he was feeling back to normal.

    Thursday afternoon I stood up and felt a warm trickle go down my legs. For a second I thought, "Great, I peed my pants." Then I went to the bathroom and noticed I had lost my mucus plug (gross.) I then noticed the trickling kept going on. I called the doctors office and she said to go the hospital just to make sure it wasn't my water. We got to the hospital around 5pm. As the nurse at the hospital was checking me, she had me cough and a huge gush of water came out. The nurse immediately rolled her eyes and said "Your ticket is punched, wheel her in." Matt was laughing so hard. My water had indeed broken. So I was admitted. Once in the delivery room, I was still a 4. Having contractions, but not painful at all. The nurse then started me on some pitocin at 8pm to get things rolling. Then I started feeling some pain, nothing terrible but mildly uncomfortable. Around 9:30pm I was a 5. The anesthesiologist was just hanging out at the nurses station so my nurse said it would probably be a good time to get my epidural if I wanted one before he left. So I received my epidural around 10pm.  The nurse then increased my pitocin and things started kicking in. I was at a 6 for a while and she noticed that baby's heart rate kept dropping with each contraction. She had me lay on my side, put on the oxygen mask. All of that wasn't helping much. Then I felt this urge to push. She checked me and I had gone from a 6-10 in 20 mins! No wonder the baby's heart rate was dropping, he wanted out! Next thing I know my doctor walks in, 3 pushes and out popped Mr. Oliver James Anderton at 11:36pm! I was in "labor" a total of 6 hours. He was so little! I thought he'd be bigger but he is just a sweet little thing.

     Recovery has been awesome. I got to feed Oliver immediately after having him and he got to stay with us for a good 1.5 hours. Then he went to the nursery to get his tests and get cleaned up. Then the nurse brought him back to me and he ate some more. He is doing a great job on the nursing front. I met with the lactation consultant and I'm going back on Monday to check things out and make sure we are doing it right. I couldn't wait to leave the hospital, people are always bugging you and making you sign things all.day.long. The only pain I've really had, has been when my uterus is contracting back to it's normal size. Terrible pain. This time around it feels a little easier. We are much more chill about things and don't freak out about every little thing. Plus having my mom here makes a huge difference. Elijah is having a blast with her. He still doesn't know what to make of the baby, he just stares and acknowledges him occasionally. Although he has decided that the baby bouncer is for him and not for Oliver :) We have yet to get a picture of all of us together and one of Elijah holding the baby. Elijah doesn't want to hold him or sit still. He's been a little more needy but I don't know if I'd chalk it up to the baby or just the fact that we left him for 2 days and now he's scared we'll leave at any second. He's clingy to Matt more than anyone. He loves his Daddy.

Being admitted

Oxygen time. Little nervous.

It's go time!

Dad cutting the cord

First car ride home

 Elijah's first glimpses of his little brother

All snuggly and warm at home.

And Elijah telling us he's not too sure about this new baby thing!

Baby Sunday #2- 35/36/37 weeks!

35 weeks

37 weeks

                                                             
 I think it's safe to say I've had a major growth spurt over the last 2 weeks :)

Obessions/Rampages: I cannot believe D-day is so close! Doctor said everything is looking fine. In fact, at 35 weeks she said, "Don't come in next week, I'll see you in two weeks instead." Sounds good to me! I'm officially more pregnant than I've ever been. I don't know what it's like to be more pregnant than this, but all I can say is that all those women are right. The last few weeks are not very comfortable. I feel like a beached whale trying to turn from side to side in the middle of the night. Obsessed once again with the movement of this boy. He is sooo active! I sleep on my side and he is always kicking it. I've been on a ridiculous organizing rampage. It's like I'm anticipating never leaving the house or doing anything for the next 4 months! So crazy! The most ridiculous is that I washed everything in the linen closet and organized it and made labels. And I already have Elijah's Halloween costume and some Christmas presents and I bought Matt a new work wardrobe and Elijah a new wardrobe. I just worry my boys are going to be a little neglected the next few months so I'm trying to cover my bases. We've got basically all the top priority stuff done on our to do list, so if the baby comes we are good to go. Now I'm onto doing things that are not top priority like reupholstering our headboard, buying a million curtains for the front room because I can't decide what I want, and repainting Elijah's room because I can't stand the color all of a sudden.  I'm hoping this preggy brain doesn't make any rash decisions I'm going to regret in a couple of months

Elations/ Worries: Elated I still sleep pretty well, not perfect but I can't complain. I totally jinked myself with my last post about not getting heartburn. If I eat past 7 and it's more than the size of an apple I get heartburn. yuck! I forgot how gross it is! I'm having a far amount of Braxton Hicks but nothing crazy, but then again I didn't with Elijah either. I'm so anxious for my next appointment to see how everything is going. Elated we have a name... I think. We like it a lot, but we'll see if he looks like it when he comes out. Elijah has been so cute lately, he'll hug my tummy and say, "ahhh" when I ask him where the baby is. He has no idea what's about to happen :) Also, I don't think my belly button is going to make it, if it grows one more centimeter it will pop like the thermometer on a Thanksgiving turkey.

Aversions/Cravings: My stomach is definitely getting squished. I can't eat as much for fear of getting a massive heartburn attack at the end of the day. I've been really into baking lately. Feels so homey and fallish. Even though it's STILL 500 degress outside. Still drinking an obscene amount of water, so I go potty a lot- as in 3 times in 20 mins- that's the record so far :)

Baby Sunday #2: 33 weeks

      So, I'm a little late in posting this, but I needed a good picture to put up. I had Matt take one on Sunday. Let's just say not sleeping through the night for a week straight and being sick doesn't look good on me :) This one was taken this morning before my doctors appointment. Doctor said everything looks good. I'm measuring a little short, but it may be because the baby is sideways. We'll see in two weeks! That's when everything starts rolling along. I'm kind of freaking out!


Obsessions/ Rampages:  Pretty sure this is the part of pregnancy where you start to feel big. Really big. Obsessed with how much this baby moves. I'm pretty sure he's sideways because he gives me the biggest kicks to the sides right by my hips multiple times a day. He's also slowly creeping up into my ribs. Bending over is getting a little more difficult and I've had to rely on my monkey toes a number of times to pick things up. Thanks for the feet mom and dad! Obsessed with blowing my nose. It is always stuffy. This last week we all caught a crazy head cold that knocked me out for a whole week! Being sick stinks, but being sick and pregnant is waaay worse. You can't take anything! Well I guess you can, but I get nervous about things like that. Call me a hippie, it just makes me uncomfortable. So night and day I'm coughing and blowing my nose and rubbing my face. Let's just say it was not my favorite week. Luckily Elijah was sick first, so he got better first and has been a happy camper having an unlimited amount of train videos and bunny snacks. Rampages: I've made a serious to do list before this baby comes. I'm hoping to get most of it done over the next couple of weeks. I possibly could have only 3 weeks left, oh geez! We made a trip to Ikea, ordered some essentials and now I'm saving my pennies for a double stroller. All baby clothes have been washed and are in the process of being folded and tucked away in a new dresser. Nesting is in full swing.

Elations/Worries: Elated with how well I've been feeling. Then again I don't really do a ton to totally exhaust myself on purpose. I've noticed if I get my heartrate going with more exertion I get a lot of contractions. But if I don't exhaust myself by the end of the day I have a hard time going to sleep because my muscles ache to be more active. Also elated that I have had absolutely no heartburn this pregnancy. Seriously none. Love that. And I still have no stretch marks to account for. Nice. I'm feeling really stretched out lately, so I've started slathering on the cream at night. Who knows if it works, but I'm doing it anyways! Worries: Oh just the typical, "Our lives are about to be turned upside down again", "I hope I can balance it all", "I'll die if breastfeeding is as difficult this time around", all the things that I worry about that haven't even happened yet, totally irrational, and a totally pregnant thing to do :)

Aversions/Cravings: Not much to report in this area. My appetite has been less than stellar since we got sick and nothing has flavor when you have a stuffy nose. But water always sounds yummy. And Matt and I have started a nightly ritual of drinking herbal tea in the evening. My favorite is Chamomile Honey. Yum. Edit: Now have a new favorite treat- Graham Cracker + Nutella+ Banana= Heaven.

Elijah is 2 years old! Happy Birthday Baby!

This picture is the epitome of 2 year old Elijah. No shirt, hair sticking out every which way, slobber on his face, all while holding his bear and pound puppy with a big smile on his face. And running around like a wild man. Seriously, sometimes he just does laps around the kitchen and front room for no reason.

  

Weight- 31 lbs (83%, not sure if it's accurate. They weighed him on the regular scale this time and he DID NOT want to stand there. I had to gently force/push him to stay on, he sure feels a lot heavier than this to me!)

 Height- 36 inches (88%)

-Has now entered I believe what is called the "terrible twos". Which for Elijah is terrible because he is usually so mild mannered but the last month or so has really learned to throw some stellar tantrums and says, "no, no no!" Which I think he learned from other kids because I rarely say no. I say things like "I don't think so" or "Hand it to Mommy please" rather than yelling at him. But overall he is so sweet and generally only acts up when he wants to play or do something more fun than what we make him do. Totally understandable.

-Says probably 70-100 words. Maybe more. Favorite words are: yeah, choo choo, dog, car, bear, and saying "oh no!"

-Eats, sleeps and breaths trains. He has a train table upstairs with a bunch of trains and tracks. I usually have to force him to come downstairs for meals or when we need to go places. I've been known to just bring him breakfast upstairs and he'll play for a solid hour while I do things downstairs. He's becoming so independent.

-Loves to line things up in nice, straight lines. Anything. Then he pretends and yells, "Choo Choo!", while pumping his arm. Everything can be made into a train. Examples-blueberries, spoons, grapes, goldfish, cars.

-Just got his 2 year molars in on the bottom and I suppose the tops aren't far behind. He has had the worst rash all over his mouth from drooling, and chewing on stuff. I'm sure the binky at night doesn't help much.

-Still a great sleeper and napper. Momma doesn't mess around and he knows when it's time for sleep. I can count the number of times on my hand that I actually go into his room when he whines/cries- only when he's sick usually.

-Could play any train game, watch Thomas the Train shows and read Thomas the Train books FOREVER. And he gets VERY mad when we say time to put things away.

-I have a kids game on my phone called Preschool Monkey lunch box. There's a matching part with 8 different cards and you have to match/remember the cards. He can do all of them. I didn't even teach him. He has the best memory and is very serious about it.

-All the observing he's been doing the last 2 years is now coming out into action. He does things I didn't even know he could do at the most random times.

-Still a decent eater. Although lately he seems to be on a mild food strike. Foods you would think most kids would eat, he doesn't...for now. His favorites are chicken nuggets, grilled cheese, any fruit, beans, soup and milk.

-Takes a while to warm up to new places and people. I don’t blame him, I’m the same way. But I’m sure his overprotective mother doesn’t help much :)

-He loves going to the library. We go for story/craft time, then play with puzzles and books afterwards in the kid section. Every time we drive down the road near the library he points and get soooo excited, then when I tell him we aren’t going that day, he just sobs and sobs! So sad! Probably the worst feeling in the world. 

-We read him a children’s picture dictionary at night and he knows practically what everything is!

 -Loves bugs. He will declare, “BUG, A BUG!” Then pick it up if it’s dead and put it in the trash or if it’s alive he will run, grab some toilet paper and proceed to squish it. Just like mommy does. If he sees an ant on the ground he’ll stomp on it with his shoes on. You don’t mess around with ants here, those suckers hurt!

-If he doesn't know a word to something or just forgets he says, "Aboo, Aboo, Aboo!" while pointing over and over at what he wants. Then when you ask, "Is this what you want?" He replies in the sweetest voice, "Yeah".

   For Elijah's birthday we decided to keep it low key, which turns out was a good thing seeing as how he caught a nasty cold 2 days before. Elijah woke up bright and early, had a breakfast of waffles then we headed off to Old McDonald's Farm. It's a little petting zoo/train/pool park about 5 mins from our house. He LOVED it! If it weren't so dang hot outside we would have stayed longer but we were all looking hot and tired after 1.5 hours. Then we went home and Elijah took a nap while Matt and I both worked. Then we went to pick up Elijah's favorite food-pizza, and his cake that I ordered special. We went home and ate, opened presents and played around with his new toys til bedtime. We were going to head to the pool- Elijah's second favorite thing in the world but he was having so much fun with his new toys we thought we'd just stay in. I felt bad for about 5 mins that I wasn't throwing him some adorable birthday party, but then I realized a) he doesn't have any little friends that he really likes to play with b) he isn't going to remember any of this and c) I don't really feel like making my house spotless for a bunch of people Elijah will really want out of his house once they get here. Plus now I have something to look forward to next year :)

  

Birthday morning (If you go the archives from last year, he is WAY different is his crib now!)

  

Singing Happy Birthday

  

Opening Presents

Waiting for the train to start. So serious about his trains.

Two favorite things- pizza and his trains all lined up in a row.

More interested in eating the frosting off the big cake than eating his own :)

Such a fun mess.

  Elijah we love you so much! You are such a joy to see grow and learn new things. You make life worth living. We don't know what we would do without you! Love you, Mom and Dad.

Baby Sunday #2 (On Thursday): 29.5 Weeks

Obsessions/Rampages: Obsessed and in nesting mode right now. The last month my house has never been cleaner! We've painted the baby room, cleaned all the closets out, sold a million things on Kingwood Yard Sales, etc. I've managed to keep up with everything around the house and still do fun things with Elijah. Also obsessed and planning on having this baby in 7 weeks, if he comes later I will be pleasantly surprised and very prepared. We didn't have anything prepared for Elijah's early arrival, so I plan on having it all together before 36 weeks. I am on a rampage with cutting down our grocery bill. We spend way too much money on food it's ridiculous. It's been a very good organizing month.

 Obsession- Baby moves like crazy. Seriously, he is constantly moving. I love it! I don’t remember Elijah being this active. My belly jiggles and protrudes in so many different ways. I’m pretty sure he is either feet down or head down because when he kicks sometimes it feels like he’s going to kick a limb right out of my body! I am constantly amazed that the human body can grow a person, such a miracle. 

Elations/Worries: Elated that I have been feeling great the last few weeks! A few days after I wrote my last post complaining about my sciatic nerve pain, the baby flipped and is now off my nerve and I can walk again! My energy has been really good too-hence why my house is so clean :) Elated that my doctors appointments are going well. Everything looks great and she calls me her favorite patient- healthy, with no problems and all belly. Can't complain about a doctor that says that! :)  Worries: I'm thinking if they don't release me from my Sunbeam teacher calling by September I may have to ask to be. I'm essentially by myself with 8+ 3-4 year olds (Yes there is another teacher in the class but she is really there to take care of her wild child in the class and doesn't really know how to discipline the other kids yet). A few of which that like to throw tantrums and I have to drag them out into the hall kicking and screaming with my big belly being kicked at. Every Sunday after church I am so exhausted from carrying screaming 40lb toddlers to class that I usually have some pretty good Braxton hicks contractions the rest of the day- which isn't always a good thing. And since I'm super paranoid about my blood pressure and having this baby early I may have to give this calling up to someone who can physically handle it better than I can right now. Only time will tell, maybe next week the children will be magically well behaved :) I really enjoy teaching them, they really are so fun and sweet when they want to be.

Aversions/Cravings: Give me doughnuts!! Oh my, I have to resist with every fiber of my being not to stop and get a doughnut every time we pass the shop. It just always sounds good! I do indulge myself probably once a week, if that, but I wish I could eat one everyday! My tummy says yes but my increasing weight and blood sugar say no! I always have my giant white hospital cup filled with ice water. I take it everywhere. I drink so much water. Yummy. Again, no aversions this month, I eat everything. 

 

This is what a typical day of food looks like for me. I pretty much eat the same thing everyday, with the exception of dinner. . I’m definitely a creature of habit when it comes to what I eat. I feel like I’ve figured out what makes me feel good and helps my body function at it’s best. I get jealous when some people can live on nothing but sugar cereal and skip meals just because, not me, I’d die!

Breakfast- Either Kashi Cereal, Grape Nuts, or Quaker Squares. Every.single.morning.

Snack-Banana or some almonds and crackers

Lunch- Usually a turkey, hummus, avocado, lettuce, tomato and cheese wrap. With a few Multigrain Chips or Sweet Potato chips.

Snack-Fruit or Protein Bar

Dinner-Whatever I decide to make that day

Snack/Treat- Homemade S’more or a Lime Popsicle.

Add in 3-4 34oz mugs of water and you’ve got my standard day of food.