Wedding Celebrations in Colorado

We just returned from our very first flying and traveling experience with a baby.  Overall consensus - Ariy did amazing!  We tried to get him a good nap or two each day wherever we were at, and he did great!  He was such a happy baby with all the attention and did great being carted around everywhere.  The day before we flew out, we got a package from Amazon.  I ordered portable speakers for our ipods.  We both have downloaded free "noise" machine apps and for a quick sooth, they work wonders.  Whenever he naps, we turn up the "heavy rain" noise and out he goes.  It is pretty great.  I would recommend something like this for anyone traveling.  It was one consistent sound he heard no matter where he was for a nap. 

Here is a picture from the airport on the way home.  We were delayed for almost an hour after they boarded us due to severe thunderstorms.  I got pretty anxious and the beginning of both flights but to my surprise, Ariy was awesome.  He slept through both flights!

Probably the best moment for Ariy's rise to popularity was during the wedding ceremony.  He was officially named the ring barrier.  The plan was this - after a (what was suppose to be) a 45 minute ceremony, the time for rings would approach.  The pastor would look over to Rick, the best man, to give him the rings.  Rick then looks confused and turns to look at the best man next to him and so on and so on.  Each guy turns their head one by one until the last guy is left not knowing where the rings are.  I am then positioned to be sitting right next to the last best man.  I pick Ariy up (with rings attached to his little suit) and hand him over to the last best man.  He then proceeds to pass him down the row until the rings make their way to Rick's hands and over to the pastor.  This was the plan.  However, come time for the ceremony to start this was Ariy:

He passed out about 10 minutes before the ceremony began.  I actually was hoping for this because I knew he would never make it 45 minutes just sitting and listening to the beautiful ceremony.  He slept for the first 10 minutes or so and then awake he was.  I did my best to pacify him with a bottle and toys and ridiculous faces.  And, it worked.  The time came quicker then expected and the groomsmen, one by one, looked down the row wondering where the rings were.  I lifted Ariy up like simba from the lion king and passed him off to the last groomsmen.  What followed was very memorable.  Eight grown men in suits passed my baby one by one down the row.  Some cradled him ever so carefully, others had no knowledge that they should maybe watch the bobble head.  My stomach had butterflies in it which distracted me from my goal of video taping the whole thing.  The crowd laughed and everyone whispered "how cute."  I didn't actually hear that, I just assume that was everyone's thoughts (of course). 

Here is a short video of the last few passes of that memorable moment. 

More importantly, the wedding of Randy and Aubrie, my brother and sister-in-laws, was amazing.  It was quite the party and everyone had a great time.  We had a lot of help from family and really got to enjoy our time.  Cheers to an amazing start to Randy and Aubrie's new life together.  And thank you to family for your extremely generous support towards our little family. 

Our "big" little man

This past week we had our two month (10 weeks) check-up for Ariy.  We were all a little nervous for it (or maybe just me) since this would be his first real round of vaccinations = shots.  I still cannot look at the nurse when I have to have blood drawn or get a shot.  I also may of cried at the dentist in recent history.  I'm just a wimp when it comes to knowing that sharp thing is going to inflict pain on me.  I have to say Ariy did much better then his mommy.  He was a trooper.  He screamed of course but within a half hour he was asleep and pretty much stayed asleep or "zoned out" the rest of the day.

As for the other stuff - we found out or I guess confirmed that we have a "big man" on our hands.  No worries - you can't really overfeed a breastfed newborn so we are all good.  He is in the 95% for head circumference and weight.  He is 75% for height.  He is already starting to bust out of some of his 3 month clothes.  It is a little ridiculous.  He keeps getting cuter by the minute just a little harder to pick up.

Ariy and I tried to do a photobooth photoshoot yesterday.  He as always, was looking much better then his disheveled mom.  Forgive me.

I think I hoped that somehow if I made faces, he would to.  He obviously wasn't interested by the look in his face. 

We head out for Colorado extremely early tomorrow morning.  I am looking for to adventures in flying with baby!

Happy two months!

Yesterday I got to celebrate my 28th birthday!  I had a lot of fun with the family.  Rick did an amazing job recording the day.  To see a very quick and fun recap of the day, check out his video on rickloveschristine. It was also fun to celebrate Ariy being two months old.  I feel like he has grown up so much in the last month and he is becoming so much fun.  Here are some highlights and pictures and even a video:

• Ariy met his uncle Randy and aunty Aubrie for the very first time.  
• He has started sleeping 5-6 hour stretches at night which we love.
• He definitely knows who mommy and daddy are - makes us feel pretty loved.
• He has begun smiling a lot and even laughing.  He mostly laughs for daddy and whenever we grab the flipcam to document, he stops.  He is shy apparently.
• He loves to play and kick his legs.
• When he goes down for naps he smiles at me (followed by a little crying) and when I come in and get him he smiles - so awesome!
• He has established a pretty regular and predictable eat/play/nap schedule which mommy is thankful for.
• He has grown out of newborn and size 1 diapers and has graduated to size two.  He's a big boy!
• Most of all, he just keeps getting cuter...at least we think so!

Two month photo shoot

Didn't last too long the first time.

Photo shoot # 2 - I'm two months old!

I'm two months but I wear 3 month clothing!

Tired diaper baby.

Happy Father's Day!

I am very excited to be able to celebrate Father's day today.  Father's day always ended up right next to my birthday as well as the last day of school growing up.  I always have loved my birthday (you know this if you know me) and I was always a little sad to have these two "exciting" days so close.  A little selfish, I know.  I also think I just never really had the chance to celebrate.

Now that I get to live and witness a daddy doing his magic everyday, I am more than thrilled to celebrate.

Rick is a pretty great dad, and here is why:

• He changed all but maybe 1 diaper the entire time we were in the hospital and for a good while at homes afterwords.  He had to teach me a few things.
• He make Ariy smile all-the-time.  Ariy loves to look and play with his daddy.  Sometimes more than me but I am ok with it.
• He plays rough with Ariy.  I know it worries some of us sometimes but I love the daddy affection in the rough play.
• He likes his son to look good.  I often will go for the mismatched clothing and random outfits but Rick will choose the best and cutest.  
• He cares for Ariy now and for his future.  I know he will always be in his life and model what a good father is to him.

We both love him a lot!  For a Father's day treat, we bought one of his favorite meals, bow ties and pasta sauce.  I have never made this for him so I hope he enjoyed it.

Daddy Dinner

Daddy-son nap time

Turning 6 weeks is a big deal.

Ariy is 6 weeks old this week and he has grown soooo much! I had to rearrange our dresser to fill a drawer with clothes that fit him and removing all the clothes that are way too small. He has officially graduated to 0-3 month and 3 month cloth sizes. He hasn't been weighed since his 2.5 week appointment but we are pretty sure he has far surpassed the 10 pound mark. As soon as we find a scale, we are going to weigh him and see where he's at.

For any new mom, I would say the first 6 weeks can be tough. For us, week 3-5 were probably the toughest. And now looking back, it was only 3 weeks but it felt like forever. This was when the little sleep starting catching up on us, Ariy was diagnosed and started on medicine for relux, he seemed to be fussy all the time to the point we were apologetic to others for his crying. There were lots of awesome moments but I would say so far these were the hardest weeks.

I really enjoy reading books on parenting and baby development as well as talking with friends about their little ones. It seems as though the consensus from all sources is that things start changing around 6 weeks. I would have to strongly agree. Here are a few highlights:

• Ariy has started sleeping in regular increments of 3-5 hours (mostly 4-5 hr blocks) at night.  This is a shift from anywhere from 1-3 hours.  HUGE difference and makes for a much more rested mommy and daddy.
• He has started taking regular naps in his bassinet.  For a while we were only using the swing because he was so fussy and the swing was the only thing that soothed him.  Our goal has been to move away from the swing and really just use it when we need it, not as a regular "sleep aid."
• In terms of his reflux, he is doing much better and doesn't seem to be in anymore pain.  His crying now usually is around when he is tired.
• He has taken fairly consistent morning and afternoon naps.  Over the last 5 days, he has started to take a long morning nap pretty consistently.  It has lasted anywhere from 1.5 hrs to 2.5 hrs.
• He is becoming much more alert and social.  Last Thursday, I had some friends over for lunch and when I got him up from his nap and brought him out, he was all smiles for all the ladies.  Very cute.  He also loves looking around, especially when he gets up in the morning - so curious.
• His bed time seems to be becoming more consistent.  The last couple days he has gone to bed between 7:30 and 8:30 and we are thinking this is probably going to become more regular.  Usually around 7:30 at night he is very fussy and is obviously pooped and just wants to go to bed.
• His awake time limits are becoming more clear.  I really didn't understand just how much sleep a newborn needed.  I was afraid that if we made him sleep too much during the day he wouldn't sleep good at night.  The opposite has been true.  We have tried putting him down for naps earlier than we use to and we have gradually seen success in doing this (both in napping and nighttime sleep).  He really only can last for 40-50 minutes of awake time before he is ready for a nap.  Our fast growing little man needs a LOT of rest. 

I know a lot of this is only interesting to me being Ariy's mom and all but I also like documenting it so I can go back and see the milestones.  We love Ariy so much and are loving seeing him grow up, although it does happen way too fast.  Check out Rick's blog to see.

First pair of jeans.  Looking good.

I love this picture.  This hat was a gift from an parenting organization that connects with you in the hospital.

Airy and I took a walk on Long beach in WA.  He slept the whole time in the Moby.

Peaking out of the Moby.

Being a newborn is tough.

I was having "tummy time" with Ariy last week and I apparently worked him a little hard.  I couldn't believe it.

Motherhood one month in.

Thankful to have Ariy in our life
This has been quite the month.  I started writing a long blog to document the entire birth extravaganza but I think Rick did a better job documenting it in our very first family documentary (I am sure we will have more to come).  To see the baby documentary head over to rickloveschristine(+1). It was a long a rather stressful few weeks at the end of my pregnancy.  I think we are all happy and fairly relieved that phase is done and that we finally get to hang out and get to know Ariy.

Mother's Day
I am very grateful to have been able to celebrate Mother's day so soon after becoming one.  I was invited to sit on a panel at church in which I was playing the role as "newest mom."  I have to say I was a bit overwhelmed.  Although I was happy to celebrate and try and communicate that I have enjoyed this transition, I also feel as though I am very much in the transition phase.  I think I have much to learn and much more I will grow to love but the past few weeks have brought on all kinds of emotions.  The pendulum has definitely swung the other way in terms of emotions.  It was kind of a joke that when I was pregnant, I lost all sensitivity - very different from the usual me.  Well since baby has come out, I have gained it all back and some.  I cried or weeped most days the first couple weeks after he was born.  There has been various reasons for this.  I have cried because I look at Ariy and can't believe he's mine and how much I love him.  I have cried because I have looked at him and have felt so helpless - so baffled at how unequipped I feel.  I absolutely love being a mom and I am so thankful to celebrate this new adventure.  I think what has come unexpectedly is that fact that not everything falls into place immediately including your emotions.  In one short month I have already felt feelings of fear and confidence, of insecurity and joy, of guilt and excitement, of anger and thankfulness.

Daddys are the best
In this emotion filled month, I have thought a lot about my own Mom.  Thinking about her role as a single parent...I just can't imagine.  Although Rick and I are unsure of what our future will hold, I am so thankful for this unique time that we both get to be home.  We have enjoyed the time together as we have been transitioning to a family of 3.  I love the way we work together and the patience he has with me when I am tired and feeling insecure.  I can't imagine being alone in this situation...I am pretty blessed with an amazing husband who loves me and our little boy so much.

Happy 1 Month Ariy!  
Ariy has been with us for 1 whole month!  I can't believe it.  He has grown a lot already.  We took a really nice long walk around Newberg today.  He is continue to grow more alert every day.  We have had some issues with reflux but we are working it out.  He is a happier more content baby every day.  He also finished out the month by rolling over twice.  I think the only reason was because he tenses so much when he is on his belly.  He also is extremely close to smiling (Rick already thinks he smiles at him).

Happy 1 month!

We love our Ariy!