Kim

4 Months

James is officially 4 months old.  How did that happen?  We had his check-up last week, and he's doing great.  He weighs 17lbs 4 oz and is 25 1/3" long.  He's still a big boy, but he's healthy and well.  Since he was born, he's had really dry skin and that continues, but apparently it is pretty common and is just one of those things you have to work through.  It doesn't seem to bother him though, so that is good.  He had to get his vaccinations again, but he did fine with them.  I remember them making Henry fussy for a few days.  I can tell they make James' legs sore, but other than that, he handles them with no problems (I mean he screams like crazy when he gets them, of course, but I'm talking about after we get home).  I think his added poundage helps :) 

Holding my head up!

He does really well with tummy time, but he isn't rolling quite yet.  I can tell he's starting to think about it more and more though.  He really likes to turn his head to the right, and he'll start to kick his legs, but no actual rolling motion yet.  In time.  The only other issue he's dealing with is his flat head.  This is a lot more common now given that they have to lie on their backs so much.  Henry's head was pretty flat too, but his rounded out eventually.  Our pediatrician recommended that we go ahead and visit the cranial banding place for a consultation with James. His doesn't seem to be getting better.  However, at the consultation they'll do a lot of scans and let us know if they think a cranial band would help.  We'll know more next week after the appointment.  It really isn't a big deal, just one of those things you want to take care of while they are little.  The cranial bands are like little helmets that they wear to help re-shape their head.  Luckily, when they are so small, they really don't notice it.  More on that to come.

Sweet sleeper.
He's doing really well with his sleep.  He's still in the Pack 'n Play by our bed, but he's getting much more consistent in his sleep from 10pm - 5:30am/6am.  I'm hoping to move him to his crib in the next month or so.  We're still swaddling him in the swaddle sleep sack when he sleeps and that makes a big difference.  I really didn't understand the benefits of swaddling until I had a baby who needed it.  Henry was fine without it, but James gets so figidity, that swaddling him is the only thing that really calms him down and allows him to sleep.  Otherwise, he wakes himself up with his arm movement.  Poor little guy.  We can't swaddle him forever, but hopefully he'll get the hang of things are he gets bigger and it won't be a hard transition when we do have to stop (likely when he's rolling). 

He continues to be so much fun and so sweet.  He loves to be given attention and rewards you with the best smiles.  He also has a little giggle that he'll do if you really get him going.  It is the most precious thing ever. 

It is hard to believe he's already four months old, but I can't imagine our family without him!  Henry still does well.  He doesn't pay him a lot of attention, but he does like to know that he's around.  Whenever we're talking about our family, Henry is sure to include "Baby James," so I know that he gets it.  I think once James is able to actually interact with Henry things will really change, but for now, Henry's content to know that he's around and then go about his business.  Henry keeps us busy and entertained, I know we're in for a lifetime of fun and surprises with these two boys. 

Big brother in daddy's tie.
Kim

(Un)Luck of the Irish

I am so ready for summer!  Let me say that again, I am so ready for summer! Sickness struck our house again this past week. Poor Henry spent most of the week running a really high fever.  The doctor couldn't pinpoint exactly what was wrong, but put him on a broad spectrum antibiotic and finally, Tuesday night, the fever broke and he started to feel better.  I took him to school for half the day on Thursday and he returned for the full day on Friday.  He's still tired and has a runny nose, but thankfully he is on the mend.  So far James hasn't caught it, so here's hoping it stays that way!  I am tired of germs and cold and rain.  It is time for sunshine and fresh air and summer!

In other news, check out these cuties.  I actually bought holiday outfits for them for St. Patrick's Day...and of course Henry was sick, and we didn't leave the house all day.  Oh well, they were still cute.

 
 
 
Otherwise, James and Henry continue to grow and keep us very busy.  They are so much fun and so much work, all at the same time.  I think that probably is the case for parenthood in general.  James is growing like crazy.  He has his 4 month check-up next week.  He loves to "talk" and is doing great at school. His preschool teacher says that he is "so different from Henry."  I am not entirely sure what that means...haha.  My impression is that he is an all or nothing baby....meaning he is really calm and happy most of the time.  He's content to just lay there and smile at you and talk to you...as long as he can see you.  However, when he gets mad, he gets MAD.  It takes a lot for him to get upset (baths and putting on lotion seem to be the biggest triggers), but when he does get upset he goes all out.  Red face, loud screams and all.  He doesn't cry for long, but he can break your heart while he's doing it.  I don't remember Henry doing that.  He was more even keel.  I assume this is what his teacher is talking about, but who knows.  It will be interesting to see if that is his personality for his whole life. 
 
We've made some progress in sleeping again too.  He's made it until 5:45am - 6am the past few days.  Here's hoping it sticks this time.
 
Henry's currently in love with the moon.  He loves to look for it every time we're outside (even during the day.)  One of his favorite songs to sing is about the moon and one of his favorite books is Happy Birthday, Moon. He continues to crack us up with everything that he says.  "Oh boy, oh boy!" is one of his favorite phrases.  I don't know where he picked it up, but it is so cute when he says it.  He also LOVES playing outside.  Mostly he just likes to run around and pick up sticks and rocks.  There's a park nearby that has a nice toddler-size playground that he enjoys as well.  We're looking forward to the summer and lots of time outside.  I am hoping he'll really like the pool this summer too.  You never know.  He's still very opinionated.  One day he loves something, the next day he doesn't want anything to do with it.  Luckily, he loves it again just as quickly as he hated it, so I've learned to just keep trying. 
 
Two fun boys...two very busy boys...two tired, but happy parents.  :)
Kim

The BUG

So as a welcome back to work present, the terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad stomach bug decided to invade our family.  Henry had gotten sick on Sunday, but we thought he had just eaten something that didn't agree with him.  He perked back up and seemed ok enough to go to school on Monday.  Monday night, James started with it. All of a sudden, he couldn't keep his bottles down.  He'd eat an ounce and then immediately throw it all back up.  It was very different from his usually spit up.   I began to get worried when he wasn't eating, but wasn't acting hungry either.  James really, really likes to eat....maybe even more than Henry did.  When it had been almost 12 hours and he hadn't had a wet diaper, I really began to get worried.  I know how to keep a toddler hydrated...I can tell what he is drinking/eating, etc, but since James only gets formula, I didn't have any idea what else (if anything) I could give him to help him stay hydrated.  Needless to say, we took a trip to the doctor on Tuesday morning.  Turns out, you can give an infant clear Pedialyte.  The pediatrician recommended that I try to give him an ounce every 20-30 minutes and work up from there.  James drank only Pedialyte that whole day.  And we stayed home from work/preschool Tuesday.  Thankfully, it seemed to  be a 24-hour thing, and Henry was happy to go back to preschool on Wednesday.  James probably could have gone, but I wanted him with me another day, so he hung out in my office all morning.  He was awesome.  He slept and played and really didn't cause any trouble.  I went thinking that I'd just stay as long as he was doing ok, and we ended up making it the whole day. 
I actually have this same picture of Henry hanging out under my desk...only I think Henry was a little older.  Sweet baby. 

Just when I thought we were getting well, Matt woke up with it.  He had it the worst of anyone and spent the rest of the week home from work.  It was awful.  I bleached everything I could in the house, trying to get rid of the germs.  Somehow I managed to avoid it, thankfully.  I don't know that we could've survived it both Matt and I had it.  Obviously, we would have, but it would not have been fun. 

I am just glad that everyone is ok now and it is behind us.  I think James is making up for all his missed meals because this week he has been demanding to eat every three hours. Being sick also messed up the little bit of progress we were making at night.  He's back to waking up at 4am to eat and then he's ready to eat again by 7am.  I am trying to push him to wait a little longer, but like I said, this week, he has been desperate to eat.  According to the pediatrician's visit, he weighs 15lbs now! 

Here's hoping everyone will stay well from here on out.  I am so ready for spring and fresh air!
Kim

Whew

Whew.  Ok, I think that more-or-less brings us to the present day.  Today is actually my first day back to work from maternity leave.  It was definitely much easier to go back this time.  I know James' teachers (same ones Henry had), I know he will be ok, and I am used to bringing someone to preschool with me every day.  It is still bittersweet, but my set up is so awesome that I know I can't complain.  I have only peeked in on James twice and he was happy both times.  He is such an easy going guy, that I know he'll be fine.  His teachers are great too and will give him lots of love.  Henry did fine too.  I've been bringing him to preschool this whole time, so honestly, I doubt he realizes anything is any different today.

It feels like I never left work.  Mostly, just jumping right back in the swing of things...it is a busy time because Lent starts this week which means there are a ton of events and activities coming up at the church, but I am glad for that.  Being busy is always better than not.  Plus, it makes the time go much faster.  My biggest worry about being back at work is wondering when I will have time to actually accomplish errands, like grocery shopping.  With just Henry, I could run somewhere when we left the church each day if I had to.  That is practically impossible with two.  While on maternity leave, I could just go in the morning.  Now, I have to be really intentional about doing things on the weekend...or I have to wait until Matt gets home at night.  It'll all work out, just have to get in the new routine.

I tried to take a picture of James on his first day of school.  He's totally bundled up in one.  The other is a bit awkward...

Sweet boy - first day of school!

A little awkward, but still so cute.  

And me and Henry, just for fun.
I promise to do better and try and update this blog regularly now.  I do love having a record of things to look back on.  I like to think of it as a "baby book" for the boys and a nice diary of our family and what we've been up to lately.  It is so easy to forget all of these precious moments!
Kim

Old Man Winter

This will probably be my last "catch-up" blog. I think.

Old man winter has been particularly harsh this year.  We had two big snow/ice storms within two weeks of each other.  That is practically unheard of here in Fayetteville.  I can't remember the last time I saw so much snow.  School was closed for a whole week for each storm.  It was pretty ridiculous.  This was Henry (and James') first big snow.  It snowed just a little bit last year, but that didn't really count.  Henry could actually get out and play in it this time.  He was very weary of it the first time, but by the second storm he had the hang of things and was asking to go outside.  He loved being pulled around in the sled by Matt and eating icicles.  He didn't mind getting all bundled up to go outside each time and luckily I went to Target the morning before the first storm and bought him some snow boots on clearance.  We definitely got our money's worth from those! 

James mostly hung out inside.  I did take him out once.  He was hilarious all bundled up in this little suit that barely fit him.  Have I mentioned he's pretty big?  He is already wearing 6-month sized clothes and was two pounds heavier than Henry was at his 2-month check-up.  
This pretty much sums up how Henry initially felt about the first snow.  Poor little guy!

Family portrait on the deck.  (James was asleep inside.)

Icicles!

Going for a ride in the sled with Dad!

Can you spot James?

Much, much happier now!

We did start to go a little stir-crazy inside!

Munchkin man all bundled up.  He is about to bust out of that suit, but he is such a good sport!


 
Kim

A Mickey Mouse Birthday Party - Henry is 2!

Don't worry that in all of these updates on James, I've forgotten about Henry.  He is as hilarious and great as always.  In fact he has taken becoming a big brother in stride.  The first couple of weeks were a little rough at preschool, but he got it figured out and now he does really well.  He's totally two and has plenty of two-year-old moments, but all-in-all, he is great with James.  He doesn't pay him a lot of attention, but if he's not around, he'll ask where he is and he is very protective of "his baby" if anyone (jokingly) says they are going to take him away.  (It is funny also to note that when we brought Henry to the hospital room for the first time to meet James, after looking at him for a few minutes and being really confused as to why mommy was in a bed, Henry said, "Take him away."  Needless to say, we all laughed at that!) 

We had a great time celebrating Henry's second birthday.  We went with the Mickey Mouse theme this year.  Henry is still in love with Mickey.  We usually watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on Disney Jr. at least once a day and he knows all the characters and loves talking about them.  We had a big crowd of family and friends to celebrate and Henry had a blast.  He did well when we sang Happy Birthday and he ate all of the icing off of his cupcake.  He definitely understands birthdays now and loved eating cupcakes and opening presents.  There were no tears and we'll count it as a great success!

 Here are just a few pictures from his day.








Kim

Henry at 2

My last phone update for now.  Here are my thoughts on Henry at 2 years old.  He is just so much fun and so hilarious these days.  He truly is a treasure.

 At two years.... You love to sing. You remember the words to songs easily and will sing the whole song through. A lot of times you wake up and start singing in your crib until I come get you. Also, you learn songs without me realizing it....all of a sudden you'll start singing a song we've been listening to on the radio. We have to really pay attention to what we're listening to! Some of your favorites are Jingle bells, ABCs, Zacheeus, Bears are Sleeping (preschool song) and many, many more. You know a bunch of nursery rhymes and love to recite them as well. Honestly, your memory is so good that it scares us sometimes. Another example of your memory... Today you brought home a bunch of Valentines from your friends at school. We went through the bag and as you took each one out I told you who they were from. Over two hours later, after your nap, you came back downstairs and proceeded to pick up each one and tell me who it was from! I had only told you once and yet, you remembered!

You are still an excellent eater and really love salads now.... Lettuce, cheese, cucumbers and tomatoes are your favorites. You eat cherry tomatoes like they are grapes! You also love chicken, pizza and hotdogs and you drink a ton of milk every day.

You are extremely active and do not stop until nap time/bed time. You still take your afternoon nap most days and you'll usually sleep for 2-3 hrs.

You love curious George, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, and Little Einsteins. You also love to play with cars and trains and you love to carry things around in one of my pots from the kitchen or in a plastic cup.

You crack us up all the time with the things you say and while you are certainly a two-year-old and have your moments, as long as you're not tired or hungry, you are generally a really fun little guy who just wants to play and be social. I'd say you are an extrovert, like your mom and dad, and you love seeing your friends at school each day. We love you and all the joy and delight you bring to our lives!

You are so talkative. One of my favorite things you say is that you confuse "astronaut" with "restaurant." So on the way to eat you say, as you're looking out the window at the sky, "do you see restaurant, mommy?"  When you mean "astronaut."  When we get to the restaurant, you say, "We're at the astronaut, mommy?" I love it. Also, whenever you see someone, for example at a restaurant, you say, "you see little boy, momma?" "You see him?" Sometimes it is awkward,bc the person can totally hear you....the person who is a completely grown man. I try to reply with "I know, buddy. He's trying to eat his dinner too...just like us." But sometimes I can't help but laugh.

Oh, and you got put in time out at preschool the other day because instead of  singing the blessing,  "God our Father" you insisted on singing"Jingle Bells."

 At your checkup you weighed 28lbs and were 36.25" long. You are still our tall and skinny little guy.

 There is so much more I could say.  I wish I could remember all of the fun and hilarious things you say and do on a day-to-day basis, but I can't.   

Just know that we love you so much.
Happy Birthday, Henry!

Kim

Short and Sweet - 9 week update

Almost done with the phone updates:

At 9 weeks... Have I mentioned that you like to make sure we're still around and haven't forgotten about you? You are the little brother/2nd child, but you make sure we don't forget about you;) you have a precious little bird call that you do to make sure we pay attention to you!

and you still hate your bath. You scream the entire time.

At your two month check up (you are actually 9.5 weeks), you weighed 14 lbs, 8 oz and were 24.25" long. You are in the 90% for both! Big boy!!
 

A busy night in the Richardson household.
Kim

Merry Christmas

Having a one-month old at Christmas was much better than having a new born...which was my original fear since I was due December 17.  We had a great, low-key Christmas.  James' cousin, Madeline, was born on December 17, so it was fun to have both babes together.  It will be especially sweet watching them grow up together since they are just 3 weeks apart. 
 

Our Christmas Card 2013

A family photo


My first Christmas

With Caroline and Baby Madeline

With your other cousins, Maddie and Audrey

Family fun in the tree.
Kim
Another phone update:

Almost 8 weeks and you are still as sweet as ever, but you are having a few tummy troubles. It is not consistent, but about an hour after you eat you sometimes get gas pains. Your little feet start kicking and you tense up. You have the saddest little cry when the pains hit. You usually work through it after a bit, but that's definitely the time when you cry the most. We've switched your formula and that seems to be helping.

Actually, did I mention that you hate baths? That is the time you cry the most.  You scream your head off.  It is so sad.

Otherwise, you are still not sleeping through the night.... You generally eat around 3:30am and again around 6:30am. You do sleep in between feedings, but I will be glad when you drop that 3:30 feeding! You are like clockwork though. It is pretty amazing. We love you so much!
Kim

One month of James

Another catch-up note from my phone...

At your one month check- up (you were actually just over 5 weeks): weight-11lbs, 7oz (78th percentile)! Length -21 3/4" (although I don't think they got a great measurement- you are squirmy!) 53%tile.

Overall, you have been a great babe.  You are very chill and we joke that sometimes you cry just to remind us you are here. Clearly, you like to eat You're taking 4 ounces of formula every 2.5-3 hrs, even through the night. We've stretched to 3.5 hrs between nighttime feedings a few time, but mostly you are like clockwork. You'll be sound asleep and then right at 3 hrs, I 'll start to hear you squirming and moving around.

As I mentioned, you don't cry a lot. Mostly you squeak and grunt. You also have this little bird call that you do when you want our attention. It is precious.  For the first month of your life you were very content sleeping nestled in the boppy pillow and you spent a lot of time there... I think this helped your big brother with the transition because you were around, but didn't demand a whole lot of attention. He has done pretty well with you . You've only taken a train to your head once. He loves you...he's just (almost) 2.

You're not sleeping through the night yet (so hungry!), but you do rest between feedings and you 're starting to sleep pretty well between them. I slept downstairs with you the first few weeks, but you were so calm (and not a fan of the swing like your brother was), that I soon moved to the guest bed. You slept beside me in the boppy. Now you're in the pack n play by our bed. It works out great. We have certainly been tired this time around, but it is nothing compared to the delirium I felt with Henry. I think going straight to bottle - feeding has made a big difference in that.

We love you so much and it feels like you've always been a part of our family. Thank you for being so easy going and happy. Now we're just waiting for that first smile. They say it could be any day now:)

Kim

A Birth Story: More fast and more furious than the first

So I literally started typing this note in my phone as I was sitting in the hospital bed on November 27, 2013, being induced.  Again, this is definitely not going to be my best writing, but at least it is here.  I love looking back at Henry's and want to remember James' as well. 

Noticed some leakage after my 37 week drs appt on 11/26/2013. Wasn't sure if it was my water breaking or not. No other signs of labor. Decided Wednesday morning to call the drs office just to be safe since it was a 4 day weekend (Thanksgiving). Took Henry to Barbara's (she was already planning to keep him) and headed to work. Got a few things done before the dr called and said to come in and get checked. It wasn't immediately clear to him that my water had broken, but after several tests/checks and an ultrasound he said it was definitely leaking....probably a small tear. Sent me straight to the hospital for induction. Told me not even to go home. Luckily, I had packed my suitcase yesterday when I was suspicious that something might be happening. I also managed to do two loads of laundry and vacuum the whole house. I called Matt, told him what was going on, met up with him to pass off the car seat, and then headed to the hospital. (Side note...that isn't entirely true.  I also made a pit-stop at Walgreens.  In my hormonal, pregnant, oh-my-gosh-we're-having-a-baby-today state, I thought it was important to make sure I had some makeup for the hospital.  That was the one thing I hadn't packed in advance and I knew Matt wouldn't think about it, so I went to Walgreens and bought some Covergirl powder, blush and mascara.  I felt like I was back in middle school.  I have no idea why that felt like such a priority at the time, but it totally was!)   It was so weird driving myself here and walking in. I was not having any labor pains, so it was like I was just another person. Only I wasn't. I had to wait to check in, and again, I was glad I wasn't in active labor. It was almost surreal...and just so weird to be doing it alone and so calmly. They got me checked in and back to a room. Matt showed up soon after, and now they've started pictocin.  I am starting to feel the contractions. They are uncomfortable, but bearable. It's 2:18pm. We'll see how it goes.

Well, It went....fast. They kicked the pictocin up every 15 min and soon I was feeling the contractions. The dr requested that I be at least 3 cm before I get the epidural. When they finally checked me, I was at 4, so they called him in. It took a while (so it seemed) for him to get there, but it was around 3 pm when he came in. I was definitely hurting. They kicked Matt out, did the epidural, but before it even had time to fully kick in the dr came in and I was at 8 cm. Matt heard them calling for a prep team in my room before he even made it back from the waiting room!

I could definitely still feel things, although they were dulled. That scared me, but what can you do? The doctor told me to push and 2 contractions and 5-6 pushes later he was here! It was right at 4pm! Pretty crazy. I was in a daze, it happened so fast. But he was good - tangled up in the cord, but fine. And the cord had a weird cyst/false knot in it, but it had no bearing on James. He came out and started crying and all was well. It was so so fast. Dr. Jones delivered him. My right leg never even got numb from the epidural and I only pushed for maybe 5 minutes. So different from Henry-and I thought he was fast!

He's here and he's perfect. He's done awesome so far-barely even crying. He eats and sleeps. He's almost 24 hrs old now and I'm still not sure I've really seen both his eyes open at the same time. He looks a lot like Henry did as a newborn except he has a head full of dark brown hair. He has so much hair he even has sideburns!:) he sleeps just like Henry did with one hand by his face and the other crossed over his chest. We are still a little shocked that he's here, but in love and very thankful for our day-before-thanksgiving baby.


Thankful for this little blessing, James Matthew Richardson, born Wednesday, November 27 at 4pm; 7lbs, 5oz!

Kim

Well Dang

Well dang...here we are in March 2014.  Sorry for the 3-month hiatus.  It was for good reason though...Baby James joined us on November 27, 2013, the day before Thanksgiving!  I've been writing a lot of notes on my phone over the last 3 months...sort of like I did when Henry was born.  I think in the interest of time and truth, I am just going to post those as they are.  Beware that they probably aren't entirely coherent and there will be little-to-no editing, but I'd rather have my thoughts here in some form rather than none.  So stay tuned.  I'll also try and get back to updating this blog more regularly.  Turns out, things are busy with two babes!  For now, I'll leave you with a little welcome back photo collage...
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