Hibernation

Over the weekend, I realized just how much Brennan "hibernates" when he is overstimulated. We traveled to Toledo for a baby shower for a good friend, Sara. He slept through the entire shower, with the exception of about 5 minutes! I attempted to feed him a few times, but he wasn't very interested, which is very out of character for Brennan! Following the shower, we went to dinner with our good friends, Jenn and Susan. Again, he slept through nearly all of dinner, but was wide awake and content during a diaper change in the quiet restroom. Once we were home, Brennan was wide awake...and starving. Lesson learned: Give the little guy some quiet time when out and about, including more privacy to eat!

Sweet Smiles!

Recently, Brennan has been smiling *real* smiles! They are so sweet and instantly melt your heart! Luckily, I was able to capture a few of them with the camera!

Crib Sleeper

Beginning this past weekend, Brennan has been sleeping overnight in the nursery in his crib. He is doing much better than we originally anticipated! He slept for almost five hours straight during his first night! Since then, he typically sleeps in 3-4 hours stretches and will go back to sleep easily after a diaper change and feeding. He continues to use the contour pad and now sleeps on top of a folded blanket under his bottom half to prevent him from wiggling down and becoming frustrated.

Despite having crib success overnight, he's not a fan of napping in his room during the day. He'll sleep for short periods of time and has difficulty putting himself back to sleep. He'd much rather nap in someone's arms or in one of his vibrating chairs. To help him with his jaundice, I've put him near a window/in the sun during his naps and will continue to work on him sleeping consistently in his crib!

One Month Old!

It's hard to believe that Brennan is one month old already! He's learning new things every day! His current favorite activities include listening to songs, looking outside, looking at his surroundings, "talking", and listening to stories. We joke that our wedding photo guest book is "his picture." It hangs above our couch and, when it's in sight, Brennan is enamored with it!

We've had relative success with the Zantac. His symptoms have decreased and he appears to be much more comfortable. We typically have one difficult feeding each day, ranging from minimal fussing to full out screaming. We're assuming it's out of discomfort--during one feeding he was content with his pacifer, but when in the same position and eating, he would scream almost immediately. We're hoping this improves with time. He receives the medicine twice a day and is doing better about keeping it in his stomach. We were warned that it tastes awful, and by the look on his face each time he gets it, we believe it! We'll try to get a picture!

My One Month Birthday!

4 weeks!

Brennan is 4 weeks old today! Time is flying by so quickly! He is such a joy and we feel so blessed to be his parents. He's spending more time awake and very alert..it's fun to watch him observe and learn about his world. He's gaining more and more control of his neck and loves to "talk."

We went to the pediatrician today for his one month appointment. He now weighs 10 lbs, 14.5 oz (75-90th percentile), is 22.75 inches long (90-95th percentile), and his head circumference is 38.5 cm (59-75th percentile). He's growing like a weed!

Luckily, his persistent diaper rash/yeast infection is finally getting better! We're able to make it through diaper changes without him screaming! We got a few more tubes of rx ointment to clear it up, hopefully for good!

Brennan was prescribed Zantac for acid reflux. Recently, he's become very fussy after most feedings, including arching his back, etc. Also, he makes grunts, whimpers, cries and other signs of discomfort after he's laid during following nighttime feedings. Hopefully, the Zantac helps...it's horrible to see and hear him in such pain! The ped was pleased that he's continuing to gain so much weight, despite his discomfort.

The doctor mentioned that Brennan continues to look a little yellow. He sent us to the hospital to check his bilirubin, which can either be direct or indirect. If indirect, he should be fine within a month with continuing to breastfeed. If direct, we would have to do additional tests on his liver. Brennan was certainly not a fan of getting his blood drawn! We got the phone call tonight, his results indicated indirect bilirubin!

Everything else with out little man looks good! We go back to the pediatrician in a month.

Daddy surprised us this afternoon by coming home early from work! Mommy was able to take a much needed nap while Brennan and Daddy spent time together. We've been able to have more time together this evening, too...I love our family time!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Will you be my Valentine?

Date Night

We traveled to Brecksville today to visit with my sister and her family and go out to dinner for Valentine's Day. Adam and I enjoyed dinner at Houlihans, the restaurant we went to nearly 5 years ago to celebrate our engagement. We had a wonderful time! Brennan and his aunt, uncle, and cousins enjoyed their time together. I had a hard time leaving him, since it was our first time apart, but knew I was leaving him in loving care!

To help thank our babysitters and complete our dinner, we brought back Handels ice cream. I've noticed that part of Brennan's face breaks out and he has extra spit up for a few feedings after I eat ice cream. He doesn't seem bothered by milk, cheese, or yogurt. I'm starting to think that his stomach can't handle the sweet treat, so I'm going to stop eating ice cream/milk shakes/etc. for a bit and reintroduce them later. For those that know me, you know this is a huge sacrifice...good thing I love this little guy to pieces!

Although he seems to have difficulty keeping his food down after I have ice cream, Brennan continues to grow like a weed! We weighed him at my sister's house..he's up to 11 lbs! I've brought out some of his 3-6 months clothes and put away several 0-3 month outfits. He fits in most onesies and shirts/pants in 0-3 month size, but can't stretch his long body into all of the sleepers and one piece outfits.

Sweet Dreams

We've started to work on Brennan's sleeping habits. So far, everything is working out pretty well! He continues to sleep in the bassinet in our bedroom overnight. During the past two days, I've been putting him in his room for naps during the day. Yesterday, I moved his bassinet into the nursery, since he is most familiar with sleeping in it, and had music playing. He slept well, although he stirred occasionally. I noticed that he fussed most when there wasn't music playing for short periods of time--and by short periods of time, I mean the quick transitions between songs! He would calm himself down after a few seconds and return to dreamland. He used the sleep contour pad, and like during the night, he wiggles his way down and his head ends up where his ribs should be! Luckily, his head is always forward, so I don't worry too much about him pressing his face against the foam pads. After wiggling, his long body is squished at the bottom of the bassinet, which frustrates him sometimes. Today, he was up most of the morning, and has been sleeping in his crib during a good portion of the afternoon! The music is playing again, and there's less fussing between songs. I'm trying to decide if it's because he likes it, or because he's so tuckered out from being up so long this morning. He's also wiggling less, despite the extra room! It was so cute, I decided to be brave and take pictures! He slept through the flash! Next steps are to tackle sleeping in the pack n' play, sleeping in the crib, etc. without constant music, and sleeping in the nursery overnight.

We're also working on giving him a bedtime. We put him in the bassinet between 9:00-9:30pm and hope to move it earlier. This means more overnight feedings, but it will help him get used to a bedtime. We don't have a bedtime routine set yet, besides putting him down after he falls asleep in our arms.

Brennan has relatively predictable awake times throughout the day. His morning awake time has started to last longer and longer. He also wakes up when he hears Daddy's voice when he comes home from work. His evening awake time varies, usually depending on how often he wants to eat.

Our sleeping angel

Cute as a Button

Last night, Brennan lost his umbilical cord and is now proudly sporting a brand new belly button! Despite telling him for the past few days that "Today might be the day you get a belly button!", I still gasped when I saw the cord in his onesie and not on his belly during one of his overnight feedings!

Visit in Fremont

Brennan and I spent the majority of Friday in Fremont. He's now signed up for insurance and has met several of my co-workers. We were able to stop by most of the buildings I work in, but had to head home before we could get everywhere due to exhaustion and impending snow. Everyone that met Brennan was enamored with him! Many were impressed with his hair and there were frequent "He's perfect!!" remarks. We're hoping to go back occasionally to visit with friends.

Back to the Pediatrician

Brennan, my mom, and I went back to the pediatrician this morning. The poor guy has had a painful yeast infection for the past few days, making diaper changes excruciating. Adam called and talked to one of the peds on Saturday morning, who suggested using Lotramin cream for a few days. After no improvement, I called again today. We were given samples of a prescription cream. I hope it works soon!

While at the pediatrician, he was weighed again. Last Monday, he weighed 8 lbs, 12 oz--one ounce below his birth weight. Today, he weighed in at 9 lbs 10 oz! I think he's growing longer rather than wider...he's not able to stretch his legs in some of his outfits! Could he be a future basketball player?

Sleep and Smiles

We've found the secret to get Brennan to sleep in bed-type furniture! Thanks to the brainstorming and bargain shopping of my mom and one of my sisters, Brennan now sleeps with a sleep contour pad. It's a foam pad that provides a slight incline for his head and support at his ribs/sides. He's slept in his bassinet in our bedroom using the contour pad for the last two nights! At times, he seems initially confused--I think it gives him the sense of being held, but he doesn't have anyone to look at!

Brennan has been "smiling" frequently. While we know they are muscle reflexes rather than social smiles, it's wonderful to see his entire face light up! I'm excited for the day that his smiles are "real!"

Weekend Visitors

Our weekend was full of visitors, anxious to meet Brennan. It was wonderful! Brennan was able to meet more of his grandparents, one of his uncles, and one of his cousins. He enjoyed being snuggled and loved on. Now that everyone has left, the house seems very quiet!