Over the River and Through the Woods

Brennan made his first trip to Grandma and Grandpa Mealy's house in Cincinnati this weekend! He did great in the long car ride--he slept the majority of the drive! He enjoyed spending time with Grandma and Grandpa and was able to meet his Aunt Renata, Uncle Jason, and cousins Tobin, Zac, and Eliana.

2 Month Appointment

Brennan had his two month check up with the pediatrician this afternoon. He continues to grow like a weed! The doctor was pleased with his eating and sleeping habits. He was also impressed with his weight gain. We discussed his occasional slight wheezing, which is caused by his currently pliable larynx and is not a concern. We also discussed his sensitivity to foods I eat, which should improve by 4-6 months.

Current stats:
Weight: 14 lbs 3.5 oz
Height: 24 inches

Brennan also received three immunizations today; Pentacel, Prevnan, and Hep B. The poor little guy's eyes nearly popped out of his head when the nurse gave the first shot! He calmed down quickly after some cuddles with Daddy.

We go back for his next check up in 2 months.

Trial Run

To prepare for my return to work, I took Brennan to the babysitter's house this afternoon for a "trial run." Brennan, of course, did perfectly fine, but I needed some practice with leaving him! I also wanted to take all of his belongings--burp clothes, bibs, extra clothes, diapers, wipes, etc. Overall, I did better than I expected. There were tears, but I could keep composed as long as I stayed busy. First, I walked around the mall and Old Navy. Of course, the mall was full of cute babies, and I found myself in the infant section at Old Navy. Then, I returned home to a too-quiet house to work on laundry and cleaning. Once Adam returned home from work, we immediately went to pick him up. Tracy, the babysitter, said he did wonderfully! Brennan was very talkative and smiley all night. Maybe he was happy to be home with Mommy and Daddy...maybe he was telling us about his afternoon...or perhaps a combination? I'm glad we did the trial run! He did great, I did well, and I realized the importance of staying busy and waterproof mascara.

Brennan has found his fists! Initially, it was coincidence that they made their way into his mouth, but it's becoming more and more intentional. I could even hear him sucking away on them over the monitor this morning!

2 Months Old!

Where, oh where, have the last 2 months gone?! Today is Brennan's 2 month birthday! We watched the clock, waiting for 6:43pm, when sang "Happy Birthday" to our little guy. In return, we received a beautiful smile!

Grandpa Bill, Grandma Joy, and Uncle Matt came to visit today. They were all amazed with how much Brennan has grown and were able to enjoy some of his wonderful smiles. He also shared some of his coos and snuggles. Brennan was a bit sleepy today, since he decided he didn't want to fall asleep until 2 hours past his normal bed time last night. While visiting, Grandpa Bill also helped Adam install a new commode in the master bathroom--thanks, Bill!

Brennan's sleep schedule is becoming more solidified. He's typically awake for 1.5-2 hours at a time during the day. He takes cat naps, lasting about 20-30 minutes. At night, he'll usually sleep for about 6-7 hours, wakes for about an hour to eat, and then sleeps for another 3 hours.

This is the last week of my maternity leave. I'm going to cram in as many snuggles and kisses as I can!

8 weeks!

Today marks Brennan's 8 week birthday! It's amazing how fast time has flown by! Each week, we attempt to "celebrate" his birthday at 6:43pm. Each week, we miss it! Drat.

Brennan continues to be an absolute joy! He's smiling and chatting more and more every day. He enjoys having coo-ing conversations and, at times, will attempt to repeat the coos that we make. He continues to be a big fan of eating and is growing out of many outfits. According to a friend's scale, he's about 14 lbs! We'll have more specific stats after his two month doctor's appointment next week.

You'll notice an abundance of smile pictures in this month's photo album. We're a bit obsessed with his smiles! They are contagious and adorable!

I Love Hugs

Brennan loves Hug(gie)s! After a long and tedious battle with a persistent diaper rash, we finally won! We tried everything, including changing his diapers to Huggies brand. Recently, we decided to use the remaining Pampers diapers, the brand we originally used, before he grew out size ones. Within 24 hours, the rash returned. Looks like we have a Huggies baby!

Yes, I realize this information isn't exactly blog-worthy...but I couldn't resist the photo-op!

Sleep and Smiles

Brennan is typically very happy in the mornings...he's very alert and full of smiles and coos! It's a great way to start the day! He's been doing well with sleeping at night. He gets a bath/shampoo (if it's a bath/hair washing night), nurses, listens to a book or two, and then heads off to dreamland between 7:30 and 8:30pm. He typically wakes up between 1:30 and 2:30am to eat, and is up for the day between 5:30 and 6:30am. His overnight feeding can take up to an hour by the time his diaper is changed and he finishes eating, especially because he periodically starts to nod off. I'm hoping it doesn't always take so long! Luckily, after a few minutes of grunting and other various baby noises in his crib, he goes back to sleep. Naps during the day are still sporadic. I'm hoping to work on improving his sleep schedule during the day soon...although I've read not to try until he's ~3 months old.

Out of curiosity, we swaddled Brennan a few nights ago. We hadn't swaddled him since the night he came home because he didn't seem to care for it too much. He wiggled himself free by his overnight feeding, but was still wrapped up in the morning. It was nearly impossible to change his diaper that morning because he was stretching so much! He also stretched for awhile on his activity mat. It's understandable considering that the blanket is barely long enough for his long body, let alone confining his arms! After two nights of swaddling (and stretching!) and no changes in his sleeping patterns, he's back to sleeping in sleep sacks, which give him plenty of room!

We also stopped using the contour pad and fleece blanket under his legs. They worked great, but we want him to get used to sleeping without them. As a transition, we got creative with what's around and he's now sleeping on a hand-me-down car seat cushion. It essentially provides the same support around his head/shoulders and under his legs, but not as much. He hasn't seemed to notice the difference. We'll use it for a bit and then try it without anything.

With all of his smiles, I've been doing my best to get them captured on camera. You'll notice an abundance of smile pictures in the next photo album! I just can't help myself! Unfortunately, I can't get them all...some things just aren't fun anymore once you have a camera in your face.

Visit in Elyria

Brennan and I traveled to Elyria today to visit Adam at work. Once his surrounding coworkers heard Brennan's newborn noises, we were swarmed with people eager to meet him! Adam, being a proud daddy, gave us the tour of his office and introduced us to all of his coworkers. There were many comments about his hair and how cute he is! I love how much he can brighten peoples' day just by meeting them! After making our rounds, we enjoyed a lunch out...including Brennan who nursed in the backseat of the car in the parking lot before we headed back home.

Hello, Sun!

I had my 6 week follow up appointment with my ob this afternoon. Everything looks good! The doctor was excited to see Brennan, despite him being a bit crabby and tired. He described Brennan as "a good sized cherub."

We finally have nice weather! It's great to see the sun! We've started to get a lot of use out of the stroller and enjoy taking family walks around the neighborhood.

Over the weekend, we traveled to Brecksville for a visit. I was afraid that Brennan might "hibernate" again. Luckily, he was wide awake during a good part of the day and even shared some of his adorable smiles!

Happy Brennan!

I love Brennan's smiles! Earlier this week, he found one of his toys very humorous! I apologize for the blurriness of the pictures...Taking each picture involved me pulling a ring on the end of a toy to make it vibrate (with my teeth!), tickling his face with the toy, tickling his chin, making silly noises, aiming the camera, and taking the picture! I hope to get better quality pictures soon, but I couldn't resist sharing the cuteness!