{Parker Weekly} Ten Weeks Old

by | Family Life

Oh my goodness, we have reached double digits! I have such mixed emotions as the weeks fly by: on one hand, it’s so much fun to watch Parker grow and change, but on the other, I know I am going to miss these tiny baby days so much.

During the first few weeks of Parker’s life, he slept on me all the time. He would fall asleep nursing, and then be perfectly content just lying in my arms for hours. After his last early morning feeding, he would usually sleep on my chest for an hour or so, and words cannot describe the sweetness of having my baby boy right up against me like that. Nowadays, he sleeps so well in his swing and rock ‘n play that he doesn’t spend nearly as much time on me — and I miss it!

But the next best thing is when he falls asleep in either the Moby or Ergo carrier. I put him in the Moby today (using the “hug” hold since his loooong legs are no longer comfortable being froggied up inside the wrap) while I did some chores around the house, and he was asleep in no time. After I finished my chores, I just sat on the couch with him up against me in the wrap and enjoyed those precious moments.

Speaking of precious moments, I have been lucky to capture quite a few on camera this week! On the left, Parker is modeling his new outfit from our friends Sally and Enrique, who we saw in Florida last week. Bonus points that it matches his nautical nursery! And on the right, he makes his career aspirations known ;)

The past few days have been pretty chill around here, after our whirlwind vacation. A bit of a routine is emerging, which I’m hoping will continue in the weeks to come. That will really help when it comes time to return to work (in just a little over a week!). During Parker’s morning nap, I’m able to eat breakfast, pump, do some work on the computer, and tidy up the house so that I can fully enjoy his awake time. We fill that up with story time in his new bumbo seat, making music on the kick ‘n play piano, stroller walks, and tummy time (though this is Parker’s least favorite activity).

One last notable happening in week 10: buckets and buckets of drool! This baby is seriously a faucet all of the sudden…might this be an early sign of teething!?

{Parker Weekly} Nine Weeks Old

by | Family Life

Parker is looking less and less like a newborn and more like a little boy every week :( Where did my tiny little baby go? He crossed the 10-pound mark, but it turns out that he is only in the 7th percentile for weight. He’s still measuring super long at 24.5 inches — that’s 84th percentile! — so we are hoping that his weight catches up with his height soon.

This was a BIG week for Parker: he took his first airplane ride to see his great grandma in Naples, Florida. Everyone’s advice was to nurse him at takeoff and landing so that he’d sleep for most of the flight, and that was exactly what happened! He did have some awake moments on the way there, which we captured in photos.

It’s a good thing Parker is such a great traveler, because we do a lot of it. In fact, we are already planning a trip to somewhere warm this winter. Dominican Republic, perhaps? Luckily, Parker also loves the beach and ocean.

But of course, the highlight of the trip (and the reason for going) was Parker meeting his great grandma — my “Grandma Florida”. We brought along the blanket she made for him, which is one of his very favorite things.

We were only in Naples for a few days, but they were action packed. We went out to eat lots, took two day trips to the beach, visited with our friends Sally & Enrique and their little boy, Ricky, and just enjoyed each other’s company. Oh, and Parker is getting the hang of the pacifier as a result of this trip (we figured it would be a good idea to have one along in case he got fussy in the airport/on the plane/in restaurants).

Now that we’re home, my days of maternity leave are dwindling. I return to work two weeks from today, which is a bittersweet feeling. I will miss the lazy days of summer, hanging out with my baby boy!

Parker’s Pad

by | Family Life

Well, we finally got around to finishing the nursery…and it only took two months after the baby was born! Actually, we started working on this room way back in April (here’s a sneak peek I posted) and SLOWLY added furniture and decor as the weeks went on.

Fast forward to 10 pm last night, when Zach and I were arguing over which wall to put the anchor decal on — I won that battle ;) Up went the canvases above the crib, and we called it a night. I posted all the photos on Facebook, which you can see here.

I have to admit that Parker got the best room in the house, and it is the most decorated of any room, too! I’m not known for my interior design skills, but I hope one day to work on those (right after I develop my cooking skills a bit more). I feel like I need to be better at both of those things, now that I’m a mom and therefore, a true grown-up.

{Parker Weekly} Eight Weeks Old

by | Family Life

As you can see, Parker wasn’t thrilled about having his picture taken last week. But we like to keep it real around here; this probably won’t be the first weekly photo featuring tears and a red face from crying!

We kicked off week 8 with a fun day at Henson Robinson Zoo for the World Breastfeeding Week walk. I provided music for the second year in a row, and it was fun to participate with Parker this time around. My mom and Zach also came and we all had a great morning.

Parker continues to love napping in his swing (for hours at a time!) and is sleeping really well at night. He still wakes up to eat anywhere between 1-3 times, but he goes back to sleep easily afterward. He’s usually in a great mood when he first wakes up in the morning — my favorite thing is unswaddling him, because he stretches his arms in the air and makes the cutest face like he’s saying “I’m free!”

I made an awesome discovery this past week: Parker LOVES hanging out in the bathroom with me while I take a shower. I’m pretty sure it’s the sound of the water, since he loves the white noise app so much and they sound very similar. He will sit happily in his rock ‘n play as long as the water is running, but the minute I turn off the shower, he starts fussing. Watching me put of my makeup and do my hair just isn’t quite as captivating ;)

Other 8 week happenings: Parker’s first trip to the grocery store (he slept in the Ergo carrier the entire time), his first public meltdown while shopping at Kohl’s (that was NOT fun), attending another birthday party (our friends Nico and Amanda’s little boy, Luka), and lots and lots of smiles and cooing. He is becoming so much more interactive, and he is so curious about the world around him.

{Parker Weekly} Seven Weeks Old

by | Family Life

I kicked off week 7 of Parker’s life by watching The Happiest Baby on the Block DVD, which had been sitting on our dining room table since he was born. Why I waited so long, I have no idea…I could have saved myself many hours of frustration.

I knew the basic principles outlined in both the DVD and book (which we also have in our possession), but it was what I didn’t already know that saved naptime. Prior to watching the video, we had been repeatedly trying to put Parker in his swing either on the lowest setting or just keeping it still. BIG mistake. I learned that babies like the FASTEST setting best, so armed with that knowledge and the new “white noise” app I downloaded, I tried the swing again. Lo and behold, he loved it. And most importantly, fell asleep almost right away.

No more refusals to nap anywhere but my arms; now he’ll sleep up to 3 hours during the day in his swing. I feel like a new woman now that I have the time and freedom to get things done around the house and on the computer. I also feel a little bit guilty, not holding him as much as I did before, but I know I shouldn’t — he is a much happier baby overall since he sleeps so well in his swing!

Week 7 also marks Parker’s first celebrity moment. I entered his photo in a contest for People Magazine,  and it was one of 15 that was chosen to be featured on their website. Really, though, how could they not have chosen it?

Our baby is famous! Haha. Zach and I are still playing paparazzi with all the photos and videos we take of him. Here’s a video I sent to Zach this week…it’s so fun to see Parker getting interested in his toys and playing more as he gets older.

I can’t believe that Parker will officially be 2 months old in just a few days. I feel so lucky to get to spend every day with him, even when I go back to work next month. Zach and I agree that he is the best thing that ever happened to us!

The First Days

by | Family Life

When I was in the throes of labor, I wasn’t exactly thrilled to see Zach capturing it on camera. But now that it’s all said and done, I have to admit that it’s pretty cool to have Parker’s “birth day” documented from start to finish. Watching this video brings back all the excitement of those first hours and days of his life, and it will be so cool to show it to him one day.