Baby's First Christmas

I realize I have quite a bit of updating to do, especially since our little man is already 5 weeks old! Can you believe it?? First things first, an update on his growth. We went in for his one month check-up and all of that eating has certainly done it's job. Isaiah weighed in at 9 lbs 4 oz and 21.5 inches long! Our pediatrician was pleasantly surprised- she couldn't believe he gained almost 2 pounds in 2 weeks! I decided that I wanted to try to take a picture of him each month in the same pose so we can compare how he changes from month to month. Here is the first entry.
I know I'm biased, but he's so stinkin cute!!!

We're still struggling a bit with sleeping at night. Some nights are really great, and others... well not so much! I think part of the problem is that Isaiah is now eating around 4 ounces and at night, he falls asleep before he can get enough. So, he wakes up about 5 minutes after I put him down because he's still hungry! I'm sure it will eventually even out, but until then, I'm so thankful that I have a husband that allows me to sleep in on the weekends.

With it being Christmas season and all, Isaiah got introduced to shopping at the mall a little earlier that I would have liked, but I didn't really have a choice- we had to get Daddy's present. Luckily, we were able to get in and out in a few hours. Isaiah was not happy being in his stroller, so I became one of those moms who was carrying her baby in one arm and pushing the stroller and all of the bags with the other arm. I know 10 pounds isn't that heavy, but carrying him in one arm for 2 hours proved to be a little difficult.

We were invited to a Christmas party, and decided to make the trek out in the cold to show off our little bundle. It was a lot of fun, we ate a bunch of food and Isaiah ate a bunch of milk! Here is a pic from that party. Isaiah was enjoying staring at himself in the mirror. That is, until he realized that daddy was taking a picture.

Last but not least, we enjoyed our first Christmas together. We had originally planned to go to my grandma's but the weather was not cooperating and we didn't want to take him out unnecessarily. So, my mom came down and we had a quiet day at home. We had a fabulous breakfast of biscuits and sausage gravy prepared by nana, followed by a morning full of nursing, and diaper changes. Then, we decided it was time to open gifts. By this time, Isaiah was sleeping again, and started getting a little fussy when it was time to open his presents. Here are just a few pics from the day.
Cuddling with Nana

My favorite place to nap!

Daddy opening a gift from me.

Opening a gift from Nana.

Trying on my new hat- starting to get a little angry!

I'm over this already!

Some of the clothes I received- I got some great stuff from my Aunt and Uncle but don't have the pics loaded yet!

I'm the best present of all!

Hanging with Mommy and Daddy by our Christmas tree. I LOVE looking at the pretty lights!

Bouncing, Birthday and New Shoes!

We've finished another week and I'm trying really hard to keep up with posting pics. This little guy has changed so much so quickly and I want everyone to be able to watch him grow. Not much has changed as far as our routine goes, I just got used to being home alone with Isaiah. I have to admit, as boring as it may be some times, I wouldn't change it for the world- I would give anything to be able to stay home with him forever! Isaiah's appetite continues to get stronger, but he has recently started spitting up quite a bit. It's not everytime he eats, but it happens everyday. This gets to be really frustrating because after nursing for an hour, he spits up and then is hungry again! This week, I learned that the bouncer and the swing are priceless. Not only does Isaiah really enjoy them, putting him in them lets me get the laundry done, take a shower, and go to the restroom. I didn't really think about how having him would affect my ability to go to the restroom when I wanted to! Here is a video of Isaiah enjoying his bouncer. He won't stay in it for more that about 15 minutes- I think he gets frustrated because he can't grab the toys.


Since I didn't know for sure when Isaiah was going to make his appearance in this world, I had to postpone some plans. Jeremy's birthday was December 2nd and I didn't know for sure whether I would be up for anything by that time. So... I planned a surprise for him for December 13th. It wasn't anything big, just dinner with some friends, but it sure was nice to get out. It was our first experience eating out with Isaiah, and I'm happy to say that he was wonderful. He slept through most of the dinner, and awoke to eat only after we were all finished with our meals. I know it won't be that easy for long, so we wanted to take advantage. We thought we would take the opportunity to get a family photo.
Just in case you couldn't see them in that photo, here is another one, to show off Isaiah's super cool shoes that he got from his Aunt Stephanie and Uncle Heath.

Today, Isaiah enjoyed watching the Colts game with daddy. We decided that they needed some luck and let Isaiah wear one of his Colts onsies even though it's a little big. The game is currently underway and even though we are winning, it's not looking pretty!


One last thing to tell you about... Isaiah slept in his big boy bed this weekend. It went really well- he slept for about 3- 3 1/2 hours at a time! I think it's gonna take longer for Daddy and I to adjust to him not being in our room than it will for Isaiah.

Here are a few more pics from this week!
Isaiah was really hungry...unfortunately Daddy's face doesn't have a nipple on it!

Are you lookin at me?

Even when I'm sleeping I can wave at my peeps!

He's an eating machine!

It's been a bit since I've been able to post so once again, there is quite a bit to catch up on. Since Jeremy and I knew we were going to have so much help here the first week, we decided that it would be best if he waited to take his week off until Isaiah's second week of life. It was actually really great timing because of the Thanksgiving holiday. Jeremy was off of work starting last Wednesday evening and just had to go back this morning. Isaiah and I have really enjoyed having daddy home this week. We've been working on trying to get into a routine, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't! The majority of our day is spent feeding. Isaiah typically starts his day around 6:30am and feeds for about 2 1/2 hours. He does cat nap during the feeding, but for the most part, he's at it the entire time. After he eats, he sleeps for another 2 hours. This routine continues all day long, with diaper changes in between, although the feedings don't always last quite as long. I was getting a little worried that my body wasn't producing enough breastmilk to keep Isaiah happy, but my fears were put to bed when we went to the pediatrician. When we saw Dr. McManus on the 24th he was down to 6 lbs 4 oz. She assured us that it was normal and said she would not be concerned as long as he gained his weight back by the time he was 2 weeks old. So... we went for his 2 week check up on Thursday and much to my surprise, Isaiah now weighs 7 lbs 9 oz! He's definately getting enough to eat! He also added some length and is now 20 1/4 inches long. Our little guy is starting to get quite the personality. He's typically pretty calm, but if he get's hungry or cold he get's ANGRY and it happens quickly. The last couple of nights, we've started to have 2-3 hour periods where Isaiah is just fussy. I feel bad for him, it seems like nothing can console him. I guess this is the time when he will have colic, so we're hoping it passes quickly! Anyway, we're thrilled to have our baby boy home with us, and to be functioning as a family. I still look at him in disbelief and get a little emotional. He's absolutely amazing, and gorgeous and I sometimes can't believe he's ours. Sorry, I realize I've been rambling a bit. Here are a few photos and a video of Isaiah getting his first bath in his new tub.
Hanging out with daddy!
Lounging in my boppy.
Taking a nap, showing off my squishy face.
I'm not exactly sure how to get the vidoe to pop up on here. Help me out if you can! For now click here: Bath Time! You'll want to adjust your volume- he's a little unhappy that he's so cold! Isaiah is pretty light skinned so we found it funny that he gets so dark when he's mad!

Isaiah's First Week

Well this week has certainly been a whirlwind! I still have a hard time believing that we are parents to such an amazing baby boy! First of all, I wanted to follow up to Jeremy's lst post. It was an incredibly hard labor and unfortunately my hope for a medication free birth was dashed. The reason why I bring this up again... to thank my husband publicly. He was such an amazing support person! Jeremy did everything he could to keep me comfortable and when I couldn't go on anymore, he held me tight, allowed me to cry, and let me know that it was okay. He would not let me be disappointed in myself-he was wonderful!

We had a lot of visitors this week, including my sister and brother-in-law who stayed for the entire week. I don't know how we would have gotten anything done without them here. We certainly wouldn't have eaten as well! Jeremy and I are so grateful to them and hope that they make it back home again soon! Isaiah got to spend some quality time with his Nana Miller, Grandma Christian, lots of cousins, aunts and uncles, and even got to meet his new friend Liam! Here are some pics from the week:



Isaiah's 1st close-up




















Another pic without all the goop in my eyes



















Daddy and Isaiah for the 1st time




















Mommy and Isaiah






















1st family picture


















Isaiah and Nana Miller




















Visiting with Grandma Christian




















Aunt Steph, Uncle Heath and Isaiah


















Meeting Liam





















1st Thanksgiving






















I'm so handsome!




















Chilling in my swing





















Right after my first sponge bath at home-I got all wrapped up and the peed all over mommy.



















Belly cast that Uncle Heath painted for Isaiah's room





















Cross stitch hanging that Aunt Stephie made for Isaiah.

























One last belly pic-taken on delivery day at 39 weeks! I really miss that belly!!!

IT'S A BOY!!!!

Hello everyone,

Isaiah Bradley Christian was born on November 20, 2008 at 9:05 p.m. When he was born he weighed in at 7 lbs., and 19 1/2 inches long.

The day didn't go exactly as planned, but the results were still the same. As most of you know our birth plan was to have the baby naturally. Everything stated at good, as good as you can be at 6 in the morning. Dr. Moon had decided to induce Cheryl because her blood pressure was a little too high. They induce pregnancy by using a drug called Pitocin. The drawback with pitocin is that, it can be very rough on the mom, because the labor pains get more intense more quickly. The first few hours were fine, and then they broke Cheryl's water. Suddenly the pains went from being one every five or so minutes, to being one right after another and more intense. Cheryl braved thru 12 hours of labor without an epidural. Unfortunately, after all that time she was only 3 cm dilated. So we decided that Cheryl needed an epidural. After the epidural was administered her pain got better, and she was actually able to take a nap for about a hour and a half. So to our surprise, the doctor announced, that only a couple of hours after the epidural, that she was 10 cm dilated. Long story short, after another hour and a half of pushing, we had our little baby boy. I was in shock for the next few hours with a big goofy smile on my face.

Let me just say that I am a very lucky man to be married to such a strong, passionate, and loving woman. I am so proud of all the hard work that Cheryl did, not only giving birth to our child, but of all the hard work throughout the pregnancy. She's a natural and is going to be a great mother.