Thursday, March 28, 2013

1 Month Old

It is March 28th so that means Corben is 1 Month old today - although I'm struggling a little bit with the fact that if he had been born on March 1st he would be 4 days away from being 1 month old.  Of course, I've been obsessing over this weirdness for a few days and I still haven't figured it out - but it doesn't change the fact that he is 1 month old - or does it?

Anyway, I'm just going to go with it.  1 month.  Corben at 1 month is a little bigger and a little less jaundice.  He is filling out his newborn clothes but not moving up to 3 months yet.  He enjoys car rides as long as the car is moving - which is tough at stop lights.  He is eating every 3 hours.  He will go a little longer at night but not the full night yet.  He sleeps better on his belly than his back - Connor did too.  I only let him sleep on his belly during the day when I'm not totally exhausted and can watch him, but he can hold his head up and usually has it to one side anyway.

Today we ventured out with the help of Aunt Cathy to see the Easter Bunny.  I probably would have skipped this but she really enjoys going and she did get the kids really cute Easter shirts - so she came over and we all headed to the mall.  Luckily no one was in line.

Connor smiling to get the photo over with and onto the promised lollipop and cookie. Corben sleeping and closing his eyes tightly to avoid seeing anything that would disturb his rest. Cora frantic that her brothers are sitting with a creepy rabbit and not sure which way to the exit is fastest. There were other shots that captured Cora's face better but I figured that this one I could at least crop her out and have a cute boys photo too. 2 for the price of 1 - Yes, I had to pay money for this photo. a few candids after the big bunny
I actually counted 37 photos of Connor and Cora in the same spot at the mall trying to get a good photo of both - together. Working for no money.

Saturday, March 23, 2013

3 weeks and Counting

Corben is now 3 weeks old and he weighed in at 8 lbs 12 ounces (50%) yesterday at his appointment. 3 weeks isn't a regularly scheduled appointment. At his 2 week appointment, Corben was 7 lbs 15 ounces (50%) and 20.5 inches (50%). He had another test for jaundice and his level creeped up a little to 14 so we had to go back to the doctor this week to make sure he was back on the downward trend. At 3 weeks his level is 12 - so better. We had a bi-furcated test run to see if it was direct or indirect jaundice. No results yet. Anyway, other than being a little tan, Corben is doing well. He eats about every 3 hours (except he can go close to 5 at night) and he sleeps a lot. Sometimes in his bed (longest stretch there is 2 hours) sometimes in the bouncy or swing (he seems to like both of those for limited periods - no more than 30 minutes each). He takes a paci better than Connor or Cora. He hated his first real bath after the cord fell off. The next bath was preceded by screaming but once the water came he was liking it. Not loving it - but liking it. Cora hated her first several baths and now we can't say the word bath out loud or she will start stripping off her clothes and running to the bathtub. Seriously. Corben is a pretty good car traveller (my standard of pretty good is that he doesn't scream the entire time!). He loves his big brother and sister. He lets them hold him despite the fact that Cora is only 19 months old and frequently thinks that he is a pretend baby she can pick up and throw around. I try to get photos of all 3 kids so I can prove that they didn't always look alike. Corben has blonde eyebrows and I'm sure it is just a matter of time before he is blonde like his siblings. My mom seems to think Corben will have brown eyes and dark hair though. In any event, my attempts at a cute 3 kid photo haven't been too "frameworthy". We even had professional photos taken this week and I'm not sure we got one of just the 3 kids. When I say "Look at Mommy" how come no one is looking at the same place?See how Cora is trying to grab the baby back? Speaking of Cora, oh this child is making this a stressful week! She has been a great sleeper since about 9 or 10 weeks old. She sleeps just like the book said she would - 12 hours or about 8 to 8. This has changed our lives for the better and has been a wonderful, reliable schedule. Recently, she has been fussing much more when we put her in bed for a nap or at night. She usually calms down within a few minutes and goes right to sleep. At nap yesterday she climbed out of her crib, twice. The third time she tried I told her "no" through the walkie talkie feature on our monitor. After 45 minutes of trying and hearing "no" she gave up and took a decent nap. While she rested I frantically googled what to do. Crib tents (which we used to own but it didn't fit our crib so I gave it away) have been recalled. The suggestions online were funny. I think I am going to try a combination of tricks, including a sleep sack (so she can't get her leg over the edge) and turning the crib around so the high part is now in front. I ordered the sleep sack so last night I turned the crib around and watched her on the monitor like a hawk until she laid down. She slept just fine once she decided she wasn't getting out. Unfortunately, the sleep sack has a dual purpose. Cora has decided that she likes to take off her pj pants at night. I was a little concerned she would be cold but otherwise wasn't too worried. Until she took off her diaper too. Really? It has only happened once and somehow the diaper was dry and so was the bed. But I figure with the sleep sack that will be hard to do as well. I'm obviously just not ready for her to be able to wander around her room. I need like 8 more months, please! On a positive note, Cora's language is really picking up and she is repeating words we say all.the.time. She loves the word "dropped". It complements "Uh Oh!" so well that it is a common phrase. She has a few sentences like "Come with me" and she will grab your hand and lead you down the hall, "This is trash?" is another favorite. She still creates and searches for trash just to ask if it is trash so she can throw it away. She is really good at playing by herself and she will usually sing softly while playing - I mention softly because Connor loves to sing but he sings more like he has a microphone at all times. Cute and Sweet but not quiet. Connor and Cora are playing well together. They of course fight over 1 toy when there are 50,000 other toys - even fighting over 1 lego when there are identical ones within arms reach. But, they do have mostly sweet moments - dangerous but sweet. Hugging each other (which turns into dragging each other down the hall, falling, butting heads, etc). Cute but I would prefer not to go to the ER. Just me. Connor has learned to play Checkers and is actually really good at it. He seems to tire out after about 17 minutes so if you can last that long, his concentration fades. He got to go to see the Dinosaur exhibit at the zoo with my parents
(Love this face!)
and then had a visit from Grandma Cathy and Pop Pop which included a Globetrotters game. He also filled out a NCAA bracket and is in competition with Colin and me to see who wins (grand prize is choosing dinner take out). Connor picked Florida Gulf Coast (I did too b/c Georgetown always disappoints) so he is off to a good start. He is also really into math. My mom got him started on a computer math program and he has answered more than 2,000 problems since Corben was born (need I remind that was 3 weeks ago). It was Spring Break this week here and I must say that it has been nice having all 3 kiddos but I'm looking forward to a semi-normal week when school starts back (even if only for a few days). Easter is next weekend (which means Caitlin comes really soon!) More photos and Renovation photos soon - promise. . .
Cora and her Corbie

They do have "look at the baby down"
Cora got all her essentials for a picnic - Basket, Baby, Blanket - and Cell phone?  Ha


Just not "Look at Mommy" - I mean really kids?

Cora's newest obsession - ELMO although Minnie Mouse is a close 2nd.

Monday, March 11, 2013

Corben John

We are thrilled to announce the arrival of Corben John. He arrived February 28, 2013 at 3:02 pm. He was 7 lbs 8 oz (same as Connor) and 20 inches long (same as Cora). He has a head full of dark hair (which explains my heartburn and investment in Tums as well as his name). We chose 2 names for this kiddo - and broke the tie based on his hair color. Connor had no hair and Cora was born with dark hair so we figured it as 50/50 chance for either name. Corben means dark-haired, raven. The spelling is a little nod to my brother, Ben, who is also an end of February baby. And this baby currently has dark hair. His eyebrows suggest that he will "change his hair to blonde" but for the time being. He is our little raven. The Ravens did win the Superbowl this year - so the name seems to fit him. John is the given name of Colin's maternal grandfather and great-grandfather. Connor and Cora came to visit a few hours after he was born. I made sure to be up, dressed and walking since Connor was really, really unhappy 19 months ago when he came to meet his little sister and I was sitting up in bed. "mommy you get out of that bed!" may have been ordered countless times since that day. So, up and out of bed I was. Connor seemed pleased and was beaming about his new baby brother. Cora was happy that she saw a new "baby" who she undoubtedly thinks is to be played with like a doll. Connor and Cora were sick immediately following (and probably preceding) Corben's arrival. My parents graciously (under strict orders from the pediatrician) kept Connor and Cora with them until Tuesday night. Although I certainly missed the big kids, it was like having your first kid without all the stress and chaos for a few days. I soaked up my last minutes alone with Corben which partly involved phototherapy for his jaundice. Luckily, after one day on the light he was pronounced "better". Can you believe that the phototherapy folks brought the light bed to our house, set it up and then came back the next day to take Corben's vitals, and then came back to pick up the bed?? And, other than the deductible, I think insurance covered it all! That is better than drive-thru service! We are adjusting to our new life with 3 kids. Luckily, Connor went back to school on Friday and so on some days (like today) I only have 2 kids for a few hours. They are both still sleeping and it is after 8! (Ha, I put Corben in his bed at 6:45am so I'm not sure it really counts as amazing yet - but to have a few minutes to sit and drink my new shipment of HalfCaf Coffee . . . nearly priceless). It has certainly been the week of birth days. Corben last Thursday, Austin Matthew (my cousin's newest addition) on Monday, and Lillian Landyn ("Lillie") Colin's cousin's new baby girl on Friday. Oh and Caitlin turned one year older yesterday. Happy Birthday Babies! Some photos from the past week and a half. . .

 
C&C off to spend nearly a week with JoJo and Big Daddy






Snowing on Departure Day




Fell asleep while getting blood drawn (ha!)

Phototherapy (thought he would hate it but he actually didn't mind)

Sort of like the Zoo?
 
Who is the baby?




One Week Old
 

Proud Big Brother
Family of 5 - Wow, that seems crazy still!