1st Day of School

Every year, I have taken a first day of school picture.  It started when I was five years old and heading off to kindergarten for the very first day of my educational career. I have taken a picture every year including my first day of college, my first day of teaching, my first day of entering the classroom as Mrs. Houston (rather than Miss Bakewell), etc.  This year, I have added a cute four month old to the picture.  This is the first day of school I have begun as a mom.  We were told to wear our school shirts so I wasn't able to "sport" a new outfit I received for my birthday like I typically do for the first day of school.  This picture documents the beginning of the 2013-2014 school year. 

Zander had to get his four month shots on Monday afternoon so we had a fussy child that evening.  He is doing great!  He weighs 13 pounds and 12 oz (still the 15th percentile).  We were told we can start to introduce rice cereal and fruits and veggies in the upcoming weeks.  Stay tuned for pictures.... This photo is a "pre-shots" picture.  ;) 

I love the picture below from earlier today.  Zander is so happy in the mornings.  I just put him in his car seat for us to head to "school".  Just so I don't look like a bad mom.... I know he is not hooked in yet.  We were still in the living room when I took this picture. ;)

A Weekend Surprise

We decided to head back home for the weekend to surprise Grammy and Grannie.  I think we successfully shocked both of them by showing up at their houses.  On Friday night, we arrived at my parents' house around 9:30 p.m. Burke came in the house and walked right up to Grammy.  She was very confused as to why our dog was in her lap!  This is a Saturday morning picture of her trying to help little Z get back to sleep after waking up way too early on a Saturday morning!  (I think he is starting to teethe....possibly.... and has some congestion in his nose.)  He woke up around 5 a.m. ready to start the day! 

 We then hurried over to Zack's mom's house to surprise her.  She had surgery on Wednesday, and we thought that Zander would be a perfect get well present.  Zack took a picture of us outside her house saying "I think those bushes need trimmed out front".  Grannie said to Auntie A "That is my house!"  We got to spend some time with her while she is recovering while Zack was able to do some yard work to help out.  She can't pick up things that are heavier than 5 pounds so we were able to place Lil' Z in her lap. 

 Auntie A got some squeezing time in as well!  She organized a cookout on Saturday night so we would have some of the family together to celebrate Grannie's successful surgery.  The food was delicious.... especially the sautéed mushrooms and onions for the burgers!

 Zander tested out a "jumperoo"/walker at Grammy's house and a different type of stroller at Grannie's.  I love how his feet don't even touch the ground yet!

 We always like to keep it fair.... so Zander sported a "My Grandma Rules" shirt and "My Grandpa is #1" shirt this weekend.  Here he is with Grandpa Buzz.

I have been up since 3:30 a.m. with a fussy baby that is not feeling that great.  So I will keep this post brief and hope to get a nap sometime this afternoon!  Tomorrow is the first day of school with students.... welcome to the 2013-2014 school year!

Happy 4 months, Lil' Z!

 For comparison sake......

We made it!

We have made it through my first week of work.  I think Zander did great, and I am starting to get the morning routine down.  However, on Friday, I got puked on twice before heading out the door.  Fortunately, I was able to take one final shower and make it to my meeting without smelling like spit up.  I did realize once I got there that I forgot the freezer pack for the bottles I would be pumping for the day.  I was able to track down an ice machine and store the milk in a bag of ice while I was in the all day training.  That is what sometimes happens, right?! You can't have everything prepared perfectly all the time! I am giving myself permission to make mistakes and learning from these slip ups so I don't forget essential items in the future.  Luckily, I have had enough bottles for Zander each day.  He drinks about four 5 oz. bottles while I am at work, and I always leave a 5th bottle just in case he is extra hungry or I am not able to leave work as quickly as I would like.  Continue to pray for us as we work through this new schedule.  I absolutely love my weekends with my boys.  Zack has had to work this weekend, but Zander, Burke, and myself have kept pretty busy.  I was able to clean the house yesterday during Zander's naptimes.  We ran errands and were able to fit in some cuddle time.  We are still working on the whole rolling over thing.  He keeps rolling from his back to his stomach but his arm is still stuck underneath him.  I put him on his tummy to see if he would roll over that way.  He just kept picking up his head and looking around. ;)  We went to Zack's work picnic/baseball game in the rain last night.  It was fun seeing his co-workers and watching them all notice how much Zander looks like his daddy.... it truly is like Zack has a "mini me".  We had some unseasonably cooler temperatures this week so I went to purchase more socks for Zander so his feet won't get cold.  I realized I had a ton of newborn socks but none for the upcoming months.... he should be set for awhile!  This upcoming week is going to be busy..... so until I can post again.... here are a couple pictures. ;)

A Year Ago Today....

On August 13, 2012, I took a pregnancy test that showed two pink lines.  It is crazy how fast a year goes by and now our little one is almost four months old and has started "school".  I started back to work yesterday, and we are doing really well so far.  It takes a long time to get ready in the morning.  I am hoping that I will become more efficient at getting things prepared.  I still like reading a book with Zander in the morning and taking time to get him dressed and fed.  It is worth the time I could be sleeping!  Zander enjoyed his first day and came home and took a good nap.  I think he was so tired from looking at all the new things.  The daycare gives me a sheet each day with the times he ate, when his diaper was changed, and when he took a nap.  He fit in a couple 20 minute naps at "school" so I think that is why he was so tired when he got home.  I love being able to know what he has been up to while I am at work.  While Zander was napping, I was able to clean the bottles from Monday and label the bottles for Tuesday.  We took a walk with Burke after he woke up.  I really liked how our afternoon/evening went.  My sister made dinner for us, and it was delicious!  It will be interesting to see what happens when I have to cook dinner!  I am hoping I will start to get into a routine so that I maximize the time I have with Zander while he is awake.  Here is his first day of school picture.  He was trying to "talk" while I was documenting the event.  He loves hearing the highest octave his voice can go at this point. :)



Fingers and Toes

Zander and I had a wonderful last week off before I start back to work.  However, I do think I jinxed myself when I broadcasted that he was sleeping through the night.  This past week he woke up once in the night to feed with an exception of two nights where he slept through the night and woke up around 6:00 a.m.  I know that I am incredibly blessed to have such a great sleeper, and I don't want to take these nights for granted.  However, as any new mom can tell you..... once you experience a full night sleep.... it gets you excited about the potential for more "all-nighters".  Each night I now wonder if he will be sleeping until 2:00 a.m., 3:00 a.m., 4:00 a.m., 5:00 a.m. or 6:00 a.m.  It is such a mystery and such a wonderful surprise when I see a 5 or a 6 as the hour of choice! ;) Now... when I said we had a great week earlier, I meant it.  Zander has such a great disposition, and we truly enjoyed some mommy/Zander time.... except for MONDAY! Last Monday, he was VERY fussy.  I mean he didn't stop crying the entire day! I think I ate something that did not agree with him.  Unfortunately, I had a lot of different foods on Sunday so it is hard to pinpoint what the food was but I am going to avoid any food item from that day to help ensure this doesn't happen again. ;)  The picture below is the one moment I was able to capture a calm child.  You might notice Burke in the background.  He hid in his bed for most of the morning.  Fortunately, by Tuesday I had my sweet Zander back.  He still cries when he is fighting sleep or when he is hungry but not the all day crying.  Thank goodness!



On Friday, my mom stopped by to get a "Zander fix" before spending the weekend with her girlfriends about 20 minutes from our house.  We were able to grab lunch with Aunt Lindsey and check out her new office.  I may have taken two pictures of her at her new place of business but won't embarrass her and post them to the blog. ;)

I dressed Zander in an outfit that his BFF, Jacob, has as well.  Jacob was born three weeks after Zander.  The crazy thing is that when I sent Jacob's mom, Liz, a picture of Zander in their matching outfits, she responded that Jacob was sporting the same attire for the day.... accessorized with spit up just like little Z!

In the picture below, Zander is looking at the television. I don't think that is a good thing.... but had to include the picture because of the humor I found in it!  I think he likes to watch the images move around!

Zander is loving his toes.  He tries to grab them any chance he can get.  He grabs them in his car seat, in his rainforest play mat, in the swing.... you get my point. ;)  He is really focused on them in this picture! (Notice that Zander did not last in the onesie above.... his shirt had to be changed before our road trip!)

Zander continues to chew on his yummy fingers.  Thank goodness he isn't crawling or walking yet.  It might be gross for him to mess with his toes and then put those fingers into his mouth!

We stayed at Grannie's house this weekend for the first time.  Zander loved the pack-n-play and all of Grannie's new toys.

Zander was able to eat lunch today with his Grandma Vicki, Grandpa Wayne, and Uncle Grant.  Vicki makes the best food.....everything was so delicious!

We had dinner at Grannie's before heading back home.  GranDan made a tasty burger that is hard to beat! :)

While I was home, I was able to see Ginny and her growing baby bump!  She is the cutest pregnant person I have seen!  Her baby shower was so special, and I continue to think it is awesome that they are waiting to find out the gender until he or she arrives.  I am picking a boy!  I told Ginny that whatever she has, he or she will be a BFF or a GF for Zander... win/win for me! ;)  Ginny has always been the greatest friend a girl could ask for.  She is so incredibly thoughtful and giving.  I can't wait to meet the newest addition to her family in a few short months!

Well... the next time I post I will be a full-time working mama! Say a prayer for me as I start back to work and begin this new adventure of balancing work responsibilities and family time.  I know Zander will be loved by more people through this experience and I will cherish each afternoon/evening and weekend I get to spend with him even more.  Be looking for a "first day of school" picture in the next post......

Busy Weeks.....

I feel like the last two weeks have been very busy since we got back from vacation.  Zander has done so many new and interesting things, and we have had family and friends visit.  I remember when I first got back from the beach trip, I was excited I still had 3 weeks left before going back to work.  Sadly, I am looking at starting the last week with my little boy.  I know it is going to work perfectly for Zander to go to "school" (a.k.a. daycare) while I am working, but it doesn't make it any easier that I have grown accustomed to spending my days with him.  He has been sleeping more at night so I am feeling like a more confident mama! During the beach trip, he had a couple nights where he slept for 10 hours..... that's right.... 10 HOURS!  He continued that pattern of sleeping from about 8:00 p.m. to about 6:00 a.m. until the last three nights.  He has been getting up once in the night to eat somewhere in the 2:00 to 5:00 a.m. range.  This is still not a bad arrangement but I know that next week I won't be able to go back to bed after these feedings and sleep a few more hours.  Instead, I will be getting up so I can head to work.  I realized I hadn't posted any pictures of our little man in a couple weeks so here is a recap of some of the major events that occurred. 

On his three-month birthday, we tested out the Bumbo chair.  He does not have 100% control of his head, but mommy was close by to help support him with this new toy.  

Zander went to the nursery for the first time at our church.  The ladies loved having him and said he could come back ANYTIME!  He just sat in their arms and never made a peep!

 Zander loves bath time.  I give him a bath every other night. 

 Burke supervises bath time from the top of the stairs!

 I had to go to work for a few hours on Monday.  Grannie and GranDan came to "babysit" while I went in for some meetings.  This picture cracks me up... check out the boys' faces!

 Another picture of Zander's Grandparents

 Zander loves putting his hands in his mouth.  I don't think he is teething yet but those hands sure do taste good!

 I switched out Zander's clothes in his drawers.  I kind of got a little sad when I put away the 0-3 months clothes and replaced them with the 3-6 month clothes.  However, I was equally excited to see what new attire he will have in the upcoming weeks! This is a 3-6 month outfit below.  Some of his 0-3 months clothes still fit and some of the 3-6 month clothes are a little big.  So we are combining both sizes right now.  Also, he is going to be finishing up size 1 diapers and moving into size 2 probably by the end of the week!

Great Grandpa and Grandma Bakewell came for a visit on Wednesday.  Here is a picture of Grandma.  I forgot to take a picture with the birthday boy!  We were able to celebrate Great Grandpa's 84th birthday! 

Grammy and Grandpa came to visit and watch Zander while Zack and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary.  They also helped me wax both of our cars!

 On August 1, 2013, Zander rolled over for the first time! This is how I found him in the morning.  He has been trying to roll over but keeps getting his arm stuck underneath him.  These pictures show that his arm definitely came out from under him. 

 Also, notice that he is constantly moving.  I put him to bed where he is parallel to the front and back of the crib.  He has made a 90 degree turn from where I placed him in the middle of the crib!

 We were able to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary by going to the Proximity. We ate dinner at the hotel's restaurant, the Print Works Bistro.  Then, we saw a movie ("2 Guns") at the movie theater.  The movie was so good!  The hotel was having a wedding reception there the same evening as our anniversary.  It was cool to think that 5 years ago we were doing the same thing at our own wedding reception.  Some before dinner pictures.....

Zack got a Morganton brew with dinner. 

Today, one of my best friends, Lindsey, came to visit.  She brought her precious son, Marshall, to meet Zander.  Marshall turns one in October so it was fun to see how the two of them interacted and all the things that Zander will be doing in the upcoming months.  Unfortunately, my house is not "baby proof" yet so Lindsey had to chase Marshall around..... he is crawling everywhere and lifting up like he is ready to walk!  Lindsey came to visit Zander in the hospital the day I was discharged.  It was so comforting to have her there with me as I was processing the whole concept of being a mom and having to leave Zander in the evenings at the NICU.  She is always so encouraging!  I definitely needed her there that day!  She has also given me maternity clothes to borrow and little boy clothes to borrow of Marshall's!  What would I do without her?!

I quick update to my blog post on the 3rd..... Kerith (one of Zack's best friends) came to see Zander on Sunday (the 4th).  I wanted to include the picture from his visit.  Zack will be a groomsman in Kerith's wedding in September!