Baby Burrito

Let's see if this works....

Mom and dad gave us a flip video camera so we can capture everything Gus does. Obviously, newborns don't do a whole lot that is worth taking video of....so we've had the camera for more than a week and I didn't even try it out. But I finally realized I could try to capture the cutest thing Gus does do. We swaddle him at night, so whenever I undo the velcro to get him out, he always stretches his arms out really cute. Here it is, if it works....

A week with lots of firsts

I'm sorry, I've been lazy about posting anything this week. In general I haven't taken as many pictures, because obviously Gus doesn't do too much, so I could take pictures of is really his cute clothes every day.
But we had a busy week. Gus went to the doctor for his 2 week appt, at the time he was up to 9 lb 7.5 oz, so by now I'd guess he's hitting 10 lbs. Mom came to go to the pediatrician with us, and we also went to the mall where Gus got to ride in his stroller for the first time. I also had to go to the doctor this week; she thought my incision looked good so now I just have to go back in another 4 weeks and I should be completely back to normal by then (I hope). Jessica came to go to that appointment with us, and we went to the mall too and Gus and I used the BabyBjorn for the first time. I realized after the fact that might not have been the best idea for my incision because it hurt a bit more the next day, but not too bad. So maybe I'm not using that again for another week or so.
Let's see, what else..... Gus's umbilical cord fell off early last week, so now he's got a normal belly button. He got his first real bath as a result. He also had his first bottle, which went just fine. Saturday, Kevin, Jessica, Gus and I went to the cactus show at the gardens, and Kevin tried out the BabyBjorn (and I'm sad I didn't get a picture).....I think he enjoyed carrying Gus around. Yesterday we went to Illinois to take Gus to meet Erin, and her friends had organized a welcome home party.
I'm sure lots of other things happened too, but I can't remember. But here are a few pictures from the last week.

I'm knitting again, but Gus has been fussy during the day unless he's being held....this is the compromise.



Wide eyed in a cute outfit



First bath - he seemed to enjoy it after getting past the initial confusion



All cleaned up!



At Erin's party - Emma held Gus for awhile (until her arms were tired, about 2 minutes....)



This week will surely be exciting, because Jenny, Charlie and John are coming! Only 3 more days until Gus can meet his aunt, uncle, and cousin!

Getting Out a Bit

We've had a very nice few days. Friday was our 5th wedding anniversary (I know, can you believe it?), so June was nice enough to come over and watch Gus while we went out to dinner. I was thrilled to do my hair for the first time in quite awhile, and I wore shoes that were not flip flops for the first time in maybe 6 weeks.

A family picture while mom and dad look decent.....



Saturday was nice because a number of people stopped by to visit. Jessica and Todd came over for awhile, then Budde was here for a couple of hours, and later Jen and Brice stopped by too on their way out to dinner and a concert. Visitors make the day go by so much more quickly!

Yesterday, we took Gus on his first trip to Illinois where he went to Grandma and Grandpa's house, and to Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Plocher's house. He was very well behaved, until we were trying to take pictures, of course.

With Great Grandma and Grandpa



With Grandma and Grandpa



A decent picture of Kevin and I (with Gus) - these don't happen too often!



Passed out in dad's arms. He had on the cutest outfit for the trip!!



So now its Monday and Kevin is back at work. I guess these 6 weeks I have left will go crazy fast, but halfway through the first day it feels pretty slow. So far I watched a movie (He's Just Not That Into You), now I'm doing this, then I think I'll read for awhile (The Hour I First Believed, by Wally Lamb). Sooner or later I can get some knitting going, but I don't have yarn for either of the two things that I have in mind. I'm really looking forward to going to the doctor on Thursday, when I should be cleared to drive (I'm confident I could drive now, but I figure giving it a few more days til I'm officially given the ok doesn't hurt). In the meantime I'll just start counting the days til Jenny, Charlie, and John are home - 10!!!

A few more pictures

Not much to report. We're all doing great. Kevin has been home all week cooking and cleaning and helping me out (for the most part), and my mom and June have been here a few times to help out as well. On Tuesday I went to Target with my mom really quick....my sister had told me all the dwell studio clothes were on sale, so Kevin, Gus and I ventured out to Babies R Us. Its nice to leave the house but I definitely get tired really easily. Anyway, here are a few pictures from the past few days.


Relaxing with dad - 1 week old





First picture with Satchel







Aunt Jenny made Gus a really cute elephant - here are a couple of pictures of Gus with his new toy

Settling In

We're on day 3 of being at home. Everything is going pretty great so far. Our two nights have been pretty good, very little crying and very good eating. In the last 24 hours he's starting really peeing all over, so hopefully soon we'll figure out how to keep that under control. Both Kevin and I have been peed on now, so at least we're equal.
We went to the pediatrician this morning, and the doctor said "my only suggestion is that you keep doing what you're doing" so I guess that's good. Gus's weight had been down to 8lb 3oz before we left the hospital (after being 9lb 1oz at birth) and today he was 8lb 8.5oz and the doctor seemed pretty happy with that.
The dogs have been really good. Lucy is almost so good it seems like someone flipped a switch and made her behave, except for momentary lapses of being like she normally is. So I'm very grateful for that.
Not much else exciting going on, as you can imagine. I'm feeling pretty good and getting around pretty well. The doctor said I should be limited to going up and down stairs, but in my house that's difficult since we just have the one bathroom upstairs.....so I just take it really slow and it seems fine. My feet seem to be back to normal size, but my hands are still really swollen and numb. My right hand actually feels consistently more numb than it had been feeling, which is a pain. It really hurts when I'm holding Gus in the same position for a long time while I feed him. So I'm actually wearing my wrist splints right now to see if it helps (I've only ever worn them at night).
Here are a couple cute pictures of my sweet little boy:

Daddy and Gus with the dogs. Lucy is using Satchel's head as a pillow....this is funny because they rarely would be on the couch at the same time, but now they're on there together all the time.



Gus comfortably napping yesterday with his legs crossed funny. Lucy was sniffing around the Pack-n-play checking him out.



A cute squished-up face :)

Gus is Home!

We are finally home! Sorry that I never posted more pictures while we were at the hospital, the internet there was such a pain that it wasn't worth the trouble to use. And time went quickly enough anyway while we were at the hospital. Everything was good though; I quickly figured out what food was good....they had this really good spinach and fruit salad that I ate for every lunch and dinner. They also had really good pizza, and a really good grilled chicken, zucchini, and pesto sandwich that I ate twice. So it was good to have good food delivered to my room for free :)
We got home late this morning without incident, and spent the afternoon with my mom and Jessica and Jackie. The dogs seem fine with Gus so far; Satchel could care less and Lucy does try to keep sniffing him. But all is well so far. Kevin is making dinner right now - some kind of fancy pork chops. Anyway, here's some pictures from the last few days. They're all pretty self-explanatory, so I'm gonna feed my kid instead of label them. Enjoy!

Baby Gus is Here!

Yesterday was indeed an eventful day. After having an ultrasound on Monday and finding out that our kid was approximately almost 10 lbs, the doctor said we were going to get the show on the road. She basically asked us if we wanted to be induced or have a c-section. This was a decision that I was completely unprepared and unqualified to make, and we basically told her we'd like to do whatever she wanted. So she decided to go with c-section, and scheduled it for yesterday at 1:45.
Of course, Murphy's law was in effect, and my water broke at 9am, sending us into the hospital a little early. I went into labor to some extent, and was having some fun contractions, and dilated to 4 cm. The doctor decided I was progressing too quickly, so she got to bump some other c-sections and take me early.
August John Thole was born at 12:47, weighing in at 9 lb 1 oz and 21 1/4" long! He's awfully cute! We made it through the first night without any problems. I'm feeling good and should be up and around here shortly, and I think we'll be here til Saturday. Here are some highlights:

On the way out the door to the hospital. Satchel could tell something was up.


Dad cuts the cord.


Weighing in.


Dad and Gus


Grandma and Gus


His first bath - apparently this was very entertaining


All cleaned up and ready to go!


Family photo