Sorry it’s been so long since our last post. It’s been a crazy three or four weeks, between Jason’s finals and Adam’s colic! We had a few rough weeks with Adam. Luckily for me, he was able to be soothed with walking, patting, singing, etc., but that did lead to several days of nearly continuous walking and soothing to keep him from crying (he spends large portions of his day in a sling on my chest/abdomen. I highly recommend the WallaBaby; I couldn’t live without it). I think Adam could sense that I needed some reassurance, because he started smiling earlier than most. At three weeks, he would smile at lights and even at his mobile. By four weeks he was smiling at Jason and I. By his fifth week, the smiles became extremely easy to obtain, which has led to both a lot of picture-taking and a lot of fun. Talking like an idiot and exaggerated facial expressions are met with coos and a large gummy smile that melts our hearts. No one really knows what colic is, it’s just a broad term for “fussiness”. The latest theories are that it has to do with an immature digestive tract. So, I cut out dairy around Thanksgiving and we ended up starting him on a reflux medication just last week. Something has worked; the good days by far outweigh the bad. He’ll even let me set him down in his bouncer for short periods, entertained by both the dog and the Christmas tree lights. Now that I can set him down, the photo-taking is never-ending. All of his gestures and expressions are just so cute, I can’t help myself. I’ll easily take 100 photos in a day (you gotta love digital photography)! All of the pictures below we’ve taken in the last week, to give you an idea of how big he’s getting (12+ lbs at this point). Our house is a much happier place between Adam’s recent turn and Jason’s finals being over. We’re looking forward to Adam’s first Christmas with friends and family.
It’s been nearly two weeks since Adam’s one month check up. At that appointment he was 90th percentile in height and 75th percentile in weight. Everything looks great. He’s a healthy boy. I think he’s going to be a big boy too. He eats like a machine, literally gulping down milk at an unbelievable rate. He officially has a roll on each thigh and his fingers are starting to get nice and pudgy.
Adam’s cousin Taylor comes over to visit a couple of times a week. She’s 11 months now and is so much fun. She already loves baby Adam. Below is a shot we caught of her kissing him, and another shot of just her so you can see how adorable she is.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Mommy's little piggy
Well, the one thing we’ve figured out so far is that Adam likes to eat. He’s a porker. Two weeks ago he gained 13 oz between Monday and Friday doctor visits. We did an unofficial home weigh-in yesterday and we calculate he’s up to an even 9lbs so far. We’ve also figured out he’s quite opinionated, knowing exactly what he does and doesn’t want. As new parents, we find ourselves trying everything and anything to soothe him. We get it right some of the time. He let’s us know of our successes and failures through wide eyed cooing or intense screaming sessions. Walking, patting, and singing are our go to’s. When those don’t work we jump through hoops. He rules the house to put it mildly. He is unbelievably adorable. It is an incredible experience getting to know this little guy.
In other news, Ang found out two days ago that she has a mild case of iritis in her left eye. The specialist doesn’t think it will have any long-term effects, but for now, it causes excruciating pain and sensitivity to light. She has to be on eye drops for 3 months. We’ve pulled all the blinds in our house and she also finds some relief in wearing an eye patch. I told her she’s the hottest pirate I’ve ever seen.
All in all, we’re doing well; a little sleep-deprived, but we feel good on the whole.
Here are a few more pics of our beautiful baby boy. He’s 9 days old in these shots.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
great news
Adam had another heel-stick today (Wednesday) to draw blood to check his biliruben levels, and this afternoon we got the call we'd been hoping for; the pediatrician said we could stop using the bili-blanket! Yay! His levels started to go down on Monday, so they told us to stop using the blanket and we'd test again to make sure his levels kept going down without any assist from the blanket. Basically, this means his body is going to be able to process and get rid of his excess bilirubens on its own from now on. Hooray!
Sunday, November 9, 2008
First Photos, Round 2
Our baby boy
Yes mom, I'm comfortable
Dont' lose your hat
I just wanna kiss those lips!
Swaddled cutie
First Photos
Angela and Adam right after delivery
Adam getting checked out and his first bath
Jason holding Adam for the first time
Our special little boy
Adam getting checked out and his first bath
Jason holding Adam for the first time
Our special little boy
Look at those feet!
5 day newborn roundup
Hi, and welcome to the Wills family blog! Well, our main reason for starting this blog, and the big news for us recently, is the birth of our son, Adam Michael! He was born on Wednesday, November 5th at 4:23pm, and mom and baby Adam are doing great. He was 7lbs, 7oz, and 22 inches long (future NBA star).
Momma did great, especially given the fact that she had to push for 2 hours and her epidural migrated below her waist, providing no pain relief for the contractions. I’ve told her a few times since she delivered that her ability to endure what she went through amazes me, but she said it was all worth it once they plopped him on her chest and she got her first look at him.
Thursday and Friday in the hospital went pretty well, but not perfectly. On Thursday afternoon, the nurses informed us that Adam’s biliruben levels were a little too high, and if they continued to get worse, he’d have to stay a couple extra days in the NICU, though it shouldn’t cause any long-term complications with his health. Thankfully, it’s not an uncommon occurrence in births (if you’ve ever heard of a baby being born with a mild case of jaundice, it’s basically the same thing), so there are plenty of ways to help combat it. They gave us a bili-blanket Thursday evening to put him on at all times, and they had us start supplementing nursing with formula to help increase his bowel-movements so his body would get rid of the biliruben faster. His levels were more in line with what most newborns have when we left the hospital Friday evening, but they sent us home with more formula and a bili-blanket to continue to help his body get rid of it.
Getting home Friday evening was more enjoyable than we realized. Community North is a great hospital, the nurses were all great to us and to Adam and we felt very comfortable in their care. The hospital had lots of conveniences, like a complimentary valet, room service, free in-room movies, free wifi, and even a concierge who would go change the oil in your car if you wanted. But, as Dorothy said, there’s no place like home. We’ve done well so far, and have even had our first night of no sleep (yes, we know it’s the first of many).
We were back at the hospital today for another blood draw and biliruben reading, hoping to be done with the bili-blanket. Unfortunately, his levels haven’t dropped enough yet to stop the blanket therapy, but otherwise our pediatrician thinks he’s doing great. She even laughed out loud when we told her that he’s already almost back up to his birth weight (he weighed in at 7lbs, 3oz today).
In short, we’re doing great. We’re going through all the classic new parent experiences, we’ve had lots of visitors and well-wishers, the grandparents have been eager to help, and we’re just thrilled to be new parents. Keep checking in here as we continue to post about it.
Momma did great, especially given the fact that she had to push for 2 hours and her epidural migrated below her waist, providing no pain relief for the contractions. I’ve told her a few times since she delivered that her ability to endure what she went through amazes me, but she said it was all worth it once they plopped him on her chest and she got her first look at him.
Thursday and Friday in the hospital went pretty well, but not perfectly. On Thursday afternoon, the nurses informed us that Adam’s biliruben levels were a little too high, and if they continued to get worse, he’d have to stay a couple extra days in the NICU, though it shouldn’t cause any long-term complications with his health. Thankfully, it’s not an uncommon occurrence in births (if you’ve ever heard of a baby being born with a mild case of jaundice, it’s basically the same thing), so there are plenty of ways to help combat it. They gave us a bili-blanket Thursday evening to put him on at all times, and they had us start supplementing nursing with formula to help increase his bowel-movements so his body would get rid of the biliruben faster. His levels were more in line with what most newborns have when we left the hospital Friday evening, but they sent us home with more formula and a bili-blanket to continue to help his body get rid of it.
Getting home Friday evening was more enjoyable than we realized. Community North is a great hospital, the nurses were all great to us and to Adam and we felt very comfortable in their care. The hospital had lots of conveniences, like a complimentary valet, room service, free in-room movies, free wifi, and even a concierge who would go change the oil in your car if you wanted. But, as Dorothy said, there’s no place like home. We’ve done well so far, and have even had our first night of no sleep (yes, we know it’s the first of many).
We were back at the hospital today for another blood draw and biliruben reading, hoping to be done with the bili-blanket. Unfortunately, his levels haven’t dropped enough yet to stop the blanket therapy, but otherwise our pediatrician thinks he’s doing great. She even laughed out loud when we told her that he’s already almost back up to his birth weight (he weighed in at 7lbs, 3oz today).
In short, we’re doing great. We’re going through all the classic new parent experiences, we’ve had lots of visitors and well-wishers, the grandparents have been eager to help, and we’re just thrilled to be new parents. Keep checking in here as we continue to post about it.
Friday, October 31, 2008
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