Christmas 2016

I wanted to take a few minutes to reflect on our wonderful Christmas. In case ya missed it, we welcomed sweet Barr to our family two weeks before Christmas this year, which made for a crazy holiday, to say the least.

We arrived home from the hospital on a Thursday night, the night of Doster's school Christmas concert. I was devastated to miss it, but lucky to experience it from photos and videos.  If you were there and happened to be annoyed at my poor husband for being "That Guy" standing up and filming the whole thing on his iPad, you can blame me. I'm sorry, but not really.

Look at these cuties getting ready to perform!

On the morning of Christmas Eve, the universe gifted me a long nap for Barr (atop an also napping James), so I had the chance to spend some much-needed quality time with Doster. I was so excited to do something one-on-one with him and we both had a great time making cookies for Santa. 

That night, we went to my dad's house, as usual. I was pretty proud of us for loading up everything and making it! Luckily, it was a warm day and I didn't feel too guilty about dragging a new baby out in the weather.

I can't really remember how that night was, but I think Doster went to sleep pretty easily, knowing that Santa was expected soon. We'd taken him to see the Big Man himself a few weeks prior, (before Barr was born--no way I'm taking a new baby to the mall!) so Doster was very familiar with the idea of ol' Kris Kringle. 

Santa set up shop, and Doster ended up getting everything he wanted and then some. We told him that he could ask Santa for three gifts, and he chose: a kitchen, a Flip-a-Zoo and cars. Santa brought Barr some socks and bibs. That's what ya get for being two weeks old, son.

Here's a little (or long) video of Christmas morning:

We invited our parents over for Christmas breakfast, and wrapped up the day with a trip to Grammy's house. It was a long but fun day!

This was my favorite Christmas yet. Barr's arrival, paired with the sheer joy of Christmastime with a toddler was amazing. Doster's excitement truly evoked the Christmas spirit for all of us. He loved decorating, listening to Christmas music, driving around looking at Christmas lights--all of it! It was truly a magical time.

I look forward to many more special holidays as a family of four!

Dear Barr - 1 Month

Sweet Barr. 

Welcome to our family! Your first month was a holiday whirlwind and you handled all of the craziness like a baby-champ.

Sometime, in the near-ish future, I'll try to write up your little birth story. Though there aren't words to describe how it feels when meeting your child for the first time, I know that you immediately made my heart feel so full. 

Much of your first month was spent dealing with weight checks and the holiday craze. I can't believe how quickly it went by, and the tardiness of this update is definitely a reflection of how busy and crazy those first weeks were. 

Without further ado, here are your updates!

Size: 
At one month we did a weight check, and you weighed 9 pounds and 14.4 ounces. Your head was also 95-97% percentile. I prefer to think there is a really big brain in there.

Sleeping: 

You are sleeping in our room in your "bunny rocker" and typically sleep for three-hour stretches at the most (though you've occasionally slept four hours). Unfortunately, a good bit of your longer stretches occur during the day time.  I have faith that it will all even out soon. I hope so. Mama needs sleep. 

Feeding:
You love to eat. You spent your first week glued to me just eating nonstop. It was very, um, transformative. I learned a lot about patience and determination.

Despite all of those feedings, we had some worries about your weight loss and slow gain (hence, all of those weight checks I mentioned earlier). After many visits to the lactation consultant and pediatrician, we have a plan that works for us. It basically involves lots of pumping and bottle feeding, combined with nursing a few times a day as well. We are also supplementing with a little formula, and I am completely cool with that.  You are happy, I am happy - we're getting there!

Chillin' at one of your many weight checks!

Personality:
So far, you seem like a sweet, chill, easygoing, little guy. You don't fuss very often, which is very appreciated! 

Development:
So far your skills include sleeping, eating, and grabbing a few things. You like hearing voices and being held (though you are perfectly content just chillin' in a baby seat). 


Life notes:

We had an amazing first family-of-four-Christmas and I'll elaborate on that later!


A lot of people think you look a lot like Doster. I don't really think so, but I suppose it is in the eye of the beholder (or Barr-holder (see what I did there?)). To me, the more days that pass the less and less y'all look alike.





We are so happy that you are here, and in many ways it still seems unreal. I can't believe I have two wonderful, beautiful little boys! I feel so fortunate to have such wonderful blessings in our life and I look forward to getting to know you even more, Sweet Barr!