Growing Growing

Zane at 3 weeks (left) and Zane at 5 weeks (right).  Our boy is filling out.  Notice that at 3 weeks he had so much extra space that one of the brown stripes is hidden by a fold in the fabric.  And today will be the last time we will wear this striped outfit as those bottom snaps are stretched!

Do you think big Sis has spunk and personality? 

Do you see anything wrong with this picture?  Let me point it out...Summer has on Zane's cardigan which is a size 0-3 months and she is 35 months! 

The past 2 nights Zane has slept for longer stretches allowing me to get a whopping 3 hours of consecutive sleep!  For now, that feels good.  I am glad to see improvement and hope that writing this down doesn't jinx me.

My Birthday

This week I celebrated my 33rd Birthday.  This birthday was perfect.  I did just what I wanted to do.  Nana came and picked up Summer (thanks Nana and Da) and I took Zane to his 1 month check up appointment.  At this age it is so exciting to see how much weight he has put on.  Chad and I had guessed that he would be 8lb 11oz so you can imagine my amazement when he weighed in at a whopping 10lb 2oz and grew 1 inch to 21.5 inches.  That information alone kept me on a high all day.  After that I went to Chick Fil A followed by a relaxing pedicure, ahh.  Then we came home and napped and Chad, Zane and I went downtown for dinner out (Zane slept the whole time).  And to top it off, when we pulled back in the driveway there was a Birthday sign and balloon tied to the mailbox that Summer and Nana had made!

After that perfect day, followed a few very imperfect days and some very imperfect nights!  

So Friday night we decided to treat ourselves to yogurt out.  Summer quickly went to get dressed (she was in post nap pjs) and she was so proud that she put on this entire outfit by herself...therefore I let her wear it (non matching and all).  She is a big girl!  In fact, when Daddy got her out of the car at the yogurt shop she got all upset because she wanted to get out of the car herself and didn't want to be picked up...oh no.  

Up for Air

Wow, I got caught under water these past few days (or has it been a week).  Sleep deprivation is taking its toll and I have been in survival mode at best. 

Daddy getting some love from his children.

Summer woke up from her nap and needed Mommy's love...but so did Zane.  Mommy's first time holding both of her kids (while standing).

 

 Zane has been working on his tummy time and he doesn't hate it.

In survival mode, when your Big Girl is quiet and content you sometimes don't go check to see what exactly she is doing...then you find out she is trimming the plant. 

 Zane is getting bigger.

 Brother and Sister

 Mama and Zane

 If Daddy isn't rocking Zane he is rocking his other baby, Sissy.

Nana fed Zane a bottle (breastmilk) and he took it without a problem.  This will free Chad and I up to go out to dinner for my birthday, tomorrow.

Zane-4 weeks old

I simply can't believe that Zane is 4 weeks old today!

I took this picture yesterday after nap time.  Summer loves her brother.

 Summer holding Zane

 Summer burping Zane

This morning Summer woke me up saying "Up Mama! Boy not alright (repeat again and again)." Well I knew that Zane was waking up because big sis was making noises and turning on the lamp but I was hoping he would quiet down and we could all rest a little longer...but big sister was being very...protective and insisted that Mama get up. 
Ironically, after the string of pictures of her holding and burping Zane there was a last one of her holding him as he was crying and I asked her if he was alright and she replied "boy alright."  I am afraid she has a double standard like her mama.

Weekend with Grammy

In the few days after Zane was born we found out that Chad was going to Miami for business this weekend.  I asked Grammy (aka Mammy) to come stay with us while Daddy was gone.  Summer had a great time playing with Mammy both inside and outdoors!

There were a few down times when Mammy got to love on baby Zane. 

Mama and Zane 

I am thrilled that Zane can now fit into 0-3 month clothes like this cute outfit. 

A trip to our house isn't a vacation by any means these days.  If you come over, you are most likely going to leave tired from playing and pretending.  Thanks Mammy for pretending to be a school bus driver, grocery store shopper, play-doh eater and much more. 

Zane at 3 weeks

This is my new reality!  Big sister on her bike blazing the trail with Zane and I trying to keep up.  Summer is such a trooper...anytime she has fallen over on her bike (too steep of a driveway or an overfriendly dog knocking her down) she has not cried or pouted.  She just picks herself up and gets back on. 

Zane is 3 weeks old today oh my goodness!  Time is flying by even though it feels like the first week still. He still eats, sleeps and goes to the bathroom however he also likes to be held in his awake moments...not in a demanding way but in a, I need to be loved and cuddled kind of way, and I am happy to oblidge.   

My little baby is getting bigger...one day he will actually fill out this outfit. 

2 of the Same

Summer and Zane comparisson.
Daddy and his kids (both he and his Polo have aged gracefully).

Mimi with them both!

Summer and Zane in their relaxed positions...more pics to come.

Easter weekend

Look what the Easter Bunny brought to Summer...preschool scissors!  So exciting.

 We went to church for the first time as a family of four!  I would consider it a successful outing. Summer was happy but she just decided not to smile for the camera.

 Summer and the Easter Bunny at the park for the egg hunt on Saturday.

 Summer and her girlfriends waiting patiently for the horn to pick up eggs.  Once it blew, Summer picked up an egg and tried to open it...not a strategic plan because meanwhile a million other kids are picking up the eggs.  I encouraged her to wait to open and focus on picking them up first.  Hundreds of eggs were gone in one minute.

 Zane slept through the entire experience.  I love the baby bjorn-hands free and safe.

 Each parent carried a child

 Summer played doctor with Zane...he was actually happy and yawning in this picture but it is funny as it looks like he is screaming bloody murder.

 Here he is moments later-see he is calm.

Sleep is still very hard to come by. Zane is actually a little lamb and makes lamb noises ALOT!  That makes it very hard for Mommy to sleep.  I feel like I complain about lack of sleep alot-I really hope I can stop that soon.  Gotta run... 

Family Update

Big Sis loves to hold her brother

However that only lasts for 30 seconds then it is on to more fun...she and Mimi made a bunny rabbit cake and Summer decorated it herself!

Mimi left on Saturday and to our surprise Summer stayed in her playroom by herself for 3.5 hours playing with play-doh, coloring, and painting with a full bottle of hand sanitizer (didn't mean for that to happen...realized something was wrong when I looked in and she had her pants off, using them to wipe up her "big mess.") 

All the while, Zane was catching rays trying to rid his skin of jaundice.  The doctors have checked it twice and will again next week however they don't think it is a problem just monitoring it.

Daddy and Zane working on the computer 

Here are some pics from the hospital.  Summer is beaming with love and happiness!  Grandad (aka "da") is holding Zane for the first time.

Nana, Summer and Zane

Mimi meets Zane for the first time

Papa and Grammy (aka "Mammy") came to the hospital to greet the newest grandchild however I don't seem to have any pics.  Mammy will be returning in a couple of weeks to love on us when Daddy goes out of town.
I love this picture of Summer and Zane.

Summer Update: I am glad that I realized the lack of attention I was giving Summer so early because I feel that I have been able to resolve that situation and both she and I are spending quality time together.  Chad and I have noticed how Summer has grown up in the past week.  Her vocabulary has exploded and her independent play has really grown.  Her playroom full of toys hasn't seen this much action ever!

My recovery from the c-section is going really well.  I have weaned myself off the pain medication and I have been able to move around pretty well.  Yesterday we even ventured out for our first family of four+dog walk in the neighborhood.