First Easter

It was a very special Easter. Not only did we have a wonderful visit with Grandpa and Grandma Nelson last week, but we had Grandpa and Grandma Rathbun this week - lots of fun. We made it to church this morning and had a great day at Aunt Vicki's. Lots of food, sun and a special Easter egg hunt. Kyle was most intrigued with Iris the kitten and the wacky chickens - it's the most amazing petting zoo out there. Kyle got a dancing chicken in his Easter basket that he giggles at, and he looked very dapper in the new Easter outfit Grandma Pat picked out and bought for him (see pictures). Lots of fun - it makes us all smile. We're very thankful.

Busy Times

Keeping this short but sweet. It's been a month now that we've been in the work/daycare routine. Things are going well despite teething and Kyle's unhappiness with my decision to wean. 99% of the time he's a happy little guy. He's sitting up now and grabbing/sucking on everything within arms reach. He looks interested in crawling but not quite there yet. Chad is doing the daycare drop off and pick up, and manages to have Kyle fed and dinner made most nights - he's our "Mr Mom"..and we're hoping that doesn't get old too soon. We're all doing well despite the very hectic schedule and enjoying every second of our weekends. Love to All!

It's Inevitable

My return to work. Well it's Sunday night and this Tuesday will be my first day back at work. I'm anxious, nervous and a little stressed, but I know it'll be fine. We had Kyle in daycare last week for 4 hrs a day (trial run) and it went fairly well. He seems to be taking to Miss Erika (his caregiver) very well and she's getting to know him and his schedule. What was truly surprising is how exhausted he is when I pick him up. I guess he doesn't want to sleep (hard to believe with 10 other crying babies around him) and he's constantly taking in all the action. He gets home and is a zombie. I'm hoping he adapts soon because Chad and I are ready to play with him as soon as we pick him up.
How's the baby food going, you ask? He's a food hound. He loves it and hasn't had a flavor he didn't devour. He opens his mouth like a baby bird, it's really cute. Last weekend we were in Kirkwood with the Musser's and this weekend we were in Capitola for a warm 73 degrees! Love California. Well wish me luck, I'll report back soon. By the way, Kyle is almost sitting up on his own and continues to roll all over the place. Did I also mention he now goes to bed at 7:30, and usually falls alseep when we just lay him in his crib - ok, I'll stop.

4 months

4 months old meant the green light for Kyle to begin trying baby foods. He's been showing signs of interest for the last few weeks, so we went for it. Today was rice cereal and boy did he take to it right away (see pics). Next week we venture into peas, carrots....so we'll see how Kyle does with that now that he's enjoyed ice cream with dad. We took a quickie 36 hour trip to Tahoe so that Chad could get a ski trip in with all this great snow, and Kyle and mom enjoyed relaxing in the hotel room/casino (nice spontaneous getaway). Kyle's 4 months appt went well, he's now 14 pounds and has met his milestones. All is good!

Happy New Year - welcome to 2008

It's been a while and a lot has been happening. We had a wonderful Christmas, beginning with a pre Christmas dinner with the Nelson family and then Christmas eve and day on the central coast with the Rathbun's. Kyle is 13 pounds and growing. Mom is nearing her return to work, and enjoying every second she has with baby Kyle. He's well loved, there is no doubt about it. In a nutshell, he's eating ice cream (thanks to dad), rolls from his belly to his back, constantly sticks his lizard tongue out and smiles every chance he gets. He even has a giggly laugh that seems to be triggered by his pelican stuffed animal, watching people chew and blowing kisses to his stomach. Oh, do we love him - if cloning is an option, we'd take another one just like him. Check out the updated pics. Oh, did I mention he sleeps in his own crib and his co sleeper is now occupied by "fat cat?"

Growing like a weed

It's been so long you probably thought I had forgotten about all of you. The time is flying, and we're having tons of fun. Kyle is all smiles, and now.....all drooling (what's up with that?) The spit up/drool combo is quite something. Still sleeping thru the night - 10:30 until 6:30 so no complaints there. We took our first flight with him over Thanksgiving to visit Aunt Cheryl & Uncle Jake in Spokane, WA and then road tripped it to Scottsburg, Oregon for a relaxing vacation at Grandma and Grandpa Nelson's house. Attached are pictures from Turkey day and our trip. Today we experienced our first "diaper days" at the local theatre and saw Enchanted (very cute movie). Today is Auntie Jennifer's birthday, so we wish her a Happy Birthday too!! We'll try to update you again very soon. Enjoy the pics for now.

Kyle's 6 Week Check Up

All those hours of feeding seems to be paying off - Kyle is now 11 pounds 7 ounces and 23 inches long. We learned this at Kyle's 6 week doctor's visit (picture with Dr. Dave featured above). He's in the 75th percentile for height and weight. Dr. Dave said to me, "did he do all this growing on breast milk only?"....and I just smiled. Kyle's so expressive now, as I'm sure you are noticing in his recent photos. We had our first jog this morning in the jogging stroller (aka "the bob") and it was enjoyable for Kyle and frightening for mom (very out of shape).

Kyle's First Halloween

We had a fun Halloween with Baby Kyle. Attached are pictures from last night. Kyle seemed to sleep through the festivities, but that made for a nice relaxing evening for us. Kyle is now 11 pounds and starting to fit into his 3 month clothes - he's very long, but needs to fill them out a bit. He's gaining a lot more personality this week, and definitely interacts with us more. Morning seems to be his really "happy time" and he's very expressive with his smiles and koo's. Next week he'll have his 6 week checkup, so we're anxious for that. Hard to believe it's already November, the time is flying.

Having Fun!

Wow - he's 4 weeks old today. The time has flown and we're having lots of fun with little Kyle. The attached picture was taken at the pumpkin patch last weekend. He's sleeping well, and still only requiring a feeding at 3AM - let's hope we stay on this path. Kyle loves taking showers with dad and enjoys his bath time in his baby tub as well (quite a water baby!) Every day he seems to gain more and more personality and this morning seemed to even crack a smile and coo a little bit (could be gas but we like to think it's him communicating with us). He's over 10 pounds and filling his tummy all day long - growing a little every day!

Sleeping, Eating and Lots of Diaper Changes

Hello Faithful Blog Readers! I am writing to you from bed this morning. Kyle is approaching 3 weeks old and working towards a daily "routine." That is, as much of a routine as a newborn can be in. He's sleeping 3-4 hours at a time at night, but this means lots of broken sleep for mom & dad Nelson. Chad and I have decided that God made babies so cute because they do try your nerves at 3AM and love to spit up on themselves and you on a fairly regular basis (creating LOTS of laundry). We really love the little guy, despite the challenges (which are pretty minimal). We've had regular visits from Grandma and Grandpa Nelson, Aunt Ruth and Auntie Jennifer which have been terrific. We're enjoying the dinners that have been brought in by friends and we're still getting out for walks everyday. This new life is feeling pretty good and we're definitely getting into the groove. He's about 9.5 pounds now and getting more and more personality everyday. His eyes are focusing in on us a little more and he's making lots of interesting noises, especially when he eats. Speaking of noises, the crying has begun, so I have to run. I'll check back in later.

Another week old!

Hard to believe Kyle will be 2 weeks old tomorrow. He had his 2wk doctor's appointment yesterday, which proved that all the breastfeeding was paying off. His weight went from 7 pounds 11 oz last week to 8 pounds 8 oz this week (he's above his birth weight). He was such a trooper and didn't cry at all during his appointment. Dr. Safir seemed very pleased with how we're all doing and now we don't go back for another month. Yesterday we went for a nice long walk and had another bath. Today we visited with our friend Tiffany (expecting her baby in 2 weeks) and met friends Allison and Annie for coffee at Starbucks. So nice to feel like part of society again, getting out of the house in my number one piece of advice for any new mom (do it as soon as you can!). We're being spoiled with dinners from friends and really enjoyed having Nick, Julia, Spencer and Ryan over last night (thanks for dinner!) Tomorrow night we will attempt (if it's not too cold) to bundle Kyle up and head into Los Gatos for the Los Gatos/Saratoga football game - after dinner with Johnny, Reilly and Alexa. I'm also very excited to see all my work buddies tomorrow for lunch - lots of good company. Kyle is stirring and looking for more food, so I better get going. Thanks for keeping up to date via the blog.

In a routine

Anyone who has seen us lately has probably heard, "he's such a good baby." Don't want to jinx ourselves but he's truly wonderful. He's fallen into a routine and really only seems to cry when he's hungry, in need of a diaper change or overly tired. Chad has a way of holding him that immediately calms him down if Kyle does have a breakdown (such a good thing). Yesterday his umbilical cord stump fell off, so we're hoping to have a "real bath" today, rather than the sponge baths he's been given in the past week (we'll see how that goes). Back to the diaper thing.....I am amazed at how something so small can dirty a diaper (and I mean DIRTY) so many times a day. I've also learned that there is nothing like being peed on during a 4AM diaper change - you definitely need to keep a sense of humor. By the way, those "pee pee tee pees" don't seem to work at this young age, although he may grow into them. Seems the towel method works much better right now, to ensure complete coverage. Yesterday Kyle and I took a field trip to Daddy's work and then also hung out all afternoon with Auntie Jennifer and cousins (Sara and Lynsey). Today we're off to another Dr's appointment, so we'll see how much weight he gained in the past week. I'll keep you posted!

We have left the house!

All is going well. Life really started to feel normal when Chad, Kyle and I went to dinner at El Burro with my parents on Friday night. We all needed it after staying in all week - little stir crazy. We were so relieved, Kyle didn't even bat an eye, just slept in his car seat the entire hour. On Saturday, we took Kyle to his buddy Spencer's 2nd Birthday party and also out to dinner for Grandma Nelson's birthday (Happy Birthday Lynn!!) - very big day. He was great. He slept and then melted down on the way to his grandparents house, which was perfect....over due for a diaper change and very hungry. With all the activity, he also slept like a champ and let mom get at least 7 hours of sleep (although a bit interrupted - 1AM and 4 AM feeding, but slept in until 8AM.) My parents have now left to return home, but will be back in a few weeks for another visit. They were an incredible help and wonderful to have around. Grandma Pat taught Traci lots about taking care of a little one. Grandpa Howard was a great baby holder, made lots of runs to the grocery store and also great morale support. Oh boy, lots of gourmet dinners too; we could get used to that. Looking forward to friends bringing in dinners this next week (thanks to all of you!!)

A Successful First Week

Well we made it! Tomorrow Kyle will be 1 week old. All is going well, thanks to the help of the grandparents, friends and a super daddy! Mom is doing well, although a bit under the weather the last few days. Kyle had his first doctors appointment and checked out perfectly; even the shoulder and arm that did not move much the first few days is now fully operational (thank goodness!) His head is even popped into a normal looking baby head - no more cone (amazing how that happens). I've also attached pictures of his first baby sponge bath by Grandma. We're anxious for everyone to meet him in person and welcome visitors, so just give us a call. Appreciate all of the phone calls and emails with your support and encouragement. We couldn't be happier and look forward to the adventures each new day brings.