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.

Kyle and Dad

Happy Birthday Kyle

Kyle Kitt Nelson blessed us with his presence at 3:05 PM on Friday, September 21st. He was a whopping 8 pounds 3 oz. and 20.5 inches long. Labor moved quickly once Traci was induced, but it did take 3 hours of pushing - he's got a big head that didn't want to come out. Little Kyle had to be vacuumed out and suffered a bit of a shoulder injury and a misshaped head (all should be fine), but otherwise perfect and amazing. So far he's a great sleeper and especially loves sleeping on dad's chest while he watches football. The weather has been so nice, love this rain - we can hear it and smell it through the sliding glass door of our hospital room; so peaceful. We get to bring Kyle home tomorrow mid day and can't wait to get him settled in and acquainted. He's such a blessing, we are so excited to have him in the family and appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers throughout this journey. We'll write more soon.

It's real now!

Ok, thought I better get this in before we head to the hospital. First of all, I have to begin with....our new carpeting was just put in! Chad worked until 1am to lay the pad last night and made some calls this morning which resulted in two guys at our door by 3PM, to install our long awaited family room carpeting! Good job Chad.
On to baby news, I had another appointment today and have continued to make progress. Even with some progress, the doctor wants to really get things jump started and has scheduled me for a 6AM induction on Friday (yes, the day after tomorrow). We'll see if I make it to Friday, definitely feeling like Baby Kyle may be a little more anxious to make his appearance, but we'll see.
Chad is buying a new car too! He found a 4 door truck, so we're excited about that; more room for the expanding family. Sounds like he'll close that deal tomorrow - lots going on. That's all for now, wish us luck!!

Down to the wire - here's the latest!

Had another appointment today and I'm fully effaced (thinned out) and 2 cm dilated. This is progress, but my doctor thinks I may go to my due date, and beyond. She will induce me Thursday or Friday of next week - so we'll have a baby by end of next week (crazy!) Chad's preference would be Monday, 9/24 to avoid the football weekend - but I know he must be kidding...right? You wouldn't believe how organized every crevace of our house is, the "nesting" concept is no joke...it's all I do. More to come shortly!

Almost there!

9 Days to go! Check out this belly - amazing how skin can stretch. Each day we ask ourselves, "will today be the day?" Traci will have another check-up tomorrow and see if she's dilated beyond last week's 1cm. Making progress, but very anxious to meet little Kyle. We're excited to keep everyone posted via this blog - thank goodness for modern technology. This is especially wonderful for those not living close to us - we want everyone to be a part of this. Wish us good luck and we'll keep you posted as we head into this next Chapter - Parenthood!