Finally, some pictures!!

Michelle, Mom, Brady, and Ali after B's bath. They stayed with me while Bryan was in Ft. Myers for the weekend celebrating Andy's bachelor party. Ali was kicked out of her house since that's where the party was being held, Michelle's financee was the guest of honor at the bachelor party, and mom came to help us out.

Brother and sister having a snuggle before bed...




Sleeping Brady...








Mom holding Brady. Is there anything cuter than a baby snuggled in a hooded blanket? I wish I had smell-vision so you could just smell the baby lotion and shampoo...mmm...











Brady and Katelyn laying on her bed before story time.









School project...decorate the cut-out to look like you. We dressed it in an Ohio State cheerleading outfit and made pom-poms. Here's K with her twin.






Close-up of our project.



More homework :-) K had practice writing Bb's. This one worksheet took us A LONG time because K was so stubborn about getting it done. We're in trouble if we're already having issues doing hw in preschool....

Just can't keep up...

I've turned into such a bad blogger since Brady arrived! And I have so much to say everyday and just don't seem to have an opportunity to sit and blog at all. I honestly don't know where the hours go during the day. It's not like I have anything to show for all the time that goes by...I don't cook elaborate dinners or bake desserts from scratch. My house is tidy, but not super-clean, and there's always of e-mails in my inbox to respond to or voice mails waiting to be returned. Please be patient with me :-) This adjustment from one, pretty independent child, to two children (one totally relying on me for his every need) has thrown me for a loop. I was warned and warned again that life would be v. different once Brady arrived, but until you live it, I don't think you can truly understand. It's hard to explain...it's not terribly difficult, just extremely time-consuming and exhausting. I'm very lucky because Brady is such a good sleeper and has been from day one. He's also an excellent eater...so excellent that he drains me dry and sometimes has more formula in a day than breastmilk because I just can't keep up with him. Also, I have them napping at the same time almost every day, so that does give me a break. It's barely enough time to eat lunch, clean up, and cat nap on the couch before one of them is awake, but it's still a break and I truly enjoy the silence. It's just been a big adjustment. It's hard to ever imagine there being any time or energy left for me (will I ever scrapbook again???), but I know there will be and I hate to wish away these early weeks with Brady. I know how quickly it flies by!!
So, in a nutshell, here's what's been going on in the Burless House since my last blog:
Brady is now 11 lbs. and had his first round of shots this week (he's 8wks old now). He did pretty well, just screamed during the actual pricks and later when his tylenol wore off. Poor little guy had a double ear infection and cold 2 wks. ago, very early to start all that. The pediatrician warned me that ear infections may "be his thing" and we could be looking at tubes in his ears later. We'll see!! He is smiling so much now and is cooing. He only cries when he's hungry (and you better feed him fast!!) or when there's a burp ready.
Katelyn is still so busy! She's become obsessed with "I Spy" books and "If you give a mouse a cookie." The cartoon "Arthur" has become her new favorite. Funny things she's been saying, "Mom, you're a genius!!", "sometimes you have to zip your lips at rest time" (and she tries to demonstrate), "it's fun to have a baby brother. Thank you God." Her birthday is coming up next month and she wants a Dora/Diego party and has been asking everyone for a pogo stick. Turns out Tigger bounces around on one and she thinks it looks quite fun. We've all told her it's too dangerous, but she's persistent!! It's like "A Christmas Story" when the boy wants his beebee gun. Please NO ONE get her a pogo stick!! We'll be in the ER!
Bryan has been busy with work and weddings and bacheor parties and football....etc. We're finally both back home this weekend. It's been quite hectic.
I need to pick up K from school, but I'll post pictures soon.

Time is flying by....

Oh my goodness....it's been 6 weeks already since Brady was born! He is growing so quickly, I can't stand it. He's outgrown all the little newborn clothes and is more alert these days. He loves to be in his bouncey chair and look around and he also loves to lay on the floor under his baby gym and swat the toys that hang above him. Overall, he's an excellent baby! He does spoil very easily and gets used to being held. After the long weekend at my parents where he was passed around and held much more than at home, we had to re-train him once we got home. He wasn't happy, but re-adjusted. Right now, he sleeps 11pm-4 or 5 am, then back to sleep until 8am. After a feeding (had some issues with nursing last week...he was going through a growth spurt and was eating constantly and I didn't have enough milk to satisfy him. He's doing much better now!), he stays up and plays until his next feeding, around 10:30-11am. Then he takes a v. long nap, waking briefly for a feeding at 3:30. He has another stretch of awake time in the evening, 5pm until bedtime, around 10pm. He used to be so fussy at this time, but he seems to be coming out of that. Yay! We had a pedatirician appt. next week, but my guess is he weighs over 10lbs already. His cheeks and belly are so full and he has little rolls on his upper thigh. The best development since my last blog is his smile!! I'll be holding him and feel him looking at me, when I turn to him I just see this big, goofy smile. He's particularly happy in the mornings and grins away. So sweet!!

Katelyn is also doing well. She is busy at school 2x a week and her behavior has been excellent at school...no time outs at all yet! She's made lots of friends and is the teacher's helper. Today she was "snack helper" which she told me means she passes out napkins to all the kids. A very important job!! We're still dealing with her excess energy...I think we'll be dealing with that for the rest of our lives :-)

Crazy side-note: Casey Anthony's family (little girl Caylee has been missing for months now) lives around the corner from us! I see their car around town and today was even driving next to them down the highway. They are doing a search for Caylee down the road from us. Such a sad story.

We had a wonderful weekend in Tampa and celebrated Michelle's bridal shower at a tea room in St. Pete. We all drank so much tea, I thought we'd float home! Everything was delicious and it was fun to dress up in crazy hats. Michelle got lots of great gifts and my sister Jenny was able to fly in from Denver to join us. Great to see Jenny! Wish she still lived here. Brady was the only boy attending and he slept the whole time in his stroller (except for the very beginning when he was crying and I changed his diaper in the stroller and he decided to spray me, himself, his cute little outfit, and hose down his stroller!).

Have to go make dinner before Brady wakes up from his long nap!

Brady's First Bath

Brady's first sponge bath (his cord hasn't fallen off yet) wasn't exactly a hit. He pretty much screamed through the whole thing, but when it was all said and done, he seemed very relaxed and he just smelled delicious!! Mmmm...that baby lotion is just intoxicating!! His hair curls right up as soon as it gets wet. He is such a sweet baby and continues to eat and sleep well.

Quick update...the antibiotics cleared up the mastitis (thank God!!) and Brady nursing has cleared my milk ducts. I no longer feel like I have stones in my boobs. My friend Alissa recommended a nipple shield to protect my poor cracked and bleeding nipple and it has worked like a charm. I told her the nipple shield has changed my life :-) I'm no longer terrified to have him latch on!! Although, since we've had to supplement with a bottle, he's getting quite used to the bottle and is starting to really prefer it over me. We'll need to keep at it and get him used to me again.

We're working through it all...

Challenges

So, we've been home for about a week now and overall, I would say things are going well. My mom has been here for 2 weeks and has been a HUGE help, especially with Katelyn. Katelyn seems to be adjusting well and just wants to help all the time. She gets diapers ready, chooses his clothes to wear in the morning, waves a rattle above hime during diaper changes, etc. Sometimes, she can help too much and swings his swing too high, or gets in his face when he's crying, or even takes out her frustration on him (she did a "knock knock joke" on his head). We have to watch her closely, but she's been pretty good. I find it difficult to balance time and attention btwn the two of them.

Brady has jaundice and has been under billi lights all weekend. He actually seems to really like the warmth and the sound of the fan from the machine. Luckily, his numbers went down and we were able to take him off the lights on Sunday. He's gaining weight and eating/sleeping well...what more can you ask for???

Nursing has been another hurdle. He nurses well and stays latched on, etc. but he's killing my right side. I don't know what he's doing wrong. I'm in so much pain...even water from the shower is painful. Also, my milk supply seems to be low and I still have to supplement him with a bottle, which is a bummer. Sunday night I started to feel like I had the flu and developed a fever of close to 103. My right breast had long, red streaks and was hard as a rock. I called my dr. first thing that morning and was given antibiotics right away as I had developed mastitis. I know it's just the start, but I am so tempted to just give up nursing all together!!

I haven't felt any blues, etc. After K was born, I cried uncontrollably for 2 weeks after her birth. I was just so overwhelmed by every emotion and just felt all over the place. This time around I'm so calm and just even. It's nice not to be on such an emotional roller coaster.

I was afraid I wouldn't love him as much as Katelyn, but as soon as I held him, I felt my heart just get bigger and I fell in love with him right away. Everyone told me there's enough love for both, and they were right!!

We are very lucky to have such an easy-going baby...we are very blessed.

Going Home!!

We're leaving the hospital today and I can't wait. I thought I'd dread leaving, afterall the service here is wonderful...eat what you want, when you want, have your meal delivered to you, dirty dishes taken away, water refills on demand, help with the baby at night, help with anything anytime...etc. And this beautiful view!! I feel like I'm in the penthouse suite up here (see attached picture). But I am ready to go home! I woke up early and eager today. The dr. stopped by early, 10am, and signed my discharge papers. We do have to wait for a billi-blanket to be arranged for delivery to our home, but that's it. Brady has a slight case of jaundice and the ped. suggested taking care of it at home just incase it spikes over the weekend.
So, it took A LONG time for this billi-blanket and we ended up checking out at 3pm. We got Brady dressed in his "going-home" outfit and stopped by Bryan's work quickly. Everyone from his office came down to the street to say hi and see Brady. I didn't have time to take my pain pills before we left and I was hurting, so I wasn't able to get out of the car to say hi, just waved to them, but they seemed to understand. Bryan took Brady out of the car to show him off. When we got home, my sister Michelle and her fiance Andy were waiting for us (Michelle just returned from a work trip to India). My friend Jeanne dropped off pasta and meatballs for dinner...so delicious!! Katelyn was happy to have us at home. She was calling Brady, "that baby", but now she calls him by name and seems to understand he is her brother and he's not going anywhere.
Our first night at home was a dream....Brady got up around 2:30am, then up at 6am and that was it!! We're supplimenting with formula until my milk is all in and that is really satisfying him. Life is so much easier when you have a good night's sleep!! I hope this continues!!

Recovering....

Okay, the pain is pretty bad when you "come to" after the c-section and all the really good drugs wear off. Trying to move in the bed, just reaching for my dinner tray or Brady hurts! Everything below my belly button is extremely sore. I'm still hooked up to my epidural and I have pain meds flowing into my back, controlled by a button I can push as many times as I want. When I push the button, I can feel this cold rush in my back and I know the meds are coming in. The meds help, but I'm really feeling the effects of the surgery. Luckily, Bryan is here and spending the night. He's changing all the diapers, handing Brady to me for feedings, etc. I don't know what I'd do without him. We sent Brady to the nursery for the night and gave the nurses permission to give him a bottle and use the pacifier. I thought we'd be getting a good night's sleep, but at 2am, the lights went on and my nurse, Linda, came in to get me out of bed and walking to the bathroom. Ouch!! It took a while just to swing my legs to the side of the bed. Still lots of blood and pain. After a VERY slow walk to the bathroom and back, it was close to 3am and Bryan was awake, watching my first walk. I went right back to sleep, but then at 6am, the pediatric nurse came in with Brady and we got him right on the breast...he was hungry!! They took him back to the nursery for his check-up (they are checked by pediatricians every morning) and we went ahead and authorized a circumsision for that morning. Bryan went to the nursery to give him a little pep talk, and ended up watching the circumsision (our pediatrician was wonderful and involved us in everything, but I can't believe Bryan observed the whole thing!!). The whole procedure only took 5 minutes! Brady is still sleeping almost all the time and hasn't fussed or cried at all! Mom and Dad will be by with Ali this morning for a visit while K is at school, then will return with K this afternoon. I love this hospital!! The food is delicious and the nurses have to be the sweetest people in the world. My nurse Linda last night was wonderful and so patient with me walking at a snail's pace. I'm feeling a little better today, recovery will get easier as the days pass'