Doctor's Visit #2 - Two Month Check Up

Here is the recap from Andrew's Two Month Check Up this afternoon.

Two Month Check Up Vitals:
- Height: 23 in (from 20 3/4 in at two week check up);
- Weight: 11 lbs 2.5 oz (from 8 lbs 0.5 oz at two week check up); and
- Head Circumference: 16 in (from 14 3/4 in at two week check up)

Andrew's height and weight are both in the 50th percentile, but his head is in the 75th percentile. Cabeza Grande!!

Dr. Isenhower said everything looks good; and Andrew is growing as he should. He still has jaundice, but she is still not too concerned because it looks better than our last visit. However, she wanted to run some additional bloodwork to determine exactly where his bilirubin levels are and to confirm whether they were lower from our previous appointment. We received the lab results earlier this evening. The bilirubin has decreased a good amount, but it still not where we would like them to be. So in two weeks, we will take him back to the lab to check it again.

But the worst part of the appointment was the three immunizations Andrew received. The moment Nurse Clara poked him, he screamed. He definitely hasn't ever cried that hard before (not even at birth!) He even turned bright red. Poor thing! Luckily, he didn't cry too long. After I held him and fed him, he was much better. Whew!

Here is a picture of our little trooper and Dr. Isenhower.

Happy Two Month Birthday!

Andrew spent his two month birthday out and about. First, we picked up Daddy at his office and then went out to lunch. Then, we ran a quick errand for Mommy. Tonight, we are meeting some of Mommy's friends for Girls Night Out. Yes, Mommy knows that he's not a girl, but I want to give Daddy some alone time to study for his CFA exam in June.

He is definitely smiling and talking a lot more. Also, he has such much better control of his neck and head. I don't know where the two months have gone by. He is so different from the little 7 lb baby we brought home from the hospital.

A.J. is sleeping well at nights; and I think he may have the hang of days and nights fairly well right now. Of course, I suspect his sleeping patterns will change soon enough. He is still a really good baby and doesn't cry too much. But two months have surely been ample time for his lungs to develop. He can sure make his frustrations known!! It's so cute because when he gets sad, his lower lip rolls outward. I will try to take a picture of it if I can.

So, Happy Two Month Birthday, Drew Bear!!

Here's a picture of the birthday boy in his bouncer taken this afternoon.

Smiling...Take Two

Finally!! After numerous attempts, Mommy was able to catch A.J. smiling on camera!

Yesterday, Drew attended his first crawfish boil that was graciously hosted by my friends, Tim and Kim Mathis. Daddy and Mommy were happy to get out on such a gorgeous spring day, see some dear friends, eat some mudbugs, and drink some beer. Hmmm....beer. Andrew was very cooperative sleeping most of the time. It was an awesome party; and we had a really great time!

Happy 4th Anniversary

Four years ago today, James and I took our vows and became husband and wife. In one way, it seems like yesterday that we were in Lake Tahoe with family and friends starting our married life; but in another way, it seems like an eternity ago.

I don't need a day every year to know how blessed I am to have a wonderful husband. But every anniversary, I do reflect upon my life with James and the love we share. And today is no different. I think about what the last four years have brought us and how much our lives have changed. We have since gained new family including a niece and nephew, new friends, new adventures, and new memories. Then, I think about just what the past year has brought us. We have gained a new degree, a new career, more friends, more adventures, more memories, and of course, Andrew. But this year, I think this anniversary is even more special in that we celebrate it with our most special gift. He is truly a testament of our love.

I know I am incredibly lucky because James is still a wonderful husband and best friend, but he also such an amazing father. I always knew he would be. James jokes that he wouldn't have married me if I didn't like sports, but I joke that I wouldn't have married him if he didn't like kids.

So, what might we be doing to celebrate you might ask? Well, we deliberated having my parents babysit while we go to a nice romantic dinner. But we opted to stay in and have a quiet meal here with Andrew. Maybe later, we will have that night by ourselves and celebrate again. But for now, we are happy it just being the three of us tonight.

Happy Anniversary, James! Thank you for marrying me and giving me your love and support all these years. I love you so much!

To commemorate the occasion, I am including our wedding slideshow and another one of our lives since then. I assume it's still blurry, but the higher quality slideshow are too big and cumbersome to post.

Talking

I finally got Andrew "talking" on video. The other times, he has either completely stopped cooing or will only make a few sounds and then clamor up. But this morning, he was a happy and talkative baby...and Mommy was a happy camper that she got this clip.

Our Little Masterpiece

Well, another week has come and gone. Andrew is 7 weeks old now; and I really don't know where the time goes. James and I continue to be astounded about how big he is getting and how much he continues to develop, including his improved tracking skills and head and neck control. Mommy has been anxiously waiting for the arrival of his tree trunks (what I like to call chubby baby thighs)!! They are getting there, but I want more!

A.J. and I got out of the house some this past week. On Wednesday, our apartment complex had to shut off the water for a few hours, so we headed down to League City for the day. We visited Jenny and Eric, who is absolutely adorable (and whose tree trunks have already come in) and hung out with Ngoai.

Next, on Friday, James and I took Drew to his first museum outing at the Houston Museum of Fine Arts for a special showing of a new exhibit of works from John Alexander {little dark for me, but had some good pieces}. Drew did really well only getting fussy twice and the second time being our warning that he was getting hungry and that it was time to head home to feed him. So we had to cut the Pompeii exhibit short {sad to see some of the artifacts, but still amazing that they were recovered}. Some people were cute about having a baby there. We didn't hear any negative comments...well, none to our face anyhow nor did we see any obvious scowls or signs of disapproval. But I was really tickled when one woman came up and told us that our little angel was the most precious piece of art there!! James and I have actually joked that he is our little masterpiece. I am glad someone else finally caught on! :)

Then, Janine and her family came into town on Saturday. Andrew welcomed his Aunt Janine, Uncle Mike, and Cousins Stephanie and Thomas warmly by being unusually fussy. But after he fell asleep, he made amends and showed them that he is in fact a good baby by sleeping well that night only waking up once and being so good at the restaurant for breakfast. We were sad it was such a short trip, but loved having them here and were grateful for any time with them!

Here are pictures of Eric, Aunt Janine, and Cousin Stephanie with our little work of art.

Smiling

Recently, Andrew has been cooing and "talking" more to us. Sometimes, he will just look back at you intently while you converse with him. And if you are lucky enough, he will smile at you. It just makes my heart melt.

Unfortunately, we have tried unsuccessfully to capture him smiling on camera. Either we snap the picture too early or too late or when we do get the smile, it's blurry. Here are the best ones from the other day. The second one has a little yellow tint because I was messing with the camera settings (so no, it's not the jaundice!) Sorry, they aren't that great; but hopefully, we will get better ones soon.