5 Weeks

Alain is 5 weeks old today and weighs over 10 pounds! I love how fat his cheeks are getting. They're like little pillows for his face when he lays his head to the side. He's started to be more interactive, and Momma Scott and I even got a real smile for the first time yesterday!

Lots of things to look at and learn-thanks to Uncle Taylor for the wall hanging from Mexico, and to Uncle Alex for the onesie from Italy!)

He had a nice first Christmas. He slept through the Nutcracker (we watched it on TV on Christmas eve), but was wide awake afterwards to welcome his first Christmas at midnight. The three of us had a nice quiet Christmas day at home. Taison and I didn't do Christmas shopping this year, but Alain ended up with a nice pile of presents to open on Christmas morning. He got lots of cute outfits, some books and toys, and a few "my first Christmas" ornaments. My parents drove up the day after Christmas and stayed until this morning. They did a lot of baby snuggling, and also some cooking and cleaning : ).

He's learning to drink from a bottle. I plan to breastfeed for a long time, but it will be nice to be able to have someone else feed him every now and then so I can go to yoga, sing in a concert, or just have a solo trip to the grocery store. I teared up a little the first time I saw Taison feeding him, partly because they looked so cute together, and partly because taking a bottle means he's growing up and already starting to need mommy a little less.

From two days old to five weeks old

Milk Dreams

Alain has the sweetest dreams after a good late-night (or early morning) feeding when he's milk-drunk. He tilts his head back and forth and joyful smiles flash across his face.

The other night, he even laughed a little in his sleep. This made me cry a little, because it occurred to me that he was probably playing with Julian in his dream world. I love both of my baby boys so much. As much as I wish I could see them play together in this world, it's nice to think of Julian as Alain's guardian angel and occasional dreamtime playmate.

3 Weeks

Alain is three weeks old today! Here's a little of what we've been up to the past week:

 Looking at the lights on the Christmas tree. We can tell his eyesight is improving-he's even started to make eye contact with us.

Hanging out with daddy after work 

First evening outing to an event at MGH. Alain slept most of the time, but we were out long enough to try out a public restroom diaper change (by Taison) and public breastfeeding (by yours truly, of course). Both were successful. This is the only photo we took-it looks like Alain is screaming, but I think this was just a yawn. His yawns are pretty dramatic.

We had several outings last week (doctor appointments, new moms groups), but have been homebound for the last couple of days because it's been so cold, snowy, and icy. I'm not too stir crazy yet, but am looking forward to warmer temperatures later this week. The days actually go by quickly even when we're at home. I think it's because I'm never quite sure what the next hour will bring.

: )

Quick Update

Alain had a great 2 week appointment today. He's back to his birth weight exactly, which was where the pediatrician wanted him to be by now. (Yay, all of that cluster feeding has paid off!)

Snug in his car seat on the way to the pediatrician

Taison is back at work now, and I'm doing pretty well on my own with baby. Nights are not my favorite, but being up at night is part of the deal. Alain wakes up every couple of hours to be nursed and changed. He'll usually go back to sleep pretty easily, but I kind of hold my breath until he does. I've gotten better at forcing myself to take naps during the day when he does. Of course, Taison has been holding up his end of the baby and housekeeping duties, even though he is home less now.

Alain has a belly button now! His cord fell off at about 4 days old, and his belly button is all healed, which means we were able to give him a "real" bath for the first time yesterday. He didn't hate it too much : )

Our First Week

Alain is already a week old! (Actually, 8 days old now.) He has met both sets of grandparents, an aunt, a cousin, and Coco so far. He'll meet his uncles later this month.

He had a great checkup with the pediatrician on Saturday. Besides eating and sleeping, he's had some tummy time and some naked time:

We met the Milk Monster last Wednesday night, when we were still in the hospital. Milk Monster is sweet baby Alain's alter ego. He demands milk on about an hourly basis some nights, and makes a face like this:

We love Milk Monster just as much as we do Alain; he's just a little more challenging to deal with, and we haven't yet been able to predict when he'll appear.

Taison and my dad put up Alain's quilt made by his great-grandma Merry. The nursery looks even cozier now. It's so nice to finally use it as a nursery. Alain doesn't sleep in there yet, but we spend plenty of time there doing diaper changes, wardrobe changes, and nursing.

We've also gone on some outings this week, including getting our Christmas tree today! Alain does okay in the car, and the carrier that we use when we go on walks puts him right to sleep. 

Taison and I have done well with week 1, and our first couple of days without grandma and grandpa Scott have been fine (they left us a lot of food : )). We're looking forward to seeing some more visitors starting this weekend. It has been so nice to have this quiet time to get our bearings and to enjoy these first few days with little Alain.