Four Weeks Old

Today Nick is four weeks old!! We cannot believe it's been four weeks since he was born. He is very strong - he holds his head up a lot. He hasn't genuinely smiled yet - we are eagerly awaiting that! We are sure his smile will be beautiful based on the faux smiles he gives us when he's gassy :)

This week was a little traumatic. On Monday, Nick threw up four times and I freaked out. We called his doctor and the nurse said to feed him smaller amounts more frequently to see if that helped and scheduled an appointment for us Tuesday morning. I was really afraid Nick had a condition called pyloric stenosis - a rare condition (but one that occurs most frequently in first born Caucasian males) where the bottom of the stomach closes, and which requires surgery (although a simple surgery) to repair. Silly Internet, allowing me to self-diagnose :P We went to the doctor Tuesday and Nick weighed 9 lbs 10 oz (9 oz more than Friday - a very good sign!) and then the doctor checked him out. He felt for the "olive" - a small mass that can be felt in the groin area of babies with PS - but didn't feel it. Because of the circumstances, though, he wanted to rule out PS and he asked me to take Nick to the emergency room at St. Joe's in Ann Arbor for an upper GI. So I took Nick there and Jeff met us there. They did an ultrasound, which was negative, so it appears as though Nick just has GER - baby acid reflux. I have been feeding him smaller amounts more frequently since Monday night and he hasn't thrown up at all. Hopefully we can control it without having to resort to medication (Zantac or Prevacid). It was very scary to think my little three and a half week old baby might need surgery. I sat in the ER waiting room crying, thinking about all the moms and dads who have to sit through worse things with their little children, like cancer. It was such a relief when the ultrasound was negative!

The rest of the week has been fine - no more throwing up! Just a little bit of spit-up. Wednesday and Thursday we laid low at the house, because of the incessant rain and because I was still worried about him and didn't want to overexcite him. Wednesday evening Audrey and Norm came over for dinner and to meet Nick. He loved them and I hope they loved him too! Friday we met Jeff at his office for lunch, and Nick got to meet Jeff's co-workers. He was adorable and everyone loved him! Then I took him to 12 Oaks for the first time. I nursed him in the (empty) food court. I'm working my way up to public nursing!!

We rescheduled Nick's photo shoot for this week. I am also going into the office one day this week, so Nick will be home all day with Dad instead of Mom. We'll see how that goes! Four more weeks until I'm back to work full-time!

Three Weeks Old

Today Nick is three weeks old! He had another well-baby visit today, and he weighed 9 lbs 1 oz!! The pediatrician said we are doing a great job :) Mom likes to hear that! On Saturday Nick finally met his Great-Grandma Pingle, pictured here - Nick was born on her birthday! We took him to Jimmy John's before the visit - he slept the whole time :)

Sunday Dad had a big meeting at the house, so Mom and Nick went to Target and Babies R Us. Nick stayed in the Moby and slept at both stores :)

Monday and Tuesday there was bad weather, so Mom and Nick stayed home. Wednesday Mom took Nick to her office to meet her co-workers, who thought he was adorable, of course!

On Thursday Mom took Nick to file the principal residence exemption paperwork at the Northville municipal offices, and then to The Little Seedling in Ann Arbor, where Mom bought a Maya sling. Mom and Nick both love the Moby but wanted something a little quicker for around the house. Nick loves the Maya, too - really, it's just another place to nap. :) Today Mom took Nick to his pediatrician's appointment, and at night when Dad came home, the whole family went to Panera in downtown Plymouth. Nick was in the Moby and of course received a lot of attention in there! Mom hasn't worn Nick in the Moby once without hearing another mom exclaim "that's what I need!" :)

This weekend is a big weekend - Nick is going to try a bottle for the first time! All the literature says before 3 weeks is too soon, but after 4 weeks can be too late, so Mom and Dad decided this weekend would be a good time to start. Mom is going to some mom-to-mom sales and to return a few things at various stores, so Dad and Nick will be home alone and Dad can try the bottle.

This coming week, Nick is having some pictures taken - a local photographer is offering free baby sessions, so we figured, why not? And we plan to meet Jeff for lunch one day, so Jeff's co-workers can meet the baby. On Wednesday Nick is going to meet Audrey and Norm Raymond for the first time - some additional grandparents he's lucky enough to have :) Next weekend Jeff is going to be away most of the time at Penguicon, a computer convention - and on Sunday, Nick will be one month old! Goodness gracious, where has the time gone already?? :)

Two Weeks Old

Today Nick is two weeks old. Another exciting week! Monday was Nick and mom's first day at home without Dad. Nothing terribly exciting happened. But Monday night, Nick's umbilical stump fell off. So Tuesday morning Mom gave Nick his first bath - here are some pictures. He did not like it one bit, but looked adorable in his UM hooded towel! Tuesday afternoon Mom took Nick back to the pediatrician for a weight check - the nurse said the goal weight was 7 lbs 10 oz, and Nick weighed in at 8 lbs even!! He really is a champion nurser :) Wednesday Nick met Azita, Dane and Lucy Frattarelli for the first time. They were nice enough to bring Mom and Dad some dinner and dessert, and brought some great board books for Nick. Thursday nothing exciting happened. Today Nick is going to the hospital with Mom to have her blood checked and then we're doing something fun with Lisa. Dad is very excited for the weekend - it's so hard for him to be at work all day, knowing his wife and baby are at home. We are looking forward to a nice family weekend!

Next week, there are no plans except Nick's next well-baby visit on Friday. Mom hopes the weather is nice so we can venture outside more.

I can't believe it's been two weeks since Nick was born. Time goes by so fast. Before we know it, he'll be a year old, and then he'll be starting school, and then it'll be prom time! We are taking as many pictures as possible and savoring every moment of his babyhood!

Happy Easter!

One Week Old

Today Nick is one week old. His first week was an exciting week for everyone! We brought him home from the hospital Sunday night, and Grammie and Grandpa Lundberg and Uncle Jim were nice enough to bring dinner over. Monday Mom and Nick hung out while Dad worked from home. Tuesday was Nick's first pediatrician's appointment - he gained 4 ounces (yay!), but had to have his blood drawn (boo!) :( Tuesday was also Nick's first playdate with Cooper Swanson and Gillian Knudsen :) Wednesday Mom's cousin Brandi, her husband Doug and their one year old, Ethan, brought dinner over and hung out a little. Dinner was delicious and it was nice to talk "parent" talk :) Thursday Mom went out for a few hours and Nick stayed with Dad - who did a great job! When Mom got home, her doula came over to help with nursing and gave Mom some pointers, and taught her the football hold. Then Friday morning the highlight of the week - Aunt Krystyn and Uncle Zack arrived!! Friday was a fun day - and at night Grandma Juarez came over and everyone had an early Easter dinner.

Next week is not nearly as exciting. Another doctor's appointment on Tuesday is the only thing planned!

Nursing is going great. We are learning more about Nick everyday. He hates being naked or on his back. He loves playing with his hands on his face. He makes lots of adorable faces. He likes being talked to and sung to. The cloth diapering is going well - although we are looking forward to him fitting into the Bum Genius diapers :)

We just never contemplated how easily he would fit into our lives and now it feels like we always had him. We both love him so much and think he is just so adorable!!!

First Few Days at Home

Here are some pictures of Nick from his first few days at home. We brought him home Sunday, April 5 around 5 pm. He is doing great - he's a good little nurser, a very good baby and a daddy's boy :) We took him for his first pediatrician appointment Tuesday, April 7 and he has already gained 4 oz! We were very happy with that :)

Thirty-Nine Weeks - he's here!

Nicholas Paul Lundberg was born April 3, 2009 at 3:18 am. He weighed 7 lbs 9 oz and is 21 inches long. I was completely dilated when I arrived at the hospital at 9:21 pm, and I started ineffectively pushing around 11 pm. I didn't start getting good pushes until they gave me a tad bit of pitocin, and he was born less than an hour after that. I am SO GRATEFUL to my doula, Alicia Montgomery, and my midwife, Jan McIntosh - Alicia told me if I had anyone except Jan I would have had a C-Section around midnight. But Jan knew how serious I was about a natural, med-free delivery. I had to have antibiotics because I was strep B positive, and I must have had some kind of infection because my temperature was in the 100s my whole labor. I also had back labor the entire time - we never even measured or counted my contractions, they were one on top of the other the whole time and since it was mostly in my back I could hardly tell when they stopped and started to be able to time them! I did not have any narcotics or an epidural, though - I had the birth I wanted, to a certain degree. Baby Nick needed some help - he was very stressed in there for four hours, lots of meconium, low blood sugar and possibly some of my infection. But we are both doing fabulous now :)