Luke has been taking swim lessons for the past two weeks at the MISD Natatorium. I heard about the program from my neighbor, who had it recommended to her, and I am so glad that I did.
The progress that Luke has made in the past two weeks is astounding. At the end of last summer he started swimming a little bit on his own, but has absolutely no technique to speak of. And he couldn't swim for very far. By the beginning of this summer, that was gone and he would only swim while wearing a lifejacket or his float belt. Which was fine at the time because I couldn't get in the water with him so soon after having a baby, and that way he could at least swim on his own.
The first day of class was a struggle for him, as every new experience is. He is so my child. I hate that I have passed that on. Anyway...he spent most of the class with his bottom lip stuck out and didn't do much. The second day went so much better and by day three he loved it. He started at level 1 and is already up to level 3. That's one thing I love about this program, as soon as the kid masters a skill level, they begin teaching him the next level. Right now he is working on kicking correctly on his front and on his back. The session ends tomorrow and I'm hoping to sign him up for one more this summer. They start learning actual strokes in level 4 and I think it's time for him to get that instruction.
What amazes me is how confident he is in the water now. I took him to the community pool yesterday - my first time in the water after having Caleb - and he was all over the place. And most of the time he was not wearing his float belt - just swimming around! It was awesome to watch.
Here's a little video of him jumping in and swimming to the side:
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Video of Caleb!
Caleb is starting to find his voice! Other than his normal noises he has started making the cutest "oooohhhhh" sound. Melts my heart! And he is starting to smile a lot more, too. This afternoon he was chilling in my lap after a feeding and I happened to get his "oooohhhh" sound AND smiles on video. I just love that he is starting to get a little personality.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Friday, June 17, 2011
Thursday, June 16, 2011
1 Month Old!
Caleb is one month old today!
The past month has gone quickly and slowly at the same time. Caleb has been such an easy going baby. He still pretty much only cries when he is hungry or tired. When he's awake, he is content to just chill out in someone's arms, or in his bouncy seat, or in his swing. He does not like riding in the car; or else we just always go somewhere when he's tired. He screams his head off in the car until he falls asleep, this is really the only time he is inconsolable.
He is still sleeping in the pack n play in our room. Some nights he ends up sleeping in the crook of my arm b/c I've fallen asleep while nursing him. He wakes up every 3-4 hours at night; occasionally I've gotten a 5 hour stretch but nothing is consistent at this point. I must admit I am looking forward to getting into a routine, but at this point we're just going with the flow.
Caleb has started making eye contact and will follow a toy or object back and forth. His favorite thing to do is look at the bear mobile hanging over his pack n play. He will stare at them, and Luke loves to make it turn for him to watch.
Other info:
-He is still wearing all newborn clothes and newborn diapers.
-We started giving him Zantac last Friday for a mild case of reflux.
-Gripe water is a miracle worker when he is having issues with his tummy OR when he has the hiccups. And he gets the hiccups EVERY morning.
-This week he has broken out with newborn acne VERY badly. It's all over his head and it makes me sad. I wish we could do something about it, but there is nothing we can do except let it run its course.
-His hair is falling out. He looks like an old man with a receding hairline. It's almost completely gone on the top of his head...which means you can REALLY see the acne. This makes me sad, too; I loved the hair he was born with!
The past month has gone quickly and slowly at the same time. Caleb has been such an easy going baby. He still pretty much only cries when he is hungry or tired. When he's awake, he is content to just chill out in someone's arms, or in his bouncy seat, or in his swing. He does not like riding in the car; or else we just always go somewhere when he's tired. He screams his head off in the car until he falls asleep, this is really the only time he is inconsolable.
He is still sleeping in the pack n play in our room. Some nights he ends up sleeping in the crook of my arm b/c I've fallen asleep while nursing him. He wakes up every 3-4 hours at night; occasionally I've gotten a 5 hour stretch but nothing is consistent at this point. I must admit I am looking forward to getting into a routine, but at this point we're just going with the flow.
Caleb has started making eye contact and will follow a toy or object back and forth. His favorite thing to do is look at the bear mobile hanging over his pack n play. He will stare at them, and Luke loves to make it turn for him to watch.
Other info:
-He is still wearing all newborn clothes and newborn diapers.
-We started giving him Zantac last Friday for a mild case of reflux.
-Gripe water is a miracle worker when he is having issues with his tummy OR when he has the hiccups. And he gets the hiccups EVERY morning.
-This week he has broken out with newborn acne VERY badly. It's all over his head and it makes me sad. I wish we could do something about it, but there is nothing we can do except let it run its course.
-His hair is falling out. He looks like an old man with a receding hairline. It's almost completely gone on the top of his head...which means you can REALLY see the acne. This makes me sad, too; I loved the hair he was born with!
Brotherly Love
Luke LOVES Caleb...and I think the feeling is mutual. Luke is the only person who Caleb will stare at, and he always looks for him whenever he hears his voice. I can't wait to see these two interact as Caleb gets bigger.
One thing Luke loves to do is hold his baby brother. He is such a sweet boy.
One thing Luke loves to do is hold his baby brother. He is such a sweet boy.
Happy 60th, Mammie!
Sunday, June 12, was my mom's 60th birthday! So weird that both of my parents are in their 60's now...makes me feel old. :)
Mom and her grandsons:
We went to Dallas to celebrate. Her best friend from childhood Ann and her husband Bill came into town to celebrate, as did her other best friend Heather. We all went out to dinner to celebrate, along with another friend, Diane, who owns the stable that Trigger used to live at.
Group picture back at the house:
On the couch: Heather, Dad, Mom, Caleb, Luke, me
Behind the couch: Diane, Justin, Beth, Ann, Bill, Nate
Luke helping Mammie open her present from us...a Texas Rangers hat from Me & Miss Priss.
Time to sing Happy Birthday.
Blowing out the candles.
Mom and her grandsons:
We went to Dallas to celebrate. Her best friend from childhood Ann and her husband Bill came into town to celebrate, as did her other best friend Heather. We all went out to dinner to celebrate, along with another friend, Diane, who owns the stable that Trigger used to live at.
Group picture back at the house:
On the couch: Heather, Dad, Mom, Caleb, Luke, me
Behind the couch: Diane, Justin, Beth, Ann, Bill, Nate
Luke helping Mammie open her present from us...a Texas Rangers hat from Me & Miss Priss.
Time to sing Happy Birthday.
Blowing out the candles.
Family Reunion
Last Saturday we went to a family reunion on Nate's side of the family. We had lots of fun at his aunt Cheree's house. Luke especially had a blast - he played in the pool almost the entire time we were there! He even got enough courage to jump of the diving board...and once he did it once, he did it a million times.
Cool thing about the reunion - Caleb got to meet his great grandmother (Granny) and great great grandmother (Tubba). They are Nate's mom's mom and grandmother. We had to get a five generations picture that included Caleb.
Caleb was so alert for the picture!
Cool thing about the reunion - Caleb got to meet his great grandmother (Granny) and great great grandmother (Tubba). They are Nate's mom's mom and grandmother. We had to get a five generations picture that included Caleb.
Caleb was so alert for the picture!
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Luke's 4th Birthday
Here's a recap of Luke's 4th birthday!
He woke up early, of course, so we were up at 7:28 AM to celebrate the exact minute he turned four. We were looking at the caterpillars from the
live Butterfly Garden who had turned into the chrysalises (chrysseli?). We were about to transfer them to their habitat when he officially became a four year old.
Later that morning we headed to the park with Michelle, Sarah, Eva, Jamie, Joshie, Reese, and Kinley. Luke was so excited to play with some of his friends on his birthday.
I've always had to help him with this part; he decided to do it by himself on his birthday.
How Caleb spent his first trip to the park:
The big kids at the pond/fountain:
Luke's original request was for a picnic at the park. Well turns out none of us moms felt like packing a lunch and it was so hot that we opted for Chick-fil-a and air conditioning.
After a fun and eventful lunch - seven kids five and under, need I say more? - we came home to nap. We had to be well rested so we could continue our tradition of going to the Rangers game on either our anniversary or Luke's birthday! It worked out perfectly that the Rangers came back in town on Luke's birthday to play the Tigers.
The past few games we've been to Luke has begged to go play games in center field, but we've never made it out there. This time when Luke asked to go play, we headed that way. He played most of the games out there, with the exception of the Coca-Cola Wiffle Ball Park. That's the one where they pitch the ball to the kids to try to hit a home run. The line is always wrapped around the park, so I told Luke that he had to be five before he could do it. Honestly, he really does need to be a little older, I'm not that horrible of a mom.
One of the games he tried was where you throw the ball at the target, and the target is a catcher's mitt. He got three tries to get it in the target, and on the third try he DID it! The ball went right in. Nate and I were so proud. Just look at his form!
He got a Rangers calendar for it, he was so excited.
He also did something similar to the Wiffle Ball Park, except you hit off the tee and attempt to hit it over the fence. His first two balls were weakly hit, the bat was long and skinny and not something he was used to. The guy next to me made a comment that he needed a smaller bat and I shrugged and just said that he's never played T-Ball before. No sooner did the words leave my mouth when he cranked a ball over the fence. The guy looked at me in disbelief and said something to the effect of "he's never played before?" and I just shrugged again. But I was beaming. He got a Nelson Cruz magnet for hitting the home run.
After he got his fix of the games and we got snow cones, we headed back to our seats to get ready for either the Dot Race or the Texas Legends Race. Turns out it was the Dot Race, and Green Dot won. It's the first time we've seen the Dot Race this year where Red Dot hasn't won, Luke was a little disappointed. I thought it was perfect for Green to win, simply because it was OUR Green Dot's first Rangers game (on the outside, anyway!)
At this point we were split up, Nate and Luke down at the seats behind the Rangers dugout and Caleb and I up under the overhang because he wanted to walked around. During the 7th inning Nate called me and said that the Legends were standing out in center field. They were waiting to go out and dance during the 7th inning stretch. Luke is just as obessed with the Legends as he is the Dots, so they were headed out there and I said I would meet them there.
Thanks to a pitching change, we made it out there before the end of the top of the inning. Luke got to see them up close and have his picture taken with each of them. He was in heaven! He just stood and stared at Davy Crockett in awe after the picture. It was so cute to watch him. And wow, they are HUGE! In the pictures, Jim Bowie and Davy Crockett are on their knees. Sam Houston is standing.
Jim Bowie (or Bluey as Luke says)
Sam Houston
Davy Crockett
I wanted a picture of me and the boys and we didn't have a chance to take it until the end of the night. So we got me, Luke, and the Wrath of Caleb. Poor baby was over the wrap, over the noise, and ready for bed.
Luke says that his favorite part of the day was meeting Davy Crockett. I'm so glad he had a great birthday!
He woke up early, of course, so we were up at 7:28 AM to celebrate the exact minute he turned four. We were looking at the caterpillars from the
live Butterfly Garden who had turned into the chrysalises (chrysseli?). We were about to transfer them to their habitat when he officially became a four year old.
Later that morning we headed to the park with Michelle, Sarah, Eva, Jamie, Joshie, Reese, and Kinley. Luke was so excited to play with some of his friends on his birthday.
I've always had to help him with this part; he decided to do it by himself on his birthday.
How Caleb spent his first trip to the park:
The big kids at the pond/fountain:
Luke's original request was for a picnic at the park. Well turns out none of us moms felt like packing a lunch and it was so hot that we opted for Chick-fil-a and air conditioning.
After a fun and eventful lunch - seven kids five and under, need I say more? - we came home to nap. We had to be well rested so we could continue our tradition of going to the Rangers game on either our anniversary or Luke's birthday! It worked out perfectly that the Rangers came back in town on Luke's birthday to play the Tigers.
The past few games we've been to Luke has begged to go play games in center field, but we've never made it out there. This time when Luke asked to go play, we headed that way. He played most of the games out there, with the exception of the Coca-Cola Wiffle Ball Park. That's the one where they pitch the ball to the kids to try to hit a home run. The line is always wrapped around the park, so I told Luke that he had to be five before he could do it. Honestly, he really does need to be a little older, I'm not that horrible of a mom.
One of the games he tried was where you throw the ball at the target, and the target is a catcher's mitt. He got three tries to get it in the target, and on the third try he DID it! The ball went right in. Nate and I were so proud. Just look at his form!
He got a Rangers calendar for it, he was so excited.
He also did something similar to the Wiffle Ball Park, except you hit off the tee and attempt to hit it over the fence. His first two balls were weakly hit, the bat was long and skinny and not something he was used to. The guy next to me made a comment that he needed a smaller bat and I shrugged and just said that he's never played T-Ball before. No sooner did the words leave my mouth when he cranked a ball over the fence. The guy looked at me in disbelief and said something to the effect of "he's never played before?" and I just shrugged again. But I was beaming. He got a Nelson Cruz magnet for hitting the home run.
After he got his fix of the games and we got snow cones, we headed back to our seats to get ready for either the Dot Race or the Texas Legends Race. Turns out it was the Dot Race, and Green Dot won. It's the first time we've seen the Dot Race this year where Red Dot hasn't won, Luke was a little disappointed. I thought it was perfect for Green to win, simply because it was OUR Green Dot's first Rangers game (on the outside, anyway!)
At this point we were split up, Nate and Luke down at the seats behind the Rangers dugout and Caleb and I up under the overhang because he wanted to walked around. During the 7th inning Nate called me and said that the Legends were standing out in center field. They were waiting to go out and dance during the 7th inning stretch. Luke is just as obessed with the Legends as he is the Dots, so they were headed out there and I said I would meet them there.
Thanks to a pitching change, we made it out there before the end of the top of the inning. Luke got to see them up close and have his picture taken with each of them. He was in heaven! He just stood and stared at Davy Crockett in awe after the picture. It was so cute to watch him. And wow, they are HUGE! In the pictures, Jim Bowie and Davy Crockett are on their knees. Sam Houston is standing.
Jim Bowie (or Bluey as Luke says)
Sam Houston
Davy Crockett
I wanted a picture of me and the boys and we didn't have a chance to take it until the end of the night. So we got me, Luke, and the Wrath of Caleb. Poor baby was over the wrap, over the noise, and ready for bed.
Luke says that his favorite part of the day was meeting Davy Crockett. I'm so glad he had a great birthday!
A Little About Caleb
We are so in love with this sweet baby boy! He has been such a good baby so far. He still sleeps the majority of the day, but when he is awake he is content to just chill out and take in the world around him. Until he decides he is hungry or wants to go to sleep...then we see the Wrath of Caleb until he gets what he wants.
You can just tell that he already loves his big brother; he will always search out Luke's voice when he is awake. Luke loves to talk to him and "play" with him. He is such a big helper and he takes his "jobs" very seriously. For example, if Caleb spits out his paci and then starts fussing, Luke immediately rushes to his aid and gives him back the paci.
Breastfeeding is still going great. Caleb had his first bottle on Tuesday of pumped breastmilk and, while he ate it, he didn't love it. He was relieved to get back to the breast at the next feeding. He wakes to eat every 3-4 hours, day and night. In the evening he eats more often, though. We are still just nursing on demand, whenever he decides he is hungry. And when he decides he is hungry, I must move quickly because the Wrath of Caleb happens without warning. My favorite part about nursing is how he holds my hand while he eats. It is adorable.
Caleb has had two doctor appointments so far - one on May 20th and the next on May 31st. The one on May 20th was his "get out of the hospital" check up. He weighed 7 lb 7 oz - gained 1 oz since leaving the hospital. He was 21 1/2" long. His two week check up was May 31st and he was 8 lb 5 oz and 21 1/2" long.
So far adjusting from one to two kids has been pretty easy, but something tells me that when Caleb starts staying awake more and then eventually becomes mobile, my world will turn upside down!
Caleb's first time in the swing - May 20th
Cute little baby foot - May 21st
Chillin' in the bouncy seat - May 21st
Me and the boys - May 21st
Talking to Caleb - May 23rd
Luke holding Caleb - May 26th
Newborn onesies are so big on him! And another good look at the chicken legs. May 28th
Hanging out with Daddy - May 28th
The Wrath of Caleb - May 28th (this was the very beginning!)
Luke and Caleb, again. This time on June 1st.
Me and the boys. Man, I look tired. June 1st.
Sweet baby...I love this picture. June 1st
Playing with Luke on the activity mat. Lily is always close by, too. June 1st.
Love this one, too. June 3rd
Training him early. (That's the Rangers game from the night before on the computer). June 3rd
He is looking at Luke and me like 'you people are SO weird!'
Love these, too. June 7th
You can just tell that he already loves his big brother; he will always search out Luke's voice when he is awake. Luke loves to talk to him and "play" with him. He is such a big helper and he takes his "jobs" very seriously. For example, if Caleb spits out his paci and then starts fussing, Luke immediately rushes to his aid and gives him back the paci.
Breastfeeding is still going great. Caleb had his first bottle on Tuesday of pumped breastmilk and, while he ate it, he didn't love it. He was relieved to get back to the breast at the next feeding. He wakes to eat every 3-4 hours, day and night. In the evening he eats more often, though. We are still just nursing on demand, whenever he decides he is hungry. And when he decides he is hungry, I must move quickly because the Wrath of Caleb happens without warning. My favorite part about nursing is how he holds my hand while he eats. It is adorable.
Caleb has had two doctor appointments so far - one on May 20th and the next on May 31st. The one on May 20th was his "get out of the hospital" check up. He weighed 7 lb 7 oz - gained 1 oz since leaving the hospital. He was 21 1/2" long. His two week check up was May 31st and he was 8 lb 5 oz and 21 1/2" long.
So far adjusting from one to two kids has been pretty easy, but something tells me that when Caleb starts staying awake more and then eventually becomes mobile, my world will turn upside down!
Caleb's first time in the swing - May 20th
Cute little baby foot - May 21st
Chillin' in the bouncy seat - May 21st
Me and the boys - May 21st
Talking to Caleb - May 23rd
Luke holding Caleb - May 26th
Newborn onesies are so big on him! And another good look at the chicken legs. May 28th
Hanging out with Daddy - May 28th
The Wrath of Caleb - May 28th (this was the very beginning!)
Luke and Caleb, again. This time on June 1st.
Me and the boys. Man, I look tired. June 1st.
Sweet baby...I love this picture. June 1st
Playing with Luke on the activity mat. Lily is always close by, too. June 1st.
Love this one, too. June 3rd
Training him early. (That's the Rangers game from the night before on the computer). June 3rd
He is looking at Luke and me like 'you people are SO weird!'
Love these, too. June 7th
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