3 weeks old

Well, I'm late with the 3 weeks post.  Parker went through a growth spurt last week, and it was a trying time for me as he was an eating machine.  I didn't have time to do anything but feed him.  Luckily, we seem to be past the worst of it, and he's sleeping for longer intervals now.  Here's our sweet baby on his 3 week birthday:

The weird thing is that, if Parker hadn't come early, he could have still been in my belly at this point because the midwife wasn't going to induce until I went 13 days past my due date.  Isn't that crazy?!

Last Tuesday, Parker had his 2-week check-up.  The goal is for baby to get back to his/her birth weight by the 2-week visit, and our growing boy surpassed that by weighing in at 7 lbs, 10 oz (1 lb, 3 oz more than his birth weight).  He measured 21 inches long which is 2 inches longer than at his birth.  He was in the 21st percentile for weight and the 73rd percentile for height; my little string bean!  

While the pediatrician was examining him, she accidentally knocked his umbilical cord stump off, so Parker was able to take his first real bath this week.  We've noticed that he seems to focus on our faces more with his eyes and that he's starting to grasp things with his hands. 

To celebrate his due date on Aug. 19, we had a professional photo shoot.  Parker was hungry and grumpy during most of the shoot, but we were able to get some decent shots.  Here are some pics from it:  

I love this sweet face.

Parker is such a snuggly boy.

My aunt gave him a gift in this awesome bag.

Happy boy!  Look at that cute dimple.

Family portrait

We are ready for Parker's first college football season!

2 weeks old

How is my tiny baby already 2 weeks old?  We can tell he's changed.  Parker's face has filled out, and he's grown longer or at least stretches out more often.  We still think he's the best baby ever.  He only cries when he's hungry or needs changing.  He's not a fan of getting his diaper changed and kicks his legs and fights it, but he's getting better about calming down during or after changes.  He's become very messy this week having had several leaky diapers and peeing during diaper changes.  I knew we'd go through a lot of diapers, but I had no idea how often he might need changing.  He sleeps most of the day and looks so adorable:

Parker is still doing well at night and letting me sleep 3-4 hours between feedings.  He is a pro at shopping and eating at restaurants; he sleeps through every outing.  He is awake for only a few hours each day and just looks around.  We think he's started focusing on our faces more in the past couple of days.  This week, he went to both mommy and daddy's work, and he was a perfect baby and let everyone hold him.
I'm doing well and have been able to go on longer strolls lately.  I've lost over half of the baby weight and can already fit into some of my pre-pregnancy jeans!  I am pretty shocked by that.  It's nice to be able to wear my old clothes again.
Here are pictures from each day of Parker's 2nd week:

Getting love from his Grandmama

Looking like a little man in his shorts

First time at the lake

I love this one.  Look at those skinny limbs

Precious sleepy boy

Trying out his play mat.  He's still too young to appreciate it

Sweet alert baby

Parker's first week

Parker is such a good baby, and we've loved every minute of his first week.  He's such a tiny little guy; newborn size clothes swallow him up.  His arms, legs, and waist are super skinny, and we think he's so cute in his huge outfits.

After a few days of bad sleep in the hospital and when we first got home, we've had 3 straight nights of good sleep with Parker only waking up around 4:00 and 7:00.  He only cries when he's hungry, needs a diaper change, or is cold, and he calms down as soon as his needs are taken care of.  We have been on outings each day, and he's been a perfect angel and slept through each one.  Parker has had several visitors, both local and out of town guests, and he's been a good baby during all of the visits.  The cats have adjusted well to him and pretty much ignore him.


Some of our favorite moments are when he is alert.  He has such big, curious eyes that look around taking the world in, and he makes silly faces to go along with it.  He started smiling in his sleep on Monday, and he is so very adorable when he does that.  On Tuesday, he started rolling over onto his side.  He has a strong neck and is able to hold his head up some.  We think he's absolutely perfect.

I'm recovering well.  While I'm not up for long walks or exercising yet, I've been able to go on daily shopping outings with no trouble.  I probably got 8 total hours of sleep from Thursday through Monday so I'm tired, but it's not as bad as I thought it would be.  What's most surprising is that I'm "skinny" again.  It's so weird for my big belly to be gone.  I can wear my regular shirts already, and it's odd to be able to suck in my stomach.  I thought I'd be sad and miss Parker in my belly once he was born, but that hasn't been the case.  I see what he's doing and picture him having done that inside of me, but I'm happy to have him out in the world and feel blessed that I get to know him.

We've probably taken thousands of pictures of our sweet Little Man.  Here are pictures from each day of his life.  We hope you enjoy him as much as we do!

Just a few hours old - Mommy loves him

1 day old - Getting love from daddy

2 days old - This outfit is supposed to be newborn-sized shorts.  Look how big it is on my tiny baby!

3 days old - Getting spoiled by his Agi

4 days old - Helping Mr. Big paint the guest bedroom

5 days old - Practicing for football season

6 days old - Looking like an elf

1 week old - So loved by his parents

    

Best Birthday Present Ever!!!

I couldn't have asked for a better present then sweet Parker for my birthday (8/8/12)! He and I had a great time. We spent the time bonding and enjoying some excursions to Firehouse Subs and Fuddruckers! He also gave me an awesome Superman and Batman shirt for my birthday. He's been such a wonderful baby! I love him to pieces! Below are some pics from my birthday.

Me and my little superman

I'm flying for you Daddy!

My little buddy and me!

Parker out for lunch with his Daddy and Mr. Big

Introducing Parker Himal D!!!

Our Little Man, Parker Himal D was born on August 3, 2012 at 6:23 PM.  He was 6 pounds, 7 ounces and 19 inches long.  He's doing well, and we think he's the cutest little thing ever!  We went home from the hospital today, and once we get settled in, we'll fill you in on his birth details.  In the meantime, here are some pics of our special blessing.

Going home.

Welcome home, Parker!

Pregnancy Must-Haves

Pregnancy is a very strange thing.  The changes to your body are bizarre and often uncomfortable, but I have truly enjoyed getting to experience it.  Now that I’m in the home stretch, I’d like to share some of the things that have helped make my pregnancy more pleasant.

Supportive partner – This is by far the most important item on this list for me.  Himal has been 100% invested in our baby from the beginning.  He has missed only 2 prenatal appointments, attended childbirth classes with me and solo, educated himself on childbirth, taken on more chores at home, been attentive to my needs, dealt with my aches and complaints, emptied the cat litter boxes for 8+ months, cooked dinner, gone on maternity clothes and baby gear shopping sprees, etc. with very few complaints.  He loves our baby so much.  Baby D is certainly blessed to have him as his daddy, and I’m grateful to have him as a husband.

Heating pad – My best pregnancy purchase was a heating pad.  I have used it practically every day for months to help with back pain.  I didn’t buy anything fancy, just the cheapest option available at Target, but when I walk in the door with an aching back, which is a regular occurrence, there’s nothing better than sitting down with my heating pad.

Blog/diary, weight chart, and monthly bump pictures – This blog was Himal’s idea, and, in the beginning, I scoffed at the idea and had no plans to post much.  He was originally going to keep up with it.  Well….. you see how that turned out….  I’ve posted every week, and he has posted only two or three times.  Ha!  It was intended to keep our families and close friends updated on Little Man’s progress, but somehow we’ve gained a few followers in several countries.  Thank you to all of you who have followed us along this journey; it means a lot to us!

This blog has turned out to be an awesome keepsake of all of the milestones we’ve experienced during this journey.  We plan on printing the entire blog once Little Man is born and storing it in his baby book.  It’s cool to be able to look back and see exactly when we learned the sex or when I started feeling Baby D move.  Himal, thank you for forcing this blog on me.

In addition to the blog, I’ve kept a weekly weight chart.  It has been neat to watch the weight gain, and this is also something that will go in the baby book.

Another cool keepsake is the monthly baby bump pictures we took for the blog.  We enjoy looking through them and watching the bump grow.

Friends/relatives – Being able to discuss pregnancy with friends and relatives who have experienced it has been invaluable.  In addition to helping me know what to expect at different stages, they have provided me with great advice on baby gear and raising children.  Thanks so much, everyone!  And it’s been really special to experience pregnancy with my friend Maggi; having a close friend to exercise with and compare symptoms with as they are happening has helped make pregnancy more enjoyable.

Belly lotion – While I can’t promise that these products will prevent stretch marks, I recommend using these two lotions/oils.  I have used one in the morning and the other at night almost every day since I found out I was pregnant.  Many women experience an itchy belly as it stretches, and I feel like these two products have kept my itching to a minimum.  And maybe they reduced my stretch marks; it’s really too soon to tell.

 

www.babycenter.com – This website/app is a fabulous source of information on everything related to pregnancy.  I have the app on my phone and have checked the daily calendar every day.  It provides a countdown, advice, and education.  I highly recommend it!

Ultrasound pictures – Last but certainly not least, these pictures of my sweet Little Man have gotten me through the stressful parts of pregnancy/life.  I’ve had them saved on my phone and as the background on my computer at work.  Whenever life or work has gotten me down, I’ve looked at his adorable face and felt blessed to be carrying him.  He reminds me that the stress is only temporary and that everything will be worth it once he’s in my arms.