First Two Weeks At Home

Another warning - photo overload!  We have been home for two weeks now, so I thought I would do one big post with some fun pictures of how things have gone!  And as you can imagine, I've taken quite a few pictures, so if you make it to the end of this post, I'm impressed!!

 

The day after we got home, we headed out for Ryan's first pediatrician appointment.  So far he really likes the carseat and just sleeps in it - I sure hope it stays that way!

 Brad took a few pictures in a row - and I have to say I love this one!

 And of course a smiley one :) Ryan maintained his weight from leaving the hospital - so he was 6 pounds, 3 ounces again.  Since his bilirubin was elevated, the doctor said to feed him every two hours.  Whew. 

 Sweet boy.  Looking back at these, he definitely had a yellowish tint!

 The Friday and Saturday mornings after we got home, we had to take Ryan to the hospital closest to our house to have his bilirubin levels tested.  Our pediatrician was so concerned and worried, she actually surprised us and met us there the Friday morning.  She kept going back and forth as to whether he should have been readmitted for phototherapy, but in the end, his levels did end up going down - so the frequent feedings and the fact that my milk had come in was definitely helping!  So glad we didn't have to spend any more time in the hospital!  And I'm so thankful that Brad's mom was willing and able to spend the night with us so that we didn't have to load up the big kids to go to the hospital for 8:00 AM blood draws!

 

Every night before Katie goes to bed, she always asks to hold Ryan.  She loves him so much and thinks he is oh so cute.

 Sweet, sweet sister.

 She likes to just sit and watch him.  And of course I like to sit back and watch that take place.  She is becoming more and more independent - and the timing couldn't be better between having Ryan around and starting kindergarten in a couple months!

 The Friday afternoon after we came home, Jack was finally feeling better!  So we got to be reunited!  The look on his face when he saw me was amazing.  And he was so excited to see Baby!  Here he is showing Baby his choo choos.

 I think he really likes to just watch Ryan too - he was likely trying to rock him here :)  We have frequent reminders of "easy hands" around our house!

 And this boy sleeps a lot!  By now he has some more times of awake time which is fun - all the cute little baby noises are so cute!  And it is really fun to watch him check out the world around him.  I especially love that he turns his head to find us when he hears our voices!

 There are those eyes!  Gosh - it really is amazing how much they change in such a short time!

 And I would have to go back and look, but you'd be surprised at how many of these pictures may be from the same day.  This boy goes through some outfits!  He pees on himself way too often!  Either that or he pees out the side of the diaper (which typically means it gets on me too)!

 

I love this little car gown - so sweet! I bought this when we went to buy his furniture for his nursery!

 Sweet, sweet boy.  This may be one of my favorite pictures!

 And the baby grins!  I have figured out just when to catch him grinning - and I love being able to catch it on camera!

 Another night, another sister snuggle. 

She loves to sing "Jesus Loves Me" to him - and he always stops making any noise and just listens to her sing.  That makes my heart melt every.single.time.

 And this gown.  Oh this gown.  Definitely one of my favorites.  Love the colors and how cute it is!

 And another smile! :)  Cutest little face ever!

 And this.  This is a big milestone.  Baby's first trip to Target!!  Last Tuesday (a little over a week ago), Katie was having a girl's day with Nanny and the boys and I headed out to run a few errands!  A couple of returns at different stores and a stop at Target!

 And this pretty much sums up what I've been up to since we got home.  Lots of snuggles, trying to nap when I can, and even more Ryan feeding!

 And we've had some visits from friends too!  Katherine, Dallas, and Olivia brought us dinner and got to meet Ryan!

 And the first bath.  He had no idea what was about to happen...

 ...and he was definitely not a fan.  He does not like being cold (ie does not like having to change clothes...and he is finally used to diaper changes thankfully), so the sponge bath was not fun for him.

 Still not loving things.  The only part he enjoyed was when I washed his hair.  Oh and when it was over :)

 He was fine once he was all wrapped up!  Cute little guy!

 

 And here he is all snuggled in and and clean after his first home bath!

 I think Sadie approves of the newest addition. :)  Right after this picture, she gave him a kiss on the nose!

 And last Wednesday (the one week at home mark), we headed back to the hospital for me to go to a lactation appointment.  Little man was ready!

 First we had to drop the big kids off at school.  Katie wanted to visit with Ryan before jumping into the van!

 And the lactation appointment.  I was not a fan.  I was expecting to leave feeling good and prepared and empowered.  Not so much - I left feeling slightly inadequate.  But I am just doing the best I can and carrying on...I'm supposed to go back this Friday but I think I may cancel.  They had me pump to check my supply (which according to them was low) and to check the calorie count (30 calories/ounce whereas formula is 20 calories/ounce - not too shabby!).  And then I fed Ryan some in a special needs feeder type of bottle (they are concerned he may have a lip tie and a tongue tie).  Ah!  So in their ideal world, I would nurse, pump, and then feed what I pump with a  bottle.  Needless to say that isn't going to happen - I already feed all the time!  I'd never sleep or be able to attend to Katie and Jack if I did that!

 

Here we are with the first bottle!

 He took it down like a champ!

 But he was ready to be home.  And I even got a cutie pie smile!

 Another cute outfit that I love!  He has worn this circus gown a lot - and I love it!

 I wasn't a fan of gowns with Katie or Jack, but I think I've finally turned the corner...it is much easier for middle of the night diaper changes - no snaps!  And it keeps him all snuggly!

 Another day, another snuggle.  Oh, and quite a few more feedings.  In fact, usually 10-12 per day! Ah!

 I think he was comfy - what do you think?  Stretching out for sure!

 And Saturday, we got outside with the rest of the crew!  It felt so good to see some sunshine and get some fresh air!

 Little Man was worn out after the fresh air :)  Another cutie picture! 

 Oh, and what's that?  Oh yeah.  More resting since all I do is feed :)

 On Sunday, Tanja and Nick came over to visit for a bit!  Nick got to meet Ryan for the first time! (and Ryan felt comfortable enough to unleash in the diaper when Nick was holding him...thankfully the diaper did its job!)

And then it was time to snooze in the swing for a bit.

 Ryan and Sadie must've had a big day - they were out!  Sadie loves the Boppy pillows!

 And Ryan's girlfriend was born over the weekend!  Our friends Cat and Tyler had their baby - a girl!  So Monday, we got to go see them at the hospital - and we got a picture of Ryan and Carter (such a sweet name for their precious girl) together!  Love that we have babies so close together in age (almost exactly 2 weeks apart)!

 That sweet, bubbly smile :)

 And we started using the Wubbanub pacifier - Ryan likes to hold onto the little giraffe!

 And yesterday I got the nice camera out and took a few pictures.  Love these of him at 2 weeks and 2 days old! 

May have to put one or two of those in a frame :)

 

Today is Ryan's 2 week appointment and I sure am hoping they give us the green light for less frequent feedings :)  Will report back on that and what his current weight is!  Hoping we have broken the 7 pound mark!

 

I've finally taken the pictures to do posts on the nursery and Katie's new room - hooray!  And I plan to do a post comparing all three kids at a similar age to look for similarities.  Ryan and Jack definitely favor each other - especially in the eyes!  Jack was almost 2 pounds bigger than Ryan, so it is hard to tell since Jack had some extra chub on him!