Ok, so since everyone else has already posted about Mother's Day, I guess I will take that as motivation to get started on a post of my own!
I've always loved Mother's Day, because I think my mom is so special that I am glad to have a day to honor her. It certainly adds a different perspective when you become a mother yourself though! I feel so blessed with our little boy, Henry just lights up our days and I continue to be amazed at what a happy baby he is. I was thinking today that I would love to have snapshots of all of his smiles throughout the day.. he wakes up happy, he poops happy, he sometimes tries to eat with a smile (though it sort of makes a mess so I try to discourage it!). I am just overwhelmed with how happy he is and how happy he makes us. (No, he's not always happy. Yes, he cries and fusses, but it's Mother's Day, I can think he's perfect if I want to, right?)
Our weekend was a little hectic, but still fun. Chad's folks and grandmother came to visit for the weekend and to be present for Henry's dedication at church. We were honored to stand before our church, with our other friends with newborns, to commit our children to be raised to love the Lord and to have the support of such a wonderful church family. After church we enjoyed a nice lunch at Pomodoros with all the Conrads and Overmen. Then after things settled later that afternoon we all took a little nap and Chad and I were able to do some yard work together (yes, that's fun to me..).
I somehow managed to not get a picture of me with MY MOM on Mother's Day. Mom- I love you and am so thankful for you! I think I appreciate you even more now as a Meme!
Baby dedication at church with Pastor Gary
Henry talking to Grandma Overman
Another amazing mom I know, love you Suzanne!
Henry, sleeping through Mother's Day lunch
who? me? not asleep?
Good night, mom.
Henry has sure started to squirm around a lot. I actually saw him roll over the other morning, but can't get him to repeat it. I thought it was funny that after tucking him all in for bed one night, I came back 15 minutes later to find him cooing and kicking around and rotated a full 90 degrees.
Wow, our little baby is growing up so fast! His days of fitting into newborn clothes and newborn diapers are long gone, so I guess I need to accept that he's just not a "newborn" anymore! It sinks in a little more when I see all of our friends brand new babies and realize how much bigger Henry is in comparison!
He has still been so much of a joy for us. We continue to be amazed at how happy he is (most of the time), he gives the biggest smiles and it seems like he's almost laughing at times. At 12 weeks he's been consistently sleeping through the night for about a month and is good at entertaining himself during the day for longer periods. He's getting stronger, really pushing way up when he's on his tummy and is starting to "coo" more and more.
Due to my blogging slackness, I think I'll just combine a bunch on events into this one post with much less explanation than I would like to give. Here we go:
Congratulations, Dad-- Mayor of Newberry (Looks like the sun is shining only on him)!
Tummy time
He enjoys the Bumbo for a few minutes before slumping over.
Our little family on Easter Sunday. Thankful for a Risen Savior and dear family to celebrate with.
A very happy Meme
Addy LOVES holding baby Henry, they are both so sweet with him.
Henry (and his parents) survived his first long road trip. We were so excited to have the chance to take our little man to Pensacola to introduce him to the rest of his family, including his church family at First Baptist Pensacola.
Henry with Aunt Melody
Playing with Papa
He did well in the car, although our plan for me to pump in the car and give him a bottle pretty much was a disaster, starting with me putting the wrong top on the bottle and spilling milk all over the place. With stopping to get him out and burp him anyway, it really didn't seem to save much time, so the ride home went much smoother with just stopping to nurse him when we were eating anyway.
He had JUST started sleeping though the night that week, then got his shots, then we went on a road trip. I was sure that would set us back a few weeks, but to my surprise he did great. His little routine was pretty trashed the first night, but then he settled back in and did well.
He got to meet his other cousins, Jonas and Nyla, and got the news that he has one more on the way! (Congratulations to Tommy and Melody!) We also found out that Chad's sister and family, who live in California, are looking for jobs in Pensacola to move back this summer, also very exciting news for the Overman family.
Henry with Jonas, Nyla and Aunt Becca
Henry got to meet his Great Grandma Overman, and celebrate her 95th birthday with everyone.
Grandma O, Henry, and the paparazzi!
As if it wasn't already clear enough that Henry looks like his dad..
I've been working on this post for about a month now! I've got to streamline this process!! (Henry was about 8 weeks old for the roadtrip, he's almost 13 now.
Well, this blog post has been in my head for at least two weeks, and I just couldn't seem to find the time to get it started! We've made some progress in the past few weeks.
For starters- Henry's diaper rash FINALLY started improving (after a solid five weeks of frustration). I've been planning to post this since the first day it showed huge improvement.. I was SO excited. Since that happy day, it has started to get worse again. It didn't get as bad as before; now he just has a constant seemingly "normal" rash; I can live with that. Sorry, this is a public blog, so no pictures ;) Video editing- I finally figured out how to do it! Or should I say, Chad bought me a computer last year that made it easy enough for me to do it.. either way, we have a snapshot of his first six weeks.
These are basically the same, but youtube wouldn't let me use the song I wanted
Then, there is the matter of sleep. Thankfully, there has been a little more of it lately! He slept through his middle of the night feeding once a few weeks ago, only to be right back to his 3 hour routine the next night, it seemed so much more painful after his little tease the night before! Now, however (since about 8 weeks), he is pretty consistently going for 6 hours between feedings at night.
He had a good 2 month check up. He's up to 11 lbs, 1oz, which was 34th percentile I think. His head and length were right on the curve, too, though I don't remember exactly what they were. He did pretty well getting his shots, he was a little fussy that afternoon, but then he actually lost all his energy and just slept for a day or two. Thankfully, after a few days he was back to his happy self again. Speaking of happy- he really is a happy boy! He smiles so much and it is so sweet!! He's also starting to "talk".. every once in a while we hear his little voice trying to "coo". It's adorable.
Henry and his "bear".. we love that thing!
Chad caught us both passed out after a feeding
I finally bought this poor boy a "play gym" and he LOVES it! He'll stay entertained for 20-30 minutes at a time.
Now, I can't seem to justify having a post titled "Good News" without mentioning the Best News of all.. We are daily and continually thankful to Jesus Christ for dying on the cross for our sins. Christ being the center of our personal lives, and our marriage has made this entire parenting thing, and life in general, so much better! I was reading this morning about praising God through ALL circumstances and was reminded of the verse Katie gave me to provide strength at Henry's arrival. It's the first one I've memorized in a while "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." Philipians 4:4-7. So then I was thinking of the most recent trial that I should be praising God in.. well, the freshest thing on my mind was Henry's waking me up every few hours last night after I had just started a blog post saying he was sleeping through the night! Seems trivial now, but the last time I got up, I think I threw the covers off with a bit of "angst"! So, although I am not thankful for sleepless nights and diaper rashes, I can still have a good attitude and praise God while dealing with them, and for the fact that that is the worst thing I am dealing with right now!
Yes, as of Monday our little man has been with us for six whole weeks. He seems to be getting enough to eat (notice second chin below) and was up to over 9 pounds at his last visit to the doctor. He still wants to eat about every 3 hours on average, though I have, twice, gotten five hours out of him at night. Usually it's 2.5-4 though. He's really starting to stay awake more and be more interactive. Last week I started getting really big smiles. At first I wasn't sure if they were intentional or not, but they are pretty consistent now, so I'm convinced. He's also starting to hold his head up more on his own. I've been reading my devotions to him in the morning and I'm sure he is becoming quite fond of Beth Moore! I'll spare you any pictures of his bum, but just know that it is still a problem! Grrr!
Look at those cheeks!!
Henry's first trip to the river. He loved it, of course, and had a great time visiting with family.
At the river with Aunt Su and cousin Addy. Addy and Essie just adore him! They are such good little mommies.
This is the Bill Conrad Cooking Show.. the production of him making his "famous" paiella. Always delicious.
Happy Grandparents!! Meme and Papa with their three sweet grandkids!
We're looking forward to a visit from Chad's folks this weekend and in a few weeks we'll make our first road trip to Pensacola to meet some more cousins!
Henry had is first photo shoot courtesy of of my friend Christy, she's awesome!
Workshop update:
Well, in case anyone is wondering what happened to that ol' workshop that used to consume all of our time and blog posts prior to us having an adorable baby to take pictures of..
Chad is loving it and has filled it right up with all his stuff. He really seems to enjoy the space and tinkering with all of his machines. We can't thank dad enough- he even came in under budget!
Here he is, living the dream. (designing and making things from acrylic)
He's holding some sort of box that he made and hopes to use at work (feel free to ask him about it if that is not a satisfactory explanation for you)
This (namely that black rectangle on the right) is his "laser" that you hear him talking about.
Nursery Update:
I ordered some blocks from etsy that finally arrived a few weeks ago; I really like the way they turned out. There is still more decorating to be done, but so far the room has been working out well. I think I heard Henry say "alligator" today. ;)
Finally something to put on that shelf, and I love the drawers from Chad's childhood room that he and his dad refinished for Henry's room.
The changing table mom and dad nabbed for us from craigslist, finally with some decorations.
See that big pile in the middle.. those would be all of the diaper rash creams that haven't work on Henry's booty. I think we've added at least three more since that picture!
I can't believe little Henry has already been with us for over a month! He has truly been such a blessing to our lives. To keep you up to date on all the amazing things that he is doing.. brace yourselves-- sometimes he stays awake for 15-20 minutes at a time, he squeaks and sighs and makes cute little noises when he sleeps, he sometimes seems to look right at our faces and will track some with his eyes (when you catch them open). He does some "smiles" and I quote, because they are the random, accidental ones.. However, a few days ago I got a big full faced smile while he was looking at me and I was convinced he did it on purpose, but I can't get him to repeat it, so maybe not. Either way it was very cute. I know, it doesn't sound like much, but who would have guessed those few little things would be enough to keep his mommy and daddy so entertained!
My main obstacle right now has been a nasty diaper rash that I can't seem to get rid of. And, in spite of what everything says online, I really have been changing his diapers OFTEN. Since non of the creams and ointments seem to be working (desitin, triple paste, butt paste, lotrimin, neosporin, maalox, calmoseptine, to name a few!) I've finally decided to not worry about the mess and just let him air out as much as possible. Actually, it's hasn't been that messy, I probably should have started this much sooner. Thankfully, he is quite the little trooper because although I can hardly stand to look at his raw little butt cheeks, he doesn't seem too bothered by it.
I'll spare you any more details about the status of poor Henry's bum. How about some photos? (not of the bum)
Daddy sacrificing his scalp to give Henry some shade!
Hey, that's almost a smile! Does anyone else think his hair is starting to look orange??
Aww..
Henry with his buddy, Oliver, at a picnic at the park after church. Not sure what they are looking at, but they are very cute. And, yes, Henry's pants are a little big.
Wow, time really does seem to by flying by, and our little boy is growing so fast! I can see his cheeks getting fuller by the day!
Henry's done really well these past couple of weeks. There have been a few nights with a few hours of constant fussiness, which must be related to something I've eaten; right now we're thinking it was extra glasses of milk after dinner.. we'll see. Most of the time he sleeps anywhere from 2-4 hours at a time, with a couple of grunts and groans (or "squeaks" as we have now nicknamed him) in between. Last week we gave him his first bottle and he took it like a champ, and I learned the lesson that even if Chad feeds him, I still have to pump if I don't want to drown the poor child with milk at the next feed! He's already been to two baby showers, church, Lowe's and Target. I'm starting to figure out how to navigate errands with a little one, though I learned the hard way how not to shop with him as I had all my items piled on top of him and in my arms on the first trip to Target. Next time I'll get a buggy and leave the stroller in the car!
As I have mentioned before, Chad and I were both pretty nervous about how this whole "parenting" thing was going to go for us. Even though everyone said it would be wonderful, that it's "different when it's your own child" etc, it was just so hard to imagine what it would be like. I think I expected that I would feel "put out" all the time, or bothered that I couldn't do something I used to do because now we have a baby. I guess I just knew how selfish I really was! It's amazing to report, however, that everyone was right (imagine that!). God does, in fact, know what He is doing. We have been praying continually for months that He would prepare us for this journey, and He has. WAIT, I know- we're only 3 weeks in to a lifelong journey that will come with countless challenges that we can't even imagine right now.. I know it's not going to be easy, I'm just saying that I realize now that I'm not going to be sitting around mourning the loss of life "the way it was", as it's just getting better by the day.
Ok, enough of that seriousness.. on to some pictures!
Daddy giving Henry his first bottle
As of last night, the second belly has been replaced with a baby! Congrats Amy on the arrival of Oliver!
Another shot of the decor mom made that I love!
