Nate Update

I get this from my husband today:


[11:31:27 AM] Jay: Nate took two independent steps


Aye YA!  Batten down the hatches!

Standing and Reading

Just want to send a quick update. Nathan is 8 and half months now and is trying to stand on his own and trying to cruise. He's stubborn.  He doesn't want help, but he likes you to be there in case he falls.  Right now Wesley is in an after school reading class. He's been struggling with reading and usually it was a struggle to get him to read. Things are slowly getting easier for him and he's getting better and more confident. Tonight was something I've dreamed of for a long time. After reading to us, he wanted to read to himself before he went to sleep!  I overheard him reading to himself in bed. I am so proud of him. I hope he will love reading, like Jay and I do.

1st Grade work

Since we've been doing 1st grade work, sometimes it gets frustrating.  Wesley brought this home last night since he was having trouble with it.   He basically flip flop where the numbers go. He was putting the yellow cube numbers in the 1st space and the blue cubes in the 2nd space.  It took a while to get him to understand you have to read the cubes from top to bottom (as per my arrows on question 1).   Since this worksheet is limited on instructions, I had to look at it for a while to see why his work was wrong. I wish the teacher gave us more guided instruction.  I have no idea how she's teaching this concept to them.

I also had to take a picture on this.  Look at the last question on the bottom.  

"Do you understand? How can you tell if a number is greater than or less than another number?"

What the heck?!?  Where's the instructions?  I think I'm pretty good at figuring out concepts.  But from what I could "figure out" from the example on the top, I guess it's by the colored cubes?  I didn't think it was the symbols < and >, since they didn't show it on the worksheet.  Wesley and I both got frustrated with this question.   I was so annoyed, I had to email his teacher and ask what the answer is.  I think that is a crazy question to ask a 1st grader. Is it just me or do you know the answer?  Do you think this is a crazy question to ask a 1st grader?

Sleep Deprivation Rating Scale

Here's my Sleep Deprivation Rating since Thursday.

Nathan normally goes to bed around 7-7:30 pm and wakes up around 6:15-7 am (depending upon when he does his last feed).  Luckily he's like his big brother, a morning person.

As you can see from my ratings below, after some great sleep from Nathan, it took a spiraling dive on Saturday.

Thursday - 1 (Nathan woke up once 4:30)

Friday - 1 (Nathan woke up once 4:30)

Saturday - 8 - (Nathan woke up at least 5 times, I think. I lost count after 4)

Sunday - 6 (Nathan woke up twice: 12 & 3:30)

Monday - 3 (Nathan woke up twice: 2:30 & 5:30. One arm unswaddled)

Jay and I could only guess it was because of Wesley's school Pumpkin Walk that night that threw him off.  He must have been overstimulated from that event.

Nathan and I drove separately and we only stayed until 6:30.  Then I did the normal routine of bath, bottle, bed.  I have to give it a pain scale of 8.  It was the "what are you trying to do to me kid?" frustration.  We had my dad's birthday luncheon the next day.  I was so wiped out, I had to sleep on the car ride home.  I wish I could have given it a 9 or 10, but I know a couple of people who've had it worse.  So far, neither boy has kept me up for hours in the middle of the night wanting to play.  That would suck big time!  

We also started the process of unswaddling him.  I'm hoping this is what's causing him to not stay down  for a while.  For a while, he's been struggling out of his swaddle.  On the one hand, I think it's time and he's outgrowing the sleep sack.  On the other, when he gets overstimulated, it helps him to settle down for bed.  I was pretty pleased on Monday, Jay was able to get him down like that for a couple of naps and I was able to get him down at night.  Today, Jay was able to get a nap with both arms out.  I was also able to get him down with both arms out for bed tonight.  I'm just going to say for now, we'll see what happens :)

4 Month Check Up

Nathan had his 4 month check up on the 10th.  He weighed in at 14 lbs and was 24 inches long.  Our lil' 14 pounder!  He came in at 41% in weight, 25% in height, and 71% in the head.

This past Monday I finally went back to work.  It wasn't as hard this time as it was when I went back to work with Wesley.  It was easier this time since Jay is now taking care of him.  We had a little rough couple of days of adjustment, more lack of sleep in the middle of night for me.  He would wake up around 3 to 4 times.  For Jay, he would only take a 1/2 or hour nap.   He was having a hard time settling down. Then, during the middle of the week, Nathan would get up at his usual times during the night, 1 am and 4am.  He was getting into the rhythm of having to go to school with Jay to pick up Wesley.  The good thing is that I've been able to leave work at 3pm, so I get home at 4.  So, I've been also been able to take Wesley to his Karate class.  This gives Nathan time to take a nap then.

Now as of today, the last couple of days has been great!  Nathan has only gotten up once in the middle of the night!  I've woken up a few times to find he's still sleeping.  Unfortunately, I've been waking up around 2:30am, and 4, waiting for him to wake up.   At 4:30, I've seen him stir on the monitor, then wake up and struggle out of his swaddle.  Then I'm up for about a half an hour watching him, waiting for him to call me.  I'm hoping he can resettle himself and close his eyes.  He has, but it was only for 5 minutes :)  He's been a little harder to settle down after that feed.  I think it's because he's had more sleep and all that struggling kept him awake.  Keep your fingers crossed for me.  I'm hoping we're going to the next step of sleeping through the night!

The next step is getting him out of that swaddle.  Not looking forward to that.  I've been enjoying my sleep :)  Nathan can roll now.  I don't want him to get stuck in the wrap around swaddle blanket.

Nathan has also been "crawling".  He's been doing the same thing that Wesley did.  He uses his head to push himself along.  Whatever happened to getting on all fours and rocking back and forth first?  Guess we have impatient boys ;)  He's also doing good at "sitting".  I think he's doing better than Wesley at this age.  Wesley was all about moving.  Nathan, on the other hand, likes to sit, watch things and people, and cuddle.

Tonight is Wesley's school's Pumpkin Walk.  It should be fun.  His school is really good at fundraising, and they put on a pretty impressive event with food, midway games, jumpy houses, and a haunted house.  I'll try and post some pics of the event.

That's all for now.  I'm doing the lag of writing and pictures for the 2nd one.  I'll try and update more, if I can find the time :)  Things are just a little busier now with two.  Luckily, it's been a manageable busy :)

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The end of ordinary Hair Product.

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Before

After

District Letter Update

It's Thursday, and still no letter from the District about who Wesley got as a teacher.  The interesting thing is that our Principal is out of district too.  He got a letter for his daughter, but not for his son!  Funny that it's not just us and funny that's it also happened to the Principal of the school! LOL!

1st Day of School

Today was first day of 1st Grade for Wesley.  I was pretty nervous on the weekend.  We were supposed to get a letter no later than Saturday to tell us who he's having for a teacher.  Most other moms got their letters on Friday and were texting each other who got into who's class. When the mailman came on Saturday, we still did not get our letter.  Then I got worried.  "Is he still enrolled in Farnham?  Was I supposed to re-enroll him?!?"  That night they had a school BBQ and we still couldn't find out where Wesley was going to be.

 Luckily we had a pool party on Sunday to distract us until Monday.  Here's Nathan having his first pool experience.  Although he's not smiling, he was pretty happy in the water.

Monday finally rolls around and we find out he is in a class, Miss Pando.  Whew!  Better yet, he found out his best friend is in the same class as he is.  As of today, still no letter from the district.

Playdate

Dear Aunty Erin and Uncle Mike,
Thanks for letting me and Wesley come over to your house to play with Jamie and Kaylee.  Also, I wanted to thank you for my Mani & Pedi.  You did a really good job!  My nails are not claws anymore!  I'll see you next weekend for my next  Mani/Pedi appointment!

Love,
Nathan

11 weeks old

Before I start, happy birthday Erin !

Nathan has been sleeping at night anywhere from 5 to 8 hours during the first part of the night.  He goes to bed at around 7:30 and thankfully is down for a while.  Generally I get up two times before 6 am.  The hard part has been if Wesley also wakes up in the night.  He has in the last month: nosebleed one time, two other times he was too scared to go to the bathroom by himself.  He's also sometimes talks in his sleep, so you'll go to his room, only to find out he's asleep :/
The other hard part has been when putting Nathan down after a feed. He'll start kicking his legs and shaking his head back and forth. He shakes it so much that sometimes the pacifier pops out of his mouth. It probably takes about 30 minutes before he settles down.  He recently started doing this. I don't remember Wes doing that, but maybe I didn't know since this time Nathan is in our room.  All that noise keeps me up until Nathan settles down.  Sometimes I notice the clock and it shows almost an hour has gone by.  It'll be nice once he gets out of this phase.

Wesley has been good with his brother.  In the morning he likes to climb in bed with me.  After Nathan is fed and dressed, jay will put him in bed with us. Wes will play a little with Nate.  Yesterday morning he specifically asked Jay to put him in bed with us. He like to "teach" Nate to kick and punch.

An interesting Thing happened last night. Jay and I were in the kitchen talking.  We left Wesley watching TV and Nathan was strapped to his rocking chair.  It was quiet for a while and when I peeked in the living room, Wesley was pushing the rocking chair around.  Nathan was "driving the car ".  It was so cute to see them "playing" with each other.  So this is what it's like when kids can entertain each other :)  Here's a clip: (excuse the recyclable trash.  We were getting ready for trash night)

Nathan is 2 Months Old

We went for our Doctor check up today.  Nathan weighs 11 lbs 7.2 oz and is 22.25 inches long.  He came in the 44% in weight, 25% in height, and 75% in the head.  We seem to produce big headed babies :)

Being that he's 11 lbs, I can't believe the story that's told that when babies hit 11lbs, that is the magic number where they sleep through the night.  Although, he's been sleeping longer during the 1st shift (4-5 hours).  Last night he almost made it to 6 hours.  It might have been longer if it wasn't for Cookie, the neighbor's dog, barking at 1am in the morning.  They seem to leave her out at night now, since I've been told that she now barks at anything and nothing.  Guess they got tired of hearing her in the house.

Since he got his shots today, we'll see how he does tonight.  Poor little guy.  3 shots in the legs.  So, the little guy is doing good, chubbin up.  I still can't believe he's in the 44% range in weight!  We had so much trouble trying to getting Wesley just on the chart itself!  He definitely won't be as skinny as Wesley was as a baby.  He's a healthy eater.  3.5 to sometimes 4 oz a feeding.

Nathan is 6 weeks old today

In some ways, I can't believe 6 weeks has passed by.  In others, the upcoming weeks have been slow.  After only 6 weeks of pumping out breast milk, I'm throwing in the towel.  It has become an obsession that has been hard on the family.  For one, I can't keep up with Nathan.  He's eating more than I can produce.  Every time I think I'm catching up to him, he's eating more.  I'm constantly having to add supplement to my breast milk.  Just the other day, I tried to weigh him.  First with me on the scale, then with him.  Since we don't have a digital scale, I'm guesstimating that he's somewhere around 10 lbs!  At his two week check up, he was 21 inches long and 7.8 lbs!  He grew 2 1/2 inches in 2 weeks!

It's been a while..8 weeks

Sorry it's been a while since my last post.  I've been having problems with this Blogger Site.  The did some upgrades and it won't recognize one of my email address that is attached to this account.  I was debating about starting up a new blog, but that also complicates things.  I was finally able to do a work around and I think I can now start reposting on this site.  So annoying.

So, today Nathan is 8 weeks old!  Last night before and after his bath and during bedtime he was so fussy and unconsolable.  We think he was overly tired.  If he napped during the late afternoon/dinner, it was only for 15 minutes to 1/2 hour.  After he cried it out, he finally fell asleep.  He then didn't wake up until 6 hours after his last meal!  1:45 am. I woke up, saw the time, and in my state of being half asleep, freaked out.  He was so still in his crib, so I picked up him up right away and of course he woke up.  It was just instinctual for me to immediately assume something was wrong when it happens in the middle of the night and I can't think clearly. Then he woke at 3:45.  Sheesh.  That one was hard.  He must've been hungry again after that long sleep from before.

Usually I think I've been pretty good with him in the night.  I wake up when he starts to cry, not like Wesley where I would pick him up when he fussed.  I think he's been doing better than Wesley at this age.  I now feed him about every 3 to 3 and half hours at night. Sometimes it can be 4 hours, sometimes it's 2 and half.

As you can see, he's chubbed up.  We have his 2 month old check up on Tuesday.  I'll post his weight and height to see how much he's grown.

Nathan Dee Hann

Nathan Dee Hann
Born: June 7, 2012 at 9:39 pm
6 lbs, 3 oz
18.5 inches long

Since I was 6 days late, I was able to get induced.  I called the hospital at 7:30am to find out when I could go to the hospital.  I was worried I was going to miss Wesley's Kindergarten Promotion Day.  Fortunately and unfortunately, they couldn't take me until 1:30 pm (I was really hoping they could take me at 11:30 am). So, we were able to stay at his school that morning.   I didn't get induced until 5 pm.  Labor the 2nd time around was so much better.  I didn't feel anything.  Since I was only in labor for four and half hours and probably only pushed for half an hour tops, recovery has been a lot easier this time around.  I thought Nathan was going to be longer and heavier than Wesley.  He was only 1/2 inch taller, but 4 oz lighter.

Today, Nathan is 2 weeks old.  I have to agree with other parents, this time around is easier.  I'm not constantly looking at him to see if he's breathing.  I'm not as stressed as I was with Wesley.  Nathan tells me loud and clear when it's time to eat. Since he had Jaundice, I had to feed him quite a bit and quite often.  I'm also having to supplement.  But now that his Jaundice is over, I'm still having to supplement cuz the kid can eat!  He's eating almost 2- 1/2 a feeding.  That's, depending on how soon he feeds, more that I can produce.  I'm also finding out that I'm able to sleep when the feeding is over in the middle of the night.  Of course, I'm still exhausted, getting up about 2-3 times a night and not being able to sleep in a little because Wesley is ready to get up.  

It's easier in some ways and harder in others when you have two.  Wesley has been doing pretty good with the adjustment of the new addition. He has not been as helpful as he thought he was going to be, but at the same time, he's not been jealous of the baby.  He's been accepting.  He's been going to Karate and Swim lessons.  Also, one of us has gotten him out of the house to run errands.  We just have to keep him busy and not cooped up in the house.          

Not Quite a First Black Eye

 [3:17:13 PM] Jay: Wesley got hit in the eye at school

[3:17:18 PM] Mickie: oh no!

[3:17:21 PM] Jay: by a GIRL

[3:17:26 PM] Jay: she is troubled

[3:17:28 PM] Mickie: how did that happen?

[3:17:31 PM] Jay: and I took her to the office

[3:17:48 PM] Jay: well she is a pain and has hitting issues

[3:17:53 PM] Jay: it worked out ok

[3:18:12 PM] Jay: coz after wesley had a flock of girls sitting around him soothing him

[3:18:33 PM] Jay: I'm his best friend! NO YOUR NOT I AM! :D

[3:18:49 PM] Mickie: I bet you were enjoying that!

[3:19:17 PM] Mickie: did he cry?

[3:19:31 PM] Mickie: or was he being all tough for the girls?

[3:21:17 PM] Jay: yes he cried

[3:21:47 PM] Jay: I put her in time out and took him in and gave him a wet paper towel to put on his eye

[3:22:04 PM] Jay: when I got back from the office he had all the girls around him

[3:22:13 PM] Mickie: (chuckle)

[3:22:15 PM] Jay: so such is life some times

The Next Morning

Since we didn’t have a tooth for the tooth fairy, we used the plastic tooth necklace case that he got from his teacher (his teacher thinks of everthing!)

I told Wesley that we’re going to put it under his pillow. He asked me how big is the fairy. I said, “umm, Tinkerbell size” He replied, “How is she going to carry the tooth? It will be too big for her.” Then he asked me if she need to see his face. I said no, she’s shy. She likes to come when you’re asleep. He replied, “Good, then I can hide under the covers.”

The next morning…

[7:16:50 AM] Jay: I hear wesley from his room

[7:17:02 AM] Jay: (Wes) Hu? What? Its GONE!

[7:17:13 AM] Jay: (Wes) WOA! HEY DADDY!

[7:17:21 AM] Mickie: (chuckle)

[7:17:30 AM] Jay: (Wes) The tooth fairy came and brought me Pokemon cards

[7:17:55 AM] Jay: (Wes) If you leave a real tooth you get money, if you leave a plastic one you get pokemon cards

[7:18:03 AM] Jay: :D

Wesley Lost His First Tooth…Literally

[2:05:05 PM] Jay: Wesley's tooth came out at school. He had it in a plastic tooth necklace the teacher gave him to keep it in. He was so proud! :)

[2:05:21 PM] Jay: Then we stopped at Target to get some apple juice

[2:05:28 PM] Jay: and he kept opening it to look at it

[2:05:38 PM] Jay: then suddenly it was GONE

[2:08:15 PM] Mickie: aye ya

[2:08:42 PM] Mickie: did you find it?!?

[2:15:34 PM] Jay: NOPE

[2:15:40 PM] Mickie: :(

[2:15:46 PM] Jay: we were on the escalator when he said OH NO

[2:15:58 PM] Jay: then he was done with the necklace

Mickie: was he really upset?

[2:16:09 PM] Jay: I asked if he wanted to go back and look he said no

[2:16:11 PM] Jay: not so much

[2:16:17 PM] Mickie: that's good

[2:16:18 PM] Jay: I think I was more upset

[2:16:21 PM] Mickie: me too

[2:16:25 PM] Jay: whull

[2:16:28 PM] Jay: its the first tooth

he was so proud with the necklace and that it happened at school, he said he pulled it out himself

The parents are having a harder time letting it go than the child :) Guess we'll have the use that plastic tooth for under this pillow tonight...

Old School/New School - Kindergarten

Back in February, I applied to 5 different Charter Schools. Unfortunately, they were all out of our District. We were disappointed in what we were seeing with our local school. It was only a 10 minute walk from our house. I even tried applying to another school within our district. Right before school started, I didn't hear back from the Charters and the chosen district school was filled. We didn't have high hopes on the Charter since we heard it was difficult to get in. But was disappointed he couldn't get his chosen District School. Two weeks into the school year, we get not one, but two Charter Schools asking us if we would like to attend! By the time we finished filling out the application for the 1st one, the 2nd school called. But, we stucked with the 1st one. We really had a good feeling about it and were already on our way. Funny thing was that a couple of his preschool friends are also attending this new school and one is even his classmate. Even better! We were hesitant about the shock of changing schools and also not sure about him not having neighborhood friends. But after telling Wes about the new school, he was all for it! After two weeks at the old and now two weeks at the new, we see a huge difference. At the old school, there is a huge gap amongst the students in regards to their learning skills. Here is what we have discovered between the two schools:

	Public (old)	vs.	Charter (new)
Bell	When bell does work, get in line		1st bell to Freeze. 2nd bell to get in line
Student Ratio	1 Teacher, 28 kids		1 Teacher, 1 student Teacher Aide, 23 kids
Teacher Wish List	On the door of the Office because they ran out of paper		Teacher distributes. Wish List has already been fulfilled
Parent Involvement	Low		High
Weekly Homework	1 page		10 pages, plus Journal, plus daily library book
Action Oriented Learning	No		Yes
Morale	Bored		Excited
Tuition	Free		Free

I am so glad my sister told me about Charter schools. When Jay was talking to other parents at the old school who were unhappy, they never knew about Charter schools. Unfortunately, for them, applications were back in February. Now, they're trying to look at alternatives. Right now his homework seems daunting. But at the same time, we hope this early start will get him used to the routine of daily homework.

Cupcake Smoothie

My conversation with Jay this morning about Wesley:

[8:40:58 AM] Jay: oh

[8:41:00 AM] Jay: lord

[8:41:16 AM] Jay: he made a cup cake cookie smoothie

[8:41:27 AM] Jay: that has no cup cake or cookies in it

[8:41:34 AM] Jay: for you

[8:41:46 AM] Mickie: uh..what is it made out of?

[8:48:28 AM] Jay: marshmallow, candy sprinkles, sugar, soy milk and then lightly microwaved in a cup cake cup to bring out the flavor

My Christmas Present

On Christmas, I was surprised to find out my sisters and I each received a sewing machine. My son asked what it was. Jay told him it was to sew clothes like the shirt he has on. Wesley responded, "Mommy can make costumes for me!"

I've only tried one time in my life to sew. That was 20 years ago and I failed miserably. My mom got me in a night sewing class. I was so excited. I thought of all the outfits I was going to make. Part of my downfall was that I decided to pick a skirt pattern...with a zipper. What was I thinking? Every night of that sewing class I was sewing, making a mistake, then ripping out the seams to correct out my mistake. Everyone else was making these outfits for their little children while I was barely completing my skirt. I now realize I should have picked something simple like they did. I was too ambitious.

So now, I decided to try again. This time, from my husband's recommendation, I started out with something simple. A pillowcase. And I did it! It's not neat, but I think I did pretty good for my first try. Wesley seems to like it. He's in the first photo. I made it Queen size for him to put his whole body in : ) My next project will be a drawstring sack, then a tote-like bag. My ultimate goal is to hopefully make a costume and a hawaiian shirt for Wes. If you're wondering about the fabric I used, they were having 60% off Christmas patterns. I thought I'd also start with fabric where I won't be bummed if I make a mistake. Erin, now that you have a sewing machine, are you going to make matching outfits for your girls the same way mom did with us? :D