Samuel at 2 months

Not so sure about the camera

Such a sweet boy

Trying to roll over

Samuel is already 2 months old! It has been so much fun watching him grow and change. It's really amazing how much babies change on a weekly basis. Samuel is becoming more aware of everything around him with each passing week. He is usually a content and happy little boy although he is suddenly realizing when he is not being held or talked to and sometimes he gets annoyed by that. :) He is beginning to coo and babble more often and offering smiles on a daily basis. He is still quite the trooper when it comes to sleeping. He sleeps from about 9-4:30 and then typically wakes up around 6:30 and then is up at 8 for the day. He isn't quite old enough to start playing with toys yet but he enjoys laying on his activity mat looking at the bright toys hanging down and listening to the music that plays. He usually will stay in there long enough for me to get dishes done or make dinner which is all I ask. :) At his 2 month check up he was in the 50th percentile for height and 25th percentile for weight. When he was born he was in the 10th percentile for both so he's growing quite nicely. His claim to fame is that he has pooped so loudly in the middle of the night that it's woken both Steve and I up twice! Takes after his dad apparently. :) We love our little man so much!

Normalcy

Our household is beginning to get back into a routine. Steve had to go back to work and the kids and I are enjoying time at home. Samuel is continuing to be quite a good-natured little guy. He still takes a really long nap in the morning and one in the afternoon. He's more awake and alert with every week that passes by. He is beginning to sleep for even longer stretches at night. He goes to bed around 10 and usually doesn't wake up until 3 or 3:30 to eat. He then sleeps until 6 or so and eats again and then is up for the day around 8. He loves rides in the car and is usually asleep within a few minutes of leaving the house. I'm a bit spoiled!

Grace is great. There have been days where I think I'm going to lose my mind because she is either talking, singing or making noise constantly. I'll tell her to stop talking and be silent for a few minutes so I can hear myself think and she, without fail, always says "but Mom, I want to talk!" Some things never change. :) She had her first visit at the dentist this morning and did really well. I went first while she sat on the floor by Samuel and read/colored. When it was her turn she sat on my lap and let them look in her mouth with the mirror. They don't even attempt to polish the teeth at the first visit, so it was more just getting her introduced to everything so she won't be freaked out next time we go (hopefully). She's still being a big help for the most part!

One of my fondest memories

What a sweet little boy.

One of my favorite memories from when we were little was when Dad would take us tubing behind the 4-wheeler. Dad recently bought a new tube so the grandkids could enjoy it as well. It was fun to watch the kids. They were amazed the first time they did it and it's all we've been hearing about ever since. 

We're starting to get some smiles from Samuel. It's hard to believe he's almost a month old already! 

I believe Elmo is entertaining these 2. Jill and the boys came up Monday night to hang out with us. We've had fun and the kids are having a good time together (for the most part). :) They know how to push each others buttons and sometimes it's almost more of a brother-sister relationship instead of a cousin relationship. Jill and I took the kids out to eat at a little cafe and then did a little grocery shopping yesterday for my birthday. It has made for a quick week having them here. Note Grace's lovely bed head - out of control.

Maternity Leave

I am absolutely loving being on maternity leave. I know a lot of people say that it is a huge adjustment going from one kid to two, but I disagree. I thought it was more of a jolt going from zero to one. I suppose the fact that Samuel is such an easy baby helps. Yes it takes longer to get around to go places, but I was already kind of used to that. Now it's just a time management issue - making sure I give enough time to get 2 bambinos around instead of 1. I decided it was time to get out of the house today so I took the kids to eat lunch at McDonald's. I had taken them grocery shopping Friday and it was no big deal. Grace is more of a help than anything, and Samuel just chills out or sleeps. I think tomorrow we'll go to story time at the library. It's nice to have a reason to get out of the house at least a few times a week! It's especially not a big deal now that I can lift Grace again. It was a bit more challenging when I couldn't!

For me recovering from the c-section itself is not as bad as a lot of people say it is. I must be lucky! I'm not saying it's pleasant or anything, but I never have as much trouble with it as a lot of people do. My issue is always the week after. As with Grace I ended up getting a UTI which then resulted in a yeast infection. As all of this was happening I also had an allergic reaction to the steri-strips. Not fun. That stuff made me way more miserable than the actual incision. Luckily Steve was home that week and did a ton to help out. He probably felt like a single parent for a few days there! I am completely back to normal now though and feeling great. 

Grace continues to be a great older sister and is constantly wanting to kiss and hold Samuel. Unfortunately this has resulted in Grace passing her cold onto Samuel and then onto Steve. Somehow I've stayed healthy so far. Grace's cold only lasted a few days so hopefully the men of the house will be feeling better soon. It's so frustrating to see a poor 2 week old sick! Grace's quote of the week:

Grace: Mommy, where are my big nipples?

Me: Your nipples are right there (this was during bath time).

Grace: No, not those, my BIIIG nipples.

Me: You'll get those when you get older. 

Grace: Oh, okay.

Thank God that was a sufficient answer to her question. :)

Although battling a nasty cold Steve had a great day. This evening he got a call from a local store that sells tools, Carhartt stuff, paint, man stuff, etc. He had won a $1,000 shopping spree! He was really confused because he had never signed up for the drawing. I asked him who it was and he mouthed to me the store. I had forgot all about it but I had signed him up for it a few weeks ago while he took Grace to Kindermusik. He took Grace that night because I couldn't bend and jump around anymore and so I dropped them off and ran errands. I was back to pick them up a bit early so I went into this store and looked around for a bit and then signed him up. He owes me big time! He got to go in tonight and pick out some stuff. He got Carhartt bibs, jacket and hat, a chop saw, an air compressor, sockets, gloves and a couple fleece jackets. He has to go in later this week and get his picture taken for the paper. Ha! :) 

Samuel at 2 weeks

 Samuel had his 2 week check-up today. He is doing well - has gone from 6 pounds 6 ounces to 7 pounds 3 ounces. He continues to be such a good baby. We are already settling into a routine which is quite nice. He is beginning to have a few awake times during the day. Typically he is awake for about a half hour once in the morning and afternoon, and then for an hour before bedtime. He only cries when he is getting a bath and once in a while when he is getting his diaper changed. He eats really well and has from the beginning. He eats about every 3 hours. He usually eats for the last time at night around 11. He only wakes up once in the middle of the night, usually around 2:30. He then sleeps until 6:30-7. I couldn't ask for more! He even falls asleep without being held - amazing! Of course when they are this little it's so hard to not hold them and cuddle until they fall asleep. :) Funny how he's only been here for a little over 2 weeks, it feels like he's been part of our family forever. 

Pee in the face

I had my first "pee everywhere" experience this morning. It really ticked Samuel off because it hit him in the face but it made me laugh! :) We're thoroughly enjoying our little guy. 

Samuel Duane Hastings

We are so excited and blessed to add Samuel to our family. He's such a good, sweet little boy. It still feels surreal to have a son, but I couldn't love him more. Here's the story of how Samuel entered the world: Thursday night (Thanksgiving Day) we were eating at Steve's great grandparents house. Soon before we left I used the restroom and noticed that I was beginning to lose my mucus plug. The next morning I lost the rest of it. I began to seriously doubt I was going to make it to my scheduled C-section December 11th. Friday night I went to school to try to get some things copied off and generic lesson plans done for the following week just in case. Steve, Grace and I then went to a parade on the square in Bryan where the band played Christmas carols and they officially turned on the lights on the square. It really put us all in the mood for Christmas. When we got home Grace went to bed and then I laid on the couch for awhile. I had a contraction that felt a bit different than the ones I'd been having for the past 8 weeks. 12 minutes later I had another and then 12 minutes after that I had another. I decided to warn Steve that this could be it. I went and took a long shower and tried my best to shave decently. :) Of course I didn't have any more contractions after that. I went to bed around 11:30 thinking that it was just false labor. At 5 in the morning I woke up suddenly. I thought maybe the baby had kicked me but quickly realized that it was a pretty serious contraction. Before I could even stand up my water broke. I got to the bathroom as quickly as I could and sat on the toilet while my water continued to come out. After it slowed down a bit I went upstairs and woke up Steve and then called mom and dad. Steve mentioned later that it only took mom and dad 4 minutes to make it to our house, fully dressed and all. Pretty impressive! :) I then called the OB department and let them know I was coming in. We got to the hospital around 5:45. By this time my contractions were about 7 minutes apart and getting stronger. When I got there I had all of the normal stuff - IV, blood drawn, got checked (I was 3 cm dilated), monitors attached etc. Since everything was going so smoothly they decided to wait until 8 to have my C-section because my doctor had been called in late the night before for an emergency c-section. I was fine with that until about 7:20 when my contractions got very nasty and were coming almost non-stop. My doctor walked in at that time and decided it was time to give me a shot to slow things down and begin prepping me for surgery. At this point Steve and I were separated because he was not allowed in the surgery room until the incision was made. This is typically the hardest part because he's nervous about what is happening and I'm nervous because I don't have a support person right beside me. When I got to the surgery room they gave me a spinal and things moved pretty quickly from there. I remember looking at the clock at 8:05 during my spinal. Steve was in by 8:15 and Samuel was out at 8:22. It couldn't have gone smoother. Steve got to see Samuel come out and then got to bring him over by my head while they worked on putting me back together. He then got to go with the nurse and Samuel to get him cleaned up while they finished with me in surgery and then transitioned me to recovery. I was in recovery for a much shorter time than with Grace. We then got moved to our final room. Samuel was born on November 28 at 8:22 am. He weighed 6 pounds 12 ounces and was 19 inches long. He eats very well and had no trouble from the get go. By Saturday evening I was up moving around a little. Sunday morning I got rid of the catheter and the IV which felt really good. The worst part was the cramping and contractions all day Sunday. I never had that with Grace, but apparently it's very common after your first delivery. Monday morning I woke up feeling like new and by Monday evening we were allowed to leave. I was very ready to get home, especially because I hadn't gotten to see Grace the whole time (because of the H1N1 threat, I was only allowed 4 visitors - all having to be over the age of 18). It feels great to be home and feel like a family. Grace loves him so much already and can't stop kissing him. Last night she kept bringing books and toys to show him. She wanted him to wear her birthday hat from Benjamin's party. We all had to sit on the couch together to read a couple books before bedtime last night. I'm so glad that there is definitely not a jealousy issue. 2 things that have cracked me up so far: Grace calls his pacifier a plug (I have no idea who calls it that - maybe her babysitter??) and here's a conversation that we had last night:

Grace: Is Samuel sleeping mom?

Me: Nope, he's eating.

Grace: Is he eating your nipple?

Me (after giggling quite a bit): He's drinking milk - he's nursing.

Grace: Ohhh, okay. 

Here's a picture of our little man. I will be adding a lot more later!