Day 68 - Road Trip!

Mommy and Corin took a little road trip yesterday to come visit me while I’m out on the road. It is good that things are going well now that they are here, since Kristi said Corin just screamed in the car. Luckily she was able to make some stops and calm him down.

Now that they are here we have a few days of firsts ahead of us. This morning we took Corin swimming for the first time. Kristi found him a very cute swimsuit…we just stood there laughing at him when we put him in it. The water in the pool was a little cool, so he didn’t enjoy it as much as he likes being in the bath. But when I held him up against me to keep him warm he seemed to like the feeling of the water. There is also a little zoo up here and a beach. So we are hoping for at least one day of nice weather so we can head out and enjoy those. But even if we just hang out together in the hotel room, it is great to be back together again.

Daddy's first night away

Sorry fans, no pictures today. This is the first day of my little lad's life that I didn't see him. I heard him on the phone (crying for mommy) and saw some cell phone pictures she sent me, but it still wasn't the same as being with him. I'm out on the road for work for a couple weeks. Luckily they are coming to visit in a couple days and we'll get some new stuff up for you then.

Day 63 – First week at home with mommy

This first week at home with mommy did not get off to the best start. The night before I went back to work he did not sleep much and therefore neither did we. He has had a few overnight rough patches since then too. Kristi is great and takes the majority of the work since I have to get up and go to work (although I often feel like I have the easier job). Overall Kristi rates the first few days as "fair"...so we've let Corin know that he has got some room for improvement.

The real test for the two of them will start tomorrow. I have to leave for work for over two weeks! Luckily for me it is only a few hours away and Kristi and Corin are going to stay with me for part of that time. It will be hard to be away, and it is sad that I will be away for the 4^th of July, since that has become a special holiday for Kristi and me.

Corin has had a steady stream of visits lately. This week we went to see our friends (who are going to have a baby any day now). They got to test out their parenting skills for a few hours. Kristi has also had friends come to the house to visit her during the day, which is always nice so she can get some adult interaction.

Other than being a bit fussier lately, Corin is doing well. He appears to be gaining weight well, since he looks chubbier every day. He’s still pushing against things with his feet, making lots more noises just for fun, and looking around a lot more. He is getting more and more control over his head. If you carry him under lights he will move his head from side to side to track them as they move over him.

Day 59 – Happy Father’s Day!

Today Corin and I got to spend our first Father’s Day together, and it was wonderful. I biked to the gym this morning and then Kristi drove Corin and our new bike trailer to the gym. I loaded him up and biked home with him while Kristi got her PT in. He did great in the trailer, awake and looking around for the whole ride. It was fantastic. Then we came home and took a little nap together on the couch. I couldn’t have asked for a better Father’s Day.

A few new things are starting to happen for Corin. He is starting to make noises (other than crying) pretty regularly, just because he can. He will just lie down, kick his feet, pump his arms and make some pretty funny vocalizations. That ties into the second new development, which is that he is really starting to kick his legs and push against things that are up against his feet. This is obviously all normal stuff (which he is doing at the normal age) but it’s new for him, so we laugh and get excited and then pass the news along to all of you.

Day 56 – Eight weeks old

OH MY FREAKING GOD!
ARE YOU KIDDING ME WITH HOW CUTE THIS KID IS?

Corin turned eight weeks old today, and we had his two month check-up at the doctor’s office. He is obviously eating well, since he weighed in at 9 pounds, 7 ounces! He has also grown about two and a half inches since he was born. The doctor did a little test of his eyesight and tracking ability by moving a penlight from side-to-side in from of his face. We have seen him looking up at the lights before, but have never really seen him track anything my moving his head and eyes. It was pretty cool to see him do it. He received three immunization shots today. He handled them better than mommy, who waited in the car for those to be over. He let out a little cry when he got stuck, but after a couple seconds he was fine. The doc says that all systems are looking good.

After we left the doctor’s office we went into Kristi’s old job to say hello. We then went into my office to pick up some items and say hello there. For those of you that didn’t know, I have been off from work since Corin was born, and this is my last week off. I will be returning to work on Monday and Kristi will be taking over full-time care of our wee-one. It has been great to be able to be off with them. I’m so grateful that I had the opportunity to watch him grow and be here to help Kristi.

Day 53 – Weekend visit from Grandpa and Mimi

Corin just rounded out meeting all of his grandparents with an extended weekend visit with Terry (Grandpa) and Janice (Mimi). They made the trek from New Hampshire and we all got to hang out for several days. We had good weather, which let us get outside for much of the weekend. It was great. We took many walks around the neighborhood, went to the local farmers’ market and had a little backyard picnic (after Mimi kindly did some backyard green-thumb chores for us). Kristi and I even tricked them into watching Corin for an evening while she and I went out for a date together. It was a great visit with lots of good food, good laughs, cute baby time and more than a little spit-up.

The visit gave us a good opportunity to begin working on our new sleeping plan with Corin. Up until the visit, one of us would sleep in bed while the other slept on the couch with Corin sleeping in a little bed next to the couch. That way the bed person could be getting some good uninterrupted sleep while the couch person dealt with the joys of children. Then halfway through the night we would switch places. We have now gone to Corin being in the other room and both of us sleeping in bed at the same time (which seriously hasn’t happened for about six months). Then we take turns getting up when he needs whatever he needs. Overall it has been working reasonably well.

We also received our bicycle trailer today, which we are very excited about. Well, Kristi and I are excited…Corin won’t stop crying right now (but maybe that is due to his trailer excitement). I set it up and took it for a solo test ride today. We are hoping for some dry weather this week so we can get the family out on the road.

Day 46 – Kristi’s six week check-up

Are you kidding me? How ridiculously cute is this kid?

Hoo-Hoo-Hoo-Hoosiers!

Nap time!

Kristi had her six week post-delivery check-up today, and everything is fine. She has no restrictions anymore (she was not supposed to lift anything more than 10 pounds) and is feeling well.

Corin continues to do well and enjoy himself most of the time. He still sleeps a lot of the time, but we certainly notice that he is awake and alert more and more throughout the day. We had some great time today playing on the floor with him. His eyes and their tracking abilities are still developing, so he doesn’t really follow objects to reach out to grab at them yet (which is normal for babies his age). But he does lift his head up and throw it around a lot when he is on his tummy, which is a good thing (and also normal for babies his age). Sleeping well during the night is still hit-or-miss. Some nights he sleeps very well between his meals, and others he is very fussy and keeps the designated baby-tamer awake and busy throughout the night. So on the days after the good nights we are happy and energetic. And on the days after the bad nights we get on the internet and look at boarding schools.

This past Friday Grandma came to stay with Corin so Mommy and Daddy could go out for a night on the town, which was very nice. A few of our friends have also stopped by, and we went to a little party next door for our neighbors recently. Just like before, as long as he isn’t hungry, Corin is happy to be passed from person to person (which is very nice for us).

We recently confirmed that Kristi’s dad (Grandpa) and step-mom (Grandma Janis) are going to be coming for a visit this weekend. If Corin had the ability to comprehend anything, I’m sure he would be excited at the prospect of finally getting to meet them. I'm sure he'll enjoy it, but for now Kristi and I will look forward to it.

Day 41 – Kristi’s new job

Kristi officially resigned her job with the State today and will be staying home with our little bundle of joy. Since she was going to have to leave when we move to DC anyway, and we are able to swing it now, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity for her to stay home and take care of our guy. So Kristi now has a home office. The pay isn’t great, but you can’t beat the benefits.

Speaking of benefits, I can’t convey how glad we are that we have health insurance. We recently received all of our statements from the hospital. For just for his delivery and the next 18 days (so not including the months of medical attention she received getting ready for him) the total bill was almost $110,000! Unbelievable! Then the insurance company only paid the hospital about 60% of that, and the hospital just eats the rest. Someone is screwing someone in this insurance game…I’m just glad it’s not me. It is easy to see how not having health insurance drives so many people into bankruptcy. Ok, rant over.

As you can see from the fact that we post so many bath pictures, our son is a slob and enjoys making a mess of himself. At least he enjoys being in the water and looks cute getting clean.

Day 40 - So Long Due Date!

Today was our first full day beyond Corin’s due date. He was due June 1^st, and it is hard to imagine him not having been here for the past 40 days. It most likely would have included me being at work more, Kristi being super-pregnant and super uncomfortable, and both of us getting just a little more sleep.

Things continue to go well here at home. We are sort of settled into our routine for getting through the nights, and both getting as much sleep as we can. He does fine going out and about, so we are leaving the house a lot more to run errands (we’ve even taken him out to eat once without any problems).

Our family came up to the house this past weekend for Dmitri’s first birthday party (Corin’s cousin). Corin is still doing great about being held by just about anyone. The only time he ever seems to have a real preference is when he is hungry, and then he just wants to be with Mommy or whoever has the bottle. But he is healthy and happy, which gives us moments of true joy (which make the other 23 hours of the day worth the effort).