Auntie Kimber had the honor of being the first person we left Kale alone with. She swears he didn't scream the whole time and we try to believe her.
Uncle Gordon was mesmorizing with his hand mobile (and willing to change diapers).
Grandma holding Kale while I had the luxury of playing solitaire.
Umpa holding Kale on the ferry (shortly after the changing eye colour was observed).
Umpa reading nonsense stories to Kale
Kale and Mommy ignoring the unwrapping of Christmas gifts in favour of a tasty finger.
Kale on Santa's Lap
Kale showing off his strong neck muscles (and masculine chest).
A diaper change in Old Town, was too cute to resist.
And the ultimate stocking stuffer...
13 whole weeks, tomorrow Kale will be officially 3 months old. I still remember meeting a 3 month old baby when Kale was 2 weeks old and thinking they looked like a whole other species. Now I am there and it is hard to believe he was ever any different than he is. (Though every day I exclaim about something new he has accomplished...today he was grabbing his toes while Daddy was sitting him up in bed.)
We went to the drop in today and got weight. 16 lbs 9.5 oz (7.527 Kilograms). That is an increase of 14.5 oz over two weeks which is lovely. Keva had guessed he had gained over a pound because he definitely seemed chubbier but apparently all of this weight is chub.
Kale was in a great mood at the drop in today and smiled and talked at all the other babies. The last two times we went he had been really fussy so it was nice to see him actually interact (or at least try to) with the other babies. When he tried out his biggest smile on Sadie she looked away coyly. I guess she didn't feel like flirting.
We left Vancouver on the 22nd heading to Eureka, California. We were hoping to make the drive in two days so we could have Christmas Eve with my family but were glad to have that buffer day in case Kale needed a little extra time for the drive. The first night of the drive went well and we made it all the way to Portland Oregon. Sure we had to stop a few times, and the binky was employed but over all it was a smooth smooth trip. All that sleeping had caught up with him though and so Kale had a pretty low sleep, high activity night with lots of nursing. I was a little tired as we started our second day and glad we wouldn't have to push it so much on our way back. After a lunch in Grants pass we made it to Crescent City and it was evident Kale was crashing. After a long nurse were we could hear the surf we headed out again. The last 1.5 hours were the longest but with pauses and patience we made it to my parents house right at dinner time. My fathers first words "hand me my grandson" were quickly followed by "I have some bad news." My older brother Conrad had had a stroke or seizure that morning (no one was sure - or at least the message were getting over the phone was a bit confusing) and was currently having brain surgery to reduce the swelling to the brain to see if they could keep him alive through the night. My mom, sister and younger brother had left an hour before we arrived. They were driving through the night to make the 8:30 am ferry to Victoria from Washington. My dad had stayed behind to tell us because we don't have a cell phone so they hadn't been able to get ahold of us during the drive that day. That night we all slept poorly waiting for phone calls to let us know if Cono had survived the surgery and if the drivers were still doing okay. All was as well as it could be. Christmas eve day we were all still deciding what to do. Kale was incredibly fussy all day and had a fever in the evening. I am not sure if it was teething or simply rebelling against having spent two days straight in his car seat. We managed to get his photo taken with Santa but that was about the most Christmassy thing we did. That evening we had Ed, Elena and Rodrigo over and did a Christmas Eve dinner as well as a gift exchange because it was becoming clear we would be leaving the next morning to join people in Victoria. I spent the entire day in total dread of the drive the next day. I almost wanted to buy a plane ticket so that I wouldn't have to sit in the car with Kale. Christmas morning we woke up and I don't think we even wished one another a Merry Christmas. We began picking up the house and packing up the car. We had gifts to fit in as well as my dad's luggage and a cooler of food to keep us fed along the drive. We left after lunch and started our return Journey. I couldn't believe we had driven all the way there only to turn back around after only 1 day out of the car. Thankfully Kale cooperated once again and we made it to Portland before he was crashing. My dad wanted to make it in to Washington and so we pressed on with a very fussy, hungry baby and I was thrilled to lay down in the hotel room and feed him and let him get some of that physical energy out. The next morning we arose very early to ensure we would make it to Port Angeles in time for the ferry. We had plenty of time and were able to breakfast and walk a bit before the ferry departed. I got anxious on the ferry, not sure how I was going to feel when I saw Cono. At this point he had survived two brain surgeries to reduce swelling, was in intensive care and they had recently determined that he was going to be paralyzed from the neck down. He could blink his eyes for yes and no which meant was able to make any decisions about his care and also that he was cognitively there. He was hooked up to every tube possibly, being fed, assisted with breathing etc... I tried not to think about it during the ferry ride and instead focused on the fact that Keva and Dad noticed Kale's eyes were changing colour when they were out on the deck of the boat. We wondered if they would go all brown, green or if they would just have a green center like his daddy's eyes. (We still don't know which way things are going but change is definitely happening).
Kale is waking so I will post more later...
Kale and I made the trek to the local health centre this morning to get a 1 week interval weight since his weight gain had slowed down. Last week we called our lactation consultant about the 3 oz over two weeks gain and she felt it was important we get another weight this week to see if there was something going on or if the low weight gain had more to do with the fever he had.
Today he weights 15 lbs 11.4 oz (7127 grams). That is an increase of 5.4 oz (153 grams). This is still less than is normal for this age range but a good improvement. I left a message for the lactation consultant to see what she recommends.
Thanks to everyone for their reassuring comments.
I went to the drop in at the health clinic on Commercial drive for the third time today. It feels like a much more cohesive group than the one closer to home and the nurse who leads it feels a lot warmer. I think I will continue going in the new year.
I weighed Kale today since it had been two weeks since the doctors visit and was a little worried by the result. He only weighed 15lb 6oz which is only 3 oz in 2 weeks. Well below normal weight gain. The nurse reassured me that weight gain slows down at around 4 months and I pointed out that he was only 2 months old. She said she still wouldn't be concerned he was obviously doing well.
I guess I am still concerned because nursing is still such a challenge, he fights the breast and is fussy so I worry that he is not getting enough and that is why he isn't gaining. I also worry because we spent 1.5 weeks of those 2 weeks working to reduce my milk supply on the advice of two lactation consultants and my midwives. I finally agreed because it was obvious he was gaining enough weight and as soon as I did he stopped gaining. So I am worried that we shouldn't have done that.
Kale has also been really fussy since recovering from his flu or whatever caused the fever and so I am feeling drained and tired which makes it hard to think constructively. Especially when his fussiness invovles not wanting to eat for more than 2 minutes ever 3 plus hours.
Deep Breathe - I know my baby is okay and I know that I am doing the best that could be done.
Early sunday morning.
Kale's two-day fever has officially left.
Very worried parents starting to relax again.
Sunshine peeking through the window.
Simon and Garfunkel playing in the background.
Smiling baby slumbering in my arms.
It's a happy morning.
Kale has a Gymini (see picture of the whole thing here at Amazon.) When were would first set him in it we would have to stay right there, talk to him and make the dangling toys move. Then he would stay content for up to 3 minutes. (It was impressive at the time.) Now we can lay him in there and he just stares at the toys fascinated. This picture captures him staring up at himself in the mirror on one of the toys. We talk to him about the other baby that keeps appearing in mirrors around the house but he isn't quite sure what to make of him yet.
Kale has a fever -
When I changed his diaper after seeing CRAZY at Movies for Mommies today I got really concerned that he was way to hot. He had been in his snow suit durring the movie so I left it off for the ride home and hoped he would cool off though it felt like more than that. When I got home and his fever was over 101 F I started to do the new parent panic. I dosed him with Tylenol then called Keva and the doctor.
Keva came home, the doctor called back and the fever is responding to Tylenol and going down. We are supposed to call the doctor again in the morning so see when we should come in so he can check Kale out and make sure it is nothing serious. Plus continue to dose him with Tylenol through the night to keep the fever down.
Alex came to our open house party all dressed up in her finest hand knit dress. Here we were trying to compare their heights so I held them side by side. You can't tell in the picture but Kale is shorter than Alex.
Sorry I am pulling up your dress in the picture Alex (and not even showing off your ruffly behind).
We set up our Christmas tree early this year because we were hosting an Advent open house on the second Advent. Here Kale and I are getting ready to put the first ornament on the tree. =) Kale has enjoyed the tree more than I imagined. When we sit on the couch he spends a lot of time staring at all of the lights.
Oh and mom - behind us in the first picture is our new painting. I will take a better picture of it for you.
When we popped in on Jane and Rachel Jane gave us this beautiful sweater that she knit for Kale. We were a little worried it might be too small but it actually fits quite well. Sorry the picture doesn't do it justice. Thank you Jane.
PS - We won't emphasize that minutes after the picture was taken he spit up all over the sweater...lol
We had our first routine well-baby visit today. Normally it would also be the time for the first round of immunizations, but since we are delaying those it was a pretty easy visit. Kale got checked out, we talked about his behaviour and then he got weighed and measured.
6.9 Kilos (15 lb 3 oz)
61.5 CM (24 1/4 inches)
I appreciated the fact that our doctor cosleeps with his two year old son and was able to share info about cosleeping and the like rather than questioning my decision like some of our friends doctors. Over all it was a good visit and I wished I had more questions or concerns. I am sure they will all come pouring out now that the visit is over.
Laugh
