Back to work, daycare and graduation

Wow the last three weeks have been a whirlwind of ups and downs.  It's crazy how fast time flies!  Carter started daycare the week before I went back to work.  Some people may think that is selfish, but I needed it and really think it helped with the transition of going back to work.  Carter started on Monday June 2nd.  I was soooo nervous about it!  I know our daycare people, but Carter had been really fussy and I was nervous.  Nervous that he would be thrown off schedule, is he going to sleep all day, is he going to be awake all day and then be so exhausted by the time we get back home??  Well I should have not worried.  It has been WONDERFUL.  He LOVES it soo much.  Maybe a little more than home sometimes...ha!  I was also worried that I would be late for work all the time.  Sometimes I am late, but for the most part am able to get to work by 8:00.

First day, already asleep!

Garrett has enjoyed helping with Carter.  His "job" is to bring the formula in every morning.  He loves to do it and skips into school with it.  He also has started taking his car seat out to where they are stored.  I took Carter and Garrett to school the whole first week (since I wasn't working) and it was a good "practice" round.  Josh started the next week and Garrett told him everything he needed to do.  Ha.  He's such a good helper.

The same week that Carter started school, Garrett graduated from school...wow!  One coming in and one going out.  His graduation was SO SWEET!!  They all wore caps and gowns and had tassels and the whole nine yards.  They all came up one by one and said what they wanted to be when they grew up.  So much fun to hear.  Garrett wants to be an architect.  He would be awesome.  He currently can build Lego houses and pieces without any help.  He looks at the instructions and just does it.  Smart boy.  He honestly gets this from his dad.  I can't do that.  Here are some pictures from graduation. 

Party at the park day of graduation...who is this BIG boy??

 

Carter at graduation.  Ha he was out shortly after this

 

With his friends

 

Proud graduate!

 

mommy and Carter

 

Family of four!!

 

So excited Uncle Preston came

 

With Grandmommy and Pops :-)

 Garrett will still go to daycare until he goes to Kindergarten in August.  So we have double daycare payments right now and I don't know how people do it for so long.  While Garrett is still there the teachers in Carter's class are being sweet enough to bring Garrett down once or twice a week to visit with Carter.  I'm so thankful for that.  I wish we could continue to send Garrett to daycare after school but we can't afford it.  Luckily the school he is attending has a wonderful after school program and we will be sending G there. 
For my last week before going to work I had a staycation at the house.  It was so nice to be in my own house with just me...never happens!  So I spent the days cleaning out lots of my junk.  I also found my "big girl clothes".  Praise that I had not donated them yet.  I need some transition clothing while trying to loose the weight.  My mom and I spent one day together and it was awesome.  I went back to work on a Tuesday and so the Monday before that I got a massage.  It was INCREDIBLE!!! 
I've been back to work for two weeks now and have adjusted quite nicely.  I have a very laid back working environment and that helps. 
I started back on eating right this past Monday. Carter will be three months old on Monday and I can't use him as an excuse much longer.  I gained 48lbs during pregnancy and as of today I have 18 left.  So 30 down, now the hard part.  I did loose 4.4lbs as of today so we are on the right track.  Although I do have my birthday in a couple of weeks and that will throw things off some.  I am going to start exercising next week.  It is really hard to find the time now that we have two kids.  Shew.

We have fallen into a nice (sometimes boring) routine at home.  We are stuck indoors lately because it's too hot for Carter to be outside.  It's hard to balance it all.  Josh and I both feel guilty for not being able to do as much with Garrett as we used to be able to do.  We've decided we are going to start alternating weeks and doing a date night with him each.  That way he will get some time just to himself with one of us.  Hopefully this fall we will all be able to be outdoors together and do more as a family together. 

2 Months Old

Well another month has gone by.  Whoa.  Again I am behind.  He will be 10 weeks on Monday.  Hopefully I will catch up on Month 3!

 

 

 

Height & Weight:  He is growing like a weed!  Oh my goodness.  He gained 2 pounds and grew 1.75 inches in 4 weeks!!  Good gracious.  He weighs 13.75 pounds (83%), is 23.75 inches long (jumped from 50th percentile to now being in the 70th percentile) and his head is 16.14 inches (67th percentile).  Overall he is growing wonderfully.  The doctor had no complaints!!

 

Health:  He has improved a lot in the health department.  We changed from Zantac to Prevacid for reflux and it has made the BIGGEST improvement.  Hopefully he can come off of it around 6 months of age.  We are also using a probiotic.  Gerber Soothe Drops.  The combination of these two medications has made one happy baby.  The Gerber Soothe drops are 30 dollars for a 25 day supply.  So expensive, but WORTH EVERY PENNY!!!  

 

Sleep:  Sleep is continuing to improve.  PRAISE THE LORD.  Garrett was a horrible sleeper and so anything that Carter does has been better than Garrett!  He is still in his rocker sleeper and we will keep him in it until he can't fit.  Which if he keeps growing 2 inches a month it won't take long (yikes).  Daycare will start introducing him to a crib soon and I'm hoping by 4 months we will start working on putting him in his crib.  I don't look forward to it, but maybe he will surprise us. 

Carter started daycare this week and has LOVED it!  He usually has one or two good naps there (like an hour each) but mainly cat naps on and off.  The difference is that he doesn't cry there, only at home!  I think he gets bored here.  We still hold him during the day to sleep.  We are working on letting him doing it himself, but one thing at a time. 

So far night time has been going pretty good for us.  We usually do a bath around 7:15 and he falls asleep in our arms by 7:45ish.  We hold him still at this point and the gets his last bottle at 9:30pm.  At that point we put him down for the night.  He usually wakes up around 1 or 2 in the morning and then will sleep until somewhere around 5:45 to 6:30.  We are beyond excited about this.  As long as he keeps improving we are OK!  He still doesn't have to be rocked at night and doesn't use a paci.  They only time he uses the paci is during the day.  Hopefully it will stay that way.

 

Clothes/Diapers:  We are finishing up our last pack of size 1 diapers and he is in a size 2 now.  He can no longer wear 0-3 month clothing.  He is either in 3-6 month or sometimes wears 6-9 depending on who makes it or if it is old etc.  I just had to buy him new socks because his chunky legs couldn't fit into the ones we had that were Garrett's.   

 

Social:  He is continuing to smile A LOT now!!  He acts like he is giggling but they are pretty much silent.  Today he did giggle out loud a little and it was so cute.  He started daycare Monday and I was so worried on how he would do.  Apparently he loves daycare.  They said he flirts with all the ladies and just smiles at them.  They love him too and it is wonderful.  SO I believe Carter is going to be like me and Garrett and love watching people and be a social butterfly.  We will see.

 

Diet:  He is currently on GentleEase and is taking 5 ounces.  We have gas drops in each bottle along with 2tsp of rice.  He eats pretty much every three hours during the day. 

 

Baby Gear Love:  At this point there still isn't a lot to play with.  He has however discovered himself.  My mom found a play mat that had a mirror with it.  He will lay under it and laugh and giggle and just stare at himself for 20 plus minutes.  It's great!  The car seat is getting better.  We do the Bumbo occasionally as well. 

 

Hair/Eyes:  He still has blue eyes.  His hair is starting to fill in on top.  It is pretty red along the bottom and looks as if it could end up being a strawberry blond?

 

Crying:  It's so much better!  He pretty much cried when he is bored, needs a diaper changed or is hungry.  We have an occasional outburst for no reason but nothing like we were dealing with before. 

 

Likes:  Loves baths!  Oh my goodness.  He just lays there and smiles.  It is so precious.  He loves mornings.  Sometimes we have to wake him up and even when we do he has the BIGGEST smiles ever.  It is beyond awesome.  He likes looking at himself. 

 

Dislikes:  Not a ton of dislikes at this point.  

 

Milestones:  He can roll from stomach to back.  He has done it on three separate occasions.  I tried getting video today but he wouldn't do it!!  He is doing better and grabbing items.  If you hold an object in front of him he can follow it around.  He knows our voices and will look at us if he hears us talking...

 

Firsts this month:  rolling from stomach to back is the big one. 

 

What I'm thankful for:  so many things.  So thankful that Prevacid seems to be working and we have a much happier baby.  Thankful that he loves daycare.  Thankful that he is sleeping better at night time.  Thankful for a loving family.  Thankful for so many things.

 

 

 

 

One Month Old

Technically he is five and a half weeks today, and more than likely I will be late on posting anyway for future months!  This will be a somewhat boring post because there isn't a lot going on with a one month old except eating, crying and sleeping. 

 

5 week pic

 

G trying to help

 

 

Height & Weight:  He is currently at 11.69 pounds and 22 inches long.  He has grown 2 inches in 5 weeks!  Holy smokes!  His weight is in the 81st percentile and his length is in the 53rd percentile.  Hopefully he will keep growing to distribute that weight.  Although I love his chunky little legs and cheeks.  Garrett was chunky until after the age of two and then he thinned on out.  He is still SOLID...ha!

 

Health:  We went for our check up today and we have an overall healthy baby.  As most of y'all know I was involved in a pregnancy study where they tracked me with exercise.  The study has continued to our babies at this point if we want to continue the study.  I decided to continue on with the study.  They performed an ultrasound on his heart, and EKG and MRI (from shoulders to knees).   I agreed since there was no radiation involved and they didn't have to put him to sleep, etc.  When we did the heart ultrasound they found a hole in his heart.  They said this is completely normal, but his was a teeny bit larger then what they normally see.  They said not to worry, but they want to follow back up when he is 6-7 months old.  So we will see what happens.

Our first three weeks were an adjustment and hard for everyone.  Carter was in pain (reflux/gas) and we were sleep deprived and couldn't figure out what was going on with him.  We went through three formulas and Zantac.  Experimented with rice (per our pediatrician)  and just kept at it.  He's still not good, but has improved a lot and that's all we can ask for.  The doctor increased his Zantac and said to keep on it through the weekend and if we haven't improved she has given us a new medication to start to see if that works.  We will see what happens!

Picture of the EKG...so many wires!

 

Sleep:  Oh sleep, how I have missed you and took you for granted.  Wow!  We forgot what the first bit is like.  Wow.  I have an AMAZING husband that I can't tell you how much I appreciate!  He is alternating nights with me.  We take turns every other night staying up with Carter.  This has worked out amazing for us (except not seeing each other at night as much).  The first three weeks were a crap shot and we were all over the place.  In the past couple of weeks we have seen improvement and as I said we will take improvement.  He has finally made it to every 3 hours pretty much at night time.  We have had the occasional 4 hour stretch which are so EXCITING!!!  We are just continuing on and know that eventually he will sleep through the night.  Being able to recoup every other night makes the biggest difference.

He is sleeping in a rocker (see previous post on blog) and it has helped so much.  We will see what happens when he goes to daycare and sleeps in a crib.  We will start transitioning to a crib around 4 months.  Or until he outgrows what he is sleeping in :-)

We started off swaddling him because G couldn't sleep without it. Well Carter didn't want it.  As soon as he gets control of his limbs I think he will sleep well in the crib, but he wakes himself up at this point.  At night time he is in a sleep sack. 

We currently do not have to rock him. G had to be rocked for 30-45 minutes before he would fall asleep so this is great for us. 

During the day he is in our arms a bit, but I've decided that I'm going to enjoy it.  He is our last baby and if we snuggle more than normal than so be it.  He will sleep by himself too (he currently has been in his sleeper for about and hour and a half) so that's OK with us.

 

Clothes/Diapers:  The boy busted out of newborn clothes after the first week.  He is pretty much in 3-6 month clothing.  He is in size 1 diapers. 

 

Social:  He has started smiling, giggling and cooing.  So awesome.  He is also able to reach out and grab things.  He knows my voice and will turn his head when he hears me.  It is going to be hard going back to work.  I have created a bond with him and will miss it tremendously.

 

Diet:  He is currently on GentleEase and is taking 4 ounces.  We have gas drops in each bottle along with 2tsp of rice.  He eats pretty much every three hours except at night time when he occasionally hits longer stretches.

 

Baby Gear Love:  At this point there isn't a lot to play with.  He loves black and white.  We have a play mat (pictured below)  for him to lay under that he will laugh and giggle with it.  I get so tickled listening to him giggle.  He also loves anything that crinkles. 

This is a picture of it. 

 

 

 

 

Crying:  It's not terrible.  He doesn't cry too too much, but when he does, be prepared!  He can flip in a heartbeat.  when he is angry you will know!  That little face goes beat red and the alarms go off!  Ha.  I can usually calm him within 5-10 minutes (that feel like 5-10 hours sometimes).  We have had times where he goes for 30 plus minutes.  We are hoping his medication will improve him.

 

Likes:  Loves baths, food and having his diaper changed.  He will sit in the bath and just chill.  He looks like a little old man sometimes in a hot tub!  Ha!  He enjoys sleeping in our arms.  He also burbs and farts like the big boys.  My life with boys will be loud and interesting!

 

Dislikes:  Sleeping on his own...ha.  We really have gotten better with this, but if he could sleep on his belly I think he would sleep for HOURS.  He sleeps so well.  But he can't safely sleep at this point on his belly.  Eventually when he can roll back and forth maybe he will become a stomach sleeper.

At first the sun was not his friend.  He wouldn't even open his eyes.  Now he will open them :-)

Not a huge fan of his car seat.  It's a 50/50 chance on if he will ride peacefully or scream. 

 

Milestones:  He can now focus on objects and reach and touch them.  He does amazing at holding his head up.  When we do tummy time he can lift that big head and turn from side to side!  He is sleeping longer by himself and at night.  We are not on a schedule by any means and don't plan on being on one anytime soon.  We are still in "survival" mode and just taking it day to day.

 

Firsts this month:  Well since he just came into the world, everything is new.  The smiles and giggling are what stand out.

 

What I'm thankful for:  God, family and friends FOR SURE!  I could not do this without all of them.  We typically listen to Christian music during the day.  It calms me and I think he does too.  I have also started reading Jesus Daily and it is point on!  I love it.  We are so fortunate to have family that lives in town.  Without them we would not have been able to be where we are!  Praise the Lord for them.  I am also thankful for a sweet five year old that LOVES his brother and does an amazing job dealing with the crying and new schedule of this new life.  I am so proud of him. 

 

Pictures from his first month:  sorry for the number

Snuggles and pure bliss

 

our burrito all wrapped up

 

this makes me laugh...see Josh in the background :-)

 

Making Carter a part of the family dinner experience.  Sometimes he cooperates, other times he is in our arms

 

Sandy showing some LOVE

 

Big Brother and Little Brother.  Crazy how much Carter has changed from this picture

 

Carter in his mittens because he would always scratch his face.  He doesn't wear them now

 

When Carter would just fall asleep anywhere!  Watching Tom and Jerry together

 

Smiles while falling asleep

 

 

Garrett enjoying Carter's toy as much as he does

 

Very alert!

 

He laid slept in a basinet for the first few weeks

 

 

Ugly cry...sometimes mommy would cry too.  ha

 

He loves to be naked

 

Love those big eyes!!!

 

This is good sleep, eyes rolling in the back of your head good.  scary looking but funny

 

 

Tummy time

 

Proof of how angry we can get

 

What you looking at?

 

Big brother love

 

First start of smiles

 

always has his fist up

 

 

Outdoor time!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Life Today

Well it's been about five weeks and I just want to document how things are going and what life is like for us these days.

I'm going to be honest.  The first three weeks were so very hard.  We came home from the hospital and things seemed to be going great with Carter.  We would lay him down and poof he would go to sleep.  We thought that we had won the lottery and that we were going to have a great sleeper on our hands.  Well I guess he was just giving us a few days of peace before he piped up!  Ha! 

He was all over the place with sleep/eating etc.  He was looking like he was in pain a lot.  Not sure if it was gas or reflux or just adjusting to life outside the womb.  We were at the doctors office two or three times and we went through FOUR different formulas.  We started with what the hospital sent us home with.  Then we tried Gentle Ease from Enfamil.  He was still spitting up and acting as though he was in pain.  They switched us to Enfamil AR.  This seemed to be working the best but he was still acting unhappy and in pain.  From there we were switched to Nutramigen and prescribed Zantac.  This was kind of "the last option".  Well it worked great the first couple of days and then Carter started having diarrhea.  Apparently this is a side effect of this formula.  One step forward, two steps back.  We called the peds and they said to keep him on it for 10 days and if we weren't happy to switch back.  Well we made the decision to switch him back to GentleEase and continue the Zantac and add rice to his formula (the peds said we could do this before I get any backlash of starting rice early).  We would have never done this with the first baby, we would have left him on it until the 10th day.  This time we listened to our instincts and glad we did.  He still has tons of spit up, but doesn't seem "in pain" except occasionally.  We've decided to wait it out.

Right now we are waking Carter every three hours during the day.  He is so HUNGRY all the time.  Sometimes it's hard to get him to three hours.  It was also hard to figure out how much he is supposed to eat especially with the spit up.  Are we feeding him too much?  Not enough?  etc.  Right now (at 5 weeks, 6 Days old) he is eating 4 ounces of formula with 2tsp of rice and gas drops in each bottle.  For now this is working.

I try and do the eat, play, sleep with him.  It's hard.  Babies don't come with instruction booklets.  Sometimes he sleeps and then wants to sleep right after a bottle.  Doesn't he know he's supposed to play now!  I've started now just going with the flow and doing my best.

 

 

 

These were taken in the first few weeks.  He looks so different now. 

 

A "typical" day for Carter and I right now is kind of boring, but I'm enjoying.  I watch Army Wives when he is sleeping.  We got a subscription to Netflix before I went on maternity leave.  Best decision ever (or not).  I have always wanted to watch Scandal, so I watched the first two seasons.  Dying to see season three!  Now I'm watching Army Wives.  OMG  Amazing.  Love it!  I also try to do something productive each day.  I've cleaned a closet out, cleaned out our freezer, etc.  We do a ton of laundry, vacuum, and wash and clean bottles and make bottles.  I think I could make bottles in my sleep. 

He is sleeping in this amazing sleeper I found through another blog. 

 

We had started him off in a bassinet, but with his reflux and spitting up it wasn't working.  We tried a wedge to elevate him but that wasn't great either.  He would wiggle his way down and wake himself up.  The reviews were amazing on this and said their kids slept so good in it (for like HOURS).  Well he will go about 3 hours and we will take it!  Praise!!

He has started to giggle lately and it melts my heart.  We have good days and we have days that make you want to open a bottle of wine at 10am.  Ha! 

With Garrett I wanted to go back to work by 8 weeks.  I just couldn't figure it out and needed to go back to work.  For the first 3.5 weeks I felt the same with Carter.  This past week though we have started having a good time.  I am truly going to miss being with him daily.  We are so fortunate to have an amazing daycare and I love his teacher.  Ms. Connie was Garrett's teacher and helped us so much!  She is incredible!  I feel so confident leaving Carter with her.  It will be an adjustment for sure.

This week I plan on doing a one month update this week.  As part of the pregnancy study I did Carter is now in a study as well.  He had an EKG done, a heart ultrasound and an MRI this week.  They hope to repeat again at 6 months and a year.  The study could go further than that, but they are just in the beginning stages right now. 

Date day with Garrett

Tuesday I was given the gift of having a day with Garrett.  My mom kept Carter and Garrett and I had a "date day".   Oh my goodness we had such a special day!  It was just what I needed.  Garrett and I started the morning off by taking Sandy for a walk.  It was such a BEAUTIFUL day and we had to be outside.  I let him pick out his own clothing and he picked out his favorite, a muscle shirt (tacky of course) and athletic shorts!  He was happy to say the least.  Along our walk Garrett picked me all sorts of weeds flowers!!  It was BEYOND sweet and melted my heart!

The "flowers" from our walk.  He picked out the vases!

After the walk we went to paint pottery.  Garrett LOVES to do this and I had to check my anxiety at the door.  There is no painting in the lines with kids, they express their creativity.  I like order and  plans, with children there is no such thing.  He said going in he wanted to have five different colors.  That alone stresses me out...ha!  He picked out a dog for Sandy to paint.   I just let him pick out whatever he wanted.  Well this dog is some sort of special looking.  Ha!

Garrett with his dog.  We pick it up Sunday!

We went to Chick-Fil-A for lunch and OMG it was sooo good.  I don't eat out much now that I'm on maternity leave. Before maternity leave I ate out all the time, so I actually enjoy eating at home :-)

Garrett started baseball and needs cleats.  So while I had Garrett just to myself I decided to go and let him get a pair.  To say he was excited was an understatement!  He was so stinking excited.  He wants to wear them all the time. 

 

 After that we headed to the park and played. Then we headed to Baskin Robins where they were having a great deal on scoops.  1 scoop for a dollar, 2 scoops for 2 dollars and 3 scoops for 3 dollars.  I mean you cant pass that up!  While we were eating the ice cream I looked at Garrett and asked what his favorite part of the day was.  Painting?  Lunch?  Park?  New shoes?  Ice Cream?  He shook his head no every time I asked.  So I was confused and asked what his favorite part was and he said "spending time with you".  Holy tears!  That was just the sweetest thing he has ever said.  It was from the heart.  I looked a hot mess in Baskin Robins with tears streaming down my face. 

We had a good time and then came home and rested for about 45 minutes.  I was exhausted.  So we had about 45 minutes before we had to go and pick up Carter so I asked him if he wanted to play baseball.  So he put his cleats on and we went outside to play.  He asked me to pitch to him.  Oh he had no idea what he was asking me to do.  I am a horrible thrower (well and catcher).  I made him wear his helmet.  Good thing because I hit him in the head twice!  Don't worry he had his helmet on and I was tossing underhand so there was no damage.

 

 

 

Mom look at my muscles!  HAHAHAHA

 

Getting ready for mommy to throw the ball

It honestly was the perfect day with him!  I look forward to days like this with Carter and Garrett.  So much fun!!  God gave me such a huge hug that day!  These boys are such a blessing to me (including my husband!)

Carter Hayden Dail

Well Carter Hayden Dail has arrived!  I went to work on Monday March 31st just like any normal day.  I had my 40 week appointment that afternoon to schedule his induction.  Well we never made it to the appointment because around 9:30am my water broke at my office!  Ha!  I called the doctor's office and they said to go on to the hospital.  I was very calm and about this.  I wasn't having any contractions still and got my boss to drive me to the hospital.
Josh met me there and we went on into triage.  They had to determine if my water in fact had broken.  By the time we got there and checked in it was around 11am.  The first test they did came back inconclusive.  To say I was ticked was an understatement.  I knew my water had broken.  No question!  They had to do a second test and it took about an hour and a half for them to get the test in.  That test determined that my water had broken.  Yay!  Once that was confirmed I was able to go to Labor and Delivery.
I got to a room a little after 12:00 in the afternoon.  I found out that I wasn't allowed real food at this point and had to be on a clear food (jello, popsicles etc)...not fun.  When they asked what I wanted I told them a gin and tonic!  ha~  They didn't bring one.  Oh well.
The nurse I had was BEYOND wonderful and I wish I could have brought her home with me.  They monitored me for a bit and checked for dilation.  I was 5cm dilated (half way there) but my contractions were non existent.  He was also too high up so they had to do Pitocin to get my contractions going.  My main concern was if I could have my epidural.  I definitely wanted one.  They promised I could have it! 
Well after about an hour on Pitocin it was time for the epidural.  My nurse warned me that the doctor that did the epidural did not have great bedside manor, but was the best in the business.  He came in and he was just as she had described, but he ended up opening up to me and we laughed and had a good time.  He did an excellent job!  When I had an epidural with Garrett I couldn't feel when it was time to push.  It also took FOREVER to wear off.  I had no feeling whatsoever from the waist down.  With Carter's I could feel and it made it so much easier and it lasted an appropriate amount of time.
The nurse went to put my catheter in and couldn't get it in because Carter's head was so far down and it was GO TIME!  She called the doctor in and we got started.  With Garrett I pushed for 15 minutes.  With Carter I only had to push for 6 minutes and he was here!  He weighed 8 pounds 8 ounces and was 20 inches long.  It was such an incredible delivery.
He was a really good baby in the hospital and would just go to sleep when we put him down.  Things were going great.  We got home and the first two days were magical.  I thought we had won the lotto.  Then things started to get a bit complicated.
He had bad reflux/gas/something going on.  We changed formulas, didn't work.  He was not sleeping, especially at night.  He would fall asleep, but then would be up every hour and a half.  Night time was just HORRIBLE.  I cried and cried.  I'm just going to be honest.  I had forgotten this stage.  I know newborns don't sleep at night...I get it.  Something additional was going on with him.  Something internal.  We went to the doctor twice, called almost daily.  Changed formulas again.  That didn't work.  They changed us again to a soy formula (this one is supposed to be the BEST for digestive issues) and paired it with Zantac.  It seemed to be working until the spit up got worse and then he got diarrhea.  Apparently this is a side effect of the formula.  So we made the decision to change his formula back to Gentle Ease and pray.  We changed it this morning and hope that his stomach feels better.
We are very blessed to have this beautiful, healthy boy in our family, but look forward to him feeling better.   I think he will do better once he isn't hurting all the time.
Garrett LOVES his brother.  It is a bit overwhelming for us at times because all he wants to do is talk to him, touch him and be in his face!  Shew.  We just take a deep breath and try to tell him to be gentle, etc.  It has been a journey.
Josh and I are alternating nights currently taking care of Carter.  Luckily our new house has an upstairs bedroom and playroom and we can close it off so that the other person can get sleep.  It is amazing what we took for granted before an infant!  Ha!  Shew. 
Carter is a sweet boy that we look forward to watching him grow.  He is starting to smile for me on times first thing in the morning and it is the sweetest thing that melts my heart.  He also has strawberry blond hair and BIG blue eyes.  Looks like he may be hanging with his dad at the beach if he is as fair skinned as his dad is :-)
We would appreciate any prayers for Carter that whatever is going on internally will be healed and that he will feel much better. We truly believe if we can get that figured out he will be so much happier and things will go smoother for him.