Annual Santa Pic

Another annual chat with the jolly old elf. twitter.com/leftymama/stat…

— leftymama (@leftymama) December 16, 2012

Eggs and a Dirty Rabbit

Oddly, given that we're not a particularly churchy family, it appears that Easter has become the source of our first bona fide family tradition for Samson. For the second year, we took a trip to IKEA for photos with the Easter bunny, and earlier in the day, Samson collected eggs in the yard.

Mama hid several hollow plastic eggs and a few dyed boiled eggs along the path Samson usually takes when he goes into the yard: up the back steps, into the grass toward the pool steps, around the house into the front yard, and to the swing. At first, he wasn't that interested in the eggs, but then he realized that the hollow ones rattled when he picked them up, so he could shake-shake-shake like with his musical shakers. Inside were either Matchbox cars (Samson is newly obsessed with all things wheeled) or coins. Unfortunately, the excitement of the plastic eggs made the silent boiled eggs seem boring in comparison, so these were quickly discarded.
((check back here later for video of Samson testing the eggs))

After the egg hunt, the cold windy weather pushed us back inside for some traditional Easter treats. Here Samson tastes his first Peep:

















Then it was time for lunch and a nap, with the outing to IKEA waiting for the afternoon.

As you'll recall, last year's photo session with the Swedish Easter bunny did not result in a very good photo. The amateur photogs were more intent on featuring the IKEA products than the children and the guy in the bunny suit was less than enthusiastic in engaging with the kids. This year, the set-up looked better and the process seemed improved, even if the bunny had a curious brown stain on his head. We waited for a few minutes in line and then it was our turn. Samson seemed fine until we close to the bunny's sofa and he realized that Mama intended to leave him there (if only for a minute). Samson was not in favor of this plan.


Needless to say, we didn't get our free portrait this year. Oh, well... we'll try again in 2009.

No more pictures, please, Mother

Our little crawfish after an arduous day in front of the camera

A Visit to See the Swedish Easter Bunny's Model Home

So we made a trip to IKEA to have Samson's picture taken with the Easter Bunny. We bundled Samson up to brave the cold, wet weather (it was 37 degrees Fahrenheit in April!) and trekked out to Round Rock, expecting the possibility of long lines and hordes of unruly children in our path. Fortunately, we arrived at just the right time and were able to stroll straight up to the rabbit without even a minute of wait time. Unfortunately, little did we know that IKEA was simply luring clueless parents into their capitalist clutches with this offer of a free photo with the holiday mascot. The end result has got to be one of the worst Easter bunny pictures ever, clearly designed to feature IKEA merchandise over the beautiful children whose proud parents dressed them up for the occasion. Note the fabulous price tag attached to the sofa. Dag-nabbit, IKEA! I guess you get what you pay for...

Primera Comida Mexicana

To start off the new year on a brave note, Daddy and Mama decided to take the plunge and venture out for the first time to a restaurant with Samson on January 1st. Since

• Daddy's favorite food is Mexican, and
  
• our favorite restaurant is Elsi's, and
  
• the place tends to have lots of kids on weekend days, and
• it's pretty noisy so a crying child wouldn't bother anyone,

Elsi's is where we went. Well, Samson kept his cool for the drive over, but after 10 minutes in the restaurant, he decided he'd had quite enough of sitting in the carseat. Mama freed the boy from his confines, but the fussing continued and intensified. Once the food came, Daddy held Samson so Mama could eat her Huevos Motulenos. After that, it would be Daddy's turn.

By that time, though, it was clear that only one thing would tame the wailing baby and Mama wasn't yet ready to try it in a public space. So, it was off to the car for mother and child for some semi-private nursing. Daddy had to wolf down his burrito alone.

Oh, well. It could have been worse. At least there was no blowout diaper on Mama's lap while we were in the restaurant...

I love my Grandma

Baby's First Christmas Ornaments

Samson is excited to check out his very own tree decorations. The Santa suit at the top was a gift from his buddy Weston and the teddy bear at the bottom came from Deb and Peter in Kansas City. Thanks and happy holidays, friends!

I love my Paw-paw

One month later, we're still in Punxatawney

Monday marks Samson's first month at home since leaving the hospital. It is 2 months and 10 days since his birth, but his adjusted age is only 13 days. This means that Samson is still very much a newborn baby in his development and behavior, so our 24 hour routine still looks like that of a family with a brand new baby.

Ever see that movie (one of the best movies ever) "Groundhog Day" with Bill Murray? That's kind of how Mama and Daddy are living these days. Every day is the same, except in our case, the cycle repeats itself about every 2 hours: feed the boy, burp the boy, try to catch all of the projectile spit-up, hold the boy upright for 30 minutes (to minimize his reflux); if he falls peacefully asleep, place him in his bassinet and use the next hour to clean & ready bottles, pump breastmilk, take a nap, eat a meal, or do another chore; listen and watch for the boy's hunger cues, get another bottle ready, change his diaper, and start again. We keeping thinking, "Maybe today is the day where he sleeps for 4 hours straight," or "Maybe today is the day when he'll nurse well enough to get his whole meal from the breast," or "Maybe tonight is the night when he'll fuss for less than one hour," or "Maybe it's April, our lives have returned to something sort of normal, and we can go out to eat at a restaurant."

Samson does not sleep for more than 2 hours at a time, and usually it's more like 60 minutes. As a result, Mama and Daddy are basically insane from a month's worth of sleep deprivation. We try to trade off in shifts so that each of us can get at least 3 hours straight sleep, but it is almost impossible with the pumping, since Samson inevitably is shrieking through a colic episode when Mama needs to pump, so Daddy has to wake up & comfort him for 30 minutes until Mama is done.

The good news is that Samson seems to be doing better with his tummy trouble, and he's spending much less time screaming & contorting in pain at night. Even though we're not sleeping, it's a little bit calmer, a little less stressful time. He's also enjoying more, about two stretches of 60 minutes or so, of what we like to call "Sammy Time," when he is content to lie on his back and look around, making funny/cute sounds, and pumping his fists and feet in the air. Sammy Time is SO much better than Hammer Time.

Health Update
After 10 days on Nutramigen hypoallergenic formula, Samson still had blood in his stool (not visible to the eye, but positive on lab tests), so we decided to go ahead and return to an all breastmilk diet on Friday. By this time, most of the cow milk protein should be out of Mama's system, and the advantages of breastmilk far outweigh those of the formula. Plus, Samson is still gaining weight like a champ (8 lbs, 10 oz now), and his pediatrician says he looks healthy in every other way. We have an upcoming appointment with a pediatric GI specialist to look further to find the cause(s) and cures for Samson's bleeding.

So now we're back on the breastfeeding project. Samson's suckle power has improved dramatically over the past two weeks, but he still has trouble with his latch. This is probably because his mouth and facial muscles & nerve systems are still maturing, and also because he has been bottle feeding since he first began eating, and he has a learned to thrust his tongue forward in a way that makes his latch too shallow for nursing. Doulas Veronica and Ryka will be coaching us this week to correct this problem. Our goal is to be off the pump & bottle by the new year.

Christmas Elves
On Tuesday, some family came over to deliver a home-cooked meal and some holiday cheer. Aunt Jane, and Cousins Janice and Amanda put up our Christmas tree and got the chance to meet Samson in person for the first time. Thanks, Waltons!














And last weekend, we had visits from Uncle Kevin, Aunt Kelly, and Cousin Lauren.














Aunt Kelly first offered to stay over and take a 3 hour night shift so Mama and Daddy could get some sleep, but after experiencing a few hours of Hammer Time, she bailed and drove back to San Antonio in the middle of the night. Wuss!

Thanksgiving

Just a quick post to say: don't worry! We haven't been online in a while; too busy to type. Samson is doing great, up to 7 lbs now. He has passed his first 2 pediatrician visits with flying colors and just had his follow-up opthamology visit yesterday with no evidence of retinopathy. Yay!

We've got lots of pics to post, but just haven't had time to get them off the camera and onto the computer. This weekend, we hope...

Tomorrow, some wonderful friends will be coming by to drop-off some home-cooked Thanksgiving food for our first family holiday together. Our list of blessings is long this year, but we are most thankful for the people in our lives who have helped us during these past two long months:

• the midwife who sent us to the hospital when things didn't seem quite right;
• the doctor who read Mama's symptoms correctly and ordered the right tests to determine the source of the problem;
• the NICU staff who gave Samson the best care possible for the first 42 days of his life outside the womb;
• the loved ones who have brought an endless supply of food, baby gear, and comforting sentiments;
• the lactation consultant who saved Mama's boobs and showed us a light at the end of the "triple-feeding" tunnel
• the Daddy who has been Mama's constant support, cheerleader, and partner, and who skillfully does everything for Samson that Mama does (except for the breastfeeding);
• the Mama who never gave up on making "bestmilk" for Samson, even through spending 8 hours a day hooked up to a pump or doing the work to prepare and clean-up afterwards, and enduring repeated failed attempts to relieve the daily excruciating pain until the proper meds were prescribed to cure the bacterial mastitis; and, of course
  
• the Baby who has added an indescribable intensity to our lives, opening our hearts to possibilities that we never contemplated before, and already teaching us too many lessons to recount here.
  

What are you thankful for this year?