He Eats!!!

Brennan was really chewing his fists and sucking on them loudly starting about three weeks ago. I asked his doctor if he saw any evidence of him teething already and he said no. We were making him bottles as fast as he could drink them, every thirty minutes. He still seemed hungry so we went out on a limb and decided to try solid food, early. We started him right as he turned three months. Here's a new Moosey eats video.

He has done great with it, in fact he loves to eat. He eats about 3 bowls of rice cereal a day, sometimes 2 at a time. He's really good at swallowing and prefers to even hold the spoon. I usually have to get two spoons because he's got such a grip on the one that I can't get it away from him. I'm excited for him to be able to try other foods in a few months, I think he will really like sweet potatoes and peas. He already eats way better than Sara ever did. She hated rice cereal, which still pretty much fits her personality.

I'm also really proud of the fact that I'm still breast feeding him. I'm able to feed him half and half. He usually gets 2 oz of breast milk and 2 of formula at a feeding. It's better than no breast milk and I'm glad I've been able to keep some of it going. He probably gets total about 10 oz of it a day. I'll keep pumping as long as there is milk. Nursing doesn't really go so well so really the only time I nurse him is if he gets up at 3 a.m. It usually puts him back to sleep quickly. I'm still drinking a beer every other day and that really helps, plus I eat oatmeal which seems to work too. I haven't had to watch what I eat as much, nothing seems to bother him anymore. I still haven't tried coconut or mango and I don't eat any nuts except walnuts.

Just for fun the other day I gave him a piece of parsley from the garden just to see what he'd do. He tried to chew on it a little bit.

We recently got him a baby exersaucer so that he could sit upright (which I thought would help his ear pain). He seems to like it OK. He likes chewing on the toys and it has spring loaded legs for when he gets bigger and wants to bounce.


His ears finally seem to be getting better. He has responded better to this antibiotic than any of the other three. Also I decided I couldn't drive into Provo every 2 or 3 days if he is going to have repeated ear infections so I took him to a pediatrician here in Spanish Fork. His name is Dr Bennett and he got lots of good recommendations. So far we really like him and I think we'll stick with it. It's nice having his doctor 5 minutes away. His staff was really bragging on him too, saying he never takes a day off because he loves his work. I'm crossing my fingers that Brennan does not have any more ear infections but if he does I hope that we can keep using this doctor well into the future.

Now that he's feeling better he is so much fun. He laughs a lot more and likes it when you raise him slowly above your head or make various noises, he really gets to giggling. He still laughs in his sleep too which is one of my very favorite things about him, it's really funny.

Moosey has really grown, he is now 14 pounds and has outgrown his 0-3 months clothes. He is wearing his 6 month jammies now. His feet outgrew his jammies first but the rest of him was getting to be a tight fit.

He's starting to talk more, he'll make specific noises to protest something or to try to get our attention. I also am loving how his hair stands up like little fuzz on the top of his head. His eyes are looking blue and I hope they can stay that way. I'm so excited to see what he looks like at 6 months and 1 year. I think he'll be a cute little guy.

Moosey Frog

Moose was a frog for Halloween. I actually got his costume way before he was even conceived. Dan teased me about it because we didn't even have a child that could wear it but I felt redeemed when we put it on Brennan tonight and it fit and looked really cute. It's a size 6-12 months and I hope he can wear it again next year but I think he'll be way too big if he continues on the path he's on.

We took him out in the stroller for a few blocks while Sara knocked on doors. He wasn't very happy to be wearing it but at least it kept him warm. I thought the feet on the costume were the best part.

Lego's

Brennan likes to lay on his tummy and watch Sara play lego's. I think he likes all the colors of the blocks and maybe even the noises they make. Whatever it is, he's fascinated. It's funny that Sara gives him a few lego's to play with too. Her only request is that he doesn't throw up on them too much. It's so cute the way he watches her play and looks at the lego blocks. Moose is super sharp and really aware of everything that goes on around him too. I think it's funny Sara calls him "moosa" here's a video of them playing


followed by some silly self portraits.

cute Moosey pics

New Pics

Just because he's cute..

What the big boys do

I'm always telling Brennan to do what the big boys do. Do the big boy burps, big boy poops, and now he eats like the big boys. He has a new high char thanks to his Great-Gran-Nanny in Alabama.

The chair is wonderful and I'm so glad I finally got one. It has a 5 point harness for squirmy fellows, it tilts back 3 levels to accommodate those that can't hold their heads steady, and it's on wheels. Hopefully too it'll make him feel like one of the peeps now that he can sit up with us. I think he was feeling like sitting on the floor was uncivilized because he seems way happier to sit in his char so far. It also comes with a huge tray (not pictured here) that is easily removable and dishwasher safe.

We got him some rice cereal last night to try to help him be less hungry and he's eating it like an old pro. He eats a lot of it too and even held his mouth open for it instead of his bottle today. I've also noticed it's making his milk stretch further so he will hopefully have to eat less formula.

Beer!!!

Here are some pics of Brennan after his walk the other day, fast asleep.

Moose finally got the all-clear from his doctor on Wednesday for his ear infection. He still has fluid on his ear which might be causing some discomfort. I told the doctor that he still cries quite a bit and the doctor checked his throat and couldn't find any other obvious medical reason why he is still crying.

He is also jamming his fists in his mouth ferociously and sucking loudly on them all the time. He's either teething (which the doctor also checked and said he didn't seen any evidence of) or hungry/starving. Since we're making him bottle after bottle as fast as he can drink it, I think he's hungry. We're going to start adding rice cereal into his bottles today and see if it helps him feel more full and hopefully he can tolerate it.

The medical community recommends not giving them solids until they're at least 4 months to prevent allergies (he is currently just turning three months) but Brennan seems really miserable and he's the size of a 4-6 month old already, so his body probably needs those extra calories in my opinion. For all we know his body is developmentally on par with an older child and he's ready, so the medical community can stuff it, it's worth a try if it makes him more comfortable and cry less.

Since I've been sick recently my milk supply has dwindled to nothing and I was about to just give up on it entirely. I was taking brewer's yeast supplements by adding the powder to my oatmeal and it tastes nasty, drinking fenugreek tea and taking capsules, and eating oatmeal with out much luck. Finally I had a beer yesterday and last night I pumped the most milk I've ever pumped, 4 oz which lasted Brennan all of 10 seconds. There is something about beer that works. It supposed to be the brewers yeast in it according to the internet and maybe because it relaxes you and I've been mega-high on stress lately. Stress and breast milk don't co-exist. So I hate the taste of beer but I'm perfectly willing to drink it for Brennan to have milk. It seems to be that I need to drink a bottle every other day, it takes me almost a day to choke it down.

I'm really trying to tell myself to enjoy his baby-hood but it's been very stressful. He cries a lot during the day and hates being put down. I have been really thankful that he hasn't caught any of the illnesses yet that we've had, except for a bad ear infection. I really hope he doesn't have chronic ear infections. I bought him a different type of bottle that is vented that is supposed to help prevent ear infections but he does not like to drink out of it. I've got to try and get him to use it though because if it works, it'll be totally worth it.

Brennan is really cute and he smiles so big now. He holds his mouth open so wide just like Sara did, I think Dan taught both of our kids to do that. It makes my day better to see him laugh and when he "talks". His other favorite things are cheek and neck kisses, baths, being held, and looking at all of us and laughing. He also loves his walks, he sits in the stroller peacefully and watches the trees and sky. We take walks 2 times a day just to have a relaxing time.

Ear troubles

Brennan has had an ear infection for the last three weeks. He's been through the ringer at the doctor's office. I took him today and they said it might be looking a little better but they still gave him 2 antibiotic shots and said we have to keep giving him his medicine.

He weighted 13.7 today. He's still growing quite a bit. He's already outgrown his 3 months size clothes and is now wearing the 6 months stuff. Crazy how fast that happens. I want him to be big so I don't have to worry about him as much but also it will be sad when he's no longer a little baby, especially because he's our last (we hope).

He's been doing his tummy time as prescribed by the doctor. I got him a mirror so he could look at himself on the floor, he seems fascinated by that. He loves looking at pictures on the wall. Today at the doctor's office they had the room decorated with characters from the movie Cars and he was very interested in it. He kept staring at "Mater". Sometimes I put his bouncer under the fish tank too and he loves to look up and watch the fish.

He is really into eye contact and face time and talking and laughing with Dan and I. He keeps tabs on where we are at all times. He loves to have his cheeks and neck kissed and raspberried. I call him my "Kissy boy" and he likes it (as Sara says, although she does say that I give him too many kisses and then he don't likes it).

Nursing has been going so-so. I'm taking every supplement known to man to keep my milk going, it seems to want to die. I started taking brewer's yeast (yuck) and am drinking fenugreek tea. He's about half formula half breast milk at this point.

Today I stopped by a garage sale in the neighborhood. I was looking for Sara a cheap tricycle since hers was stolen. No luck there but the family had a lot of boy children and there was huge box after box of boy's clothes. I'm usually not patient enough to sift through things for a deal but I could tell right away that they had really nice clothes for sale for fifty cents each. I spent about 20 minutes going through all the boxes and came away with about $600 worth of clothes for $20. I was really happy with it. There are about 20 pairs of pants, 20 shirts, 5 pairs of shorts, and 5 jackets. What I also liked was they had lots of nature type t-shirts and not just all sports themed stuff like you see everywhere.

It was really good quality clothing too. They didn't have infant sizes, it was size 1 year to 5 toddler. I'm putting them in the basement and it will be nice not to have to worry about buying him clothes and especially paying full price. Especially since he'll probably outgrow them fast. I was really proud of myself for buying second hand clothes. I spent way too much money on Sara's clothes buying them new. Having a boy is fun!!



Dan thinks I'm imagining it but I think Brennan gets more and more hair every day. Maybe just wishful thinking. His eyes are still a steel gray blue color that I love. I hope they stay that way. His cheeks are still chunky as are his thighs. He's really cute! Today we saw the neighbors baby, born 20 days after Brennan, her name is Bren oddly enough. She is barely 7 pounds and looked like a premie next to Brennan. I'm glad he's big and robust.