Oliver's First Sleepover

As I mentioned earlier, I had to work BookPeople’s annual storewide inventory on Sunday night. I conned Brian into helping out so Oliver stayed at his grandparents’ house overnight without us. We could have figured out a way for Brian to watch him at night while I worked but I wouldn’t have been able to sleep afterwards to recover since Brian had class so it made more sense for Oliver to stay in San Antonio while we worked on Sunday night and slept on Monday morning. Although Brian and I did spend a night away from Oliver earlier this month to celebrate my birthday this felt like a milestone since it was a night away from us and it was in someone else’s house. I cried when I left SA on Sunday afternoon. I was really nervous about how the night would go since Oliver had been refusing to take a bottle. I thought that perhaps my mother was going to have to drive him up to me in the middle of the night just so he would eat. 

But Oliver surprised us all and went back to taking a bottle as though it were no big deal. I left my mom with 35 ounces of breast milk for the stay (which lasted from 4:30 Sunday afternoon until around 2:00 Monday afternoon when Mom drove him back up to Austin) since it was a little more than he would need if he actually took the bottle. I didn’t expect him to take nearly that much during his bottle strike but thought it would be better for Mom to have it and not need it than need it and not have it. And, I’m glad I did give her that much. She only came back with 5 ounces since Oliver was such a champ Sunday night/Monday morning.  It was such a relief to me to know he was well fed and well cared for while I was working all night. And, because he was eating so well, he got to hang out with Grandmama Monday morning while Brian and I got some sleep. So, by the time Oliver got back up to Austin I was rested and ready to love on him. It was really weird for Brian and me to be in the house without Oliver but I am so grateful that my parents took care of him and let me do my job and recover from the overnight. I’m also very grateful that Oliver decided to take a bottle for that 24 hour period - that made it much easier on everyone involved!

Swimming!

My mom bought Oliver an inflatable pool last week that is big enough for Brian and I to get in. It was the perfect week for it since it was about 105 degrees every day last week and we were desperate for any way to cool off. Oliver loves the water and had fun hanging out in the pool with Mom and Dad. Brian and I loved getting to chill out in the pool after those long hot days.

And, the best part about our swims? This is what he looks like about five minutes after getting out of the water:

After our swim this evening, he went down for a nap at 5:00 and slept until 7:45 (letting Mom and Dad eat a full hot meal without bouncing a baby on our laps). Thanks for the pool, Mom! We’re going to get a lot of use out of it this summer.

Sundays With Oliver - Week Eleven

Oliver got to spend lots of time with his Grandmama this week. My mom came up on Sunday afternoon and stayed through Tuesday afternoon and then came back on Wednesday and stayed through Thursday night so that I could get some work done and Brian could prepare for his EXCET. We are so lucky that she lives so close and that she is so willing to help us out. If not for her coming up so often to sit with Oliver during the day I would be impossibly far behind at work. As it is, though, I’ve managed to keep up with all I have to do. Thanks, Mom! 

On Saturday Oliver and I went down to San Antonio to spend the night at my parents’ house since Brian would be gone all day and Mom’s friend, Janet, was in town and wanted to meet Oliver. He did great on the car ride down and was a perfect gentleman all day and night on Saturday with only the occasional fussy period. On Sunday morning, Mom and I took Oliver to church so she could show him off. Oliver did great during the church service (it was the Vacation Bible School service so it was relatively short and there was lots of singing and dancing which Oliver loved). I stayed for lunch in San Antonio and then headed back home to Austin to work our inventory at the store, leaving Oliver (bottle strike and all) at his grandparents’ house (more on his first sleepover later, but, rest assured, it was a success). 

Oliver went through another one of his whirlwind weeks where we felt like we could see him growing and learning right before our eyes. Just in the past few days he has gotten really good at getting things into his mouth - his fingers, his toys, his stuffed bear, my fingers. He’s also proved himself really good at pushing things away from his mouth every time he was offered a bottle that he didn’t want. So, his hand-eye coordination is coming right along. He also seems like he’s getting closer to rolling over (in fact, he grasped one of the rails of his crib at my mom’s house and tried to use it as leverage to roll himself over but lost interest before he actually did the deed). He’s gotten really vocal in the last couple of weeks and will now carry on a “conversation” with us for a long time. This has come in handy when we go out. Although he will fall asleep in the car, he won’t stay asleep in his car seat for long so our trips to restaurants have become really interesting lately. For the most part we can keep him pretty happy by talking to him while he’s i his car seat but often we have to pull him out and eat with him sitting on our laps so he can join the fun. 

Check out the rolls on his legs. He’s becoming quite a chunky monkey!

  

Bottle Strike

As I mentioned in the last post, Oliver started to refuse a bottle last week. Since I’ve gone back to work, I’ve been pumping like crazy and have built up quite a stash of frozen and fresh breast milk for Brian (or my mom) to give to Oliver while I’m away. Since the fourth week of this life, he’s taken breast milk from a bottle with no complaints (he has even taken a bottle from me in the past, which most breastfed babies won’t do). He spent 18 hours with my parents a few weeks ago and took a bottle the whole time without a whimper. But, since that night, every time he has been offered a bottle he freaks out. He starts to scream and refuses to latch on to the nipple. If you do get him calmed down, he chews on the nipple but still refuses to suck. He has had no problems nursing in this time, however. He takes to the breast like it’s going out of style (probably because he’s so hungry by the time I get home from work). People ask if it’s nipple confusion... nope, it’s nipple preference. He’s not confused, he knows what he likes.

We’ve tried two new types of bottles/nipples (and have a third type waiting for our next attempt) but have had no success. Brian did discover that if you put Oliver under his mobile (“dinner and a show”) and then offer him the bottle that he will start to suck for awhile but he won’t take a full feeding of milk and he ends up wearing a lot of his meal in the process. And my mom discovered that he will take a bottle in the middle of the night. So, we’ve had some luck if he’s really distracted or completely asleep when the bottle is offered. But when I’m at work and Oliver wakes up from a middle of the day nap (the times I most need him to take a bottle so that I can stay at the store and get more work done), the bottles have been a no-go.

The whole process of trying to get him back on the bottle has been so frustrating for me. With each bottle he refuses I see my freedom and ability to do my job slipping away and I shed a few tears for all the ounces of precious breast milk we have thrown down the drain in the past week and a half (it’s got to be close to 20 ounces at this point and those of you who pump know how painful it is to say good-bye to that much milk). It’s also frustrating for Brian and for my mother who want so much to be able to help me out by taking care of Oliver during the day so that I can get some work done. 

Plus, this strike has come at the most inopportune time. I’ve got our storewide inventory on Sunday night and will need to be away from Oliver for a very very long time (not to mention the fact that after working overnight it might be nice for someone else to be able to feed him while I get some sleep to recover). So, here’s what we’re going to attempt. I’m going down to San Antonio tomorrow to stay at my parent’s house Saturday night (Brian is taking his EXCET this weekend so will be gone all day Saturday and I don’t want to spend the whole day by myself. Plus, my mom’s friend, Janet, will be in town from Dallas and I want to see her and introduce her to Oliver). On Sunday afternoon I will drive back to Austin, leaving Oliver with his grandparents for what could be an almost 24 hour period whether he’s figured out this bottle thing or not. Hopefully he will eventually become so hungry that he will acquiesce and take the bottle or Mom will be able to distract him enough for him to be able to take just enough milk not to go completely crazy from hunger (or drive my parents crazy from his hunger). We’ll see. If worse comes to worse, my parents will throw him in the car and head up to the bookstore so that I can feed him. Wish my brave parents luck and pray for a miracle! I would love love love to see Oliver back on the bottle by the end of this weekend.

Sundays With Oliver - Week Ten

It was a week full of celebrations for us. I turned 30 on Monday, Thursday was our four-year anniversary and today is Brian’s first Father’s Day. We had lots of fun celebrating all of our milestones. Also, Oliver got to meet his great-grandparents this week when my dad’s parents came into Austin. 

Oliver really discovered his hands this week and is starting to try to reach out and grab things. He has kept us on our toes this week by refusing to take a bottle for a few days and by having some not so great nights of sleep this weekend. We haven’t tried again with a bottle lately but my mom is here to watch him this week so she will try to give him a bottle tomorrow. Good luck, Mom! I’m hoping it’s a temporary thing since I have to work inventory next Sunday night and it will be pretty difficult to do that if I have to breastfeed Oliver all night. 

Here are the pictures from this week’s Sundays With Oliver. I love the little outfit that my mom got him. So cute!

 

Two Month Wellness Visit

I took Oliver in for his two-month appointment yesterday afternoon (Brian had a test yesterday so got to miss this one). He weighs 12 pounds, 10 ounces, measures 23.5 inches and his head circumference is 41.2 centimeters. He’s in the 70th percentile for weight, 75th for height and 80th for head circumference so he is really proportional. The doctor checked him out and said he’s looking good (she kept interrupting herself while she was talking to me to comment on how cute Oliver is... high praise from someone who works with babies all day long). 

Oliver seemed to be enjoying the doctor’s visit until the very end when it was time for his two-month vaccinations. He got an oral vaccine and three shots in his legs. The nurse was very fast and I honestly think I was more upset than Oliver was. Yes, he screamed but I got him calmed down relatively quickly and he was smiling by the time we left the office. 

We got home and I gave him some Tylenol to stave off any fever or pain from the shot and he seemed to be doing pretty well. Last night, though, he woke up much earlier than he usually would. I fed him and changed him and while I was picking him up off the changing table, he threw up on me. Nothing like being thrown up on at 2:00 in the morning. I moved him into the pack and play in our room for the rest of the night and he seemed to sleep fine. But he had some diarrhea this morning and gave Brian a hell of a time while I was at work (he screamed for a few hours straight and would not take a bottle). When I got home he nursed and seemed okay but when I went to change his diaper I saw some blood in his stool. So, back to the doctor we went.

She checked him out and gave us a list of things it might be: a reaction to the shot (although blood in the stool is not something she’s heard of happening), a viral or bacterial infection, an intestinal blockage, a cow’s milk allergy (which would suck for my love of ice cream), or a small tear that is bleeding (that is, blood on his stool, not in it). She said to make sure he’s staying hydrated and to bring in a stool sample if we see any more blood. She also said that if he had a huge amount of very bloody stool and then passed out that we should call... um, yeah, I think we would call about that (from our cellphone on the way to the hospital). So, we’re keeping an eye on the situation and hoping it was just a one-time thing. He’s been sleeping since we got back from the doctor so maybe he’s just had a bad reaction to the shots and he’ll get over it soon. Gotta love back to back visits to the doctor’s office!

Best Birthday Ever

Monday was my 30th birthday and when my mom asked me weeks ago what I wanted for my birthday, I answered with one word: “sleep.” All I wanted was a full night’s sleep without having to listen for Oliver. If Mom and Richard were willing to come and stay with Oliver for a whole night, then I was ready for a whole night away from baby. And I got one. Brian and I got a room at the Doubletree in downtown Austin and Mom and Richard came up for their first full night with Oliver and Oliver’s first full night away from Mom and Dad. 

Brian and I had a blast downtown. We drank some champagne in the hotel room (our room was gorgeous and had a view of the Capitol) and then went over to Clay Pit for cocktails and appetizers. Afterwards we met Dauphin and Meghan and Dog and Duck and had some beers. We got back to the room around 11:00 and went to sleep. And, here’s the best part.... I slept for seven straight hours. The longest stretch of sleep I’ve gotten since Oliver was born. I woke up for a little while and then went back to sleep for another two hours. It was great.

We had breakfast at the hotel and then headed home. The night went pretty well for Mom and Richard, too. Oliver had a fussy period Sunday evening but slept well overnight. So, first night away from baby = a success = I’m one happy Mama! Thank you, Mom and Richard, for giving me exactly what I wanted for my 30th birthday!

Sundays With Oliver - Week Nine

Oliver had a good week. Grandmama came and stayed with us because I had a bunch of appointments this week and needed help taking care of Oliver. She and Oliver had a good time during the day while I went to work and Brian went to class. It’s so nice that she lives close enough to be able to come up and see Oliver whenever she wants to and can help us out by babysitting when we need her to. On Wednesday night, she made me some cosmos and fed Oliver at his 2 AM feeding so that I could get some sleep. She stayed until Thursday evening and then went back to San Antonio. On Friday, our friend Liz came over for our buying appointment and then hung out Friday evening and played Monopoly. Brian took the middle of the night feeding on Friday night so I got some more good sleep. On Saturday evening, my friend, Marc, got married and we took Oliver with us to the wedding. He stayed calm enough through the ceremony (Brian walked him around during the ceremony so that I could see Marc get married) but then Oliver started to freak out when the reception started. I was wearing a dress and couldn’t easily nurse him so we had brought a bottle of breast milk with us. Unfortunately, there was no hot water in the bathroom so we couldn’t heat up the bottle and Oliver wouldn’t take it cold. I took him into the bathroom with me and managed to nurse him some but he wouldn’t calm down so Brian and I had to take off before we got to enjoy the reception. Part of the problem was that Oliver had skipped his afternoon nap and was overtired and cranky. We got home around 7:30 and I set up camp on the couch and nursed him for about an hour and then put him to bed - full and happy. Nine weeks old is obviously too young to go to a wedding but I’m glad I at least got to see the ceremony and luckily we ran into Marc before the wedding so he could meet Oliver and we could wish him congratulations. So, all in all, good and busy week. 

Here are the pictures from this week. Notice the Chuck Taylors... I kept thinking the shoes would be too big so I hadn’t tried them on him yet. Good thing I busted them out this week since they are about to be too small. Sorry the pictures are a little blurry - he’s become such a wiggle worm, it’s hard to get a good shot.

  

Our Second Month

Oliver is two months old! Time is still flying by and if you watch closely you can actually see him grow. He’s really packing on the pounds and shooting up like a weed. It will be fun to see how much weight he’s gained and how long he is when we take him in for his two month checkup next week (it will not be fun to watch him get his vaccinations).

For his first month Brian and I made a list of all the things we had come to know about our son and, as I expected, a lot has changed in this second month. I thought it would be fun to revisit that list and edit it to reflect the Oliver we have come to know in his second month. 

• He loves the outdoors. When Oliver is fussy nothing calms him faster than walking outside with him. He quietens instantly and stares intently at the leaves as the breeze blows through them. You can just see him taking in all the sounds and smells. Oliver still loves the outdoors although the heat is starting to get to him and to us. Brian has started taking him on walks around Town Lake at about 6 am when Oliver wakes up for the day. Brian loves getting to spend the morning with Oliver, Oliver loves the walk and I love the two hours of peaceful sleep I get when they both leave the house. 
• He hates four o’clock - am and pm. Oliver definitely has a “witching hour.” At four o’clock in the afternoon and four o’clock in the morning, Oliver gets fussy. If he can be asleep when that hour rolls around he’ll sleep right through it. But if he happens to be awake then it takes the full hour to get him to calm down. We don’t know why he hates four o’clock but we’re hoping he grows out of it soon. Four o’clock is no longer a problem. He still gets fussy sometimes in the evenings but the timing is less predictable and it doesn’t happen everyday. He’s generally a happy, calm baby and we know how lucky we are for that.
• He loves speed. Or, more accurately, he hates red lights. Oliver conks out as soon as the car starts moving but is apt to cry when we stop for pesky little things like stop signs and red lights. He’s a highway baby. Still true but he no longer stays asleep after he gets out of the car. He used to take long naps in his car seat. Now as soon as we bring him inside he wakes up.
• He hates baths? We’re still not sure about this one. He has seemed to hate every bath I have given him at home but loved the bath he took at Grandmama’s house this weekend. We’re going to try bathing him in the kitchen sink and using warmer water to see if we can’t get him to enjoy baths at home. Oliver loves baths now (although he’s still not a fan of getting out of the bath). Every night Oliver and I get into the bath tub together (so much easier than setting up his baby bath in the kitchen) and hang out in the water. He loves to float on his back and kick the water to make it splash. Baths completely relax him and get him ready for bed. Warm water was the key to Oliver’s bath time happiness. 
• He can sleep through the dogs barking (even if he’s in the same room) but wakes up instantly if I sneeze. Still true.
• He loves Townes Van Zandt. By the second bar of Pancho and Lefty, Oliver is calm and his eyelids are starting to droop. He also loves to be sung to - even if Brian and I are doing the singing (we’re both tone deaf). He’s still a huge fan of music although he’s branched out a little more so that Brian and I don’t have to listen to Townes Van Zandt 24-7. The song “Mama’s Going to Buy You a Mockingbird” is like baby Ambien to him... by the time I get to the line about buying him a billy goat he is calm and starting to drift off to sleep.
• He loves to fall asleep in our arms but wants Brian and I to rock him to sleep differently. With me, Oliver wants to be chest to chest and with Brian he wants to be face to face. Although I still rock him to sleep every night, Oliver has become less dependent on us to get to sleep. Just in the past week we’ve started putting him in his swing for naps when he’s sleepy but still awake and he drifts off to sleep on his own. 
• He hates green chiles. I’m just going to assume this is still true. Too afraid to test it out.
• He loves company. When people come to visit they almost always comment on how calm and quiet he is. He saves his crying and fussiness for Brian and me. Still true.
• He’s a decent sleeper. He’s no rock star in the sleep department - we are still a long way away from that magical six hour mark - but Brian and I know how fortunate we are that he sleeps as well as he does. We can usually get six to eight hours of sleep a night (of course, that sleep is broken into three or four naps). Oliver continues to be a good sleeper - usually giving us two four hour or longer stretches at night. He’s got his days and nights figured out and still takes at least one long nap a day. The most I have had to get up with him in the past month is twice a night but most nights I’m only up with him once.
• He won’t sleep, however, if he’s not swaddled and no mere mortal swaddle can contain him... it takes a miracle (blanket). Oliver won’t even go down for a good nap without being swaddled. I’m sure he’ll grow out of that as the summer gets hotter but for now, it’s swaddle (and swaddle tightly) or no one sleeps. He still loves to be swaddled and has luckily not outgrown his miracle blanket yet. 
• He has always hated tummy time but in just the past few days has come to start tolerating it. Plus, he’s started playing on his activity mat and staring at his mobile - totally entranced. That’s been an awesome development - we can actually “play” with him now - it’s not all just eating, sleeping and pooping. He still doesn’t really like tummy time but despite the fact that he doesn’t do a lot of it, he’s gotten pretty good at holding his head up. He likes to play on his mat and is starting to reach for things and bat at his toys. He’s also “talking” a lot - he’ll lay on his mat, in his crib or in my lap and coo and “giggle.” It was an adjustment for me when he started making happy noises since before any noise he made was a cry. He would coo and I would try to comfort him like he was crying but now I’ve gotten used to how vocal he is.
• He loves being in the sling but sometimes gets overheated. So, while wearing him usually buys us an hour or two of quiet, it often ends with him going from zero to screaming when he realizes he’s warm or uncomfortable. We have not used the sling much in the last month since it has gotten so hot. He’s much more comfortable sleeping in his swing. He has started liking the Baby Bjorn now, though, and in just the last week has developed enough neck and head control to face out so he can see the world. He prefers that to facing me now.
• He’s got a sixth sense for when food is ready. Whether it’s placing the top piece of bread on the sandwich or me picking up a plate full of food for dinner, Oliver can sense it and chooses that time to demand his next meal. I’ve gotten to eat only about ten hot meals in the last month. Although he lets me eat breakfast and lunch he doesn’t ever let me eat dinner undisturbed. It doesn’t matter what time we try to eat dinner, Oliver will inevitably wake up and demand to be fed when Brian puts my dinner in front of me. It happens every night and I’ve gotten really good at nursing and feeding myself at the same time.
• He loves to dance - he demands movement from all who hold him. Oliver is rarely content sitting still but loves to be rocked, bounced and swayed all over the house. If you hold Oliver, be ready to move and groove. He will eventually fall asleep if you two step around with him but you’ve got to work for it. We can now sit with Oliver in our laps and play with him but if he is upset the only thing that will calm him down is the “Three S’s” - swaddle, sway and sing.

We’ve had a great second month with Oliver - he’s grown so big and has become so interested in the world around him. I look back at the pictures of his first week and can’t believe how tiny he was. He’s an amazing little boy and we are so lucky to have a healthy, happy and calm baby.

Sundays With Oliver - Week Eight

Good week at the Contine household. I started my buying appointments for the Fall season and despite Oliver’s midweek nap strike (he would not sleep during the day on Tuesday and Wednesday), I got a lot done and am still mostly caught up at work (thanks to Brian). I had one appointment here at the house which was great since Brian could watch him while I was in my meeting but I could still feed him if he got hungry. Oliver did manage to hang out in my office during another appointment this week (although it was a very very short one) ... he sat in his bouncer and cooed through the whole thing. Brian started summer school so we’ve been splitting Oliver duties all week - Brian takes him in the morning and then brings him to me at the bookstore in the afternoon. Seems to be working fairly well although neither of us is getting everything done we need to. We went to our first movie this week thanks to Baby Day at the Alamo Drafthouse. We went to see Up ... it was crazy crowded and Oliver fussed through most of it but Brian and I did manage to see most of the movie. We spent our typical Saturday morning going to Dan’s, Town Lake and the Farmer’s Market and then hung out with Laurie, Robin and Lydia Saturday afternoon for wine, amazing peach cobbler and porch time. My mom is coming to stay with us next week so that Brian and I can focus on work/class and we’re all three looking forward to that!

Enough with the words, though... here are the pictures. 

 
 

And for some reference, here's a picture of Oliver the first time he wore that outfit:

He Did It!!!

Oliver slept from 9 PM to 3 AM last night - six hours in a row and thus the textbook definition of “sleeping through the night.” Plus, when he did wake up, he was only up to eat for 15 minutes and then crashed out for another three hours! It might not happen again any time soon but this mom is so grateful for the five hours of uninterrupted sleep she got last night. Thank you, Oliver!