america's next top models?

Liz and I took our babes to one of those portrait places at the mall. It was pretty hilarious.  They were both really well behaved, and I have to admit that the results were pretty darn adorable.

4 months old!

I can't believe how quickly time is passing! Preston turned 4 months old on Monday and it's clear that he is rapidly leaving his newborn days behind. He's rolling over from his back to his tummy like a pro and is starting to get restless on his play mat. He just wants to be upright, so looks like we'll need to bring on the next stage of baby gear (excer-saucers, walkers, jumpy things, etc).

He is now sleeping in his big crib in his own room and last night was the first night that we left him completely unswaddled. He did pretty well. He's still waking up one or two times per night, but for the most part he goes to sleep around 7 or 8pm and will sleep until 4 or 5am, feed, and then fall back asleep until 7am.  I'm liking this schedule because it gives Alex and I some time to ourselves in the evenings, which basically means that he can watch me while I fall asleep on the couch. 

At his 4-month checkup, he weighed in at 17 pounds (95th percentile!) and 25 inches long (50th percentile). I think we may have a rugby player in the making!  Good thing he's got his All Blacks gear.

the daily grind

Now that our little peanut is almost 4 months old, we are trying to get a bit of a routine going as far as sleeping and feedings.  So far, it's been working out well at night. We put him to bed at 7pm and then I feed him around 10:30 or 11pm (he is usually half asleep) and theoretically, he should sleep until 7am.  This isn't quite happening yet, and he wakes up anywhere between 4-5am. Luckily, he's able to go back to sleep after a quick snack and will sleep until 7am.  Eventually, I've heard that babies will sleep for 12 hours a night, but that seems like a far-away dream, and for now I'll enjoy my 11pm-4am snooze. 

Best time of the day...

...is in the morning. Preston is especially smiley and chatty. We get him up from his bassinet and take him into bed with us and he plays and coos and gurgles. This morning, he rolled over all by himself and Alex and I were both there to see it!! How exciting....he'll be off and running before we know it. Yikes.

my little chunky monkey

The three most popular comments I get when people see Preston:

"What amazing eyelashes!" (he got them from his dad; I'm jealous)

"Aw, look at those cheeks"

"He certainly looks well fed"

separated at birth?

Late and great rapper, Notorious BIG

Notorious PNT (aka Peanut Man)

Thanks, Uncle Bobby, for the artwork!!

It's a tough life....

October 15th

Tomorrow, Preston turns 13 weeks and it is also my Grampy's birthday. He would have been 85. He has been gone (but certainly not forgotten) for 4 1/2 months now. He would have loved to see Preston and become a Great Grandfather.

In my dad's words: In 84 years, he experienced a lot of good things, and appreciated them all - "Beautiful", "No Problem" for sure. And Roland gave us all kinds of good stuff that have become part of us. So, Roland lives on through us ... today, tomorrow and beyond.

look who's talking

At 12 weeks old, Preston has started to make the cutest little baby coos and gurgles. I can't get enough of them! He is also making the cutest expressions now and wiggling his eyebrows! We are so in awe of him and the changes that occur on an almost daily basis.

Preston and his buddies

Preston and Carys, who is five weeks younger than him, but already seems to asserting her power as a woman! Carys' mom is my good friend Liz, who lives on our street. It was so wonderful to have someone to go through pregnancy with, and now we are having a great time figuring out this baby thing together!


Here is Preston with some of his friends from my mom's group. He and Tucker, the baby on his left, are the only boys in the class. I love that they are sound asleep while most of the girls are crying or fussing! Ha! Men...

cutie pie

looking adorable in the hat and sweater that his granny knitted for him.

baby on the go

We've had a busy and wonderful past two and a half weeks. Alex's parents from New Zealand were visiting, and we kept Preston very busy... going to Martha's Vineyard, Old Sturbridge Village, Walden Pond, a Weston High School football game, back and forth from Framingham to Boston, daddy and baby class, a wedding in Rhode Island...phew, I get tired just thinking about it!! But, Preston was a very good baby, adapting to all of the changes in his "routine" like a pro. Our philosophy is that you can't adjust your life to suit the baby, but rather make the baby fit into your life. And he's doing OK so far.... (minus the few obligatory breakdowns every once in a while!)

welcome to the world, preston robert

I can't believe you are 10 weeks old already! I had all sorts of plans to document your life from day 1 on this blog, but I've been busy getting adjusted to our new life, rather than recording it. It's amazing the way a baby changes things- the distant memories of sleeping through the night and long, lazy sunday mornings spent snoozing in bed seem as if they were a lifetime ago. Simple things such as taking a shower, checking email and returning a phone call seem now to be luxuries that may go neglected for days.

The exhaustion is felt deep down into my bones, but the elation from a seeing a smile spread across your face as you look at me instantly cancels out all the hard stuff, tenfold.

You are an amazing little boy- you are growing so quickly and learning so much about the world. You have discovered your thumb and are thisclose to sucking it... you have figured out that breast feeding is so much nicer than taking milk from a bottle, and you let everyone know that you are NOT happy when we try to feed you from one. You have started to sleep for 6 or 7 hours at a stretch at night, and mommy and daddy thank you for this! You are starting to outgrow your newborn clothes and this makes me happy and sad at the same time. Life is full of new adventures and discoveries for you, and I'm excited to be along for the ride as you experience it all.

welcome, baby, to the new america

http://obamiconme.pastemagazine.com/

President Obama was sworn in yesterday and I am so glad you were around (kind of) to be a part of history. I am very excited to bring you into the world at such a time of great hope and optimism for the future of the country and the planet. Just think, things that we find so amazing now, such as a black president, your generation will find commonplace. But, you'll be learning about this day and this President in your history books. And you get to say you were part of history in the making!

baby love

We are expecting our first baby, due in July!! Right now I'm focused on the very important issues, such as fantasizing about a decorating a nursery...(still not sure what the sex of the baby is, but a boy can like pink, right?)

laid off

Ugh. The recession has hit home. In November, I was laid off from my job of six years and am now trying to pick up the pieces and move on. Which, so far, has included daily trips to the gym and discovering the hidden gems of daytime television.

Help.