Trace is 1 Month Old Today!!!

Trace continues to be a very content "little man", who really only cries when he is hungry. I have recently begun noticing a few changes in him. He is beginning to really focus on faces and objects and is in the beginning stages of tracking movement with his eyes. He is also beginning to smile more and more, which is always fun. He is also beginning to have more awake time during the day. He is on a pretty good schedule eating every 3 hours during the day. His last feeding of the night is at 10:30 PM and then I let him go as long as he can during the night. He typically wakes up to eat between 2:30-4:00 AM and then again at 6:00 AM. I would prefer his first feeding of the day be between 7-8:00 AM, but he typically doesn't make it that long, although he made it to 7:00 AM this morning, which made Mommy very happy!

He has now rolled over a total of 3x from his tummy to his back, which continues to amaze me! He is starting to move his arms and legs more now and is just beginning to make some cooing noises. It is fun watching him "come alive".  

He got his first cold this month. I guess it was somewhat inevitable considering the girls were both sick with fevers and bad coughs last week. I took him to the doctor on Monday to make sure it wasn't RSV and was encouraged by the negative nasal swap. He has kind of had a rough month with lots of medications. He was on Nystatin for 2 weeks due to he and I passing thrush back and forth via breastfeeding. That regiment finally ended on Tuesday thankfully. He is also on a generic form of zyrtec for acid reflux. The medicine seems to be helping a little, but he continues to spit up excessively. I also just started putting in some antibiotic eye drops due to his left eye having excess matter in it throughout the day. Hopefully that will clear up quickly. Although he has been on multiple medications over the past month, thankfully they have all been for minor ailments. He is growing quite well and his face is really beginning to fill out. He weighed 10 lb 3 oz at his doctor's appointment on Monday, January 16th. 

Kianna's New Haircut

Kianna's Cute New HaircutGirls with their bears dressed in their new Hawkeye and Tinkerbell Outfits

My sweet little "Nana Bear" as we like to call Kianna is back! She must have really been feeling miserable last week because she was a totally different little girl. I'm so thankful she is back to herself. I took her yesterday to get her haircut and thought I would share a picture of how cute she looks. It was her 2nd haircut, but her first major haircut. The first haircut took off about an 1/2" and this time we took off 2-3". She was a little timid at first, until I told her she would get a sucker if she was good. The moment she was finished she asked for her sucker, so she definitely was thinking of that sucker the whole time. It was cute because she told the stylist that she needed to get a treat for "Kiki Bear" (AKA: Kaylee) too. Kaylee was in preschool at the time and Kianna was so excited to give Kaylee her treat that she actually unwrapped it for her and the moment she saw Kaylee she attempted to shove it into Kaylee's mouth. It was very sweet! 

Grandma Sue and Grandpa Wayne are on their way back to Arizona right now. We really enjoyed their stay and all of their help. I am on my own for the first time in 4 weeks and so far today has gone really well. There have been so many distractions over the past month that it is kind of nice getting back into our own routine. We had a relaxing morning spent with reading books, playing with dolls, and of course feeding Trace. 

And he rolls...

Our little valentines...

Trace with Grandma Sue and Grandpa Wayne

Okay, so I have always been skeptical when people have told me that their newborn rolled over. I have always thought it was a fluke and "not for real". Well I stand corrected. Yesterday, Grandma Sue and Grandpa Wayne had Trace on his belly doing some "tummy time" when to their surprise he rolled over. I was in the shower at the time and when they told me he rolled over I admit I didn't believe them. So, I put Trace in the middle of the blanket on his tummy and to my surprise HE ROLLED OVER AGAIN! I couldn't believe my eyes! Of course once I ran for the video camera to document this momentous feat he got camera shy or a little tired, after all he had already done it TWO times at the ripe age of 3 weeks old!

Trevor surprised me by flying Grandma Sue and Grandpa Wayne here from Arizona. It has been great having them here to visit and help out. They have enjoyed meeting Trace Curtis who was named after my dad, Wayne Curtis Gaskill. I am so thankful that they have been here helping me this week, as it has a been a hectic week. Kianna has been sick since Sunday with a fever and not the easiest to deal with. We took her to the doctor yesterday and she has an ear infection. The antibiotics seem to be helping her be more herself again, so that is good. Unfortunately, she has also been having more potty accidents this past week, which has been a little discouraging. In addition, I think Kaylee is starting to get sick now, as she has had a low fever this afternoon. I don't know what I would do without my dad and Sue here with me. Trevor has also been a tremendous help to me in the evenings. The late night feedings have been catching up with me and so this week Trevor has been giving Trace his last feeding of the day so I can go to bed a little earlier. That has been such a blessing! Thank you honey for all you do for me!!! 

My dad and Sue are here until the 18th and then the real test begins when I have to prove to myself that I can handle 3 kids ages 4 and under "all by myself". It is challenging trying to give each of the kids the attention they need and deserve, especially the girls. Pray for me as I strive to be the best Mommy I can be.

Our Crazy Lives...

Kaylee proudly feeding Trace a bottle for the 1st time.

Grandma Becki and Kianna holding Trace.
Trace smiling- 2 weeks old
Trace- 1 week old

The craziness of life with 3 kids is beginning to set in, which is a little scary since I still have help during the day. We have been so blessed by our family and friends. My mom and Grandma helped out the first week. Trevor's mom helped out all last week. Trevor is home this week and my dad and Sue are flying in from Arizona to help out next week. They have all been helping me entertain the girls and with household tasks. Plus, our friends and family have been providing us with meals since we came home from the hospital. I haven't had to cook yet, which is such a relief! Thank you to all who have helped out. We appreciate it so much!! 

Trace is our "easy" child. He is a very content, cuddly little guy. He is settling nicely into a routine of eating every 2.5-3 hours during the day and waking up 1-2x during the night. He made it a 6 hour stretch between feedings two nights ago, which was pretty exciting!!! He is beginning to get more and more alert, which is fun. He is also beginning to focus more on objects and even smiles occasionally, although that happens mostly when his eyes are closed. I love smiles and will take whatever I can get. We introduced Trace to a bottle over the weekend and he didn't even flinch. He takes it wonderfully, which is a relief, because Kianna hated the bottle. We never knew if she would drink it or not. Trevor has been home with us this week and has graciously been helping me out with some of the night feedings. We are alternating nights and that has worked out wonderfully!!!

I'm not sure what is happening with the girls, but they are quite the challenge these days. Our girls have always been the sweetest and these days they seem to challenge most everything that comes out of our mouths. We have always prided ourselves in teaching "first time obedience", meaning that once we say it, we expect them to obey right away. These days it seems to take 3-5 times of saying things before they "possibly" obey. Not sure if we are just battling jealousy issues or if they are becoming more emotional and independent these days??? On a positive note, the girls adore their little brother and are eager to help whenever they can. They both love to hold him and Kaylee even got to feed Trace a bottle the other night. She was so proud!

I'll leave you with a couple cute things the girls have said recently:

A few days after bringing Trace home, he was lying on the ground underneath his play gym and the girls were lying beside him playing with him. Trace began spitting up and the girls both shouted to tell me he was puking. Kianna came running into the kitchen to find me and said "Baby brother puking. Get the bowl!". We got a good laugh out of that one...

Tonight Kaylee was watching me change Trace's diaper and she said, "Mom his bottom (private area) is kind of funny. It kind of looks like a snail." From the mouths of babes...

More pictures of Trace

Introducing Trace Curtis Cook

We welcomed our son into the world at 8:04 AM on Monday, January 19th. He weighed 8 lb 11 oz and was 20.5 inches long. He is such a blessing and I feel like our family is complete now that we have our little man. Since coming home we have had some "new" experiences. For example, we never experienced pee squirting up in the air in all directions with our girls. This morning, I experienced another phenomenon at 4:30 AM while changing Trace's diaper. I had just removed his diaper when he decided to poop. Not good, as you can imagine we are still in the very liquidy stool phase and it came out with some speed in my direction. Craziness!!!! Trace is a very content baby and a real joy! We love him so much already. Life is such a miracle and we feel so blessed to have him as a part of our family!

We had our first outing yesterday to the mall and it was kind of crazy. We are definitely outnumbered now and just getting all the kids in and out of the car is a task with my 10 lb weight restriction. That means I can't lift the girls (thankfully Kianna is old enough to climb into her car seat), lift Trace in his car seat, or lift the double stroller out of the car myself. Thankfully, I have help for 2.5 weeks while healing and adjusting to life with 3 kids.

Overall the girls are adjusting well to having a new baby brother despite some jealousy on Kaylee's behalf. Both girls enjoy holding him, kissing him, and lying next to him when he is playing on the floor. There have been a lot of changes this past month especially for Kaylee. For example: she now shares a room with Kianna, takes her naps in the basement vs her bedroom, had to move her car seat to the 3rd row of the minivan, & has a new baby brother. She seems to be coming around though as this morning she decided to give Trace her boy baby doll and name him Trace Curtis Cook. I thought that was really sweet of her. Kianna seems unaffected by Trace's birth. We just got her potty trained in the past month and I was praying she wouldn't regress after he was born. Actually the opposite has occurred, she has had fewer accidents since his birth. We are hoping this trend will continue! 

Lots of Changes with More to Come...

New Room

Life has been a little crazy for us lately, as we are trying to prepare for the arrival of our little guy. The changes began about 11 days ago when we began potty training Kianna. We use a method where she wears only a long dress with no diapers or panties for the first few days to get her used to the feeling of having it run down her legs. Then once she gets used to staying dry without panties, then panties are introduced. Being the clean freak that I am, I admit I never thought I would attempt this method but it worked amazingly with Kaylee years ago, so why not try it again, right?? Unfortunately, it was a bit easier with Kaylee who was completely potty trained in about 6 days. We are now on day 11 with Kianna and she seems to have gotten the hang of it, as she has had no accidents yesterday or yet today. Yea!!! 

The other major change was moving the girls into the same room to free up the nursery for Baby Cook #3. Bed time has gone extremely well, although I am now awakened promptly at 7:00 AM (when Kaylee knows she is allowed out of bed). Kianna who used to sleep until 8:00 or 8:30 AM is now right by Kaylee's side and flips on my bedroom light upon entering my room. Talk about waking up fast!!!! No more sleeping in for Mommy! On the other hand, nap time hasn't gone so well!! Miss Kianna has a bit of a stubborn streak in her and despite repeating the rules of no getting out of bed, no talking, and no climbing into Kaylee's bed; she cannot seem to stay in her own bed, nor leave her sister alone. Kaylee has been quite the trooper even dealing with Kianna peeing all over her pillow and bed earlier this week! Have I mentioned life has been a little crazy around here lately!?!? Today we finally decided the girls needed to be separated during nap time and so that was implemented and has gone splendidly thus far! Yea!!!

More changes to come...includes the expected arrival of our little guy on Jan 19th via c-section. We are all excited to meet him and to see what he looks like after all these months of anticipating his arrival. We can only imagine how much crazier life will get with 3 kids, 4 and under! Yikes!! Pray for us as we adjust to having a newborn around again and that Kianna will not regress in her potty training, as I've been warned that can happen as well.