Thanksgiving 2010

Brock brought home a nasty stomach virus and cold which struck down the entire household for over a week - and sadly, that week fell over Thanksgiving.  Yikes!  That said, we spent Thanksgiving holed up in bed resting our aching, coughing, sneezing bodies.  On the upside, we definitely didn't gain any weight this Thanksgiving.  On the downside, I'm still waiting for my annual sliver of delicious pumpkin pie. Waiting...still waiting...

The scariest part of this whole sickness was watching Brock feel awful. He never fusses but this bug definitely left him feeling "blah" and unhappy.  He even stopped eating for about 2 weeks, and he lost about 1.5 lbs.  (He's still eating less than normal but at least he's eating again, phew!)

The good news is we are FINALLY healthy again and looking forward to Brock's first Christmas!  To get us prepared, we had some pictures taken of our little Santa...

Changes

Change is defined as making something different; to create transformation.  And in the case of Brock, there is really only one constant in his world - change.   It seems like every day we get closer to figuring him out he makes some radical change to keep us guessing.  Even when it comes to his favorites and his least favorites.  Just last week he couldn't get enough sweet potatoes and gagged when we introduced apple sauce.  This week, the tides have once again turned and apple sauce is the only food we've been able to feed him outside breast milk and Cheerios®.


Change also occurs when things evolve and grow.  Again, in  the case of Brock, he is growing at warp speed and we are just trying to keep up.  The other day we began pulling himself up using the bumper on his crib.  Knowing it would be only a matter of time before he could literally stand up or climb out, we lowered the crib. And with these growth milestones comes gained independence.  Brock is definitely becoming his own person.  He is stubborn to no end (gee, I wonder where he picked that up?), he has a forceful hand when trying to take away his toys or random things he wants to put in his mouth (as I type this he is gnawing on a wine cork...) and will let you know his opinion - usually in the form of a crying spell.  For example, he certainly is opposed to his new crib environment. 


Anyway, my ramblings are really just an excuse to post more adorable pictures of our kid.  So here it goes...


Brock in his "jail cell"

Brock letting us know he can hold his own bottle (although he really can't get milk from it)

And, Brock realizing he can pull out ALL of his toys at once - my personal favorite to clean up!

I love this little bugger!!!!!!!

To puree or not to puree?

I love food. I love eating it, reading about it, looking at it, thinking about it, cooking it - all food, all day long.

Being a new mom, I thought I'd take a stab at making my own baby food.  Seemed easy enough.  Steam up some sweet potatoes or butternut squash until tender and then puree it.  Brock loved it!  My confidence soared so I decided to expand my menu and make applesauce. 


And the verdict is...

I guess I shouldn't quit by day job just yet. 

Poor Brock.  Who knew he could be so opinionated at such a young age?

My Dad

Brock loves his Dad.  In fact, so much that he sports a shirt to pay homage to just how "rad" his Dad is. 

Oh My!

The other night, I found Brock asleep on his stomach. Paranoid, I quickly rolled him over to his back.  Big. Mistake. He woke and cried for what felt like forever before he settled back to sleep. Then, the following morning he was on his stomach again.  Don't mind the frown on his face - it was the flash from the camera. 

Now that he is becoming more mobile, we need to start thinking about lowering the crib and baby proofing the house.  Eeks! 

Rolling!

Brock has finally mastered the art of rolling.  He never took to "tummy time" and definitely was reluctant to try.  Then a few weeks ago Brian witnessed a one time roll.  It was very exciting!  But, Brock never would roll stomach to back continually.  Until now...

This VIDEO speaks for itself.  I think Grandma would concur...he's quite talented! 

Brock is also getting SO big!  We think he weighs about 19 lbs.  He's also wearing size 9-12 month clothes. Sadly, all of his pants are too long and too tight in the tummy.  What can I say?  The kid likes his milk and veggies.

Happy Halloween

Brock's first Halloween was less than memorable.  We think his gums are pretty sensitive from his double whammy teething week.  All weekend he cried, fussed and clung to me - it was unusual behavior from our happy-go-lucky guy. 

After a second day of not napping enough, Brock went into a tailspin.  Thirty minutes of screams and cries (maybe that was his costume - a fussy baby?) later, he sobbed himself to sleep.  It was heart wrenching to watch and hear but we're trying so hard to get him on a sleep schedule.

Anywhoooo, the point is his first Halloween wasn't spectacular BUT before the meltdown, we managed to throw on his Race Car Driver costume and take a few pictures.  Man, was it hard to get him to smile..

Happy Halloween and GO GIANTS!!

What a week!

Late last week Brock was unusually fussy and having a tough time sleeping through the night so we knew something was going on.  My motherly instincts kicked in and I suspected he was getting his first tooth.  On Sunday we found a tooth peering out of his lower front gums.  Phew, I DO have motherly instincts!  :-)

On Tuesday, Brian witnessed Brock rolling - something most babies have been doing for several weeks at this age. Our kiddo is not a fan of "tummy time" so rolling happens infrequently.  And, the fact that he was able to document this roll on video...

AH!mazing...  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9x9PB5czAXg

Then this morning a SECOND tooth next to his first tooth began to surface.

WHAT A WEEK!!!!!

Snip Snap

I came home from work to find a Ziploc bag with Brock's precious curls enclosed.  My heart sank a little.  Brian gave him a hair cut!!  He had "threatened" to chop off his locks before because well, to be honest, they looked a little funky.  Brock definitely had the old man comb over going on...

Here is the "before" video Brian made:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M25vWmzf_Uc

And of course, the "after" video:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KI9Og7ZvEmI

I couldn't wait until morning to see his new "do" in the daylight.  And while the cut is ok, Brian, please don't quit your day job!

Splish Splash & Chit Chat

Brock is in love with his bathtub and I couldn't be more delighted.  I'm just hoping when he's a full blown messy boy rolling in dirt, he'll still love the bath.  Here he is demonstrating his splashing techniques:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yVcF_DGBAI

In addition to being squeaky clean, Brock is also a fan of using his newly found voice.  Check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaMSZHp7d7o

Six months in review

We forget how much Brock is growing and changing until Iwe look back at his many, many photos...

Here he is just minutes after being born

The first time I held him outside the NICU

Coming home from the hospital at 5 days old

One month old

Six weeks old and a visit from Grandma

Two months old

Nine weeks old and meeting his cousins

Three months old

Four months old

Five months old

And that brings us up to date. 

Six Months

Our little man is getting old - six months old, in fact.  It is incredible (and a little sad) to see him develop and grow.  Every day we notice slight changes in his demeanor and personality.  Overall, he is a happy baby and we couldn't be more thrilled. 

He had his six-month check up this week and here are his latest stats:

Birth Stats:
Weight: 7 lbs., 5 oz.
Height: 20 3/4 inches

Six Month Stats:
Weight: 16 lbs., 14.5 oz.
Height: 25 inches

Here is a picture of him (sorry for the poor quality - darn blackberry phone!) before he received one oral vaccination and three shots.  He only cried for a few minutes afterward.  Tough guy.

Brock's favorite things - smiling, laughing, sitting up all by himself, grabbing toys/stuff, removing and placing his pacifier in his mouth and "talking/screaming"  - oh, and shoving anything he can into his mouth. 

Right before he turned 6 months, we introduced rice cereal to his diet.  He liked the cereal but it gave him the worst constipation.  So we switched to whole grain (organic, of course) oatmeal and that seemed to do the trick.  He's also tried green beans, banana, apple sauce and avocado.

He is still warming up to green beans. 

Yosemite!

We had the honor of attending our friend's wedding in Yosemite.  At first, Brian suggested we camp but with a 5 1/2 month old baby, I objected.  So we compromised and camped in a hotel (that is how we Logan's camp...). 
What a weekend!  The wedding was amazing; the bride was stunning!  The weather was incredible.  And, Brock was a perfect traveller.  I was the only person who was a drag - I get altitude sickness but it certainly didn't stop me from enjoying the weekend.

Work. Life. Brock!

Seriously, is it possible to balance life with a baby?


The Brock shrine in my office definitely helps me get through my 10 hour work days.  I rush home each night just in time to get a last feeding in before we put Brock to bed.  Then it's rush-rush dinner (thankfully Brian cooks the meals; otherwise we'd be eating cereal for dinner!), prepping for the next day, then falling into bed exhausted and eager to get a few hours of sleep before Brock wakes up for his next feeding.


And attempting to blog on top of that?  Yikes, are you kidding me?


But, it's Friday night!  The babe is fast asleep and the hubby watching the Giants game and I finally have a few minutes to catch up on emails, read my favorite blogs and post some recent photos of the Brockstar for his many fans...


So without further adieu, heerrrrrrrree's BROCK!

Brock with his little pal Sami.  The ladies love him...

But what's not to love?   He turned 5 months old on this day (August 27)

Forget Waldo!  Where's Brock?

Looking sporty and ready for Autumn in his new corduroy cap. 

It's exhausting being a passenger in the bike chariot.

HELP!  There's a crocodile in my shirt!

Love those baby blues...

Mastering the art of shoveling anything into his mouth

Brock joined me at work one day.  He was so bored he put himself in this position and fell asleep.

Grandma and Grandpa's house is definitely not Brock-proofed- unless it is okay to eat glass?!?

Hanging with my buddies Sammy and Emmett

I'm even cute when I'm spitting up on Daddy

Yum!  Rice cereal and avocados.

Stylin' in my Nike Air Jordan's

Gosh, if only Brock were a happy, smiley baby...just kidding!  He's almost always smiling.  :-)

I think this one speaks for itself...