Our First 2 Weeks with Brayden

So, today, our baby Brayden is OFFICIALLY 2 weeks old! I had better get documenting his first little "firsts" before he is all grown up and ready for college! I can't believe how fast the time has already gone. The other day, Steve said, "You have been enjoying being a new mom even more than I thought you would." I have to admit, he is RIGHT! I have been literally over the moon with joy taking care of the needs of my new little man. It has been so long since someone truly "needed" me for their very survival! I am finding the most curious things exciting, like:

LAUNDRY!!!and organizing his room. . .

his closet, his toys, his bed. . .



















or just taking pictures of the things I think are cute, like how he sleeps with his mouth wide open. . .

I have just been loving all of it!


Well, his first two weeks have been pretty up and down. A little rough and rugged, but for the most part, sweet and peaceful. He is a super calm baby and doesn't fuss much. He has only been waking up twice in the night and he is pretty peaceful about it. Just wants to eat and look around a bit. Not really any crying which I am grateful for.


It is funny, Lewis hasn't held Brayden all that much. I think he is afraid that he will cry and just doesn't want to get him "riled up!" But Conner asks to hold Brayden every chance he can get. He loves to snuggle with him and try to fix his every stir by shoving the binky in. Both brothers have been very sweet with the baby and patient too as we've been trying to get used to the whole thing.


Here is a recap of Brayden's first TWO WEEKS:

Thursday, May 14th, First moments in the hospital being poked and prodded:











Thursday Evening:My new boy and I spent ONE magical night in the hospital. I really LOVE staying in the hospital. I know that many people like to get out as soon as possible, but I love being waited on, having food delivered at the touch of a button, relying on other CAPABLE nurses to dote on my son and teach me their tried and true tricks, and just feeling the need to do NOTHING but take care of myself and my baby-no housework lurking about! If the room hadn't been so dang small this time, I might have liked to have stayed longer. It was so enjoyable! It was also fun to have the visitors that I had. Sunnie's family, my mom and brother, Laura and Ginny and Katie. I'm not usually big on all the "media" attention after having a baby. I like to kind of keep on the down low. But, these few visitors were super fun and made the whole experience that much better.

Friday, May 15th, Coming Home!
It was a little hairy actually. We had just sold our car like DAYS before this baby was born and Steve and I spent the entire day Wednesday looking for vans around town. We finally found one we liked, a 2008 Toyota Sienna with low mileage and in great condition. It was a good price too, so we sort of got the ball rolling on buying it, but the sale couldn't be completed until a few days later and after it had been detailed etc. So, we actually drove our new baby home in our neighbor's truck! For some reason (this happens at all of our children's births) our camera had a malfunction. This time it was the battery that had run out (I made sure I had plenty of MEMORY on the stick, but our battery was overlooked). So, I have no pics of some of the hospital stuff-like going home in Carolyn's truck. Oh well, it will remain a fun memory. So, we went home and got settled a bit and then we headed out again to buy our new van. So, new baby and new car came home in the same day. We have pretty horrible timing when it comes to some things.


Saturday, May 16th, First Outing with Dad:
Brayden had a slightly high bilirubin count at the hospital, but not high enough to warrant staying an extra day (which was the case with Lewis and Conner). So, Steve had to take him into the doc's to have his first foot prick (so sad). His bilirubin ended up being sky high on this day and so, he was ordered to sleep in the "suitcase" (photo therapy lights) for the next few days and nights. This is something both of our other sons have had to do, but it doesn't make it any easier. This little boy of ours is very strong and kept kicking his legs and waking himself up. We finally found ways to tame him, but we were exhausted after three days of jaundice. I think Brayden was tired of it too. By the time I took him in to get his last foot prick on Tuesday, he didn't even cry! He was so used to the pain I guess. What a little trooper/sweetheart!











Thursday, May 21st, First time away from my new boy.
I HATED to have to leave him, but I really had no choice. I owed it to my Kindergarten kids to show up at their graduation and wish them well on their journey to first grade. Luckily, Sunnie was able to come and "hang out" with Brayden. Grandma Peterson was planning to, but she fell and did something terrible to her arm, so Sunnie stepped in. It was nice to be able to leave (since I had to) knowing he was in good hands. I got to the school MINUTES before the graduation started, I did my part, took some pictures with the kids, gave some last minute instructions to my sub, and then headed back home. I made it back by noon and before the baby woke up! PHEW!

Brayden and I spent the rest of the day catching up on our zzzzzzz's and trying to get back in the nursing groove (jaundice really took its toll on us).. Then, that night, I left the baby AGAIN so I could go to Laura's wedding! I know I COULD have brought the baby and my whole family actually, but it had already been a crazy day and I just needed to relax! It was fun being with friends and watching Laura get married. She and Kurt look so happy and I am soooo excited for her!When I left for the wedding, I put my baby in his little bed looking like this:

When I got home two hours later, I swear he had not moved! Here is is in the exact same position! I am lucky to have such a great little sleeper boy!

Saturday, May 23rd, First Road Trip!
We went to Vegas for Brayden's newborn photo shoot with Erin. She was obviously in her element, propping my nine-day-old son up with baskets and hats and molding his little body this way and that! I was amazed by her patience and skill! Also, I was relieved little Brayden man cooperated and that his "infected" eye from a clogged tear duct (something that popped up the NIGHT before our trip) was clearing up. Lewis and Conner were good sports too (they played Wi like the whole time). Everyone did great! Here are some "behind the scenes" images of the event. To see some of the favorite images of the day, scroll down to the next post and click on the link to Erin's photography blog. It is worth the click!













Wednesday, May 27th, The Saddest Day so far. . .
This was Brayden's circumcision day. Poor guy. This is just the saddest thing I can imagine. I don't remember the other boys' being as traumatic but Steve says they were. I think I just try to shut out the horrible memory of it all. I was in the hallway of the doc's office hearing him scream and then I nursed him right after, though he didn't really want to. He just kept screaming as we walked out of the building. THEN, here's the REAL kicker! We realized, shortly after exiting the building, that our new van had been involved in a FREAK patio furniture accident! A nurse in the driveway asked us, "Is this your car?" we looked at it, noticed all the broken glass spewed out along the side of it and the missing window at the back of it, and then said, "yes!" The nurse then informed us that there was a weird, "FREAKY" wind that had just blown through the parking lot and someone's patio umbrella (maybe in the back of someone's truck) had flown across the parking lot and into our window!!!!! Can you believe that? I was totally bugged!!! Here I am, carrying my poor little circumsized baby in his car seat who, by the way, is SCREAMING and rather than being able to go home, we are stuck in the heat of the day having to deal with this freak window predicament! I was NOT having it! I just said, "Steve, I want to get this baby home. I don't care about the window. I don't want to get to the bottom of it, I just want to get him home!!!!" The nurse kept wanting to ask people what they saw and really get to the bottom of it, but I finally said, "Ya know what? I really don't care. I just need some baby Tylenol for my baby and I want to go home." So, she grabbed the Tylenol and wished us well on our way. Once home, I tended to our sad little boy and Steve took the van to the "Glass Doctor" for some estimates. Of course, our lame insurance has a $500 deductible, so we are now just having to pay for the $300 replacement fee on this window! Just what we NEEDED on top of our huge collection of medical bills! NICE! Don't you just ever wonder, WHY??? Why this mess? What are we supposed to learn from this???













Thursday, May 28th TODAY!
So, now we are here in the now. Today, Brayden survived a night of pain and tenderness due to his little procedure yesterday. He did better than I expected and only woke up twice (no crying)-YEAH! He seems to be on the mend today. Not as traumatized as yesterday. Currently, as I type up this post, Conner is reading Brayden his first little book, Goodnight Moon. This was all Conner's idea. I didn't think he could pull off holding the baby AND read a book at the same time, but he DID it! Brayden seemed to like it!

I sure hope the next few weeks can be a little more relaxed and smooth as we enjoy this time with Brayden that already seems to be going too fast.