1st Family Road Trip - Monterey, Ca

This past weekend we embarked on our first family road trip to Monterey. Jose and I celebrate three years of marriage today and we wanted to get away for a little reflection and relaxation.  All things considered Charlie did very well on the trip. We stayed at the beautiful Clement Hotel this time around which is right on cannery row thus it was easy for us to get around and yet still be close to our room.  I'm finding that as new parents if we manage our expectations and stay flexible we still have a great time together. Our trip was full of special moments that I continue to hold on to.

Thank you to all of you who have given our marriage the community support it needs and for celebrating all that this year has brought to our lives.

Charlie on the drive...

At dinner in our favorite resturant - The Chart House. They had custom menus printed to wish us a Happy Anniversary :-)  Charlie woke up in the middle of dinner and wanted to join the party. I wish we had a full length photo - Jose and I looked fierce!

Yes, the burp cloth says "got milk?" 

We mostly kept Charlie in his cadillac stroller but bjorned it in our favorite small shops. The year we eloped we found these adorable personalized xmas ornaments in a local shop.  We got Charlie his first ornaments here.

Happy Hump Day

Time continues to fly by - it seems that as soon as Charlie goes down for a nap I am rushing around to get the normal "every day" things done (like make my bed) or I'm crashed out with him. Becoming a parent is definitely tougher than I could have imagined. I'm constantly worried about doing things well for Charlie so that he will be a well adjusted little baby. The new "gas" idea is whether or not the mom-baby connection is perfect during nursing. We're working on it and I'm trying to address every issue that could help his poor tummy. In the middle of the night when he's screaming while I take "too long" to change his diaper and treat his poor diaper rash (newborns poop constantly!) I worry about waking the neighbors above and below us.  There are so many things that don't work...the latest example is Desitin creamy. The poor diaper rash was not clearing despite my dedicated attention so I called the pediatrician with numerous questions. The nurse I talked to specifically asked me if I was using "creamy" or "original". Well, guess what - creamy doesn't do anything. Why is this crap on the market? Ughhhh good thing I called. I think I'll write a book on the things that don't work when having a baby...stay tuned for future excerpts :-)

Despite the sleep-limited nights and the crying due to gas, crying due to something we can't figure out, Charlie not wanting to sleep alone...blah blah blah I can't help myself in other moments. A tiny satisfied exhale, his husky snore, his sweet smile (to be followed by farts) completely captivate me. I try to make a point to treasure each of these moments as he grows so quickly because I know the changes don't wait for me to slow down and pay attention.

Tia Ryn and Uncle Dubs came for a visit - quite frankly company leaves me exhausted but they were so great and went to the grocery store for us and bbq'd hamburgers.  I was a little sad when they left today as the condo felt empty - though it's never been so full.  Thanks for making the trip to see us guys.

Today was Jose's first day trip to L.A. and though he's coming home tonight I got nervous all over again. Falling in love with him in a whole different light has made me feel vulnerable again just like that "new love" virus.  We missed you today bbc, JYCYAME.

Learning Every Day...

Happy Monday - I can't believe it's a new week again! I thought time would drag by in this new job but what CEO isn't busy? Time is flying and I can't believe how fast our boy is growing. I feel a sense of relief as we've turned a corner as a family in getting this whole parenting thing figured out. Charlie was not sleeping in his bassinet at all - only on our chests and yesterday was the break through day. Charlie slept in his travel crib (the blue one in the pic) most of the afternoon) and in his bassinet all night. Of course we were up every 2 hours and there was a small blip of fuss but overall we did well.  

Charlie is our little monkey / wart hog. He grunts and farts like an adult male. He's quite a loud sleeper and will grunt away like nothing. We thought that he didn't like to be swaddled since he loves to have his hands up by his face or fists in his mouth but the book I'm reading on sleep training (obviously mostly geared towards older babies) and the famous Harvey Karp dvd and found that babies can sleep longer when swaddled because they don't startle themselves as often. Charlie still puts up a little fuss but calms down pretty quickly.

We've been sticking close to home because our ped warned us that if he runs a fever before 2 months old it's automatic blood tests (tragic from our previous exp.) and spinal tap. The spinal tap really freaks me out - this is the girl who waited 31 hours before getting an epidural.  My mindset is finally adjusting from - sure we can go anywhere, anytime - to, umm how can I plan that with Charlie? Where will I feed/change him? In about another week we can introduce a bottle for part time relief and I'm so looking forward to that.

Jose and I celebrate our anniversary next week and I know Charlie is the greatest gift (though - he's screaming in my ear right now :-( )

Raider Nation - Members Only

A time out for photos - I'm getting chubby!

16 Days Old

Stats from the Doc

9-16-08

14 days old

9 lbs 9 oz  (75%)

21.5 inches long (75%)

head circumference 37.8 cm (50%)

My mom always says that I was always off the doctor's growth chart :-) I expected since Charlie is such a big boy that he would take after Mommy and also be off the chart but he's an average guy for now. I realized that boys and girls have different measurements - the first of a lifetime. (Yes I'm still a femi-nazi).

Today I start my first official day on the job as CEO of domestic affairs.  We'll miss you today at work Daddy.

The Making of a Daddy

Charlie is definitely a Daddy's boy. When he's upset Daddy is the one to calm him down.  His poor little gas issues are so sad - his little body becomes so rigid has he fights the good fight.  Of course he finds his peaceful sleep where? On Daddy's chest.

It's amazing to watch the man you love become a father.  Though we are sleep deprived and becoming parents has already spurred another relationship metamorphosis there's something special about it all. You know I've loved this man for over  decade - from a high school girl with a crush to the love of a life partner - and now - the love between parents.

Jose is calm and poised, has a good sense of humor and is the self declared "pack leader" (from Cesar Milan the Dog Whisperer).  

JYCYAME

The Real Shizzle - aka Update

Okay - so here's the real shizzle, having a baby rocks your world. For all the preggies reading along and the preggie want-a-bees, wow there is nothing that prepares you for this transition. The 10 month wait is like a fairy tale that takes a dramatic turn once the labor contractions kick in.  Now don't get me wrong - I love my son beyond measure (it's still weird to say/write "son"...yikes) but I will also chronicle the actual day to day and not just some puppy love crap everyone LOVES to tell.

The parade of relatives has been strong and steady and thank you so much to all of you who brought Charlie gifts and for all the delicious food.  Not having to cook/think about coordinating something is a huge relief when you realize at 9:30 when your baby is finally sleeping peacefully in your arm (which can never be in a super comfortable position) that  you haven't eaten for half the day. We really appreciate all your love and support and taking time out from your daily lives to come and see us.

Charlie has transitioned from quite the squeaker (in the hospital) to a grunter.  He grunts and grunts and I'm afraid he has bad gas.  His poor little face says it all right before he lets an adult-sounding fart go...and I'm not exaggerating. If you were standing next to me you would think I farted.  And then another and then another poor baby. He is poo-ing fine so I'm not too concerned, we go back to Dr. Chan our incredible pediatrician (who dresses the part of SJP in Sex In the City) and it's on my long list of questions.  The grunting as you can imagine is not cute and whoever said newborn poop doesn't smell LIED.

Charlie decided he didn't want to sleep in his (very large) crib so we moved the pack in play bassinet and changing table into our room. He was doing great and would only wake to feed/be changed until the gas issues. Now he wants to be held/patted on the back when he's fussy and sleep on his tummy on Daddy's chest.  Mmmm hmmm - he's a Daddy's boy BIG TIME. Who wouldn't be with Jose as your Daddy.

Feeding is going well though I'm not big on any public feeding which limits our mobility for now. We're supposed to wait 3-4 weeks to combine with bottle feeding but I'm going to see what Chan Sizzle says. Jose and I are both pretty antsy since we are used to adventuring wherever whenever.  We were able to go to sushi today (Mmmm it was sooooo good) and walk laps around the mall for several hours and got away with only 1 feeding and 1 diaper change in the car...not bad! It was so nice to have our second day of no visitors - just the two - I mean - three of us :-)

As far as developmental milestones - Charlie could hold his own head up from birth. This is considered super cool and yet it's not so great that he can throw himself around like a crazed monkey in your arms with he's hungry.  His umbilical cord stump fell off last night and let's just say there's nothing magical about that. It oozes and it smells gross and then you worry about what's left - is it supposed to look like that? Eew

It's funny how having a baby changes your concept of time (and temperature thanks to hormones). I hardly know what the date is which is so unusual for me and my day time/night time hours are all skewed.  I thought labor was a marathon - my real contractions started Monday at 2:30am and Charlie was born at Tuesday 5:11pm (you do the math).  Now I feel like the daily cycle of caring for this little life - his laundry - his parents normal chores etc. is the real marathon.  Jose may go back to work on Wednesday but fortunately has some flexibility with the when/how... it will definitely be a challenge at home without him.

In the whirlwind I know there have been calls and emails I haven't gotten to (yet) so please don't count me out. I'm sure once that illusive routine kicks in I will be back to my prompt little self.

Happy Birthday to Felix Jr. and Rosa today - hope your day was great!

Celebrating Mexican Independence Day Manana

I'm kind of a BIG deal :-)

Photos from 11 days and 13 days old :-) Thanks for the pumpkin full of goodies Nona!

New Photos

1 week old

Charlie is just over a week old and it's both flown by and seemed like an eternity.  Phototherapy in the NICU was tough on us all and when uploading the photo tonight it broke my heart all over again. I don't have the heart to post it with his mask on and all the monitor sensors.  Since then we have been in and out to various doctors but today finally had a doc free day :-) Charlie is doing well and already surpassed his birth weight. He's quite a big eater and pooper which is the only cure for jaundice.  For the time being he wakes up about every 2 hours to eat/poop and sleeps pretty well in between. I've come to the point where I'm able to go right back to sleep once he's again sleeping peacefully.  We are so happy to be home and are settling into our  new roles.

Jaundice

Charlie did 30 hours time in phototherapy and I'm happy to report that since our return home he is eating well - which is the only real thing we can encourage here at home to help him get better. We have a 9:30am doctor's appointment today and another one on Thursday so we will keep you posted. :-)

New photos to come soon!

Back at the Hospital

Just a quick update to let you know Charlie was admitted back to the hospital at 1:00 today for phototherapy. His jaundice levels are too high and the light helps to move the bellirubin out of his body more quickly. Jose and I are doing our best to keep him comfortable and he's adjusting well now. I'm trying to sleep because it's so important for Charlie's milk so I need to get off the computer.

We will likely have to stay a min. of 24 hours but could be much longer depending on his progress.  For now - all visits are on hold as this news was so unexpected and we will need time to recover as a family.

Thanks for all of your love and support - AC JC CC

Introducing Charles Ethan Andrew Cuevas

September 2, 2008

5:11 p.m.

8 pounds 6 ounces 

20 inches long

Woke Up in Labor

This better be the real thing because it's intense. We'll wait until we get to the hospital to send out the calling post msg...

Update: Our contractions don't seem to be going anywhere - Jose and I were both able to get some sleep despite the action. Still having contractions...