Lil CJ Loves his Daddy

There must be something about Cory's voice that is so soothing to CJ. There are times when my lil man is screaming his head off, wailing his hands in my face and basically doing his best to let me know he is not happy. His dad will come along, pick him up and say two words...like magic CJ quiets down. CJ seems to fall asleep easier when laying on Cory's chest and I can tell he loves him already by the way he looks at him. Of course he looks at me lovingly too :) I'm so happy that my two favorite men have this bond and I hope it continues!

CJ's First Boo Boo

The other day Cory and I were discussing lil CJ's different cries and whether or not we could tell the difference between them. We still need some practice but the one we could definitely pick up was his cry for pain.

A couple of days ago he began screaming out his "pain cry" every few hours. Having your baby cry and not having a clue why is really hard. Of course I just want to make him feel better but when you don't know how it can get frustrating. Cory pointed out to me that lil CJ had a bright red bottom, almost like it had been rubbed raw. I hadn't seen this before because I have probably only changed a handful of diapers so far. Thanks Cory :)

Well we decided to take him to the doctor to check this out. I was also paranoid about a list of other things, which the doctor informed me later was all normal. Anyway, we got some cream for his bum and things are looking up. He still lets us know it hurts sometimes but it seems to be healing fast.  YAY!!

Lil CJ Takes a Bath!

Cj's first cleaning sessions were not moments of bliss. His screams could be heard throughout the house but I don't blame him. When we first brought him home we could only wash him "sponge-bath" style. CJ wouldn't be allowed to take a full bath until the remainder of his umbilical cord fell off.  NO fun!! Also, because he had to shed his birth skin I was not allowed to put any of the fabulous smelling lotion on his cute little body.  :-(

Finally....his cord came off and we broke out the infant spa bath. I knew he would enjoy this experience so much more than the silly sponge baths.  The video below shows it all. He starts off frustrated but then calms down and enjoys the experience... I think LOL. (video coming soon)

Pic of the Week....

CJ was so tired after an eventful day. Here is my lil man relaxing like a grown man. It cracks me up how he stretches his arms out and this pose was just classic. He stayed in this position for about 30mins. Also, I think he looks a lot like me in this picture. Definitely my son! ~ 4/23/11

Lil CJ's First Day Out!

On Friday (4/15/11) CJ got to experience his first full day out on the town. I remember having a little bit of anxiety because I just pictured my child screaming bloody murder with no way of calming him down.Funny thing is...he pretty much slept the whole time. My mom, Cory and I joked at how sleepy he had suddenly become. I had a clue to why he had this sudden coma due to a book I have been reading, Happiest Baby on the Block.  Our lil CJ was becoming a pro at monitoring the situmulation of his surroundings. The book described that most babies learn to basically turn themselves off or tune out the outside world if there is too much going on around them. CJ you are so advanced!!

Our first stop was to see the peditrician. CJ was so calm. I was a proud momma as I heard other kids and babies crying and my lil man was just chilling. He weighed 6.10 lbs. This was good news. He was born at 6.9 lbs and when we had left he was down to 6.5 lbs. He was also 19'' at the hospital. At the Dr.'s office he was now 19.5'' Our lil boy, growing right before our eyes.

CJ's First Dr.'s Appt.

Other stops that day included lunch, a trip to Walmart and Best Buy. Of course our cute lil CJ got attention from people at Walmart. Cj's Mina made us change checkout lanes too because the cashier had a nasty cough and she didn't want her touching our stuff. Oh Mina....better to be safe than sorry!! 

When we got home CJ must have realized he was back in a familiar place. He woke up shortly after. It was a good day!

CJ's First Days...

Since I had a C-Section we were due to stay in the hospital for a few days. The room was nice and cozy with a bed for me and a layout couch for Cory. The nurses switched shifts again (thank goodness!) bye Bush Patty. Our nurses were Julie (my fave), Pat (not Bush Patty), Mary Anne and Kristen.

I decided it would be best to breastfeed. I'll write another post on how that is going. The first day/night after the delivery was exciting but I'll admit I was very nervous. The nurses brought the baby to our room and a sheet of paper to record when we fed CJ and when we changed his diaper. We got no other direction than that. It was our time to shine as new parents. Thank goodness my mother was there!!

Cory was amazing. He was so hands on and ready to jump right in. Throughout our hospital stay he became a superstar pro at changing diapers and swaddling. He was there for me too! Ready for any situation...I think I fell in love with him all over again. I just felt so lucky to have a man who wasn't scared or decided it wasn't his place to help out. He was doing more than me and bonding with his son so quickly. CJ is truly blessed to have such a father.

                                                           Cory's Excellent Swaddling

I was still running slow b/c of all the drugs I had been given. My mom (aka Mina) was a complete lifesaver. I could tell she was proud. I could tell she had an immediate love for her grandson. She came to visit us everyday while we were in the hospital. Although I had just become a mother I felt a new attachment to my mom. It was kinda like I felt dependent on her...or at least dependent on her guidance. My sister was awesome too!! She had a new role in life and I could tell she was enjoying these first precious moments.

As we got comfortable with our new lil bundle of joy hunger was beginning to set in. That's when I was informed that I would not be allowed to eat anything for the next 24 hours and then after that I could only eat liquids until I passed gas. (sorry TMI) Anyways the popsicles and the jello were a small distraction because CJ was all I could think about. The first night we decided to send CJ to the nursery at 4am. We had a long day and needed just a little bit of rest. The other nights, however, we kept him the whole time. Daddy Cory did a great job of getting up to either hand Cory to me for a feeding or for some cuddle time or diaper change.  Cory came up with the great idea to play lullabies from his ever so great Evo phone and it worked like a charm.

Overall the stay was pretty good...but the moment my Dr. cleared me to leave on Tuesday night we were ready to head out. Cory packed up the car, we loaded CJ into his car seat and home. It was now truly our time to be parents.

CJ's Delivery April 9-10

So I'll start from the beginning (this is a long one)...On April 9th, the same night as my lil sister Anette's Sr. Prom, my mother, Cory and I decided to go to a movie. We decided on the Lincoln Lawyer (great movie btw). about an hour into the movie I had started to feel what I believed to be Braxton Hicks. They weren't strong enough to send me running out of the movie theater but I was praying for the ending credits. When we got home Cory and I decided it would be best to pack the hospital bag. I had been putting this task off b/c I needed to tell myself, my body and lil CJ that we had to wait till April 10th so Cory, who arrived in Las Vegas on the 8th, would be present and so that we could focus on my sister's big night.

Later that night at about 3:00 am lil CJ must have decided it was time to shake things up because as Cory and I lay in bed my water broke. OH MAN... my Dr. wasn't lying when she said I had a lot of fluid. A rush of excitement hit me and Cory as we both realized what this meant...lil CJ was on his way. Cory went to wake my mom who came to meet me in the hallway with a big grin. She called my sister who was still enjoying her prom festivities and told her it was time to head to the hospital. Cory and I jumped in the car and my mom went to go pick up my sister and then later met us at Mountain View Hospital.

Our first nurse was Kirsten. She was very pleasant as she worked to get me all set up. about 30 mins after arriving at the hospital I got the first REAL contractions. My mom and Cory did a great job talking me through them. WOW!! I was actually surprised that they hurt as much as they did but Cory said I was taking it like a champ! Thanks babe! My sister was sleeping in the corner.. I don't blame her. She had quite a busy night. After about 3 hours of handling the contractions on my own I opted for an epidural. Um... ya never again. Although the pain from the contractions was over the crazy pain that came from getting the epidural shot .....well I'm just not sure which was worse. We had to say goodbye to nurse Kirsten soon after that as nurse Patty replaced her. Hahaha nurse Patty...she must have been having a bad day. Cory immediately announced he didn't like her and gave her the nickname "Bush Patty." Let's just say she was very blunt when it came to letting me know the risks of certain things...like me bleeding out and dying. Great thing to tell the first time lady in labor. I took her like a champ too!! After about 7 hours nurse Patty said it was time to push. As Cory and my mom held on to my legs, I gripped a sheet held by nurse Patty and pushed several, several times. Oh lil CJ was showing how stubborn he really was and decided he was not coming out that way. When I found out I had to have a C section I started to cry. I was scared and kinda felt like I didn't do enough. I also felt like they were quick to decide on the surgery and I wasn't in a rush if the baby wasn't in any danger. Still C section it was!! My mom and sis had tears in their eyes as Cory put on his scrubs and I said goodbye.

They rolled me into a cold room.  I couldn't see Cory and I began to get even more scared. The Dr. was telling me things but I couldn't concentrate on his words. Where was Cory??! Finally he grabbed my hand and I threw up. LOL well at least I got it out. I told Cory I didn't want to concentrate on the cutting and pulling that was happening down below so it was his job to just talk to me. I don't remember what we talked about but the next thing I knew the Dr. was telling Cory to get his camera ready..lil CJ was about to make his entrance into the world. Well guess what? We didn't bring the camera into the delivery room. Luckily my mom was waiting outside of the door and was able to pass Cory the camera just in time. Then I heard a lil whimper. I started to cry. Cory just stared in amazement with a smile on his face as he recorded the whole thing. Our son, lil CJ was born at 1:08 p.m.