Six Months Old!

This blog post is long overdue as I have not updated pictures of Evan since just after his surgery in December. My boy was two months old at the time of his cleft repair, and lo and behold, here we are with a six month old! How the days are flying by!

 Life with four children is wonderful and wonderfully busy, so things like blogging and laundry and washing my hair don't get done as much as they should. Also, there are conversations I have had that I just simply cannot remember as things seem to get lost in my brain some days. I would say that the transition from three kids to four has been really smooth for the most part, but it's just a constant state of busy and going that makes things harder. I am so thankful that we have been mostly healthy this winter and that the school year is winding down as we are all looking forward to lazy summer days of playing and being outside.
Evan went last week for his six month well visit and here are his stats:
Height: 27 inches (75th percentile)
Weight: 16 lbs., 9 oz. (45th percentile)
Head Circumference: 44.2 cm

Here are his siblings' stats at six months (for fun):
Stella--
Height: 26 inches (70th percentile)
Weight: 15 lbs., 3 oz. (45th percentile)
Head Circumference: 42.7 cm (50-75th percentile)

Nora--
Height: 25 1/4 inches (45th percentile)
Weight: 14 lbs., 5 oz. (25th percentile)

Liam--
Height: 26 3/4 inches (75th percentile)
Weight: 18 lbs, 2 oz. (60th percentile)

This just goes to show how different they all are! Liam was a whole 1.5 lbs bigger than Evan at this point! Geez, what a chunker he was!

Evan has to be hands down the best baby in the world. He is so content and sweet and snuggly. He is rarely fussy or hard to care for. My only complaint is that he is growing to fast! (And, he refuses to take a bottle). However, the kindness of the Lord is not lost on me as I specifically see how there was a day when I thought I would never be able to breastfeed him because of his cleft lip, and now he nurses exclusively and refuses to take the bottle. So, it's kinda funny how the tables have turned. I figure that since he's my last baby, I better enjoy the extra snuggly nursing time we have together and at most I'll be nursing him for another six months so it's not too much longer. Here are some pics of Evan over the past two months or so. As you can see he's been growing a ton and his lip continues to heal and look AMAZING!

Life as the baby means that some days we don't get naps except while in the car!

This super hero is snuggling with his big sister!

Evan's first sink bath at the beach condo over Spring Break 2014

Daddy was in heaven as he got to snuggle a sleepy boy on the beach.

The Bradshaw Four

Getting ready to go watch Liam play t-ball.

Talking to Geegaw

Sitting with Momma at the ball field.

Boy time.

Evan and Liam hang out in Liam's room often while I put Stella down for her nap.

This was earlier....may at 4 months old.

Again, an earlier picture.  You can see here how his lip is a bit more drawn up than in the newer pictures.

 

Definitely not so sure about the Bumbo seat.  Three months old.

Evan James: Two Month Stats

I am WAY behind on posting these stats for Evan seeing that he will be three months old next week.  However, with surgery, Christmas, post-surgery stuff, and a trip to Florida with the Bradshaw family, we've been quite busy around here.  About two weeks ago, I brought Evan in for his two month well-visit and these were his stats:

Height:  22.5 inches (50th percentile)
Weight:  11 lbs., 11 oz. (50th percentile)

Stella at 2 months was 11 lbs., 2 oz. and 22.5 inches.
Liam was 12 lbs., 5 oz and 23 1/8 inches.
Nora was 9 lbs., 13 oz and 21.75 inches.

I think Evan may have weighed a bit more had he not had surgery and lost a bit of weight due to his eating via syringe.  I think he's growing like a weed these days and definitely doesn't look or feel like a newborn anymore. 

During the week following surgery, Evan started sleeping through the night.  I usually feed him between 8:00 and 8:30 pm and put him down.  I will go in and nurse him one last time before I go to bed between 10-11 pm.  He will typically sleep until around 6:00-6:30 am.  I am LOVING longer stretches of sleep and it's definitely given me more energy and mind capacity!

Evan is smiling, cooing, kicking his feet and moving his arms and legs like crazy!  He's such a sweet, content baby boy and we love him so very much!  I have much to update about surgery with pics of how he's recovering, so I'll try to post soon with that information.  Till then!

Two Months Old and Two Days Before Surgery

Today, Evan is two months old! Crazy how fast time has flown and although it is SO cliche to say how it seems like he's always been a part of our lives, it is so true. It is also true that we are all so stinkin' in love with this little boy!

We are two days away from Surgery Day. This day that I've known about for six months and have been dreading from that first moment when I found out he had a cleft lip is here. So many friends have asked how I'm doing, and I can say that right now, at this very moment, that I am doing okay. I want the surgery to be over. I am ready to put this part of life behind us because I know I will not like seeing my baby being pushed away to surgery. I will not like the waiting. I will not like seeing him frail and hurting and in a hospital. But, I do know that this surgery is what's best for him. I know that he won't remember any of this. I know that no matter how hard the days that follow surgery may be that we will get through them. God will give us the strength to endure the feedings, the lack of sleep, the caring for four children, and the unknowns that I don't even know to worry about right now. I think there is a lot about surgery that I don't know to expect, so I cannot worry about those things because I don't KNOW to worry about them. Right now, I am thankful for that ignorance. I am also thankful that the Lord has taught me so much in the past year about being anxious. I am so thankful that even though I battle anxiety--because I do--that He is faithful to equip us with ways to fight those fears and thoughts. He is the giver of peace, and I know that the God I serve is all kind, all wise, and all loving. He is trustworthy. Knowing that, dwelling on that helps me in those moments. I'm praying that on Surgery Day that I can cling to what I know about my Lord.

So, here's what I do know so far about surgery. We will go in sometime early Wednesday morning. On Tuesday evening, they call us and tell us our tentative surgery time. The surgeries are assigned based on the age of the kids lined up for surgery that day. They do youngest to oldest, so hopefully Evan's surgery will be pretty early. He cannot eat anything up to four hours prior to surgery time, so I will plan to nurse him four hours beforehand. His surgery should last between 1.5-2 hours. We will spend one night at Children's hospital and be released sometime on Thursday. Evan will not be able to nurse or have a bottle until his sutures are removed on December 26th, eight days after surgery. He will be syringe fed using a catheter, so I will be pumping and supplementing with formula if needed. Evan will have some pain medication for the first few days, but the nurse practitioner told us that babies typically do really well and don't need the pain meds for very long.

My mom is coming in town tomorrow night to be with us for a few days, and my in-laws will be graciously caring for Nora, Liam, and Stella while we are in the hospital. We haven't even gotten to the hospital, yet we have felt so cared for. So many friends are constantly telling us they are praying for us, meals have been signed up for following surgery, and people are pouring out care in big and little ways. I definitely do not feel like we are walking this out alone but that we are surrounded by a army of prayer warriors and loved ones who are carrying us through it all.

Now that all of that is out of the way, let me tell you about Evan.  What a gift he is!

At two months, Evan weighs about 11.5 lbs.  This is such an answer to prayer! Before he was born (when we were concerned that he would come early, which he didn't because the Lord kept him cooking for a longer time than we expected), my prayers were that Evan would not come prematurely and that when he did come that he would put on weight so that he would be a big, strapping boy prior to surgery.  I was hoping he would at least be ten pounds by surgery, and by God's faithfulness, he's exceeded that weight!  Being breastfed, no less.  If you recall, I didn't expect to be able to nurse him at all.  But, since only his lip is involved in the cleft, I've been able to breastfeed from day one, and apparently I make some rich milk because Evan has consistently put on weight.  This is the faithfulness of our God!  He answered these prayers!  One less worry for me!

Evan is such a sweet boy.  He's very serious, much like Nora was as a newborn.  He is not one to crack many smiles, but when he does---WATCH OUT---it's killer!  He is a great eater and napper, but he has proven to have a hard time in the evenings.  I think that we are through with most of it, but every few days he has a hard time in the evenings where he is hard to console and get down to sleep for the night.  Sleep is inconsistent.....he has had a few nights where he "slept through the night," but those nights are very few and far between.  I really don't see a pattern, but I'd say once I feed him at his "dream feed" (between 10-11 pm) he typically sleeps a 4-6 hour stretch.  Then, when I lay him down he'll sleep for another 3-4 hours.  He usually starts his day around 8:30 am.  He nurses every 2-3 hours during the day and cluster feeds in the evenings (every 1-2 hours), but even the cluster feeding is getting less.  He is generally very content when awake, even with all of the kisses and poking and prodding he endures and the loud, earth-shattering volume that often takes over our house most days.  He doesn't seem phased or bothered by the chaos around him.  Those kids love him so much and cannot keep away from him.

Below are a few pics of Evan that my sweet friend Suzanne captured last month.  These will always be priceless to me!

Here are a few I took on my phone this morning.  Stella was getting some loving in....you can see Evan is thrilled.

Here's my stud muffin at two months!  Such a handsome boy!

One Month Wonderful

 

 Over the weekend, our little man turned one month old!

 I took him for his one month well-visit last Wednesday, and he came in as quite the chunker:

9 lbs., 10 oz. and 20 3/4 inches long.

That's 50th percentile in weight and head circumference and about 25th percentile in length.

Here are the stats of Evan's siblings at their one month appointments:

Stella: 9 lbs., 2 oz. and 21 1/4 inches
Nora: 8 lbs., 6 oz. and 21 inches
Liam: 9 lbs., 14 oz. and 22 1/4 inches

(Nora was definitely our little peanut, and Evan seems to be a bit thinner but a bit longer than his older brother.  Stella is right in the middle there).

This past month has been wonderful with Evan James.  We have just enjoyed every second of his life! The newborn stage is so fleeting and so precious and so miraculous.  This little life literally grows by the minute and changes daily, and I get to watch it unfold before my very eyes.  

As far as a schedule goes, we pretty much just live life with the three older ones and Evan just goes with the flow.  He eats about every 2.5-3 hours during the day (lately he's been doing three hour stretches more often which lends itself to better feedings each time).  At night we have a hard time getting him to go down (darn witching hour), but once he's out, he usually sleeps for a 5-6 hours stretch followed by a 3-4 hour stretch.  He naps pretty well during the day and usually gets one LONG nap in during the afternoon.

Life with Cleft:  Life for Evan with cleft is really no different right now than life for any newborn.  Thankfully he is able to nurse like a healthy baby, and we haven't had any issues other than the usual learning to latch, burping, occasional gas, etc.  We have not been able to use a pacifier for Evan which has its pros and cons.  Following surgery next month, Evan will NOT be able to use a pacifier or bottle of any sort because his lip will be healing and have sutures.  He will be fed by syringe for a week.  If we had him attached to a pacifier, after surgery he will definitely NOT be able to use it so he would be pretty unhappy at that time if were dependent on it.  So, we have tried really hard to not use one and so far have been successful.  This can be difficult at night because sometimes he just wants to suck for comfort which means that we nurse A LOT in the evenings.  I sometimes feel like a human pacifier (which isn't fun) but my sweet baby boy is worth it.  Also, he is learning to self soothe a bit, so maybe his need to suck will lessen over time.

This Friday we take Evan for his pre-op appointment at Children's where he will get registered for surgery in December.  I'll update what we discover after that appointment.

Growing Like Weeds: Stats for Stella and Liam

This morning I took Liam and Stella in to the pediatrician for their annual check-ups.  Although I haven't blogged about it, Liam turned 4 in May and Stella turned 2.  I'm not quite sure how it's possible that either of them is that grown up, but these little rascals refuse to listen to me when I tell them to stop growing.  I may resort to desperate measures.



Liam, my young little man, was quite the sweet patient today and was very thrilled that no shots were on the agenda.  Here are his 4 year old stats:

Height:  40 5/8 inches (60th percentile)
Weight: 39 lbs. (75th percentile)

For a comparison, Nora was 34 lbs.  (55th percentile) and measured 39 7/8 inches  (75th percentile) when she turned four.





Stella Marie was very excited to see Dr. G today and was an excellent patient.  She stood still while he did his examination and proceeded to greet everyone in the office.  Here are her two-year-old stats:


Height:  33 1/8 inches (25th percentile)
Weight: 26.5 lbs.  (50th percentile)


Again, just for fun, here are the stats of Liam and Nora when they were two:
Liam:  Height:  35.75 inches (85th percentile);  Weight: 28 lbs, 10 oz.  (65th percentile)
Nora:  Height: 33.5 inches (45th percentile);  Weight: 24 lbs. (<25th p="" percentile="">
It seems like Stella is much more like her sister than her brother in height, but right in the middle in weight.  She is our sweet, squishy, fluffy girl!


So, here we go starting another year for these two.  They will grow and mature in so many ways, I'm certain.  Liam is particularly excited about his baby brother, and Stella will surely not know what hit her when he gets here because she is definitely a Momma's girl.  I can't wait to see what this year holds for them!

 

Stella Marie: 18 Month Stats

On Sunday our sweet Stella turned 18 months!

Seriously, where does the time go?

Anyway, yesterday was her 18 month check-up, so I wanted to share her latest statistics.  Our girl is growing so well and is doing so many new things daily, with the exception of walking and talking.  She can say a few words, but mostly she grunts and babbles to communicate her wishes.  As far as walking goes, I firmly believe that this girl could walk if she desired, but she simply doesn't have the time or patience to practice.  She has taken many steps at a time (maybe ten or more), but her interest doesn't stay around long enough so that she can get it down pat.

She weighed and measured in at:

Height- 31.5 inches (50th percentile)
Weight- 22 lbs., 8 oz.  (25th percentile)

Just for fun, here are Nora's 18 months statistics:

Weight- 21 lbs., 9 oz. (15-20th percentile)
Height- 31.75 inches (55th percentile)

They seem to be very close to the same size at this age.

Liam's stats from that age are:
Height- 33.5 inches (88th percentile)
Weight- 26. lbs, 7 oz.  (65th percentile)

Boy, was our man MUCH bigger than his two sisters!

Here are just a few things our Stella B loves:
-shoes
-her toothbrush WITH toothpaste on it
-climbing the stairs
-riding her "car" and her ladybug
-her brother and sister
-bath times
-books
-pointing out yours and her own body parts (mostly the face)
-Dum Dum suckers (what can I say!!? #3 gets everything)
-eating popcorn like a big girl
-trying to eat markers and crayons
-climbing
-doing whatever she can to make her feel like a big girl
-being tickled
-taking Christmas ornaments off the tree and taking all of the DVDs out of the entertainment center

Stella is such a joy to our family.  She is so fun, so easy-going, and just a sweet baby girl to be around.  I am enjoying her so much and love watching her grow and discover and learn and change every day.  I keep calling her my baby, and Jonathan corrects me that she isn't really a baby anymore.  I tell him that as long as she is still refusing to crawl I can call her my baby girl.  (And we all know that our children are ALWAYS our babies!)

Stella Marie: One Year Stats

Well, like or not, my Stella B has turned one year old!  On Saturday, June 2 we celebrated one whole year with our precious baby girl.  Her birthday party is this coming Saturday so I"ll be sure to post more about that later, but we took her to her one year appointment today, so I wanted to update her stats.

At twelve months, Stella Marie is:

Height:  28 1/2 inches long (30th percentile)
Weight:  20 lbs.  (40th percentile)
Head Circumference:  46 centimeters

Stella when compared to her siblings:

Liam weighed 22 lbs (40th percentile) and was 31 inches long (80th percentile).  Nora weighed 18.5 lbs. (15th percentile) and also measured 28 1/2 inches long.  So, once again, Stella is in between the other two.  Just as long as Nora but a bit chubbier than her big sister was!

Here are some new things about Stella B:

- Stella is not walking or cruising.  Actually, she doesn't really like to stand at all, but just recently she's started holding on to things while standing up if you put her in the standing position.  I'm in no rush for her to be mobile, or more mobile than she is, so I know she'll get in her time.

- Stella has two teeth on the bottom.  Dr. G said that her top four are about to poke through at anytime so maybe last night's rough night was a result of teething.  If not, we are sure to have some rough times ahead because cutting teeth is no fun!

- Stella loves to play!  Of course, she gravitates to things that are for Nora and Liam, but she is so content to crawl around and find new things to occupy her attention.  If we are outside, she wants to be on the concrete crawling around and exploring.  Her poor knees are rough and callused, but she insists on not being held.  She also likes to sit on the riding toys, but currently they are pretty big for her.

- Eating is going well.  Stella loves to eat!  And she pretty much eats anything I give her, although I have seen her showing a bit of pickiness on rare occasions.  I know she is close to the age where eating opinions show themselves.  I just try to keep giving her the wide variety of foods she eats, rotating through everything so she won't "forget" what she likes.  Here are some of the regular things she eats:  all fruit, cheese, bread, waffles, raisin toast, yogurt, all types of beans, avocado, tomato, peas and carrots, edamame, ham or turkey (in small bites), chicken, crackers, pizza, rice, spaghetti, pasta, potatoes, etc.  I try to give her whatever it is we are eating, and usually she will eat what I give her!

- I have slowly introduced cow's milk and she is fully off formula as of this week.  She seems to like cow's milk okay, but she refuses to drink it out of a sippy cup.  She will take it no problem from a bottle, so after talking to the nurse today about this, we are going to go cold turkey on bottles.  Bye bye bottles.  Stella has shown a stubborn side with drinking milk out of the sippy and will even blatantly SPIT out the milk when I give it to her that way.  I think we have another strong will on our hands.  The nurse encouraged me to stand firm and keep offering her the milk in the sippy; she will drink when thirsty and won't get dehydrated, she promised.  I know she will learn to love it, but neither Nora nor Liam had trouble transitioning over to whole milk in a sipper. 

-  Stella loves her siblings so much!  They love to burst in her room each morning to wake her, and it doesn't matter how tired she is, how asleep she was, or how loud they are.  She is all smiles and ready to give kisses.  Nora and Liam also fight over who gets to feed her her bottles, but I guess that will be ending.

That's about all I've got for now!  I'll post more once I get birthday pics together!

Liam Piper: Three Years Old

Liam turned three on May 4, and today we took him to his three year-old check-up.  He did such a good job, and even though he had no vaccinations, he did have to have some blood drawn.  He cried for a minute, but he was so brave and such a good little patient.  He had the nurses cracking up with his silliness and funny stories.  I told them that they were egging him on because he loves to be the center of attention and make everyone laugh.  He was so proud as he told everyone he could that he is no potty trained!!!! 

Here are Liam's three year stats:

Height:  38 inches (70th percentile)
Weight:  35 lbs (80th percentile)

Just for comparison, Nora weighed 29 lbs at three years old and was 37 1/8 inches tall.  He's definitely our big boy!

That's the latest on my boy!  I'll have to post later about his 3rd birthday and how great he's been doing with his potty training.  He has truly risen to the occasion and has been doing fantastic.  It had nothing to do with me, that is for sure! We sure to do love our crazy, silly, busy, funny, and sweet little man.

Stella Marie: Nine Month Stats

I took Stella to the doctor this morning for her nine month well-visit.  Little Bit is growing so fast, that I feel like her first year of life is just flying by.  She will be one in three months!  That's crazy!  Anyway, everything went great at her appointment and she is growing well.  Here are her nine month stats:

Height: 26 1/4 inches long (25th percentile)
Weight: 17 lbs., 6 oz.  (35th percentile)
Head Circumference: 17.25 cm (75th percentile)

For comparison, here are Nora and Liam's nine month stats, too:

Nora weighed 16 lbs., 13 oz (15th percentile) and was 27 inches long (35th percentile)
Liam weighed 20 lbs., 1 oz (50th percentile) and was 28 1/2 inches long (50th percentile)

It appears that Stella weighs a little more than Nora but is a good bit shorter than she was, for now anyway.  Liam blew both girls out of the water with height and weight.  But he's our boy!

At nine months, life with Miss Stella B is wonderful.  Here are some things going on in her world:

*Stella is exclusively bottle fed now.  She was fully weaned by the beginning of February, so it's been just over a month.  She takes four bottles a day: when she wakes up, before lunch, after her afternoon nap which is just before dinner, and one at bedtime.  Altogether she probably gets about 24-26 oz of formula a day.
*Stella also loves to eat table food.  The pediatrician released me to feed her whatever, as long as it wouldn't be a choking hazard.  Stella still doesn't have any teeth, but she does a great job of eating almost anything soft that I put in front of her.  Some of her favorites include:  banana, avocado, blueberries, rice, pasta, oatmeal, breads, sweet potatoes, apples and pears, cheerios, peas, carrots, butter beans, green beans, black and pinto beans.  Seriously  This girl loves to eat!
*I mentioned the other day that Stella has started crawling.  It is the cutest thing.  She moves her hands really well, but she doesn't always get her legs coordinated so she'll just kinda hop her bottom half up a bit to move forward with the rest of her body.  She is into everything, particularly power cords, remote controls, and anything she shouldn't touch.
*Stella loves bath time in the big tub.  She loves to play with Nora and Liam's toys, but I have had to remove cups from the play things because she keeps trying to drink the nasty bath water.  When I take something away from her that she wants, she is very verbal in expressing her unhappiness. 
*Stella takes two naps a day.  The first nap is usually about two hours long, and most days I have to wake her up to eat lunch.  I put her down for her second nap at the same time that Nora and Liam go down, and she usually sleeps until about 5:30-5:45 pm.  So, that's about a 3 hour nap.  She's a great sleeper.
*At night, Stella goes to bed around 8:30 and she sleep all night, usually waking around 9:30.  Lately, she's been waking earlier, around 8:30-9:00, but I am not sure if it's because of her cough/congestion or because she is just waking earlier now.
*Our sweet girl has been battling a cold/allergy gunk for about three weeks now.  Just when I think it's getting better, things start to flare up again.  The doctor checked her ears and throat today and said she looks great, so she is just suffering through the same allergy stuff I am.  I am ready to stop being so stuffy!
*Earlier this month, Stella spent her first night away from Momma.  A few weekends ago, Jonathan and I went out to dinner at the Melting Pot with our best friends.  This is an annual tradition that we do in the winter to celebrate birthdays, and it's definitely a long evening out.  So, my in-laws graciously kept all three kiddos overnight at their house.  It was really lovely being with Jonathan and our friends, and Stella did great.
*Stella is wearing mostly 9 month clothes, but there are some 12 month items she is wearing.  I am trying to hold off on purchasing more things because I have plenty of warm weather clothes she can wear.  I wish our weather would make up it's mind; I am so ready for Spring.
*Stella knows how to wave, and she has signed for "more" and "all done" on occasion.  She likes to blow raspberries with her tongue, and she can say, "Dada," "Mama," "Nana," and "Rarara."  She's definitely not seeming as verbal as Nora was at this age.

Here are some pictures of our sweet girl: