Liv EZ and Will's Way

You know you are loved when you have a boat named after you. And Will has exactly that! The Liv EZ will be going on a long adventure starting this fall, so Bill and Rita (Pops and Nonna) needed a new little boat to carry with them. They got it right before Will was born and named it Will's Way.

We made our first road trip this past weekend. Bill and Rita are on a boat trip and were at Green Turtle Bay in KY on Saturday night. We decided that it wasn't too far, so we went to see them. JT took Maggie to daycare that morning and I got us all packed and ready. It is amazing how much stuff you have to take to leave the house with our little man. Will slept for most of the car ride which made it quite pleasant for us.

When we got to the lake, we barely stopped the car before Rita (Nonna) grabbed Will and took him to show off to friends Maury and Karen. And the spoiling continues...

We had lunch at the marina restaurant and Will entertained everyone by talking and staring at ceiling fans (his favorite). Then we got to the boat and Will took a nap while me and JT played on kayaks and Pops rode around in Will's Way. Side note - I should have been kayaking throughout my pregnancy, then I would have some awesome arm muscles that I need to carry around Will and his car seat.

When Will woke up, I put him in his new bathing suit and hat. Adorable!!!! He wasn't loving the shirt that went with it because it was long sleeved to keep him protected from the sun. He wasn't having any part of that shirt, so I had to put his t-shirt back on him. We went up to the pool where it was shady, and Will fell asleep again. I think JT put Will's feet in the pool before we left, but I don't really think we can count this as real pool time.

Will slept great on the boat - a little rocking and water noise was all he needed. The next morning we put him in Will's Way with Pops and officially christened the little boat. Gram had sent us with a little bottle of champagne, just Will's size, and Pops poured it over the side.

With a little help from Pops, Will christens Will's Way.

It was a great first trip for us. Hopefully the first of many to come.

All Night Long

I have been walking around the house happily singing this song because I can officially say Will is sleeping through the night! Yippee!!!! I woke up Thursday morning at about 5:15 and realized he hadn't woken me up at 2:00 like he usually does. Of course I went to make sure he was still breathing, and he was sleeping so peacefully. He finally got up at 7:00. I figured that this was just a little break for me and that it wouldn't continue, but he slept all night again last night. Yay!

He is so funny in his crib. I put him down in the same spot, and every morning he has turned a complete 90 degrees. I have no idea how he does this. This morning when JT when to get him, he had turned a complete 180 - head was now where his feet began. JT says it reminds him of a needle in a compass. Hahaha! I wonder if he will be scooting along the floor on his back instead of crawling!



Happy 8 weeks old Will!

Spoiled Sweet

One of my mom's best friends sent Will a gift and the name of the boutique caught my eye...Spoiled Sweet. What a great phrase! I've always said that I don't care if Will is spoiled (I mean, there is no chance that he won't be) as long as he isn't spoiled rotten and bratty. Will is spoiled in so many ways already - yes, he already has entirely too many gifts, but more than anything he is spoiled with love. We are so blessed to have such great family and friends that care so much about our little man already.

So my wish for you Will, is that you have a future full of everything you've ever wanted. I hope that all of your wishes and dreams come true. Please just be appreciative of all of the love and support that surrounds you so that when someone tells me you are spoiled, I can reply "Yes, he is spoiled sweet!"

And seriously, who wouldn't want to spoil this kid...

Will - 1 Month Old

Happy 1 Month sweet Will!

1 month already? I really can't believe it! I plan on giving detailed reports of what has gone on each month on this blog. This way anyone that wants to keep up will be well-informed, but this is mostly for me since this is just a big baby book. (I don't scrapbook, so thank goodness for computers!)

Stats:
Height - 21 inches
Weight - I don't know because I don't have a scale. We don't go back to the pediatrician until he is 2 months old. My guess is at least 10 pounds.

Will loves to yawn! My mom says "no one enjoys a yawn more than Will", and I think she is right. He makes a big production out of it. My favorite is when he yawns and stretches at the same time. Legs extended straight out, arms extended straight up above head, and the biggest yawn you've ever seen. He always has a proud look on his face after this. Seriously, it must be tough being a baby!

He often rolls to his side to sleep. This drives me crazy! All you ever hear now is that babies need to sleep on their backs. Well, that is how we start out, but he gets on his side as soon as I leave the room. He is going to roll over before I know it!

He loves to sit in his vibrating seat. He stares at the birds and sometimes even coos at them. Sweet little voice! This is his most dangerous spot though, because he becomes level with Maggie and there is nothing she wants to do more than lick his face. She has gotten better at not touching him, but she likes to lay beside him. She is getting really protective already.

Will seems to love his room! His favorite place is the changing pad. He stares at the picture on the wall beside it, or he just looks at us and coos. We have learned that when Will is really upset, take him to the changing pad and he usually calms down. Maggie likes his room too. She comes in there whenever I am feeding him and lays down beside the chair. There have been several occasions that we have found her sleeping in his room beside the bassinet. She is a good big dog-sister!

He snorts when he cries - this is Momma Karen's favorite characteristic.

He loves to eat! Every 2-3 hours...this is exhausting! But I can't complain too much, because he will go 4-5 hours at night, so he is kind enough to let us get some decent sleep. He gets the hiccups all the time, but they don't seem to bother him too much.

He has strong legs. He will push off my belly so hard I think I have bruises. He can hold his head up when he is laying on his stomach.

He enjoys bath time. He doesn't love being cold, but he does love getting his hair washed! We are still giving sponge baths since his umbilical cord hasn't fallen off yet.

He can focus on an object that isn't too far from his face. Last night I held a toy in front of his face and moved it to the other side - he followed it by turning his head. Smart boy! He responds to sounds, and especially gets startled when Maggie barks.

We have been out in to the world a few times. At 2 and 1/2 weeks, Mom and I took him to Target. I needed to get out of the house before I went crazy! Will did awesome. We put him in the cart and loaded up all of our stuff around him. He slept the whole time. The day before he turned 1 month old, we went out to a restaurant - this was a HUGE accomplishment! He did great! Luckily it was a loud in there so no one noticed when started to get fussy. We now know that we can pretty much take him anywhere as long as I have a bottle with me. This is great because now JT and I can start returning to what was normal in our lives before Will came along.

He loves to ride in the car! Almost instantly falls asleep as soon as we start moving...he takes after me!

We get a little smile every once in a while, but it is not really in response to happiness yet. I'm sure it is just gas like all the books say. But I'm looking forward to getting that real smile soon!

Thank you Will for a wonderful first month! I've enjoyed every minute of it, even the crying. I can't wait to see more of your personality come out in the next few months!

The Eater Bunny came to see Will

Will was 1 week old for his first Easter. And to start off the first of many traditions, Gram and Uncle Brandon made Will an Easter Bunny cake. This was a cake that my great-grandmother used to make. He also got a little Easter Basket of goodies.


We had a wonderful Easter with some of our family. Gram and Gramps were there along with NeeNee. And Uncle Brandon, Uncle Kyle, and Leslie came to meet Will and spend the day with us.

Home Sweet Home

We came home on Monday afternoon after Will was born. We were welcomed with some great balloons on our mailbox, decorations on Maggie's kennel, and a box full of blue "It's a Boy" bubblegum cigars - thank you Karen and Jamey! JT's mom and aunts stocked our frig with groceries to save us a trip which was very helpful.

Once JT got Will and I settled in, he went to pick up Maggie from daycare. She had been there since Friday, so we were hoping for a very tired dog...mission accomplished! JT took Will's hospital blanket with him and let Maggie nap on it while driving home to get her used to his scent. Maggie didn't really notice Will too much at first, she was exhausted and more interested in visitors because she thought they were coming to see her.


We had several neighbors come by to see Will. My mom stayed with us the first night, and I'm glad to say we all survived. JT worked some half-days the rest of the week and our moms took turns staying with me while he was gone. I felt like he had baby-sitters lined up for me all week.

We decided that even though Will's bedroom is just down the hall from us, we wanted him in our room for a few nights. We moved the bassinet by our bed, got everyone situated, and turned out the lights...and Will started crying. JT made a good point that in the hospital nursery it was always bright and noisy. So, we moved the bassinet into our bathroom, turned on a light, and turned on his sound machine. Perfect! After a few nights, we moved the bassinet to his room, and a couple of nights later we turned off the light in his room. Eventually we will get him to his crib.

Will and I just hang out on the couch most of the day. He just eats and sleeps, and I try to take naps with him. He is like my own personal space heater when he is curled up on my chest. I love it! Notice Maggie beside us - she isn't too sure about Will yet, but I think her protective nature is already coming out because she never gets too far from him.

JT and I gave Will his first bath. He loved it! Especially getting his hair washed.

So we are all adjusting to this new life. We are sleeping a decent number of hours, it is just interrupted sleep. But that is better than no sleep at all!

Getting to Know Will

We spent 4 days at Baptist Hospital which was a wonderful experience! It was scary to leave, especially giving up the convenience of room service, wonderful nurses, and of course the nursery at night. And it was crazy to think that they would just send us out into the world with this sweet little baby - how do they know we can handle it on our own?

On Friday we got to our room around noon after I finished up in recovery. All of Will's grandparents were there to meet him. The spoiling began immediately! Everyone was having so much fun watching him.

NeeNee

MAO
MAO. Gramps, and Pops - Will has some pretty great guys in his life!


Will was awake for almost the entire day. I thought newborns were supposed to sleep about 20 hours a day!?!?

He has great facial expressions. He was already holding his head up and lifting off of my shoulder

And he has a strong grip!

His startle reflex is hilarious! I call it "thriller" because it reminds me of the Michael Jackson "Thriller" video. His little hands start on his sides and he raises them up to his head kind of shaking them the whole way up! I hope to get a video of this to post on here.

The pediatrician came by Saturday morning to check on Will. Because of the kidney issue seen on the prenatal ultrasounds Will needed to take an antibiotic until he could have an ultrasound of his kidneys which was supposed to be in about a month. He arranged for it to be done that day and we could stop the antibiotic if the results came back good. As expected, his kidneys checked out just fine. Yay! No more antibiotic and no worries about his kidneys. On Sunday Will had his auditory screening. He passed with flying colors! JT is already calling him and overachiever.

Over the weekend, Will had many more visitors. He is a very popular little guy!
Lauren and Robby - Will can't wait to meet his besties Max and Grant!

Rob, Andi, and BAMA the elephant - Rob is trying to brainwash Will already!

John and Heather


In our few quiet moments, JT and Will had a chance to spend some quality time together. I love this picture!

I have to admit that I did not have the instant "bond" with Will the second they handed him to me like I expected to. He was here so fast and I was trying to process it all - it's a boy, he is healthy, he is huge, he has tons of hair, etc. Later that day while I was holding him, I felt his arm wrapped around my shoulder and his little hand gripping me the best he could. My heart melted and at that moment, I fell in love with my perfect little man!

On Monday they let us out into the world with our little man. We put him in his car seat, and had the nurse check it out to make sure we did it right which resulted in a lesson on how to correctly put Will in the seat. Seriously, I can't believe that let us leave with him!
Goodbye Baptist Hospital...Hello World!