maverick: one month old

A month already! This past month has been quite the whirlwind and Maverick has been tagged along and in the midst of it all... Thus the life of a third child I guess. I'm excited to be settled back at home for awhile now and start to establish more of a routine for him and give him some stability because I'm sure if hasn't been easy going from houseboat to hotel and here and there.

However for someone so small he definitely knows what he likes and doesn't like. So far he is my most temperamental baby: most days I feel like if he isn't eating or sleeping... He's crying. BUT, he is learning to smile and he's a fantastic snuggler. So I just remind myself to enjoy the snuggles and the smiles. Those are the best part of this age so that's what I'm all about. Eventually I will figure out how to make it through Target without a screaming baby and how to navigate three kids with only two hands.

Eats: Every 3.5-4 hours. He went through a growth spurt between 2-3 weeks and was wanting to eat more often but it's leveled out now. As soon as he is ready to eat you will know. He goes from 0-60 in about 2 seconds in a full on scream. He eats 3-4 ounces and he is a great eater. He has made breast feeding go well as far as the actual eating part. He will also drink from a bottle when I pump which is nice, he hasn't had a problem going back and forth. He still gets tummy aches usually twice a day that last for a little while. I have cut out several things from my diet to try to solve this and we give him has drops and are hoping that as his stomach finished developing the tummy aches will go away. He has had formula to supplement his bottle a few times.

Sleeps: his sleep depends on his tummy aches. A lot of times he can't get into a good sleep during the day for naps because he wakes up crying. So during the day his sleep is a little more sporadic but at night he will usually go for a good stretch. I feed him late at night and usually around 3 AM and then again in the morning so I'm really only waking up once which feels do-able for a little bit. He doesn't fall asleep on his own all so He does require someone to put him to sleep and that can take awhile. He likes to be swaddled and rocked or bounced and have his back patted. And he knows the second you put him down so he has to be in a deep sleep. He has been sleeping in the "rock and play" little cradle and he likes it, definitely sleeps the best in there.

Plays: He is starting to smile and it is the best. That makes all the crying stressful moments disappear and he is so adorable. He has great neck strength and will hold his head up for a long time by himself.

Likes: He likes to be held all the time. He likes his binky, his brother and sister (he was laying on a blanket with Caitlin the other day and she was singing to him and playing and it was the longest he's gone without crying). He likes being on his side and his tummy.

Dislikes: Having a dirty diaper! He poops constantly and if there is anything in his diaper, even just a little wetness he will let you know.

He has also had really bad baby acne/cradle cap/eczema. My boys seem to have sensitive skin. It is slowly going away with washing everyday and applying lots of ointment and lotion for the dryness. Poor thing! I absolutely hate baby acne. He also doesn't love having a bath or being cold.

Firsts this past month: first trip to lake Powell, first time to take a bottle, first time on an airplane (did great and luckily slept most the time), first trip to New York, first smiles.

PUBLIC.

Our trip to NYC was the stuff dreams are made of. Being there with Paul for such a huge event in his professional life was an amazing opportunity and one that I knew I couldn't miss.

Paul started at Vivint Solar about 4 years ago with 4 other guys and a pipe dream to make this huge. They are now the second biggest residential solar company in the country And have about 3,000 employees. It has gone through growing pains and personnel changes and Paul has stuck through all of it. He has been passionate and diligent and was responsible for raising over $780 million and now is the Vice President of Operations and manages so many aspects of the entire company. For the past year or so the goal has been to go public and it's been something that we had talked about so many times, sometimes it seemed attainable and sometimes it seemed doubtful. On September 30th, the night before the IPO we went to dinner in the financial district right down the street from the NYSE building. There, all lit up, were the banners for the next days events- huge and glowing orange. That's when it finally hit me. This was happening! Paul's dream and goal. He had pounded the pavement of the financial district and walked past the NYSE building countless times while raising money to build and grow VS and now here were his colors flying high. I got emotional seeing that and feeling so proud and excited for him.

October 1st was the IPO. It was such a privilege to be at the stock exchange and it was an event I won't forget. We got to the building early in the morning and took pictures outside (in the drizzly rain) and admired the gigantic banners in the daylight. Typical of Vivint's style... They went with the biggest banner possible. We came in and each of us got our special gold badges. Funny story: the people selected to be on the podium had a blue sticker on their badge. It looked like a strip of paunter's tape so when Paul put on his badge he thought "why is this little piece of trash on here?" And ripped it off! Luckily someone noticed and got him a new one. Everything throughout the building was displaying Vivint solar marketing and there were big balloons everywhere. They had brought a bunch of t-shirts and hats and people throughout the building were sporting them. We got to go inside to the NYSE board room. This is the room where men like Carnegie and Rockefeller used to meet on a regular basis. We had breakfast and a couple speeches. There was a buzz in the air and everyone was nervous and excited. After our breakfast they took us down to the trading floor and led the group of about 16 to the podium. That group was made up if executives and board members. They rang the opening bell for the stock exchange on tv then came down and we went to our own area of the floor. We were there for about 20 minutes while the "market makers" did their thing- started collecting info to decide what to price the stock at to open. The initial offering was $16.00 and it opened at $17. Greg Butterfield (CEO) rang a separate bell to signify beginning of public trade and there we were.. VSLR live on the stock market. It was all very exciting and I learned a lot about the stock market standing there on the trading floor right next to brokers talking into their headsets. Afterward we got to your the NYSE building a little. And that was it! Vivint Solar IPOd and it was a huge step towards more great things in the company! It was an exciting and educational experience and such a great event to celebrate and highlight Paul's hard work!

Also on Wednesday we walked around the financial district and crossed the Brooklyn bridge for some yummy pizza. We also went to Magnolia's bakery and got their famed banana bread pudding which was so amazing. That night we had a celebratory dinner and party with the rest of the Vivint group.

We got there late Monday night and went to the Four Seasons where we stayed for the week. Our Room was nice and big, which was especially nice since we also brought Rebekah with us! Bekah was such a lifesaver and was able to watch Maverick for us whenever we had work events or things that we couldn't bring him to. She was so amazing and willing to help and it was so fun having her there and having someone I trusted with little Mav. (Also a huge shout out to my mom who came and watched our other kids at home even though she had only been home like a week and then turned around and came back and made it so fun for them while we were gone!) It was also fun to have Paul's parents meet us there and experience these things with them.

Tuesday we explored around out hotel...the Shops on fifth avenue and Madison and then met up with friends for lunch at serendipity! This was my first experience with the famous frozen hot chocolate and it was delicious! As was my lunch (I got the "summer briese" sandwich) then we did a little more shopping and went back to the hotel. That night Paul and I went to an executive dinner at a steakhouse right by the stock exchange. 

Thursday we went to Norma's and had the most decadent, interesting and amazing breakfast. Then we went to Canal Street to barer a little then walked to the 9/11 Memorial. It was my first time to see he memorial as they were just beginning plans for it last time I was there. It is still not completed but it was really pretty and I'm excited to see it when everything around it is done. It was crazy to walk the streets and think of what it would have been like to see the huge towers among all the other huge buildings fall. That night we went with a big Vivint group to dinner at Rosa Mexicano and then saw Aladdin on broadway.

Friday we rode bikes around Central Park in the morning which was a blast. There was a big group of us and the weather (the whole trip) was amazing. We put Maverick in the front pack and he rode along with Paul and was happy for most the time. After bikes we walked to Greys Papaya for a hot dog (as seen in the movie "Fools Rush In") and then went up the block to Levain bakery for their cookies. Now THOSE were amazing. Probably the most delicious thing I ate the whole trip. Huge cookies and gooey in the center. So yummy. We also had to stop at he "Waffles and Dinges" food truck which is one of the best ones in the city. We got little waffles and ate them at a table in between the Lincoln Center/Juilliard and the Manhattan temple. That night we went to dinner at Capitol Grille, another steakhouse in the financial district. This was one was in a historic bank building and was very masculine and opulent feeling. We ate in a private room that was in the basement of the building that used to be an old deposit room of the bank, so there was a gigantic lock to close the room... we literally ate in a safe! Definitely one of the coolest rooms I've ever eaten in and the food was delicious as well. That night we went to see Les Miserables on broadway and had amazing seats. The singing was excellent, I really enjoyed seeing such a classic on Broadway.

Saturday it got rainy and cold but we had time to squeeze in a trip to Times Square and then lunch and then went to the airport to catch our flight home. 

neither here nor there

Filled up another chatbook this month...

joys of motherhood: september

-At the park there are some little megaphone tubes to talk into that are supposed to let you talk to someone on the other side but Caitlin likes to pretend to take drive thru orders with them. So she was taking my order and at the end asked: "Do you want a drink?"
me: "Oh yes please, do you have Dr. Pepper?"
C: "yah we do! Do you want it messy?"
hahahaha I had to laugh... of course she was referring to my "Dirty" Dr. Pepper that I always get (dr. pepper with coconut flavoring)
-I knew that breastfeeding would bring with it plethora of interesting moments and situations with my kids, especially Caitlin who doesn't let anything get past her and is very curious and not afraid to ask a million questions until she feels like she understands the situation enough. Nolan hasn't really paid much attention, although the other day while I was feeding Maverick he said "Are you giving him his bottle?" and I said "Yah I'm feeding him some milk" and he laughed and said "noooo mommy.. you no have milk there! oh mommy you silly" haha. Caitlin however does know I have "mommy milk" and very often tells me that she really wishes she had some, asks if she can try to feed him like that, or asks when she will get some, or tells me "Mom the baby's crying he must need some mommy milk." She's also asked if she could help me squeeze my boob to get the milk out for him. Her questions and observations have made me laugh so hard.
-Another funny one was when the kids came to the hospital to see Maverick he had one of the little plastic camps on the end of his umbilical chord and it was light yellow. We were changing his diaper and Nolan notice the clamp and said "Oh, is that his French fry?" We thought it was so funny so we just went along with it then when we brought him home Nolan asked to see his french fry.
-Caitlin often creates original songs and now lullabies for the baby. The other day she starting singing and I was able to write down most of it as a sample: "Sweet dreams my baby let your powers shine and you will calm down and it will make you rhyme. Go to sleep go to sleep and go rest your body head. Let you dreams follow the destiny."
-The other day Caitlin randomly asked Paul, "When Maverick is a teenage will he still drink Mommy's milk?" We both laughed really hard at that one.
-Caitlin has started saying "BRB!!!" and runs out of the room to get something or do whatever she's doing.

September

September has been busy and we've all been adjusting and enjoying having Maverick in our home.

-Most of our visitors have been mentioned already, but my Mom was here for two weeks. She got here the 3rd and Stewart and Lorraine arrived the 4th and stayed over the weekend. My dad came the following weekend. We loved having visitors and loved having their help and support.
-We had a family dinner the night before I delivered at Malawi's pizza and also had a family brunch with the Peltons before dad left. Both of which I took no pictures of.
-Caitlin has been loving school. They do the cutest things and everyday she comes home and shows me everything from her backpack and tells me about her day. I love it and I love seeing what she's learning. She gets to take a show and tell every Monday and she picks the most random stuff to bring but she gets so excited about it. She also learns lots of cute songs that she sings for us.
-We've ventured out to the dinosaur museum and McDonald's for lunch and playing. Also to Thanksgiving Point farm.

-We went to Lake Powell and were on a houseboat for three full days. We went with the Humphreys and their family and also the Packs and Clay and Tiffany Barnes. I had been debating whether or not to go since we had a brand new baby and I wasn't supposed to go in the water or swim or be too active. I had decided against it until about 3 days prior when I decided to just go. I'm glad I did. It was so nice to have some family time together and the kids had a blast and Paul was in heaven at his happy place. Maverick was a trouper and we kept him napping in the air conditioned house boat as much as possible. The kids wanted to play on the beach all day. Caitlin collected sea shells and Nolan  sprayed the sand with the hose all day long. We also went out on the boat and Maverick took his best naps on the boat. The kids both got to surf with daddy. The company was great and it was fun to get to know everyone better.

Maverick: 2 weeks old

This little boy is just the sweetest. We all are completely smitten with him. He has been so good so far. Even with the kids being sick and having so many visitors and bringing about this huge change in our home, the transition has gone really well. At two weeks I feel like you are starting to crawl out of survival mode and see the world again. 

Just a quick note about me: my recovery has been awesome. Probably my best one yet, although it's hard for me to remember because I tend to block out this phase. I still have a good chunk of weight to lose that I am anxious to do but physically I feel great and basically back to normal. Emotionally I also feel good. I've tried to take things in stride and be level headed and enjoy these early days with my baby. 

Now back to Mav man:

WEEK 1: 

-The day after getting home from the hospital, Maverick's first outing was taking his siblings to the doctor! Although he didn't make it out of the car... My mom stayed with him while Paul and I took the kids in and found out they had croup. We got some medicine and were directed to keep the baby quarantined-- brother and sister didn't like that at all! Having sick contagious kids and a newborn equals stress. Monday night was rough between him being fussy and the kids not sleeping well either.

-Tuesday: I took him back for another bilirubin test because he was slightly high leaving the hospital. They did a heel prick and then squeezed it to drain the blood and he didn't make a peep! No reaction! So tough! We got the results back and everything looked good. That night went MUCH better. We kept him awake more during the day and tried a few tricks at night and it was 90% better... Thus everyone was 90% happier.

-Wednesday the kids were pretty much over their croup and we told them they could hold the baby again. They were so happy to snuggle the baby and not be separated!! He has been sleeping in our room for most naps and at night in the "Rock and play sleeper" little cradle thing and it's awesome.

-Thursday he got to meet Papa! My dad came to town and showed up sporting a festive "Mavericks" t shirt. He stayed until Sunday and we loved having him here and that he got to meet Maverick.

-Friday: One week old! Maverick celebrated by having a huge blow out in my bed. This kid can poop!! He poops ALL THE TIME. Pretty much every diaper I change is messy... and it's a lot of diapers. It's actually quite amazing to me. And they are stinky! I swear he poops more than both my children combined.

WEEK 2:

-During week two he started getting tummy aches. The poor dear would probably never cry if he didn't get these tummy aches. He's had a hard time settling down for naps or falling into a deep sleep and it got worse throughout the week. It was frustrating because nursing had been going really well for both of us and I was really trying to embrace it. So, I did a lot of research and tried cutting things out of my diet, giving him gas drops, making sure he was getting enough thick milk when nursing, etc. Most of my research said they get gassy tummies just because they haven't developed as much yet and you just have to wait it out. It's so sad to see him cry out in pain. I talked to the doctor about it and he said to keep doing what I'm doing.

-He also gets hiccups all the time, pretty much after every time he eats. This one didn't surprise me too much because he got hiccups all the time in utero.

-He has been eating every 3.5-4 hours and sometimes will do a longer stretch at night. He's nice and quiet when he sleeps and is a great sleeper when he's not having a tummy ache that is keeping him up! The night time spacing has gone really well because even though I go to sleep late I'm only really up once in the night. Although I'm still super tired.

-Besides tummy aches, he doesn't cry much except for when he is trying to get his business done and when he gets really hungry. He has a really squawky/squeaky cry (it gets more normal if it gets to be a big cry but he doesn't often work up to that point) and I have literally thought their was a bird around a few times before I realized it was my baby in the next room!

-On Wednesday mom left, after being here for two weeks. It was SO nice to have her here while the kids were sick and we were needing so much help with them! She cooked and cleaned and canned and did all sorts of things for us and I am so grateful!!

-We had his 2 week doctor's appointment on Monday (the 22nd) and his stats were:
weight: 8.7 lbs. (40%)
height:21.25 inches (75%)
head circumference: 14.5 inches (73%)
Tall and skinny! Although we were happy to see that he had gained weight since birth and he stats are great!

He really is such a good baby! He is very good natured and is passive with his big brother and sister. His looks change every day but he is definitely his own little person. He seems so sweet and calm thus far and I can't wait to keep getting to know him!