Christopher at 10 weeks

Today we hit the 10 week mark for Christopher's age. He is definitely growing and learning each day. Before leaving for our vacation, I had placed him in the chair that has the toys dangling in front of him. He would just sort of look at them and not react. Then at my parents house he learned to use his arms to bat the toys around. Now he can hardly keep still in his chair. We even bought him a little jungle gym set similar to the one my parents have. He loves it, and gets a good work out kicking his legs and throwing his arms around. His hand and eye coordination is improving and now he is starting to understand that he can control his arms and hands.

Last week he had his two month checkup with our new pediatrician. He weighed in at 11 lbs and 13 ounces. He is now 22.75 inches in length, 1.25 inches longer than his birth length. He also got his immunizations in his thighs, two in each thigh. I felt so bad after the nurse finished, he just cried his little head off. After holding him, he calmed down, but I still felt a little emotional.

I will be going back to work September 16th. I am sort of looking forward to it, but also feel a little sad to be without Christopher for such a long time. Fourteen hours a day, three times a week is a really long time! The longest I have been without him is 4 hours, and after 2 hours I started to feel anxious. Alfonso and I have been talking about daycare 1-2 times a week. I have mixed feelings about that too, especially since I am entrusting strangers with my child. Not to mention the financial expense. Ah well, it seems that these things will work out in time. Here are some recent photos:

Our visit to Michigan and Georgia

Sorry, this entry is coming in a bit late. We had a great time in GA and MI. We first visited southern Georgia with it's incredibly hot and humid weather. Due to the humidity, we were inside for most of the time chilling out. However, Alfonso did show me around his old stomping ground in Valdosta. Everyone took a liking to Christopher, with lots of cuddling and kisses. Here are some pictures of our GA visit:


Christopher with Grandma and cousin David



Christopher with Grandma, cousin Mayra and Aunt Maria



Cousin David reading Bambi to Christopher


We then traveled to MI for a week to see my family. The weather in MI was a lot cooler than GA, so we were able to do more activities outside. We went kayaking down the AuSable River, biking on Mackinac island and attended my 10 year high school reunion. We also had a family get together with my aunts, uncles and cousins so that they could meet Christopher and Alfonso.

With the exception of me contracting a 24 hour stomach virus, it was a wonderful vacation! Christopher is a great traveler, and handled himself very well on the planes and airports (with 6 flights and 5 airports total).


Alfonso kayaking down the AuSable



Christopher playing with his Baby Einstein jungle gym



The straits of Mackinac (The Mackinac Bridge is the 6th largest suspension bridge in the world. It's 50 years old this year.)



The water of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron looked absolutely beautiful. Amazing colors of blue and teal, it reminded me of the Pacific Ocean near Hawaii.



The only modes of transport are by horse and bike. No cars are allowed!



Christopher enjoying his ride in the pull along buggy that was attached to Alfonso's bike.



Sunset over the Straits of Mackinac



Crossing the Mackinac bridge



Christopher and Great-Aunt Gig



Christopher with Great-Grandma Pilon



Christopher with Great-Aunt Susie






Christopher and Grandma



Christopher and Aunt Crystal



Christopher with Uncle Joe and Aunt Mary

Off we go...

Just wanted to get this in before we left for our vacation this Thursday. We are going to Georgia to see Alfonso's family for 4 days, and then we are visiting my family in Michigan for a week. I can't wait for everyone to see Christopher, and I am super excited to be going back home to Michigan. I usually go home twice a year, but last year I was in Guatemala during the summer. I can't wait to show Alfonso N. Michigan during the summer, since he has only visited during the winter.

Christopher is doing well, this week he has been cooing at us and he has been smiling more frequently. He has been doing well with sleeping through the night. I typically put him to bed between 9:30-10 and he sleeps until 6am. This morning he woke up at 4:30, but after a bottle he went back to sleep. He is sleeping now, so I wanted to post this before he woke up.

This past weekend Alfonso and I hung out around the house, but we also went to the Grove and Farmers Market in Los Angeles (it's an outdoor area with various shops and boutiques). We walked around with Christopher and sat on a bench and people watched. This part of LA has a lot of celebrities, but we didn't spot any (I always miss them anyway). On Saturday we went to San Pedro fish market where you chose what kind of seafood and they cook it for you on the spot. Alfonso had ordered fish and I got shrimp. We shared a huge side order of grilled potatoes, onions and green peppers. The atmosphere is very lively with people singing karoake in spanish/english.

Then on Sunday, (Alfonso had to work) I went with Diego and Julie to this party/celebration in Chino Hills to honor the patron saint (Virgin de Los Angeles- Our lady of the Angels) of Costa Rica. Basically it's a big celebration with music, food, dancing, soccer, and families getting together. There are thousands of people there, with the majority from Costa Rica. Diego's friend Eric and his wife Sandy were visiting from Hawaii, so they came with us as well. Eric is originally from Costa Rica, so he was excited to go. We had a good time and Christopher slept for most of the day. I ate some food from a vendor (potatoes and other vegetables in a curry sauce on top of a corn tortilla, I can't remember the name)and then later on we cooked hotdogs and sausage on the grill. The sausage was put on top of a tortilla, with an cabbage/tomato/cilantro mixture placed on top of the sausage. It was slightly spicy without being over powering.

All was going well, but then we noticed a large group of people moving across the field and saw that there was a fight going on. Soon after, the police showed up and then a helicopter was circling overhead announcing that this was the end of the event. We packed up our gear and on the way to the car there were policemen with swat gear stationed around the cars. As we were leaving, an ambulance and fire truck showed up. Later on I heard that there had been a fight along with a stabbing, but I am still not sure what really happened.

Here are some photos of Christopher at 6 weeks:









I use this when I have to do work and he doesn't want to put down. At first he cries, but then he quiets down and falls asleep.


The new mobile that his Grandma Valencia and Aunt Maria bought him.


I think he may have my eyes! What do you think?

The good, the bad, and the ugly

I had my six week post-delivery follow up appointment today. It was so nice to see my doctor again. She is always so friendly and we always have a good time chatting. I am thinking about switching medical groups (driving down to Cedars is about an hour with traffic) but I can't bear to switch MD's!

Christopher handled himself pretty well, except for the meltdown he had in the waiting room. It started with him having gas, and then a dirty diaper. I could not get him to calm down regardless of breastfeeding or any other intervention. Finally we moved to a more private area that wasn't so crowded and he calmed down.

I am about 20 lbs over my desired weight. I am cautious on what I eat and I have been walking every night with Christopher. I plan on lifting small weights to strengthen and tone my muscles. Before I was pregnant I was in the best shape of my life, so I hope to regain at least some of my original shape. I think it will take me a good 6 months to get back into shape, but I am ready for the challenge.

Now for the ugly- our house has an ant problem. The day my parents were leaving we noticed ants in the kitchen. I thought that it was from the fruit that we had bought at a fruit stand. Then several days later I found them swarming in the cupboards over a jar of honey. I cleaned out the cupboard and the ants went away for several days. Now they are back and taking over the kitchen. They even crawl on me (I smell like maple syrup from the herbal supplements that I take for lactating). Apparently the city of Valencia has this problem, it's especially worse in the summertime when the temperature is in the triple digits. Our friends Julie and Diego had the same problem at their house and they hired a pest exterminator. So, I am going to call them tomorrow and get this problem taken care of before we leave for GA/MI.

Our weekend

On Saturday we drove up the coast to Santa Barbara. The drive took us just under two hours, and that included stopping for a diaper change and feeding. I have only been to Santa Barbara a couple of times. I had forgotten how much I love this little city with the restaurants, cafes, shops, museums, ocean, mountains, and the general happy vibe that I feel. It reminds me of Ithaca, NY with its eccletic but small town atmosphere. We ended up eating a little lunch at an outdoor cafe, walked around the downtown area and then spent time on the pier watching the sunset. We enjoyed a seafood dinner at a very informal restaurant on the pier. The restaurant had a warm, friendly atmosphere where people sat along a bar that circled the restaurant. The service was excellent and the food was great too. Alfonso had fried calamari and oysters and I had shrimp ceviche with tortilla chips. We each had a pint of beer and then shared another serving of calamari. Christopher slept the entire time in his stroller, which was a definite bonus. Here are some photos of our weekend:


He is a little bald in the front.


But check out the back!


Hanging out on the pier.






Christopher napping on our bed (he was asleep for 10 minutes max)

Christopher at 5 weeks

I can hardly believe that it has been five weeks since Christopher was born. When I was pregnant, time slowed to a standstill, but since Christopher has been born, time has gone by super fast.

He is definitly more alert and interactive. I can see real difference from just a week ago. He is quite happy and will smile at us when we are talking or playing with him. Here are some photos this morning, we were waiting for papa to come home from work:

Christopher at four weeks

Since we are nearly into his fifth week, I wanted to write this blog before it was too late!

We are all doing well; Christopher is growing bigger and bigger! I measured him the other day, and he is at leat 22 inches. This was with his legs slightly bent. He is filling out more in his trunk and face. Two weeks ago he was 9lbs 4ounces, I would estimate that he is nearly 10lbs. He has the most expressive facial movements! I love it when he has his mouth open in an "O", he looks like a little bird waiting for food. We are still breastfeeding, but it's more for comfort and milk production. Our schedule was a little off when my family was here, but we are back on track. I am still pumping milk and refrigerating it, so at least he is getting some breastmilk. He is taking in 3 ounces of formula per feeding, so he is a hungry little boy! He eats every 2-3 hours during the day, and every 4 hours during the night.

I have been trying to work on a bedtime routine for him. Every night after dinner we go for walks together in his stroller. This usually helps settle him down. After we come home, I give him a warm bath. He enjoys his baths, but cries when we take him out to dry him. I dress him in a long onesie complete with a hat and wrap him up in a blanket burrito-style. Then some snuggling with breastfeeding and a bottle and he is out! Sometimes he doesn't need a bottle, he falls asleep as soon as he is wrapped up. Typically he is asleep by 10pm, and then wakes up at 3-4am for a feeding. Sometimes it is difficult to get him to fall back to sleep, so after much rocking, and holding he will fall asleep between 6:30-7:30am and awaken at 10:30. Of course each day differs slightly, but this is the general jist of what it's like. Sometimes I am so exhausted at 5am that I have him in the bed with me, so that I can keep an eye on him (I am worried about him spitting up and aspirating) while I rest. I wait for him to fall asleep before I feel comfortable falling asleep. I am just worried that he will aspirate, so I try to keep his head slightly elevated shortly after a feeding. I guess it's the nurse in me that is showing these concerns!

During the day he is often in his bouncy chair that my parents had bought for him. He is big enough now for it, and seems to really enjoy it. It has different features that either bounce or vibrate. It also plays music and the sound of beating heart (because that's all he heard when he was inside me). He no longer is so dependent on being held at every waking hour, so it is nice to have him in the bouncy chair and it allows me more freedom around the house.

Since Christopher has reached one month, here are developmental milestones according to I-Village:

Lifts head for short periods of time (he has done this since his first week, but now he is able to hold it for longer periods)
Moves head from side to side
Prefers the human face to other shapes
Makes jerky, arm movements
Brings hands to face
Has strong reflex movements
Can focus on items 8 to 12 inches away
May turn towards familiar sounds or voices
Responds to loud sounds
Blinks at bright lights

Here are some pictures for your viewing pleasure:


Getting kind of cranky


Uh-oh


whew.. there there Christopher


A pouch sling that a girl from my breastfeeding group made. Christopher screams when I put him in it, so I am still trying it out.




Alfonso came home from work and look what he found!