We got Broderick's pics!!!!

We took Broderick in to have his pics taken when he was 7 weeks. We would have gone in earlier but Sheri, his photographer, was recovering from surgery. I could have taken him somewhere else but I was set on having her take his pics since i LOVE her work and how affordable it is! She really does amazing work! no one would ever guess that Broderick was fussy the entire time during the shoot. Sheri was very patient and helpful at soothing him and taking pics in split seconds before Broderick would start up again. whats funny about all this is that the minute the session was over and Mike handed her the check, Broderick fell right to sleep...isnt that how it always goes. Baby's sure let you know who's in charge:)

(if you're thinking about getting pics taken for you or your little ones, I highly recommend her. here is her website if you want to take a look at her work: go to www.sweetpeapix.com and then click on her blog)

Broderick's 2nd Month

i cant believe my little guy is 2 months! he has grown and changed so much. he weighs about 13lbs and is getting the cutest little roles on his little arms and legs. this month has been filled with surprises from Broderick. i think the best surprise was that he started actually smiling on V-Day. his smile melts my heart to this day, i do anything to get one!

another not so great surprise are the several accidents he has had when he goes #2 this month. wow, nobody prepares you for that at all! he has had massive explosions where "it" actually has seeped through his pants and landed on the floor. and there have been 2 occasions where during the middle of a diaper change, he has had a massive discharge that has landed, not only on me, but on EVERYTHING! i thought i had to worry about #1 with little boys but with Broderick it has solely been #2 lol.

In regards to feeding sessions with Broderick, he's been pretty good getting gasses out on his own but he spits up a lot now and sometimes in large quantities. it kinda freaks me out cause it looks as if he throws up EVERYTHING he ate.

Broderick LOVES bath time. . . finally! he could be in there for hours if i would let him. he smiles and splashes around and just thoroughly enjoys every second. now the problem is getting him out. he cries inconsolably for a little more splashing time. i promise him every night that he will get another bath the next day (i wish he understood ).

i thought his colic times where over with since he had about 1 good week but i was wrong. He is still randomly colicky :-( . poor little guy. most days are good but when he is having a bad day, it is BAD! he definitely keeps mike and i on our toes. and i guess ill have to watch what i eat for another month or so to help him out with that.

i've been reading alot to him this month. we've read most of the poems from "where the side walk ends" and have read "Love You Forever", "The tale of Benjamin Bunny" and "The Tale of Peter Rabbit". "love you forever" though is my favorite to read to Broderick. i cant help but get teary eyed every time i read it and look at him. i'm amazed at the immense love i have for the little guy.

Something new this month as well is i got Broderick a mobile for his crib and he absolutely LOVES it. no matter how long i put him in the crib, if the mobile is turning and playing music he is happy. he smiles and i swear he tries really hard to giggle.


We got his first professional baby pics. i haven't received them yet but i am super excited to see how they turned out!

After all of that....i believe i covered all the highlights for this month! sorry if i made you dizzy, :-)

Broderick vs. "the Binky"

I have the opposite problem that most moms have with pacifiers. My problem with Broderick isn't that he wants and needs the pacifier all the time but that he won't ever take it and instead, he uses me as a human pacifier and his only form of consolation lol. I've tried all types of pacifiers with no luck. If I could just get this down i would be able to accomplish so much more during the day. Watch this video to see my poor attempts at trying to get him to take the pacifier.

The BEST valentines day gift :)

Broderick surprised mike and me with the best valentines day gift we could ever ask for! he smiled for REAL for the first time today, (mind you, he is only a little over 6 wks old). he woke up with a huge grin on his face and as much as it melted my heart i assumed it was just a reflex. throughout the day though, he's been smiling back every time mike and I smile and talk to him. what a sweet little gift from our little guy. I get teary eyed every time he surprises me with another one.

of course we tried to capture his cute smile with our camera but haven't been totally successful. here's what we did capture...

Broderick's 1st month update

Our first month with Broderick flew by so quickly; and I have to say he has been wonderful to take care of. although a little colicky at first, our smart little guy has learned quickly to release his burps and gases on his own to avoid tummy aches which is such a relief for all involved in the feeding and burping process. lol

He's sleeping through the night which makes all the difference in the world with how i go about my day. i actually have energy and can function properly and poor mike can actually concentrate during school and work without yawning.

he has gained over 3lbs since birth which is crazy to believe. since I'm with him every day i don't really notice how much he's growing so I'm only aware of it when i have to put away another outfit that no longer fits him...sad:(.

he's still deciding if he likes bath time. i know...weird? i was told that all babies love bath time but the first time i bathed him he screamed, not cried but SCREAMED the entire time. i was so confused and stunned that i had to ask the doc if there was something wrong with him. he, of course, laughed and said not to worry about it and to give him a bath every other day until he decides that he likes bath time. Up until now, we are still awaiting the verdict. so far though, Broderick would like to go without bath time lol.

Here's some helpful info for all future parents of baby boys that I wish I would have been told about circumcision. First of all, circumcision is not the simple procedure you might think it would be - Mike is very traumatized, to say the least. Second, if you are going to circumcise, do it the first two days after birth. The doctor said that if done early there is little to no blood versus a lot of blood that almost made Mike faint when we had Broderick done on his twelfth day (Funny, the nurses had to bring him a juice box since he didn't have breakfast before - that should be tip number 3, HAVE breakfast). Fourth, unless you are the very curious type, do not - i repeat, DO NOT - witness the procedure if you don't have to. Like i stated before it's not the simple "pull and slice" we thought it was. Our recommendation is, wait in the other room and in a little while they will bring him back to you calm.

Here are some more pics of Broderick's first month:

Our little monkey

This broderick in his monkey outfit asleep in the car.

Broderick Michael Westover is finally here!!!

Broderick was born December 31st at 11:30 pm (6 lbs 14 oz). it was the longest and most painful thing I have ever experienced. I was in labor for about 36 hours so by the time I was fully dilated I felt EVERYTHING because the epidural had worn off. I have to say the easiest part of labor was when I had to push. I know that sounds weird but it kept me distracted from the horrible contractions. on the bright side we will be getting a tax break that we hadn't been counting on and we get to enjoy our little guy sooner than we had expected. We LOVE him so much and can't imagine our lives without him. he truly makes up for everything I went through.