16 weeks and Christmas Eve

Malcolm says...


Happy Holidays everyone! And tomorrow I'm taking my first plane ride to see my Grandma, Grandpas, Uncles, Aunts, and Cousins! P.S. - I love this bear! (and Daddy making faces at me behind the camera...)

(fingers crossed that the melt that started this afternoon continues - it would be nice not to have to drive to the airport in chains...)

Arctic Blast!

So, we are having TONS of snow (with a lovely layer of ice in between). TONS. Not just tons for Portland (which would be maybe a few inches) but tons for snowier cities. Well, I haven't lived in a snowier city for 10 years, so I may be misremembering (especially since we have a distinct lack of snowplows here, so it builds and builds), but it's over a foot! And there is the matter of that lovely layer of ice... the city is pretty well shut down, and in fact Portland's county (which is not ours) has declared a state of emergency so that they can get state and national guard resources. Yikes!

Anyway, we haven't driven since Saturday, and going a bit stir-crazy, decided to make an expedition to the grocery store, about half a mile's walk. Malcolm doesn't have a snowsuit, so we put him in a largish fleece pajama over his regular clothes and sweater, a nice warm Jayne hat which a friend knit for "wee cap'n Mal" (KT has an adult-sized pattern here), and red furry socks as mittens. I eventually zipped my coat around his feet and tucked my scarf (Christmas gift from KT a couple of years ago!) around his neck too. He was content (as long as I was moving) to chill (hah!) in the Beco baby carrier and watch the snowy world (and Daddy). Here are a few pictures:

starting out:"whoa, it's all, like, white out here"
We made it! Lots of folks stocking up, and our neighbors toldus later that they had talked to the grocery store manager - the chain (Albertsons') had told him that they couldn't make deliveries today (some of the highways are closed!) so he called up local restaurant supply places and got produce that way. Hence the garlic, yams, etc looked a bit rough as they were not meant for display. Yay, local grocery store manager!

On the way back, Malcolm had a nice nap while I had a soda. Then we stopped in at the aforementioned neighbors' for tea. One of the neighbors is from Ireland, so of course they had Barry's tea - nice!
Oh, and we're supposed to fly out of here on Thursday, and there's another storm forecast for Wednesday... wish us luck!

15 weeks

Whoops, well, we skipped 14 weeks... but Malcolm is getting big enough that weekly pictures aren't a necessity. See how Malcolm is admiring the bear (or maybe the thought of his cute self) here!At 15 weeks (yikes, 3 and a half months!) Malcolm is definitely reaching for things, studying things intently, and even will tolerate having a book read to him if it is interesting looking. He didn't used to like to sit on laps! We've had some laughs/giggles which sound more like "heh heh heh", particularly in response to the "Daddy far away.... DADDY UP CLOSE!" game, which in the right mood will result in Malcolm chortling, opening his mouth, and attempting to shove both fists in :)He's also gotten into standing, and will suddenly go straight and stiff in our arms, our cue to prop him up on his feet to look around (especially at whoever is not holding him) or even try to reach for things. I wanted to add a picture here, but we don't have any great ones... will try for one later.

In the right mood, he'll take to tummy time like a seal... for short periods, anyway. No rolling yet except the occasional accidental front-to-back.

He's still got an odd schedule - during the day, he can only be awake for an hour and a half before needing a nap, which might last between 30 minutes and 3 hours (though the 3 hour naps have gotten rarer, sadly). He can nap in the baby carrier or the carseat, though often not as well as in the bouncy chair. I'm not going to mention nightime sleep since I have now learned that to do so invites smiting by the Sleep Gods... ;)

More posts tomorrow, probably - we're having a blizzard and an ice storm, and so there should be more time for the internets...

3 months (=13 weeks)

Malcolm's month- and week- birthday lined up this week - he was 3 months (or 13 weeks) on Wednesday! We took his photoshoot in the morning, and for the first time, he actually seemed to notice the bear! He's been grabbing (or waving at and randomly opening and closing his hands near) things this week, and decided to go for Bo! The best pic I got is a bit off-center, but includes both a grabbing hand and a smile for the camera :)

We even got a little video:

Malcolm notices his bear! from Alison (& Andy & Malcolm) on Vimeo.

He's also gotten really into sucking on his hands this week. He discovered them a few weeks back, but didn't really do anything with them. Now, it's drool, slobber, suck... If we give him a napkin or burp cloth to hold at the same time, he will kind of wipe up his own drool :)

No knitting update today - I am rather behind on the one thing I am trying to do for Christmas. Hmm, I should go get it...

Napping in the bouncy chair

a comparison.

2 days old:
4 days away from 3 months old:
At his 2 month appointment he'd grown 4 inches over birth (from 20" to 24"), and I'd guess he's added at least another one or two to that. He's growing lengthwise out of his 0-3 month onesies, but the 3-6 month ones are a bit roomy in girth. Andy and I both have height in the family, though neither of us is particularly tall (and I also have plenty of short in the family). It will be interesting to see if he continues long and lean...

And yes, we still swaddle him for naps and bedtime (and for calming him down when the crankiness takes over). Good thing I bought these extra-large swaddle blankets on Etsy (from this seller's shop) before he was born! Regular receiving blankets certainly wouldn't cut it now. We're using the Miracle Blanket (i.e. Baby Straightjacket) at night and slightly dreading what will happen when he grows out of it. Knock on wood, but last night he slept for 8.5 hours!

Bumbo bumbo bumbo bumbo... (and sweaters)

One of those words that's just fun to say! Til we took an interest in baby gear, we had no idea what a Bumbo was. Is it a variant of the cheesehead?

No, silly Andy, it's a baby seat for babies who can't sit up yet! Technically they're supposed to have complete head control, which Malcolm doesn't quite, but he's small enough that the back supports his head a bit, and he can hold it up really well when he wants to.

He will sit in the Bumbo while I have my breakfast in the morning... and it makes a great seat to showcase knitted sweaters...
Yes, I finally finished his Baby Surprise jacket! Just in time, too, since it just fits him. I'll try to block it bigger when I remember to wash it. This was made with line by line notes by Dawn Adcock to help keep track of where I was. It was a fun knit which would have been pretty quick had I not started it 6 days before he was born, just 3 days before I went into labor! After that, it took me about 11 weeks to get through it :). Here's another view on his playmat, where Malcolm likes to gaze and swat at his ladybug and his sun:
My knitting goals are much reduced for the rest of the year - just a scarf for a Christmas gift, which I really need to get working on. And I guess I'll need a project for the flight to Boston, assuming Mr. M. cooperates and sleeps for a good bit.

Here is the promised other view of the lovely blue sweater, one of a couple his Grandma brought from Boston for him. Grandma, you need to put these on Ravelry!

taking advantage of a nap for 12-week pic

I promise, he had socks earlier, but baby feet and most socks don't seem to be compatible! Malcolm was 12 weeks on the day before Thanksgiving. He's been working on slow, deliberate arm and leg movements, and also more frequently finding his hands. When you give him a pacifier, he will often reach up his hand and either hold it in or pull it out depending on the luck of the draw!
I'm sure eventually he will notice the bear, but so far it's still "Mom, why am I propped in the chair"?

And since these far-away pictures never show off his gorgeous blue eyes (they're darker than mine or Andy's, but may still be lightening), here's a feature picture from today, en route to lunch. The sweater his Grandma knit him sure enhances his big blues! (more on this sweater in another post). He did remarkably well at lunch (just a local place in Hillsboro here), staying awake as we ordered, then starting to crank, taking the pacifier, and drifting to dreamland as we ate.

Too bad the carseat has that giant warning sticker - otherwise this would make a lovely wall hanging. Maybe I'll have to try my Gimp (free photo-editor a la photoshop) skillz...

11 weeks!

Hey, a more-or-less-on-time post!

Malcolm turned 11 weeks yesterday! He's still a cranky baby if things are not going right to his specifications, but he has really turned on the smiles lately. His whole face just lights up, and he sticks his tongue partly out... it's so cute! He must think I'm some kind of crazed clown since I'm always just grinning at him trying to elicit a grin from him.

Of course he won't smile on cue in the chair for his weekly picture - maybe one of these weeks. Instead I get the "mommy, what are we doing here" expression again :). But I will post smiles in a different entry!

He seems to be starting to grasp at things, too - we made a mall expedition on Sunday, and at the food court he was awake in his carseat/stroller, with his little hands just grabbing at his blanket edge and the little toy we have attached there. And while I was trying things on and Andy was doing mall laps with him, Andy report that he grabbed his pacifier and waved it around. I don't think these grabbings are too intentional yet, but the hands are opening up and grasping. I can't wait til he is really reaching for toys instead of just batting around. Fun stuff!

I, of course, am getting pretty much nothing done except baby care and the occasional blog entry. But I guess that is to be expected. If only I had a nap predictor which could tell me which would be 2 hours and which would be 30 minutes! I expect he will get on a more routine schedule in the next couple of months, though that will be interrupted by Christmas travel (lookout fellow passengers on the PDX-BOS flight, cranky!Malcolm is onboard!). At least our sleep is decent (knock on wood) - he usually wakes up to eat just once at night. On the other hand, it's been months and months since I've had a complete night of sleep, since my whole 3rd trimester of pregnancy was plagued by back pain when lying down, and of course the whole pressure-on-the-bladder-causing-multiple-bathroom-trips issue. Well, I assume he'll sleep through the night sometime in the next few years!

Enough rambling, time to watch Andy make dinner :)

10 weeks, very belatedly

I am more likely to get these up if I don't do much commentary... will try for more on tomorrow's 11 week update. Here is Malcolm last week at 10 weeks. I could have done a longer post during his 2-hour nap this afternoon, but a) I didn't know it was going to be 2 hours! and b) I was actually doing some knitting. BSJ is finished except for buttons! (oh, and I was having lunch, too, always important when free time comes in small and irregular chunks)


Malcolm says "ah-loooo" to the loyal readers of this blog. It's his favorite thing to say. He finds it amusing when I counter with other types of Indian food: "aloo gobi, chicken korma, zaag paneer..."

New and exciting tummy time position

Exercise ball!

(10 week update coming later....)

9 weeks, belatedly

It seems that I'm getting later and later in posting these weekly pictures. Now it's Saturday, and I need to think back on what we did during Malcolm's 9th week - since he turned 9 weeks this past Wednesday (and 2 months on Monday). He was pretty zoned out for the bear picture this week - not cranking, but not really that interested either (I think he went down for a nap pretty soon after). He also looks remarkably "chinny" - I think due to his posture. He's not actually too chinny yet!


He had his 2-month pediatrician appointment on Monday and was pronounced perfect - long and lean, 90th percentile for length and 50th for weight (and 70th for head circumference!). He got 3 immunizations (2 shots plus an oral) and will go back in 2 weeks for the other two. He seemed super-cranky for a couple of days afterwards, but no fever or other bad reactions, phew.

A couple of shots from Halloween, when he was 8 weeks 2 days old. He had a nice happy window where he let us pose him in his orange and black striped romper:(orange dudes)

(gourd dude)

But he melted down when we tried to put him in a chili pepper bunting. Too much costume!
(we've noticed he tends to get overtired really easily, and if he's melting down it's probably time for a nap! It's hard to try to catch him before he "melts", though. Hopefully this will ease up as we get closer to the end of the "4th trimester", but I'm not holding my breath at this point since that's only 2.5 weeks away!)

Happy Halloween! (and 8 week picture)

Malcolm turned 8 weeks on Wednesday. There is starting to be less difference week-to-week now, though he continues to grow, and we'll get his official weight on Monday (2 month appointment and - oh no! - shots! I'm hoping the shots in conjunction with Daylight Savings time falling back the day before don't wreak too much havoc on our sleep...). He was almost 11 pounds on Tuesday at the mom's group, though. That's, like, 57% more baby than 8 weeks ago!

This week he's been working more on head control, and more on smiles (he likes to smile at Mommy after eating sometimes, usually in the middle of the night when she would rather he actually be sleepy and not social. He also gives very good smiles on his changing mat, and randomly while enjoying his mobile or looking at his parents), and more on noticing things around him and tracking with his eyes. Also on unexplained yelling and getting worse at napping. Silly boy, doesn't he know that in 30 years he'll kill for a good 2 hour nap?

Here he is wearing a halloween outfit we were given. Boo! Too cute! Unfortunately it (and my shirt, and the couch...) got majorly spit up upon later in the day, but we have a couple of alternate options for Halloween itself. I'll post a picture of him in his official costume later. I'm hoping he'll put up with being dressed up for a little photo session, even though we're obviously not taking him trick-or-treating... (He doesn't do candy yet, and also I'm avoiding dairy for 10 days to see if it improves either his temperament or his poops - doesn't seem to be doing much, so I'll restart cheese, then yogurt, then milk starting in a couple of days - but for now most candy is verboten to me...).

"Ho hum, the bear again..."

"Whoa, there's a new toy in my Pack'n'play! Can I hit it with random flailing?"

Smile!

Hmm, blogger's picture sizing is still wonky, apologies if these are huge!

7 weeks!

Week 7 was much like week 6 - plenty of crankiness and discussion of the finer points of baby's poop (who knew it could become such a mainstay of conversation...). But we're finding that, when he's in a good mood, he's become more interested in looking around at things in close view, like the toys on his playmat, or Mommy or Daddy making funny faces. His random arm flailings sometimes hit the playmat toys and make them move, but I don't think he's got cause and effect down yet.

And at 7 weeks he hasn't really noticed the bear in the picture yet :).

(apologies for the huge in-blog picture, it seems that something has changed about how Blogger scales things)

He's wearing the same blue suit, with the addition of some supercute babylegs and red socks. Even Andy, who is anti-baby-fashion, admits that the babylegs are functional because they don't get in the way of diaper changes the way pants do. And I'm maintaining a long sleeves and legs dressing rule, now that it's colder out and we're keeping the house a bit cooler. I may have to splurge on a couple more pairs.

I'll do another post later showing some tummy time adventures. Right now I'm going to try to do a couple of rows of BSJ before he wakes up!

6 weeks - height of crankiness?

I read in some book or webpage that 6 weeks (or 6-8, but I'm hoping for 6) is the height of crankiness and crying. Let's hope so! We think we have the 6-week growth spurt going on here - lots of eating and fussing. Hence I have not much time to post this (I think... maybe he'll sleep longer than expected!)

6 week picture: (not sure what kind of sign he's making with his right hand!)

Representative crank:
No knitting update today - I'm hoping to get to a knitting meetup this afternoon, but I am reluctant to disturb baby's sleep, so I'm going to be late.

Oh, OK, one more picture. We met my work friends and their babies yesterday - here's Malcolm catnapping in his buddy's fancy cradle swing. Doesn't he look angelic? He was supposed to be wearing the same blue suit as in the bear/chair pictures yesterday, but soon after we arrived he had a major poop-blowout and I had to go to the backup outfit... (luckily some soaking rescued the blue suit and it will feature in future weeks's pictures)

Farmers' Market

Mr. M. actually gave us decent sleep last night (two 3.25 hour chunks, yeah!), so we had energy on this beautiful fall morning to make an expedition to the farmer's market. Not that it takes a lot of energy - it's only a mile and a half away (but we drove, yes, the idea of being over a mile from home with baby waking up hungry is just not appealing yet) - but we haven't been in months and wanted to get there before it closes for the seaon.

We decided that a crisp fall day deserves baby knitwear!


Aunt Carolyn's hand-spun, hand-dyed, fall leaves-inspired sweater...


And his Mommy-made coming-home-hat (and into the carseat for the ride to the market!)


Moments later - "Mom, Dad, I hate getting buckled in the carseat!"

"Oh, that's better". Sucking really calms him down. We avoided giving him the pacifier for his first 4 weeks, but he really does seem to enjoy it, to combat the "not the carseat!" screams (he will go to sleep once the car is moving) and sometimes to zone out and be zen with before sleeping.

At the market, while Daddy gets green beans for minestrone. We are making soup today completely out of CSA and farmers' market veggies (well, not counting the canned beans and tomatoes).

"Oh no, not a giant leek!"

Rainbow surprise

I thought I'd do a quick knitting update while Mr. Malcolm is still sleeping... exactly 6 weeks ago I started a Baby Surprise Jacket out of beautiful Koigu multicolored sock yarn (Rav link). I'm at the point where the pattern's author, Elizabeth Zimmermann, says "Work will start to look very odd, indeed, but trust me, and PRESS ON". It certainly doesn't look much like a sweater yet:


Until you flip it over (so the working stitches are on the bottom), fold up one sleeve...


And then the other....and it starts to look cardiganish (baby's head goes at the top)! I need to find some wee buttons and hope that the garter stitch will have enough stretch to make it wearable for a decent amount of time... though first I have to finish the thing... OK, he's still sleeping, maybe I can get another row in!

Next up will be a special holiday something made from worsted yarn from a local dyer. Who I actually met at knitting group last week (and dang, didn't make it to group this week due to the aforementioned cranky fussy sleepiness, and me forgetting it is Thursday!). My knitting goals for the rest of the year are not high, just this jacket and a couple of Christmas gifts. But yikes, it's mid-October already! Only 2.5 knitting months til Christmas!

5 weeks (and counting)

Well, that post about the beach never materialized, did it? Maybe I'll post some recap pics later...

But for now, Malcolm is 5 weeks old! Yes, he's been out of the womb for more than a month! At his last (unofficial, in a Moms' group) weighing, he was 9.5 pounds, which is almost 2.5 pounds over his birthweight, and 3 pounds heavier than when he left the hospital.

Our days sometimes have routine: eat, "play" (i.e. walk around the house and look at lights; do "tummy time" on the playmat; sit in the bouncy chair and observe the world; be held and observe the world), nap; lather, rinse, repeat. If we have an outing, I try to encourage him to eat before we leave since he will then zonk out in the carseat (once the initial "how dare you put me in the carseat" yelling festival is over). The carseat docks onto the stroller for neighborhood walks; I have several baby carriers (Ergo, pouch, sling) but haven't loved any of them yet, and feel like they'll be easier when he's a bit older and has better head control.

Sometimes (often?) this routine goes to pot, and he doesn't play, or doesn't sleep. He always eats, though :). Right now he's asleep, swaddled, on the playmat - play was cut short by a bout of cranky fussy sleepiness.

And here he is. We're going to try to have him wear this blue suit for the next few weeks or until he outgrows it. Er, not wear it continuously, just for the pictures! It's still a bit big on him now.

I think we'll caption this "Mom, please, not another picture with the bear!"

And here's a portrait at 5 weeks, mid-"play" session in his crib. I think he was thinking about getting cranky here, too. He's definitely skeptical about something... :D

4 weeks!

Well, at least we're keeping up with the weekly postings... so far! And wow, the weeks are going fast!

I will attempt a longer, more picture-filled post about our beach time this past weekend (two of the most gorgeous days at the Oregon coast that I've ever seen) later this week. For now, here is Mr. Malcolm at 4 weeks old. And turning 1 month in 2 days!


His eyes, of course, are not actually demonic red. They are blue (started out super dark, and have been steadily lightening), with a gold circle around the pupil (he gets this from his mommy). But isn't it nice how his red eyes match his socks? And heh, as I type this we are watching the Red Sox (losing to LA at the moment, d'oh!).

There's such a difference from his 1 week picture! Weird to think he is 4x as old as he was there (not counting in-womb time, of course). Oh, to answer the comments from last week - Wendy, I will send you an email, we can do a weekend gtg :). And Carolyn, the bear's name is Bo, and I think I've had him since high school.

Grandma left yesterday, so today was my first day alone with Malcolm (for the 9 hours Andy is at work, anyway). We took a walk with him in the sling/pouch thing (which is hurting my shoulder, so I'm probably not doing it right), and went to our "girls' lunch" with my coworkers and their babies. That was enough activity for the day!

Oops, someone is fussing... more later in the week (she says, but doesn't promise...)

3 weeks!

Boy, these entries are getting predictable! We have just enough chaos to our "routine" that I don't tend to get time to sit down and write a real entry - and it's not like I've been knitting much (I'm something like 18 rows into a fingering-weight Baby Surprise Jacket which will have a (hopefully greater than) small chance of fitting him when I'm done). Grandma, on the other hand, is plowing her way through an afghan. Way to go Grandma! Don't forget to put it on Ravelry...

But we have managed to keep up with the weekly pictures - and I forgot to give credit to Stephanie (and Dan) for the idea. They have pics of little Max in a chair with a teddy bear on his birthdays :)

Here's the official pic for 3 weeks, which was yesterday. 3 weeks! They are going fast! That means that 4 weeks is coming up, then 1 month, then 6 months, then kindergarden, then college! Yikes!

And here's a sequence of what happened next:

"Hello, Mr. Bear. My name is Malcolm..."

<twiddles fingers diabolically a la Mr. Burns. >


<faceplant> (parents LOL and then rescue him)

In other news, this past week Malcolm found his first geocache (it was Mommy and Daddy's 700th cache!), enjoyed 2 baths, went out for Vietnamese food, and hosted a lunch for 4 friends ages up to 12 weeks (email me for pics if you are interested). We're headed to the Oregon Coast this weekend for a bonfire with some geocaching friends (and a 2-bedroom cottage for Fri and Sat nights) - wish us luck!

2 weeks old!

...Still no knitting, at 2 weeks (and 1 day) out - so far it's more "web surf when the baby sleeps" than "sleep when the baby sleeps" or "knit when the baby sleeps". But it's all good - I'll get back to it soon I'm sure. And my mom arrived on Tuesday bearing multiple knitted garments so he is not lacking for handmade things!

Anyway, here's his 2 week picture from yesterday. He's arching against the chair in protest - little muscles getting stronger! He's also holding his head up more and tracking our faces with his eyes a lot more than a week ago.

Here's a picture (from when he was 5 days old) of the lovely sweater his aunt Carolyn spun and knit for him! Such beautiful fall colors, and it should fit (we suppose) later this winter - nice to have bright colors when it will be grey and rainy here in Oregon!

And here's a sweater from my Mom, which arrived by mail in advance of her visit. Isn't it cute? (he's 8 days old in the picture):

Finally, Malcolm (2weeks old) and Grandma (or Gramma? the spelling hasn't been decided yet) having a chat:
He's making his little turtle face - it's so fun to watch him try out different expressions. We're starting to see little gassy smiles too, though they don't correlate to much yet. Such fun!