Baby Brooks

I am tired, and my arms are tired!  Baby Brooks has wanted to be held all day today. Every time I put him down, even if he is asleep, he wakes up screaming!  This is not just a little cry, it is screaming!  He calms right down when I pick him up. Jackson went to his Story Time group today with my mom, and they had a pizza party for lunch.  He stayed with her the rest of the afternoon. I was hoping to get a lot done, but that didn't happen. I am not too upset.  He is only a newborn for a little while, and soon he won't want to be held all day. Going from one to two has been hard though.  It is much harder than I thought it would be.  I remember I used to think it was so hard taking care of Jackson when he was a newborn; I was wrong.  Taking care of a newborn and an almost two-year-old is insanely hard!  I know I will look back one day and miss these days though.

Brooks can finally wear some of Jackson's clothes.  These are Brooks. I can't find the ones of Jackson in this outfit.

Memorial Day Weekend

We have enjoyed a nice Memorial Day weekend. For the most part, we have been at home trying to clean up and get organized but that is hard with two little boys who demand your attention!  We got some sweet pictures of Brooks on Saturday night.  Jackson spent the night with my parents so he could go to church with my mom Sunday morning, so we had a day with just Brooks.

On Sunday, we took Brooks to Eggs Up Grill. It was his first trip to a restaurant, and he slept right through it! Then we enjoyed dinner at my parents' house.

On Monday, we headed to Greenville with the boys.  We had to do some shoe shopping for Jackson.  He has such a wide foot that I can't just buy shoes anywhere.  The last water shoes and flips flops that I got him from Academy Sports and Kohl's are too tight. I have to buy his at Stride Rite.  Yes, they do cost more ( a lot more), but that is the only place I can find shoes that fit. It is sad that I pay more for his shoes than I do my own.  We also visited Tu Tu and then ate Chick-fil-A. We stopped by to see Luvie and the rest of the Casey family. Their neighbor Libby was there and gave Jackson a whole bag of cars and blocks that her grandson does not play with anymore.  Jackson loved them!  He has not put them down.

We ended the night with dinner with my parents at our house.  It was a great night to sit outside on the porch!  Later that night though, Jackson threw a car and hit Brooks in the head giving him a nice red knot. Thankfully he was okay, and my mom came back over just to check on him. Brooks is going to have to be tough!

Brooks is 3 Weeks old!

Wow!  I can't believe Brooks is already 3 weeks old!  He is getting so big and looks more like Jackson every day. He is still a super sweet baby!

Jackson

Everyone always asks me how Jackson is doing. For the most part, I am really proud of him.  Don't get me wrong; he is jealous, but also loving.  He likes to give Brooks kisses on his head.  He also likes to touch his feet and say feet, touch his hands and say hands, etc. He tries to give Brooks a bottle and his paci.  I have seen him try to suck on the bottle and the paci.  Jackson is really good at independent play, and he loves to watch Mickey and Curious George.

The past few days have been harder for him.  I think he realizes that Brooks is here to stay, and he is learning how to share us with Brooks. He used to be a big daddy's boy, but now he has become attached to me. He wants to sit with me and wants me to play with him. We have been playing in the water table the last few days, and I have to play with him. If I try to sit in a chair or I check on Brooks, he comes to get me and says "water."  I absolutely love that he wants me to play with him. I fully aware that he will not want me to play with him for long. (I see how those fifth grade boys treat their moms!)

I know that one day the boys will be great friends and will love to play with each other.  Jackson will be a great big brother, and Brooks will look up to him!  I hope they still ask me to play with them! (Ignore the mess in these pictures.  Playing and cuddling are more important than cleaning and organizing my house right now.)

Going Solo

Today was my first home with both boys, all day by myself!  What a day it was!  Brooks decided to stay awake after his 6:30 feeding, and Jackson got up a little after 7.  The morning started out pretty well until Jackson got mad and threw his chocolate milk cup at Brooks hitting him in the leg and then throwing it at his head.  Jackson got a spanking (which I know I just told him not to hit his brother, but it was my first reaction).  He throws himself to the floor screaming. I put Brooks in the pack-n-play, and he starts screaming. I try to comfort Jackson and tell him that we can't throw stuff.  At one point, I think we were all crying!

Right now I am learning how we can manage our day and get everyone fed and down for naps. Brooks fell asleep and actually let me put him down.  It only took Jackson about 15 minutes to get to sleep. There was even minimul screaming.

We made it until Tim got home.  There are many times when I long to be a stay at home mom. Most of the time I would love it.  Today was one of those days where I am thankful to have a job. I am hoping that once I am able to get a routine going and get more sleep that it might get easier!

Baseball

Jackson and I needed to get out of the house last night so we went to Murphy's game. We ran into some friends, and Jackson enjoyed running around!

Sweet Baby Brooks is 2 Weeks Old!

Brooks is the sweetest baby.  He hardly ever cries and loves to cuddle and be held! He is a pretty good sleeper, but has been staying awake more lately.  He just looks around and loves to stare at you!

• wears preemie and newborn
• wears newborn and size 1 diapers
• eats 2 1/2 ounces every three hours (We are currently on a 12:30, 3:30, 6:30, 9:30 schedule). (I was pumping but developed mastitis and had to be put on antibiotics. Plus pumping was taking up a lot of time, and I am not sure how I would have done it and taken care of 2 little boys by myself, so we are on formula now.  I do have some frozen milk though, so Brooks will have that for a few weeks too.)
• spits up a lot
• love to be wrapped up in blankets
• does not like to ride in the carseat
• will sleep in the crib for about 15 minutes
• is already spoiled and wants to be held all the time
• is getting tough (has no choice with a big brother)

We are so in love with this little boy and are so blessed to be his parents!

Weight Check and Jackson's Day

Jackson went to school this morning, and we took Brooks in for a weight check. We waited at the doctor forever, but Brooks is up to 7lbs 2 oz!  We don't have to go back until his 2 month check-up!  We are so excited about his weight gain!

This afternoon we took Jackson on an adventure away from Baby Brooks.  He needed some attention, so we went to Greenville and played at this park.  Jackson loved running around and swinging and then playing on the playground.  We picked up pizza from Frodo's after that.

10 days old!

Wow!  It is hard to believe that Brooks is already 10 days old!  He has the sweetest personality.  He is very laidback and hardly anything bothers him. He is eating 60mL or 2 ounces every three hours. I have to wake him up for his two night/early morning feedings. For the most part, he loves to be swaddled, but usually manages to get his arms out and hold them up to his face. He likes to cuddle and roll up like a little ball! The rest of his cord fell off early this morning.  Poor thing has a terrible diaper rash, but he is still being really good!

Jackson has been pretty good.  He had a rough day on Monday with lots of fits.  We ended up driving around for 2 hours to him to take a nap. He has picked up the bottle and tried to suck on it.  He also picked up the paci and put it in his mouth.

We had a better day on Tuesday.  Tim took Jackson to the last home Clemson baseball game. I think it was good for both of them to get out of the house.



We are adjusting to being a family of 4. It definitely takes more time getting us all ready.  I have been pumping, and it seems like that is all I do.  I plan to at least finish the month.  We will see if I keep going or not.

1 Week

Here are some pictures of Brooks when he was one week old!  Time passes so fast!  Noni brought him a cake to celebrate, and Jackson loved eating it!

Happy Mother's Day!

My best Mother's Day gift is having Brooks here.  This is his actual due date.  I am so glad he came a few days early.  The boys actually got me a beautiful necklace with my monogram with Jackson and Brooks names.  I love it; it is the perfect gift!

I got to have a lazy day and did not even take a shower until after lunch.  It was so nice to relax on the couch with my boys! We did give Brooks his first bath. On Sunday night, my parents, Brent, Whitney, and Parker came over for dinner. Parker looks so big compared to Brooks! We had a nice evening.  Later we Skyped with Tim's parents.  Jackson likes to show out for them.

Saturday

Brooks is a really laidback baby. Jackson spent the night with my parents again last night.  I guess he will stay with us eventually.  Brooks had to go back for a weight check this morning, so it really was easier. Brooks weighed 6 pounds 8 ounces. The doctor we saw today was impressed, so we don't have to go back until Thursday!  Go Brooks!

 We had some more visitors today.  Susan and Uncle Dave stopped by this evening to visit and meet Brooks. They were on their way to Auburn after being at Ashley's graduation. It was great seeing them. Jackson finally stayed with us again. He was not happy when Noni and Papa J left.  He thought he should go with them!