Smiling, Diapers, & Music...

Last week with Tyson was full of ups and downs.  The joys of parenthood, what can you say?  For the beginning of the week, I was psyched that Heath was back in action as the hands-on dad that he is.  I made the executive decision that he was ready to hold Tyson again after being on antibiotics for 3 days and having been sick for over a week.  It had been tortuous for Heath to look across the room and see Tyson but not be able to hold him.  I can't imagine not being able to touch him for a week - it would be impossible!  It was a big moment when Heath held him in his arms for the first time in a week and it was priceless... Tyson let out the biggest grin ever when Heath picked him up.  It was really like Tyson was saying, "Daddy, I've missed you!"  A few hours later, Heath and I were all excited.  Heath had put all the Christmas lights on the Christmas tree and we could not wait to see what Tyson's reaction to the lit up tree would be.  We had had the tree for about a week but with Heath being sick, it just sat there in the family room naked.  Heath loves a lot of lights and ended up putting 1000 lights onto the tree (10 strands).  It was a big moment, Heath held Tyson up to the tree and I was videotaping.  Don't you know, Tyson would not look at the tree at all and would only stare into Heath's eyes.  I'm sure it was because he was so glad to be back in Daddy's arms - but what an anti-climatic moment!

                                                                             

    Don't laugh at the bow - it is just our thing!   

                                        

Speaking of Tyson not looking at something... I am very frustrated with him sometimes!  It seems that everything is better to look at than Mommy!  He gazes with such adoration at Heath, at both sets of grandparents - but I swear, he hardly ever looks at me!  When I nurse him on the couch, he is in love with the moose that hangs above the couch.  He is constantly focusing right on it.  And if it is not the moose he is staring at, then it is the pine cone lamp on the side of the couch.  I keep saying, "What?  Is Mommy chopped liver?"  Or really what I should be asking is, "Am I just the milk machine?"  No, I know he loves me.  And when he does focus right in my eyes and lets out a smile, it does melt my heart completely.  I just wish he would do it all day long! (=

 Tyson looking directly into Heath's eyes... lucky duck!

Tyson looking at Grammy & Grampy

Tyson's obsession...

And speaking of smiling... Tyson definitely has a social smile now - there is no question about that.  I can tell when he has gas and he has the gas smiles.  And then he will get the sleep smiles too.  But there is no doubt that he has looked at Heath and I and let out huge smiles - just from seeing us!  And last week, I was sitting at the computer with Tyson and he actually laughed.  I couldn't believe it!  He has been cooing up a storm but this was an actual laugh.  I can't wait until he does it more and more!  What a sound!

Sleep smiles - look at the crazy hair!

More sleepy smiles...

A real smile - looking at me too!

I was thinking last week that sometimes it seems like I have 4 different sons.  Or that Tyson is 4 different people - or has multiple personalities.  He has such distinct looks - when he is happy, when he is screaming, when he is sleeping, and when he has the binky in his mouth.  You would swear that he is a different baby in each of these situations.  I wonder if it is just me or if any other mother feels this way.  I say to Ty sometimes, "Are you going to be happy Ty or are you going to be grumpy Ty?"  There is nothing in the world when happy Ty is around - and you want to run and hide when grumpy Ty rears his ugly head! (=

Happy Ty

 Grumpy Ty

Sleepy Ty

Binky Ty

   

Week 7 for Ty was both good and bad in regards to his sleeping.  From the middle of week 6 to the middle of week 7, he slept through the night a full 8 hours!  From 10:30 PM to 6:30 AM, Tyson was sleeping so soundly!  He did it for a week straight!  I was so overjoyed and thankful.  However, in the back of my mind, I thought, "this can not last."  I remember telling my mother that whenever he woke up now in the middle of the night, I would be devastated.  Well, of course, it was short-lived.  He started waking up again at the 3 and 4 hour marks.  Even forget the 6 hours that he was giving us the week before.  It was so frustrating because I knew that he had the capability to sleep through the night and now he was not!  Finally, through internet research (googling "why does my baby not sleep through the night now"), I figured out that he was going through a growth spurt.  The symptoms of the growth spurt are 1) suddenly waking up during the night when they would sleep previously, 2) wanting to nurse more frequently, and 3) being more fussy than normal.  Tyson had 3 out of 3 symptoms.  It said that the growth spurt should only last a few days but could last a week.  Well, it has almost been a week and he is still waking up every 3-4 hours.  Hopefully he will revert back!  That would be great!

Another milestone reached during week 7 was that Tyson went up a diaper size!  I know, I know, not huge news but it is something! (=  But I feel like diapers should have 1/2 sizes.  Tyson was in the Preemie diapers for about 3 weeks and then had been in the newborn diapers for the next 3 weeks.  Technically the newborn diapers are supposed to go through until 10 pounds.  Well, that is a crock.  I was about ready to lose my mind when Ty started to leak through every diaper with every pee or poop.  Talk about frustrating!  I would have to change his outfit, swaddle, crib sheet, and crib pad EVERY TIME!  The laundry was unbelievable.  So I turned to my ol' friend, "Google" and looked for advice.  Overwhelmingly the mothers out there believed that I needed to go up a diaper size.  I was desperate, so I did it!  Tyson is now into size 1.  It helped the problem dramatically!  I mean, it makes sense.  If the diaper is too small, then it will not be able to hold it all and it will leak.  But the opposite is true also.  If diapers are too big, it will leak around the sides.  So this is the thing.  The size 1 diapers look enormous!!!!  They are supposed to be from 8 to 14 pounds.  I believe Tyson is 8 pounds (we get a weigh in at the pediatrician's tomorrow) so it is not that far fetched.  But the difference between newborn and size 1 is unbelievable - and they are supposed to be overlapping a bit!  I just don't get it.  They are both the same brand, too.  Pampers have worked the best for us by a mile.  Oh, I found another cool trick from Google for the peeing problems with boys.  The peeing problem I am referring to is how to keep the "goods" from pointing up and spraying all over his outfits.  They said to make sure the back was higher than the front (which I was doing), point the weenie down (which I was doing), but then to pull the tabs down in the front in the shape of a "V".  I think it must almost hold the weenie down in place.  Well, I am a believer in both of these things and the blow outs have decreased.

Speaking of diapers, it is funny to think how I had hardly changed a diaper before Tyson was born.  Heath had so much more experience with babies and I was a bit nervous!  And I never felt completely comfortable holding babies.  So I was just wondering how I would do at it.  But again, with it being your own child, it is just amazing how it all comes so naturally!  From the moment that they placed Tyson in my arms, it was not awkward at all!  You are just programmed to take care of your baby!  It truly is all about instinct.

Loving holding my boy (week 3)

OK, one other quick thing that we noticed.  Tyson has a love of music like his parents.  Usually as soon as Tyson gets into his car seat, he is out like a light.  But occasionally, he has fussed in the car.  We found that if we turn the radio on (to like Top 40 music) then he stops crying immediately.  It is uncanny!  Oh, and it has to be loud!  We figured out that he likes it from listening to it in utero during my 35-40 minute commute back and forth from work!  I always listen to Top 40 very loud!  It is hilarious.  We tested it.  Tyson would cry and we would found that his threshold was volume # 24.  Heath hates to have music loud, so he will eventually turn it down - and as soon as he would go down in the volume - Tyson would start crying again!  As soon as it hit #24, he would stop.  For some reason though, it only seems to work in the car.  I tried to blast music from a boom box when he was freaking out before but it didn't seem to matter.  Of course I'm not sure what the volume #24 equivalent is on the boom box!

In closing, here are some random shots from last week.  Until next time... Tyson wishes you all a Merry Christmas!

We think that Tyson is so delicious - we want to eat him up!

Flying airplane with Daddy

Enjoying tummy time with Mommy