Baby baptism

This past Sunday, hubby and I officially became members of our local church and our pastor baptized Baby Norris. 

I wonder what that feels like?

 I can attest to the wonders of swaddling a baby.  We do it every night to Baby Norris and it helps him to sleep.  The transformation really is remarkable.  One moment he's upset, arms flailing about, bottom lip quivering and then, once swaddled, he calms down.


And the wails become whimpers.

And then...
they...
disappear (and we sigh in relief.) 

Why does swaddling work?  Why does it calm him down?  Does it remind him of being in the womb?  Or, does it prevent him from jerking himself awake?

I asked Baby Norris, but he didn't have anything to say on the matter (go figure).  So, I tried another tactic to understand the swaddling phenomenon...

and asked hubby to swaddle me for a late evening nap.

Charlie, of course, had to investigate.

Conclusions?
I still don't understand it.  Babies are weird.

I hated being swaddled.  I didn't feel secure, I felt claustrophobic.  I couldn't roll around.  I couldn't find a comfortable sleeping position. And  I most certainly could not scratch a very annoying itch on my nose.

I may be out of a job soon...

Lately hubby has been teaching Baby Norris to drink from a bottle. (Isn't this surprising?  Who knew that babies could struggle with this?)  Although most of the milk initially ended up on baby's clothing, we never gave up.  After a week of experimenting and coaxing, Baby Norris finally finished a whole ounce of milk!

Baby Norris-  "Hmm, I could get used to this..."

Baby Norris- "Dad, can we do this again?"

Snuggled tight

Gosh, I really love this view.

How cute is this kid?

Does anyone know where I can find a very large watermelon?  I'd like to try this out...

Items I can't live without

I am a clutter-aphobe and hate having tons of stuff lying about.

With Baby Norris's arrival, hubby and I really struggled to figure out which items to purchase.  Besides the basics (crib, car seat, stroller, etc...) we didn't know what else to get.

Although we're still figuring all this stuff out (and the amount of baby stuff that we own will surely increase as time goes on), we have found two items particularly helpful for navigating these early days of parenthood.   

(a) the ERGObaby carrier and (b) the Swaddleme blanket. 

I love the carrier because it allows me to take Baby Norris on long walks.  (Hooray for freedom and exercise!)  Plus, I love the blanket because it helps Baby to sleep better at night. (In case you didn't know, I'm a big fan of sleep.)

Middle of the week treat

Here are some recent baby photos to help you get through Wednesday.  Enjoy!

He's getting so big...

Whipping it out...

This week Hubby and I put on our brave-pants and took Baby Norris out to.... the mall!  This particular adventure took longer than our typical in-town trips, so we packed an extra big diaper bag and ventured out.  While out, we had to complete two large tasks:  diapering and feeding. 

Our first challenge:  Diapering a crying baby in public

Phew! All baby waste was contained, managed, and removed.

Our second challenge:  Feeding a baby sans bottle

Luckily, there was a special room to help us out with task.

Inside we had privacy and a comfy chair.  I really couldn't have asked for more. 

Overall, the trip was a success. 
Who knew that a simple trip to the mall could make me so happy and proud?  

Get psyched...

it's finally Friday!  I thought the weekend would never come.  We're definitely going to enjoy the outdoors before winter sneaks up on us again...

Excitement is clearly written all over Baby Norris's face.

Austen-ophile

I love Jane Austen's novels.

I love them so much that I almost convinced hubby to name our child Fitzwilliam (after my beloved Mr. Darcy.)   So, imagine my delight when I saw this Pride and Prejudice board book shown on this lovely blog.  (Photos taken from blog)

First major outing

This weekend we took Baby Norris out for his first major outing.  Our town was holding a fruit carving competition and we decided to check it out.

Although Baby Norris slept through the trip, I'd like to think that he enjoyed himself too.

Tiny child, big force

"The real magic wand is the child's own mind."  ~ Jose Gasset

A poopload of diapers

Today I'd like to salute an unsung hero:  our Diaper man.    Every week he brings us clean cloth diapers and picks up our dirty ones.

So long, dirty diapers! (Can you believe that Baby Norris uses 150+ diapers every week?)

Hunting for smiles

 Hubby and I are always on the lookout for Baby Norris's smile.  It appears unexpectedly and lasts only a second or two.  Here's our most recent attempt at photographing this elusive event:

I wonder what he's dreaming about?

The bird

Lately Baby Norris has been a bit fussier than usual.  We tried talking to him about this issue.  His response?

Oh dear.

Three weeks

Dear Baby Norris,

I love how you laugh in your sleep.
I love your big round head.
I love it when you fall asleep cuddled in my arms.

Love,
Mum

Bye, mom

Yesterday my mom returned back home.  

Here are two of my favorite photos of her and Baby Norris: 

One small ham

Here's a photo of Baby Chuck hamming it up for the camera:

Dear Older Chuck Norris,
We didn't pose you.  You did this of your own volition.   We're so sorry, but this photo will probably end up in your wedding slide show one day.
Love,
Mum and Dad

Hey ladies!

My son is selling tickets...

to the gun show.

  

Hooray

for family and Skype.