Jac's first step

Jac has taken his first step! And on Thanksgiving no less. After we came home from our friend's house he was wired! Literally! He was awake until 1:30 am doing all sorts of things! We were exhausted and Joseph was on the couch snoring off and on while Jac and I were playing on the floor and Nic was swinging.

As usual Jac really wanted my camera - and so at the end of the video - after he has been playing happily - he comes over and tries to get my camera - and takes a step toward me in the process!



In general Jac's movement is making huge strides. He is getting up and down off the couch like a pro now - and he is even learning to get on and off our bed. In the following video he is getting on and off the couch and doing some path planning (his father's term!) to come and get me (and the camera) on the far side of the couch from where he has the pillow and the cube to climb up. Earlier this week he had not been able to figure this out! It is amazing how quickly he learns!

Nic making sounds

Nic has started to move around a bit - flapping of his arms mostly - and he has started to make some sounds (apart from crying). He does a lot of his sound making when he is on the changing table but this time he was making sounds while we are all hanging out in the boys' room and he was in his swing. Awake and not crying! Amazing!

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! We spent the evening with good friends here in Boulder. We had a great meal - at least I think we did - I couldn't eat any of the items with dairy in them!

Jac had a great time with all of the older children. One of our friends' daughters who is twelve loves to carry Jac around and she takes great care of him. He got to "help" her put together her turkey with glue!



Nic was held by several different ladies and he seemed to enjoy all of it although he did spend part of the time sleeping in his car seat.

Jac and Nic together

Jac is very interested in Nic. Whenever we set Nic down near him or when I am nursing Nic where Jac can reach him he comes over and touches him. He likes to lean on him - which is not the greatest - but he loves to do it. He also likes to "burp" him - he pats him like we do when we are burping him. Very cute. He also likes to "apply his head" to him. I never realized that Joseph does this also! We think Jac learned it from him! Jac also likes to touch Nic's face - especially his nose and mouth. Very cute! And you have to love the laugh!

Jac in a shopping cart

Jac can now ride in a shopping cart. He has been able to do this for a bit - but he is so much more stable now that he can do it really well - and we have to strap him in so he doesn't stand up in the cart!

Jac is so close to walking

We bought a closet organizer for our kitchen. While building it, Jac discovered that he could use it as a really fast walker. He was having a great time with his increased speed, mobility, and the ability to turn!

Jac: Talking in the car

Jac has been talking! A lot! I do wish we knew what he was saying but whatever it is he is quite serious about it. He talks all the time about what he is doing as he crawls around the house and plays. The most exciting thing about this is that he is talking to himself in the car. Nic frequently cries in the car - especially as we are just getting started - and Jac is sitting in his seat talking to himself. This is especially exciting because for a long time he cried in the car. Not too long ago I made the discovery that music in the car calmed him down, but now he doesn't even need that. This is great self soothing and a really great sign.

Jac being more careful

Since Jac fell when he was trying to use his "get off of something" technique to get off the bed he has been a bit more cautious getting off the couch. It is funny to watch him do this because he gets sort of "stuck" halfway down and hangs there.

Nic and Grandfather

My father visited last weekend (after an around the world journey for work and pleasure). It was really great to see him and it was the first time he had met Nic. Thanks for coming Dad!

Jac: Food Beard

This picture speaks for itself.

Nic: Our new best friend (aka paci)

So - we are using a paci! I never thought I would do it but it is very quickly becoming our new best friend. Nic really likes to suck! The theory we have developed with the help and advice of a bunch of different people is that Nic has been overeating. He has been eating when he just wants to suck - because my boob was the only thing he had to suck on.

Sometimes I would notice that he would suck and pull off, over and over again. I think that during these times he may have just been looking for something to suck on and he really wished milk wouldn't come with it.

I also think I may have been overfeeding at any particular feeding. With all of my experience with Jac and wanting him to eat more, I kept on re-offering Nic the boob, even after he had pulled off and stopped. I think during some of these times he was continuing to eat even after he was satiated.

We shall see but things are going much better. The night before last he had one 5.25 hour stretch that he slept! Yeah! That is the magical five hour mark! Last night we did not do quite as well but still enough that I was not out of my mind tired this morning.

We will have to deal with taking the paci away when he is older - perhaps we will only need to use it during this transitional period but somehow I have a feeling it is here to stay for a while. Sometimes you just have to take the "Whatever Works" and run with it - so you can sleep!

Nic: 11 pounds and 13 ounces

Nic is getting big, fast! I took Nic into the pediatrician on Saturday because he has been super fussy (mostly at night) and I was worried that something might be wrong. He also developed a rash on his back when he was in car seat on Friday night. The doctor said he was fine but I should avoid caffeine, chocolate and go dairy free and see how he does!

One plus one does not equal two

Oh my gosh. We had it easy. Two is hard. Harder than I thought it would be.

Nic started out as such an easy baby and man has he changed. He is up for three hours or so every night. He crys all during this time unless he is constantly rocked and bounced. Constantly. The car doesn't work. He will stop crying while he is in the car but as soon as you get him out of the car (still in the car seat) he is awake and starts crying.

So tiring. Major sleep deprivation. I tried to take care of Nic by myself for a while so Joseph could sleep but I have given that up as a pipe dream. Last night I was up with him for two hours before I got Joseph up. And then he was up with him for another hour and a half. Augh!

It is a very special time for me just to take a shower.

I am getting much better at taking care of both of them by myself though. On Monday I was terrified. Ama left on Sunday and I was going to left alone with both boys for an extended period of time for the first time.

Nap time. Hard, hard. I am used to putting Jac down for his nap and helping him fall asleep, alone. And now I am doing it while holding or feeding Nic. Since Nic is a frequent crier I often have to help Jac go to sleep while rocking and bouncing Nic to keep him from cying. Hard, hard. But I am getting better at it.

I was completely neurotic when this week began and I am much less so now. Joseph actually came home to a wife that was not crazed the last two days.

I am getting some help. Our good friend Leslie has been coming over a bit with her daughter and that has been nice. I am not getting a lot of social interation right now so it is nice to have it coming to me.

I have also asked Grace and Adri to come over and help, so I had about 14 hours of help this week. I would like to be able to do this by myself but realistically I am going to go crazy with a difficult newborn and a very young Jac. So I have accepted that I need some help, for now.

First snow of the year is late

We just had our first snow of the year - late! Last year it had snowed by Halloween - this year the first was today. Knutson loves the snow - but this was too thin and melted too fast for him to enjoy it!

Sleepy Jac

When Jac is tired he does this head down kind of burrowing thing. It is really cute and he has been doing it since before he could sit up - it was one of the first major movements he could do. He does it all of the time in bed when he is falling asleep and it is one the big signs that he is tired and ready to go to sleep - but he generally only does it in bed. The other day he was doing it while he was in the other room - on a pillow - like the one in bed.

He frequently has a burst of energy before he is ready for sleep - where he gets a little wild - and then crashes - and that is what he is doing in this video.

Nic is growing fast

I weighed Nic after his bath last night and he is now 11 pounds and 3 ounces. Wow! I guessed he was going to be just under 11! He is getting chubby!

He was 10 pounds on the nose at his 1 month check on Oct. 31 and 11 days later he has gained 19 ounces. Average weight gain for a newborn is supposed to be between 1/2 to 1 ounce per day so Nic is beating that by quite a bit. SO much for 50%!

Jac using his Nuk brush to eat yogurt

Jac is getting better and better at eating and his gag reflex is getting better and better! The other day I gave him cherry yogurt on his Nuk and he was a very happy little boy. He had that Nuk brush in all different parts of his mouth with no signs of a gag.

Milestone: Getting down from the couch

So... it turns out that Jac knows how to get down from couch and I didn't know it! I thought he was still learning! It turns out that he had been doing it with his Daddy for a week or so - and is his more careful Momma thought he was still learning. It is good the boys have a Mom and Dad - for a little balance!

The way I discovered that Jac knew how to do this was when I had my MacBook down at Jac level and I was trying to do a disk repair and he rapidly got down off the couch and came and got my computer.

Jac is a handful

We have been out to eat several times this weekend with Ama, Charmy and Wayne. It has been a lot of fun to go out and nice to have extra sets of hands to help with the boys! But Jac! Oh man! He loves to eat now! And he likes to move around and stand up and .... He is eating so many things! It is amazing how much he is changing right now and how fast he seems to be developing new skills. Opening and closing doors, crawling around and standing up with great proficiency (standing up as long as he is holding on to something).

I feel like things are going to get easier when Jac can walk - because then he could walk rather than needing to be carried (for little jaunts like from the car into the house). But then - he is going to be into everything - even faster! Hmmm... Mixed blessing! But it is coming - and soon. His PT says that the fact that he pulls to standing on flat surfaces, like the refrigerator, is a great sign for walking to come soon.

It is so amazing to watch him develop! My little boy is growing up!

Aunty Charmy and Uncle Wayne visit the boys.

The boys' Aunty Charmy (my sister) and Uncle Wayne (her husband) came to town this weekend. It was wonderful to spend time with them, and they had a great time with the boys. We wish they could have stayed longer!

We went to Pearl Street Mall last night for dinner. While we were waiting for our pizzas and baked potatoes, Jac offered up some of his food to Uncle Wayne.


This morning, during Jac's breakfast, Wayne made all sorts of funny faces and expressions to encourage Jac to take more spoonfuls of food. Jac giggled, laughed and generally had a good time as he polished off a bowl of persimmon puree' (the fruit came from my parents backyard).

Charmy was very sweet with the boys. She had a great time "po po" (carrying) the boys.

1 10 50/50/50

On Friday, Taj and Ama (Grandma, in Taiwanese) took a walk to Dr. B's office for Nic's 1-month checkup. It was a beautiful, warm day -- one of the last ones for the year!

He weighed in at 10 lbs, exactly, and was 50th percentile for weight, 50th percentile for height, and 50th percentile for head size. Our little boy is growing at a nice average pace.

Here he is, having a nice snooze in Ama's arms, while the rest of us went grocery shopping at Sunflow Supermarket (a store that features organic produce).

Happy 1 month birthday, Nic!

Happy 1-month birthday, Nic!

We are very glad to see that he is progressing so nicely. I can't wait for him to grow a bit older so that we can have more interactions with him, and also for him to interact with his older brother!