August 2010

It's been almost 4 weeks since Matthew arrived. We're all settling into life again, getting back into the rhythm of things. Matthew has been sleeping WONDERFULLY at night, which means this mama is pretty happy these days. I still wake up twice to feed him, but he goes right back to sleep. Last night he slept a solid 5 hours before waking up to eat! He's growing quite a bit. He had already gained 14 oz at his 2 week checkup, which put him at 9 lbs 2 oz! He had also grown 3/4". He's a cute little chunky munky! He is starting to notice more around him, especially Courtney. Of course, it helps that she gets up close to him and yells, "Oh baby bwudder!!! Do you want some meeeelk???" She loves playing with his little "toesies" and "fingies". This morning we had a great time goo-gooing at him to make him smile:

Of course, the poor little guy has to put up with a lot from her, too. She wants so desperately to hold him and hug him and dress him... reminds me of the big guy on Looney Toons that used to get a hold of Daffy Duck and pet him till he lost his feathers. When I took this next picture she said, "Yook, mama! He's a yittle unicorn baby!"

                                      

In other news, we had a great month. We went to an Arkansas Naturals baseball game thanks to a friend who gave us free tickets. Courtney enjoyed it but had a hard time keeping her hands to herself. The man in front of us looked back several times in response to her petting his arm like a cat, haha!

We also celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary! Keith and I took the kids to Silver Dollar City (gotta love season passes- they've already paid for themselves!). We had a great time, and the weather was BEAUTIFUL! We couldn't have asked for better temperatures. Courtney and I rode the American Plunge (for her sake we called it the "boat slide" so she could accurately anticipate what would happen). She loved it! She looked terrified in the pictures, but when we were through she kept telling me how fun it was! Below is a blurry close-up of our ride down... so you can kind of see her face:

All in all it's been a great month. We are so blessed, and so thankful for these two awesome kiddos God has given us. We're looking forward to the cooler fall weather. Courtney told me today that she hopes it snows soon because she loves it when it's cold outside! I hope the coat I bought last Spring fits her- guess I should try it on her soon... think I'll go do that now :)

Thanks for loving us and keeping up with us!

Welcome Matthew!!

Matthew has finally arrived! He has been such a sweet dream come true for our family. Our labor and delivery went as smoothly as possible. We are so thankful for the prayers and well-wishes from our friends and family!

After laboring for approximately 6 hours, we welcomed Matthew Tobias Wood on August 5, 2010 at 1:19pm. He was 8 lbs, 9 oz and 19.25" long. My recovery has been quick, and Matthew is adjusting to the world nicely. Courtney loves being a big sister. She helps us with little things like putting on his socks and getting diapers. She keeps asking if he's big enough to play with- she is going to love it when he starts to smile and laugh! He is sleeping well through the night- waking up for two or three short feedings, then sleeping in 2-3 hour stretches.

So far he has been pretty laid back. He sleeps through all of Courtney's sonatas and silliness, and doesn't seem to mind waiting when we can't pick him up right away. Of course, he still sleeps through much of the day, but when he's awake he just studies the things around him and coos sweetly. He tried out the swing today and seemed to enjoy it.

Monday night we drove to Branson, MO. I was feeling pretty good, so Keith and I decided to take advantage of his days off to get some good quality time together. We packed a bag and some snacks and headed out, not knowing if we'd spend the night or just take a long drive and head home. We ended up going to Silver Dollar City. We spent about an hour at the park Monday evening, then drove the main strip through Branson before settling down at the hotel. The next day we went to SDC. It was so much fun! It was different for us because our trip was more kid-focused, whereas in the past we've spent our time watching wood-carving demonstrations and shows... this time we spent more time at the kids' area and rides. Courtney LOVED the rides- especially the tea-cups. She grinned and squeeled through it all! We kept Matthew cool and shaded in the stroller. He slept through the day (except for feedings). He did great. Courtney loved riding the train and eating ice cream. We all had lots of fun. We left out around 6 and got home by 8:15. We had to stop at gravel pit in the middle of nowhere on the way home to feed Matthew- and Courtney had to "use the potty" outside for the first time... an adventure in and of itself, haha! We rested well last night and have been catching up on laundry today. Enjoy the pics- there are more on Facebook. thank you for keeping up with our little family!!