5 months and Christmas

 Here's our Christmas card:) Hope you all had a Merry Christmas!

To start off, this little man turned 5 months old. I can't believe how big he is getting- here's a comparison! He was so sweet and waited until my Christmas Break to start doing things like sitting up, splashing like a mad man in the bathtub, and babbling constantly. He smiles all the time, and we've even been able to coax a few giggles out of him. He still isn't rolling from back to front, but let's face it- he's got a lot to move around! 
He weighs over 18 lbs, probably closer to 19 since he was at 18.2 at 4 months. He's over 26 inches, too! That's a 5 inch growth in 5 months!  He has gotten a lot better with his naps and takes 3-4 a day, sleeps from 7:30 pm-8 am most nights, still loves his passy and swaddler, gives great open mouthed kisses, and has gotten the hang of his Jump-a-Roo zoo.

Christmas was fun, in the naps-shot-to-hell kind of way. Graham was spoiled, as were we, and we have thoroughly enjoyed spending time together.

Until next month:)

Graham at 4 months

Graham is cruising right along and is getting cuter (and fatter) by the day. We celebrated his first Halloween by going to a pumpkin patch with his cousin Nixon and visiting his dad in the Anatomy Lab. As an oxymoron we dressed him up as a skeleton; he's anything but! His Grandma McAllister made him his darling skull cap:)

He was a little grossed out by the lab. They were teaching the reproduction lab that week after all...

Not a fan of the pumpkin patch...

 He was afraid the pumpkin might bite him...

After being convinced it wouldn't.

After visiting Papa at work

 Graham is getting so social- we have a little charmer on our hands! 

He is really good at:

Smiling on command

Drooling... constantly.

Standing

Gasping- this is his favorite thing to do lately. He gasps so loud and loves the sound of his own voice.

 

 Other things Graham does at 4 months:

-sleep from 8-6
-take 4 naps a day
-roll over from his tummy to back
-grab toys
-put EVERYTHING in his mouth
-laugh
-love the bath
-kiss! He grabs my face and mushes it into his (open) mouth
-gargle his own spit (gross)
-break out of his swaddler (it's nearing its end)
-burst at the seams of 6th month clothing
-weigh 18 lbs.

AH! I love these overalls. And this boy.

Seriously- he almost doesn't fit in the Bumbo. Look at those arm rolls. And sock lines. He's practically wasting away.

Paul's Grandma Mac

Getting kisses from Brox

 He's our most favorite thing. Ever.

3 Month Graham

Graham is cruising right along and is already 3 months old! I can't believe how quickly time is passing, and how much he's growing! He hasn't been back to the Dr. so we don't have "official" stats, but we know from weighing him with us that he's over 16 lbs. He's been bumped up in diaper size to a 3,  he barely fits anything that is labeled 3-6 months, and is usually found wearing plain 6 month old clothes.  He's pretty generous with his smiles, too.

 

He's sleeping from about 8:30 until 5 or 6 the next morning with no feedings in the middle. He is, however, eating 6 ounces every bottle. It's no wonder he's such a tank!

He must be on a towel at all times, for the sake of Nana's carpet.

 He spends most of the days with his Daddy, and it's obvious that he loves him. He is still pretty fond of his Mama too, if I do say so myself. I wish I were able to spend more time with him during the day, but Paul is so great with him so I know he's in the best hands possible.

His horns are actually ears. He's supposed to be a fox:)

 On the days when he's not with Paul, he also gets to spend some time with his Aunt Lynnie and cousin Brox on Mondays, his Grandma and Grandpa McAllister on Wednesdays, and sometimes Tasha, Nana, and Leigh and Nix. He loves all of our family and friends.

 It's amazing how excited we as parents get when he does something simple, like tie his own shoes or solve binomials, or reach for his toys. We can't help but think he's the cutest boy ever. He's getting better at napping during the day, so he's an all around happy guy!

He's pretty much like every other run-of-the-mill 3 month old, except that he's OUR 3 month old, so everything he is doing is cause for great celebration. He's really interested in facial expressions, imitating, finding his tongue, sucking on everything, drooling constantly, giggling, snuggling, smiling, etc. I am literally in love with this baby, and I think he is the most handsome child ever to grace the planet.

2 months

I am actually a day early in wishing my baby boy a happy 2 months, but who knows when I'll have the time again to post?! Here is "Grahamy Baby" as a two month old. He's getting so fun; he smiles all the time and loves the world around him. We can't remember life before he joined our family.
Some things about Graham at two months old:

He LOVES the bath. He acts like its the best, most relaxing thing in the world.

He gets to spend most of his days with Daddy since I went back to work two weeks ago. I don't think he minds one bit; he loves his Daddy!

He still loves to be swaddled.

He started "nap training" so that he would be able to sleep better during the day. He's doing great so far, taking about four naps per day still.

The night before I went back to school, he surprised us by sleeping from ten until six, and he's been doing it ever since!

He prefers his crib to sleep in, but he doesn't mind joining mom and dad in bed some mornings:)

He talks in full sentences on occasion (mostly after he's nice and full). Just kidding.

He's gaining weight like nobody's business. He is a tall, chubby boy!

When he's tired he nuzzles into anyone's chest.

He still loves his passy!

He just keeps getting better and better. We love him so much!

My Boy!

When Graham was born, I was really looking forward to the hospital photography service. My sister had some beautiful pictures of her baby taken, so I was hoping for the same. Much to my disappointment,only one or two of the photos that were taken were even remotely decent. Out of desperation I got online and started searching for newborn photographers in the area. Somehow, I was lucky enough to find Brittany Griffith. She even had an opening that week! The week he came home from the hospital was so hectic that I almost canceled his session, but I am so glad I didn't. She was a dream to work with. She had such a relaxed demeanor (even when Graham peed- 3 times- and pooped on her props) and set aside 3 hours to work with us! I could not be more happy with the results. Look how precious!

One whole month!

I can't believe we've made it an entire month as parents. It has been one of the hardest months of my life, but one of the fastest too! Graham is getting so big, he seems much older than a month old. We had some newborn pictures taken when he was just five days old, and we got to see one of the proofs today. If I do say so myself, he is just about the most delectable things in the whole world. If anyone is looking for a great newborn photographer, go here. She was fantastic, and so patient and mellow. I'd go to her again in a heartbeat.
Sidenote- moments after this picture was taken he launched himself nearly out of the bucket with his grasshopper legs. 

Graham is probably going through a growth spurt, because his most favorite thing to do is eat every 2 hours. He's sleeping in a 5 hour and 3 hour chunk at night, and depending on the day, napping fairly well. He's still in love with the swaddle, but because he's so incredibly hot blooded, we had to get some lightweight Velcro ones instead of doing the double swaddle. He's starting to make noises and makes great eye contact. He also has one darling pouty face and cry, which I'll admit, we've let go on a minute more than necessary because it's so cute. We just love him!

Update

I'm still working on writing down the details of Graham's birth, but here's an update in the meantime:

Today we said goodbye to Paul's brother Brad as he left to serve a mission. We'll miss him, but we're thankful for another good example for our boy!

I realized that I didn't take one up-close picture of Graham on the day he was blessed, so I stuck him back in his little blessing suit and we pretended. :) This photo shoot lasted all of 30 seconds before he got really annoyed. I had delusions of grandeur of being able to take a ton of beautiful pictures of my kids... turns out he's not as cooperative as I had pictured in my mind!

 Graham is sleeping pretty dang well, as long as he is swaddled. Double swaddled, that is. Some good friends showed us the art of a fail-proof swaddle and he's been sleeping well ever since.

 Graham loves to spend time with his Daddy.

 These are two pictures from the day we came home from the hospital. I can't believe how different he looks already! Even though jaundice isn't a good thing, I secretly love when babies have a little bit, like he does in these pictures, because it looks like he's got a tan:)

We went for his two week check-up and here are his stats;

Weight: 8lbs. 14 oz. 50th %
Height: 22.5 in. 95%

I can't quite remember his head, but he's right on track. We have one loooooong boy on our hands! He barely fits in newborn clothes anymore, simply because of his length. He loves the bath, likes to be rocked, likes riding in the car, and hates cold wipes. He has the cutest pouty face, too. We love this little guy, and are finally starting to feel like real people again!

Two Weeks

I realize I haven't posted anything about the birth of Baby Graham, but lets be honest. I don't have a lot of free time. It just so happens that my child is in bed and I have a few minutes where my eyelids can stay open on their own, so I figured I could manage an update.

We are loving our baby boy, however this parenting thing is harder than we ever thought possible. Trying to figure out cries, changing diapers every 30 minutes (or so it seems) feeding every 3 hours, rocking, dressing, bathing, worrying, etc. etc. have really given us a run for our money! We feel like we're starting to get the hang of things, starting being the key word there! Graham is doing pretty well in the sleep department- he usually sleeps in 1.5 hour stretches during the day and 3 hours at night. He doesn't seem to have his days and nights mixed up, which Mom and Dad are grateful for! So far he's proven to be a Mama's boy, but he very obviously loves being with his Dad too. He is a pretty good eater, but it does take him a long time unless he's drinking from a bottle. At first we were convinced he was a spitting image of Mom and cousin Brox, but gradually we think he looks more and more like Dad. He has a huge cowlick in the front of his head that is a gift from Grandpa McAllister.

We took him to the Dr. yesterday for his 2 week checkup. He's above his birth weight at 8 lbs. 14 oz., but the most shocking statistic is his height; 22.25 inches! He's in the 95% for height- a gift we consider to be from his Grandpa King! I always said that I was fine being skipped over in the height department as long as my kids reaped the benefit of me having a dad who is 6'6,

Last week we said goodbye to my brother McKay and this week we'll say goodbye to Paul's brother Brad as they leave on LDS missions. It's strange to think that Graham will be 2 years old when they come back! We had a chance to bless Graham at my parents house when he was only 3 days old (when McKay was set apart as a missionary) so that both McKay and Brad could be there.

Time is flying, and it makes me sad that already my baby is growing up, but I can't wait until he becomes a little more interactive. This stage is hard, but we love it, and we love him!

It's only the beginning...

Meet our latest and greatest. I'll post more pictures when I've slept more than 3 out of the last 72 hours. He was worth the wait!
Allow me to introduce:

Graham Davis McAllister

Born 3:57 am July 16, 2011

8 lbs 13 oz (!) 21.5 inches

Loved like it's going outta style.

The 5k

Graham and I ran his first 5k this morning... so we got him a matching shirt to prove it! It seems so tiny, but it's really a 6 month size. I have a hard time comprehending how little babies can be. I haven't been running as much as I would have liked to while being pregnant, but what can I say- working all day long on my feet doesn't really leave a whole lot of energy to be spent running. The little man did quite well, in fact between the two of us, I set myself a new 5k record! (That is, after you divide my time in half to account for the two of us.) Paul and I truthfully spent about half the time walking, but it felt so nice to be outside and getting some good exercise!

P.S. This is the only pregnant picture of me that will ever be posted. Some people it seems can contain their weight gain to the more-ahem-obvious places. I am not one of them. I really shouldn't complain, so we'll just say that I'm not one who has taken pictures of my ever growing belly every month along the way. I am getting quite pregnant- let's just leave it at that! Only 7 more weeks!

End of Year

Sharpening 36 pencils for End-Of-Year testing made me think of You've Got Mail. 

Can you guess why?

In even better news, there are only 15 days of this school year left, for which I could not be more excited. 

My unborn child is making it nearly impossible to sleep. I know, I know, it's not going to get any better after he's born. I think it will because then I'll get to hug and kiss him every second, even when he cries. There is nothing worse for me than waiting. Especially when I'm waiting for something really really good. Like I'm sure the little man will be:)

In not so good news, some idiot shattered my car window a few nights ago. We had to laugh though when we discovered that this person had not stolen the wallet in plain sight, nor had they taken the contents of it. They chose to take a towel, a ratty jacket, and a diaper bag. They must have been really desperate. So to them, I say- I hope it was worth it. For us, it could have been much worse.

Happy end of the school year!

Nixon

This is our newest nephew, Nixon. Holding him and looking at his sweet face makes me really anxious for our own little one to come. I took a few pictures of his this morning and he was so sweet! Look as those darling pouty lips!