Brody's first couple weeks

Coming home from the hospital...

Happy Birthday Grandma!

First time on the changing table...

Snug as a bug...

Sleeping with daddy...  

(we don't let Brody sleep in bed with us, I was just up using the restroom and came back to find my boys fast asleep and cuddling).  Awww...

Strike a pose!

Well, hello there.

Best buds???   Not yet, at least...

Sleeping so peacefully...

Trying out his swing for the first time and he loves it!  And mommy loves it too because it means she can go get something done!  :)

Well the first couple of weeks have been quite an adventure!  The first two days home from the hospital were....stressful, to say the least.  Most everyone reading this blog already knows the specifics but, basically after spending two days in extreme pain due to intestinal problems, I wound up in the ER late Friday evening (our second day home).  On top of all the normal hormonal emotions, I had the stress of this new "issue" to deal with, and I was down-right exhausted and emotionally spent.  Without going into too much detail, all I'll say is that I truly felt like I had hit rock-bottom.  The seven hours I spent in the ER were utterly miserable and I think the worst part was that I missed my Brody so so so much.  Even just typing this out  makes me want to cry all over again.  On top of everything else I was going through, I also felt like a terrible mother because I had to leave my 4 day old son.  I hated that my mom and sisters had to give him a formula bottle, but aside from bringing him to a germ-filled hospital ER, I really had no other choice.  I couldn't have pumped a bottle because being only our 4th day, my milk supply wasn't fully in yet.  Luckily, Brody took just one small bottle while I was away and we've been able to get right back on track with breast-feeding!  Which, I'm happy to report, has actually been very successful for us.  I think God was really watching over us for this because I think he knew I wouldn't have been able to handle the disappointment of it not working out for us.  But, Brody is a good little eater and has been pretty consistently eating anywhere from every 3 hours to very occasionally 5 hours.
There were initially some concerns with his weight loss after birth (he had lost 12% and they don't like a newborn to lose more than 10% birth weight), but at his 2 week check-up this past Wednesday, he was already back up to birth weight plus some, weighing in at 9 lbs 1 oz!  I love my big boy!  :)  The doctor said a couple of times "Gosh, he just seems so mature!  And I see a lot of babies!".  I'm not really sure in what way he meant he was mature...the way he looks, how big he is, his behavior, etc.  But either way, we are certainly proud parents!
Some things Brody loves to do are eat, sleep, and poop...lots!  :)  Which I know is typical of pretty much every newborn.  But when Brody is awake, he enjoys just looking around and checking out his surroundings, looking at lights, spending time at grandma and grandpa's, and hanging out with his cousin Owen.  Owen has really taken a liking to Brody and enjoys saying "Baby!" and going to look for him in whatever room he happens to be in.  It's really cute.  Gus, on the other hand could care less about his baby brother.  Maybe some day they'll be best buds....maybe.
So far, since I've been feeling better, I've made lots of trips to grandma and grandpa V's house, a couple of runs to Wal-Mart and Target, and even to a park one day with cousin Owen.  It's my goal to try and get out of the house at least once a day while the weather is still nice enough.  Sometimes this only means a trip to the backyard, but Brody really likes it outside, so until it's too cold, I hope to continue to do this.
Brody is SUCH a good baby!  I am truly blessed.  He sleeps really well at night for the most part.  We've only had a couple of instances where he didn't want to go to sleep.  And he has been pretty good about sleeping in the bassinet.  He enjoys his swaddle wraps, and I am pretty sure he wouldn't sleep as well if he wasn't being swaddled because he is constantly moving his arms and legs around everywhere!  The biggest challenge I have been faced with is the daytime naps.  He loves to fall asleep in my arms and doesn't particularly like when I put him down.  This makes getting anything done during the day rather difficult, but we are working on it.  And now that I know he likes his swing so much, I plan to use that when I need to, to get some things done (like take a shower, hahaha)!  And we will continue to practice laying in the crib or bassinet, so he can get used to sleeping on his own.  We're just taking it one day at a time right now.
Life with Brody is simply wonderful!  I love being a mom!