12 Weeks Old

Nursing: Our nighttime nursing is becoming more or a blur but I feel like Cash is going longer in between nursing sessions, that or maybe I’m just sleeping through them more. During the day he still nurses all the time but he does take a couple longer naps, usually around 3 hours, so that’s quite the improvement.

Cloth Diapering: Cash usually has around 3 or 4 big poops per day now. We are still waiting for my Bustainablebabyish/Sloomb order to arrive. We tried our one OBF diaper and it is AMAZING! Cash wore it for 8 hours straight! I almost felt guilty not changing him every 2-3 hours like normal but when we took the diaper off he still felt relatively dry. The diaper was heavy so I knew it was holding a ton of pee, but it didn’t feel soaked like our other diapers. I am definitely ordering more ASAP. I wish I had found these diapers sooner, but hey, live and learn! I am also going to order some underwoolies soon too.

Sleep: Cash is sleeping great at night. As long as he is on his side in the crook of my arm or on his tummy on my chest he sleeps peacefully. I can tell when he is ready to nurse because he starts rooting around searching for my nipple in his sleep. Sometimes I wake up and he is sucking on the side of my boob through my shirt. Needless to say, my shirts are always soaked with either breast milk, baby spit or a combination of the two. Cash starts getting fussy/tired around 8 PM so we lay down in bed, nurse and go to sleep and he usually sleeps until 6:30 AM sometimes 7:30 AM. He is usually awake for a couple hours and then likes to take his morning nap on Nick's chest.

Likes/Dislikes: When Cash started fighting sleep we were trying everything we could think of to soothe him. During this we discovered that he loves it when we sing to him. I was singing Hush Little Baby, but I really didn’t care for the words. I started searching the internet for more modern lyrics and ran across the lyrics to Hush Little Baby by Sylvia Long. I instantly fell in love with the lyrics and started learning them:

Hush Little Baby - Sylvia Long

Hush little baby, don't say a word.

Momma's going to show you a hummingbird.

If that hummingbird should fly,

Momma's going to show you the evening sky.

When the nighttime shadows fall,

Momma's going to hear the crickets call.

When their songs drift from afar,

Momma's going to show you a shooting star.

When that star has dropped from view,

Momma's going to read a book with you.

When that story has been read,

Momma's going to bring your warm bed spread.

If that quilt begins to wear,

Momma's going to bring you your teddy bear.

If that teddy bear won't hug,

Momma's going to catch you a lightning bug.

If that lightning bug won't glow,

Momma's going to play on her old banjo.

If that banjo is out of tune,

Momma's going to show you the harvest moon.

As that moon drifts through the sky,

Momma's going to sing you a lullaby.

After singing this for a few days I decided to change the banjo line to something that fit our family better:

If that lightning bug won't glow,

Daddy’s going to play his guitar solo.

If that guitar is out of tune,

Momma's going to show you the harvest moon.

I always have to say daddy since I don’t know how to play the guitar. Once I start singing this to Cash he starts to settle down. It is just so precious!

Cash also like to take walks in his ergo carrier with us. Nick wears Cash on the front while I take our 2 doggies and we walk the 2-mile loop through our neighborhood. Cash is awake for the first part and loves to take everything in but he eventually falls asleep and then sleeps the rest of the walk and usually another hour after we get home.

We are still having a hard time with the car seat but he usually calms down when we get on the freeway. I really hope this doesn’t last too much longer!

Activities: My friend Katee is due on March 31^st so Cash and I went to her baby shower this past weekend. Now that I have  a baby I just love baby showers! It is so fun to see all the clothes and baby items that new mamas receive. Cash was a big hit at the shower too! Everyone commented on how beautiful he is and how cute his little smile is. I couldn’t agree more but I’m probably a little biased!

We also took Cash on another trip to Costco. I just wore him in the ring sling the entire time and he just slept peacefully against my chest.

Health: I weighed Cash at Mother’s Haven this week and he weighed 11 pounds 7 ounces! Little moose! We have noticed a huge increase in the amount of drool coming from Cash’s mouth this week – he seems to drool all over everything. He also likes to suck on anything and everything. His favorite things to suck on are his fists, my shoulder, nana’s arm, his burp rags and my ring sling.

Best Moment: We had two awesome moments this week! The first I missed (tear) but Nick got to see. Cash was lying on our bed with Nick and he rolled onto his side all by himself! This of course happened the second I left the room and he hasn’t done it again but I know he will. The second best moment happened when Nick was holding Cash in his lap at dinner. He was sitting facing away from Nick in the crook of his arm when he started trying to sit up! We couldn’t believe our eyes! I did manage to catch this on my iPhone video camera (unfortunately, the video is too long to upload)! It just amazes us how strong he is already!

11 Weeks Old

Nursing: Our little man still loves his mama’s milk! When we are home during the day Cash likes to nurse almost constantly, but I don’t mind because right now my job is taking care of our precious baby boy. Out nighttime nursing is getting better; Cash still nurses frequently, but now I nurse him laying down on my side. This has been a life saver!

Cloth Diapering: The Morelli family attended a cloth diapering with wool class at Mother’s Haven this past weekend. Margaret, the owner of Mother’s Haven, just started carrying the Sustainablebabyish line of cloth diapers and wool covers. We are so excited to pick up some of these diapers and wool covers for Cash’s next stage of diapering. We ordered a knit wool cover in ister, some Unicorn Baby Beyond Fibre Wash, Sloomblanolin, an Evercare wool shaver and some OBF diapers (Overnight Bamboo Fleece fitted diapers) in sprout, bing, teal and squash. I am also going to order an underwoolie I just haven’t decided on the color yet. This summer I plan on ordering some baseshorties for Cash to wear as shorts and then some basewoolies for Cash to wear as pants in the fall. They are just so adorable I want one in every color!

 

 Sleep: Sleep is so much better since I started nursing Cash on my side at night. We go to bed around 8 PM and he usually sleeps until 11 or 12. We usually change his diaper at this point and nurse again; this usually lasts until 3 AM. When he wakes up again we change his diaper, nurse and then sleep until 6:30 AM. We are so happy with our new sleeping routine; it is so nice to not be exhausted all the time. One night this week Cash even slept two 5 hour stretches! It was AWESOME!

Likes/Dislikes: Cash is such a happy baby! He smiles, coos and “talks” to us non-stop! One of his favorite things to do is “talk” to his daddy in the morning. When we wake up in the morning Cash has his daddy time. The boys sit on the bed or in the rocker and chat it up. Cash has HUGE smiles that he reserves just for his daddy! Nick then walks Cash around or rocks him to sleep for his morning nap. We feel so blessed to be able to stay home with Cash and bond. When Nick does have to leave for appointments he always calls and tells us how much he misses us and as soon as he gets home he always tells me how he was thinking about us while he was gone. Nick also loves to show off photos of Cash to his clients. My hubby is one proud daddy!

Unfortunately, Cash still doesn’t like to be in his car seat. I am going to get a car seat mirror that lights up. I’m hoping that will help

Activities: We didn’t leave the house too much this week but we did make one trip to Pilgrim’s Market and then we attended the cloth diapering with wool class and a baby sign language class at Mother’s Haven. We are starting to teach Cash baby sign language and are pretty excited about it. He thinks it’s really funny when we sign mama, daddy, nana and grandpa. When we sign he stares intently at us and then we help him “sign” as well.

Health: We weighed Cash on Saturday and he weighed 10 pounds 14 ounces! It’s crazy how much he has grown in 11 weeks! Cash has also started to suck on his first more frequently. He gets his thumb in his mouth every once in a while, but it doesn’t stay there very long.

Best Moment: I feel like I say this so often, but it’s just so true; every moment is a best moment with Cash. Nick and I feel so blessed to have such a happy, healthy, beautiful baby boy. All his little smiles and coos just melt our hearts – each one is better than the last!

10 Weeks Old

Nursing: I love the bond that I feel with Cash while we nurse. It is the best feeling when he looks up at me while he’s nursing; sometimes he even pulls off to smile at me.

Cloth Diapering: We are so happy that we decided to cloth diaper! We just love the little cloth diaper bottom! Nick and I are going to a cloth diapering class at Mother’s Haven to check out the new Sustainablebabyish/Sloomb line of cloth diapers and wool covers that they are now carrying. I really excited because Sustainablebabyish is an amazing brand! My friend Laura (Tiny Toes Little Nose) bought Cash a pair of wool longies that are so buttery soft. I can't wait for him to grow into them!

Sleep: I am happy to report that the whole Morelli family is sleeping better! Since Cash is now quite a bit bigger than he was when he was born I am able to lie down and nurse him on my side! This has been a nighttime lifesaver!

Cash is still fighting sleep at every turn but Nick and I are starting to get to know the “over-tired” sleepy signs. Around 8 PM or 8:30 PM we change Cash’s diaper and start our nighttime routine. This consists of a diaper change, putting jammies on, turning all the lights off in the bedroom and walking or rocking depending on Cash’s mood. Some nights he will lay right down with me and nurse to sleep, but other nights he wants us to walk him around or rock him to sleep. He usually fights sleep for 30-45 minutes and then nods off. After he is asleep I transfer onto the bed and lay him on my chest.

Likes/Dislikes: Mr. Cash really enjoys his bath time! He has started to kick his legs out when I let him “float” in the water. I think I see some swim lessons in our near future!

Cash is way better about his diaper changes! Nick and I have started to blow raspberries on his belly and neck during diaper changes and he LOVES it! We always put a small pre-fold diaper over Cash’s little “squirt gun” and he has now discovered that he can pull it off and/or suck on it, both of which he finds very amusing. He is just so darling!

We are still having a hard time with the car seat, unfortunately. On our way home from dinner this week we had to stop 3 times to nurse and soothe our poor little guy. We let him fuss a bit in the car seat and try to comfort him or distract him, but once he really starts crying we pull over and take him out. My friend, Shannon, suggested getting a car seat mirror with lights (since Cash loves lights) and I think it may be a good purchase. The only thing that makes me nervous is the fact that they all seem to be shatter resistant not shatter proof. I’m probably just paranoid, but it still worries me.

Activities: Cash’s auntie Shanna drove into town from Seattle this past week so he got some much needed auntie time. We drove over to Papa Tony and GG Kathy’s house to surprise auntie Shanna when she came into town and spent a few hours there. We also had lunch at Twigs and dinner at Clinkerdagger so Cash got to experience so many new places this week.

Health: We are so lucky that Cash is a super healthy boy. He has a little bit of baby acne, but it’s not too bad. We did measure Cash this week and he was 22 inches long! This could be a little off since we measured him with a metal tape measurer, but it's close enough for us! He is growing up so fast!

Best Moment: On Shanna last night in town we went to dinner at Clinkerdagger and Cash really enjoyed all the soothing, dim lights. He was such a good boy at the restaurant. Once he nursed we passed him around the table while we all ate and then he fell asleep in his auntie Shanna’s arms.  It warms my heart to see how loved our little man is by his family.

2 Months Old

Nursing: I’m happy to report that my mastitis is gone and Cash and I are getting into a grove with our nursing. He still nurses every 2-3 hours but some of our nursing sessions are shorter than others. We did have one very funny nursing moment this week. Cash was busy nursing away when all of a sudden he popped off and my milk shot up his nose and on his face! It really startled him and he didn’t quite know what to make of it.

Cloth Diapering: Now that Cash’s diapers are back to normal things are great. Cash still likes to have his diaper changed every 2 hours. We have noticed that Cash is pooping less frequently. He seems to have around 4-5 big poops every day and a few small poopy diapers that Nick and I have started calling skid mark poops. We can always tell when Cash is working on a big poop because he grunts like crazy, really focuses on pushing and then we hear him FILL his diaper. It is truly amazing how much poop can come out of such a little person!

Sleep: Some nights Cash sleeps pretty well, going one 3-4 hour stretch, and other nights he is up every 2 hours. We had one particularly rough night where he woke up every hour and 45 minutes like clockwork. He has also started to fight going to sleep. I know he is super tired but he just wants to stay awake and take everything in. Cash will start to fall asleep and then he will jerk himself awake and fuss. One night he repeated this pattern for 3 hours. Nick was such a good daddy and just rocked his son, held him close and walked around with him until he fell asleep. Even though we complain about our lack of sleep, we feel so blessed to have such a healthy, beautiful baby boy. If lack of sleep is the worst thing we experience we will count ourselves lucky.

Likes/Dislikes: Cash still loves any kind of light. It is so fun to walk around the house with him and watch him take in all the different lights. He also likes it when Nick wipes his mouth with a burp rag. Nick has turned it into a little game; he pats each side of Cash’s mouth and laughs until Cash smiles at him. It just melts my heart to see how loving Nick is with his son. Everyday Cash is smiling more and more; he makes little giggling noises but we haven’t heard a true laugh quite yet.

Activities: We took Cash on another 2 mile walk this week. He slept through the walk until we were a few houses down from home. When he woke up he started crying and we had to carry him the rest of the way. What can I say, out little man likes to be held ALL the time!

Nick and I also took Cash to his very first trustee sale at the Kootenai county courthouse. He slept in his ring sling and woke up during the bidding to grunt and make a huge poop. Everyone else who was bidding heard his poop and just laughed! Overall it was a great first experience for him. We hope to teach Cash our business some day!

Cash is getting better about his diaper changes but he still doesn’t like his car seat. We had one particularly tough trip home from Coeur d’Alene this week where Cash just wouldn’t stop crying. I was so stressed out by the time we pulled into the garage that I burst into tears when I pulled him out of the car seat and saw the big alligator tears running down his face. He was fine the second I took him out but I was so upset that I had to give him to Nick until I stopped crying. I don’t know who was more upset, Cash, or me but there were lots of big tears all around. Even though he hates his car seat I always manage to snap some really cute pics of him in it!

Health: Cash is a happy healthy boy! He has started to grip things really tightly; usually his favorite thing to grab is my hair.

Best Moment: Cash is becoming more expressive by the day and Nick and I are really enjoying all his cute little facial expressions. I would say the best moments this week have been snugging up together as a family and watching Cash interact with us. He love to stick his tongue out and he also make the most adorable “O face”. We just can’t seem to get enough of our precious little man!