Chunky Charlie's 1-Month (6 weeks) Stats

Since coming out half again as big as either of his sisters were at birth, Connor's been kind of stuck with the nickname "Chunky Charlie". Being called by this name is usually quickly followed by kisses on his round cheeks or belly. The "Charlie" actually comes from his middle name. Tsaliroi (Cha-lih-roy) is roughly translated as "Son of Charlie" (can you hear the "Charlie" in his name?), so it is technically his name, albeit, a small part of his name. ;-)

Anyway, he had his 1-month check-up today. He's actually 1 month and 10 days old, but his doctor was on vacation last week and it wasn't super important that we be there "on time", especially since he was seen at 3 weeks and at 4 weeks for weight checks. I was pretty pleased with his 1lb gain in 2 weeks during his weight checks and I wasn't sure whether to expect another pound after such awesome gain. Connor decided to surprise me and the doctor and gained 2lbs in the past 2 weeks. I wasn't entirely sure how unusual it was until the doctor commented on it. His weight wasn't huge for his age, but the total weight gain was impressive.

My heart broke a little when he got his Hep B shot. He was staring up a me, talking a little, completely unaware of what was about to happen and looked so trusting. I saw the shock register when he felt the needle, a full second of staring at me with an expression of "what just happened" before he scrunched up his face and started to cry. He soothed easily enough.

Connor's 6 week stats:

Weight: 11 lbs 15.5 oz (+2lbs 2 oz since birth, 75th percentile)
Height: 22.5" (+2" since birth, 50-75th percentile)

Connor was both heavier and longer than his sisters at about the same age. I only have Megan's stats on hand, but since Connor had an extra 3 weeks in utero to get some of those measurements bulked up, not sure it's fair to compare the two. He's as big as the girls were at 3 months. We'll see if his gain slows down like their's did around the 6-month mark, but I think Connor's got a good start to be as big as James when he's older. Guess we'll see!

Smiles and Sickness

Connor is a day shy of 1 month old and already giving us small smiles. I noticed the first one a little over a week ago, when I picked him up in my arm and smiled down at him and said "Hi, Connor". In response, the side of his mouth quirked in a little half-smile, but since all my google research said 4 weeks was the absolute earliest, I dismissed it. However, we've seen a handful of similar half-smiles over the past week, always in response to myself (or once Cadence) talking to him, so I think we're claiming it as "real" now.

Connor is a very even tempered baby, but he's definitely becoming more alert. We've had a few rough days here as he gets a little fussy and fidgety. This should peak over the next couple weeks and then he'll settle down again and we'll start to see his real personality begin to emerge.

The girls adore their brother. Cadence asks to hold him at least a dozen times a day, even if he's sleeping, and while she refuses to run most errands I send her on ("can you take this to the sink?"), she'll happily do any errand that somehow involves Connor (now to figure out how to make picking up the living room related to Connor...). Megan's just as helpful and loving, but not as capable. She doesn't understand the size difference between herself and her brother and is constantly in trouble for practically laying on top of him and trying to hug him by pulling his closer to her by his head.

A brief update about his weight gain issue: At his 2 week appointment, he was only 9lbs, 13 ounces shy of his birth weight and only 2 ounces larger than he'd been the week before. At 3 weeks, he'd gained another 7.5 ounces, which is great gain for one week but still not his birth weight. So we went in again this past Tuesday and he was 9lbs and 15.5oz. With another 8 ounces under her belt and finally passing his birth weight, the doctor gave us the "all's clear" and we're back to just the normal check-ups.

Unfortunately, while we were carting ourselves around doctor's offices (we also had to take James in on Monday. Unexpectedly, his allergies in Houston are worse than they were in Bakersfield's nasty air), we picked up a virus of some sort. I got his first, Cadence got hit next and poor Connor has a dry cough and I assume his constant need to nurse is in response to a sore throat. Thank goodness it's a mild cold. A little tylenol for the girls, a little extra snuggling for Connor and a few hot showers for me and we're surviving and already on the downside of it.

And while we're here, a picture of Connor at 4 weeks that don't have access to my Facebook:

The Orange Rhino

There's a new tab at the top of my blog. Stop YELLING!

My inspiration? The Orange Rhino. This woman hasn't yelled at her kids for over a year. As of today, she hasn't yelled at her kids in 431 days. I want to be her. Seriously.

One of the things she says to help you achieve your goal is to be accountable. My kids know I'm not supposed to be yelling, but they don't understand the challenge. Instead, I hold myself accountable to my blog readers as well as my kids. I won't be posting on the blog regularly, but I will be updating the page accessed from the tab just under my blog header.

My goal is to go 30 days without yelling. That's not 30 days of trying not to yell, that's 30 days without yelling. If I yell, the counter restarts and I'm back to Day 0.

I'm determined to do this. While I know preschoolers yell because they're hardwired to do so, but I also know that the girls yell more than they should and it's a behavior they learned from me. When they get upset, I see my own bad reaction mirrored back at me. I don't treat them with respect and compassion, so they don't treat others with respect and compassion, at least, not as much as I'd like. When I've made previous attempts to yell less I have noticed better behavior in them as well.

I am hoping 30 days of not yelling will see an improvement in our home all around and we'll all be happier.

30 days. Starting now (well, tomorrow morning, but we're practicing before bedtime).

More Connor Pictures

Since we normally do our family pictures in the spring, but I wasn't sure how that'd work out with Connor (since I'm pretty sure we're doing an outdoor shoot similar to what we did last year), I decided to take Connor to a basic photo studio and just get some cute pictures done. I always kind of feel bad when I pull out a coupon for the photo studios to get a cheap package after the photographer spent some time creating unique images that don't qualify for the discount. Anyway, here's the final results (as usual, the last one is the one I ordered for my wall):

  

Connor (plus) Pictures

The girls barely acknowledged their brother in the hospital when they came to visit the afternoon he roomed with me (they weren't allowed in NICU for obvious reasons), but since coming home, they've become very interested in him. Cadence, especially, is doing great with the big sister thing. She's surprisingly capable while handling him, even able to pick him up entirely and adjust his position on her lap without dropping him. Megan's not quite as capable and requires help or a nearby pillow to prop the other half of him up, but she also loves to hold him when the chance arises.

Connor had his 2 week check up this morning. Doctor says he's doing well. There is some slight concern over his weight gain. He lost almost a full pound between birth and being discharged from the hospital and since then he's only gained 2oz back, coming in at an even 9lbs this morning. We've had some minor issues with nursing, but I think we're finally past the worst of it and he's finally filling diapers they way he's supposed to. We go in next week just to check his weight gain. I'm optimistic we'll have sufficient weight gain to make both myself and the doctor happy.