the first two weeks

Well here we are with two weeks of being a family of four behind us. Things certainly have been different.

Our first week back at home we were fortunate to still have Shelby's Mom here with us. She was a huge help, especially with Riley. She and Riley really bonded and they had a great time together. A couple of pictures:

Grammy showed Riley how to "paint with water." He loved it.














This picture was taken about 20 seconds after Grammy said goodbye to Riley at the airport. Speaks a thousand words, huh?














As you might guess we are more frazzled and less rested now than we were a few weeks back. Life now seems like a constant stream of baby feeds with occasional naps thrown in (ours and hers both.) Overall things are going well though.

It's interesting that the child who is more work is actually Riley and not Kendall. Caring for Kendall is simple if monotonous. Feed, change, hold, sleep, repeat... Although she's not as easy (so far) as Riley was (he was the world's easiest baby) she's not all that difficult either. Aside from sometimes endless feeds because she eats so slowly she's not really that demanding. Things have been a little tougher for Riley.

Riley is having to adjust to having less of Mama's undivided attention. That's made things difficult at times as he'll start to act out a bit when he's not getting enough attention. He's also gotten very clingy. He wants to follow his Mom everywhere. With only rare exceptions he stopped napping months ago so on weekdays Shelby doesn't get much of a break. It gets harder as Riley gets bored too.

On top of all that there is the sleep deprivation that comes with having a newborn. We've been in virgin territory over the last couple of weeks since Riley spent his first two weeks in the hospital. Having no routine and having to wake up every two to four hours keeps the fatigue level high. (In fact, I fell asleep at the computer for over an hour while writing this.) Add to that the fact that Riley has started waking up somewhere between 5:15 and 5:45 am and things are getting pretty ragged.

On the upside, Kendall has gotten back to her birth weight (on day 16) and is starting to eat a little more normally. She has slept a little longer overnight the last few nights which is helping us to feel a little more rested. Overall she is a healthy girl who doesn't cry excessively, at least if we're not changing her diaper...

Riley loves his sister. He is almost always very gentle with her and he loves helping out with taking care of her in any way he can. It's really sweet to see him giving her a kiss on the head or lightly patting her on the head. Also, when he and I are out and I say, "Let's go home and see Mama" he always says, "Keh-kah", which is how he says her name. It's been nice to see his kindness toward his sister. Especially since she's taking so much of his Mama time. I really hope that our kids are going to be close.

So overall things are going well. We'll close this out with a bunch of pictures.

We're seeing plenty of this, although we hope to be having more of it at night when we can't see...














Our helpful boy:

Riley helping Daddy to burp Kendall














He also helps Mama pump milk...














Some obligatory sibling shots:

I love this picture



















You can definitely tell these two are part of the same family














Riley enjoys mimicking Kendall














Riley loves Kendall














Kisses on the feet














Our girl has had some outdoor activity:

Her first stroll by the lake with Mama














Out for a nice walk at Breakheart with the Zivans















Some purely Riley happenings:

Riley is still swimming. Here's video of him using a noodle for the first time:

Our boy loves his mini tramp...to hang from














And watch TV from














High bar routine on video:

Riley got his first shiner when he fell into his table in the living room, I guess it was just a matter of time...



















Riley has a new love: Play-Doh














Ever since watching Veggie Tales "Madame Blueberry" Riley loves to make houses. On Trees. Here he is finishing the house Daddy drew on top of his tree by putting on the chimney.














I'll end with our latest family shot. We love our boy and girl!

















Jonathan