This is where Nathan Clendenin shares photos, projects and other thoughts

Samuel Comes Alive

Since the last update at the end of the first week, Samuel has woken up! The sleepiness newborns go through the first two weeks has worn off, giving us a glimpse into his developing personality.  Samuel’s also been packing on the ounces. Up from 7lbs. 7oz. at his lowest point, he’s now at 9lbs. 12oz. and not showing signs of any slowing down (he’s gaining about 2 oz. a day!). He’ll be one month old on Monday, which is hard to believe, although life feels like it’s finally developing some sort of routine. His feedings are pretty regularly three hours apart and we’ve somewhat figured out how to console him when he cries for reasons beyond hunger. Thanks to lots of friendly feedback from my facebook profile, we had quite a few tricks in the hat to try out, as well some interesting ones, like CSPAN?!  As of now, SJ calms down best to bouncing with us on the exercise ball and to the dustbuster on high! We also use the radio in between stations. He doesn’t like the pacifier, though, which is fine with us but makes soothing him harder.

As SJ has come alive, we’ve observed a few things about him that endear us to love him even more! We feel our hearts ever-growing with love for this tiny bundle of blessing and extreme cuteness. I mean, he makes even explosive diarrhea cute! So here’s a few observations and a couple statistics that you might find interesting:

  • SJ Likes: bath time, being swaddled (in his Kiddopotamus), chest time with Dad (this is Dad’s absolute favorite too!), worship songs from the Powerhouse sung by Mom and/or Dad, rides in the stroller around the neighborhood, rides in the car.
  • SJ Does Not Like: waiting for milk, pacifiers, nap time during the day.
  • Number of Diapers Used Since Birth: about 200.  At almost $0.25 a piece, that adds up quick!  We’re planning on switching to cloth diapers around 3-4 months (Bec found a good deal on Craigslist).
  • SJ Noises: As he squirms and kicks (he throws a mean jab) he makes little grunts that sound a lot like a billygoat.

Finally, Pippy and Champ have adjusted pretty well to having some major competition around the house.  Pippy likes to loiter around outside the nursery, but took a good two weeks before venturing in to officially check out the scene. Champ sniffs curiously at Samuel, but feels free to roam about the nursery, usually perching on the back of the nursing chair.  He’s been kicked out a few times for being annoying – no big surprise there.  Check out some photos of the cats first meeting SJ as well as others taken since the last update.



This entry was written by Nathan Clendenin, posted on March 19, 2010 at 2:04 am, filed under SJ and tagged , , , . Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink.