Joseph's First Thanksgiving

A first it was for Joseph: His first time on a farm. His first time to meet Grandma and Grandpa Payne. His first time to eat his feet. His first bonfire and hot dog roast. His first hay ride (and mine!). His first ride in a 1979 Chevrolet Bonanza. Everything about this holiday was memorable.

We all enjoyed ourselves very much. Aaron was as proud as a daddy could be, taking his wife and son to his grandparents' farm to celebrate the goodness of God. :) And celebrate we did. We ate. We talked. We slept. We ate more. We read good books. We reminisced. We laughed. We worshipped our Creator with feasting and praise. Thanks be to God!

His morning cup of coffee...Well, just morning cup, really.

Grandma Payne with a fascinated Joseph.

Grandma had him as he discovered yummy toes!

The Amish bakery wore him out, apparently.

The barn on their farm is at least 100 years old; the rafters are made of logs, from a time before saw mills.

This Black Walnut tree is in the yard, and the swing has been hanging on it for over 50 years.

The view looking across the front yard toward the west.

The farm means so much to my husband, and to the entire Payne family. Aaron's grandfather bought it, his father grew up on it, and Aaron's fondest memories come from it. I know he wishes that his son, too, would have a love for this piece of earth that God has given his family to work and to enjoy. Who knows? Maybe Joseph will carry on the Payne family farm someday. He does look awfully cute in overalls. :)

3 1/2 months

Mama doesn't have (or have had) much time to talk about how God is growing this little boy, but, if a picture is worth 1000 words, then I suppose a few of those are sufficient. :) Friday, Nov 17, was Aaron's 24th Birthday. To celebrate, we had a surprise *chocolate* party for him. Joseph was happy to attend. But he did end up being a bit of a party pooper, having gone to bed at 9:00.

Joseph's Papa and Uncle Mark were able to come from Fort Worth for the party! And boy, did Joseph love seeing them!

Although Meme wasn't able to come, she sent along a little gift. Flannel and plaid from Gap - Joseph is, indeed, Aaron's son.

So, wearing her gift to show his gratitude, Joseph expresses his sadness at Meme's absence.

On Saturday, Joseph spent some time upright on the couch. Although he enjoyed it, he would much rather stand up on someone's lap. Better view?

Sunday, after a beautiful walk through Sutton Wilderness, Aaron played a few songs for Joseph, who adoringly smiled and listened - and chewed on his hands.

On Monday, Joseph took it easy after his busy and exciting weekend. He relaxed in his crib, holding onto Eeyore for company, and watched his mobile til his little eyes couldn't take it.

And now, this afternoon, we're off to Missouri, to spend time with family on the farm, and to give Thanks for God's abundant blessings this year.

Foiled Again!

I checked on Joseph at 7:00 am, at which time he was laying flat on his stomach and sleeping soundly. At 7:35 am I go in again and here he is! On his back, sucking his thumb/playing with blankets, for the second time. I have yet to see him do this!

Photography isn't a Language

Sock it to me (in his new shirt Linda found!)

Sunday morning, 7:30 am: No noise? No cry?

Here he was, flipped over, and playing by himself!

The mullet *shudder*

Drool machine

Happy 3 Months!

Joseph celebrated by throwing a party for himself on his blanket. He invited his Duck, although the Ostrich did not receive the same honor. Oddly, his Rattle was also present at the festivities. And, of course, Mama was his Guest of Honor. :)

12 Weeks, but not 3 Months...

This past Tuesday was Joseph's 12 week mark. Officially, though, he won't be "3 months" until November 1, which is next week. Somewhere in August or September there was an extra week that has thrown him off. Developmentally, then, he'll be about 1 1/2 weeks ahead of his age, because of this. Along the same lines (sigh), this is the last post to count his age in weeks. I'll be counting his age by months (or half months), based on his birthday. For some reason, this makes me sad (albeit my own doing).

So far, the past two weeks have been my best with Joseph. He no longer fits into the newborn description of a "little blob". He's doing all sorts of things that make him look much more like a thriving infant. He plays (really plays!) with toys now. Just look at the encounter he had with a new toy (a toy ostrich). It was hilarious to watch take place. He is interacting, investigating and getting to the point where chewing everything is his new mission.

He hasn't rolled over yet. Babies are odd, sometimes. After two weekends ago, when he was kicking himself half-way over, he simply stopped. No more kicking. Not even a lot of scooting. Just stopped. Maybe all of his energy (phsyical and mental) was diverted to his language and motor skills.

I would say he's almost in the category of his mama - that of "blabbermouth". But it's much cuter on him. ;) He's most talkative right after nursing, when I'm changing his diaper or clothes and talking with him. It seems he's starting to get the gist of conversation. Well, at least the basics of "you talk, I talk, you talk, I talk". Although he does interrupt me sometimes. :) It's so cute to hear him coo and gurgle (and however else you classify baby talk). I've giggled more in the last two weeks than I have since he was born. You can't help yourself!

Yesterday, Aaron wanted me to listen to this fall's edition of St. Anne's Public House, a radio show that is published by Christ Church in Spokane, Washington. The topic was Fatherhood. The host opened the show by telling us about his 6th child, who was only "six breakfasts old". He loves babies. He said that babies are God's dessert for us. The rest of the courses may be delicious and good, but nothing is as sweet as infancy. At this point, I can see what he means. It is a delight to be with Joseph, and I certainly delight in him.

Eleven Weeks

On Tuesday, Baby Joseph celebrated 11 weeks of existence outside mommy's womb. I would say he's doing quite well. (I don't even know if he remembers how much he misses it.)

We were all excited to visit Aaron's family this past weekend. Jared and Joseph met for the first time, and all sorts of family members got to see their nephew or cousin. It was fun. Just like any trip, though, it interfered with Joseph's normal routine, and on Monday that poor guy was the best behaved, most calm he'd ever been. An unexpected response to a trip; but I think he was just so glad to be home, in his own crib, with his own smells and sounds, and his own schedule. He slept nearly 2 hours every nap that day, and ate happily away, chattering when he was awake. I'll take that kind of response any time. :)

The two biggest updates about Joseph concern his motor skills. The boy is about to flip over! I have walked in to check on him several times the last week or so and he's using his leg to kick and then push, and then ever-so-precariously he pushes himself on his side! He doesn't know yet that to complete the roll-over he has to push with hands at the same time. I hope he does it soon! How fun it will be to see him to do something so big.

Also, he can now reach up and grab a hand in front of him (or a face). It melts my heart. He is so focused, just struggling to make that arm go up (which is nearly always his left, by the way). And then, touch, grasp and hold on. He loves touching mommy's face or holding onto someone's hand or fingers. :)

In other news, I think I can say that he is over his funk/stomach flu thing. He's back to happy, hungry, bm-every-3-days Joseph. The only pickle is that while he wasn't feeling well last week he ate considerably less and my milk adjusted. Now that he's himself again, he's hungry! So there has been some frustration this week trying to increase the milk supply again. Poor guy. Babies always have something to deal with. No wonder they cry.

Very directly related to Joseph's well-being, Mama is currently doing well also. After such a topsy-turvy weekend of travel (and a trying ride back to Norman), and a busy week of getting back into the swing of things, and dealing with the current bane of my existence (Blue Cross Blue Shield of OK), and biting off more than I can chew (grocery shopping during the day; baking bread; oragnizing winter/summer clothes; etc.), I was not myself yesterday. Aaron kept asking if I was alright. I was, as far as I knew. But I just felt sort of fuzzy in the head. Not all there. It dawned on me that I felt like I used to feel right after taking a final exam, having pulled an all-nighter of studying and coffee. You've reached the end. You need to sleep or eat. Or think about something else. But your brain won't stop buzzing with information.

So I went to Border's. I got a nice, hot beverage, relaxed in a big chair and flipped through an Oklahoma Gardening Guide. I could almost feel my brain putting itself back together again. Aaron is quite possibly THE best husband in the world. Who else, at age 23, understands motherhood, marriage, women and children enough to know to send his wife to read and drink coffee? I love him so very much.

I don't know

There, I can say it. Is that what parenthood teaches you? Is that why God happens to send small, crying creatures with the command to raise them up in His honor to us, young, fiesty, know-it-alls? Well, I think it's working. Because I say it all the time - with much more humility than the time before it.

The last week and half Joseph's been crazy! Whatever "pattern" I think I come upon dissipates in a day or so, leaving me searching desperately for a new one. I don't mind, though. Really...I'm learning to be happy with the fact that not only is he growing, wetting diapers, having bowel movements, interacting with mama and daddy, AND sleeping 12 hours through the night (big consolation) - I'm learning to trust God to give me grace.

Aaron and I have been wondering if something is wrong with Joseph. He's into this funk of being fussy at the end of feedings, going down for his nap and waking up after only 45 minutes of sleeping. Is he okay? I don't know (there it is again). We think his tummy is upset (his bowel movements have been strange). We started giving him gripe water last night. It seemed to help! He slept all the way through his morning nap earlier. But, you know, I'll keep watching. If anything very weird or alarming develops, I'll take greater measures. For now, I'll keep in mind what advice has been given to me by (now) a nurse, doctor, young mom and older mom: babies do weird things. :)

At his 2 month check up last week, Joseph weighed in at 11 pounds, 12 ounces. His head circumference was 15 1/2 inches, his lenth 22 3/4 inches. Apparently, Joseph is a perfectly "average" baby. :) And so is his personality. Neither passive nor aggressive, he doesn't hold back the wails when he's unhappy, but is so easily content that he's not inclined very often to go the trouble of crying. He reminds me so much of Aaron. I'll have to ask Ann this weekend how he was when he was a baby. :)

Oh, so you've probably figured out that Aaron and I decided to go to a pediatrician. That may be a given for many people, but we weren't sure. We don't like the idea of going to hospitals or doctors of any kind unless we're sick. We also don't like the idea of doctors telling us if our baby is healthy. We're also unsure of how we feel about immunizations and antibiotics (risks vs. benefits and such), so going to a doctor would make us a red-flag family if we refuse them. (And we don't take lightly the awful organization known as DHHS, that claims to have the right to tell you how to raise your children.) Anyway, we'd also be red-flagged if Joseph ended up needing to go the emergency room and was not in relationship with a pediatrician.

But the good outweighs the bad, in our mind. Afterall, even though we care little about how Joseph compares to other babies, Dr. Wilson (who is great, by the way) knows very well the norms for healthy infants and children. We don't (there it is, again). It's comforting to have Dr. Wilson tell me things are "okay", when I'm a worrier. And it's also nice to have a doctor who already knows Joseph's history, just in case Joseph does get sick and needs medical attention. And we have insurance now. That helps. :)

But back to Joseph. His mind is developing in a tremendous way. He not only locates objects of interest, but they're becoming very interesting to him. I bought him a Baby Einstein Activity Gym (thanks to anyone who gave us a gift card!). He loves it! He will watch the dangling rings for at least 15-20 minutes. Not only that, but he can swat at them and hit them! It's great to see him furrow his brow in concentration; aim; steady; just a little to the left; and bam! It's hit and his eyes grow wide with surprise and he jerks a bit at actually hitting the rattling ring above him. It's hilarious and fascincating at the same time. :)

Oh and he's also been using his tongue quite a bit! (See the pic at right) He sticks it out, back in, aaallll the way out, wiggles it around. He's so funny. Aaron says that he's discovered it. I wonder if that means he'll want to start licking everything in sight?

We'll be going to Tulsa this weekend so Joseph (and us!) can visit again with Aaron's family, and to meet the rest of the family for the first time - including his cousin, Jared! :) We'll take pics.

Adios! (Joseph is working on his Spanish, you know) ;)

2 Months Old

Here's sweet Joseph on our walk today. I'm trying to take walks 3-4 times a week - for Joseph and for me. :) He's enjoying them more and more because, as you can see, his vision has improved and he can see me from the stroller. He can easily see Mama or Daddy from a good distance (and tracks us if we move), and finds things across the room interesting. (Alas, he is no longer as enamored with walls as he was a few weeks ago.)

Not only can he see better, but he's making connections with all that he's seeing. He knows things like if I move my hand, I can follow it; that face in front of me is quite familiar, and gives me happy feelings - I think I'll smile; oooooo, that blue thing is fascinating, I want it (and a swipe for it ensues). He's rarely successful at hitting his target, but it's so cute. He's now to the point where if I give him a ring, he'll hold it for a bit, but he just doesn't have enough control of his hands to really "play" yet.

Joseph is officially a thumb-sucker. I lay him down for nap and he immediately goes for the thumb. Sometimes I'll help him find it, but most of the time he figures it out. Today I found him sucking his thumb at the end of every nap! It's amazing that babies learn that fast...

He's liking "play time" much more now, which mostly means talking with Mama. For some funny reason, he gets so tickled when I say "mamamamamamama" or "dadadadadada" over and over, or if I speak Spanish. (Future career, Mom?)

I promise he really does smile as much as I say, but this boy just doesn't do cameras yet. :) Maybe that's changing, because today I caught two pictures of him smiling. But I wish you could see when he opens up his mouth all the way and smiles so big his eyes squint. :) Something of a laugh is there, too. He coos a lot now - sometimes very loudly. I wonder if this is the beginning of baby babble?

Joseph is getting so strong, too! Look at him on the boppy! I think I have a picture of him on the boppy just last week or 2 weeks ago. Look at how much higher he's holding himself up! Sheesh! Do babies ever stay the same for one week?

There's the update, for you out-of-towners. You know, you're welcome to come for a visit. We don't charge for cuddling. :) With Joseph, that is.

Joseph's Baptism

was on Sunday, September 10. I've seen several babies and adults be baptized, and I love each one. It makes me remember that God's promises are real and are for us, even me. Because I know that I've been baptized into His covenant and am one of His people too. It really is a means of grace to me. It's part of how God preserves me, keeps sanctifying me and reminds me of who I am.

It was even better watching my son. God's promises are true: He gives love and forgiveness and joy to us all, blessing families and proving His faithfulness.

"Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands." Deut. 7:9

Seven Weeks

(Nb: I wrote a post, proofed it, began adding pics and blogger kicked me off. Arg! So, here's the outline version.)

• Wow. Joseph is almost 2 months old.
• He now weighs 11 pounds. Has slowed down. This is because...
• He has slept through the night (10-12 hrs.) for two weeks.
• Today I taught him to suck his thumb - all by himself!
• We're not sure how often and when to teach him to do the sucking thumb/pacifier thing.
• It's great to be a stay-at-home wife and mother. :)

The Boppy Pillow: he kicks those feet!! Look at those ears!

The Thumb-Sucker

He looks at Mama!

It's amazing what a swing can do, isn't it?

Haha! Look what Joseph discovered!

Oh, no. It's starting again. Yesterday, during the day, he started missing naps, wanting to eat more, getting frustrated when he did eat more, and had little, tired, pink eyes all day. It took him an hour to fall asleep last night, even though he was in my arms. Poor Joseph. He's acting just like he did two weeks ago when he hit what we decided was a growth spurt. Another one, already? Sigh. So, we celebrated Joseph being with us 6 weeks yesterday with crying, rocking and a good dose of frustration. But I know it's really nothing to complain about at all.

This past week, he has slept 6 consecutive nights for ten to twelve hours. That just blows my mind. Of course, when we weighed him, he hadn't gained as much weight as he had been (only 1/4 pound). My thought is that he'll catch up with himself this week. At least, I hope so; it has worried me a bit that he is sleeping so much, but common sense and veteran mothers didn't think it was a problem. We'll see?

Right now, I'm watching Joseph try to sleep as I type. I feel so sorry for him. He's been in his bassinette for 35 minutes and just can't fall asleep. He fussed on and off (but hasn't cried!), and has resigned himself to turn his head every once in a while, give a little whine, and close his eyes again. Sheesh, if I were tired but couldn't sleep and was a newborn, I'd be whiny too. In fact, I'm whiny without those circumstances.

Personally, Joseph's mama is ready to be herself again. "Time, time!" is the response I get when I give my complaint. They're right: it does take much time to heal from such an ordeal as birth, but pregnancy got me in the habit of refraining from activities and resting simply because I was humongous and tired. But now, I have my energy back (for the most part) and am merely fluffy - which, in my opinion, begs for something to be done about it. I can't, though. I need a few more weeks (I guess) to heal before I can start exercising again.

"Give yourself permission to be a blob", someone told me. Huh. This should sound like a golden opportunity, but I have a guilty personality. Aaron wakes up at 5:30 every morning to go to work all day until 6:00, unless it's Tuesday or Thursday, in which case he works half a day and goes to class until 8:00. He'll then come home, do the dishes, check on laundry, trash, clutter, etc. The weekend comes and he does all the grocery shopping so that I don't have to get out. Do you know how terrible it can be for a man to go to Wal-Mart with a list his wife made? Utter confusion, I imagine. But he does a fantastic job. Then, he'll come home, do yard work, and help make dinner. Sunday brings him some rest. And there's Monday again.

I, on the other hand, need to give myself "permission to be a blob". Aaron tells me the same thing. I know he's right. But I'm ready to get back to my regular weight, to be doing things, to feel productive. Sheesh, I'm complaining a lot. Sorry. You can pray that I become okay with my state of blobness. :)

Check the time

See that time posted at the bottom of this entry? Somewhere around 8:30 am. Take note of that time.

Joseph is still asleep right now. We fed him around 8:00 pm (a bit early, but he'd had a rough afternoon/evening).

Now remember the time you took note of and do the math. That's over 12 hours, friends!! 12! Wow. Aaron and I don't understand why he sleeps so much at night, but that doesn't taint how thankful we are each and every night (and morning). :)

It's great.

"Every good gift, every perfect gift is from above!"

My baby boy is 5 weeks old today. I took the above picture of Joseph just now as I typed. I don't even recognize him compared to the baby that was born. Sigh... But this is good! Well, so Aaron tells me. "We want him to grow", he says. Uh-huh. Sure.

In all seriousness, Aaron is right. God gave us this precious life to grow and nurture. The whole point of children is to raise mature disciples of Christ. How can we do this if, at the very least, they don't grow out of their newborn clothes? Why is it, then, that I feel slightly panicked that his newborn booties are too small? (See below: the heel of the sock is in the middle of his foot!) I'm not sure, but I do know every wise person has said to me, "Enjoy this time when he is tiny - it passes far too quickly". Yes, I see that it does! :)


We weighed Joseph again last night at the McIntyre's: 10 1/2 pounds! And oh, how that little boy smiles! Meme Reese had him Saturday night for 30 minutes just grinning at her!

And remember that post last week about needing to watch what I eat? Well, true as that may be, and as much as my vit-C drink and horsey sauce from Arby's did affect his little tummy, what we're pretty sure of now is that Joseph was going through a growth spurt! Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday he was incredibly fussy. He would eat, but would become fussy between feedings, start to cry and cry, miss his nap, get very tired, and get more fussy. See the hideous pattern?

I finally called the midwife, Michelle, on Wednesday afternoon. "Are you letting him eat between feedings?" "Well, no, because he's usually only hungry every 3 hours." "Honey! It sounds like a classic growth spurt to me. Offer him food! He's trying to increase your milk supply so that he has enough for later. He might seem frustrated when he eats, but keep offering. And in a couple of days, he'll be normal again." I gave it a try. He ate and ate! He was frustrated, like she said, but he still wanted to eat. So, Thursday and Friday was similar to earlier in the week, only he ate more often. This past weekend was crazy, with his schedule disrupting any normal routine that gives his parents sanity.

But around Sunday, he got some good naps in and here we are Tuesday morning back on track. :) Mama's happy! And the midwives were correct.

It can be so daunting and scary when you don't know what to do with a baby. It's got me thinking about community, and how that's just one more reason God gave us older women, sisters, fathers, grandmas and midwives: to talk to them, get hugs from them, hang around them, call them, watch them, learn from them, cry with them, and let them hold the baby. Community gives you perspective, sanity, wisdom, encouragement and love. A new baby makes me realize I need those things desperately.













From our trip to FTW
Above: Mom and Mark discuss who should be able to hold baby Joseph. :)
Right: Aunt Chrystal meets Joseph!