Just Swingin'

January 30, 2007

Since we changed formula and won the battle with the doo-doo monster, our only issue is that Jack seems to be a little spoiled to being held. Hmmm, this started after spending a weekend with the Grandparents??? So, since Jack got home he hasn't fussed a bit, except when you try to put him down. Put him down...he cries. Pick him up...he's happy. So, I made a run to the store to stock up on batteries (since everything he has requires them), put some in his cradle swing, problem solved...he loves that thing. He only fusses when the music stops.

You may have noticed, that I love pictures. For lots of pictures of Jack and our families, please visit our photoshow site. http://photoshow.comcast.net/fegruber

Date Night With Grandma

January 26, 2007

Jack went for a sleepover at Grandma's and Grandpa's. They took him out to eat and to see Great Grandma Lois. It just made their day AND night. You can tell how proud they are of Jack just by looking at them when they hold him. Grandpa called Jack his "little pea-in-a-pod" because of his outfit. Jonathan and I didn't really know what to do with ourselves without Jack. We missed him really bad.

I think the formula change is really working. Grandma said he only got up once during the night, taking more formula and sleeping for 4 hours at a time. Definitely winning the battle with the doo-doo monster. Jack is really starting to enjoy music. He loves his Baby Einstein turtle and lullaby CD. He is more alert and makes eye contact when you talk to him. Aunt Angie and Pop figured out that he likes "chin-sugar". Uncle Mike came by the next day, which is really nice since he lives 2 1/2 hours away.

First Night Away From Home

January 25, 2007

We went to Fort Payne for a visit since I'm getting a little stir crazy in the house. We stayed with Nana and Pop for the night with after visiting some of Nana's work friends and Great Grandma Jones. Nana just paraded Jack around her work and you could just tell how proud she was by the look on her face. Pop is the same way, they just love to show him off. Pop got the first "coo" out of little Jack. It was the sweetest sound ever! Aunt Angie came over and got some kisses in. Jack doesn't fuss a bit at their house, is it the change in formula or being there????

Da' Bears

January 21, 2007

We watched another Bears game today. They won the NFC Championship Game which means...they're going to the Super Bowl for the first time in 21 years. Go Bears!! Jack didn't enjoy it so much, he had a tummy ache and was fussy for most of the day. I called the pediatrician the next day and we are going to try a new formula.

Jazz Anyone?

January 13, 2007

Grandma and Grandpa came over and we took Jack to the mall for his first stroller ride, which he liked. Then we went to this really nice restaurant called the Jazz Factory. They have live jazz music. We figured out that Jack really enjoys the loud jazz music. He was awake when we got there and went right to sleep in just a few minutes and stayed asleep the whole time we were eating dinner. Jack is also really starting to enjoy riding in the car, as long as it is moving.

Grandma and Grandpa spent the night for what Grandma calls "date night with Jack". They are so proud. The next day we got up to watch the Bears game. Yep, they won. Nana and Pop came over and we all ate hot wings, well except for Jack.

Bath Time!

January 12, 2007

Time for Jack's first true tub bath. Yeah, he hated it. It all goes back to the fact that he hates to be cold!! He was okay after the initial shock of the water, but he mostly cried and he peed three times. He was fine once we got his clothes back on and bundled him up in a nice warm blanket.

Aunt Angie to visit

January 3, 2007

Aunt Angie came over to spend the night. She loved on Jack all day and night. And we got to catch up with our sister time. She went with us to the doctor the next morning where we finally got to meet Jack's pediatrician (we've been seeing her partners because she has been out of work). We really liked her and not because she repeatedly told me that he was "just beautiful" and "just perfect". Jack now weighs 7 lbs 1 oz, that's almost 2 lbs in 2 weeks! I can see a lot of change in him in the past 2 weeks. After the doctor's appt, we took Jack to his first restaurant, Rosie's. (I told you that was our favorite) He was an angel, he didn't make a peep.

I forgot to give special mention to Jack for being such a good boy at the doctor's office. They had to stick his heel to repeat his PKU test and he didn't even cry!!! What a big boy.

War Eagle!!

January 1, 2007

Jack had his first football experience today. Auburn playing in the Cotton Bowl against Nebraska. WAR EAGLE, enough said.

There are three things that Jack really doesn't like AT ALL. I've already mentioned one, being cold. Second, the hiccups. He gets the hiccups a lot and they eventually make him mad. Even more than the hiccups, Jack hates the doo-doo monster. Again, enough said.

Welcome 2007

December 31, 2007

Grandma and Grandpa came over to spend the night and give Jonathan and me a night out. Since I didn't really feel like doing much New Year's Eve partying, we just went to dinner and a movie. We missed Jack in that short amount of time. We watched the ball drop on TV and at midnight, I got 2 kisses. One from Jonathan and the other from Jack, of course.

Grandma was very excited about having Jack duty for the night and Jonathan and I were very excited about having a whole night's sleep. I think both of us woke up the next morning in the same position we fell asleep in. We are so grateful that our parents are so helpful, what would we do without them?

Visitors

December 27, 2006

Jonathan had to go back to work, so Nana and Pop came to stay for a few days. They gave me some needed sleep and helped to get our house cleaned up since I can't do most of that stuff yet. It was so nice to have them here, they were so helpful with everything. Jack makes the funniest facial expressions. It's so cute to see his "gas smiles". Even though you know they are because of gas, you can tell that he is going to have a delightful smile. Oliver is getting pretty protective. He stands between Jack and our guests that he doesn't know and sometimes he really barks at them. Which is kind of funny, he's not much bigger than Jack!

First Doctor's Appointment

December 26, 2006

The first doctor's appointment went just great. Jack now weighs 6 lbs 3 oz. He gained 1 lb since we were discharged from the hospital (he lost down to 5 lbs 1 oz after birth). The doctor says everything looks just wonderful. Jack hates being cold, so he was not happy when we had to get him naked. So, he peed on us and across the room. Somehow, we took him to the doctor and Jonathan and I ended up getting shots. We got our flu shots, ouch.

We really laugh at Jack because he keeps his hands right beside his face. He looks like a little boxer. He's starting to enjoy his bouncer seat. I think because it vibrates his butt. He eats EVERY 2 hours, like clock-work. Sleep? Not at our house.

Going home

December 23, 2006

We were more than ready to get home, just in time for Christmas. Of course we had the holidays all planned, they of course all got changed. Our families and Jonathan jumped in and got everything arranged to celebrate Christmas Eve at our house. The Jones family was there for lunch and the Gruber family for dinner. Santa even showed up for Jack's first Christmas. He was the BEST Christmas gift ever!

Oliver was quite excited to meet Jack. He just got right in his face and smelled of him. Jack didn't seem to mind.

D-DAY!!!

December 20, 2006

Ok, so it's still 2 weeks before our due date, 5 days before Christmas, and we've had a practically perfect pregnancy. I had only 1 day left to work before I was taking my leave and had just seen the doctor 2 days before who told me he would see me in the office the next week when he returned from his holiday vacation, everything looked "great". I came home from work as usual and soon after got really sick, started having contractions and realized that it was time to go to the hospital. Jonathan was home from work quickly with a phone call and we were on our way. The nurse did all the normal stuff and we thought we had plenty of time. But, as it turns out, I had suddenly developed severe toxemia and was preeclamptic. This was quite a shock, I had felt great the whole time. I immediately got upset, being a nurse I knew I was very sick. Jonathan caught up quickly with lots of questions to the doctor and got worried. We soon agreed to a C-section because that's what the doctor "strongly" urged us to do. Ten minutes later we were in the operating room. Unfortunately, our families didn't have time to make it since they live an hour away. Actually it happened so quickly, my sister was in Huntsville and still was unable to make it in time.

I can remember when we heard him cry for the first time and saw his little face. I thought he was, without a doubt, the most beautiful and amazing little thing I had ever seen. I also remember seeing Jonathan's face just light up and his chest stick out, he was so proud. He weighed 6 lbs 4 oz and was 18 1/2 inches and had black hair. Jack had to go to the neonatal intensive care unit so they could monitor his breathing closely for a little while and Jonathan got to go with him. I went to recovery and then returned to labor and delivery. Jack stayed in NICU for a few hours and then went to the well-baby nursery. Nana, Pop, Aunt Angie and Uncle Joey, Cousin Lindsay and Cousin Kayla had made it by then and got to see the nurse make him really mad doing his footprint.

It was close to 4 hours before I got to see him again and hold him. I couldn't believe how little he was and that Jonathan and I were actually responsible for how cute he was. Soon after Grandma and Grandpa, Uncle Mike, Uncle Josh and Uncle Todd arrived, along with a few friends. The next two days are a little bit of a blur. I guess because of the meds they had me on and for a lack of sleep for me and Jonathan. He got to sleep on a little sofa bed with "baby" blankets, after all he is 6'1". Lots of family and friends came over the next 2 days, they all thought he was just perfect.

3D Ultrasound

October 20, 2006

This day we went to the doctor for our 3D/4D ultrasound. Wow, how technology has changed. It was so amazing to watch Jack move and to see his facial features. We could even tell that his eyes looked like Jonathan's and that there was a good chance that he had my feet, "the toe" at least. We got to see him yawn and pout his lips and suck on his hands. It was kind of hard sometimes to see his face because he had his hands there the whole time.

It's a BOY!!

August 24, 2006

This day we found out that Jack was a Boy. Imagine that, a Gruber having a boy. We figured out that it has been 52 years since there has been a girl born in the Gruber family. It was so amazing to see the ultrasound. We pretty much decided on the name of Jack Preston on the way home, after Jonathan's Grandpa Gruber. We had lunch at Rosie's, our favorite Mexican Restaurant and then went and picked out Jack's first outfits.

Expecting??

April 28, 2006

Well, the beginning of this blog is going to be trial and error and I'm going to have to back-track a little to catch everyone up. Jonathan and I found out about the expected arrival of Jack today, one day before Jonathan's birthday. Wow, what a birthday present! We were very excited. Telling our families was quite exciting too. They were soooo excited. He would be the first grandchild in Jonathan's family and the fifth in my family. I remember thinking, "where do we begin to get ready? Our whole lives are about to change." Up to this point, Oliver had been our only "child". Of course for those who don't know, that's our dog. For future reference, i should also give everyone a title so you'll know who we are talking about. Nana and Paw paw or Pop are my parents, Grandma and Grandpa are Jonathan's parents. Then there is Uncle Mike and Aunt Angie are my brother and sister, and Uncle Jeremy and Aunt Amy, Uncle Joey, and Uncle Josh are Jonathan's brothers and Jeremy's wife. I guess I can introduce other special people as we get there.