Family Pictures 5/13

 

 

   

 

The past few weeks...

So there is much to say, but I don't say much.  At least, I try not to ramble.  My husband would probably disagree with that statement!  Oh well.  Here's an update anyway.

First of all, Ezekiel is doing fabulous with the helmet.  He's totally used to it and rubs his head with curiosity when it's off.  Like he knows something is different.  His hair is still mega long but once he's done with the helmet, he's getting a hair cut.  Which will be soon.  If you remember, the doctor told us he would have to wear it for 3 or 4 months.  Well, at his 1 month check up, his head had already surpassed the assumed shape.  The doctor was blown away at his improvement and said that his measurement numbers were some of the best he's ever seen.  He also said that we could have stopped then but since my baby isn't quite sitting up on his own, and on his back a lot still, we didn't want to take any chances and so he'll be in it for another month, 2 in total.  He's got just about a week and a half left.  I couldn't be happier about it.  Good job my soft-headed baby!  You're looking normal!  Some stats, at 6 months he weighed in at 16 lbs 7 oz, a month later and he's another pound heavier!  He weighed in a little under the norm at his 4 month check up so in his 5th month we started supplementing with formula and also started him on baby foods and cereal.  He loves to eat and always cries when the food runs out.  So, breastfeeding is more enjoyable for me because I don't do it as much!  It's also nice because now John can get up at night to feed him too and we take turns.  I love getting more sleep!!!  I have a feeling I'll dry up soon, it seems I am making less and less.  But it's ok.  I'm perfectly fine with that!

Other news.... work.  I am still with Fantastic Sams, but not at the same location.  I transferred salons (same owner).  Things were just not to my liking at my old store.  It's just too hard having such a newly experienced girl be my boss after being the boss for 5 years and working at the same location for 7.  Too many changes and I just didn't feel appreciated or welcomed back by anyone.  So I'm at a new location now and things are going really well!  New group of girls and they are all great!  I think most of my clients have been informed and have followed me.  I also started a separate facebook page called, Jade's Hair Spot.  So when I do quit, the real loyal oes will still be able to contact me.  I don't think I'll work much longer because...

John got a nursing job!  He was hired at the same place he was a CNA at.  He works 12-hour shifts and random days.  So if my work schedule can work around his, then I'll stick around for longer.  So, I guess we'll see.  So proud of my husband!!!

One more quck note, we went to see my folks in Arizona for the 4th of July.  EZ did great in the car but not so great at the town rodeo.  He doesn't like loud noises and it was just one long loud noise!  Anyway, it was so great to see them, as well as my brother and his family and also my sister and her husband.  I love getting together but I hate saying goodbye.

John and I keep thinking we want to get out of Utah soon... but we've probably still got another year or so.  John is going to continue his education here then perhaps go on further somewhere else.  It is just hard trying to decide where!  But hey, we're all happy and healthy, so life is good!

Ezekiel's movies

These are just a bunch of baby videos.  The one titled "first laughs" is my favorite, but they're all pretty cute.  I just had to document.  He's growing so fast!

The Helmet

A few weeks ago we took Ezekiel into the doctor and he recommended that we get his head evaluated because the shape of it concerned him.  He was getting rather flat in the back and maybe too high up on top.  So the specialist took a look and said that our son would indeed need a helmet.  I was a little in denial because I didn't want to admit that anything was wrong with my perfect little boy.  After talking to this head doctor, he assured me that the cause of his head shape has little to do with me and that I shouldn't blame myself.  Some babies heads are softer than others and they mold differently.  He said that they are getting more and more kids with this issue since society has converted babies to sleeping on their backs rather than their stomachs.  The good news about having babies sleep on their backs is that it has reduced SIDS by 40%!  Can you believe that?  That is huge!  So, take having a flat headed baby over, well, you know, losing your baby.
All of these pictures are taken with my cell phone so they aren't great quality, but you get the idea.
Before:

Here's how it works.  First he was measured with a fancy 3-part head ruler to see where he fell among the normal head scale.  It was pretty high so we were told to come back in 2 weeks to get his head scanned.  The scan is pretty cool.  They put a tight but stretchy nylon sock thing firmly on his head.  The sock has dots on it for the computer to read because hey, babies will move their heads and the dots help the computer understand where things connect.  The scanner is a large hand held machine that uses lasers to read the dots.  He held it a few inches away and moved it all around EZ's head.
He had on his Batman shirt this day which was totally appropriate when they put on that black cape!  Haha, he looked so cute!

   

 The information gets sent to a computer that builds a 3-D image of the baby's head.  They then send that image to a company in Florida where they create my baby's head out of a hard type of foam.  Then they add plaster to the foam head to give it the perfect shape.  Then they build the helmet over this foam head.  The idea is that the places where they added plaster will be pockets for my baby's head to grow into as he wears the helmet.  It gives the head the chance to grow the correct direction.

 He must wear it for 3-4 months, 23 hours a day.  So, it takes a little while.  And unfortunately the helmet's make the baby's sweat a ton and of coarse the timing is all summer long.  You aren't really supposed to wash the helmet because any residue can irritate their heads, so you mostly just rinse with hot hot water.  So, that part is going to suck but it'll be worth it.  They say since he's only about 5 months old, he has a good chance of getting a better head shape because he's so young.  The younger they start out, the better success they see.  He gets check-ups every 2-3 weeks to see the progress and adjust the helmet as he grows.  The helmets are made thick so they can be taken down as the baby grows.  Like, they shave off a layer from the inside, as needed.  I've talked to a few people who've gone through this and they said they would do it again for their kids in a heartbeat, if they had to.  Here's to hoping for a success story!

He doesn't mind it too much.  He mostly hates getting it taken off and put back on.  You can see the strap there, it's Velcro, so it's noisy!  It smushes his eyes a little, giving him a grumpy look a lot of the time.  It's only been a week but John and I feel like it's already making a difference.  The design is pretty snazzy eh?

John's Graduation

Three years ago John applied for Nursing school and didn't get in.  He applied again a few months later and again was rejected.  The third time he applied he branched out and was finally accepted.  He drove to Salt Lake for school a few times a week for nearly 2 years as he attended Eagle Gate College.  Yesterday, he graduated.  When he started two years ago, the end seemed very far away.  Nevertheless, it came!  I am so proud of my husband for all the hard work and dedication he showed.  He had some of the top grades in his class and everyone he worked with had great things to say about him.  He really has found something he loves and that he's good at.  Out of the 19 other students in his graduating class, they chose John and 1 other person to speak at the ceremony.  What an honor!  John loves to speak and he's good at it too!  Someone told us he was the unofficial valedictorian!  He drove up early and I rode up a little later with his parents.  We got there a good 20 minutes before things started.

Here's where the story gets really... interesting.  Ezekiel was doing really well... I made him a bottle and fed it to him while we were waiting for the ceremony to start.  He's always pretty mad when the milk runs out but thankfully there was a lot of talking and noise so no one really noticed his crying.  I had him sitting on my lap and after a few minutes... he was filling his diaper.  Now, he's at a stage where he only poops every few days.  I couldn't believe he had picked this moment to do it.  Minutes before the graduation ceremony.  So, I picked him up and swiftly took him to the bathroom to change him.  The bathroom was out of paper towels so I used my changing mat in my diaper bag to lay him on, on top of the changing table.  I pulled off his pants and got stuff on my hands...  He had blown out his diaper!  All over his pants, his onesie, and now my hand.  I grabbed out the wipes I had packed and noticed I only had about 5... I knew it wouldn't be enough.  I frantically stripped him all the way down and tried to clean him up managing with the few wipes I had.  He's wailing and kicking, naked, as I'm stressing out about the mess, lack of cleaning supplies, and praying that I don't get anything on my new dress.  It went fairly successfully.  He had to sport some casual back up clothes instead of the nice dressy clothes I had him in.  He eventually stopped crying and did amazingly well the rest of the night.  We got back into the event room about a minute before things started.  I was so relieved!  I had managed my first real scary outing-with-the-baby.   Panic mode subsided and I was able to enjoy the rest of the night.

The ceremony was really nice.  I got some pics and videos that should show you more than I could tell you about how things went.  The blonde woman was the other speaker and the girl playing the harp was a student as well.  The girl who John has his arm around, who is not me, is Lindsey.  She and John carpooled and did many study sessions together.

Here are the videos.  This first one is John's talk.  It's kinda long but worth watching!  The next one is his name being called and him receiving his "diploma".  The last is a candle lighting ceremony representing the times Florence Nightingale would check on soldiers in the night.  She is known as the mother of nursing, if ya didn't know.  What a great day!

Baby this, Baby that, dot dot dot

Alright, I think it's time for an update.  I know you all have been waiting!  First off, my kid is great!  He's absolutely perfect.  I couldn't ask for a more beautiful and healthy baby.  He is almost 4 months old.  He is smiling a ton every day and starting to laugh as well.  He hasn't lost any of his hair, in fact it just keeps growing.  It is almost 3 inches long now!  A couple weeks ago we started sleeping him in his own room in his crib.  John was eager to do it but it took me a while longer to be ok with not having him in our room just a couple feet away from me.  But there were a few days after feeling like I had to be quiet as to not wake him up where I lost too much sleep that made me ready.  And it has been a lot nicer!  He typically sleeps about 5-6 hours now which is great because I really only have to get up once a night to feed him!  Speaking of feeding... I thought I would enjoy breastfeeding, but I really don't.  I'd say 95% of the time I hate it.  It has been more of a challenge and taken a greater deal of effort than I ever imagined.  I always thought it was this wonderful bonding experience... but I'm not getting that.  It mostly feels like an inconvenience.  It takes a lot of time and patience, not to mention proper posture so my back doesn't ache.  Maybe because since I've been back at work, he is fed from a bottle and has come to prefer the bottle.  I want to do it because I want to give him the best.  I just can't help but count down the days til I can stop and get my body back to myself.  Ya know, this baby stuff really does change your life!  He's totally worth it though, just check out his cuteness.  I love him so much!

So yes as you read, I am back at work.  I am just working part time.  It's going good but it is hard not being my own boss.  I don't make my schedule anymore.  I am not in the loop of all that's going on, and I'm still not really friends with anyone I work with.  I mean, we get along great and work is pleasant, I just thought that once I wasn't the boss, people would open up to me more.  Maybe it'll just take time, but I haven't felt very welcomed since I got back.  My clients are what is keeping me around, but I'm starting to think that the majority of them will do just fine without me.  So, I guess what I'm getting at is that I want to quit.  Summer is almost here and I haven't had a summer off in years.  I'd like to have Saturdays to myself again.  I've worked at my job for 7 years now, and I think I'm ready to say goodbye.  John wants me to stay home with our son too so I know he's ok with it.  Once our finances are all caught up and John is working as a nurse making double what we're used to, I'll be able to stay home.

Speaking of John and school, he is almost done!  Only 2 more weeks of school!  Then a lot of studying to pass his test, which he'll take in May!  Then he just has to find a job!  We are very excited, but would probably be more excited if it really were the end.  He will continue on to get his Bachelor's Degree, then most likely apply for Nurse Anesthetist school.  So, he still has 3-5 more years but at least he'll be a Registered Nurse for those years making good money in the mean time.  He is working hard and wants to be done with school but we've just gotta stick it out.  It will totally pay off, literally, in the end!

I should probably take a quick minute to mention our son's blessing.  Grandma Lewis made EZ's blessing out fit and it turned out great.  My parents, as well as my sister, Cody, drove up from Arizona to be here for it.  They drove about 21+ hours for the trip in less than 4 days.  What love and support they showed. I so loved having them here!

 
Well that's about all that is going on around here.  Thanks for reading!