2 months old

I can't believe 2 months have already gone by (actually it was 2 months yesterday but we were busy unpacking). We went to his 2 month checkup today. Lincoln weighs 9 lbs 8 oz (15th percentile) and he is 22 1/2 inches (25th percentile). Lincoln's developmental specialist was worried about his weight since he is pretty small but the pediatrician is not too worried but we are going to start fortifying his formula to "beef" him up a bit. I think Lincoln is just always going to be small, his cousins Eli and Phoebe were the same way with their weight so we just have small babies apparently.
Over Thanksgiving, my MIL pointed out a knot on his Lincoln's neck that I had not noticed before so I asked my pedi about it. He looked at it and said it was a swollen lymph node and found a few more in his groin area. He decided to do blood work so any major infections could be ruled out. We will have the results sometime tomorrow. I am a little freaked out by it but I am trying my hardest not to think of the worst, even though I made the doctor tell me all the outcomes (bad and worst) that the blood work could tell. Hopefully it is some minor infection that he caught along the way and be cured with antibiotics. So with blood taken and 3 shots for immunizations, Lincoln has had a ROUGH afternoon. All he does when he is awake is cry this pitiful cry, so he is only awake long enough to take Tylenol and eat then back to bed!

Here are some 2 month pictures I took before his appointment today.

"Seriously Mom, what is that thing that keeps flashing at me?!"

Stuff I want to remember about Lincoln at this age:

• Lincoln is sleeping from 10-6 at night without waking up but we are hoping it gets better soon. He doesn't take a long nap usually during the day (short 30-45 naps) so we are working on getting a better schedule. His acid reflux could be part of this also, which we are working on as well.
• Lincoln is eating like a champ. He is on nectar and a half and can finish a bottle in 15-30 minutes. If Lincoln wakes up and his bottle is not ready when he is, then he is a little drama queen and lets you know that he is hungry!
• Lincoln is very curious about what is going on around him. He is pretty much always looking around and is losing the concerned look each day.
• Lincoln LOVES to look at ceiling fans. He can spot one in a room and will stare at it for the longest time. He will also smile and "talk" to the fan....a little strange.
• Lincoln is smiling more and more. I can usually get a smile if I sing or if he just woke up before he is hungry.
• Lincoln is focusing very well on faces and follows you around the room.
• Lincoln is getting more and more vocal. He will moan and groan if he is not happy with something and will "coo" at his toys hanging from his playmat. He still loves to look at his mirror. He tolerates tummy time much better now but is still not a fan of it.
• Lincoln had first road trip this November. He did great driving to KS.

Overall Lincoln is a pretty easy baby. He is figuring out the crying thing but once his needs are met then he is content.

Can't wait for all the firsts he will have this month....first time to meet his cousins, Eli and Phoebe and first Xmas!

Thanksgiving Kansas-style

This year we had Nimz Thanksgiving (my family switches the holidays every year which is a great plan because we always know where we are going!) This was Lincoln's first road trip and he did great for the 7 hour car ride. He slept most of the way except to eat once in Gunthrie, OK but once we got to Sandy and Kevin's (at 3 am) he was wide AWAKE all night. Oh well, Shane and I got to sleep the next night.



Lincoln got loads of attention with lots of cuddling. I think he is going through withdrawals now that we are back at home and not holding him 24/7!



Miss Em got to hold Lincoln first thing in the morning....check out her morning hair, very cute!

Great Grandma Bostick meets her newest grandson

Aunt Shannon and Uncle Dustin got in their time with him

Another of Em and Lincoln....holding Lincoln was a bride we used to get her to shower or take her medicine...seemed to work!

The Nimz men

We had a mini photo shoot with the family by the pond. I had wanted to take Shane and I's Christmas card picture but I am not too pleased with what I got. We also took a few whole family pictures, which I think turned out better.

The whole crew at Thanksgiving

Grandma Bostick with a few of her grandchildren

My little turkey

Happy Boy!

We played Chickenfoot one night and Lincoln was talking and laughing with Aunt Pam....it was pretty cute!

On Friday, we ventured out to Wakeneey, KS to visit the other set of great grandparents (Kevin's parents). Grandma Nimz was pretty smitten by Lincoln and I think he felt the same way about her.

4 generations of Nimz....Lincoln can get a glimpse to what he will look like in the years to come!

On our way home, we stopped in Wichita to see Dustin and Shannon's new house and got to visit with Todd (one of Shane's college buddies) and his wife Kim. (Sorry Kim no pictures with you...guess you guys will need to come to TX!)

Well that was our Thanksgiving, pretty relaxing with lots of family. Lincoln did great with the change and now we are getting back to "normal".

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Shane and I are thankful for our health, our families, friends and most of all our little turkey!

Hope you have a great day of food and families!

Gobble, Gobble!

Happy Hump Day!

Lincoln had a cardiologist appointment today. When he was discharged from the NICU I was given a lengthy list of doctors and appointments that I needed to meet once he got out, one was the follow-up with the cardiologist. Apparently when Lincoln was born, he had one artery that was open that should not have been (this the best explanation I got, I was not meant to listen and retain medical jargon!) A lot of preemies have this issue and small number of full-term babies do as well, but artery will usually thin out then close itself. After a sonogram we learned the artery had closed itself, which is good news. I also learned that when he was born he had a heart murmur which they found to be a hole in his heart. I did not know he had this during his NICU stay and his heart monitors never showed any issues (I love it that I am finding out more and more about his health AFTER we left the NICU, insert sarcasm!) After a sonogram today, the hole in his heart is still there between the top two chambers of heart but it is decreasing by itself. When he was born the hole was 3 ml and now it is 2 ml. The cardiologist just wants to watch it and we will go back in 6 months to see what it has done. I am not too concerned with this issue, my niece has a hole in heart and she is energetic, normal 2 and a half year old so I am not concerned. It is just another thing to add to the list of things we are discovering about Lincoln that is abnormal. He is special in so many ways! So that was our day in a nutshell (I could go on about how his cardiologist is a little on the strange side and kept calling Lincoln a girl. I almost said "Please open HIS chart and check the gender before you go on any further" but I didn't, my mother would be proud that I kept my mouth shut!)

Lincoln is so happy that this week is halfway over!
Cute boy!

Lil Longhorn

Thanks Aunt Pam and Uncle Billy for the Longhorns cap! Mom made me wear it since it is getting colder.

Our Quiet Monday

Today has been a rare day for Lincoln and I....we had no doctor appointments today which meant we stayed at home in our jammies all day! It was colder outside so we had a great excuse to not go anywhere.

Lincoln has been a little out of sorts the last few days. About 2 weeks ago we went to his 1 month pediatrician appointment and the doctor changed his acid reflux medicine from Zantac to Prevacid. We think he has silent reflux and Prevacid should work better but it would take about 2-4 weeks to "kick in". Then about a week ago, I realized that I was not pumping enough milk to keep up with how much milk he was wanting. I called the pedi and was told that I could mix half formula and half breastmilk for each bottle. Lincoln has been on Similac Neo-Sure since he was in NICU for added calories so I didn't think he would have too much trouble if we just added more to the bottle. Apparently I was wrong.

In the last week, we have seen some changes in Lincoln's eating. He has "spit up" about 4 times in the last week. I say "spit up" loosely....it was more like projectile a whole feeding at once! Not fun at 3:00 am when you are exhausted to be changing a cranky baby and myself and scrubbing the couch....great way to start the day! I know babies spit up but I took note of when it happened and realized it was happening more and more. Also after his feedings (spit up or not) he is REALLY cranky. All I can do is hold him and rock until he passes out, which wasn't really the BabyWise method I wanted to follow. I think he is having some major acid reflux which makes him uncomfortable. I don't know if the new medicine isn't working or it hasn't fully kicked in. Since we have added more formula to his feedings we have noticed it looks thinner after we add his Simply Thick. We are adding the same amount as we did when it was purely breastmilk but it just looks thinner. I wasn't too concerned with it because I was doing what I was taught until he started sounding a bit "nasaly", probably not a word but when he eats it sounds like a person with head congestion. I noticed it more this weekend which makes me think he is still aspirating into his nasal cavities. So this morning I called the pedi and told them all my concerns (I am sure they are tired of hearing from me!) The nurse called back and said to switch his formula to Enfamil and see if it changes the spitting up problem. We will start that tomorrow and see what happens. With the nasal issue, we had a swallow test scheduled for next Monday for a few weeks but his pedi was a bit concerned with waiting that long so we are trying to get it sooner to sometime this week. I never heard back so hopefully I will tomorrow. All afternoon I have been nervous about a swallow test, I am scared that he will be aspirating back into his nasal cavities and I am not sure what they will want to do. My fear is to put a feeding tube back in but I am sure they won't unless it is a last resort. I want to get this taken care of quickly because I don't want Lincoln to start getting food aversions (fear of eating). That is a road that I do not want to walk! So far he wants to eat but once he starts then he gets cranky.

So today was supposed to be a relaxing Monday to start the week but instead I have been dealing with a very cranky boy who isn't thrilled with eating and letting my mind wonder to the worst outcomes of his next swallow test.

We have had some of this.....
But mostly this.....

Let's just say I was thrilled when Shane got home! I will update when I know anything!

Looking for a smile

Nope not a smile....
Getting closer...

Almost a smile...

There it is.....

Sweet boy!

"I am ready to meet my cousins, Eli and Phoebe!"

I am so upset that I have not gotten a chance to meet my cousins yet! I hear Eli is the most fun, Star War lovin', adventure takin' boy and I am ready to join in with him. I hear Phoebe will want to hold me, she is the best dressed gal, and she can teach me a thing or two about eating! When will I get to play with them?!! That is it I am going to cry until someone gets me what I want!
Ok Mom just told me that they are coming to Nena and Grandaddy for Xmas in a month (whatever that is!) so for now I will just hold my puppy. I hear Eli is a cool dog named Ruff, maybe he will bring him along.

Lincoln and I feel the same way...missing our Amarillo family! Counting down the days until Xmas.

Lincoln was especially cranky today so I figured this was why!

Cuddlebug

I am happy to learn that Lincoln LOVES to cuddle. I was a little worried because my MIL told me that Shane was not a fan of being held or cuddled as a baby (big surprise...he still doesn't!) But it seems as though our son is like me and is a huge fan of being cuddled and held which makes me smile. Here a few people who have gotten the pleasure lately of cuddling with Linc!

Though Shane is not a fan of cuddling, he certainly will with Lincoln. It looks like Lincoln is holding in his paci in case someone wants to take it.
Grandaddy and Lincoln "resting" their eyes

Aunt Sarah got in some time

Kee came to visit and Lincoln was pretty excited to snuggle with her for a bit!

Nena (my mom) got in lots of time of cuddles but I didn't document it this weekend. Shane went hunting last weekend so I spent the weekend at my parent's so I wouldn't have to do it all alone. It was great to have 2 extra set of hands during the night to help feed.

I am keeping my fingers crossed that this cuddly baby will stay for awhile because I am enjoying it for now!

(To Aunt Jordan: The family already knows that at Xmas you will be first pick to get to cuddle with Lincoln....don't worry!)

A day with Lincoln

Life has calmed down and I am enjoying my time at home with Lincoln. We have yet to have one day where we go nowhere (except last Sunday because I wasn't feeling well) due to doctor appointments and his 3 visits a week to Vitalstim (all at the hospital) but we do have some "down time". I still have not done any major cleaning (which the house desperately needs) and I just folded the MOUNTAIN of clean clothes because I am playing with this cutie!

I was told that Lincoln needed to have tummy time to help strengthen his weak reflexes so try to a few times a day.

Lincoln is not a fan but he doesn't scream and cry anymore, just looks at me like "Seriously, why are we doing this?!"
We then move to the boppy so he can rest on it, which he handles better.

Shane and I made the decision to not buy a swing because we weren't sure how often we would use it and they are pretty expensive, now we wish we would have invested in one sooner! My mom had this one at her house so we are using it and it is heaven sent! Lincoln is very content to just sit and look around while I make his bottle or clean up his bottle (that is about the only cleaning I am doing lately!)

But eventually that gets boring....

Hope you enjoyed a quick walk through our day...maybe some day I will post pictures of Lincoln's Vitalstim since that is where we spend so much of our time!

Happy Halloween!

Yes these pictures are a few days late but we are still adjusting to having our house run by an infant!
Lincoln had a great first Halloween. Shane parents (Gigi and Pappy) came to visit from KS and my parents (Nena and Grandaddy) spent most the weekend here as well. We did not want to venture out anywhere due to all the sickness that is floating around the DFW area so we stayed home and had a party ourselves. The grandmas and I cooked snack foods for dinner, queso, wings, dips and such (Shane called it bar food all night), passed out candy to the 6 trick or treaters (seriously only 6! I was a little disappointed) and played Chickenfoot. Shane's aunt and uncle joined the fun as well. It was a great, quiet way to spend the holiday!

My cutest pumpkin
It's a bird, It's a plane...It's Superman!!! Easiest costume ever for an infant!

Cute family!

Lincoln and his wonderful grandparents!

3 generations of Nimz men....yes Lincoln looks JUST like Shane's baby pictures, but he has a few of my features but mostly he is a Nimz, maybe the next one will look more like me!

That sums up his first Halloween which was a great one! I can't wait to trick or treat next year!

Lincoln had his first pedi appointment today and he said everything looks great! He is 8 lbs and 1 oz which is the 20th percentile and he 21 in which is the 30th percentile. He does have a rash on his stomach area that the dr thinks is from an allergic reaction to something that touched him. Not sure what it was since all his clothes and receiving blankets were washed in Dreft but I am rewashing more stuff. Lincoln has sensitive skin so hopefully it will away soon. Other than that everything was great!

I am hoping I get better at updating this but sometimes the choice is blog or take a nap with Lincoln....hmmm, which to choose?!

1 month!

I am a little late in posting Lincoln's 1 month pictures, but it has been a crazy weekend around here!

Lincoln came home in time to celebrate his 1 month birthday. Here a few things I want to remember about Lincoln at this age....

• At birth he weighed 6 lbs 14 oz and when he left the hospital he was 7 lbs 15 oz. We go to the pedi tomorrow so I am sure he will be over 8 lbs.
• This boy is an eating champ! He came eating 70-80 ml every 3-4 hours. He seemed to be cranky about 2 hours after each feeding so we increased his bottle to 100 ml and he did great. This morning he was acting pretty hungry so I measured out 120 ml and he did it very quickly. He is doing great with the swallowing especially with the thickness of his milk.
• Lincoln is pretty much always content. As long as he is dry and full then he is happy. He only cries when one of those two things are wrong.
• Lincoln has been sleeping longer amounts during the night. He can go about 4-5 hours without waking up. As soon as I feed in the night then he goes right back to sleep. This is a huge blessing and I am keeping my fingers crossed that it doesn't change. Sleep is a little harder for me since I wake up and feed him then I have to pump so I am awake during the night for a little over an hour so it is helpful when he sleeps longer amounts so I can too! (Shane is a HUGE help with this but I try to only make him feed once in the night since he is working all day, that will change when I go back to work!)
• Though Lincoln sleeps pretty well at night he doesn't sleep well during the day. He will take short 20 minute naps in his bed but that is about it. He will sleep for hours on someone or next to someone in a bed but I am trying to stop those habits. But sometimes I am too tired to fight that battle and he is too frustrated with it so we cuddle and both get a nap! The speech therapist said he might be having some silent acid reflux issues which are keeping him awake during the day (and he sleeps at night because he is exhausted) so I will talk with the pedi tomorrow about it.
• Lincoln is a pretty "gasy" boy. He toots and poops constantly! I am happy to know that all works right!
• He loves to look at lights and focuses pretty well on them.
• Lincoln needs some music to fall asleep. We took his noise machine up to the hospital and the nurses started using it, now he needs it to fall asleep. He is currently sleeping in our room so we turn the music on to let him fall asleep then we turn it off because it starts to drive us nuts with the same 4 lullabies playing over and over.

That is lots of info to read so you must be a great friend or grandma but I wanted a place to always have it.

Here are Lincoln's 1 month pictures.

He is not a huge pacifier fan but he will sometimes take it.

Lincoln's first bath at home. Nena gave it to him and he was not a fan!