Busy, Busy Memorial Day Weekend

I think it may be safe to say after this weekend that Evan could win a contest for how many parties/gatherings he has been to at such a young age. It’s tough when there are so many people so anxious to meet you. This weekend was filled with friends and family, all of whom loved meeting Evan. Not only was it Memorial Day weekend, a normally busy weekend for BBQ’s anyway, but Chuck was visiting from Atlanta. What a great excuse for three days of fun…oh, and of course some beer pong!

Saturday we went to Tim’s to see most of the TKE clan. This is where Evan met his first girlfriend, Tara. I’m still not sure who enjoyed the afternoon more, Tara or Evan! Thanks to Tara, who held Evan much of the day, Bruce and I were able to enjoy a few baby-free moments. I still think we may need to pay her for her baby-sitting services. Especially seeing as she held him for a while again on Sunday while we were at Mike and Michelle’s house. Luckily for me, the guys aren’t as young as they used to be and things got started a little later than originally planned on Sunday. This gave me time to take a nap and still allowed us to go to the party for a little while. It was nice to see everyone and to see Dylan, Evan’s future beer pong partner, walking. It is also nice to know that our lives aren’t over just because we have a baby now. We will still be invited to parties and such even if we are one of the only ones with kids.

The "Boston" Crew

Lovely Kristie

Chuck, all the way from Atlanta

Evan and his first girlfriend, Tara

The dog ate my homework, Mrs. Wheeler

On Monday, we brought Evan to Uncle Dan and Aunt Karin’s house for what was surely the first of many, many trips to Rhode Island. Bruce and I went with Dan and Karin and the three boys down to the Gaspee Arts and Crafts Festival. I am not sure if it just seemed better when I was younger or if it actually was but we really didn’t even so much as look at anything. Lots of hippie/bohemian clothing and lots of jewelry – not really what we were looking for. Oh well, the doughboys were good and it was nice to get out and enjoy the day. After returning to Dan and Karin’s house, we had another cookout. Gigi, Bumpa, Papa & Gramma and Grammy came over too. This was the first time that Gigi and Grammy had met Evan. I am sure that he can already feel the love that we all have for him! So as you can see, it was a busy weekend with lots of new and different people!

I had a long day, Daddy

So silly!

Gigi and her 9th great-grandchild!!

Evan’s First Bath

I thinkthe pictures speak for themselves as far as telling the story of Evan’s first bath. You will notice that he is nice and calm in the before and after pictures but that during was quite a different story. We kept trying to tell him that he would eventually come to love bath time but I don’t think he quite believes us just yet!

The calm before the storm	Total melt down	Why are you torturing me, Mom?
Whew, I made it!	Ah, much better	I'm watching you...no funny business

Daddy Is “Back At Work”

We were so fortunate with the amount of time that Bruce was able to take off from work but it still flew by, especially considering that we had almost two weeks alone before Evan arrived. While it might have been nice to have Bruce home longer after Evan was born, it was nice to the time that we did have together before he was born. It will never be just the two of us again! Sad and exciting all at the same time.

Anyway, Bruce was scheduled to go back to work on the 24^th and decided to work from home Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. These were practice days to see how things went. At that point, I was still having good days and not so good days due to recovering and being over tired from doing too much and sleep deprivation so it was nice to have a little extra help for the first few days. Plus, I always like it better when Bruce is home!

Thursday was Bruce’s first day back in the office and while Evan and I made it through the day, it wasn’t the smoothest. I blame it on lack of sleep and food. Anyone who really knows me knows how I am when I don’t get enough sleep and when I am over hungry. Not a good combination! Add in the stress of having a newborn and you get a day that isn’t terrible but not great either. Thankfully today was much better and I hope that each day will prove to be easier and easier.

Such a stressful life	Position is everything	Who me?
Oh...oh, oh, oh...	Whatchu talkin' 'bout Willis"?	Love those smiles!
Quality time with Dad	How do those work, Dad?	All ready to go

Test Driving Mommy’s New Car & Meeting the Cenotti’s

Seeing as we will now have a regular backseat rider, we knew it was time to get rid of the Solara and get another 4-door car. We had done our research and knew that we were looking for a white Acura TSX before Evan arrived. We had test-driven one and had found a few online with low mileage that were in our price range. We were especially interested in one car in particular at a dealership in Canton, MA. We drove out to see it on April 25^th, only to learn that it was not actually in MA yet. While we were waiting for Evan to arrive, we also waited and waited for the salesman to call us to tell us it arrived. A phone call that did not come until Tuesday, May 18^th! And we thought we had to wait a long time for Evan to arrive!! We decided to go on Friday the 21^st to see the car, only to find out that it had already been sold!! Much to our surprise, the salesman from the dealership called us on Saturday to tell us that the financing for the buyer had fallen through and that the car was available. We knew we needed to act fast and went today to see the car.

As soon as we saw it we knew it was beautiful. Just what we had been hoping for! We took it for a test drive and then started talking money. The dealership was willing to give us more than we had hoped for the Solara, which just sweetened the pot. After conferring for just a few minutes, our decision was made. Sold!!

Goodbye, Solara! You were a great car.

Hello, TSX! Four doors but still sporty.

So where does Evan fit into all of this. Well we left the house around one o’clock, got to the dealership, took the car for a test drive, negotiated a price and then went to get a sandwich for a late lunch all while Evan slept! Amazing! We kept thinking that he was waking up and we would need to feed him either at the dealership or while having our lunch but he down for the count - at least until about five minutes before arriving at the Cenotti’s. We had originally planned on having the Cenotti’s visit us but it made more sense for us to go to them seeing as we were going to be in Canton anyway.
Needless to say, we arrived at the Cenotti’s with a baby who was famished and soiled (to quote Bruce). Luckily they have lots of experience with babies and were not scared off. You may think this was an extremely long day for a baby just over two weeks old, which it was but he took it all in stride. It was so nice to visit with Amelia, Chris, Abby, Conner and Emily. Great for all of them to meet Evan!! We know we will make many special memories with them in the years to come!

Hi, Meal!

Chris looks like he has done this before

Meeting Nurse Emily

Visitors from Alaska and Washington, DC

With Adria and Avi visiting from DC and Laura, Mark and Henry (who is absolutely adorable!!!) visiting from Alaska, we all decided that the best and easiest way for everyone to get together and meet Evan would be for us to host a gathering where the girls and their boys came to us. It was hard for me to commit to anything too early but as the day approached I knew it was the best way to see everyone. Everyone was so generous in what they brought that it really minimized what Bruce and I had to do to get ready for the day. Plus it was a beautiful day so that we were able to be out on the deck, leaving minimal cleanup inside once everyone left. Perfect!

It was great to see everyone, especially those that we don’t get to see very often! Everyone was excited to meet Evan, who slept through most of the party again. He was in his swing in the dining room for much of the afternoon and people kept going in the house to peek at him. Each time he was asleep. Later in the afternoon, he did wake up and once fed, we played “Pass the Evan”. Everyone gets a turn! He didn’t seem to mind being passed around and even opened his eyes a few times once it wasn’t so bright outside. While Evan won’t really remember the day, it was nice that our friends, especially those who live far away, were able to meet our little guy.

Nicole meets another Evan Robert

Jeff practicing for August when he becomes a daddy

Hello, Adria!

What great parents Adria and Avi will make

The girls...minus Amanda

Week Two Follow Up at the Pediatrician

Our second week at home proved to be much less eventful than the first.  We had begun to figure each other out a bit more and were falling into a nice rhythm.  We celebrated Grandpa Bob’s birthday on Monday the 17^th, spent some more quality time with Grandpa Bob and Omi before saying goodbye to them on Wednesday the 19^th, had another visit from Papa and Gramma (a dry one this time!), and went to a few stores to run a few errands.  It was nice to be out of the house!!  A bit more complicated than it used to be but still nice!

Tough Guy	Mommy loves her little man
Breakfast with Grandpa Bob	Smiles for Gramma

On Friday the 21^st, Evan had his week two follow up at the pediatrician.  We arrived a little early (I know, hard to believe that we were early for anything, especially with a two week old baby, but we were) and were hoping to be called a little early too.  No such luck!  There was an emergency at the office that morning which caused everything to get backed up.  Evan was as good as always and only fussed a little bit when he was hungry.  We started to feed him and figured we would be called right then (Murphy’s Law, right?) but we were able to complete the entire feeding before the doctor was able to come in to examine Evan.  At his two-week weigh-in, Evan was an even 10 pounds!  He gained 13 ounces in one week!!  I guess he wasn’t having any trouble eating! Dr. Gonroff examined him and could not believe how alert he was for only being two weeks old.  She said that she normally sees that level of alertness in babies 4-6 weeks old.  How advanced for his age!  We received a clean bill of health and scheduled our next few appointments before we left.  I can’t wait to see what Evan weighs at his one month visit!

Love the hands

Relaxing with Dad

Wrapped around his little finger

Visit with the Kavanagh’s

When Uncle Dan and Aunt Karin came to see us at the hospital then left Danny and Sean at home with Grammy. This was good for two reasons. One: I was so tired from the c-section that I don’t think I would have been able to handle Danny’s energy. Two: We don’t really know if the kids would have been allowed to come in or not. As a result of the kids staying at home, Danny asked his mom and dad all week “when do I get to meet my cousin? When can I meet Evan Robert Jumping Jack?” (He was very excited about the new addition to our family!) So we arranged for Dan, Karin, Danny and Sean to come and visit on Sunday the 16^th. We also invited Gramma and Papa as well so that everyone would get a chance to visit with Omi and Grandpa Bob while they were here.

The Kavanagh clan arrived around 1 o’clock on Sunday with everything you need to have a BBQ. Everyone was concerned about me doing to much so they brought the party to us. In addition to what we would eat that day, Aunt Karin also made a few extra meals for Bruce and I to have on those days when cooking just isn’t an option. As luck would have it, the man of the hour was sleeping when everyone arrived. Not only was he sleeping when everyone arrived but he pretty much slept right through the party. Evan went down for a nap around noon, woke up (if you can even call it that when you only have one eye open) around 4 to eat and then quickly fell asleep again and slept until around 8. Danny was able to peek in on Evan while he was sleeping and whispered very quietly so he wouldn’t wake Evan. We were able to take a few pictures of all three boys before Evan drifted back to sleep. Needless to say, I am sure that our future visits with the Kavanagh cousins will be much more interesting than this one turned out to be.

Lunch with Aunt Karin	Proud cousin Danny	A sweet little kiss
Danny is so excited about his new cousin	Chillin' with Papa	The Boys!

Week One Follow Up at the Pediatrician

Our first adventure out of the house together since arriving home on Tuesday was to take Evan to the pediatrician for a one week weight check. With the help of Omi and Grandpa Bob, we were able to shower, eat and leave the house on time.

Evan’s pediatrician was out of the office so we saw one of the doctors who had checked in on Evan twice while in the hospital, Dr. Kane. Upon examination, Dr. Kane told us that Evan was doing all the things he should be and was doing them quite well He weighed 9 pounds, 3 ounces (just 5 ounces less than his birth weight and 3-4 ounces more than when we left the hospital) I guess we were starting to figure this parenting thing out pretty well after all, despite our first few days at home!!

That afternoon was beautiful and we spent some time out on the deck. It was too bright out for Evan’s liking causing him to barely open his eyes at all. While outside, our neighbors came over to meet Evan and to drop off a gift they had purchased for him. The kids were excited to see him and thought he was quite little!

Oh so bright!

Sitting with Mom

The First 48 Hours at Home

Our life at home with Evan starting out pretty smoothly…for the first few hours anyway.  We got settled, Gramma and Papa arrived and we were visiting with them when things started to go awry.  Papa was about to feed Evan when we discovered that the bottle was leaking.  Problem 1 quickly fixed.  Evan took his bottle, burped like a champ and then thanked Papa by peeing on him.  It’s a bit blurry now but I think this was the second or third diaper issue we had already had on Tuesday.  Rookie mistakes!  Needless to say, things got worse before they got better.  In a short period of time, we seemed to have used up every outfit, sleeper, blanket, and bib that we had.  I had visions of needing to do laundry everyday!!

Before peeing on Papa

I love Gramma!

Comfy in the boppy

The first night wasn’t much better either.  Bruce took the early shift and was completely exhausted by about 2 am.  (Completely understandable seeing as Bruce had spent the last 5 days taking care of all 3 of us!)  Evan was due to eat again around 2:30 so I decided to sit up with him, while he slept, until he woke up ready to eat.  Well this didn’t happen until 6 am!  What a good little sleeper we have!!  After feeding Evan, I knew he needed a clean diaper so I got up to change him.  At that point I realized that my legs were the size of an elephant’s legs from all the swelling and I could barely stand.  Not a smart decision, mom!

Wednesday things went a little smoother.  Still a few diaper issues and changing Evan’s clothes was proving to be challenging, but we were figuring it out.  I think we all slept a lot that day, recovering from the night we had on Tuesday.  Around 7 pm, Omi and Grandpa Bob arrived for their week-long visit with their new grandson.  They were thrilled to meet him and we were happy to have two extra sets of hands to help out!    We had a relatively low key visit.  Bruce and Grandpa Bob were able to get a few projects done in the yard and Omi was more than happy to feed and keep on eye on Evan so that I could rest and recover.  We spent lots of time comparing Evan to his cousins – Danny, Sean and Hannah, and had many nice evenings watching what Bruce and I call “baby TV”.

Meeeting Omi and Grandpa Bob for the first time

Sweet little angel