Big Boy

Brandon is starting to look more and more like a toddler now. Where did my baby go?

Ready for the Steelers Game

Brandon's Steelers jersey came yesterday so I dressed him in it after being at Becky's house for the day for the big game. He didn't make it up to see any of the game but he looked cute in his jersey.

Brandon had another good week at the babysitters although he definitely seems to be missing me more. He is okay when he is there but when he gets home he has been crying a lot more than usual, especially if I walk out of the room or if I try to hand him off to Stu at times. We had a really difficult time taking a picture of Brandon and Stu last night in their Steelers jerseys because everytime I handed Brandon to Stu he started to cry. He just wanted to be with me. I am sure in another few weeks he will be okay at home again.

Brandon said "mom" clear as can be yesterday. This morning when he woke up I changed his diaper and got him dressed and then he said "ba ba" for his bottle which he has never done before.

I am looking forward to spending the next two days with Brandon now that the weekend is here. On Sunday we have the NICU walk which I am looking forward to. Last year Brandon got out of the hospital six days after the walk so he was not able to do it with us so this year it will be really neat having him there with us.

Labor Day Weekend

We had a good Labor Day weekend. Yesterday we met Sara, her husband Evan, and their baby Marino. I know Sara from a preemie message board that I am part of and they were in NJ yesterday visiting some friends of theirs. We met them and their friends at the beach in Asbury Park. It wasn't a good beach day but it was really nice meeting them. Marino is 2 days older than Brandon but wasn't born quite as early as Brandon was.

We went to my parents beach house in Point Pleasant last night to see them, Brian, Laura, and Laura's parents who were visiting from California. All of us then went out to dinner. Brandon was really good at dinner, especially considering the fact that we didn't go to dinner until 6:30 and were there until 8:30.

Today we went to a barbeque at our friend Stephanie's parents' house. Brandon had a lot of fun swimming in the pool at their house and tried chocolate pudding for the first time which he loved. I put the plate down for a second when I was feeding him some pudding and he started to cry.

Pictures from this week

I fell behind this week on the blog since I went back to work. Here are some pictures of Brandon from this week.

14 Months Old

Brandon is 14 months old today (11 months adjusted). He was at the pediatrician yesterday for his flu shot and weighed 19 pounds, 15 ounces (1 more ounce and we can finally put him in his new car seat forward facing). Brandon started going to the babysitters this week and so far has adjusted well. He has been eating and napping well. He is tired when he gets home from playing all day and has been sleeping really well at night too. I started back at work as well and so far things are going well. My class this year seems good so far although it is very boy heavy (12 boys, 7 girls) which really makes a huge difference in kindergarten. It is hard only seeing Brandon for 3-4 hours before he goes to sleep for the night but I know I will enjoy my time with him on the weekends much more than before and I will have the weekends to look forward to.

At 14 months old, Brandon:
- is finally sleeping through the night
- has 7 teeth (4 on the top, 3 on the bottom)
- weighs 19 pounds, 15 ounces- I am not sure how long he is
- is wearing 12 month or 12-18 month clothes
- loves to eat table food but still eats baby cereal, fruit, and vegetables to supplement the table food
- crawls quickly and really well
- pulls to stand all the time and cruises all the time
- is drinking four bottles of whole milk a day
- still will not drink out of a sippy cup- he chews on it like it is a teething ring
- loves to play with his toys
- waves hi and bye

Last Day at Home

Today is my last day at home with Brandon before I go back to work. I have been home for 16 months due to bedrest, Brandon's NICU time, and staying home with Brandon since he came home from the hospital at the end of September last year. It has gone by so fast. I am sad to be returning to work but not upset that I need to go back. I am sad that I will not be spending the time with Brandon but I like my job teaching a lot. I never planned on staying home with Brandon for as long as I did and then he was so early and had so many doctor appointments his first 5-6 months home that I really had to. I am so happy that I was able to stay at home with him as long as I did and see him develop into the toddler that he is turning into. I am sad that I will probably miss some of his milestones but he will be in good hands when I am gone.

This morning I brought Brandon for his one year bloodwork. I had brought him in the beginning of June for it the first time and they put the needle in at the lab and couldn't get any blood out so they told me to come back in a month. I waited until now because I was so upset that they had put the needle in knowing they couldn't find a good vein the first time. This time they were able to find a vein and get blood out. Brandon cried the whole time.

Maureen and Danny. who just turned 1 a few weeks ago, came over this afternoon for a little while. Brandon and Danny had a good time playing together. Danny kept giving Brandon hugs and kisses...so cute.

Monmouth Medical Center NICU (Regional Newborn Center) walk

Dear Friends and Family,

On Sunday, September 13,Stu, Brandon, and I will be participating in the third annual Big Steps for Little Feet, a fund-raiser for the Regional Newborn Center at The Children's Hospital at Monmouth Medical Center that will be held on the Beachfront North at Pier Village in Long Branch. Please consider a gift in support of my team or joining my team -- your donation will be going toward a very worthy cause!

This is a very important cause to us since Brandon was in the NICU (Regional Newborn Center) at Monmouth Medical Center for 12 weeks in 2008 after he was born 14 weeks early. If it weren't for the wonderful nurses and neonatologists Brandon would not be where he is today.

All proceeds of this event will help the RNC continue to provide the highest quality neonatal intensive care service to the fragile newborns it serves, and help it to expand that care to help even more families in need. Any amount that you can give is greatly appreciated. Past proceeds from Big Steps for Little Feet have helped Monmouth to purchase the newest life-saving equipment to treat these fragile newborns.

Thank you so much for your support!

Click here to view the team page for Team Brandon
If the text above does not appear as a clickable link, you can visit the web address:
http://mmcf.convio.net/site/TR/Particpantswhoraiseatleast100/General?team_id=1370&pg=team&fr_id=1040&et=iZFjoUyKCzXPDz9Vc8AZNg..&s_tafId=1151

Love,
Karen