Thanksgiving

Brent and I always stay in town for Thanksgiving. Most of his family is in the Nashville area and my dad's side of the family is in Nashville as well. My mom's side is scattered all around so we get together with them every Christmas in West Virginia. Except this year starts the good ole being married every other year with the in-laws thing! I like my in laws so it will be fun but I WILL miss going to WV! Anyways, back to Thanksgiving. As you know from my previous post, Thanksgiving morning was the Boulevard Bolt and it was a bit chilly this year! I definitely had to wear and sweat shirt and an ear band. I carried Rowen in a baby carrier because they don't allow strollers on the course( even though every year there are strollers! ). Boy, I don't know why I thought carrying him would be an easy task...it wasn't! He is getting to be really heavy these days!! He is at least 10 lbs and I  am thinking he is 11 lbs by now. So besides just walking 5 miles, I was carrying an extra 10 lbs of baby :) Shannon walked it with Brent and I and we had a great time. Around mile 3 we spotted my parents so we joined them for the rest of the race. We ran into Robin and Beth right after the race started which was pure luck being that there were around 8000+ people there that morning! That was their first time seeing baby Rowen. He stayed warm the whole time and even caused me to sweat.. a lot! Holding a baby up against you will warm you up in no time. Their bodies are little tiny heaters. 

Shannon, Me, Rowen, & Brent 

The Boulevard Bolt was fun as always and I can't wait till next year! We grabbed Starbucks right after the race since we had parked in their parking lot. Oh it was soooo delicious! After getting ready at home, we headed to Franklin to have lunch with my side of the family. We get together with the Thompson's every year! Their were 14 of us. Jim, Angie, and Sarah were the only ones not there b/c they were in Memphis with Jim's family. The food was so delicious and there was SO much of it!! I love Thanksgiving leftovers :)

We left Franklin and headed to Smyrna to have more food with some of Brent's family. We were excited that his great grandmother would be there b/c she hadn't seen the baby yet! Rowen is her great great grandson. Since she was there, a 5 generation picture was a must!! 

5 generations

Brent's great grandma with Rowen

There was quite the crowd at Brent's grandma and grandpa's house as well. I think there were around 16 of us! And of course there was more yummy food. I was really proud of myself for not overeating at either meal! That is the worst feeling. Brent, Rowen, and I had a great Thanksgiving. I was exhausted when we got home!! Shannon got Rowen a super cute Thanksgiving outfit...

Such a cute little turkey :)

It's that time of year again!!!

Tomorrow is one of my most favorite days of the year! Many of you know why...besides fun fellowship with family and a ton of great food, it's the Boulevard Bolt day! I love this tradition that I have been part of since I was 15 or 16...Since that first race, I have made this a tradition for my parents and for Brent! This will be me and Brent's third year to participate in the race together. 

We have a new addition this year :) So obviously we won't be running which I am kind of bummed about! Instead of running, we will be with the walkers this year and it will be baby Rowen's first race! I better get out the baby carrier and make sure that he fits in it securely. I haven't tested it out yet! I will literally wake up tomorrow morning super excited to get the day started. Being part of this race is the best feeling and the greatest way to start Thanksgiving morning. I really can't imagine my day without it! This year there will be some newbies besides baby Rowen...my friends Shannon, Meredith, and Meredith's hubby, Jordan. I am so excited that they will be joining in on the fun! Maybe they will make the Boulevard Bolt a tradition too. And as always my friends Beth and Robin will be there as well. 

 I believe there were 8700 participants last year! 

I love running by this one house on the Boulevard that is always setting up tables and chairs in their yard for a brunch after the race...there is always a truck in the driveway unloading food from Loveless! As you run by you get a huge wiff of those yummy biscuits...it's torture really! Brent and I hope everyone enjoys the day with their families! 

We hope everyone has a 

Happy Thanksgiving! 

               

Brent and I have a one month old!

Time is flying! Rowen is one month old today. He is growing so quickly and changing in various ways every day. Right now he is sleeping and looks so sweet :) He is such a cutie!! 

He weighs a whopping 10 pounds and 1 ounce. He has no problem eating that's for sure! I am glad he is gaining weight b/c that reassures me that he is indeed getting enough to eat. I'm thinking he is around 22 inches long. His little legs are already so long. I am sure he is going to be a tall boy based on my height and his daddy's height. He still has the same amount of hair on his head....very little. I think his little barely fuzzy head is cute. Brent and I were both blonde when we were little so we are both wondering if it will change from its current light brown to blonde. His eyes are still blue and have up to around six months to change if they are going to. I hope they stay blue!

He really knows Brent's voice as well as my voice. He loves when we talk to him and is even giving us big grins and a chuckle or two. I love how expressive he is becoming! He is starting to become more vocal with grunts and cooing. Of course he cries too but only if he is 1.hungry 2.wet or 3.really tired. He just started the crying when really sleepy thing last week or so. He tries to fight sleep sometimes but it's nothing a little rocking can't fix! 

He is doing a great job with tummy time. He can really raise his head up and hold it there for a few seconds. He doesn't seem to like it but it's good for him. He is quite strong! His grip is really good and his arm muscles are killer. Sometimes it takes a few minutes to get a onesie on him b/c he won't relax his strong arms...haha! Brent and I exercise his legs by doing bicycles and they are getting stronger and stronger b/c his little kicks are becoming harder and harder. 

He still is loving looking at pictures in books. He also enjoys when we read him stories. I think he likes hearing our voices and also looking at the pictures. He is sleeping 3 - 3 1/2 hours in between feedings. One night last week he slept for 5 straight hours and I felt like a new person when I woke up...and that was just for 5 hours of sleep. Can you believe that pre pregnancy I would sleep for 10 or 11 hours on some Saturdays?! Boy that sounds nice right about now!! Hopefully he will keep increasing his sleep little by little each week. 

         

Rowen, you are 3 weeks old!

Rowen turned 3 weeks old yesterday! I can't believe it. He is growing growing growing. I can tell that he has gained weight because after holding him for 10 minutes or so, my arm starts to get tired because his head is so heavy! He is just getting cuter everyday. 

As far as sleeping goes, he is sleeping a little bit longer than he was last week. At night he usually sleeps 3 - 3 1/2 hours between feedings. Which is better than 2 hours of sleep between feedings! Hopefully he will start to sleep a little bit longer between feedings each week. And before I know it, I will be getting 6 or 7 hours of straight sleep :) I don't know that I can remember the last time that I got 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep! 

 Love when he sleeps :) He is so peaceful.

We don't go back to the pediatrician until he is 2 months old! I am so anxious to know what he weighs though...Brent is too. Brent actually said last night that we should put him on our bathroom scale and weigh him! That might just work. Rowen is definitely 9 lbs now since he was 8 lbs 15 oz last Monday at his 2 week check up and I'm sure will be at least 10 lbs at his 2 month visit. He is a growing boy. During his awake time during the day he likes to look at pictures in books, we have tummy time together( he doesn't like tummy time though! ), and he likes to hang out in his bouncer.  He is usually awake about an hour or so before he drifts off to sleep for a nap. 

Rowen loves when Brent and I talk to him. He gives us big grins often...those grins make my heart smile! They are so precious and I often wonder what he is thinking when he hears our voices. We have both noticed that when Rowen sleeps, he often is dreaming! He makes faces and puckers his lips while he is asleep. He is very vocal...especially when he is hungry or is wet. His hunger cry is a "Laaaaa, Laaaaa" and his wet diaper cry is more or a screeching scream! Sometimes when he is very tired he will fight going to sleep by screaming a little as well but he quickly drifts off to sleep after a few of those screams. Brent and I try to comfort him at those times by telling him "sleep is a good thing baby Row"!! Haha.

His little bit of hair :)

Well, it has taken me about an hour and a half to write this because little man runs the show around here no matter what I may be doing OR trying to do! He called for a feeding and 2 diaper changes while I have been writing this. Soooooo to wrap this up....

:)

           

Baby Loves

I have been absent on "Wednesday Loves" for a few weeks so today I am linking up with Little Daisy May for my loves today! 

I'm LOVING...

that the weather has been unusually warm for the past week or so. That has given Brent and I the chance to go on walks with our little Rowen! 

He loves our walks :) - (15 days old)

I'm LOVING...

all of Rowen's faces. He is already so expressive! The one face that I haven't caught on camera yet are his smiles. They are quick but he does it often so hopefully I will catch one soon. Here are some of his other faces:

"O" lips

Listening to mommy talk to him

So serious!

Peaceful sleeping face...such a sweet face.

I'm LOVING...

that Rowen loves looking at his books! I am hoping that he will love to read when he gets older. I will encourage that by reading to him everyday when he gets a little older. If he does love to read down the road, he won't get that from me!! I hated to read in school. Do you remember summer reading?! That was such a horrible thing to have to do in the summer! Anyways, his love for reading will definitely come from his Nana and his BeBe! They both love to read. His Nana is even a member of the Women's National Book Association. Here are a few pics of him looking at the pictures in some of his books:

Today he looked through his baby animals book

Looking at bright colored cars and trucks

I'm LOVING...

that God gave Brent and I such a sweet blessing...the blessing of a sweet sweet baby.

Love his profile :) He is wearing his "brand new" onesie

One of his professional pictures at 5 days old...we can't wait to get the cd of all the other pics that Chesley took! 

              

2 weeks old today and 2 week check-up

Rowen is 2 weeks old today! It really does seem like I was just in the hospital with him. He has already grown and changed so much! He has become even more handsome than he was at birth. We had his 2 week check-up this morning. I know I have said this before but Brent and I just love our pediatrician. She is very talkative and super knowledgeable. Before we left the check-up this morning, she told us that we were doing a really good job with Rowen...that made me beam with the small amount of energy that I had stored inside! I feel like Brent and I are doing a great job with Rowen so far but it was nice to hear that from his doctor!! 

Sweet Rowen sleeping this morning

This morning at his check-up, he got his head circumference measured, his weight taken, and his height measured. 

Head Circumference - 15.25 inches

Weight - 8 lbs 15 oz

Height - 21.5 inches

I just had a feeling that he was over his birth weight! He has no problem eating :) He was 8 lbs 10 oz at birth. Now he is almost 9 lbs! As far as percentiles go for his age, for head circumference he is in the 90th percentile, his weight is in the 90th percentile, and his height is in the 90th percentile as well. 

He is the cutest baby E.V.E.R.!!

He is doing great when we have tummy time. He lifts his head up and moves it around...he seems to be getting stronger each time that we do it. We need to remember to do it a few times a day though. He is also doing well with looking around and looking at me or Brent when we talk to him. He definitely recognizes our voices. That is amazing to me!! He grasps objects that are placed in his hands...he has a strong little grip. He is also very expressive. He smiles( which is the cutest thing ever), he frowns, he presses his lips together, and smacks his lips especially when he is hungry. 

He sleeps a lot which is totally fine with me!! I don't however do a good job about sleeping when he is sleeping. Like right now for instance. He is asleep and I am typing this blog. haha! I'm planning on catching a small nap when I am done with this though. These past 2 weeks have definitely been difficult( running on barely any sleep, waking up at 2am for feedings, not knowing what day it is...etc... ) but looking at baby Rowen makes it all worth it! He is such a happy baby and makes Brent and I smile every time that we look at him :)

           

First week pics of Rowen

When people ask how Brent and I are doing, I tell them that we are s-u-r-v-i-v-i-n-g!! Rowen is doing wonderful. He slept 4 straight hours this morning which means that I slept 4 straight hours too. I felt wonderful when I woke up. The hardest part so far are the feedings every 3-4 hours...they were every 2-3 hours so it has gotten a bit better these past few days! It's very hard waking up at 3am for a feeding when I can barely keep my eyes open. I can't wait till he sleeps 6-7 hours at a time :)

Here are some pictures from his first week:

Daddy Brent and baby Row

He loves his Boppy!

:)

Such a precious face that we love looking at every moment of the day!

He is already trying to focus on objects...he loves bright colors in books. 

First walk around the neighborhood

Halloween. Baby Rowen at 7 days old.

First bath...he loves his baths! This baby loves to be clean :)

Family photos to come...