glamour shot

Last weekend we headed to the mall to get some professional shots taken of Tyler. What we were not expecting was a snowstorm, but it worked out to our benefit because Picture People had some cancellations. We were able to pop in without an appointment and get nearly immediate service. And thankfully Tyler was up for it. The shoot went so well we couldn't escape without over a dozen photos, but these are a few of my favorites.

family faces

Tyler loves faces and on Feb. 18 he saw some new family faces. Aunt Deb and cousins Perrin and Andrew drove down from Massachusetts especially to meet the little guy. Andrew has let us know that he thinks he and Tyler are going to be best friends! Tyler was also very cozy in his Grampy's arms.

look what I found

Tyler's newest toys? ... His feet! He just found them yesterday when he noticed the funny-looking objects moving all by themselves.

who's this furry person

Tyler is really taking notice of Daisy lately. Yesterday while Grammy Jo was babysitting, she put Tyler in the Bumbo on the floor. All of a sudden he was on Daisy's level and they were really checking each other out! And then this morning I put Tyler down on the bed next to Daddy and Daisy. Tyler began to reach out to hold Daisy's paw. And in turn Daisy sniffed his forehead. So cute!

all smiles

Tyler has been nothing but nonstop smiles. (ok, so maybe he cries ever so slightly but even those are so calm) When he is really excited he giggles, squeezes his shoulders up to his ears, raises his fists in the air and lets out a SQUEAL! We have yet to catch most of them on film (memory card?) because he stops as soon as he sees the flash. Hence the 19 shots in a row of him just sitting in a carseat.


He loves to sit up so he can see all of the action and has now learned to kick his legs out and throw his head back so he can see behind him. He still gets very bored with tummy time but has learned to push up with his arms and pull his legs up under himself. Though he gets frustrated quickly when his view is limited to the floor and begs to be moved to his back or to a seated position. We've put him in the bumbo and he seems to like the independence of his own seat but has such strong stomach muscles that he can arch his back to nearly get out. He'll be on the move sooner than we can imagine. Ah!

our valentine

This has been a big week for the Campbell family. Tyler started daycare (he'll be going 3 days a week) and I returned to work from maternity leave. And of course most of us on the East coast have been buried in ice, which caused many closings. So Tyler's first day at Miss Debbie's house was shortened abruptly when my work closed. Tyler was still able to meet the other kids at daycare and show off his Valentine outfit! (What a heart breaker?!) He was a big hit with the other kids. They LOVE Tyler because he always giggles and smiles at them. TYLER the SMILER!

3 months

Yesterday Tyler turned three months old! I can hardly believe it. He's changed, learned and developed so rapidly that I can't imagine the little person he will be in another three months.

As I write now Tyler is sleeping peacefully curled against my chest with his head tucked below my chin. This is pure heaven.

Tomorrow I will return to the office after a long and wonderful maternity leave. I have mixed emotions. A small part of me is excited to return to my work designing and a normal routine. But a much larger part of me will miss my son every minute that I'm away. We have a bond that is so magical. When he cries or calls out from his crib in the morning because he is ready to start the day (and be fed!) he stops as soon as he sees me. His face immediately turns to the biggest smile and he raises his arms above his head and squirms in delight. Magical.

I know that he'll have no problems going to daycare three days a week (I will work from home on Mondays and Alex will on Wednesdays). In fact we found a child care provider, named Debbie, who works from her home in Columbia and she is fantastic. Tyler will really enjoy himself so it's me that I'm most worried about. But I've decided to look at it as though Tyler gets to go on a field trip three times a week which will be great for his development and socialization. And hopefully returning to work will do the same for me. Wish us luck in our next big transition.

Enjoy these photos of Tyler from his 3-month birthday!

reaching

Two days ago Tyler reached for his first toy! He gladly holds onto fingers and toys when put near his own hand. But while playing on Simon's activity mat he ventured for the red cardinal. May be genetic; Alex reaches for Red Robin as often as possible.

in da crib

So like Tyler's pacifier, his crib seemed to be a passing fancy. But since Tyler has been sleeping so well (through the night since a week before he turned 2 months -- 7-10 hours a night) we decided to try moving him back to his own room (again)! He had been sleeping in the gently rocking swing. Then we let him sleep in the swing but without it rocking. And now he's spent each night of the last five days sleeping in his crib with no troubles. So it's been a smooth transition and we're all very happy!

kickin' the kid

Tyler is usually a social butterfly when we take him to parties and gatherings. But he had a little bit of trouble at the SuperBowl party at our friends', Jamie and Phil, house. Our little guy didn't quite get that the yelling and bass from the TV were good things. But he did manage to take some naps in the laundry room off of the basement party area where it was a little quieter and only those getting drinks were passing by his carseat. When Jamie's brother came out of the laundry area announcing that the kid had been kicked, Alex panicked rushing to Tyler's side. Soon Alex realized what his daddy ears heard as the "kid has been kicked" was actually the "KEG has been kicked." This is how we know we're getting old!

blowing bubbles and snoozing

Tyler has figured out how to make bubbles with his mouth. He loves to keep a small grouping of them on his lips for safekeeping. :)

I'm watching my little sweetie now while he sleeps in his large swing located in our bedroom. He sleeps there most nights preferring the papasan-shaped seat to the large open crib. Last night I put him to bed there without turning the swing on. He slept contently for 7 hours and then got a little fussy while his daddy was getting ready for work. I turned the swing on low and now he's still asleep 3 hours later! I'm going to go wake my sleepy boy now because 10 hours is enough. Oh, speak of the devil; I spy some small eyes looking my way!

look at me

This was the last time he fit into this newborn sleeper. Hard to believe that his cousins bought it for him during their Thanksgiving visit because the 0-3 months sleepers were too big!

So do you think he should model? :) He obvisously knows how to strike a pose.

Tyler loves a good cuddle especially while in the glider with his mommy or daddy.

young blue eyes

Tyler has the prettiest blue eyes that seem to be getting lighter by the day. And I cannot believe how long this boy's eyelashes are!

superman

Alex gets his daily workout by doing bench presses of a mini superman look-alike. Tyler loves the view!

visiting Aunt Joy

Joy loves babies so much that when driving in the car with Tyler and me, she likes to sit in the backseat to stare at Tyler. During a recent visit we got some great pictures of the dashing young man.

buds

Tyler loves to hang out with his buddy Simon, who is six weeks his junior.

grins and giggles

Tyler is all about the giggles lately. He is just such a happy baby and loves to show it.

first snow

Yesterday Alex, Tyler and I went to Babies 'R Us to get some essentials (and some not-so-essential but adorable outfits). Tyler was on his best behavior and was all giggles when we ran into friend Kyra at the store. And Mommy and Daddy were having so much fun that we spent nearly two hours in the store. When we finally left the store we came out to a complete surprise -- it was snowing!! [pretty bizarre considering it was nearly 70 degrees last week] Tyler was asleep but quickly awakened as snowflakes landed on his cheek. He looked around with the most curious look, like "what is this white stuff?"

mama's boy

Just in the past few days Tyler has really grown a serious attachment to me. Of course he's always loved his mama, but now at times he can't stand when I'm out of sight. I will still be in the same room but will walk behind him and he flips out! Ugh, when the time comes, leaving him at daycare is going to be very difficult.

two months

Tyler is already two months old! I can hardly believe it. We visited the doctor yesterday for his regular two-month checkup. Our boy now weighs 11 pounds 14 ounces. This is the 50th percentile meaning that he is exactly average size for his age. A vast improvement from being below the 10th percentile at 3 weeks. So Tyler got off to a slow start but is perfectly healthy and notably giggly and happy!

And thankfully I'm happy to report that his sleeping through the night seems to be a trend rather than a fleeting moment. After getting tuckered out after the Gators win on Monday night and sleeping 7.5 hours, he's followed it up each night with 6.5, 9 and 7.5 hours respectively! Go Tyler!

go gators

While I was at stamp club on Monday night, my boys watched the National Championship for college football. And of course the Florida Gators dominated. Go Gators!

hallelujah...sleep at last

Or at least for one night anyways. Tyler went to sleep at 12:30 am and did not wake up until 8 am!! What a wondeful gift from my son. Now the question is whether this was a one-time thing or a new trend. Let's hope for the latter.

balding already?!

Tyler is losing his hair!! When he was born he had a full head of hair with some fuzz toward the front making it look as though he had a receeding hair line. But now that receeding hairline is moving on back! I've noticed the hair above his ears is already gone and he's getting two bald spots, one on each side of his head. When it grows back will it come in as the same light brown?

mouth man

Tyler is all about figuring out his mouth lately. He's been practicing rolling his tongue, making milk bubbles and his newest trick is sticking his tongue out like a lizard. He has put his index finger in his mouth like a fish hook, but has yet to put his thumb in there like so many kids do (count mom into that category). And now he is all smiles. He's starting to smile all the time now, especially when I tickle his belly! Now we just have to catch it on film!

best buds

Before there was Tyler, we had our first baby...Daisy. Some of our friends have asked how Daisy is handling the new addition to the family. The answer is, suprisingly well. She seems to ignore Tyler's crying and Tyler seems to ignore Daisy's barking at delivery men. At first Daisy was really curious about all the new smells, but she seems to be settling in with the new program and still loves to be in Tyler's room. She likes to follow me into his room during middle-of-the-night feedings and sleep at my feet. Here is a photo of the best buds cuddling.


Daisy better enjoy it now while Tyler doesn't pull her ears or ignore her in favor of his new buddy Simon (born 12/21/06 to Stacie and Zach).

bath time

Some things don't change. The nurses in the hospital mentioned that Tyler liked the bath they gave him the day he was born. Apparently most babies scream. Well, Tyler is proving to be a water baby. He still loves bath time (as long as we keep him toasty warm). We can't wait until the summer when we can take him swimming.

christmas!

The Campbell Family spent their first Christmas together in our home. What a glorious morning! We slept in, then I made french toast for breakfast, and then mommy, daddy and Tyler opened our gifts to each other (well, Tyler slept and we opened his gifts for him). My favorite gift was a new camera to take lots of baby photos and Alex got a Bose Soundock for his iPod. And to complete our annual ornament tradition, we purchased a 3-D silver baby bootie with Tyler's name and birthdate engraved on it. Trying not to sound hopelessly sappy, it was the most spiritually and emotionally fulfilling Christmas ever.


In the afternoon my brothers and mom came over. My mom had just received her fourth chemo treatment a few days earlier and was not feeling great. So we kept the festivities low key with appetizer-style food, a couple of movies and lots of baby watching. We had much to be thankful for this holiday: a new baby, my mom responding well to treatment and Dylan getting Christmas day off so I got to enjoy the extra time with him.

santa

On December 23, we celebrated an early Christmas with my dad and Jeanne at their house in Annapolis. Tyler was fussy most of the evening. Do you think it was the outfit?

Nice. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nice. . . . . . . . . . . . . Naughty!

favorites

Tyler's: his swing, eating, mom and dad's pinky finger in his mouth, trying to move things with his hands, car and stroller rides, ear tickles, anything the resembles a nipple like our noses, ceiling fans, his hands and arms near his head.

Megan's: Tyler's smile, when he falls asleep on my chest, when he stares into my eyes for minutes, his nose, his blue eyes, giving him baths, that I can recognize his cry, his curiosity, his soft hair, his sweet demeanor, the little noises he makes when he eats, that he's our son.

first christmas tree

Alex and I took Tyler with us to pick out our Christmas tree, the first live one for our family. We dressed Tyler in his snuggly fleece jumpsuit and even put shoes on his feet to keep him warm despite the mild December weekend. I toted him around in the Baby Bjorn while Alex held up trees. We found the perfect one for our house and loaded it on top of the Pilot.

While at the tree farm I overheard an eight- or nine-year-old boy telling his mom how cute our baby was. As we were leaving he came up to us to tell us personally, "That is a cute baby." As if we didn't already know that! :)

heavyweight on the go

Tyler weighed in at 9 pounds and 6 ounces today. That is a 21 ounce increase in one week!! We were told that one ounce a day would be a good increase -- Tyler tripled that. The doctor didn't even bother to give him a physical assessment once she heard of his weight gain.

And finally, we were given the green light to let this boy sleep, rather than waking him every 2-3 hours to feed him. We're so relieved that we have the potential to get more than a handful of hours of sleep at a time. YEAH!!

His large weight increase shows in his face mostly. His chubby cheeks and pudgy fingers have returned, which we only saw for a few days following his birth. And he finally has a belly and some meat on his thighs.

And this big boy loves to be in motion. His favorite activity, other than hanging out in mom or dad's arms, is to sit in his swing. He cranes his neck up to watch the circling animals overhead. He's lulled to sleep by the motion every time. He also loves sitting in his carseat, whether being carried or driven. Snooze time!

more Tyler photos

Tyler pictures

more of me to love

At the doctor's office this morning, Tyler weighed in at 8 pounds, 1 ounce -- the first time that he's been above 8 pounds since the day he was born. It is a three-ounce gain in two days, which is excellent. We have another appointment next week and if he can show a continual gain we don't have to go back for several weeks. But we can already see the plumpness returning to his face and fingers. He can now fit in a few of his newborn sleepers, in addition to his 0-3 month onesies. But nearly all other clothes, especially pants and socks, are much too large at this point.

Tyler is changing almost every day. He's starting to really focus in on objects, especially peoples' faces. His eyes are still the dark blue/grey as the day he was born, but now a lighter blue ring is appearing around his pupils. It seems to be getting wider, but slowly. His hair is lightening. It was a medium brown, but is now a golden light brown. And his eyelashes are blonde. His neck and arms are so strong for such a little guy. He likes to crane his neck up to see who is holding him and his arms are always going. He sleeps with at least one arm near his ear or up behind his head. He's so laid back and has a really sweet disposition. What a good baby!!

all smiles

I've seen Tyler smile but it always seemed to be an accident previously. This morning during some mommy-and-me playtime, I tickled Tyler's cheek and I got a great big grin! I was able to get him to repeat his glorious smile several times. What a cutie!!

up

Tyler was weighed today at his latest doctor appointment. He's up to 7 pounds, 14 ounces! Our goal is one ounce per day. Usually babies are back to their birth weight (8 pounds, 4 ounces in Tyler's case) at two weeks, so we still have some work to do. But he's healthy, happy and cute as can be!

home from the hospital (again)

Tyler's Nov. 27 doctor appointment was not as good as we had expected. He was still 7 lbs. 8 oz., which means that he didn't gain any weight over the weekend. The doctor was concerned (but not alarmingly so) and ordered us to feed Tyler every two hours and return to see her on Nov. 30.

By this time Alex had returned to work and I was taking Tyler to the doctor alone. Not a pleasant visit. When our visit showed that Tyler had actually LOST 2 oz., the pediatrician sent us directly to the emergency room. I was so upset my face looked like a giant tomato, even the whites of my eyes had turned as red as my skin.

Alex rushed to meet us in the emergency room and we spent most of the day and part of the evening there before we were admitted to the hospital. They ran a battery of blood tests to rule out infections and metabolic diseases.

Someone told me that when you become a parent, your heart no longer resides within your chest, but with your child. I can now understand what that means. I've never known pain like that which I felt as several nurses labored to extract blood from our 2-week old baby. His body is so small that they had great difficulty finding adequate veins and had to stab him repeatedly in their search.

I had been concerned about a persistent gooby eye issue that Tyler had developed this past week. The pediatrician assured me that it was just a clogged tear duct and not to worry. However, during our stay the discharge became green showing that it was infected. So in addition to the continuous poking, prodding and blood drawing, Tyler also had to have antibiotic ointment squeezed into his eyelid.

We spent the next three days (discharged the afternoon of Dec. 3) weighing Tyler before and after feeds, weighing his diapers to measure his output and supplementing his breast milk feeds with formula. Sleeping camping-style on a loveseat and a sleeping bag on the floor of Tyler's room proved to be very uncomfortable and added to the stress.

The bright side was that all of Tyler's blood work came back normal and I was able to spend some extensive time with a lactation consultant. She reassured me that both baby and I have the breastfeeding thing down.

So the end result of our hospital stay and "observation" is that we proved that Tyler can gain weight with the proper caloric intake. With no clear or obvious reason for his "failure to thrive," we've made some minor adjustments to his feeding schedule and procedure and will have to monitor him closely.