Whoa. 40 Weeks of Belly.

Posted on September 27, 2011 by Ali

I realized I never showed you guys the last of my maternity pictures! These shots were taken the day before Sam arrived!

I can’t believe how huge I was! I mean, it wasn’t that long ago, but it’s still very strange to look back and see pictures of a huge belly now that it’s (mostly) gone!

It is so very nice to have my body back, though. Well, nursing really means that I’ve still got someone attached to me a good portion of the day, but I don’t mind too much. He’s cute and makes funny faces and that’s enough to make me glad that he’s on the outside now. So VERY glad he is on the outside now.
Speaking of funny faces, this is a hilarious one that Paul captured the other day.

Man, this kid makes me laugh.

Stay tuned for some sneak-peeks of Sam’s Halloween outfit! It’s almost completed! I’m so excited about it! And be sure to check in tomorrow for your weekly “You Knit What?!”

Cloth Diapering

Posted on September 26, 2011 by Ali

So, this week we started using cloth diapers.

I haven’t started using them exclusively yet, we’re just dipping our toes in the water right now. By the time he’s a month old I want to start using them all the time. Sam didn’t seem to mind them, except when I flipped him over to take a picture. (For those of you who want to know, we’ve got a stash of BumGenuins4.0’s)

He wasn’t thrilled. But hey, that’s a cute little blue butt he’s got, right? But, so far, so good. We’ll see how it goes!

And this is for Auntie Erika, who got him this little ducky outfit.

Pretty cute, right?

and he is ALWAYS trying to hold his head up. I guess I shouldn’t say ‘trying’ because he is pretty much succeeding at it. He doesn’t like it when I try to hold his neck at all and always jerks his head around until I let go and then he’ll just hold it up on his own, like a big kid. Funny baby.

And now I’ve got dishes to do so I can have a clean sink to bathe my baby in. He needs a bath!

Red Cabled Blanket, Now With A Baby!

Posted on September 23, 2011 by Ali

Remember this blanket? I’m so happy I have someone to use it on, now!

It’s just the right size for his carseat or the stroller.

I think he likes it.

Gosh, I think he’s swell. I mean, c’mon, look at that little face! So squishable!

After a while Sam was really fed up with this whole photo-shoot thing. Not really his favorite, I guess.

Ah, that’s better.

Happy Weekend, everyone.

Bath Time

Posted on September 20, 2011 by Ali

So, I don’t really have any finished crafty things to show you just yet, although I am working on several projects! It just goes a lot slower when you’ve got tiny little cheeks to kiss and snuggle all day! But at least by blogging pictures of the baby I am making SOME people happy (Yep, that’s you, mom and Erika!) So, without further ado: Bath time!

He really enjoys bathtime. He calms right down if we put him in the water.

I was so glad when his cord fell off so we could give him real baths! He did NOT enjoy his sponge baths, but to be honest those don’t sound so much fun (brr!)

(um, please excuse the “new mom” hairstyle and makeup. Ha! But in my defense it was only noon and I just hadn’t gotten ready yet)

And Sam keeps falling asleep in the most hilarious positions! Last night he was asleep like this for a good hour.

And then a little while later he sunk down into this comfortable position (And no, I didn’t pose him this way! It was all him!)

But now I gotta run some errands and drop off lunch with my baby daddy. And I swear I’ll try to come up with some crafty posts soon, but until then, you’re just gonna be stuck with more baby pictures. (How sad for you!)

Sam And His Buddies

Posted on September 16, 2011 by Ali

Today I introduced Sam to his little crib buddies. He didn’t seem all that impressed.

But, you know, it’s pretty hard to impress a 13 day old baby. Unless you have food, then he’s impressed.

And here is Sam snugglin’ up with a sock monkey that used to be mine when I was a little one!

And last, but not least, here he is all snuggled with the bear his Nana (Paul’s mom) got him. Isn’t it the cutest?

I hope you all have a great weekend! We’re just chilling out, enjoying the cooler weather (Finally!) and visiting with some family that’s come all the way from Ohio to visit! And hopefully I’ll get a picture of Samuel David I, II AND III together! And a 4 generation of Tong men picture, too! And go to our sad little excuse for the fair, which can be fun as long as I try not to compare it to the Puyallup fair, which I haven’t been to in two years (saaad!) But I better go now, somebody wants some breakfast.

My Hands are Full.

Posted on September 13, 2011 by Ali

So, it’s been so weird. I haven’t knitted anything since the day before Sam was born. This is the longest I’ve gone without knitting something probably since I started knitting in 2005. Except for maybe my trip to Europe, but even then I had brought a project to work on during the plane trips. My fingers are getting a little bit itchy and I need to cast on a new project.

Oh, and I was going to show you the money shot my sister captured while she was here. Seriously, I am like dying over this photograph of my beautiful (um.. handsome?) son.

Sheesh. Totally head over heels in love with that chubby face. And that picture was taken on Thursday, Sept 8th, and he’s already gained weight and those cheeks are even bigger now. He’s two respectable chins now, too.

On Sunday we went to church! Here he is with his dad, all dressed up!

He wasn’t thrilled about having his picture taken…

And we survived. We kept our heads above water. We’re totally in love. It’s so awesome to see how Paul interacts with the baby. He comes home, and if I am holding Sam, he’ll say “Can I hold him?” Hecks yes, you can! I love seeing him playing with the baby, giving him kisses and talking to him. It’s the most adorable thing I think I’ve ever seen in my life. My boys! I’ve got TWO of them to love.

And now, a parting shot. Peace.

Whew!

Posted on September 12, 2011 by Ali

So, I survived my first week as a mother of a newborn. I knew it was going to be a lot of work, but it’s still surprising how much constant care these teeny little babies need! Sam is doing great. He’s gaining weight and eating like a champ. We had a bit of a jaundice scare at the beginning, and had to return back to the hospital every morning until he was 5 days old to get his poor little heel pricked and test his Bilirubin levels to make sure he wasn’t getting any worse, but we got the official OK from the doctor to discontinue that, and we’ve just been making sure to get him a little bit of the early morning sunshine to help things along.

Also, check out this adorbs picture my sister snapped. I’m pretty sure he’s just smiling because of a gas bubble or something, but STILL! LOOK AT THAT FACE!

Good grief. I can’t keep my lips off those chubby cheeks.

It seems really quiet around here now that my company is all gone. My friend Autumn was here on Thursday and Friday (and helped me chill out prior to my induction on Friday evening- that’s a whole other story that I’ll save for later) and then my mom came Friday night and stayed through Wednesday, and then my sister Erika came Wednesday, with her little boy Ezra and left Friday morning. But I think I am going to survive… maybe… but it’s good to know that my momma and sister are only 6 hours away and can be here really quickly if need be. You know, if I completely lose it due to lack of sleep or something.

Wanna see something super cute?

Sam is still working on the whole not-being-cross-eyed thing. But, you know, these things take time.

Erika tried to get some pictures of Ezra and Samuel together, but Ezra was distracted by all of the other neighborhood kids playing on their bikes and scooters, so a cousin photo shoot was pretty much the last thing on his mind. Although she did get some really good pictures of Sam by himself (I think those deserve a post of their own, so you get to see those later)