the many adventures of owen, mason, and jack!: First Weeks Home

Here is a bunch of good stuff from Jack's first couple of weeks at home....

Jack's first bath, with help from his eager big brothers:

Poor little guy - as I look back at the video, it is painful for me to watch. Mommy was just taking her sweet time letting Owen and Mason feel helpful, and Jack was freezing his tooshy off! It's fair to say I was a little rusty on how to give a first bath to a baby with the cord still attached. Not being able to surround him with water was the pits (for him). Plus, the newborn hammock attachment for the tub got misplaced during the move so we were working with some rolled up towels to keep him steady. It was kind of a fiasco but we managed. By the next bath we had figured out a better method that didn't leave him so cold. The video posted is of him getting his hair washed AFTER the freezing cold bath. He certainly liked that MUCH better!!

Big brothers trying to calm Jack down while waiting for Mommy to get all the stuff ready. Here's Mason:

...and Owen.

Owen washing Jack's tummy.

Mason washing his legs.

Getting warm and dry.

Time for a hair wash...much more enjoyable for Jack.

Okay, I'm worn out now from all that shivering!

More from week one:

Four days old.

Daddy and Jack taking a nap together.

Snoozing with Aunt Lindsay

First stroller ride.

Getting some footprints for the baby book.

Mason and Owen can't get enough of their baby brother.

Jack enjoying the (very bright) outdoors.

Sleeping so peacefully.

Jack's One Week Birthday:

I don't know what it is with me and one-week birthdays. I remember with Owen and Mason I was having some baby blues around this time. I am a very sentimental person so I like taking lots of pictures and keeping souvenirs from special events and trips. Bringing my first babies home from the hospital (on my very first Mother's Day) definitely qualified as one of these VERY special events and the babies were my souvenirs. I just really didn't want them to change from the way they were when I brought them home from the hospital. Sounds weird, I know. Pregnancy hormones. I was trying to explain to my grandmother and my mom what my silly tears were all about so I said "I just don't want them to change from how they are now." My grandmother said something I'll never forget. "You'd be missing something if they don't." I realized then that I should listen to her. After all, she raised 3 kids and knew exactly what joy was in store for me as I raised my own. My mom decided to mark this one-week milestone with a little party. She bought a tiny little cake, had their initials put on it, and we celebrated.

Anyway, this time around I knew more what to expect so I wasn't as blue. On Jack's one week birthday I decided I didn't need to mark it with a cake. I fine with that until about 8:30 pm when all of a sudden here came the tears. I HAD to do it for Jack too or else I was going to regret it. My wonderful dad went to the store and came home with a cake. So, at 10:27 pm, we marked Jack's one week birthday. In the video of us singing to him you can hear my voice stop singing. I was tearing up a little, thinking back at the one-week birthday for Owen and Mason, and thinking about those same little guys were here now, helping us celebrate and sing to their new brother. I had a kairos moment. Everything was clear and I knew I was blessed.

Blowing out the candle. (O, M)

Sweetest picture! Owen holding Jack while Mason steals a kiss.

Owen's turn to sneak a kiss.

My 3 precious boys (O, M)

Here is a thumbnail link to the web album with a few extra pics:

9-15-11 Jack's 1 Week Birthday

Jack, almost 2 weeks old:

You will see by the pictures that Owen and Mason absolutely LOVE this little guy. They really have enjoyed just sitting next to whichever adult is holding Jack to just watch him and look at him. They like to ask questions about him (i.e. "what does that cry mean?") and giggle at the silly faces he makes. They also love to see if they can get him to grip their fingers.

All of the Crews men enjoying each other. (O, M)

Owen and Mason LOVE racing each other lately! It seems to have become a tradition to go out after dark and have flashlight races up and down Granna and Granddaddy's street. This time, Jack got to join the big boys. You can even see the starting line tape on the ground. (M, O)

Jack snoozing with Granna.

Sweet hands and baby face. (1.5 weeks)

Gotta remember these baby toes.

I caught a tiny smile.

This is a common sight - One or both of the kids just sitting quietly by Jack's swing watching him, talking to him, or singing to him. Here's Mason.

And Owen.

This may be the sweetest video ever! We caught the kids over by Jack's swing singing along to Twinkle, Twinkle. They didn't know we were videoing.

Even four year olds know there's something special about watching a baby sleep. Here's Mason.

This is a pretty funny video that is kind of an extension of the previous one (Mason comments how soft Jack's feet are). Owen must have over heard him and went to ask Mason what he said. Mason responds "the baby's feet's soft." Owen has a hard time understanding and tries to clarify, which annoys Mason. Once Owen finally understands what Mason is saying, it seems to me that Owen was hoping for something a little more exciting than Jack's soft feet. "Soft?"
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