Introducing....

Birth announcement: Designed by "Mommy." Here's a virtual version. {you can always click a picture to see a full-size version}

Shepard's BFF and story time

The beginnings of conversation and his BFF hanging on the wall.

Word of the day..."Mamamamamamamamama"

He gets a little camera-shy, but I'm pretty sure there's a laugh and a smile in here. And a few coos and gurgles.
Two month-birthday.

Two months!

Shepard is two months old! We went to the doctor this morning for his check-up and got his latest "stats."
He is 23.5" long (68th percentile); 12 pounds, 2.8 oz (64th percentile), and his head measures 15.6 inches (39th percentile). His weight to length percentile is like 38th, so he's longish and leanish. So...clearly not taking after me. {Shelley} Poor thing had to get a few shots and an oral vaccine, but his discomfort seemed short-lived.
He is basically sleeping about 6-7 hours at night without having to feed, with a solid 3 hour sleep just before that. That doesn't quite mean that mom gets that much sleep just yet, as he has needed a bit of momentary consoling here and there during that span; however, usually just a rub on the back and replacing the pacifier is all it takes. Hopefully, I can log some more hours without interruption soon because I'm starting to think I will never get my brain back. Mom-nesia is a REAL THING.
I return to work tomorrow for a few hours and Shepard will go to "school." Just prayerful that we have a good transition all the way around. And that my momnesia doesn't affect me too much at work. Thankful for a cup of morning coffee and great co-workers.
Jerod has started school with students this week, and is already in the thick of it with a new year. We've had a few back-to-school socials where we showed off our sweet Shepard. "Mr. Jones" is well-loved by his Woodlawn School family.
{insert mommy yawn here}
At the moment, I'm deciding whether to wake up the wee one for his "lunch." He should be hungry by now, but he's sleeping so well...I'm certainly ready for lunch, so I might go make that happen.

Hee hee hee hee haa haa haa haa!

Shepard has learned the fine art of the social smile. I hope to capture it soon. He is also googling (not on the computer!) and gurgling and making noises other than "I'M STARVING! DOES ANYONE HEAR ME! STARVING! HELLOOOO?!!!???" which sounds a lot like a cry. Not that we're withholding food, mind you.
As a friend said tonight, he's turning into a baby...to which I replied..."You mean, not a lump that sleeps all the time?" And yes. He was a cute sleeping lump, but we're starting to get those wee glimpses of person and personality.
We visited his new school today for a while and met his "teachers." I'm not sure what else to call them. They must have a lot of patience. I can't quite imagine multiplying Shepard by 7 and handling that well. He's sweet, but MAN! That's a lot of diapers and tending.
We're fairly sure he's at least four feet tall now (I joke, I joke, I kid), but looking forward to his two-month visit next week. I'll be sure and post his stats. I will return to work next week, so I'm having mixed emotions about all of that. He's been my sidekick now for eight weeks. Thankfully, I can ease into things with several half-days and Labor Day off.
Signing off now. Hoping to get a wee nap before the next feeding.

~The Mom.

That's quite a mobile

Sometimes I just like to sit and stare at him. So I'm letting you join me. Shepard has really taken to his mobile of late, so I cranked it up before bath time. This is really all I have until he starts sitting up or telling knock-knock jokes...so bear with me.

Rollin' along.

Finally. I captured the roll over on video today! This is a good trick for a seven-week-old.



Impressive!

SAY CHEESE!

We try to keep the camera handy so we can capture moments like this: (click on pic to see enlarged)

Just some play time...

Rub a Dub Dub...Cute kid in a tub

We really like bath time now. The "man hands" in the video are Jerod. Kinda looks like Shelley since I'm narrating it. Funny!