My Handsome Little Guy

Here are some recent pics of my handsome little Roman. I just love him so much and can't get enough of him. I think I have a picture of ALMOST every day of his precious little life.


Hanging outside in the beautiful weather




Danny surprised us with a few more photos of Roman. This one was my favorite of the group.


Love him in baby blue, my favorite color


Marley just can't give Roman enough kisses. He doesn't seem to mind them, but I feel bad when he wakes up from them.

The Kellings In The Creek

Our best friends, Lauren and Ryan were in town this weekend and we had the best time. Roman couldn't wait to meet Uncle Ry and Aunt Lauren. They arrived on Friday and brought over lunch that we enjoyed in the backyard. Saturday, Ryan and Jay went to a friends house to watch the NFL draft, while the ladies prepared for the taco party later that night. It was so nice to be able to relax at the house with Lauren and for her to be able to spend lots of time getting to know Roman. She became a baby whisperer and perfected the act of soothing. Roman had a great 2 days and seems to be doing much better. YEAH!!! Here are some pics from the weekend.


The ladies, Hunter and Roman


Chris and Hunter


The Burns-Coffin Fam...they are the cutest!


Chris and Meredith


Ryan taking a snooze with Roman

We love you Kellings and can't wait to see you again.

Mr. Fussy

A lot of people ask, "How are things going?" Your initial reaction is, "Great. Things are just great!" But in reality, this motherhood thing is not as easy as it seems. I absolutely love being a new mom and feel so priveledged that this handsome little guy belongs to me, but it really is some hard work.

I've recently accepted that Roman is somewhat of a fussy baby due to (what I believe) is acid reflux and lots of gas and constantly needs to be held, rocked or soothed. The poor guy spits up LOTS after each meal and is often in pain and crying after eating. We are very lucky though since he is a good sleeper. He sleeps for (2) three hour sessions a night and only gets up for about 45 minutes in between them to eat. So I'm sleeping good and I feel well rested.

I just wish I could make this little guy happier and relieve his stomach pain since it just breaks your heart seeing him in pain. It has been good for me to hear other stories from mom's that had the same challenges and it sounds like it usually resolve itself in the 3rd month, so we are already halfway there. Last night he didn't cry for 2 straight hours and Jason and I looked at each other and realized how much we value the time with him when he doesn't cry. We just wanted to play with him and soak it all in.

In the beginning, I would get so sad thinking it was me but now I've learned to accept that I can't change it...only help to relieve it. Here are some photos of my favorite techniques to calm him down. Majority of the photos were taken with my photo timer. (Yes, these are the things I do now to entertain myself throughout the day.)

Dance
I love Pop 2K on XM. Today I got him to relax while dancing to Britney Spears, The Pussycat Dolls and Maroon 5. Hopefully this will help him get some rhythem early on and it helps me get a work-out.


Baby Bjorn
I think the upright position helps his little tummy. If he is screaming indoors, usually going for a stroll in our backyard helps soothe him.


The Bathtub
Due to all the spit-up, Roman needs a bath almost daily. Plus he is so content in the water. A future swimmer, maybe?


Leg Stretches
With just a few leg stretches and crunches, it is amazing how it can relieve some gas. It works like magic. THANK YOU HEIDI!


Walk
When all else fails, it is time to get him in the carseat and go on a walk. It immediately puts him to sleep. The last 2 days I was able to walk with both the stroller and Marley. I felt like that was a big accomplishment.


In the end, I just look at this handsome face and know that it is all worth it. I love this guy so much.

Baby Date

I can't really call it a playdate since these little ones basically sleep, eat and poop and I'm not sure if Roman even realized there were other babies there. We had a baby date at Angela's with Ava and Hunter. It was so nice to be able to get together with other new mom's and talk about all the latest and greatest, the good and the hard. I've realized the true value it is to talk to other new mom's since you realize that everyone has their challenges and it is so helpful to hear other's solutions.

Ava has the most amazing hair. I called her a little rockstar.


AND Hunter Rae is so sweet and just beautiful.


Roman is one lucky little guy to be surrounded by such cute girls all the time. If only he would have realized it, he may have stayed awake a little longer.


I look forward to starting the playgroup through John Muir in a few weeks to meet some more new friends for Roman.

On a side note: I have to praise John Muir Women's Health Center. I had such a hard time with breastfeeding and can now say after 5 weeks we finally got it down. It took 3 visits to the lactation consultant and lots of patience and practice, but as of yesterday we graduated. I never realized that it would be so difficult or that some babies don't pick it up naturally. But if you ever need assistance, don't hesitate to call the Women's Health Center. I had Laura as my consultant and she is amazing! Who knew I would ever get so excited over someone with the title of Lactation Consultant.

Our 1st Night Out

After watching Scott on Saturday during the day, we decided that we would try and get out at night. I strategically fed Roman and the minute he was done we put him in his carseat and headed out the door.


We wanted to try out the new restaurant "Lettuce" which is a salad/sandwich place, so we knew if we had to make a quick getaway with a crying baby it would be easy to take the food to go. Roman was great and slept through the entire meal. After dinner, the weather was so gorgeous and Roman was still sleeping that we decided to get a quick drink.

What better than a mojito?


I had been craving a refreshing cocktail, so it was nice to finally have one. We went to Havana and although it felt a little weird to be bringing Roman in his carseat to the bar, we knew he liked loud music and again slept the entire time. Jason even got to have 2 cocktails. It was a fun night and felt so good to be out.

Birthday Celebration for Mom and Heidi

We had a great night at our house celebrating my sister and mom's birthdays that both take place in April. Thank you to Betty and Bob for bringing over dinner and for making our day so much easier.

Wishing my Mom and Heidi a wonderful birthday and great year ahead. We were blessed with gorgeous weather that allowed us to spend a lot of time outside. Here are some pics from the festivities.

Happy Easter

Wishing everyone a Happy Easter celebration with family and friends. We are looking forward to bringing Roman to his first church service at St. Matthews. This church holds such a special place in my heart and I am excited to be there with him. Lets just see if he can make it through the service without too much crying.

Getting Out

Today I feel like was a big accomplishment. I was out for most of the day. YEAH! Does it count that most of the day was spent at my parents house? We started off with a trip to Longs and McCaulou's and then headed to my parents to hang out with Heidi and the boys. Roman is finally getting the whole breastfeeding thing, which is such a relief since I feel like the days are a little more predictable now. It feels so good to get out and be able to bring him anywhere. Looking forward to getting out for some lunch dates and excursions.

Here are some pics of our activities from last week:

Heather and Hunter went with us on our 1st walk. I love Hunter, she is just too cute.


Paris, Ellie and Claudia stopped by and brought lunch. Later we stopped by the Bucklew's to visit and I figured since I was so close to home I wouldn't need a change of clothes. Of course (the one time I don't bring an extra onesie) Roman needed to be changed due to some leakage. Paris came to the rescue and we dressed Roman up in his 1st pink outfit. I loved it and got such a kick out of seeing him in pink. He still looked like a little boy.


Roman got his 1st set of golf clubs from my Godmother, Aunt Rita. She is an avid golfer and I can't wait for her to come visit again in the summer.


My #1 advice counselor. Heidi is so great with giving me all the tips and lessons. Thank you for being such a great aunt. Roman is so lucky.


The ladies of Diablo stopped by to meet Roman and bring lunch. It was fun to have everyone over to the house and be able to catch up.


His 1st "Real" bath. I think he likes the water.


Our 1st family walk. Why is Jason holding Marley? I'm not too sure, he just wanted to.


Lastly, here is Roman striking a pose. This little guy is too much. Such a little ham.

My Little Prince

Roman turns 3 weeks today. I can't tell you how much in love I am with my little prince. I just love having a little boy since he feels like a mini Jay. I feel so lucky to have such a precious and loving baby. Of course, I've had little sleep, there are moments when I don't know what to do next and I feel guilty when he cries and not being able to soothe him, but I know it all comes with becoming a new mom. I'm trying to take it all in and enjoy each and every moment. Everyone says they grow so fast, so appreciate each step of the way and that is what I promise to do.

Danny took some photos of Roman last weekend and I LOVE them! I'm so lucky to have a brother-in-law that is not only a dentist, but also car mechanic and photographer. I'm sharing a preview, so be on the lookout for Roman's baby announcement within the next few weeks with more pictures from the shoot. THANK YOU DANNY! You did a beautiful job and it is something I will cherish forever.

Great Grandma Visits

Roman was lucky this week to get a visit from his Great Grandma (Betty's Mom). Great Grandma Marylyn came to visit from Sacramento and it was so nice to be able to hang out and spend some time with Roman. Jason was her 1st grandson and Roman is her 1st Great Grandson. Roman loved sleeping in her arms and also loved having time hanging out with his Grandparents Betty and Bob. He can't wait to meet the rest of the Maddox/Lewis family.







Also had to add one of my favorite photos of the week. He is growing so much that he now has a double chin. He is up to 8 pounds! Record weight gain.