2 Months || Harrison Cole

*disclaimer - photo overload mixed in with some milestones and memories we don't want to forget*

Oh Harrison,

You continue to make us so honored and proud to be your parents. It is the most special thing to see you grow and change every day.  This was another very busy and exciting month full of firsts for you! We love the way you look at us and try to remember every detail, when you first "break free" from your swaddle in the mornings, and of course when you try to be a big boy and fart as loud as daddy does! We love you so much and not a day goes by that I don't think about how amazing it is that we MADE you!! 

2 Month Memories:

- You jumped up to size 1 diapers and fit in those pretty well now.  I really like the Luvs brand, but we are still using up all the diapers from the shower that we got. 

- You are officially out of all your newborn clothes! I packed them all away and you are quickly growing out of 0-3 months now.  I have been putting you in 3 months sleepers and you fill them out pretty well.  

- You still take a pacifier - you prefer the soothie brand where we can put our finger inside to suck on.

- You still get up a couple times in the night to feed, but still go right back to sleep. Around 7-8 weeks you started stretching out your feedings a little more.  They seem to go 10pm - 2/3 am - 5/7am then around 9/10 am.  That first stretch is the best! 

- You have already been to 4 states - Virginia, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Ohio. 

- You love playing on the play mat and looking at all the patterns.  We try to do tummy time every day and still get lots of cuddles. 

- Mom is still pumping once a day to get that supply up for when I return to work. I usually get anywhere between 3 and 5 ounces total. 

- You still take a bottle, but we haven't needed to give you a bottle much. 

- We try to give you a bath every couples days and you still love bath time! I hope that during month 3 or 4 we get you in the pool!

- The Solly Wrap and the white noise machine are life savers.  We put in you in the wrap all the time and it's so perfect for baseball games.  I just bring the car seat in and when you get fussy I wrap you up! And at night time, if daddy's head tickles don't do the trick, the white noise machine sure will! 

This month was completely different than your first month of life.  When you were 6 weeks old, we left home and started our adventure around the east coast with daddy pretending to be full time baseball travelers.  Norfolk, VA à Harrisburg, PA àColchester, CT àSigel, PA àAkron, OH àAltoona, PA. I'd say we have been pretty busy putting miles on mommy's car! This is also the reason we couldn't take your official 2 month photo in the chair and with the elephant.  We will do it right when we get home from our visits!

You spent week 4-6 at home and during that time you took a nap in your crib.  Of course, Stryker was right there the whole time keeping an eye on you.

You also let me celebrate my first mother's day! Thank you so much for making me a mommy. I am so happy I get to be yours forever. 

In Harrisburg you met lots of mommy's family members (Aunt Nancy, Uncle Chris, Becky and her family, and Brendan and his family).  They all came to the game to see D.J. play. 

Then in Connecticut you met Lisa and Drew, Kendall, and Wyatt (your Godfather!).

After Connecticut, we made the two day trip back to Akron and spent the night at Camp, a place that mommy spent many summers and Thanksgivings with family.  This is where you tried to double suck your thumb! 

To say you enjoy the car seat is an understatement.  You are SUCH a good traveler.  The only time we have to stop is when you are hungry and we just make a quick exit off the interstate and feed you wherever we can find a safe spot to pull over.  

You still sleep in your rock n' play and seem to be enjoying it.  Daddy has the magic touch when he rubs your head and eyebrows and you seriously go into a trance - it's amazing. We still swaddle you up for night time and you are doing much better in the sleep sack ones. No more blanket swaddles for you! 

I swear, your eyes get bluer and bluer every day. I think I said this in your 1 month update, but I swear, they are going to be just like the blue sky on a sunny day.

 We have spent every day since getting with daddy at a baseball game (but one day).  You are so good at the games.  Everyone loves to hold you, so mommy always gets a break. And our favorite days are when daddy sits in the stands and we can sneak smiles with him.

We are absolutely stunned with how long you are! I don't have your stats from 2 months yet, because we go to the doctors this week, but I swear you have got to be 26 inches long at least! At your 1 month appointment you were 24 inches.  I'm guessing 26 inches and 11 pounds. We will see.  Look at how long you are in these pictures!!

We celebrated Sonny's 2nd birthday and baby Haases #2 gender reveal! (IT'S A GIRL!) 

 And probably the most exciting thing in month 2 is that you started to smile! You know who mommy and daddy are for sure now.  You smile at us all the time and follow us with your eyes if we move around the room.  You are so attentive to what we are doing and we love it.  Between all those smiles you are starting to make spit bubbles and already drooling like a crazy kid. 

You are getting so big so fast, it's sad.  But in the same breath, we love watching you grow and get your own little personality! We can't wait for month three (my last month of maternity leave) and all the memories our little family will make. Bring on more baby rolls!

Hold the door, say please, say thank you

Don't steal, don't cheat and don't lie

I know you got mountains to climb but 

Always stay humble and kind

Harrison's Second Big Trip

This past weekend we started the first leg of our second big trip with baby H.  For the next 5ish weeks, Harrison and I will be in Akron with D.J.! The first stop - Harrisburg, PA.  This stadium and town holds a special place in my heart because it's where we told our families that Harrison would be making his arrival in March 2016 last Labor Day.

Friday morning, Nana and my mom caravaned with me up to Harrisburg.  We got there around 3 p.m. and HC did pretty well on the drive! We hung out at the hotel for a little bit before going to the game. DJ's parents also came for the weekend, so we got to see them and stay in the same hotel room as them. Harrison ended up sleeping pretty much the whole game, except when he was hungry. He's still pretty predictable and wants to eat every 2-3 hours. The game went into extra innings, so we didn't get dinner after.  Saturday we grabbed lunch at Cracker Barrel then went to visit my cousins family who lives a few miles from the stadium. It's so awesome coming from a big family and seeing all my cousins have families. Our grandparents would be so happy! D.J. has the best fans :)

DJ was the Saturday night starter so everyone was there for the game. After an hour and a half rain delay, we finally got the game started. Another late night for this mama...

He had 4 strikeouts in 4.2 innings, 5 hits and 3 runs in a no decision.

After the Harrisburg series, D.J. and I headed up the east coast to Connecticut  for the next road series. The team was playing the Hartford Yardgoats, but playing them in Norwich, CT. We stayed with my old babysitter, Lisa and her husband Drew. Thank goodness, because the team hotel was an hour away and they lived about 20 minutes from the field! 

The trip there wasn't bad! Harrison did fine on the ride, it was just a late night. While we were there, we were lucky enough to see my big, Kendall, who is expecting!! And Harrison's Godfather and my good friend, Wyatt.  He was up there on a work trip and I swear we couldn't have planned that if we tried! 

Harrison even made his first trip to the Mohegan Sun casino!

Wednesday we left Connecticut and started the road trip to Pennsylvania. We didn't get on the road till about 4:30 p.m. and ended up getting into my family's camp house around 12:30 a.m.  

Our Camp house is so special to me. I spend all my childhood Thanksgivings and 4th of Julys there for family reunions. My grandfather built the house from the ground up and shares so many memories for our family. It was so perfect that this was on our way to Akron and that Harrison got to stop there. He got an Ergo tour of the property thanks to his daddy, some fresh air, and even a bath! 

And somehow he managed to figure out how to suck both thumbs at the same time. Talented, kid. Very talented! 

After our short visit to camp on Thursday, we got on the road to Akron around 2:30 p.m. We headed straight for the Haases house, played with Sonny, kissed Maria's belly, ate dinner then headed back to our host house. 

We are all settled in and ready for the game tonight! Go DJ! 

6 Weeks Postpartum - The Things No One Told Me About

Has it really been 6 weeks?! Wow.  I cannot believe how fast the time is going. We are officially halfway through my maternity leave and now have the green light to workout, get in a hot tub, take a bath and make another baby! JUST KIDDING. Not any time soon people. Let me figure out how to be a mom of one first!! 

In these six weeks, I have learned a lot about myself and about being a mom.  Some of those things I expected, but there are some things that I wasn't expecting...

My clothes still don't fit. Yes, I instantly lost about 20 pounds when I left the hospital, but that does not mean you will be wearing your skinny jeans anytime soon.  The first week weeks, I lived in sweatpants and my husband's t-shirts.  I can finally wear some loose fitting shirts (if my massive baby feeding boobs allow it) and most of my Nike running shorts, but still wearing maternity jeans and lots of leggings. Slow and steady changes, y'all.  

You will be sore. Regardless of how you deliver your baby, you will be sore.  They don't call it labor for no reason! I worked SO hard to push that baby out - all my muscles were sore.  Muscles I didn't even realize I was using to push.  Not only are your muscles sore, but your lady parts will be sore.  For weeks.  I'm just now starting to feel 90-100% better than I was at delivery.  

Your days will consist of lots of baby stares. I find myself looking at the clock throughout the day and saying "where has the day gone!".  Whether it's in the bed, looking at them in the swing, or snuggling them up against your chest, you will stare at your baby like you have never stared at anything before.  Are they awake? Did they just cry? Is he breathing? Should I pick him up? All these questions are just very small amounts of reasons to stare at the precious babe.  And by all means, soak them up because babies don't keep. 

Babies don't keep. They grow. And it's such a Catch 22.  We want them to grow and learn and discover the world they live in, but in the same sentence, I want to keep this baby forever.  It's amazing to see the things they learn in such a short amount of time.  They grow so fast, so love up on those little infants as much as you can.

Your patience will be tested. Whether because of uncontrollable crying and you can't soothe them, or car rides where they want nothing to do with the car seat, your patience will be tested.  Find something that allows you to calm yourself in those moments.  When Harrison cries uncontrollably, I find myself counting the number of wails he has.  Then I try to put him down in the crib and go do something else for a few minutes.  Then I will try to soothe him again.  You just have to remember that they are crying to try and tell us something.  Eventually we will understand what they are saying! 

Laundry will be your new best friend.  No need to explain.  Just get ready - I see an investment in a new washer/dryer in our future. 

Your husband will melt your heart. Whenever D.J. Facetimes with Harrison, all he wants to do is see the baby.  Which is fine with me - we talk to each other while he looks at Harrison.  Then every now and then he will start talking to Harrison and it's just the cutest dang thing I've ever seen.  The few days we have been with D.J. since his birth, I have been able to see what an incredible dad he is.  He is loving, caring, attentive, and tries to help in any way possible when he isn't here.  Sometimes when we are Facetiming and Harrison is crying he stays on and tries to "shh" him all the way from Akron.  Swoon if I've ever swooned before. 

Own being a mom. No one told me how proud of myself I would be.  I didn't realize how proud I was of myself until after we left the hospital.  I birthed this child.  My body was designed to do this, but with my effort and strength, he was born! IT IS SUCH A MIRACLE! You know, for me, everything I have done in my life up until this point has somewhat been expected.  Graduate high school - graduate college - get a job... having a baby has never been expected.  I can honestly say this is my most proud moment and I get to continue to have that feeling every day being a mom.  Every day is another day of being a mom and providing everything to support this child.  From nursing him to changing his diaper to giving him unconditional love, he relies solely on me (and his daddy).  And that makes me proud every day. 

My First Mother's Day

I'm not going to lie, my first Mother's Day was not how I envisioned it.  The night before was my first night out without the baby, so I was out way later than I have been.  I came home and he did not want to go back to sleep after the 3am feeding time.  I was exhausted and Sunday morning all I wanted to do was sleep in, but H had different plans.  

We didn't have any big plans for the day.  Around 10 a.m. we went over to my parents to have some breakfast.  My sister Julie was in town and was so sweet to make me pancakes and deliver them to me out back while I was rocking the baby.  We hung out at my cousins' house for the day down the street.  They jumped on the trampoline, we had lunch and just enjoyed the company.  We ended the night with a delicious seafood dinner outside at our house since the weather was so nice! 

D.J. was so thoughtful and got me a necklace with Harrison's name and birthstone on it.  And since I needed some retail therapy from an insanely stressful day, I went out and bought some easy to nurse in shirts, a nursing workout shirt and sports bra, had the house cleaned and scheduled a manicure and pedicure for this week!

At the end of the day, the love of my little boy is greater than any stress or bad day he may cause me. And let's be honest, every day should be Mother's Day (and Father's Day)!

And since the only time I have to blog these day is when the laundry is done, dishes are cleaned, dog is played with, and everything else on my list of "to-do" can wait, here is a picture of whats going on in the baby's room while I post this <3 

#baseballwifelife: An Update

Let me tell you one thing - baseball season with a baby add a whole different component to things! Harrison and I love watching the games this season and it's actually part of our nightly "routine" right now. Since I haven't updated y'all on baseball season so far (or anything on the blog for that matter), here is an update on how D.J. has been doing this season.

• When Harrison was 2 weeks old, we made a trip to Akron for a few days to see Daddy.  Harrison saw his first baseball game and slept all through it.  Right when D.J. finished playing, he woke up to eat.  Thank you for making that work for me, buddy.
• D.J. started the season as a reliever. And in true fashion, switched back to starting in late April.  He is back to a 5 day rotation, which also makes it very nice for family.
• Since we have been back in Norfolk, we have been watching all the games on the "TV".  Technically it's the computer, but we stream it to the TV.  We watch all the games at my parents house and then when it's over, we come home and go to bed.  It's a pretty good routine we have going on. 
• D.J. currently has a 2-0 record with a 2.78 ERA.  And in only 22 innings pitched, he has 30 strikeouts!! 
• Harrison and I are gearing up for our next trip this Friday to Harrisburg, PA.  From there we are going to Norwich, CT and then back to Akron.  I am planning on staying up there for a good time and hopefully the rest of my maternity leave.
• This team has an awesome, very family oriented coach and we are very thankful for that! 
• I haven't taken ANY pictures of D.J. playing, so hopefully I will get some good ones this weekend! 

Thanks for sticking around these parts as we are still adjusting to having baby boy around and soaking in all the love and baby snuggles <3. 

1 Month || Harrison Cole

Baby boy,

We cannot believe that you are already one whole month old.  As you sit here on my chest in the carrier, I cannot be more proud to be your mom.  This month has been nothing short of amazing. Your daddy and I cannot love anyone more than we love you.  It's hard to believe that we created you.  You are sweet, chill, and have a personality that is already starting to shine through.  I cannot wait to see you grow and what the future has in store for you.  We are so lucky God chose us to be your parents and we hope to make you proud every day of your life.

1 Month Memories:

On your fourth day of life, Daddy had to leave to go back to Akron for baseball.  We were so blessed and lucky that Gigi and Beebs only live a few blocks away.  Gigi stayed with us for the first two weeks once Daddy left to help us adjust to life with you.

You sleep in the rock n play right next to my bed.  At first it was still very hard to get you out on my own, but every day o the first month got easier and easier to get you as I recovered.

You were 9.05 pounds and 21 1/2 inches at birth and dropped to 8.12 lbs when we left the hospital.  The lowest you got was 8.6 lbs.  At your 1 month check up you were 9.4 lbs, 23 1/2 inches and 39 cm for head circumference! That puts you in the 41st percentile for weight, over 99th in length and 96th for head circumference.

Aunt Julie came home to visit when you were one week old.  She stayed with us while Gigi and Beebs were out of town.  She loves you oh so much and was snuggling on you so much. You are going to be so much bigger when she sees you next.

Newborn clothes and diapers still fit you! We are shocked.  So many people thought you weren't ever going to be in newborn anything.  It's because you are so tall and lanky - just like daddy.  Since you are so long, the only thing that is newborn that doesn't fit anymore are the newborn sleepers.  This is the first thing you grew out of.

I think you like being swaddled at night, but you always break out of them.  The velcro swaddles and sleep sacks don't work for you - you are too long for the velcro swaddles and the sleep sacks are just not your favorite.

You make the best baby wrinkles on your forehead.  Around week 2 you started to get more observant and around three weeks you were staying awake during the day much more.

I love your eyes.  I'm pretty sure the blue is here to stay!

Your first big trip was at two weeks old.  The two of us drove to Mawmaw and Pawpaw's house and then we drove to Akron, OH for the weekend to see Daddy! It was your first big trip, first baseball game, and first time to a new state (make that 4 new states if you include the ones we drove through).  You did awesome.  Slept the entire trip except when you were hungry.

Your eating schedule is pretty predictable.  You want to eat every 2-3 hours.  You are a good eater and make it pretty easy for mommy too.

Your Gigi and I have been taking turns wearing you around the house and for walks.  I try to put you in the Solly wrap at least once every other day and Gigi likes to go on walks around the neighborhood with you in the Ergo.  She likes that one better than the wrap.  She also loves taking you on runs in the Bob stroller.  You seem to enjoy it too.

Around week 3, you introduced mommy to witching hour....or should I say hours.  From around 5pm to 10pm I swear all you have wanted to do is eat, sleep and then eat again on the hour.  Must be a growing boy.

Beebs still tries to call you Harry, but we are sticking to Harrison, HC, Harris or Cole.  I still love Harrison, but I am open to any of the nicknames listed AFTER Harry!

You love to be on your side.  When we lay you on the floor or in the "shoebox" at your grandparents house, you roll to your side immediately.  You enjoyed being on your side in my belly too - almost every ultrasound you were laying on your side!

Styker seems to be enjoying your company. Or he doesn't really care either way! He sniffs and licks you every now and then, but when you cry or wake up in the middle of the night to eat, he pretty much ignores us.

You seem to love bath time.  Thank goodness Beebs made the dog washing station, because we just put your little tub in there and that way we don't have to bend over.

We don't have any routine yet during the day, but most every night we go to your grandparents, watch daddy's baseball games and then come home anywhere between 9-10 p.m.  We are both in bed by 10 p.m. and ready to get up and start the next day!

You are loved by so many people.  You have met lots of people these past four weeks and mommy and daddy could not be more thankful for all the great friends and family we have in our lives.  We honestly don't know what we would do without you now that you are here.  Thank goodness for technology and FaceTime so we can see Daddy and all your other loved ones that we like to say hi to!

 I love you my sweet boy.  Please snuggle with me like this forever. #babiesdontkeep.

Oh darling, don't you ever grow up
Don't you ever grow up, just stay this little
Oh darling, don't you ever grow up
Don't you ever grow up, it could stay this simple
I won't let nobody hurt you, won't let no one break your heart
And no one will desert you
Just try to never grow up, never grow up

Other 1 Month Memories:

Fresh 48

Birth Story

A New Addition

Harrison's Fresh 48 Photos

I knew that when I got pregnant I would want maternity photos done. You may remember we had these amazing photos taken when I was 30something weeks pregnant by the amazing Chelsea Lyn Photography.

Well Chelsea offered to take pictures of Harrison in the hospital when he made his arrival.  I wasn't 100% sure that I wanted these photos done, but I am SO glad that we decided to go ahead and get them done.

Chelsea was out of town, so we had another amazingly talented photographer, Michelle Lynn, snap some beautiful photos of Harrison and our family. I will let the photos do the rest of the talking...

There is nothing better in the world than seeing your husband become a dad.  Heart melting.

I knew they would be great grandparents, but they are exceeding expectations. 

It was hard enough for me to get out of the bed and shower, but I was proud of myself for at least getting a shower! I may still be in a hospital gown with no make up on, but holding my baby boy is the only thing that matters.

For more photos from the session, check out Chelsea's blog post!