Nixon: Three Months

How is our little baby three months old already?  Seriously, time is flying.  Nixon grows and changes every day, and we are loving every second.  Just in the last couple days he's started laughing (which is the cutest sound ever) and hitting at the toys on his play gym.  He hasn't tried grabbing yet, but I don't think it's too far away.  Sleeping has been getting better, he's usually up only twice during the night now, although we've had a couple seven hour stretches.  I'm really hoping that becomes the norm soon.

Things Nixon has been loving lately:

• His play mat/gym.  Especially now that Mommy finally got batteries for it.  He loves the colored lights and music.
• "Standing" on our laps.  We're still supporting him, obviously, but he loves practicing.
• Looking at anything and everything.  This little guy is so curious.  

Nixon also got his first Easter basket.  The Easter bunny brought him a new outfit for summer, a few toys, and some chocolate (which mom and dad will eat, since this is probably the only year we'll be able to get away with it).  

And lastly, because they're so adorable, a couple outtakes from his three month photo shoot of Daddy trying to get him to smile.

Springtime in Italy

Spring has officially arrived to our corner of Italy.  The other day, we stopped by the Rotunda (also known as Villa Capri, one of the villas in Vicenza designed by Palladio) to take some photos.  The fields around the villa are in bloom with gorgeous yellow flowers, making the villa even more picturesque.  There has been some debate over what the flowers actually are, but the consensus is the canola plant.  All I know is they're pretty.

And of course no blog post would be complete without adorable baby pictures.

A Weekend in Umbria

Last weekend, we headed south to the region of Umbria to spend a few days with Donovan's cousin and his family.  In our three years of living in Italy, we somehow haven't made it much south of Bologna.  Now, we're wondering how it took us so long to venture south, because the Tuscany/Umbria area is beautiful.  We spent the weekend touring a couple hill towns, eating amazing food, and enjoying time with family.  Nixon did great on his first road trip and he loved meeting his second cousins.

Rooftops in Amelia

Nixon stayed happy in his carrier while we walked around town

The Duomo in Orvieto

An eagle on the Orvieto Duomo

Nixon snoozing in Orvieto

At a Leonardo da Vinci exhibit in Assisi

In Assisi - Nixon is hiding from the sun

Assisi and the Basilica of St. Francis in the background

Baby sunglasses are the cutest

Keeping it real - diaper change in the car

Coolest baby in the world

double digits

Our little man has hit double digits...10 weeks old!  He's currently sleeping on me after being traumatized by his two month shots this morning.  Poor baby screamed his lungs out, but he made it through.  His legs seem to be pretty sore now, but so far lots of snuggles are keeping him fairly happy.  The exciting part of his appointment was finding out his height and weight.  He's still our tall baby at almost 24 inches and has chunked up to a nice 13 pounds.  He gets complimented on his adorably chubby cheeks quite often, and yes, they are as kissable as they look.

Hopefully the effects of his shots don't last for too long and he's back to his happy self.  Until that happens, I'll take advantage of the extra cuddle time.  We're spending this weekend in Umbria (baby's first trip!), so I'll be back next week with more photos!

This kid's expressions are hilarious

The one eye open is a classic Nixon look

After Donovan being gone for two weeks, someone was really happy to see Daddy

No Daddy, this is not how we nap...

...this is how we nap.

Nixon: Two Months

Our little monkey is two months old already!  We have been soaking up every second with our precious little guy and we love watching him grow and change.  The  most exciting achievement this month? We have smiles!  They're still a bit elusive, and I can't tell you how much time I've spent trying to get a picture of one, but every time that little face looks at me and breaks out into an adorable smile my heart just melts.

His two month check-up isn't for a few more days, so we're not sure what his exact weight is right now, but he's been busy getting nice and chunky.  Seriously, I feel like every day we wake up and he's bigger.  Newborn size clothing is long gone and even some of his 0-3 pieces are getting a bit short.  Sleeping is still the same, he wakes up every three hours or so to eat, but sleeps great in between.  It takes a lot of milk to grow so fast.  I'll be back with an update on all his stats after his check-up.

Some of Nixon's favorite things this month:
-Taking naps in Mommy's arms.  This baby takes the best naps when I'm holding him, and even though naptimes are my only chance to get anything done, I have to admit that most of the time I can't bear to put him down (he's actually snoozing as I type this, so I'm multi-tasking with snuggling and one-handed blog post writing).
-Still loving baths.  Still hating getting out of the tub.
-Looking around at everything.  It's so fun watching him take in his surroundings.

Nixon: One Month

I'm not quite sure how it happened, but somehow our little guy is already a month old (as of yesterday).  Each day he's more alert and interactive, and when he's awake he loves being walked around so he can look at things.  We don't have another doctor's appointment until two months, so it's hard to say exactly where his weight and length is now, but he's definitely growing.  Newborn clothes still fit, although he's starting to wear more 0-3 month sizes and it won't be long before I'll have to pack up all the adorable tiny outfits.  Sleeping is going as well as can be expected at this age.  He wakes up every 2-3 hours to eat, but is usually pretty good about sleeping soundly in between feedings.

A few of Nixon's favorites:

• Bath time, but only when he's in the water.  Getting out of the tub doesn't go over as well.
• Sleeping snuggled next to Daddy in bed, which happens when he's extra fussy or early in the morning when we're all trying to get a little bit more sleep.
• Riding in the car, once he makes it through the ordeal of being buckled into the carseat.
• Play time with Daddy

Practicing scooting with Daddy's help

Relaxing while Mom and Dad make breakfast

Showing off his super strong muscles

Sweet little face

My parents were here for the last week, which meant Nixon got constant snuggles and Mommy actually had time to shower.  Nixon absolutely loved all the extra attention while Grandma is plotting how she can move in.  On Monday, we drove down to Bologna to tour the Ducati factory.  Nixon did amazing, he slept in Daddy's arms the entire time and charmed all the workers in the factory.  We joked that he slowed down production since everyone stopped working to look at him.

Nixon couldn't understand why Daddy wouldn't buy him one

Walking the streets of downtown Bologna

Happy one month birthday Nixon!

Nixon - 2 Weeks

Somehow our little baby is two weeks old already (as of Tuesday), and although this is super cliche to say, time is flying.  The last two weeks have been full of precious baby snuggles, a few sleepless nights, and figuring out this parenting thing.  He still sleeps a good chunk of the day, but his alert periods are getting longer and longer and we're having so much fun interacting with him.  

Nixon had his two-week check-up a couple days ago, and his doctor was impressed by how well he's doing.  Our little guy has gained back all the weight he lost after birth plus another five ounces (bringing him up to 7 lb, 9 oz), putting him in the 19th percentile for weight and 73rd percentile for height.  Looks like he's going to be tall and skinny!  

  

Now for the important stuff - the pictures!