Baby Wearing

James and Taylor hanging our in their slings and wraps on Christmas morning.

James' 1st Christmas

We had a great first Christmas as a family of 3. We woke up Christmas Even morning and opened stockings and presents in Denver before heading up to Ft Collins. Highlights were 2 pairs of pirate shoes for James, and a hanging book rack for his room. In Ft Collins we spent a lot of time as a family enjoying our 2 new additions James and Taylor Kate. We can't wait until next year when both of them are a little older and will be running around playing together. I made them wear matching pajamas and will continue to do so every Christmas Eve until they are old enough to protest. We feel very lucky to have such a wonderful family. Next year we will have one more addition, Jenny and Ian's baby will be here in April!

Big Smiles

James definitely has real smiles now. Almost every morning he can be counted on to give big smiles. He came through and smiled at everyone on Christmas morning.

Pirate Baby James

James is sporting his new pirate shoes from Grandma and Grandpa Fererro and his styling pirate hat that Aunty Amberly made him.

2 Months Old!

James was 2 months old yesterday. He got weighed today and has gained 1 full lb in 2 weeks! That is his biggest weight gain yet which makes me very relieved and happy. He is now 7 lb 12 oz, so he has gained 3 lbs since his weight when he was discharged from the NICU. Yesterday we had a baby reunion with people from our Bradley birth class. James is the oldest baby in the bunch. There are 2 other boys and one girl, they were all super cute and it was fun to see people from class and hear their birth stories.

Tim and I are still obsessed with our vintage plastic light up figures, but it seems as though other people have caught onto the craze. We keep trying to get one on e-bay to add to our collection and keep getting out bid at the last minute. People go crazy for these things. It makes us laugh to think what other weirdos are out there bidding on a light up Christmas mouse. We think we may have to wait until after Christmas to add to the collection and maybe they will be easier to come by.

Thomas came by on his way to Ft Collins from the mountains so he could see James. He is still having fun at college and is glad to be home and get some skiing in over break. We will spend Christmas Eve and Christmas in Ft Collins with the Nichols. We will miss the Fererro side of the family who will all be in San Diego.

Waiting on a smile....

We have been waiting and waiting for a real smile from James. He has given some random smiles here and there, but not in response to anything in particular. So far he seems to have a thing for ladies with dark hair. Amberly's mom, Holland and Anne have gotten the biggest semi-smiles so far. We will keep on waiting, but for now this is the closest we have gotten on camera.

Decorating for Christmas

We got a tree this weekend and finished decorating for Christmas. All the tree lots in Denver only had super full perfect looking trees that were super expensive, so we found a tree lot in Arvada with some Charlie Brown trees and got a perfect one for us. We had not seen the Nichols since Thanksgiving so we went up there on Sunday for a few hours. I used Photoshop on Amberly and Steve's computer and luckily remembered how to do selective color and made the cute picture of James in his Santa hat.

Getting ready for Christmas

I am in the holiday spirit and enjoy taking ridiculous pictures of James. I need to find a baby Santa hat in his size so I can have some real fun. We still haven't gotten a tree, but maybe this weekend. James is doing well and is eating a lot, so hopefully he is packing on some ounces to make up for his slow weight gain last week. We have been enjoying the nice weather and have been going on walks every afternoon. I am going to attempt to make a real dinner tonight for the first time since James was born. I put him in the Moby today and took him to the grocery store and bought stuff for lasagna. So if James cooperates and takes an afternoon nap, Tim and I will have something besides grilled cheese for dinner for the first time since company left us.

Happy Thanksgiving

We have a lot to be thankful for this year. Of course we are thankful for James more than anything. We are also thankful that our whole family was together on Thanksgiving. James got to spend a lot of time with his Grandma and Grandpa Fererro and Aunt Jenny and Uncle E-E. He also got to see cousin Taylor and all the other Nichols on Thanksgiving. James and Taylor didn't think too much of each other yet, but they will be best friends soon enough.

1 Month Old!

James is 1 month old and weighs exactly 1 pound more than when he was born. We can't believe that it has been a month since we had him, but we also can't imagine our life without him! We are so glad that he is here in time for Thanksgiving. Grandma and Grandpa Fererro are here and Aunt Jenny and Uncle E-E get here on Thursday. Then we head up to Ft Collins to see all the Nichols (even Uncle Tom), we can't wait!

6 lbs!

James isn't gaining weight quite as quickly as last week, but he is now tipping the scales at 6 lbs even, up 1 lb since his birth. He is awake a lot more during the day, and still sleeping like a dream at night. He is still getting the hang of breast feeding and eats anywhere from every 1 1/2 to 3 hours. Jax is starting to get used to the baby and is hiding under the bed less and less.

We are getting excited for Thanksgiving so that the whole family will be together, and so that Jenny and Ian can meet him, and that his Grandma and Grandpa Fererro can see him again. This weekend, we went to the park and on a couple of long walks, one with James in the stroller, one in the Moby wrap. I love our stroller, and am so glad we picked the BOB. It is great for the gravel path at the park, and for the uneven sidewalks in our neighborhood. James seems pretty content in it too. James is still eating well, we will go to the weigh in again this week because it is fun to see how much weight he is gaining. I think he is storing all those extra oz in his impressive double chin. Tim still thinks he looks like Thomas, but Melanie and Lacey thinks he looks like his Grandpa Fererro. Jax has started to hide under the bed less and cuddle with the baby more. I think he has realized James is here to stay and is OK with it.

Success!

James is officially 100% on the boob. We went to the breast feeding weigh in today and he took 65ml of milk, up from 11ml last week. He also weighs 5lb 11oz, which is an 8 oz gain from last week. Pretty soon he will be a chunky monkey. On Sunday we took James to Wash Park for the first time. Hopefully the mild fall will continue so we can get in some more trips before it gets too cold. It is such a relief to know that my days of pumping 8+ times a day are over, we are very excited!

Baby Shower/Pump it Up

Today I had my baby shower at Mikki's house. It was fun and James got a lot of cute clothes. We also organized all the milk in the freezer, there is quite a stock pile. Hopefully I won't have to pump full time for too much longer.

Grandma Fererro's Last Day

James was sad when his Grandma Fererro left today. She has been keeping the house very clean, and Tim and Katy very well fed. She will be missed. James wore his new outfit from Aunt Jenny and Uncle E-E today, and it is his new favorite. It fits him perfectly. I went to the boob store and got some nursing bras today which are much better than the Target ones I have been wearing. Tonight is our first night completely on our own as a family and we have big plans to watch a movie, eat beef stew, and pump.

Happy Halloween

Today James had a busy day, we went to a weigh on at the hospital and then he had to get his heel poked for his second newborn screen. He took in 11 cc from breast feeding, which is double what he took on Friday, so he is making progress. And he didn't even open his eyes when they poked his heel. He is one layed back baby. No costume this year, but he did sport orange pants and a Halloween bib.

James' First Two Weeks

After an uneventful and healthy pregnancy, we were shocked when Katy's water broke early in the morning on October 18th. It was 5 weeks before Baby Nichols expected arrival and there was still a lot to do to prepare for baby. Well Baby Nichols had other plans. After going to the hospital, we were shocked to hear that the baby was going to make it's appearance within 24 hours. Our surprise baby was born at 10:55 pm on October 18th. The first thing Tim said was, "The baby has hair!" (we were expecting a bald baby) and then he announced, "It's a boy and he is cute!" It was love at first sight, and we spent the first 2 hours of his life together as a family. He weighed 5 lbs even and was 18 inches long. And his head was not as ginormous or as bald as we had expected. Grandpa and Grandma Fererro and Uncle Steve, Aunt Amberly, and cousin Taylor were all there to welcome Baby Boy Nichols to the world.

On Friday Baby Nichols decided that he did not want to suck on anything and they moved him to the NICU. He spent 8 days there learning how to eat and regulating his breathing. It was a very difficult 8 days. We never expected to leave the hospital without our baby, and driving away from him was about the hardest thing ever. We were very fortunate that he was a very healthy baby and he only needed to stay there for 8 days. On his second day of life, Baby Boy became James David, named after both his grandpas.

We were able to bring James home on October 26th, and were very excited to introduce him to Jax, his house, and all his new things. Amberly, Steve, and Katy's parents had done an awesome job cleaning and preparing the house for his arrival.

Since coming home, James has slept, slept, and slept some more. As of today, he weighs 5 lbs 2 oz. He isn't much of an eater, but if he takes after either one of us, we know that will change soon. We will post pictures and updates frequently, so check back!
Love,
Katy and Tim