Holiday Escher

Here are some super cute pictures of Escher taken over the holiday weekend:

We did find a great little rental by the bay this past weekend, and we are getting our paperwork ready to turn in. Please keep us in your thoughts as it would mean a lot to us to get this little place! Thats all for now, I will keep everyone posted as we know more. Hope everyone has a great week!

Night Rolling

So the dreaded day has come... Escher has learned to flip over in his sleep, swaddled. He woke

up a few nights ago screaming (not crying, screaming) because he had managed to roll over and his poor little face was smashed into the side of the crib. It literally look an hour for him to stop crying! Matt didn't even sleep through this :-(

So we went back to leaving one arm out of the swaddle. We had stopped because he needed to be fully swaddled after he got his shots because he was sleeping so bad. He has done so well the past two nights that I'm thinking about just putting him in his fleece sleep sack tonight with a blanket tucked out his legs. Every time I have gone in, he has been sleeping on his belly with his little hand curled next to his face. He has also been scooting all over the crib; I never know where I am going to find him! Hopefully naptimes will go smoothly too!

He also found his voice this past weekend, and now you can hear his squeals of delight from pretty much anywhere in the house. Especially at 630am when he is just SOOOO excited to be awake!!! ;-) It is really funny though, and Matt and I just love listening to his "voice".

We are headed back to the beach on Friday to look at some rentals. Wish us luck!

love my boys :)

Sooo fast!

We found out on Friday that we will be moving a little sooner than expected! Instead of the end of January, we will most likely ring the New Year in in our new home, wherever that might be :)

We will be heading to Virginia Beach next weekend to check out a few rentals and peruse the areas that we know we would love to rent. Wish us luck!

Also, if anyone has any great tips for moving with an infant, they would be much appreciated. Secrets to weaning off a swaddle are also welcome :)

Since everything is so crazy right now, between taking care of duders, doing schoolwork, and trying to clean up/fix up the house, posting might get pushed aside for a little while. I still want to put up pictures and write about the new things that Escher does so I don't forget, but it just might not be as often. I apologize to all of our devoted readers ;-)

Today is a beautiful day in Richmond. Lots of great football games today; the Falcons play the Gaints, and the Redskins play the Cowboys (booo!!). I haven't been wearing my jersey lately because I have been so disappointed in the Skins, but I figured since they were playing their arch rivals I should sport it for the day. Both Matt and Escher looked at me like I was crazy! Have a great Sunday!

Cereal

Yesterday we had another first! Escher tried some rice cereal for the first time. He wasn't too sure about it, which is normal, but he did get more IN him than he did ON him, so that was a plus :)




This morning was a little better. I know it will take a few more weeks to really get used to it. I probably won't start with vegetables and fruits until he is closer to 6 months, since they say that can help with allergies. Since I have so many random allergies to fruits, I want to make sure that he is ok trying new foods. Its so exciting though! Everyday I feel like he grows so much. He really is just fascinating to watch. Its funny, when he was going through his Wonder Weeks leap and he was super fussy, I just didn't know what to do with him. But since he has gotten through it, I just LOVE playing with him! He is constantly surprising me by doing new things, and he is so responsive! When I put him in his new exersaucer, he just lights up, and I really see the big boy in him. His voice is changing, and he is always making new and fun noises. He started blowing raspberries this week, which is HILARIOUS! I love it!


Today we met Daddy for lunch at Arbys. Sometimes the days are so long when he is gone, so its great to break up the day and meet for lunch. Escher was all smiles when he saw his Daddy, too. After that, we came home and I put Escher in his jammies. I figured we weren't going back out again, and who doesn't want to wear soft fleece footie pajamas all day? Here are some pictures of him playing today...

He looks a little worried here because the flash caught him off guard. Also, Savanna had just given him a big kiss, which I missed because the flash was taking forever. Sigh...

He still loves playing on his whale mat though, which is good. I was in the kitchen washing his bottles, and he was just rolling around, making cute noises and watching the puppies outside the back door. He is getting better at rolling, although he doesn't make it all the way around quite yet. He still gets stuck on his arm! He will flip from his back to his belly, then push right back over. He has also gotten very adept at grabbing at his toys. If you put a stuffed animal next to him, he will roll over, grab it, put it in his belly, then try to eat it. Ahh, the joys of a teething baby. Everything in their mouths! Well, I could go on and on about all the cool new stuff that Escher is doing, but I need to go wake him up from his catnap so he will go to bed on time tonight. Hope everyone had a great day!

News, News, and More News...

A lot has happened since I last posted! Are you ready? Here are all the new stories to tell!

I forgot to mention in my last post that our dr said that we can start cereal with Escher any time now. So I got some of those little spoons and some cereal, and we are hoping to give it a whirl tomorrow morning. I'm sure I will have some fun pictures to post :) Also, Escher is cutting his first tooth! It is on the bottom. He has been Mr Drooly Pants lately, and he is chomping on everything he can get his hands on (and get his hands to his mouth, of course!) Wish us luck! I have some teething tablets which will help if he is really uncomfortable.

Also, Escher got an exersaucer! We had had our eye on the Rainforest Jumperoo by Fisher Price, but it was just too big and too expensive. So I saw a smaller one that looks like just as much fun! He was pretty excited to be in it! This is him waiting patiently for me to finish putting it together. It was like he knew it was for him!!

He had so much fun! He laughed so hard, which is great because we haven't heard a lot of his real laugh! He giggles a lot, but this was full on laughing! I love it!

Ok, so on to the biggest news. If you thought those were great times, hold on to your seat because I saved the best for last! WE ARE MOVING BACK TO THE BEACH!!!! Before Escher was born, Matt applied for a job in Norfolk. 6 months later, they finally made a decision and we are off to the ocean. God must have known that moving with a newborn would have been a mess :) Anyways, Matt will train here until about the middle to end of January, then we will be on our way! We are really looking forward to being back at the beach. Matt and I grew up near the ocean, and it really is a part of us. We are so stoked that we can raise Escher in that same environment. Plus, it will be nice to be close to our families and old friends. We prayed so hard about this job, and are so thankful to have this opportunity. We will keep you posted when we find out more specifics. Oh, and if anyone knows a great place to rent in Virginia Beach, let us know!

We hope everyone gets some great sunshine today! It is a beautiful day in Richmond, made even better by my laughing baby :)

mr. man and his shots

Escher had his 4 month well baby check up yesterday! They were all suprised to see how much he has grown! They said his weight is perfect, and he is very long for his age (tell us about it! We have a hard time finding onsies that fit! He is going to be tall like his daddy!) Our little dude weighs 17lbs, he is 27.5 inches long, and his huge noggin is a little over 18 inches. Apparently his head circumference has increased pretty significantly over the last 2 months, so they want us to take Escher to Saint Mary's Hospital (they have an advanced pediatrics unit) for a CAT scan. I'm guessing the main thing they are looking for is hydrocephalus, which is when there is an excess of fluid in the brain, causing a bigger head, and even more severely, nerve damage. Both Matt and I think this is absolutely ridiculous, and are considering getting a second opinion from another pediatrician. Escher is meeting all of his milestones, and he is a happy and busy little boy. I think we would have noticed by now if there was something wrong with him. Considering the family history of huge heads on the Mundell side of the family, we think that he is just fine. They must not think that it is too severe of a case, because we have to wait until December 3 for the appointment!

Anyways, Escher took his shots like a little champ, just crying after the last, most painful one. He was fussy for a few hours after I got him home, and he would cry out in his naps. But after a nice long nap in the afternoon, he was so excited to have Daddy home, and he giggled and played until he went to bed. Last night was rough, it seemed like nothing would settle him from the hours of 230am until about 6am. As of right now, we are still fully swaddling him (we weren't sure how he would react to the shots) but within the next week or so we are hoping to go back to leaving one arm out of the swaddle. I'm really looking forward to this, because I hope that if he has one of his hands out, he can suck on that when he wakes up in the middle of the and learn to self-soothe. I think that would help immensely with the middle of the night wakeups. I have this great book about learning to help your children learn to self soothe. Now, if only I had the time to read it...

Happy Friday the 13th everyone! We hope you all have a great weekend!

I caught him "talking" to the baby in the mirror :)

Rolling Rolling Rolling....

Escher has been very active lately, and he has been trying so hard to roll over. Yesterday I put him down by his car seat, walked away to grab my purse, came back and found him like this:

He was quite proud of himself!

Today we are enjoying a rainy, snuggly day inside with Daddy, who is off work today. We got to have coffee, bacon and biscuits this morning, yum! UP came on Netflix, so we are hoping to watch that today. It is a great day to relax, especially after our busy weekend :)

Tomorrow is Escher's 4 month well baby checkup. Please keep him (and us!) in your thoughts as he has to get his second round of vaccinations. He didn't do well with the first set, but he is much bigger now, so hopefully he won't be affected as much by them. We also know the tylenol/sugar water paci tricks now, too!! ;)

The Beach

This past weekend we got to take little dude to the beach! He did really well until about Sunday afternoon, then I think he was pretty tired from entertaining everyone :) He took some great naps yesterday! It was so great to be back at the ocean, we realized we hadn't been back since the baby luau in June!


All in all, it was a great time. We were able to spend some time with friends that we hadn't seen in awhile. Also, Matt and I were able to get out of the house after 7pm! I realize this sounds pretty silly, but I hadn't left the house after 7pm since Escher was born! Ahh!!! Thanks, Nani, for babysitting! Our nephews, Robertson and Sim, turned 5 and 2 this weekend. We loved watching their faces as they opened up their presents and enjoyed the yummy batman cake that was made.



On Sunday the weather was gorgeous so we were able to have lunch outside at Rudees with the Robsons. It was so great to have fresh seafood! Yumm!


Here are some pictures from this weekend. Escher loved his first trip to the beach!

He cooked it, he gets to eat it... all of it! :)

What a great present! A Batman costume! (I tried to get one of Sim, but he moves too fast!)

There is a park on 30th street that the boys played at while I walked to the Discovery Center to see if my friend Amanda was there. (She was! And we got to catch up, which was so great!)

I love this picture of Escher!

Ok, I love this picture of Escher, too!!

To swaddle, or not to swaddle :)

Ever since Escher came home from the hospital, he has been a swaddle baby. He loves to be all snuggly and warm, and I must say that it has really helped him sleep. Until now. The past few nights he has woken up several times because he has managed to get out of his swaddle. Which, I must say is a pretty amazing feat considering I bundle him up so tight he could barely move when I first put him down! He is getting to be so strong! He would fuss in the middle of the night because arms AND legs would be sticking out of the swaddle, and I think he was chilly!!

So last night I decided to still swaddle him, but leave one arm out. I've read that it is the best way to wean a baby off the swaddling. Neither Matt or I were sure how it was going to turn out, but we put him down and hoped for the best. He fussed for a few minutes, but he slept straight through until 4:45 am when he needed to eat. YAY!! We are going to try the one arm out for a few more nights, then maybe go for the second arm. I am really looking forward to not having to swaddle him, especially for naps because he likes to sleep in his swaddle with only a diaper on, so that means that for every nap he has to get undressed, then dressed. Thats a lot of shirts going over his big noggin!

In other news, I think he is starting to feel better! He was up for 1 1/2 hours this morning and he didn't fuss at me at all! I think I got more smiles this morning that I have in the past week and a half! I hope this means that this Wonder Week leap is just about over with. His hand/eye coordination is getting better by the day, and he is determined to roll over. He gets stuck on his side right now, but boy is he trying hard!

We are headed to Virginia Beach this weekend for our nephews, Robertson and Sim's birthdays! This will be the longest car trip that we have attempted with Escher, and it will be the first time that Escher has been to the beach. We are hoping for at least one nice day so that we can take him to the ocean. The ocean has been such an important part of our lives, we are hoping that it means as much eventually to Escher as it does to Matt and I. We hope everyone has a wonderful weekend, and I'm sure there will be many pictures to post when we come back!

Happy Halloween!

Did everyone have a good Halloween? We got quite a few trick or treaters. We also got to meet 2 more of the babies that were born around the same time as Escher! All in all, when Escher was born, there were SEVEN other ladies on our street that were either still pregnant, or had just had a baby. SEVEN! Our street isn't that big, lol. Don't drink the water here unless you want to have a baby. :-)

It turned out to be really warm, it was in the 80's, so Escher didn't end up wearing his little dino outfit. He wore his grouchy pants instead!

Matt did an excellent job carving our pumpkin! Here is a picture:

We hope everyone has a great week!