A Swinging Time

After a morning of snuggling with me for a couple hours, Garrett was bright eyed and bushy tailed... ready for a day of stimulation.

We put him on his tummy on the play mat again. He actually lifted his head and turned it to the other side, then a few minutes later switched back. After a while we turned him onto his back and he reached and hit the hanging animals. He doesn't have the fine motor control to grab them yet, but he definitely likes interacting with them already.

Since I am going back to work on Monday, we attempted to get a little done in the nursery. We started with the fun stuff; we took out all of the toys Garrett received as gifts and showed them to him as we organized

them into a box. We also attached toys to his car seat, stroller, Pack 'N Play, Bassinet, and Diaper bag, so he'll always have some fun things to look at. After her bath, big sis Katie helped with the toys. The toys are so snuggly soft, even Andrea wanted to cuddle with them.

While those three were occupied with the stuffed animals, I put together Garrett's swing. Garrett likes swinging a lot; we got it on video and it is very cute. Unfortunately I did not have enough of the right size batteries so I had to keep pushing it to make it go. It's not hard to do, but it's not as consistent as when the motor is running. Garrett did not complain... except when it stops!


After a day of play, Garrett wanted a nap and the bassinet just won't do. He's such a cuddler... so Andrea held him while he slept. We finally understand the expression "sleeping like a baby", the harder he plays, the harder he sleeps. It's fun to have all these things set up and see him playing with them, we just have to figure out where everything is going to live.

Ontario Thrills

Our outing for today was to Ontario Mills. We went to Motherhood Maternity to find some nursing tops for Andrea. We also went to Baby's 'R Us. Garrett did not show much interest in either store, but he made it very clear that he does not like it when the stroller stops! We also bought a few Christmas gifts, but to say where or what would ruin some surprises.

Garrett really likes to arch his back. Not only does he do it during tummy time, but also when he's on my shoulder. He has very strong back and neck muscles for a newborn, and he uses them to arch so much that I have to hold on with both hands.

I found out today that my company wants me to go to Germany for a week starting November 26th. I don't like the idea of missing a whole week of Garrett's life, especially so early in it, but Andrea has assured me that she will take lots of pictures and video, and she's going to post on "What's Up Cordova-Caddes", so family and friends won't be missing out.

Three Firsts

Garrett had a few firsts today! He was pretty tired this evening so he fell asleep and when he woke up, he did not cry, he just woke up and looked at us. Before tonight he always woke up hungry or upset about being wet.

After his nap we put him on his play mat for the first time.

First on his tummy. He can already bring his head up really well. He enjoyed the lights on the mat and music. Then we rolled him onto his back and he stared at the hanging toys. Andrea showed him how each one worked: one spins, one crinkles, our favorite one you pull

down and it vibrates as it retracts. He did not grasp any of them tonight, but he was very intrigued by them.

Finally he had his before bed feeding. For the first time he ate from both sides for a long period without falling asleep. This plus his nap from earlier tells me that he is starting to regulate his sleep, which is wonderful. I am hoping he'll be sleeping more time during the night before I return to work next Monday.

Trader Garrett

Today was a day to take a breath after such a hectic weekend. We spent the morning at home together. In the afternoon, I had to drop my laptop off at work for some maintenance, so Andrea and Garrett had time together. I had my snuggle time with Garrett last night while I was trying to let Andrea sleep and he fell asleep on my chest.
In the early evening we took a family walk, then did some house work and made dinner. After dinner we made it out to Trader Joe's, the best grocery store. This was Garrett's first visit, so I took a picture of him. This is in the cheese section of the store! It's amazing how Garrett can make a trip to the grocery store a fun event. Everything is new when you have a newborn.

Super Bath Day

This morning my cousin, and my Godson, Bill, was confirmed at his church in Claremont. This meant that we had to be somewhere at a particular time in the morning. Things were looking OK at first. Garrett had eaten and was not suffering from gas as badly as last night, I was showered and dressed, Andrea was getting ready, when suddenly a little unexpected shower during a diaper change threw the plans into the trash bin. I am pleased to report that Garrett's first actual bath, in his tub with water, was very successful, despite the fact that I have no photographic evidence. I do however, have a new weight report. Today Garrett weighs 7 lbs 5 oz. Unfortunately, the bath seemed to coincide with his tummy bothering him more again and he needed some extra attention while we were getting him ready. By the time Garrett was washed, dressed and ready to go, we had missed the confirmation service entirely. These are the unexpected things that happen when you have a three week and two day old baby I guess.

I did however, get to visit and congratulate Bill, who responded with detailed analysis of the proper technique for sliding on one's knees. The fact that he was doing this in a suit definitely added to the absurdity of the scene, but I am happy that he is excited about his new hobby. Because Bill was confirmed at the church where my mother, aunts and uncle grew up attending and where my grandmother was very involved until she passed away, there were many people who know our family. They all wanted to see Garrett. Most of them remember me from when I was a boy, and I heard several comment that they saw a resemblence. I also heard many comments about how small he is.

After the reception at the church, my family met at Chili's for lunch so Garrett had his first visit sitting indoors at a restaraunt. For the most part, he was content as long as he could see a parent, and Andrea was directly in his line of site for the meal.

I must really be slipping at my job as photo historian because I did not take a single photo during the reception or lunch. However, I do know that some pictures were taken so I will track down the files as soon as I can gain access to them. I have to admit that I have sensed some lack of creativity about how to continue to take daily photos of Garrett. However, I feel that a picture a day is the best way to avoid the opposite condition, where all the stuff of life takes precendence and years later you wonder why you did not take more pictures. I think I just needed something like this to remind me that because it is important to me, I have to make the effort to keep the camera close at hand (Andrea always has it, I just have to ask for it).

After lunch, we took my mom and Aunt Betsy to Costco because they are shopping for a Plasma screen in the near future and I wanted them to see what Costco had to offer. Garrett was very calm while we browsed and picked up a few things: water, cleaning wipes, and a birthday present for Garrett! I cannot say here what it is, that would ruin the surprise, but I will hint that it's the current version of Andrea's favorite toy growing up.

Our little Garrett loves to be naked. We decided to let him be without a diaper for a few minutes tonight. He was very happy during this period; however, it ended abruptly with yet another unexpected potty and another unplanned bath, this time Andrea needed one too, but I think she wanted to take a bath tonight anyway. However, once again his bath in the tub went undocumented. Third time is the charm, right? Unfortunately Garrett still has some excess gas into the evening, but it definitely peaked last night and this morning.

We spent the rest of the evening catching up on this blog! I must admit I have been quite behind, posting either a picture or some text, but rarely both and for the last few days neither. Andrea and I brainstormed the major events that had not been blogged, going back to Halloween, with the post we wanted to write together the next day. If you're a frequent reader, this is a time to peek at the last few entries that you've already read. Recording the history of our family's life is time consuming, but I must say it is also very rewarding. If you are enjoying reading it half as much as I am enjoying writing it, then you must be having a great time.

Slow March to the Painted House

This morning I caught up on a lot of lost sleep. Andrea was up with Garrett before 8am and I fell back asleep until 12:15pm. It felt good to sleep so long, although I feel guilty that Andrea cannot sleep so long in one chain.

When I woke up Natalie had come to Danielle and Justin's to visit with Garrett. Her birthday was on Thursday, and she had told us her birthday wish was to spend time with Garrett, which we were happy to fulfill.

After Natalie's visit, we went for a family walk in the same area as yesterday; however, soon after we left the house, Garrett was upset about riding in his stroller. He refused to stay in the seat without crying, so we held him for the majority of the walk. Bouncing soothes him temporarily, but he does not like it when you stop. I was surprised when he calmed down during the drive from Danielle's to my Mom's house, but he did insist that Andrea keep the light on so he could see her in the car until he fell asleep.

When we arrived at Mom's house he was asleep, but once he woke up he was very fussy. He would cry when he was not being bounced or fed. Grandma Caddes seemed pretty confident that the problem was gas, and I was very surprised that with persistent burping, Garrett would produce 3 or 4 burps between feedings, while usually I can only induce a single burp. We suspect that some rice that we had with lunch may have given Garrett gas. On Friday when Danielle offered it to us, she mentioned it was made with curry. Even though neither Andrea nor I could taste it, we remembered tonight that she had said this. Andrea avoids curry as a rule because it gives her stomach cramps. Although Andrea did not feel sick tonight, it's possible that her intolerance for curry combined with a dish with a very small amount, still produced an increased amount of gas in Garrett's tummy. Whatever the cause, we want him to feel better soon. It's so sad to see him in pain.

We drove back to our house in Claremont, later than we expected because Garrett was so upset this afternoon and evening. The paint smell is surprisingly mild, probably because we left some windows open while we were gone. I think the away time while the paint dried was a success, although I hope Garrett feels better tomorrow.

Quiet Day with Family

In contrast to the excitement of yesterday, we had a very relaxing day. First thing this morning, Andrea took her car to have the brakes replaced, which meant we had no car and therefore an excuse to stay at Danielle's and lounge. Just before Andrea returned from dropping off the car, Garrett became hungry and I thought we might have a re-enactment of the upset Garrett from last night, but she arrived soon after to feed him, proving that I overreacted.


Next I had a massage, followed by Andrea. We had been talking about doing this for Andrea since Garrett was born, but I was happy to have one too. Then we caught up on some Tivo'ed shows, while Garrett had frequent feedings. It was fun to spend the day with Danielle. In the afternoon Andrea, Danielle, Garrett, Katie, Daisy and I took a long walk around Las Flores. Then suddenly it was time to do stuff! They called that the car was ready and Andrea's mom wanted to look at fabric samples with us. We had to hurry to do both, but we picked out a really soft and fuzzy blue fabric for a chair that will go in the nursery, and we confirmed the pattern we are going to use on our couch.

We ended the evening with a wonderful dinner at Ron and Mariann's house. The appetizer was a seafood plate with shrimp and trout. Then a salad before the main course of lamb with mashed potatoes and yellow and green squash. The meal continued with three excellent cheeses with candied pecans and dried cranberries. Then a slice of pecan pie was accompanied by an espresso. The appetizer was accompanied by a Spanish sparkling wine, dinner by an excellent Bordeaux, and cheese by a nice pinot noir, but it is beyond my recollection to cite vinter. I've always said that the Cordova's is my favorite place to eat in Orange County, and this meal was one of the best.

It Seemed So Simple

Tonight I had an incredibly irritating experience. Before leaving Claremont for the next few days while the paint dries, I dropped Andrea at home to pack a few things while I kept Garrett in the car, and went to Walgreen's to pick up a prescription for his eyes. We had decided that his eyes were not in fact clearing up on their own, even though they had looked better on some days. Usually picking up a prescription takes less than 10 minutes. However, I'll ruin any suspense and tell you up front that the experience took an hour and a half.

It began when they told me that they could not locate any record of the prescription. All of Garrett's information had been entered into the computer system, but the prescription was not in the system, nor could they find the original prescription I had left the night before. The employee suggested that she would leave a message for the employee who had received the prescription and everything would be resolved the next day. However, since I was doing this as a last errand before leaving for days, this solution was not very appealing to me.

I asked to speak to the supervisor who managed to ask every question again. By this point Garrett was awake and not very happy. Twenty minutes later, when the supervisor was about to call the doctor and get a verbal prescription, Garrett was already crying. But suddenly, the prescription appeared! At this point I figured the ordeal was over, but unfortunately, another 45 minutes lay ahead. I won't bore you with the details, but essentially adding a newborn to your insurance is a frustrating process, despite the number of times it must happen every year. When we had exceeded one hour of time waiting and Garrett was screaming because he had been away from Andrea for too long, I asked them to forget the insurance and just let me pay for the eyedrops. I cannot explain why it took 20 minutes for them to charge me and put the eyedrops in the bag, but after everything leading up to this, it seemed only fitting. When I finally arrived home, Garrett was so tired of screaming he had stopped, but he ate like he had never eaten before.

Afterwards, we made our way to Danielle and Justin's house, where a superb meal awaited us. Danielle served Pumpkin Seed Crusted Chevre Salad, Homemade Butternut Squash Soup, and Citrus Chicken with Root Vegetables. The meal was excellent was a perfect counter to the frustration of the earlier experience.

Escape From the Paint

Today we spent the day out to keep away from the paint fumes in the house. We changed our living room from a dark green to a medium tan that should brighten up the room. However, we did not want to inhale those fumes, which gave us a wonderful excuse to meet Ashley at Taps in Brea for lunch.


Afterwards we headed back to Claremont, so Andrea could have a haircut, and Tom took Garrett and Katie for a walk around the Claremont Village. After a big loop around the Village, we stopped at Starbucks, then the ATM machine. Garrett was quite content except when we stopped in the small park across from Harvard Square, so we kept moving for the rest of the hour.

Once Andrea was done with her haircut, it was time for a feeding and changing. Breastfeeding in the back of the car was pretty easy, but the diaper change proved more challenging. By the time he was done, Garrett had blasted some poop on Tom's shirt, but with Andrea's help, everyone got cleaned up.

Our last stop before returning home was to the bank where Garrett was quite popular with all the employees. After the boring business of getting every account changed to Cordova-Caddes from our previous last names, we opened a savings account for Garrett. We also started an education fund for his college education.

Now we are heading back to check out the living room, pack up, and head to Orange County for a few family days while the paint fumes disapate.

Day Trip Turns Into Evening Out

It took a few hours to get everything gathered together this morning. We drove to Orange County to look at fabric and paint samples. Our day trip turned into an afternoon and evening trip, but Garrett was perfectly happy to go along for a car ride. We dressed him in a very cute suit and he slept through the drive (including a quick restart when we realized we'd left some things behind).

Garrett enjoyed seeing his grandmother, and we put him in the cradle that was built for Andrea. However, he still prefers being held. He slept a lot more today than the last two days. I have a feeling he'll sleep on the way home too in his car seat.

Halloween II

Since Garrett only wore two of his three outfits yesterday, we put him in his bumble bee outfit today.



Garrett had his first outting to a store today. We took him with us to Home Depot. And what did he think? He slept the whole time. Pretty much from the time the car started moving until we took him out of the car seat after we were home he was totally asleep. Unfortunately, that was his only nap today so he is over tired tonight. I think he knows he is supposed to be awake during the day with us, but he hasn't switched his clock completely so he is struggling to figure it out. It's like a horrible case of jetlag, when his two and a half week old system is not prepared to handle it. Hopefully I'll have good news to report on this front by the end of this week.

He has such a strong body that he likes to wriggle around with and long toes that he stretches out. We've been calling him "monkey" for both reasons. Garrett has so many nicknames, but I think one or two will stick andd the rest will be fads. Until then, he's our little monkey!

Happy Halloween

Wow, what an amazing day.

After many days stuck at 6 lbs 14 oz, Garrett has finally hit the 7 lbs mark! We put him in his "My Little Pumpkin" Outfit to start the day. In the afternoon our second big event occurred. I opened Garrett's diaper to change him and his umbilical cord stump had fallen off. After that we changed him into his first actual costume, Garrett the little Duck. Andrea set him down in the Pack 'N Play for a few minutes, but when she heard him cry she ran over to see that he had flipped himself over onto his stomach. We've heard this behavior usually happens between 3 and 6 months, so this may be a total fluke. He's been rolling on his side to get close to either parent at night, so this may have been the next step. Andrea would have taken a picture, but he was having trouble because his pacifier was in the way of his breathing (which is why Garrett was crying), so she moved him immediately.

We went for a family walk in the late afternoon, and on our return we stopped to Trick or Treat at the Dolce's, next door. They invited us over for a visit and Patty's daughter, Olivia, got a chance to hold Garrett. After returning home, we had our first ever Trick or Treaters in six years living here. It was Rachel and Betsy Kottkamp, two of my cousins, with their mom, Bev. They came to see Garrett in costume, and because they had heard we had the good candy! In fact, they even brought their friends by later, which was good because those are the only candies we gave out all night after buying a big package! After such a full day Andrea and Garrett fell asleep early and it lasted a few hours before the night feedings started.

Another fun event today was introducing Garrett to his Mobile. He loves to look at the animals and listen to the music. We attached it to the side of his Pack 'N Play and he starred at it intently.

Quiet Day at Home

The Kottkamps visited this morning. We looked through wedding pictures while Garrett finished eating. Then everybody held him.



We took a long family walk, then we had dinner at home and watched one of our all time favorite movies, Life As A House. Warning, curtosy of Justin, this is a very sad movie. However, the characters go through an amazing journey and it is incredibly moving.

Daily Dose of Dolce

Our neighbors, Patty and Cy Dolce, came over today for a visit. Garrett was very happy being held by Patty and looking at her and then at Cy, back and forth, new faces to study!

It turns out that both of Patty's daughters had blocked tear ducts as infants to the point that they were surgically opened at 3 months old. It's always nice to talk to someone who has experienced something you are going through.

We went for a long family walk this afternoon and bumped into Patrice, one of the yoga instructors from InnerWorks. She was delighted to have a surprise meeting with Garrett.

Unfortunately, the Dolce's could only stay for an hour and a half because they were going to a gathering for a friend who just lost their pug during anaesthesia. Hearing the story would make any dog lover sad. After dinner, Patty came back over for another visit. Patty and I discussed all the propositions on the California special election while Garrett drifted in and out of sleep in Patty's arms. I have been especially interested in hearing Patty's opinions because she is a high school teacher, so 74 - 76 affect her directly, but I also enjoyed hearing a different viewpoint on the other propositions. Garrett did not vocalize a preference for any arguments; I think he is still undecided.

Garrett Video #2

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Keeping Busy

We visited Dr Warren again today to check Garrett's eyes for infection. He has been having eye goop for about a week, but yesterday it was thicker and a yellowish-green. Dr Warren prescribed some eye drops to make sure that there isn't any infection, but it is most likely blocked tear ducts.

One of Andrea's Pilates colleagues, Vicky, came with her daughter, MacKenzie, to meet Garrett today. Vicky thought he looked so small even though MacKenzie was only 6 pounds 1 ounce when she was born. I guess one forgets how small they are! When Andrea was about 2 months pregnant we were driving with Vicky and her husband, Rick, and trying to describe the size of Garrett in the womb. And that's when he got his nickname, Gherkin, which Andrea and I used for him through the rest of the pregnancy. At the time he was the size of a little gherkin pickle. The day he was born I called him Gherkin more than Garrett, but now I only use it occasionally as a term of affection.



Today Garrett is 2 weeks old, and he weighes 6 pounds & 14 ounces, which is
close enough to his birth weight for Dr Warren. It has gone by so amazingly quickly. When I look back at the pictures from his birthdate, I can see that he has changed a little, but seeing him every day I don't notice the change. I'm sure it only speeds up from here.

Bonus pictures are of Andrea & Garrett

Right Time, Wrong Zone

Our little Garrett still likes to be awake in the middle of the night. Last night I didn't fight it, but took him downstairs and watched some TV so Andrea could sleep. As long as I am holding him, he seems content to sleep in my arms, but when I snuck back upstairs he almost immediately awoke and started crying (so much for Andrea sleeping).

Since I was awake during the night, Andrea let me sleep in this morning. In the end I think I got more sleep than she did, so much for my brilliant plan. However, we each got some one-on-one time with Garrett, which was nice for both of us.

We've been trying to figure out how to wake him up during the day to help him change his schedule, and he does spend some day time awake and very alert. But when he decides to take a nap, he is sound asleep.

However, I think Andrea's client figured out the mystery. She suggested that our little Garrett might be on a different time zone. Our little Rosenheim boy is on German time!

Garrett really likes the sound of our spot remover, we call it a "Zoom Zoom". Every time we turn it on, his eyes open really big and he seems to be listening intently. We think he likes the sound of it, maybe it reminds him of the sounds of being in the womb.

This evening, on our way back from a family walk, we stopped by our neighbor's house. The Dolce's had only seen Garrett in passing, usually in his stroller and we were asking when they would like to come visit him, when it started to sprinkle. We brought Garrett inside so he wouldn't be in the rain and also so Patty and Cy could get to see him in some real lights. Patty's daughter, Olivia, was also there and we had a nice visit. We made plans to see Patty and Cy on Saturday, but I insisted Cy pose for a picture, although Patty wanted to wait until Saturday. Their pugs, Sophia and Darla, were very intersted in Garrett.

Time Flies When You Have a Little Boy

Today went by so quickly! This morning we had a painter come by to fix some bad caulking lines in our living room. Then Garrett had a bath before Danielle arrived in the afternoon for a visit. Since we had run out of Pampers earlier in the day, and since the Target brand diapers seem to guarantee a wet outfit with each wet diaper, I went to the store. Three stores later I had diapers, household items and food and it was 8pm! After dinner we spent some time together but both Andrea and Garrett fell asleep by 10:30. It's amazing how quickly the day whized by, and I want these days when I am home to go slowly...



Today I am posting two bath pictures. The first was taken after Garrett's bath today and it's coupled with a photo of Garrett in a bathrobe after his first bath at home. He is just so darn cute!




I have heard (and experienced) that the Flash Video from yesterday will only work with the latest version of the Flash plugin. Also note that the Macromedia website states that after installing the plugin you may have to reboot. I would change may to will since it seems to be a given. Sorry if anyone is struggling with the technology, that wasn't my intention. If I had a little more time and more control over the hosting I would post it in a format that had more flexibility (downloadable, etc). However, if I had not used VideoEgg to upload this video, it probably would have been a month before any video made it's way to posting, so hopefully we can work out the details.

Garrett Video for 10/25

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I found an easy way to get up to 30 seconds of video up on the web. It's called VideoEgg. Here's the first clip of Garrett.

Celebrating a Spectacular Year

Today Andrea and I celebrated our one year wedding anniversary. Last October 24th our (extended) family witnessed us declare our commitment to each other in a beautiful ceremony. Tonight we watched our wedding video and I was reminded both of what a fantastic event it was and what an amazing year it has been since then, most especially the birth of our son ten days ago.

Our day was much quieter than last year. We spent it at home with Garrett, made a nice dinner and watched the video. This afternoon we took a family walk which put Garrett to sleep for the next four hours. We may find that he doesn't want to sleep during the night after such a long nap, but he was so content in his warm outfit and bundled in his seat blanket.

Today's picture is of Garrett in his bouncer. It was actually taken yesterday, but it's a better picture than all the ones of him in his bouncer today. I made the 1 picture per day rules, I can bend them and ultimately, it's the better picture that matters.

Update: Close to midnight we had a piece of our wedding cake. We had been saving the top tier in the freezer since last year. It was not as good as last year, but it brought back memories and it still looks exquisite!

Busy Day for our Star

Garrett had a lot of visitors today! First his Grandma Marilyn and Aunt Betsy came to the house and brought lunch. Marilyn showed us pictures and gifts from the Grandma's Shower that the nurses at Head Start threw for her.

After lunch Aunt Bev brought Rachel and Betsy, Garrett's cousins to meet him. They both held him and commented on how cute he is. He was very alert and moving his eyes between them. You can really see him absorbing the world around him.

After they had left we tried our family walk for the second time, not waiting until dusk this time. Despite a chilly wind, we had a very nice walk around our neighborhood and I was able to capture Katie walking and Garrett riding in the stroller in a single picture.

This evening Andrea's parents stopped at our house for dinner on their way back from the desert. They brought the groceries and prepared the meal. Also Mormor (Swedish for Maternal Grandmother) brought a suitcase-full of gifts, mostly clothing. I think Garrett will be able to wear a different outfit every day until his second birthday at this rate.

Earlier in the day, Danielle called to ask if Garrett needed any more 5 - 7 lb clothes, the size he is wearing now. Garrett is lucky to have so many people who care about him who are buying him these presents, but it's amazing how much clothing he owns. I think the fact that Garrett's sex was unknown until birth only added to this phenomenon. People bought gender neutral gifts for our showers and now they want to buy "boy stuff", even though they have already given gifts.

It's been a very busy day, and I am impressed that Garrett handled it without getting fussy. He did nap on our walk, which probably explains why he is now wide awake when it's time to sleep. Pictures will be added at a later time. Right now I have to get some sleep so I am rested for our one year wedding anniversary tomorrow.

Update: Pictures were added on Monday, October 24th

Visit from Natalie & First Walk

Today Natalie came up to meet Garrett. We had a nice visit, and I took the opportunity to sneak away to pick up the second half of my anniversary gift for Andrea while we had company. Garrett had a lot of alert time today after sleeping for almost 5 hours in one block last night.

This evening we bundled Garrett up for his first family walk.

You Don't Get a Second Chance...

Last night we gave two baths, but only Katie's was planned. However, once everybody was clean, we had our first meeting between Kiss Me Kate and Garrett. Katie seemed interested in Garrett, but after a few moments she just sat down. However, I was happy to get some pictures of my two munchkins together.

Adding thousands of words

If you have been keeping up with What's Up Cordova-Caddes, then I encourage you to go back to posts from the last week. Today I added a lot of new pictures to the Cordova-Caddes FlickR Collection. I've been going back to update the mobile posts I wrote over the week to include pictures and links. I even added a new post that had been started but never finished or uploaded. If you want to see all the pictures from the birth you can look here.

Today's Picture of the Day is Garrett in his Bassinet

Very Well Visit

Today was Garrett's well baby visit and Dr Warren said that another blood test for jaundice is not necessary. Garrett looks less yellow today, although it could take two weeks before the yellow is totally gone.

Each day seems to fly by, especially spending three mornings at the pediatrician's office and the lab. However, we have been taking lots of pictures. Today's picture of the day is of Garrett and Dr Warren.

In the Right Direction

Today's second billiruben test showed a level of 16.7, not as low as we would like, but definitely heading in the right direction. Garrett's scheduled check-up with Dr Warren is tomorrow, so we'll discuss it with him tomorrow. Hopefully we are out of the woods. This is Garrett getting ready to go to the lab for his test.

We like Yellow on Ducks

Garrett moved up his first pediatrician's appointment by showing signs of jaundice this morning. He was sleepy and didn't want to wake up to eat between 12 and 7am. The office had us come in to have him checked, and as soon as we left the house we could see the yellow color of his skin and eyes. Unfortunately indoor lighting masks the effect. Dr Warren said that he looks like his level is higher than normal, but not definitely in the dangerous range. Garrett had to have blood drawn from his heel for testing. He did really well, but unfortunately has to have it done again tomorrow to compare his values (going up or going down). Dr Warren called back close to 6pm to tell us his lab result was 17.4. What I understand is that 15 and below is definitely safe and above 20 is dangerous, so Garrett is in the middle. The uncertainty is awful, but hopefully tomorrow his level will be down and his body will take care of the billirubin naturally.

This evening, Garrett met his uncle Justin and spent the evening with him and Danielle. They brought dinner ready to go into the oven, and we all enjoyed their visit.

Cross your fingers for a good (low) score tomorrow

Getting used to the world

Today has been one of transition, no visitors and nurses, just the four of us (Katie is the fourth if you were wondering) at home. Garrett is eating about every hour and at times the cycle of eat, burp, try the other breast, burp, change diaper, seems to finish just in time to eat again, but it's been a good day.

Garrett had his first bath at home and it almost included him kicking the water basin into the sink, but his mommy is too quick. We got some cute pictures of him bathing.



It's amazing how enormous the newborn baby clothes are on Garrett. We did not have too many because it seemed that he would grow out of them too quickly yo be worth having, but even the 5 to 8 lb clothes have extra room. We received some additional newborn stuff from people who couldn't wait to buy for a boy once they knew the sex, so once they get washed we'll have plenty of options. Aunt Danielle even brought her gifts washed so he could wear them immediately! Now our job is to get him to grow so he fills out the Newborn size. His weight today is 6 lbs 8 oz, up from a low of 6 lbs 7 oz.

It's amazing how tiny Garrett is!

Homecoming Day

Garrett came home today with Andrea and Tom. It was family day. Marilyn (Tom's Mom) and Betsy (Tom's Aunt) came to the hospital this morning and visited with Garrett as Andrea and Tom packed up and got ready to come home. They saw us off from the hospital around 2pm.



When we arrived home Mariann (Andrea's Mom) was there cleaning and getting things ready for Garrett's homecoming. Ron (Andrea's Dad) and Danielle (Andrea's Sister) arrived soon after with groceries and Ron met Garrett for the first time. After spending the evening together, with dinner provided by Danielle, we are ready for our first night at home with Garrett.



Thanks to everyone who sent congratulations. We appreciate all the warm
wishes.

The Day After

Today was spent getting to know Garrett and seeing more visitors. Darci came to the hospital to meet Garrett. Also Grandma Marilyn and Aunt Betsy came to the hospital again to spend time with Garrett and visit with Andrea and I.

I am sorry to say that I took only video during all of this, so today's picture is actually from yesterday, but it's actually Garrett's first picture ever. Only two minutes after he was born, Danielle took his picture.

Garrett Michael's Birth Day!

Wow! It was an amazing day. Last night at 11:30pm Andrea's water broke. And within 6 hours Garrett Michael Cordova-Caddes was born. We got to the hospital about 12:30 and skipped evaluation, going directly into a room. After taking blood and attaching the fetal monitor, the time went into fast forward for me. Andrea's mom and sister, Danielle, arrived about half an hour after we got to the hospital, and they stayed with us throughout labor and delivery. I couldn't share all my thoughts in pages and pages of writing, but it was an amazing event. Andrea was so brave and wonderful. Garrett came so fast, and when he actually emerged I felt as if time froze. In an instant I realized that this tiny body was a person, and that this person was going to depend on Andrea and I to raise him. It was simply awe inspiring.

Not everything went according to plan. Dr Cropper was out of town, so Garrett was delivered by someone we had only met once, and briefly. The epidural that Andrea asked for at 4cm dialated, was brought by the anaesthesiologist when she was around 9 and ready to push, then it had an inclusion and did not work anyway. Our number one request was to have Garrett placed on Andrea's chest immediately after delivery, but instead he was taken to the nurse for what seemed like an eternity. Still, despite all those things, when you look at Garrett, it all fades to the background. I am so amazemed at how Andrea delivered our son.

The rest of the day was used for recuperation and visitors. Tom's mom, Aunt Betsy, and Aunt Bev came to meet Garrett. Later in the evening, Aunt Bev brought Tom's cousin Bill to the hospital.

This evening Garrett was circumsized by Dr Warren. Andrea and I felt that it was best to lump all the tramatic events into one day.

Now that all the visitors have left and it's just the three of us, I can relax and just watch him. He's such an beautiful baby and I feel so lucky to be his dad. I will never forget to the feeling I had when he was born. This happiness has no measure.

Introducing Garrett Michael Cordova-Caddes

What can I say! At 4:47 AM on October 14, 2005, Garrett Michael Cordova-Caddes was born. He is the most beautiful site I have ever seen.

Suspicions Confirmed

Dr Cropper confirmed that Baby is definitely gearing up for an entrance. Andrea is almost 3 centimeters dialated and 80% effaced. Who knows when it will be, but probably very soon.

Warm up for the Big Show

Yesterday (Sunday) Andrea had recurring pains in her back. We weren't sure if it was the start of labor, but they decreased in frequency and she has not had contractions of the uterus. Not labor yet, but this might be a signal that Baby is getting ready. Andrea has felt Baby dropping and she is carrying lower. Stay tuned...

Family Update Roundup

Sorry that I haven't posted lately, but the good news is that the time has been spent getting ready for Baby.

I realized that the only reason I have not posted pictures from Natalie's shower, previous mentioned here, was because I had not cropped them. I decided that I did not want to wait any more. So they are uncropped, but available as a new FlickR Set. If you have pictures from that day, please email them to us.

Speaking of Shower pictures, I added a few more to the set from Mariann's Shower a while ago. Take another look if you are interested.

The most recent Obstitrician appointment last Monday confirmed that Baby is very comfortable inside Andrea's tummy. You never can tell when it will happen, but those who guessed on or after October 10th have better odds at this point.

Baby has spent most of the last few months on the right side of Andrea's stomach. However, on Tuesday Baby decided to poke out on the left side. As I was trying to capture the movement on video, Baby jumped to the right. I didn't see it very well out of the LCD, but out of the corner of my eye I saw a huge movement that was very fast. I'll have to check the video to see if I caught it. After I'd put the camera away, Baby jumped back over to the left in another big movement! I couldn't believe how fast and pronounced these movements were.

That's all the Family news for now, stay tuned...

Katie says hello

Katie says hello
Originally uploaded by CordovaCaddes.

I snapped a quick photo of Katie from my sidekick this weekend. If this post comes out decently, I'll feel good about posting a picture of Baby this way while we're still at the hospital

Do Not Disturb

I don't know where my head has been this week, but I forgot to post details about our latest OB appointment. The appointment was on Monday, which I kept confusing with Tuesday.

The doctor said that everything looks good, but that Baby is still pretty high and Andrea has not started dialating or effacing, which means that Baby is pretty unlikely to come before the October 10th due date (as determined by the first ultrasound). Of course, there are no guarantees, but if you guessed an early delivery, you might want to have another conversation with Baby...

Baby seems comfy in Andrea's tummy!

Special Thanks

I want to make a special post to thank some people who are so generous:

Thank you to Ron & Mariann Cordova for the baby furniture from the Baby's Dream Infinity Collection.

Thank you to Harrison Latta & Lya Cordova-Latta for decorating the Nursery with our colors and jungle animals.

Baby says thank you for making the Nursery so cozy!

Breastfeeding is old news

Last night was the Breastfeeding class that was supposed to teach us more about breastpumps and storing breastmilk. Although we haven't made a definite plan about Andrea returning to work or school, we thought that at some point we would want to have the information so that Andrea could be away from baby for several hours without worrying about Baby's feeding schedule. We had already learned about positioning, feeding frequency, and problems to watch for from the Baby Express class. Unfortunately, yesterday's class was about 90% review. The new information on breast pumps and breastmilk storage pretty much matched what we had already read on the subject. Neither Andrea or I felt that we learned anything new, although review can be useful. However, the best part of class was a new video showing newborn babies put on their mothers' chests. The babies had a natural instinct to climb towards the breast and begin feeding. It was amazing to watch and shows how much nature really does know what it's doing. Not only do babies know where to go, but the instructor mentioned that babies crawling on mommy's tummy would serve as a uterine massage, which is done by nurses in our "modern" world. Once again, nature shows it's smarter than we are...

A wonderful excuse to get together

Last Saturday our friend Natalie hosted a wonderful Baby Shower for our friends. We were once again spoiled! I have gotten as far as transferring the pictures from the camera to the desktop, but I have not uploaded them to FlickR yet. As soon as I do I will update this post, as well as put a new post with a link. Thank you to everyone who came and made it so special. A huge thank you to Natalie for hosting this wonderful get together. Also a huge thank you to Natalie's parents who allowed us to gather at their beautiful home. Stay tuned for all the evidence...

Catch-up not Catsup

I have been quite remiss in not mentioning that we selected our Baby Furniture this week. On Sunday and Monday (this last Monday was Labor Day) we looked at the stores in our area and on Monday decided on a brand, Baby's Dream. The store we found it at is Baby and Kid's World in San Dimas. On Monday, we decided on the Infinity Dropside Crib. Unfortunately, this model is no longer shown on the Baby's Dream website, but it is a Dropside Crib version of the Infinity Crib. If you can imagine the styling from the second, but with the symmetrical look of the first, then you have pictured it. Or you could be patient and come see the crib in a few weeks. Ours was the last Infinity Dropside Crib in the store and they are not getting any more because it is a discontinued product. We picked it out as the store was closing for the day (early hours for Labor Day), but another baby furniture store was still open for an hour, and they were selling the Infinity Combination Dresser and Changing Table at a special Labor Day sale price. However, when we arrived we learned that they did not have the Honey color in stock and to order it would take 8 to 12 weeks. We left the store dismayed, but called Baby and Kid's World to see if they had the Combo in stock. We were ready to pay a little more to have the Combo now. It turns out they had one of them in stock (2 for 2!). When we asked for the price, we found out that their regular price matched the Labor Day Sale price we were so eager to get. The bad news was that they were closed for the day, but the good news was that I was able to pick it up Tuesday afternoon AND it was discounted 10% more because of a coupon from Pomona Valley Hospital's Maternity Orientation tour. So much for holiday sales!

In other Baby news, last night was our last Childbirth Education class. There wasn't very much information left to cover, more than there would have been had last week's class not ended early. However, even with some information left over to finish, the class ended early after a very long break in the middle. I'm not sure why the first and last class had so little information, while the middle two were dense with content, but I guess that's how the course is designed.

This weekend is our co-ed shower. Two men from my work both seemed very confused that they would be invited to a baby shower (one of them explained to me that Bachelor Party invitations go in one pile, all shower invitations go in a pile for his wife). I am definitely looking forward to this event and you can expect a Picture Set to be posted here after the event. TGIF!

Picture This

Pictures from the Baby Shower are available on the Cordova-Caddes Flickr Page. You can click on a single picture to see it enlarged, or you can view a slideshow by clicking on "View as slideshow" or clicking that link.

TKO

So last night's Childhood Education class was... well it was... um... it was!

The majority of the class was a review of the stages of labor: how to differentiate the stages, how long contractions will be in each stage, how long they last on average, what to do (and not do) during each stage. We also went over what to pack in the labor bag and some general reminders about the labor process. We went over medication in more detail and talked about the different options.

Then we started talking about caesarian section procedures. Even though we are planning on vaginal birth, I agree with the our instructor that it's important to know what to expect in case plans change. After talking about the procedure and what to expect we watched a video that showed an actual caesarean section. It started with some introduction by 3 women who had all had C-Sections. Then we followed a couple who was having a planned caesarean. They showed what goes on in the Operating Room during the preparation, and then we watched them make the incisions and bring the baby out. During this whole thing I was surprisingly unaffected by what I was watching. I thought maybe I'd watched enough ER for this to not effect me.

Then after the surgery was shown, the other women came back into the video and were giving concluding comments. My mind started to wander, and I started thinking about how I would feel if Andrea needed to have a C-Section. And then I started thinking about how I would react if something was happening and we had to decide if she was going to have a caesarean or continue naturally. And that indecision stayed with me, like I was frozen in that moment of not knowing what to do. My legs started feeling weird, then my stomach got upset. I was going to stand up and go to the restroom, in case I needed to vomit, but I didn't feel like I could hold myself up or even talk, so I just leaned way back in my chair. It was getting hard to breath, so I took off my necklace. Next thing I knew I felt like I was waking up from a nap and there was a crowd of people around me. My first reaction was to fight back, like I was being taken for a swirlee at Mudd, but I didn't really have the strength to fight back at that moment (and thank goodness). They set me down on the floor and it started to become clear that I had passed out. Then I got really embarrassed because the whole class was interrupted for me. Andrea told me afterwards that I started breathing really heavily and my body was limp, then it sounded like I stopped breathing and that's when she called out to the instructor that something was wrong. I guess I was unconscious for 30 seconds to a minute. Of course, if you're going to pass out, it's very efficient to do it in a classroom at the hospital. They sent about 10 different people from all over the place to come and check on me. At one point they were sending two different gurneys. But I knew that I was not in an emergency. They offered to take me over to the ER anyway, but I could tell that I was OK by this point. They took my pulse a few times and checked my blood sugar. I thanked everyone profusely and they left before I actually crawled under any rocks.

So I hope that any readers could gather from the fact that I am writing this, that I am in fact OK. I had an upset stomach for the rest of the night, but that was more because every time I would feel better, I'd started thinking about what I had done, and then a tiny bit of nausea would return. My hats off, and huge thanks, to the other class members and to the Pomona Valley Hospital staff for helping me.

So Baby, if you are reading this, many years in the future, it's true. Daddy passed out during the Childbirth Education class, and he did it to HIMSELF! Andrea said last night that maybe it's better that I went through this now. Perhaps I will be able to deal with any uncertainty that comes up during labor better now that I've already gone through that mind-numbing uncertainty in advance. I think that's an interesting idea, but honestly I won't have time to ponder it all during the actual labor. I'll be so focused on what is happening, that I won't have time to think too much about it, which is what caused the episode last night. Maybe after it's all over, and we're back at home with baby, then I'll start thinking about the whole process. I'll make sure to stay in a padded area then!