Ben Breelove

This is a two part series of amazing videos a Westlake teenager left his family and friends a week before he died.  I could not help but share- I love how he ends it-"Do you believe in Angels or God? I do."

More and more grateful for this breath of life we get to experience on this earth. :) Have a wonderful day.

Natalie

Our Pea in the Pod is Two Months!

Weight/Length:I’m going to guess about 13 pounds. We will know more on January 3^rd. We go for his two month check-up and his first round of shots-mommy is not looking forward to the shots. Noah is growing a mile a minute. My dad always jokes that he looks chubbier every time he sees Noah. WE LOVE THE BABY CHUB. His cheeks are just full of milk love. He is the best eater. 

We brought out the bumpo to see how he'd do...he loved it and then he hated it. We will get there. :)

Eating: Mommy’s milk every three hours during the day and we try to have him go four or five hours at night. We had a six and a half hour stretch last night- thank you scheduling. It was amazing and I woke up so confused as to why I hadn’t been awoken to a hungry baby around 4 or 5. It was a very strange feeling, and of course I got up to go check on him to make sure he was ok.

Look at those little shoes! PRECIOUS!

Bedtime/ Awake: This is a work in progress still, but we have more of an idea what his schedule is like. He wakes up between 7 and 8 every morning. He takes two really long naps during the day. We have a dream feed around 12 a.m. to 1 a.m. to make sure he stays asleep and I have typically been up at 4 a.m. or 5 a.m. for another night feed. We do the “eat, wake, sleep” pattern and it seems to work really well with the nugget.

This is a typical look when we go on a walk- have to bundle with this Texas Winter!

 Diapers: He is in 1’s but the belly is making them quite tight. I don’t think length/weight wise he is ready for 2’s, but the belly definitely makes them quite snug. He is a milk gut- similar to a beer gut but only for newborns.  

Clothes: He is in 0-3 months. Newborns are WAY too tight. Those clothes have been retired, and he is officially moved up a size.

Is there a little bit of me in him? Maybe the nose?

Favorites: Snuggling, Lights, Walks in the B-O-B, Bath time, Moby Wrap, Wiggling, and Cooing

Dislikes: losing his pacifier and not being the center of attention

2 MONTHS OLD! WE LOVE HIM!

Tricks: Noah is cooing like crazy. We have a video of me cooing at him and him responding like it was some type of conversation. It went on for about five minutes straight. Matt and I were dying laughing. He is smiling and really interacting. He has found his tongue and plays with it all day long. He loves to mimic what we do with our tongue. It’s quite the game. He knows both our voices and responds to us as we talk to him or walk in the room. He can hold himself up for as long as he likes and is looking to almost be able to roll from back to tummy. He’s SO strong. He can grip onto items (my hair is the usual victim). He is a very happy baby and a JOY to be around. I love being a mom and have found that there is no greater responsibility in the world. Noah makes the Clem family complete.

On the Twelfth Day of Christmas.,.

My true love gave to me...a reason to Celebrate!

Happy Birthday Jesus! Wow, are we not blessed to serve such an amazing savior that He would become man and die so that we might live? Every day I am humbled to think of God’s sacrifice. I appreciate it even more now having a little son of my own. I cannot imagine giving him up-letting him become the weight of the world’s sin so that the world may know God personally and intimately.

The Clem family had a wonderful Christmas Eve with my parents. My mom made Beef Wellington and it was delicious. There was a lot of laughter and so many thoughtful gifts. Matt received the most handsome three piece suit. He looks studly (OK, I’m biased-he’s my hubby). Noah was SPOILED with tons of fun toys. His new favorite gadget is this bouncer. It seriously provides so much stimulation for the nugget. He smiles and goes crazy.

On Christmas morning, Matt and I opened gifts from his family and each other. Matt gave me the most precious necklace from James Avery- it has Noah’s birthstone-LOVE LOVE LOVE. Judi gave Matt this incredibly detailed family tree notebook- such a thoughtful gift. The history behind family is truly amazing-we have been looking over it every day. Noah has great genes. Matt’s mom gave Noah this precious blanket with a sheep pillow- it’s super soft and cuddly. Noah has taken many naps already on this little Larry the Lamb.

Everyone’s thoughtfulness and generosity continues to amaze us. Noah is SO spoiled. I will end on this note. Matt asked me my favorite gift this Christmas. It was an easy answer- Noah. We thank God daily that this little blessing came into our lives to stretch us, mold us, and most of all- make us laugh.

Have a wonderful week and a Happy New Year! 2 month post to come soon! :)

On the Eleventh Day of Christmas...

My true love gave to me...a 2 MOVIE MAG MUD PJ DAY!

That's right. Matt and I did nothing yesterday but enjoy the cold weather, two movies, Magnolia's Mag Mud and our PJ's!

We watched ...

&

They were both really good- one was a sci-fi and the other was a chick flick. They both had unique plots, and if you are looking for a good movie to red box- you should try them out!

Mag Mud is queso, black beans, and guacamole. I will confess that we have eaten it about three times in the past week. We have a gift certificate that we plan on using fully towards that dish each time we order takeout. Magnolia Cafe Mag Mud Queso- you can't beat it.

On a Noah note, our boy has found his tongue. He plays with it all day long, and it might be the most precious thing ever. He also is really into cooing and talking now. It is so rewarding to see this little nugget develop. Home boy is growing so fast- in three days he will be 2 months old! :) Here is a small picture explosion. :) Merry Christmas Eve! 

Happy Boy!

Look at these necks. I'm counting four rolls!

Staring Contest...He wins!

Why hello tongue. There you are!

On the Tenth Day of Christmas...

My true love gave to me...Lessons learned as a new mom…

A baby’s bottom has CELLULITE. It’s the cutest thing ever, but I thought cellulite came with age- turns out we are born with it.

Breastfeeding is better than training for a marathon- seriously- weight falls off-truly amazing.

As much as I want 8 hours of sleep, it’s not going to happen (praying that it will in the next couple months, but some babies just don’t sleep through the night)

If I say I’m going to arrive somewhere at noon, add thirty minutes to an hour and a half to that- everything takes longer with a baby.

Babies can poop all colors of the rainbow- literally.

I get to play dress up every day. I love his clothes, and I look forward to picking out his outfits in the morning.

Merry Christmas,

Natalie :)

On the Ninth Day of Christmas...

My true love gave to me....a six day vacation with Dave and Tari

Best Little Buddies-Pa Paw and Noah

At the cute little hotel they stayed at

Snuggling after a Noah bath. Noah makes the funniest faces when he is in his skibbies.

We had a blast. There was a lot of fun shopping, fattening/delicious restaurants, and quality time. Matt, Dad, and Dave got to play golf one day while we had a girls day around the house. They also took us to meet the Clem's in Round Rock and Pflugerville- so much fun. Matt comes from great blood!

Merry Almost CHRISTMAS!
Natalie

On the Eighth Day of Christmas...

My true love gave to me….the BARNES family!

We have had family time full of fun-seriously- Dave and Tari (post to come later) were here Wednesday through Monday, and my aunt, cousin and grandparents came to visit Monday through Tuesday. On the eighth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me the BARNES family- Angie and Boomer. This is my favorite duo. We had a blast playing games with them and eating lots of tasty meals. We are hoping Angie will come spend Christmas Eve/Day with us. I want a rematch in Cards and Marbles.

Boomer, Bartle, and Bow

Angie, Bartle, and Love Bug

Love Bug Close up Snuggling Aunt Angie

:) Natalie

On the Seventh Day of Christmas...

My true love gave to me...a COUSIN for NOAH!

Matt's sister Judi announced on Friday that her and her husband Jimmy are expecting Baby B on July 4th. We could not be more excited for them. Noah cannot wait to have a little nugget to play with. :) Babies are the best blessing, and we know that she will be surrounded by love in Virginia as the little nugget grows in her belly. It will be a red, white, and blue baby!

This is at Judi's wedding- they are going to have a super cute baby!

This posting everday is a lot of work! Hope y'all are enjoying it! :) Once I go back to work, I'm afraid the blog may go on break. We shall see :)!

On the Sixth Day of Christmas...

My true love gave to me...the most kissable baby in the world.

Peace, Love, and Baby Chub,
Natalie

On The Fifth Day of Christmas...

My true love gave to me.....

A six hour night sleep! Yes, that's right! Noah slept from 10:30-1:30 with one dream feed and then from 1:30-7. It was bliss and a great fifth day gift to Mom and Dad!

Chubber sleeping in his carrier.

Snuggle buddy.

What's up dad?

Chubby bunny. I love my boy!

I love to snuggle with my dad in the morning.

Word to my mother!

So excited for Chrismas. Hope y'all enjoy the pictures of Noah Walker!

On the Fourth Day of Christmas

My true love gave to me...a book recommendation.

So we were recommended this book called Babywise. I think everybody should read it just to see the different theories and thoughts out there about babies and scheduling. We have really been working on getting Noah on a schedule, and I must say in so many ways it has been a blessing. We know when to expect naps- allowing us to plan for sometime to spend together. It also provides some structure and sanity throughout the day. Whether or not you believe in the crying it out method, that is between you and your family. I recommend just reading it and seeing a different perspective. I understand it is a controversial book, and I'm not trying to create controversy. I have started to read a spectrum of books on different baby methods, and I really enjoyed finding out the skinny behind this book.

On the Third Day of Christmas...

My true love gave to me...SMILES from Noah Walker!

We had always been told that babies won't smile at you for like 3 or 4 months AND if they do smile, it is imitating your facial expressions or the result of gas. Well, I kid you not, Noah has been really smiling these past two weeks as a result of us interacting with him. Matt loves to play games with him where he will mess with his tummy or his hands and it always results in HUGE smiles. (See above). We feel so thankful for these little smiles and love this boy to pieces! Happy Third Day of Christmas!

On the Second Day of Christmas...

My true love gave to me a least of non-necessities...

While we were thinking about the list yesterday, we realized we needed to make another list of “Things You Don’t Need” in the first month. These are things that we thought we would need or that we feel are overrated. Since we went “minimalist” (thanks Matt) on all of our baby supplies, we only have a top five for this list, but hopefully it helps you avoid wasting money on these things this early!

5. Playyard/Portable Crib-We were given one of these and it has been in our closet since the day we got it. I am so thankful we didn’t have to buy this J and I’m sure we’ll end up using it someday soon, but if someone were going to buy their own, I’d tell them to wait several months.

4. Newborn Clothes in General-Noah has already outgrown his newborn outfits (and he was a small baby). I would advise against buying more than a few of these, mainly because people will end up giving you lots of clothes and you’d probably rather spend your money on something that will last a little longer than a few weeks.

3. Crib-This list is for the first month only and if you’re in a similar situation as us, with living in a small place with no special designated baby room, a crib will be a nuisance and will just take up space. Noah slept on Herbert the giraffe for the first 7 weeks and is just now starting to sleep in the crib. If you’re in your own house and have your own little baby room, go for it. We also got a mini-crib (given to us!) and it is just fine. We don’t feel like we need a full-sized crib and opted not to get one of those cribs that folds out into different beds for financial reasons.

2. Crib Bumpers& Bedding-Currently they prohibit you from putting any bedding, blankets, bumpers, stuffed animals, toys (ANYTHING!) in the crib prior to the child being about 8 months old. If you’re on a tight budget, I’d strongly recommend waiting to buy any of these things. You still need a sheet to go over the mattress, but really that is it.

1. Newborn Snap Shirts-These are those outfits/shirts that snap over the front to protect his little belly button/umbilical cord before it’s fallen off. I insisted on purchasing some of these, but we ended up not using a single one!

Hope you enjoyed this blog post and please feel free to contribute any more of your own “must haves” or "must not haves" for the first month!

First Family Photo-little did we know what all we would learn the first month of this nugget's life! (I look like death)

More posts to come!