The Miller Memories

Dutch is a sweaty sleeper so it makes for some crazy bed head.

Dutch is on the lookout for hiding spots to get away from Baker. He has 2 favorite spots: (1) behind the toy box between the wall and the couch and (2) in the cabinet.

Towards the end if October Dutch got sick :( He had an ear infection and pneumonia was trying to set in. He was put on a 10 day course of antibiotics (Cefdinir) and we thought all would be good.  Boy, were we wrong. On the last day of his medicine we noticed a drastic change in him. We just thought he was going through a phase; he was clingy, angry, and wasn't sleeping well. Even his teachers at Mother's Day Out (MDO) commented on the change. After about 4 days of this I was convinced something was wrong, I thought maybe his ear infection didn't get cleared up. On my way to pick him up from MDO I called to make an appointment with the Dr. When I got to MDO they showed me something pretty scary. He had just had a BM with a good amount of blood. That night it continued and we went to the Dr early the next morning (Friday). They did a stool test and thought he might have shigella.  We were told to expect a call on Monday, but they called us back on Sa...

At 5 months and 5 days old (Oct 26, 2012) Little Bro got his first taste of something other than Mommy Milk. Please excuse the crying toddler in the background. Big Bro was quite sick and taken to the Dr shortly after the video was taken. PS - Little Bro has had some practice eating since then and has really grown to enjoy his rice cereal.

Dutch was playing with his Magna-Doodle, or as he calls it his Color Board, and asked me to draw him some pictures. He made such funny requests that I took note of them. Please keep in mind I have never claimed to be artistically gifted. He wanted me to draw: -Cow's Guitar -Cow Using Vacuum -Dog & Cat -Old McDonald's Farm -Cow Doing Wacky Ball With Hammer -Momma, Daddy, & Cow He then drew 'mud' on the cow playing wacky ball. He cracks me up!

It has proven to be pretty difficult to catch the big laugh sessions of Little Bro.  He will really get tickled by the most random thing that Big Bro does, so we never know when it will happen and therefore never have the camera ready.  We were able to get some little giggles on tape though.

Big bro got his first tummy bug last weekend. We felt SO bad for him. I was on comfort duty, so unfortunately Daddy got clean up duty. He did a great job though and never complained once. After a night of being sick, big bro was pretty tired. He fell asleep in the family room and I snapped some sleepy boy pics. Little bro was also asleep on the floor, but only because it was nap time and I was too preoccupied to put him in his bed. So there he stayed. One of the pics reminded me of a newborn picture of big bro. He was only about a week old and 2 years later he still sleeps that way. Some things don't change too much...thank goodness!

There's nothing like cuddling with a little brother..at least that's what Big Bro says.

Before putting Big Bro into his 'big boy' bed we decided we wanted to get a video baby monitor. I did a lot of research and we decided on the Summer Infant Baby Touch. It has a touch screen, night vision, and can pan the whole room from left to right and top to bottom. Needless to say we love it. We have been using it with Big Bro for about 5-6 months now and we have learned so much about him because of it. I know it may seem weird, but I love watching him sleep. Well, we recently moved Little Bro into his own room and I had to have video in there. I couldn't imagine not being able to keep an eye on him. I don't know how we lasted so long without this awesome video capability. You can zoom in and see him breathing...what peace of mind! Oh and we on our 1 parent unit we can monitor up to 4 cameras. I've taken a few pictures of the screen of the monitor, and some video too, but I can't upload that as it was done on my phone.

I know people say "Savor these moments they will be gone before you know it!" But, until you actually experience the time flying by you can't fully understand how good that advice is. I was looking at some baby pictures of Big Bro and I remember actually taking them. I truly remember sitting at home with him and playing and just taking pictures while we smiled and laughed together. Those early baby laughs are just the best! I couldn't even imagine what he would be like as he got olde. Now that I've grown to know him and his personality shines through I can honestly say he is AWESOME! He makes me laugh all the time, even when he is misbehaving. He will look at me and say "It's funny?!" and it is so hard not to smile. I can't wait to see what Little Bro has in store for us! :) Below is a picture of Big Bro taken a few days ago and one taken almost exactly 2 years ago.

As most of you know Little brother was born with 2 little natal teeth. Here is an explanation of what exactly natal teeth are. "Natal teeth are teeth that are already present at the time of birth. They are different from neonatal teeth, which grow in during the first 30 days after birth. Natal teeth are relatively uncommon, appearing in about one in every 2,000 to 3,000 births. Natal teeth generally develop on the lower gum, where the central incisor teeth will appear. They have little root structure and are attached to the end of the gum by soft tissue and are often wobbly. Natal teeth are usually not well formed, but they are firm enough that, because of their placement, they may cause irritation and injury to the infant's tongue when nursing. Natal teeth may also be uncomfortable for a nursing mother. Frequently, natal teeth are removed shortly after birth while the newborn infant is still in the hospital, especially if the tooth is loose and the child runs a ri...

Baker surprised us yesterday by reaching a new landmark...he rolled over!!  He has mastered going from his back to his tummy, which is the harder of the two roll over directions.  Typically babies roll from their tummy to their back around 3 months and then from their back to their tummy at about 5 months.  But our little Baker is a strong boy and he wanted a challenge! He has also been smiling and talking to us a lot lately.  He loves to look you in the eyes and give you a big smile and coo.  It melts our hearts and brings a big smile to our faces too.

Baker has been smiling at us! He has the most awesome smile, his whole face lights up. Even his eyes smile big. Sadly we have had a hard time catching it on the camera. Here is what we've gotten so far.

Dutch has really grown to love his little brother and Baker is just enthralled by Dutch.  It is very much a love-love relationship (thank goodness!).  One of our favorite times of day has become 'Tummy Time'.  This is when we lay Baker on his tummy and let him try to lift his head.  Dutch will lay down with him and cheer him on.  Baker will try to watch Dutch walk around the room.  It is great fun for all!

Baker was 2 weeks old this past Monday. He is doing great! And we are happy to report that Dutch has adjusted wonderfully and really likes having baby brother around. Dutch gives Baker nite-nite kisses every night, he always wants to "do piggies" on Baker's toes (this little piggy game), and he gets sad and worried if Baker cries. Dutch is an awesome big brother! We are so excited to see the boys grow up together. Well back to Baker. At 2 weeks here are his stats: *Weight - 9 pounds 11 ounces He gained 12 oz in the last week! Our boy can pack away some milk. *Length - 21.25 inches He is up almost 1 inch since birth! *Clothing Size: 3 months At this rate Dutch's old clothes might not work for Baker. *Diaper Size: 1 I'm do glad we got size 1-3 diapers at the shower, otherwise we would have a lot of diaper exchanging to do. A few pics from Baker's second week of life.

We originally posted Baker as weighing in at 9 pounds and 4 ounces when he was born.  There has been some controversy surrounding this though.  Here is what went down. When Baker was weighed at birth he was screaming and flailing around.  Dan said the numbers on the digital scale were going crazy and then just stopped at 9-4. When Baker was taken to the NICU (about 8 hours later) they weighed him first thing.  He was calm and sleeping according to the nurses, and they clocked him at 9 pounds 10 ounces. So....Dan and I feel that Baker, our BIG little man was really even bigger than originally thought!

Baker has been with us for 1 week! Can you believe it? He has had kind of a rough start. We are sorry that we didn't really call or email anyone while things were going down, but it was a busy and trying time. Here is a recap of our little Baker's life so far. The cesarean went great and Baker made sure to hose down the surgical assistant as soon as he came out of the womb. He was born at 8:11am and momma finally got to hold him at about 10am. He was 20.5 inches long and weighed 9 lbs 4 oz. He took to nursing right away! Of course when you are that big you better figure out how to eat pretty fast. We had some nice visits that day. Capri's mom and grandparents were there, as well as Jessica. Dan brought Dutch up after nap time. Now I should preface this with Dutch HATES medical facilities, doctors, and nurses. When he sees them he freaks out! That being said Dan brought Dutch up to the hospital to "see Momma and Baby Brother." Dutch have me a hug and then c...