Otis with a half-smile

Otis Crying

My Favorite Picture of Erica

Newborn

These were both from his first night. He slept with me for a few hours. I, of course, fell asleep too. Erica took this picture of us.

First Video

Otis Henry Tootle was born at 9:27pm on Sunday July 19, 2009; 7 lbs. 5 oz. He is a great baby. He is nursing, sleeping, and pooping like a champion. He only gets upset when we are changing him or we have to mess with him for some reason. He is really strong. We have to swaddle him up really tightly if we want to keep his arms under control. He sucked on his hands when he was in the womb--we could see it in almost every ultrasound. Now he tries really hard to keep his hands up by his face. Once we get him wrapped he is happy. We brought him home last night. In his first night at home he went through one rough patch where we had to try a couple of different things before he settled down. Erica is doing well. I am listening to them talk on the baby monitor as I type this. They are having a good chat. I know every parent believes that their child is good looking and I suppose I am no different. He is really handsome.

38 Weeks

Now that I'm 38 weeks along, the "countdown" has begun. My due date is only 13 days away. Last week at my 37-week appointment, our midwife Rita did an ultrasound because she wasn't able to tell by feeling my belly where the baby's head was. (She wanted to be sure he was starting to move into the right position to be born.) When she did the ultrasound, we caught a glimpse of baby Otis's SUPER chubby cheeks. Rita said something like "Woah, look at those cheeks!" Steve is obviously proud to have passed along his trademark facial feature. I'm also pleased, and I hope those cheeks will have Steve's dimples as well.

It's hot here-- 105 plus for the next six or seven days. Our new-ish cat Squirt (or as our nephew Jack calls him, Black Sherman) and I were both tuckered out from the heat tonight:

In other news, a celebrity has stolen our baby name. Thanks, Spider-Man!

35 Weeks

Whew! We've had a busy few weeks. Since my last post, we went to Colorado for Lauren's wedding, we celebrated Steve's birthday and our fifth anniversary, Steve installed a state-of-the-art irrigation system in our front and back yard (He's super excited and would love to tell you about it!), and I had a lovely time at two baby showers.

I have also been working hard to get things ready at home and at work before Otis's arrival. He'll be here before we know it. My due date is exactly a month from today!

Pregnant bridesmaid and dreamy Steve at Lauren and Nick's nuptials. (32 weeks)

Before our anniversary date. (34 weeks)

Week 35
Your baby doesn't have much room to maneuver now that he's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds (pick up a honeydew melon). Because it's so snug in your womb, he isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times he kicks should remain about the same. His kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Most of his basic physical development is now complete — he'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.