Just Chillin'

We haven't been doing too much since we have moved into our new place, other than unpacking and getting settled in. We have just been enjoying our little family. It's so much fun just hanging out with the four of us. Vega is so cute with Hunter, and she seems to be getting more use to him everyday. When he is crying or fussy, she comes up to him and puts her nose on or near him as if she is trying to say, "Everything is okay, little guy," I just love it. :) Because we haven't been doing too much, I don't have too much to blog about. But not to worry, we still take plenty of pictures of our little dude. :)

Sleep smiles! He has smiled at us a few times while awake tho. :)

As I went to change his bum, he was so tired, he fell asleep right as I put him down. Silly dude!

He always looks so comfy when he is sleeping!

Hunter playing in his play gym. He was so mesmerized by all the colors and toys.

There will be more pictures to come. :)

Doctor Visits

Since Hunter has been born we have been dealing with doctors pretty consistently. First there was the three and a half week stay in the NICU, which obviously there were lots of doctor check ups. :) When he left the hospital he weighed 5 pounds 8 ounces, and 18 inches long. After leaving the hospital we were instructed to bring him in for a follow up doctor visit one week later. At that appointment he was weighing 5 pounds 12 ounces, and 18.5 inches long. Because he only gained 4 ounces in a weeks time, our doctor suggested coming back in another week for another weight check. At that check up he was 6 pounds 2 ounces. We were all very happy with that weight gain. :) The following week we were back in Seattle and meet with our new pediatrician, and he weighed in at 6 pounds 10 ounces and 19 inches long. The doctor called him a rockstar and kept saying that Hunter must not have gotten the memo that he was a preemie because he was doing so well. :) After getting such a good report, we didn't need to go back until he was ready for his two month vaccines, so we made an appointment for two weeks from then. That was the longest it had been between seeing a doctor. It was actually really nice to not have to worry about a doctors visit for a week. :) So, yesterday was his two month check up, and he is weighing in at a whopping 8 pounds 2 ounces, and is 20.5 inches long!

What a chubby little dude!

Doctor said that he is a very healthy baby. Because he is a preemie, he isn't quite as advanced as a full term two month old would be, but he is still advancing just how he should. :) He did get his two month shots, and he and I only cried a little. :) It was just so sad to watch his little face when they gave him the shots, tho, but he calmed down right soon after I snuggled him for a bit.

Baby's first band-aids.

He was doing very well after the shots, until about a few hours after, and we could tell his little legs were just hurting. It was breaking my heart, especially hearing his cry. It was a cry that we had never really heard before, and I was just snuggling him and crying myself. As my mom had said, these shots are just as hard on the mom as the baby. :) We gave him just one dose of infant's Tylenol and he calmed right down and slept very well throughout the night. This little man is such a stud, I am just so proud of his growth and development, he has come such a long way in the past two months. Since we have been going to the doctor so often, it is going to be a very weird, good feeling not having to go back to the doctor for another two months. :)

Just more stuff...

Since we were so busy moving, and we had the movers come get all the big stuff on Valentine's Day, we didn't really have any plans to go out or anything. Later that night tho, Cody did need to run to the grocery store for some things for the new house, and I stayed at the house to unpack and watch the baby. When he got home, he came back to the room I was working on and hung out for a while, and I walked to the kitchen to find these on the counter.

This is my Valentine's Day necklace. Such a sweet guy I have!

So, we have just been trying to enjoy our new place. We LOVE it! It has more room than our house in Utah had, so we are very happy with it. Once we get all unpacked and have all the boxes gone, I will post some pictures. :) In the meantime, here are more of our little dude! :) Hunter and I waiting in the warm car while the movers took things into the new place.

Moving sure is hard work!

His first ever zip up feety jammies! I know that might not mean a lot to most people, but because of him being on the monitor for the first 6 weeks of his life, we weren't able to put him in zip up feety pajamas, because the cord would have to come up out of the top, which just wouldn't work very well. Anyway, so I was finally able to buy him some zip up pajamas, and I was so excited about it!

Can you tell how thrilled he is about it, too? :)

Cody and Hunter watching the iPhone. Like father, like son!

Checkin' out the new place.

First bath in the big tub! Bath time is becoming more and more entertaining. :)

And our little man just being the stud he is, and ready for a night on the town. :)

Pictures and Other Things

Well, we can't seem to stop taking pictures of our cute little boy! He is just always doing cute and funny things that we have taken a jazillion pictures of him! So I thought I would share just a few. :)

Hanging out with Daddy.

Looking oh so cute in his hippo hat.

Wud up, gangstas!!

Chillin' with the Vega Dog.

We recently purchased Hunter a swing, and he LOVES it! He is so good to just hang out in there and look at the mobile, and watch his surroundings. Occasionally he does fall asleep in it. :)

In most of Hunter's pictures, you can usually see him sleeping with his hands near or on his face. Even in his ultrasounds, he usually always had one or both hands by his face. This has not changed. :) No matter how tight we bundle him, he still will usually wiggle at least one hand out and put it on his face.

Three generations, my mom, me, and Hunter.

Our little family, Cody and I, Hunter and Vega.

So, our second week back in Seattle was an eventful one. We ended up moving. Yeah, kinda crazy. We had kind of decided while we were in Utah that we would need a bigger place, so Cody had been randomly looking at some rentals around Seattle and Redmond. Well, while in Utah, we found a place that we both really liked and it was a mile from Cody's office. So that Monday after we returned to Seattle, we went and looked at it and just loved it! So we filled out an application, and we were approved to move in. We started moving our stuff last Saturday and we were done all moving in by yesterday. Somehow we were able to move into a new place with a two month old in only a week. I think we have gone crazy tho. :) Hunter was really cooperative throughout the whole thing, which was really helpful. He would sleep or just hang out and watch us while we cleaned and packed.

Hunter just hanging out in his carseat while we were cleaning. Such a good little stud.

Our empty Seattle home.

Our second week home sure hasn't been as relaxing as our first week back, but hopefully this next week will be a little more uneventful. :)

The Journey Back to Seattle

After Hunter left the hospital, we spent three more weeks at my in-laws in Logan.  It was so great to have the majority of our family so close and able to help and see Hunter whenever they wanted. Vega was enjoying her vacation away from home as well.

Such a silly puppy!

Because we were in Logan for so long, we had many visits from my sister-in-law and her little girl, Anna. She was so cute to watch with Hunter! She is such a sweet little girl, with a great imagination, that as we did laundry one day, she took one of the preemie onesies and a burp cloth and that was basically her little doll. She called it "Pretend Batman" and would change his diaper and feed it a bottle and wrap it up with the burp cloth. It was so dang cute!

Anna and Hunter, such cute cousins! She loved his little hands.

Anna giving Hunter a kiss on the head. She was so good to be gentle with him.

My dad and Grandpa Z also came a few different times to see Hunter and me. Four generations of the Zollingers.

So, Hunter got many baths at my in-laws. The first bath we gave him after he came home from the hospital made me very nervous. I had given him a sponge bath while he was in the hospital, but I had lots of helpers and nurses to watch over me and give me instructions. Well, this first bath thankfully had my sister-in-law, Jami who is a pediatric nurse, there to help. I just needed that reassurance that I was doing everything right and that I didn't drop that baby. Well, it was a success!! :) One of his baths we needed to change his breathing tube stickers on his face, so for the first time since he was born, we finally saw his face without anything on it.

What a cute face!

I won't lie, he looked like a totally different baby, but a very cute little dude! 

Microsoft was very generous in letting Cody work from his computer in Logan the whole time we were there. It was very nice knowing he didn't have to use his paternity leave until it was needed, or all his vacation and sick time. We were both very glad that he was working there during this difficult time. :) Anyway, we decided to make the long drive back to Seattle on February 3. Because we had acquired so many things, such as a pack n' play, bouncer, play mat, carseat, tons of baby clothes, and oh yeah, a baby, we needed more space to get us and everything back to Seattle. So my mom and step-dad thankfully offered to drive up there with us. We loaded up our truck with stuff and Cody and Vega drove in that vehicle, and we loaded the rest of our things, my mom, step-dad, me and Hunter in their car, along with the monitor and oxygen. Hunter had actually been off the oxygen all that week, and was doing great, but we brought the oxygen as a back up incase his stats dropped and he couldn't bring them back up. He was actually in the 90's the entire drive up, and I could tell we were getting closer to Seattle because a few hours out he was stating 100. He was a trooper, and slept very soundly. The first day we did the long drive from Logan to Pendleton, Oregon, which is about 9ish hours. We only stopped three times, two of them were for Hunter to eat, and the third was an extra potty break for the adults. :) I actually felt Hunter was doing so well that we decided to stop at the AppleBee's in Twin Falls, Idaho to get some lunch. I was nervous as this was his first real outing besides going to the doctor, but he was great. Slept the entire meal! He's such a stud!

Proof that I took him out in public! :)

The next day was the shorter drive from Pendleton to Seattle, and that is about 5ish hours. Only one stop for Hunter to eat before we got to Seattle. He made the drive so very well, and I am just so very proud of him!

My little man on the long drive.

We were greeted to a house full of Christmas when we got in on Saturday afternoon. That was our first priority after getting settled in, was taking down the Christmas tree. :) My mom and step-dad stayed the whole week to help us out, which I am very glad that they did, because being with family and having help for six weeks is something you start getting use to. :)  We did take Hunter out on his first walk to get some gelato. 


Walking down the streets of Seattle.

Yum! Getting gelato at The Fainting Goat!

One of the first baths in our sink in Seattle. This sink is much smaller than my in-laws. We are thinking that he may be graduating to a tub bath here soon. :)

He is definitely learning to enjoy bath time. :) 

 Our first week back in Seattle has been a great one!

I can

While Hunter was in the NICU, we had so many friends and family support. A lot of times when we would come visit him in the NICU, there would be something donated to us, such as body scrub and lotion for me and blankets and clothes for Hunter. Before I left the hospital, someone left a bag full of these types of things, and it included a plaque and a necklace that said, "I can." I wore that necklace everyday that Hunter was in the NICU to remind me that yes, I can do this. :) There was also a small piece of cloth with a poem attached. This is what the poem read:

It's hard to come into this life
and not have Mommy's touch.
I know the doctors mean to help,
but I miss her, oh so much.
We had many months together
when I was tucked inside.
Now we're lonely for each other
and we both have cried and cried.
Then someone gave my Mommy
a hankie to hold tight.
She sleeps and holds it close to her-
It's filled with love each night.
When Mommy comes to see me
she puts it by my skin.
It makes me feel so happy
'cause I feel my Mom again.
I love this little hankie-
It works just like a charm.
And I'll cuddle, smell, and hold it tight,
'til I'm back in Mommy's arms.

Every single time I would read this poem, I would start to cry. Even now, as I was typing it out, I still got teary eyed, even tho I have my little one right next to me. So yes, I would wear this little hankie close to me and take it to the hospital to put under Hunter's head to sleep on.  It would make me feel a little better about not being with him.  I just wanted to share this little poem, because it meant so much to me those three and a half weeks. :)

Coming (Almost) Home

January 16, 2012 was the wonderful Monday that we were able to bring our little bundle of joy home from the hospital. The day before, I spoke to the nurse and we were thinking that, even tho he was eating all of his meals on his own, he would still be in the hospital at least until the end of the week. So that Monday morning, I woke up, called the NICU for my morning update, and proceeded to get up and get ready to go to the 9:00am feeding. Around 8:00am, our pediatrician, Dr. Clarke, called me as he usually did to give me my update on Hunter. Well, the first thing he said to me was that they were going to keep him for another week, which of course I replied with "whatever needs to be done" and he continued to tell me that he was just too cute and he didn't think the nurses would let me take him. :) I wasn't quite sure how to respond to that, other than I totally agreed that he was adorable. Dr. Clarke then asked me if we were going to leave for Seattle the next day, and I was stunned. I asked him if that meant that we were going to take him home today, and his response was, "Well, if you don't think that being cute is enough reason to make him stay, then yes, he can come home today." I was ecstatic!! He said that if they got everything together and ready, he could possibly be ready to leave around noon. After I got off the phone with Dr. Clarke, I looked at Cody and screamed, I was so happy! I gave him a hug and proceeded to run around my in-laws house finding my mother-in-law screaming excitedly that we were bringing home a baby today. I called my mom and when she answered the phone, I yelled, "We get a baby today! Eeeeeeeeeeeeee!!" I then started to panic. A good panic, but still panic. I had to make sure that we really did have everything ready for him to stay at my in-laws for a period of time, and I had to pick out an outfit for him to come home in, and pack the diaper bag, and the list went on and on. So, after Cody told me to breath, we got everything ready and headed to the hospital at 10:30am. It was a long day of talking with social workers, oxygen people, and nurses. He would be coming home with oxygen and a pulse oximeter to track his oxygen saturation and heart rate. Finally, at around 4:00pm, we were ready to leave the hospital.

All his accessories.

All ready to leave the hospital.

I won't lie, the five minutes spent on the drive to Cody's parents house were the most nerve racking minutes of my life. It sure didn't help that this was all new, but add an oxygen tank and a monitor into the mix, and all I can say is OMG! Seriously, I was staring so intently at his little face and listening so hard for that monitor to beep if things dropped, I couldn't concentrate on anything else. Thank goodness that Cody is a great driver, and he got us to my in-laws safe and sound. It took us an extra long time to get him out of the car because of the extra stuff, and we were walking very slowly because of the cords, and as we were walking into the house, the oxygen tank carrier handle broke and fell to the ground. As it fell, Cody and I stopped and just stared at the tank, scared to move. My mother-in-law video taped the whole thing, and I must say, it is really quite funny to see our reaction. It wasn't that big of a deal, but we were both so on edge that it really freaked us out. Anyway, we made it into the house, and we made it downstairs to where he would be staying for the next couple of weeks, and Vega met Hunter.

Our first family photo out of the hospital.

Hunter in his pack 'n play. He looked so TINY to me!

That first night was a very long night. I was so anxious about his oxygen and monitor, that every time it would beep because something dropped, I would jump up all freaked out. So, the thing with those home monitors is that anytime Hunter would move, it would beep. It sucked. But seeing as it was my first night with my baby, I wasn't really surprised that I didn't get much sleep. :)

Look at those cheeks!

What a big binkie on such a little face.

So sleepy.

Handsome little man!

Hunter snuggling with Buppa.

My dad, Grandpa Z, holding Hunter.

Momma and baby.

Vega and Hunter.

When Hunter left the hospital, he weighed 5 pounds 8 ounces and was 18 inches long. One week later, he was 5 pounds 12 ounces and 18.5 inches long. The following week, he was a whopping 6 pounds 2 ounces. He is growing right on up! :)