Summer fun in the sun!!!

Lately, the weather has been absolutely gorgeous here in Calgary! We have been going on lots of walks and just soaking up the sun. One thing we know in Calgary is it doesn't last very long so we have to take advantage of it while we can.
This past Thursday we went to my friend Nicole's cabin up in Gull Lake. We went on the dock and we went boating. It was great! Hunter dipped his little toes into lake water for the very first time and actually liked it! I was shocked! We were all prepared for a good scream but he was pretty content! He loved the boat ride too. He thought the jerky movements were just great; giving us really good smiles while it went.

Cute Lifejacket!

 Kobi had fun with his bestie too Roxy (Nicole's Black Lab)

Then, today My friend Vickie came over. We went for a really nice walk around my developing neighborhood and then just lounged on my front lawn with Hunter and Kobi. It was so hot out on our walk I had to strip Hunter down to his diaper, as you can see he was quite happy about that! 

Kobi is such a good big brother to Hunter, he was kissing him so much hence the look on Hunters face :)

Cloth Diapering!

I get this a lot, and that is, "Im brave" for doing cloth diapers. It really isn't that hard or as scary as people may think it is. I use diapers called "g diapers." They are a hybrid diaper that uses both disposable liners and cloth. When we are at home we use the cloth inserts and when out and about we us the disposable. They are super eco-friendly and easy on Hunters bum. The disposable liners you can compost, throw out, or flush down the toilet. They have no chemicals in them and degrade in 50-100 days:) I use a wet bag for the cloth which I then just throw into the wash and if needed bleach in the sun to get rid of the stains. The sun is amazing!!! Plus, he has a really cute bum in these diapers!!

www.gdiapers.ca

Baths!

Hunter at the beginning hated baths! It would take everything in us to get it done fast because he just screamed the entire time! The picture below is at the NICU I held the pacifier in his mouth while the nurse finished bathing him. He can't keep pacifiers in his mouth on his own because of his cleft. He is so red because of all the screaming that was going on. 

But then at 2 months we had a turning point! He started really liking them. It is so precious to see him happy in the tub. If he is upset I put him in the bath and he stops crying its awesome! 

Hunter at 3 months.

Going to play a little catch up!

Hunter is gaining weight and growing like a weed! He is just beginning to smile like crazy and notice himself in a mirror. He loves faces and people. 

He is so strong too, he is standing with guidance and holding his head up like a pro.

He has the best "wah" ever, and ultimate pouty lip when he cries :)

Meeting my cousin Isaac, who lives in the states for the first time.

Meeting my parents

Hunter meeting his cousin Beckett

Hunter meeting Megan

Hunter meeting my brother Drew

This pic was back at the NICU just before he was discharged, I love it :)

The NICU

Hunter was in the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) from March 9th to the 21st. He was in the NICU because he wasn't feeding all that well in the beginning and wasn't gaining the weight they would have liked. By the second day, he was using the haberman bottle and we would end up gavaging the rest of the food. The gavage or g-tube is a tube that they place inside the nose and runs down all the way to their stomach.

The NICU is an amazing place with amazing people. There are a few nurses that I will never forget. They were absolutely amazing in helping my husband Kelly and I take care of our little bundle. I don't know what we would have done. They taught us how to bath him and feed him. Because he can't breast feed they taught me how to pump, it was great. Best of all, as much as we hated leaving Hunter in the NICU every night, Kelly and I were able to get a good nights rest while he was there and I was able to recover a little better.

By day 10, it was getting a lot harder to go to the hospital. Kelly and I just wanted him home and we weren't seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. It was really hard. We just felt like we weren't getting the answers we were looking for. Most of the time we would just get answers like "Its all up to him when he can come home." We finally had a nurse on the 10th day talk to us and really help guide us how to get Hunter out. She basically told us that he is a term baby but was being treated like a premie. On a regimented feeding schedule that newborns don't generally follow. Newborns will eat when they want to eat and most of the time we were forcing him to eat and he didn't want it. She told us that she was going to talk to the neonatologist about it and after that two days later he was home!!! Thats all it took! Getting him off the schedule and onto his own! Amazing!! We were so grateful!

Paige Barclay Photography

Paige Barclay Photography

Paige Barclay Photography