The Brown's Buzz: March 2016

On February 15th, Amelia Ruth made her appearance. Her actual due date was February 10th and while we wanted her to arrive on her own, we decided to be induced on the 15th if she hadn't come yet. I finally had felt like labor was starting the day before, but it didn't really progress into anything. When we checked into the hospital on the morning on the 15th, I had made some progress. My doctor broke my water at 8:00 and labor progressed pretty quickly. Four hours later with a few sets of pushes, Amelia arrived! She had lots of dark hair and baby rolls. The nurses thought she was going to be a big baby, but were all surprised when she only weighed in at 8 pounds 1 ounce. Derek and I were just happy she was here and healthy. When she was born, we thought she looked just like Grayson. Now that she's changed a little, she looks more like Leela did at her age. I'm curious to see who she looks more like as she gets older. Poor Kai...I was pulling for another blonde so he'd have a buddy, but don't think that's going to happen. :) Had we waited another day or so, I think she might have come on her own, but it's so hard to know! Now, Grayson and Amelia will still have their own special birthdays.

We had her Baptism last weekend and she was a rockstar! She slept through the entire thing and didn't even flinch when the priest poured the holy water on her! It was a special time and was spent with several members of the family. We had a "reception" for her back at the house afterward.

The kids seem to be adjusting quite well to our addition. Leela was our wild card and she's really done well. She LOVES to be my helper bringing me the feeding pillow, burp rags and diapers. Whenever it's time to eat, she says "Milk time, baby!". Leela's always the first one to notice if Amelia isn't in the room and becomes concerned. She's been a great big sister! The boys are enjoying her too. They still like to hold her and talk to her. Every day they say, "Mom, she's getting bigger!". Haha. We're just happy they all love her. It'as hard to believe that she will be one month old next week! She's doing pretty well with sleeping and eating. She normally goes about 3-3 1/2 hours in between feedings. She really likes to be swaddled and when it's been about an hour of wake time, she's fussy until we swaddle!

All three of the boys continue to battle coughs and colds. We are ready for summer more than ever!This flu season has been hard on us. The warmer weather has been so nice and we are enjoying being outside once again! Not too much longer!

Grayson had his four year checkup last week and he's doing great! He's grown three inches and gained three pounds this last year. I can tell he's getting bigger-he's almost too heavy for me! We continue to try to figure out what's going on with his night cough. He often wakes himself up at night with "cough attacks" and sometimes even gets sick from coughing so hard. Derek's been sleeping in the boys room for a while to monitor his cough. We've eliminated dairy after lunchtime and that's helped reduce the cough attacks. After talking with the doctor, we're trying Singulair every evening to see if that helps. The drug can be used for allergies, but also for inflammation reduction in his lungs. We're going to see if this helps and then go from there. Unfortunately, he's battling a cough so it's hard to know right now!

That's about all for now. Thanks for reading!