A few head shots...

Leif sleeping, 2  1/2 weeks

one cool dude on his way to a play date

BIG yawn!

Checking out the world

the beginnings of his grin

Two weeks tomorrow

Here are some photos from the last week of our growing Baby Leif and his fan club. :) 

8 days old

'Treble Maker"

Eyeing Grandpa Larsen

the brothers

one-handed typing leads to few words... more next time!

Kaj & Leif

Here are some photos from our first big brother/little brother photo shoot. We told Kaj that whenever he was ready to hold Leif he just had to ask. Something clicked tonight, and now we've captured these special early moments together. 

Hide and seek

Kaj has been really into boxes lately...(catch the pun?). He's also been into hide and seek AND big boy underwear, as you may notice.

Ella the cat wants to play!

Settling in at home

Leif snuggled up for a daytime snooze...

We've now been home for a couple of days and are getting into the swing of our new lifestyle. Thankfully, Leif has been a champ sleeper...just at the wrong time of day. His first night home he was up nearly every hour, not crying, just stirring, since apparently night is his most alert time. By day, he sleeps in three-hour blocks with feedings in between. Today we went to the nearby mall to a ramen restaurant for lunch, and he slept the entire time. Hopefully we'll get his days and nights flipped around soon, but for now it's nice to have time with Kaj during the day and Leif at night. As long as it is not long-term, I can certainly roll with this! I have photos to post of Kaj, but they're loading too slowly right now...I'll will post them later tonight or tomorrow. He has been SO chatty and cute with Leif - I'll write more about that next time. 

with Grandma Larsen

I'm a caterpillar!

cute profile

yay, team!

And a few more photos...

Snuggles of the sofa

Leif and Khun Jun

A quiet morning

Tom and I have enjoyed a relaxing morning at the hospital getting to know Leif. While of course he is his own little person, it is hard to not compare him to Kaj when he was a newborn. Leif is smaller - just over 7 lbs - and quieter - so far! - which may have to do with his coming out a bit early, since this was a planned C-section. The quiet thing may change, we realize...

I'm thrilled that his being fed in the nursery for his first 30 hours of life hasn't diminished his appetite for nursing. We're both getting into the swing of things (I'm a little rusty) together, and I know I will enjoy this time together with him many times a day (and night) for the next year.

Tom has noticed that Leif settles down as soon as he starts singing one of the many songs in his repertoire. I think he will fit in quite well in our household!

A proud dad

 Tom and his mom, Sunny - aka Grandma Larsen

We got a birthday cake for Leif and Grandpa Larsen who now share a February 7 birthday!

Tiny baby feet

Kaj wanted to "tickle Leif's hair"

this is uncharted territory...

Here Kaj is giving Leif a koala bear he made for him at the Build-A-Bear Factory. When you squeeze its paw, Kaj's recorded voice says, "I love you, baby brother." This was a big deal for him!

Tom and I have not been able to replicate the nursery staff's swaddling method - we'll ask for a lesson later.

Kaj liked the cake, but loved the balloons!

Some time as a family

I'm doing the one-handed typing thing, so I won't write much...I'll let the photos speak for themselves!

Leif Peder Larsen

We're pleased to announce the arrival of Leif Peder Larsen!  He was born yesterday morning around 7am, weighing in at 7 lbs. Because his breath rate was a bit  faster than normal after delivery, he has spent the last 24 hours getting a little extra help in the nursery. We've been assured he's doing great and will be joining us in our room today. It's been hard to not be together right away, but it's nice to know he will be in our arms within a few hours. Tom has been able to spend time with him in the nursery, but I am tethered to my bed at the moment by tubes. Needless to say,  I am VERY ready for his transition to our room!

Regarding his name, we will use the Danish pronunciation of Leif, which sounds like "life."

Kaj is excited to hold Baby Leif this afternoon!

Final days as a one-child family

I'm realizing in a mere 36 hours we will no longer be a family of three. I would like to take a moment to brainstorm a list of some of the funny things Kaj has been doing lately before I become a distracted mother of two!

1. In the last couple of days, Kaj has been saying, " Kaj have an idea for mommy" or "Kaj have a question for mommy" many times a day. When I follow up, he either makes a suggestion about an activity that would be fun for him, like read a book or go to the playground OR says, "I not know!"
2. Kaj has become a lot more physically independent lately, which has been with intention on our end. He is now a pro at climbing into his car seat by himself and he goes up and down stairs without my worrying about a big fall. When we're out and about and he wants to be carried, he knows to ask dad. I can still carry him a bit myself, but I've been trying to let go so he knows what to expect when I'm recovering from the C-section. Thankfully this new independence has come with a daddy's best phase (at least 50% of the time), which is a good thing for all of us!
3. Kaj's become a champ at identifying a number of famous musical works by tune. This has a lot to do with a few favorite books, like Beethoven's Wig(5th Symphony), The Nutcracker, and Peter and the Wolf and his nighttime music that he listens to as he falls asleep. After humming a few measures of the opening themes, he will tell us the composers' names, which come out sounding like Bay-oh-ven, Chai-kah-ski, and Poh-koh-viv. This has become our fun game when we're driving in the car. 
4. Kaj's coming right along with counting and the ABC's, but he's really surprised us with how quickly he has picked up identifying colors. A favorite game - What color is that taxi? You must think we spend hours in the car, but any distraction helps on our drives downtown!
5. Kaj likes to be "Dr. Kaj" and listen to mommy and the baby's heartbeats using a little contraption we've had since we were pregnant with him. He also likes to tickle baby brother and then hold his ear up to listen for a laugh. 
6. This photo is from yesterday when after his nap he asked for me to put his stuffed animals in his crib to create "Kaj's Zoo." When I asked which ones, he yelled, "ALL them animals, mommy!" He's an animal nut, and he will soon find out that baby brother will be giving him a stuffed proboscis monkey on Saturday. I think he will find it terribly entertaining. All for now..