update and photos

On Friday, February 17 Drew had another checkup with the nurse to see if he is gaining weight, and we were thrilled to find that he was up to 6 lbs. 14 oz.! He is bigger than when he was born! It was nice to hear that all the feeding efforts were paying off. Friday was also a big day because Drew finally got over the hump and fully figured out breast feeding. He had been getting better and better, but his stamina wasn't good enough to do it for the amount of time to get enough food. Now that he has the hang of it, we can put away the cups and finger feeder. Feedings are so much faster now! Yeah!

This weekend was also a big weekend for Drew because he had his first outing. On Saturday afternoon we braved the bitter cold temperatures and went to Grand Rapids. His first visit was to see great-grandma Gezon, who was thrilled to see him for the first time. Next, we took him to Grandpa and Grandma Aupperlee's house so that the Vryhof side of the family could see him. He had a very big day, and we found that Drew loves to ride in the car (as long as it is moving).

Of course, I can't merely give an update, but I have to include some photos as well. Here they are:We still strip Drew down to his diaper for feedings, but he is getting close to being able to eat fully clothed. I get to help with getting Drew ready for some of his feedings.
And I get to do some of the burping afterward.
And I help keep Drew calm while Jana is getting ready to feed him. He loves to suck on a finger! Look at how small his hands and feet are!
Fortunately, that isn't a significant digit he has raised here (I didn't teach him that!).
I do like playing with his hands though.
I finally captured Drew mid-yawn. We love his yawns!
I'm not going to recommend this as Drew's look for the beach, but the diaper/hat/socks look seems to be working for him here.
Drew gives us a lot of these serious, contemplative looks. We're still guessing about what he might be thinking.