Picture Overload!

First time meeting Misty

Silly Hat

Team Altman

Grandpa and LJ

Our little Cowboy

Laughing at Daddy

He loves his cowboy hat

Mom, Dad, and LJ

Clean Diaper...thanks Grandma!

Dad and LJ

Joshua and Misty on a Sunday afternoon

Its been a long day...

Joshua loves his lil monkey and binki

Lots of pictures in this post...Its been a busy week! Mom and Dad arrived with Misty on Thursday late afternoon, and Joshua has been enjoying his time with them! They had not seen Joshua since he was in the hospital, so it was such a nice reunion for everyone.
Not too many updates to report. We have a doctors appointment for Joshua on Tuesday morning. We wanted to get a second opinion on Joshua's flat spot on his head to see whether or not a helmet would be necessary. We are also hoping we can stop Joshua's acid reflux medication soon. He seems to be doing better with it, although some days are worse than others. He has been on this medication for several months now, so the sooner we can stop it the better.

Flu and RSV season is almost over....Hallelujah! We cannot wait to take him out of the house and also to introduce him to some friends and family who have not yet been introduced! We took him out this past Saturday for a few hours to the Southlake Town Center and to lunch and he did so well. It was our first time taking him out for a reason other than a doctors appointment or a walk around the neighborhood. Of course I was a little nervous anytime anyone came close to admire him, but I made sure they kept their hands to themselves.

I will blog again on Tuesday, hopefully with some good news from the doctor. As always, thank you for keeping Joshua in your thoughts and prayers. His continued growth and strength is our happiness. Much love from Team Altman.

Some good news!

Today was Joshua's 4 month check up. He is now weighing in at 10 lbs and 5 ounces and 22 1/4 inches long. Although this still puts him in the 5th percentile, he is consistently gaining a healthy weight every visit, so the pediatrician was pleased. Our main concern today was the flat spot on Joshua's right side of his head. The pediatrician said it was a mild case and at this time she wouldn't suggest a helmet or head band. She did suggest that we increase the physical therapy to once a week at least. The stretching is definitely helping with Joshua's range of motion, but he is still tight on that left side and therefore preferring to sleep on his right side. Josh and I were both relieved to hear that a helmet wasn't necessary. We are hoping the frequent visits to the physical therapist will continue to stretch his neck and help with that flat spot so it doesn't get any worse.

Mommy decided to take pictures of Joshua before his doctors appointment, because I knew he wouldn't be happy after all the shots he got today. Poor little guy. Here are some pictures of the happy baby before shots! Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone and much love from Team Altman.

We've discovered how delicious our fingers are!

We have been working on tummy time a lot lately, and in doing this, Joshua has discovered his hands and how delicious his fingers are! It is so funny to watch him go to town on his little hands. Here is a video from last night...

Joshua is doing well developmentally. We go to the doctors tomorrow morning for his well check up and his 4 month immunizations. I never look forward to those shots, luckily daddy will be there...he is the stronger one. We plan on talking to the pediatrician about a flat spot Joshua has on his head. The physical therapist came to the house on Monday, and noticed that the spot on Joshua's right side is getting worse. He is still favoring that right side, and although we are doing everything to make him lay on his left side, we can only do so much. We are trying to keep him upright more often and not put him in his swing, bouncer, etc. The physical therapist mentioned the possibility of Joshua having to wear a head band or helmet. Preemies heads are even more soft than a term babies head, and although this does occur in term babies as well, it is unfortunately most common in preemies. We do not know much about the helmets yet other than the research we did ourselves. It was hard to hear, especially because he finally seemed to be a normal baby. In the end, we realized we are just so thankful to have him here with us, a helmet for a couple months is nothing compared to our lifetime as a family. It will just be another adventure for Team Altman and I know we will come out strong. We will keep everyone updated on this after we see his pediatrician tomorrow. Please keep Joshua in your thoughts and prayers and give our family strength to conquer this new challenge. God is great, and we know he wouldn't give us anything we couldn't handle. Joshua is one of the strongest little babies out there, and he will have so much to share with his younger siblings one day. We are such proud parents of our little man.

Here are some recent pictures of Joshua. Much love from Team Altman! Enjoy =)

Going for a walk

Clean diaper = happy baby

Smile!

Its sunny out...thanks for the sunglasses grandma!

Lets get this walk going

Trying to get a smile from Joshua for the camera

Im spoiled

Team Altman

4 Months Old!

Today Joshua is 4 months old. It is hard to believe that he has been home for 2 months. Nana has been enjoying her time this week with Joshua. Today before we gave him a bath we measured him and our estimate of his length was 21 1/2 inches. He is getting bigger each day! Here are some photos of the birthday boy...enjoy! Much love from Team Altman!

Bright eyes

Big belly

Joshua said Its his birthday and he'll cry if he wants to

smile!

Time for bed...Goodnight!

Bumbo

Since I'v started back to work, my life has been even more busy than before...if that is possible. My students were extremely happy to see me, and I was happy to see them but a little sad to leave Joshua. The first couple days were very hard to leave, but I know it will be summer soon and then it will be just me and Joshua to play all day long every day! Here is a quick update:

1. Joshua is doing fantastic, he has slept all through the night, two nights in a row, and mommy is soooo happy!

2. We thought he might have a milk allergy because he was very fussy during feeds, but it turns out the problem was his vitamins, so we have stopped those and he is much happier!

3. Today I got home from school, and right when he saw me he smiled from cheek to cheek...that was the best feeling! He is becoming so much more alert and able to recognize faces.

4. The bumbo seat is the best invention. Joshua can't hold his head up yet, but while he is in the bumbo he can, so he loves to sit in it and look around and just chat up a storm! He is going to be just like his daddy!

Joshua in his muscle tee

Milk does a body good!

Who me?

a little smirk for the camera

Iv posted some videos of Joshua! Enjoy! When I start to get back in the routine of work, I promise to be more faithful to the blog. Thank you for following our journey and continuing to lift Joshua in your prayers. Much love from Team Altman!

WubbaNub!

 Thank goodness for this little miracle, aka the WubbaNub. If it was not already invented, I think I could have come up with it on my own. Joshua is always losing his binky just as he is on the brink of sleep, then it falls out and he starts whining for us to give it back to him. Problem solved! The binky is sewn into this little monkey that rests on his chest, so it doesn't fall out and it gives his little hands something to grasp. Perfect!

Content

 

Chubby Cheeks for a chubby baby!

Joshua had his monthly doctors visit yesterday, and he weighed in at...........9.5 pounds! He is still in the 5th percentile, but he is gaining weight consistently, so the doctors are happy and so are we. New rolls are just popping up every day and we love finding them!

The physical therapist came this week. She comes twice a month to our home and works with Joshua on stretching his neck and helping him lift his head midline and not to one side or the other. He still prefers turning, sleeping with his head to the right, so we are working on making that left side more comfortable. Joshua is getting better and better at tummy time. He only tolerates it for about 5 minutes or so, and then it is time for a break....its tough being a baby!

Break time

What.... Three more minutes?!

Im done!

 After tummy time, we have the ultimate relaxation nap. I swaddle him in his favorite plush blanket and we both take a nap. Well sometimes its mommy taking the nap, and Joshua just sits there and stares. Such a weird thing, we have so many toys for him, yet his favorite thing in the living room is to stare up at the ceiling fan. What a character!

That's all the updates for now. I return to work this Thursday, so wish me luck. Im not looking forward to leaving Joshua for such a long time, but he and Daddy will have a good time. Much love from Team Altman!