Guest post from Auntie Jill

Auntie Jill here. Well, there's a new man in my life. Even though he's less than two feet tall, isn't quite potty trained yet, and is a total mama's boy, he's stolen my heart. We have many of the same interests...we like to go for long walks on the beach together, enjoy taking long naps, and are both big fans of dairy products. Yeah, my nephew Soren is a pretty special guy. Here we are before one of our morning walks.I've been able to spend both the first and last week of September with Shelly, Jeff, and Soren, and my time in Port Townsend has been wonderful. Soren and I have spent many hours exploring the beaches, trails, and neighborhoods here (while Shelly and Jeff sleep, work, or get chores done around the house). He stays snugly asleep inside the red wrap for up to two hour walks! Soren let his parents go to a play while I watched him (he slept soundly the whole time they were gone), and he accompanied me on a shopping trip downtown. People treat me differently when I've got a baby with me! It's funny suddenly having the world see me as a motherly type...everyone smiles at me and drivers hit the brakes instantly when I want to cross the street. Back in my auntie role, I attended a breastfeeding tea and midwife visit with Shelly, cooked and cleaned at the Randall Roost, and helped with diaper changing and Soren soothing. I've learned so much about what it means to be parents of a newborn! I now have so much respect for everyone who has gone through the parenting process...thanks Mom and Dad! Here are Soren's Mom and Dad, thinking about how different their lives are now than they were a few months ago, and how excited they are to have little Soren around.
Since I was here for the first and fourth weeks of Soren's life, I was able to observe a few of his developmental changes. He seems fussier now, and harder to console when he's crying (sorry, Shelly and Jeff!). He is much more curious about his world, and gazes, wide-eyed, at all the interesting people and things around him. Most exciting, he has started to smile! Check out this happy grin!I have to leave tomorrow morning to continue my nursing school program in Portland, and I can barely tear myself away from Soren. The only hard part about being an aunt is that I can't be with Soren all the time! I'll be back soon...
P.S. At four weeks old, Soren weighed in at 9 pounds, 13 ounces -- having gained an average of 1-2/3 ounces a day for each of the 14 days prior. This is a very healthy rate and evidence of the feeding frenzy he has recently undertaken!

Guest post from Auntie Nora

As a guest in the Randall household for the past 5 days, I thought it would be nice to get an outsider’s perspective on Soren (although both Mom and Dad lend their wonderful writing skills on this blog.) Unlike them, though, I’ll try to be brief!

I’m Auntie Nora in the picture below who looks like she doesn’t know how to hold a baby, but he likes that position, I promise! Soren is my first nephew and I wasn’t sure what to expect, although I’d fallen in love with his pics before I had a chance to come all the way from Colorado to officially meet the little guy.

He’s adorable – I know that I may be completely biased, so that said - I have to brag a little by saying that he’s boyishly handsome, agile (well, he’s working on that!), smart (it’s already evident!), entertaining (time flies when you just sit and stare at his infinite facial expressions), and completely charming (when he’s not squalling in your ear!). I like to call him my little “hot water bottle” as his tiny toasty body feels so cozy when he’s curled up in your arms. I can already feel my biceps from carrying him around; I’ve enjoyed our special time together on our early-morning walks around PT (Soren bundled in the amazing Moby Wrap); I have changed innumerable diapers (and washed even more dishes!); and learned the calming position of holding him against my chest with his frog legs tucked up and his little head nestled under my neck. That, in particular, I will miss…


There’s no denying that Soren is one special kid and I’m glad that we’ve had some bonding time in his first weeks of life. If you have the chance to meet him, I would jump at it (just make sure you can dance to Irish music while bouncing him up and down ‘cause he likes that!). Plus, Mom and Dad sure enjoy the extra hand so they can do things like sit through an entire meal, make a few phone calls, and maybe even take a shower (you know, the little things in life).

OK, it’s almost 9pm – bedtime – as the quiet of evening settles in and Soren snoozes peacefully as he drifts off to sleep…

Charming the ladies

Some new women entered Soren's life this week, starting with his first friend his age. Little Tayla was born only 11 days before him, and as his mom and I are friends (same birthing class, etc.), Soren and Tayla surely will be, too. They have matching car-seat strollers, and we enjoyed our first walk together on Thursday, picking blackberries all along the way.
On Friday Auntie Nora arrived on a special meet-the-nephew visit from Colorado, where she has just started a grad school program and will be living for the next two years. We won't get to see her too often, so this was special indeed. She is staying for five nights. Seattle friend Sierra picked Nora up from the airport and stayed with us for two nights. They cleaned and cooked up a storm; the house hasn't looked this tidy since before Soren was born. Count two more Soren fans -- he's charmed them as well.

Soren surpassed his birth weight last weekend and as of Wednesday weighed 8 pounds, 5 ounces. I took him to the weekly "Breastfeeding Tea" at the county health department and the nurse certified his latch as very passable. I queried my fellow moms about favorite nursing bras/tops, since I'll be needing to update my wardrobe in this regard. Any tips out there, please pass them on -- especially clothing easily purchased online. (A trip to the nearest mall an hour away seems too daunting at this point. We're enjoying being homebodies.)

If you've noticed that we are booked up with visitors, we decided a few days after Soren joined our family that we really appreciated the extra hands and help. So we have the entire month of September scheduled with family members and a few intrepid friends who are just as happy being asked to vacuum as bounce Soren. Our house is set up well for overnight guests, with those sleeping on the ground floor reporting they can't hear nighttime squalling on the third floor. The important thing is for everyone else to get a good nights' sleep so they can relieve me during the day! So far, it's working. Nobody is too sleep-deprived. For now.

A dozen days old and a few firsts

Our little guy has now surpassed his birth weight and is growing and kicking and so much fun (except when he's fussing). Really, we can't keep our eyes off him. As our midwife cautioned us, "Don't get too hypnotized by your 24-hour video!" We try to remember to sleep when he does, even though his face is angelic to watch even then.

Soren and I had our first big outing together on Sunday, a walkabout the grounds at our town's annual Wooden Boat Festival. It was THE place to see and be seen, and he was introduced to lots of our friends. He snoozed nearly the whole time in the Moby Wrap, until wakefulness necessitated my first public breastfeeding experience. I found a shady place to sit, was able to keep him in the wrap, and all was well.

Today my mom and I strapped Soren into his car seat for the first time and attempted some errands. About halfway through, he decided he'd had enough. I thought all babies loved riding in the car! Not ours, not yet.

On Saturday evening we posed for our first family portrait:

Now Soren has his own blog!!

What an age we live in, that a week-old infant wants his own blog! At least, that was the request as channeled through Dad. You can check out "Soren Talks" by clicking on the link in the sidebar at right, after previewing a snippet of his most recent post. (Or click here.)

No promises on how up-to-date Soren will keep his blog. He's a busy guy.

The grandparents approve

Both sets of grandparents have now met Soren and given their adoring seal of approval. Grandma Gloria and Grandpa Jim arrived from Eastern Washington today for a two-day visit, wisely booking themselves a hotel room.
Soren has now lived through two baths in his first week of life. The first he liked; the second he squalled throughout. The very good news is that he is a champion breastfeeder and after my milk came in at the end of Day 4, we have been ascending the learning curve together and enjoying it. For the last couple of nights he has slept for 2- and 3-hour chunks, which is much appreciated.

Aunt Jill is able to stay through Sunday, making her an invaluable "mother's helper" for this first week and a half. She's just finished her first quarter of nursing school and should get extra credit for this! We have also been blessed with meals from friends delivered every other day, which all seem to include chocolate...good call! Thanks to everyone who has sent their congratulations and helped with this transition to parenthood.