Blake's First Road Trip!

We loaded up the family truckster and headed to Red Oak, Iowa last weekend for our friends' wedding.  This was Blake's first road trip, first time staying in a hotel, and first time outside of the Kansas City metro area.



It's Blake's Birthday...One Month!

At one month Blake was 22-1/2" long (80th percentile) and weighed 10 lbs. 10 oz. (75th percentile).  Looks like he's going to be a big boy.  We're going to Photo-document Blake's monthly birthdays, so be sure to check back ocassionally to see him grow!



Blake's Grandma, Great Grandma and Great Aunt came to visit...

Grandma Jennifer flew in from Denver to meet Blake, and Great Grandma Audrey and Great Aunt Linda drove down from Minneapolis to meet Blake.  He's a pretty popular little guy.

There are four generations in this photograph.

Grandma just met Blake, and could not take her hands off of him. 

Great Aunt Linda had to get her fill of Blake.
Or should we say Blake's favorite GAL (Great Aunt Linda).

Great Grandma Audrey had the "grandmotherly" touch.



Blake's first play date.

Our friend Natalie brought over her 6 month old son, Ben, to play with Blake. 

They seemed to have a pretty good time looking at each other.

Can you find Blake?

We thought we would try out the baby backpack, but I think Blake still needs to grow into it.



It's fun to give Blake a mohawk while he's sleeping...

Blake's Professional Photo Shoot.

Take a look at Blake's first professional photos at one week old.  A big Thank You to Matthew Peterson, who took these photos.  Below is a link to Matt's website.
http://matthewpetersonphotography.weebly.com/

Woops...Dad fell asleep while on baby duty.

I was trying my hardest to stay awake, but it was the middle of the night, and we both were pretty sleepy.  Mom must have snuck this photo in while we weren't looking.

Wow! That's a lot of Stuff...and by Stuff, I mean...

It's amazing how many diapers this little fella goes through.  I think he's averaging just over one of these bags a week.  It's a messy job, but someone has to do it.

It's Tummy Time and Play Time!

Blake is beginning to get a little daily tummy time along with his play time.  Hopefully this will help strengthen his neck, and help to get him rolling over and crawling sooner.  Check out the video at the end of this post.

My First Stroller Ride!

On Saturday Mom decided it was time to get some fresh air, and to get Blake outside for his first stroller ride.  We think Blake enjoyed it, but similar to his first car ride, he was asleep before Anna got him out of the driveway.

Birth Announcement!

Our friend Matt Peterson, a photographer, was gracious enough to take photos of Blake on day 8.  Matt quickly put together this birth announcement shortly after the photo shoot.  More photos to come...

Hanging Out...

Staring Contest...

Mini - Buddha

The Happy Family

Based on that face, I still need to convince Blake that I am his dad.

Our Little Catepillar

Off to the Doctor...

Blake got dressed up for his first outing since being home from the hospital...his one week doctor visit.  Lace up the boots, pull on the hat and stick in the pacifier...it's time to go.  Blake got a great checkup, and is gaining weight just like he is supposed to.

My first bath! Let's get wet!

Blake wasn't a huge fan of his first bath, but he did look cute in his hooded towel once it was all over.  And with that face, I'm pretty sure he was happy to be clean.

Nana and Pop Gainey came to visit.

Nana and Pop Gainey flew in the afternoon we returned home from the hospital. As grandparents they were "naturals", and during their stay they were a tremendous help to Anna and me as we were trying to understand what this parenting thing was all about.

Pop was self appointed director of Recreation.

 And he did have the best luck getting Blake to smile on command.

Nana was in charge of just about anything she was allowed to do.  This grandma was crazy about her new little grandson.  Here she's reading Blake his first book.

We're home! Now what?

Now that we're on our own, what do we do with him? He's still sleeping...can we just leave him in his carseat?

Strap me in, I'm heading home!

Before we left the hospital we strapped Blake into his carseat using the 5-piont racing harness. We were excited for Blake to experience his first car ride, but he fell asleep before the engine ever started.

Time to meet Mom and Dad.

We're not sure if Blake had any idea who we were, but it was love at first sight for us...

Hello world, my name is Blake!

Blake James Gainey was born on August 25, 2010 at 2:39 am.  He weighed 8 pounds 0.8 ounces, and was 21 inches long.