getting the hang of things

I'm starting to get used to the new schedule my boss has me on...and when I say boss I am referring to the cutest dictator of them all - Mr. Kellen. My boss is what the books call "A Nip and Napper" which basically means he likes to nurse for intervals of 5-10 minutes before drifting off to sleep for about 20-30 minutes and then he is ready to nurse again. So he pretty much nurses around the clock! One good thing is that he usually has one longer stretch of sleep a night for about 4 hours or so..sometimes it is from 9:30-2 though so I have to recognize that he is asleep for more than a nap and get straight to bed to get a longer stretch of sleep. I am not always successful though, he is so tricky! Just when I think his latest snooze session is just a little cat nap and I get busy doing something else he ends up sleeping for a few hours and I miss out on all that sleep. And then when I say to myself, okay hurry get in bed he is asleep, and I begin to drift off into a magnificent slumber he wakes up "starving" sucking on his own hand so hard I am surprised he hasn't given himself hickies!
Anyway, I have just been going with the flow and trying to always keep in mind that one day I will miss these sleepless nights with my new baby boy. For all of you that have been unsuccessful at reaching me on the phone - I am sorry! I am just so consumed with my little monkey it is hard to answer the phone every time it rings. I promise I will rejoin the adult world soon enough!
Being a mom is a lot of work but it really is the best job I have ever had, and I love my boss more than I could ever imagine. Brandon is an absolute natural with Kellen. I am so proud of him, he has had no prior experience with babies and he just stepped right up and started parenting. He is really gentle and loving and helps me so much. I can tell that Kellen already gets happier when Brandon comes home from work, and there is no place he would rather sleep than on daddy's chest.
Here are some snapshots of our happenings the last few days:

Here we are at Sunset Cliffs on Veteran's Day. Brandon had the day off so we headed to the beach and put Kellen in his cool new sling and hiked above the ocean. It was really nice, he really likes the sling. I think it reminds him of being in the womb, he just drifts right off to sleep when I walk around with him in it.

Here is our little monkey in his favorite sleep position - clinging to daddy's chest.

We went for a really refreshing walk on Sunday. Brandon and I were so excited because it was cloudy and windy...we really miss the cool northern California weather and we were so glad the weather had cooled off. We went for a long walk around our neighborhood and enjoyed the wind in our hair. Unfortunately it is supposed to get really hot again starting tomorrow and lasting for several days. When is winter going to arrive?!
Kellen likes the windy weather too, especially because he gets to look extra cute in his beanie!

Kellen layin' around with sister paws Beijo.