Oh, how time flies. It’s almost been an entire month since you made your arrival, Brady.

I thought for sure you’d arrive early. Nope. You’ve proved to be stubborn since being in utero. haha…. I was really hoping you didn’t get that trait from your dad and I. Even during labor you were stubborn. It took about 30 hours and awesome doctors and nurses and your dad helping me push to get you here safely without having to have a c-section. You arrived on the morning of Halloween.  You were quite large, too. We were thinking you’d be around 8+ pounds, but we didn’t actually think you’d be more than 9 pounds! Right after you came out, one of the nurses shouted “It’s a small toddler!”  and I about flew off the bed when I heard someone say “9.2 pounds”. Wow! You sure did take your time cookin’ in there, fella.

The first two weeks after being home were a little rough for me. I knew we were in for a lot of change and little sleep, but my own recovery has been pretty tough, which just adds to the mix of things. I was used to 8 hours of sleep a night, and now I was operating on 1-2 hour naps at a time in between nursing you and barely being able to walk. Thankfully my mom and step mom each came up for several days at a time to help us out. What a blessing.  It turns out you weren’t getting enough food (milk) for about a week due to several factors and only gained 1 ounce that week (you’re supposed to gain about 1/2 an ounce a day), but once we figured that out and were able to fix it, you seemed happier and were sleeping better. Whew!

The past week (3) it seems like you’ve changed so much. You are starting to look like a little person instead of a newborn baby. You make some of the funniest expressions and have proved to be pretty passionate.  You are usually pretty “flirty” and happy in the mid-morning hours. You coo and make big smiles and lots of noises.  You love to be held by a warm body and “shooshed” loudly to calm you down. Most of the time you like to be swaddled in our arms and fall asleep on one of our chests in the fetal position, or what we like to call “squish ball”, because you get as curled up as you possibly can.   You also love being in the car and your car seat. You sleep in it at night next to my side of the bed. It’s ok… we’ve already checked with the pediatrician to make sure it was alright. You don’t seem to like to sleep on your back for more than 30-45 minutes at a time. You wake up and figure it out and let us know. You also like going on walks. I’ve been trying to get out every day for the past week wether at the lake or around the neighborhood for a walk with you. You usually sleep the entire time. We never thought we’d enforce it, but you like your pacifier a lot, too. It’s cute to watch you suck on it even while you sleep.  So far you’re about 50/50 on enjoying bath time. Diaper changes are mostly saturated with you kicking and screaming like it’s the end of the world, but then every 7th diaper change you seem content and smile and it’s so pleasant.  Your behavior is pretty inconsistent still. One day will be so enjoyable and sweet, and the next evening you’re a screaming banshee and we can’t figure out what’s wrong. Although, I did eat a load of hummus for lunch one day and that evening was one of those “bad” nights. I’ll steer clear of hummus from now on. Sorry buddy.

One of the funniest things you do is poop. It’s very audible and sounds like a “shart”.  Your dad actually caught you doing it on video when you were 2 weeks old. We re-watched the video so many times we were in tears from laughing so hard.

Your dad has been such a God send. He truly loves spending time with you and helps out so much. He changes your diaper about half the time and assists with feedings now that you’re being bottle fed breast milk. He does lots of work around the house to keep it tidy when I can’t. He brings me flowers and left a sweet note on your feeding log to encourage me.  He even helps dress you occasionally (mostly for Cowboys games). I don’t know how mothers do this without the help of a good husband!  I truly have a new found respect for all mothers now that I am one.

We have so much more to learn together and it’s only been less than a month. Cheers to what the future holds – you are such a blessing already!

Here’s a compilation of some photos from the past 3.5 weeks. You will be 1 month old in only two days!