dandelion paperweight

Oh my gosh he’s so cute I can’t stand it! We celebrated my first Mother’s Day this week with brunch at Grammy’s restaurant and a lazy afternoon at home. Liam slept five hours straight the night before Mother’s Day and repeated it a couple times later in the week. I’m debating trying out a schedule during the day to see if that will help him sleep longer during the night, but I’m also enjoying our unscheduled life, so I haven’t decided yet.

We’re going on longer and more frequent walks because I’m feeling the need to get my body back. Liam usually sleeps because he likes the movement, but if I stop to take a drink of water, he’ll start whining. He’s the same way in the car and will usually wake up at stop lights or in d rive thru lines.

Liam survived time away from me twice this week: once with his dad while I got my hair cut and once with Grammy while I tutored. I was a nervous wreck both times, but all went well.

I’m trying to get him to spend more time on his tummy so he can work on his head control, but he doesn’t like it very much, so I try to do 10 minutes here and there when he’s in a good mood. Sometimes he does it in his crib and sometimes on a blanket on the floor. We’re going to turn the office/guestroom into a playroom of sorts and we want to get one of those foam play mats, so that will be good for tummy time (I’ve read that the harder surface of the foam mat helps with learning to crawl). Once he’s 8 weeks I’d like to join a mommy and me class, but they’re pretty expensive, so we’ll have to see if we can afford it.

I’ve finally started pumping more regularly, usually in the morning when he falls asleep for his long nap. Since we give him a small bottle every other night, on those days I pump for that and on the other days I pump for the freezer stash. On June 1st I have to work for just one day so I can get paid over the summer, so I need to continue building our freezer stash so my husband has enough milk. I’m still planning on coming home for lunch to nurse, though, so it won’t be that bad. Then, I’ll have the whole summer to build a stash for when I go back to work (sob).

It’s still really hard to find time to blog – he’s asleep on my chest right now – but hopefully it will get easier with time.

I hope you’re having a lovely weekend!

Are you ready for the cutest picture ever? It took a lot of work to get it, so please ignore that it’s slightly blurry.

This is the first awake smile I’ve been able to capture with a camera! He’s been giving me little awake smiles for about a week now, but they’re becoming more and more frequent. I can’t get enough!

Everyone says things get easier after six weeks and they’re right. I’m not saying it’s easy taking care of a baby, but it’s definitely not as hard as it was the first few weeks. As Liam and I are getting to know each other better, I am able to read his cues and keep him happy while getting time for myself.

I’ve really started to love the moby this week and use it at least once a day now. He usually falls asleep in it and stays asleep longer than he will if I put him down, so I’m able to get some stuff done around the house. I never thought I’d be so eager to do laundry and dishes!

We also started cloth diapering this week and it’s going well so far! It does mean I’m doing laundry all the time, but it’s not a big deal since I’m not working. I can see it being hard once I go back to work, though. Oh, and I’m in complete denial about that, by the way. I just can’t. Don’t make me.

This was kind of a big week for my little man! On Saturday evening, he got his first bottle and did so well! We’re giving him a small one every other night now so that he will be able to easily go back and forth from bottle to breast.

He has also started smiling at me when he’s awake! I haven’t been able to get a picture of his awake smiles yet, but don’t worry, you’ll be sick of seeing his smiling pictures soon enough!

He is awake more and more and loves to spend his happy awake time looking at his paintings above his changing table or his black and white pictures that we have set up in his crib. He also likes stories and to be held and walked around inside or outside the house. He still likes the car, but it doesn’t always put him to sleep right away like it used to. He only likes his bouncy seat if he’s already asleep and he’ll hang out under his baby gym for just a few minutes at a time.

I love him more and more each day and can’t wait to see what each new day with Liam brings. I know I’ll miss my tiny newborn soon, so I try to stay in the moment and savor this time because it really goes by fast!

This week we got more into a sort of routine. Typically, Liam wakes up between 6:30 and 8am. I change him, then feed him on one side and am able to put him down while I eat breakfast. Then I feed him on the other side while lying down next to him and we both fall back asleep until 10 or 11. Then, I feed him again, change his diaper and get him dressed for the day. Then, we do some tummy time in his crib, but he only makes it a few minutes before getting whiny. Then I try to get dressed and brush my teeth, but he’s usually crying most of the time, which makes me feel super rushed. I feel like I wear the same outfit every day because I never have time to figure out something new to wear. Once I’m ready-ish, I change his diaper and feed him again before heading out on some sort of errand. I like to get out of the house at least once a day because he likes the car and that way I get a bit of a break while driving. Funny how driving is now a break for me. After that, the day looses most of it’s continuity. I sneak food for myself when I can, he eats a lot more, I change a lot more diapers, my husband comes home and usually we eat dinner while I’m nursing.

Our favorite new activity has been our every other nightly daddy baths. My husband loves taking a bath with Liam and it is so adorable. Since the evening is the baby’s fussiest time, this gives my husband a few minutes of bonding time when the baby isn’t crying or nursing. After his bath, I nurse him again and we watch a little TV in bed before going to sleep. We’ve been co-sleeping because it is just so much easier, especially with breast feeding. Many people say that no bad habits can be formed in the first three months, so hopefully we’ll be able to get him sleeping on his own eventually. For now, we do what we can to survive.

Luckily, he doesn’t cry when he wakes up, just sort of nuzzles into me and grunts, so my husband doesn’t always get woken up. I can nurse him laying down on one side only, but I have to sit up and use my breast feeding pillow for the other side. This has done a number on my back and some days I can barely pick him up or put him down in his bassinet or crib. I have an appointment with my doctor next week to hopefully get a handle on it before it gets worse.

Liam is my angel baby is the mornings. He is so sweet and adorable and I just can’t get enough of him. As breast feeding gets easier each week, caring for him also gets easier. I can usually tell by his cry if he’s hungry or needs a diaper change or is gassy, so that helps take the mystery out of things. However, planning outings, like going to a birthday party or out to lunch, is getting trickier as he is awake more and more. And if he’s awake, he usually wants to nurse…

We found a new pediatrician this week, which is such a relief. He said his weight is just fine and now I don’t have to stress about my milk production. It’s really hard for me to find time to pump, but now I don’t feel pressured to have to do it  frequently, just whenever I feel like I have a chance.

I can’t believe Liam is one month old on Monday! I’m going to try to write a letter to him, especially after reading this one because I know both he and I will enjoy looking back on it one day.