Owen: Three Months

03.01.15

Dear Owen,

You are now three months old!  It is so hard to believe you are a quarter of the way through your first year of life.

You are now 8 lbs!  You still fit into newborn clothes, but your long legs are getting squished in footy PJs.  Mommy tried 0-3mo clothes on you, and they are just too big still.

You have become quite the little sleeper at night!  Around 8-8:30pm you start to get very sleepy, and if we wait too long, you get CRANKY.  This is how you let us know you are ready for bed.  So, Mommy feeds you, and then you get changed and swaddled.  We can usually put you in your Rock’n’Play awake, and you will fall asleep all on your own.  You also tend to stay asleep until early morning, sometime between 3-5am, when you wake up hungry.  After you eat, its back to sleep for another 2 hours or so, and then it’s time to eat again.  Mommy and Daddy are LOVING this long stretch of sleep every night!  You also still nap a lot during the day, but you tend to only take one really long nap and then a few short cat naps.

You gave us your first smile this month!  It is such a sweet, gummy grin, and we will talk to you in as silly of a voice as necessary to see that smile.  You also are getting better at tracking things with your eyes, and you love to look for us when you hear a voice.  You happily play on your piano mat, and your little legs just kick and kick to play music!

You are still a great eater, and have stuck to your every-two-hours routine during the day.  Breastfeeding is starting to feel much easier, although I still get nervous about my supply, making sure you are getting enough, etc.  You are not a huge fan of bottles/formula, but with a little work we can convince you to drink it.  We are hoping to discontinue your preemie formula at your 6 month birthday!

We took you to Walla Walla this month on your first vacation, and you did great!  You slept a ton in the car, and were a great sleeper in the hotel too.  We even got to walk around town in the stroller and enjoy the sunshine with Nana and Great Grandma Kathi.

We are loving watching you grow and develop, and can’t wait to see what next month brings!

Love,

Mom and Dad

Owen: One Month

Dear Owen,

Today you are one month old!  It is hard to believe you have already been with us over 4 weeks, but only home for less than one week.

Now that you are home with us, we are getting to know your personality so much more.  You are calm and quiet, and happy to just look around and observe.  Your time in the NICU has made you independent in that you don't need to constantly be held to be happy, and you fall asleep on your own so easily.  I'm sure that will change as you get used to us holding you more often than we were able to at the hospital, but we will gladly hold you as much as you want.

You have always been so strong physically, and like to lift your head up off our shoulder.  You also try to push off with your legs, and even got your little butt in the air while on your stomach in your incubator.  Your name means "little warrior", and that is you to a "t".

Breastfeeding is going exceptionally well for us- you are eager to eat, have a great latch, are a fast eater, and I haven't had any supply issues like I had with your big brother.  We have a freezer full of breastmilk, and I will continue to add to our stockpile.  You do get two bottles each day of a special high calorie/high nutrient formula, but we hope to be able to discontinue that in the next few months.

You absolutely love your bathtime!  You cry when we undress you to get in, and cry when you get out of the bath, but while you are in there, you are so calm and relaxed.  Giving you a bath is one of Mom's favorite activities!

Your big brother loves you so much already, and is very concerned with taking care of you.  He is a great helper, and instantly gets our attention if you start to fuss even a little bit.  He is proud of having a baby brother, and loves to show you off.

Your newborn clothes are still a little big on you, but you don't fit into any preemie clothes, with the exception of onesies.  You have skinny, wrinkly legs, but an adorable round belly.  I'm sure in time you will chunk up quite a bit!  You are now 6 lbs 8 ounces, and 22 inches long.

We are so thankful you are a healthy, strong little boy, who was just too excited to meet us to wait until your due date.  We love you, Owen!

Breasteeding Class

As a part of our childbirth class, a "Breastfeeding Your Baby" class was offered.  Since I do, in fact, plan on breastfeeding, I decided to sign up for this class in hopes of gathering some useful information.

The class was last night, and it was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G.  The teacher is a Labor & Delivery nurse, and has breastfed all three of her children for a year plus.  She was funny, open, patient, and generally put everyone at ease, even the dads that came to the class!  She even gave us her cell phone number, and encouraged us to call any time of day or night to ask questions or run any concerns we have by her.  She said she routinely gets calls in the middle of the night from new moms, with a wide variety of questions.  How's THAT for service?!  I seriously want this woman to come live with me for a few weeks after the kiddo is born.

We went over the benefits of breastfeeding and myths regarding breastfeeding.  We also talked about feeding breastmilk from a bottle, the use of pacifiers, breastmilk storage, and pumping.

Then came the hands-on part of the class.  Everyone was given a balloon, which we blew up to resemble breasts.  We then got a baby doll, and practiced latch techniques and different positions to hold the baby in.  It was nice to actually be able to physically practice this, rather than just watching.  Obviously it will be different with a real baby and a real breast, but some practice is better than none!!

I left the class feeling much more confident in my ability to breastfeed, and with all of my questions answered.  I'm so glad the hospital offered this class, and now I just have to wait for little man to arrive!