1 Month Old

Owen is one month old.  I can't believe it!  As I was rocking him at 3 am the other morning, I looked into his big blue eyes and thought, what a wonderful and yet wild journey this has been.  Looking back on the past 4 weeks brings me so much joy.  I had a wonderfully poetic blog going in my head, but when I went back to sleep at 4 am I lost it.  So I will do my best not to bore you here.

The first week of his life I felt so out of it as I recovered from the surgery, but lucky he was out of it too and just slept all day.  The second week James was flying solo with the help of Granny, my neighbor Maria and Shannon and Skye, as I was sent back to the hospital.  Those 4 days spent away from him were so hard.  I am thankful for all the help and support we had. This was of course during the blizzard.  What a hectic time!  While in the hospital, I couldn't rest and when I would drift off to sleep, I'd see his little face looking up at me.  It was all I could think about.  I just needed to get home.  I kept telling the nurses to get me well so I could go home, my baby  is so cute and I need to see him.  James told me to stop telling people that.  Maybe he was embarrassed, but it was the only thing keeping my spirits up at that point.  All the other moms seemed to completely understand.  Finally,  I was able to go home and just in time for the second blizzard of 2010.  Grateful to be home, but I was so afraid Owen wouldn't know me since I had been gone.  And then it only took a few seconds and we were back on track.  It was if I had never left his side.  Clearly I was more upset about it then he was and I was thankful that we never skipped a beat.

Since being back home for the past 2 weeks I have fully had time to bond with him.  It has been so wonderful and everyday I notice something new that he can do.  Each day we get to hang out while his Daddy is at work, so I have to take a lot of picture for him.  We have our little routine down and just as soon as we get going its dinner time.  Where does the day go?  I do really well to get showered and dressed before 3 each day.  Then the days all blend a little, but seem tp go by so fast and yet slow at the same time.  I am just trying to hold on to every moment, as I can already tell he is going to change so quickly.  This week he has really come alive and found his voice.  He grunts and squeals when he wants food or attention (gassy).  It's pretty cute.  We call him fussy butt when he's fussy, but it's not too often really.  Overall we got a really good baby on our hands.  Here's a list of what he's up to now.

What Owen is up to at 1 Month  

• Nick Names: Fussy Butt, Kicky Pants, Peanut, Big Boy and Little Man,
• Takes up to 4 oz of milk at once
• Sleeps up to 4 hrs at a time (mostly during the day time)
• Has lots of gas and Granny refers to it as "Popping Peas"
• Fits into his newborn and 0-3 months clothes now
• Loves to have his bath and hair brushed and massage (I want this every night :)
• Smiles at us
• Reaches for objects
• Screams when he sees his bottle coming towards his mouth
• Grabs his bottle with one hand
• Sleeps in his crib at night
• Prefers to sleep on his side
• Loves to sleep on his Daddy's chest
• Likes to be rocked and sung to

As challenging as the first few weeks have been, I wouldn't trade any of this.  This experience has changed me and shown me that everyday that we have, with those who we love, are the most precious days of our lives and nothing is more important to me than that.

My friend Michelle use a stuffed Giraffe next to her daughter Morgan each month to show how much she has grown.  I just love seeing all the monthly pictures of her!  So here's my attempt to get Owen with his teddy bear. I almost feel bad for posting these pictures.