Happy Birthday, Baby!

John is 1 month old today!



Time is flying by! It's hard to believe that a month ago we were wondering when the baby would come and how labor would go, and what kind of baby we'd have on our hands, and here we are with all of those questions answered!

The past month has been wonderful, although tiring. The four of us are steadily adjusting to life with John and as the time passes, the routine comes with more ease than the day before.

John is a great little man. He is a good eater and mostly a good sleeper, as long as he's been burped for a good long while before being put down. I am learning that he likes to sleep on his belly or in the swing, so we are trying out the belly position much to the American Academy of Pediatrics' disgust. The swing works great for daytime use (as long as Jak doesn't decide he wants to wake the baby up!) but I don't want to get into that routine for nighttime. I'm big on sleep, for my kids but also for Jeff and I. A rested family is a happy family and the sooner we can get into a good sleep routine, the better. I learned that the first time around. ;)

As far as eating goes, John has proven to be a champ. He has gained over 3 pounds in a month! He weighed in today at 12.3 pounds (birth weight was 8.10) and Dr. Jerry was thrilled with that. I'm not used to such a big baby; it took Jak about 2-3 months to get to the size that John is now at 1 month! Both boys are in the 97th percentile for height, and although Jak is big, his weight is pretty low for what his height is. I'm not sure if John will take the same route or not, but for now he's definitely on the larger side! And yet his hands and bone structure overall seem smaller. Who knows. He's got these great cheeks and I just love to squeeze them every day. He's still pretty hairy but I do see some strands fall out from time to time. I hope he doesn't lose it, I just love his fluffy head.

One of my favorite things about having a new baby is watching them take in the world. John loves to look around, especially when a new person walks in the room. He has started to coo and smile, which are just the sweetest things. I'll see if I can't get a video of him doing that soon.

Jak is doing quite well with his new brother. He wants to love on him all the time, offering hugs and kisses and even John's teddy or paci when needed. Many times, Jak goes over to where John is to give him a toy/book/sippy cup, etc. and he gets so frustrated when John can't grab it. Jak even goes so far as to put the item in John's hand (which doesn't stay there, of course) only to watch it fall out. Poor Jak, he doesn't understand yet that John can't hold it, but we keep reminding him.

Here's a cute story: Last week as I was preparing dinner, the baby was in the bouncy seat and Jak was running around. He noticed that John had his paci in his mouth and decided that he wanted it instead. Jak took the baby's paci and put it in his mouth, and John started to cry immediately. Jak said, "uh-oh", takes it out of his mouth, puts it back into John's, and John continued sucking on it as if nothing ever happened.

John was happy to be sucking again. Jak was happy John stopped crying. Mommy was happy that both boys were happy. Daddy was happy that Jak learned compassion for his brother. All was well with the world again.