Noah’s 1 Month Update

Noah Parker,

We’ve had the pleasure of getting to know you for one full month already and we are totally smitten!

Birth weight: 7 lbs 12 oz

Length: 20 inches

Weight at 1 month: 9 lbs 8 oz

My milk came in when you were three days old (7/23) and you’re gaining weight like a champ, despite having a shallow latch. We went visited the lactation consultant, you drank about 70 ml in 20 minutes, which is so much faster than Sophia did (before her tongue tie revision). Breastfeeding has been a completely different experience this time around, and it is so much more enjoyable.

Sleep has had its ups and downs. In the beginning we had to set an alarm to wake up and feed you, since you had some jaundice and to help my milk come in. Now, you wake me up about every three hours to feed, which is mostly manageable. It is becoming a routine that when Colton puts Sophia to bed (by 8 PM) I’m also feeding and putting you to bed. This gives your daddy and I a little bit of time when both of you are asleep and we can have quality time. I’m also trying to get you to sleep when Sophia has her mid-day nap.

Our first really hard night was the night of 8/4. You would not settle in your crib. I’d feed you, you’d fall asleep, we’d transfer you to the crib, and then you’d be screaming. This went on for a few hours and Colton finally slept with you on the couch and then later we put you in our bed, where you slept perfectly (go figure). We are still trying to figure out the best way to calm you down during the nighttime. We are trying to follow the Babywise routine (eat, play, sleep), and are hoping it works as well for you as it did for Sophia. So far, so good!

One of the best things is that in the mornings, Sophia will usually play by herself in her room for an hour or so, which allows all of us to get a bit of extra rest. She is such a great big sister!

Your 2nd week of life you become much more alert. Your neck and legs are so strong and when you’re on your tummy, you move yourself around by pushing with your legs. a lot more alert. Occasionally we place you on the ground with toys hanging overhead and you’re starting to unintentionally hit the toys. You’ve even given us a lot of smiles. It’s so cute! By week 4, you started losing some of your hair. I hope it grows back soon! On 8/19, you had your first bath. Sophia loved being involved and you didn’t hate it.

So far, the transition from 0-1 kid has been much harder than 1-2 kids. Now that we know how to take care of a newborn, our biggest struggle is making sure Sophia gets enough attention, while also attending to your needs. I’m still trying to figure out how to balance both of your needs, but we are moving in the right direction.

We have been trying to get out of the house and do some fun activities with Sophia. She got to ride her first carousel, pick lots of blackberries, go see the Dinolandia exhibit, and check out a new park with an awesome swing.

Sophia has been adjusting better than I expected, although it helps to have family around and daycare. She is so helpful with getting diapers or clothes for you and always wants to snuggle and share her toys. She also loves to put all her toys next to you; her stuffed animals, baby doll, baby bottle, and all your toys too. Every time you cry, she says “he wants milk.” She isn’t wrong, LOL.

I read online that the older child often starts acting like a baby again, because they see the baby getting attention for doing baby things. Sophia has started spitting more because you have spit up, so we try and remind her that spit is supposed to stay in our mouth. She really likes to help me clean up your face.

The day after you were born, Sophia saw me feeding you and asked what it was. I told her it was a nipple. She then goes to Daddy’s nipple and says “Nipple. I want some!” She is so funny. You will love her!

To help ease the transition and make sure we are getting quality time, we’ve started doing Special Mommy Time,” where Sophia and I spend one-on-one time together for 10-15 minutes almost every day. One day we were cleaning up our toys after our time and she says “Night, night wormies (her special toy). I’ll see you next time for Special Mommy Time.

Your daddy’s family was here before and after your birth and then your Grammy Penny came for two weeks. It was so nice having the extra hands to help with chores, Sophia, and you while your daddy and I adjusted to having two kiddos. I’m quite nervous for how things will go once it is just us, especially when your daddy goes back to work full-time and I have both you and Sophia. I know God will give me the grace, but in this moment, it is hard to see how it will all work out.

In addition to your arrival, your daddy and I both celebrated our 30th birthdays. You were the best gift we could have ever received! The free coffee drinks were also very helpful in your newborn/waking up every few hours stage. You got to be our third wheel at daddy’s work summer party. They haven’t hosted this party for a few years due to Covid, so it was fun to be back. Everybody loved meeting you. We have been so blessed by many of our friends bringing us meals. You got to meet so many new people.

3/4 of us (Sophia was thankfully spared) got MRSA Infections. Yours showed up as tiny blisters in your armpit, which we thought were nothing, but our midwife encouraged us to have you seen as soon as possible. After multiple phone calls (urgent cares don't take newborns) and some tears, we finally got an appointment. The doctor wasn't concerned, until I had a weird spot on my stomach that came back as MRSA and Colton had an abnormally painful looking "pimple." We took you back to the doctor and they cultured your spot and it also came back as MRSA (at this point you had a large blister spot on your scalp). I'll spare you the photos, but mine looked similar to what you'd find on Google. Yours and daddy's spots are healed and mine is almost finished healing, thanks to antibiotics. Not a fun infection to be dealing with postpartum, but we thank God that it wasn’t worse.

Your first month of life has gone by so quickly and it makes us a little sad, but we are excited to see how you continue to grow. Our goals for next month are to work on getting full feedings instead of little snacks; merge your two night feedings to one night feeding; and get into a good routine when it's just me watching you and your sister.

We love you Noah Bear!

Love,

Mama and Dada