One Month

Jackson's 1st Christmas

It is hard to believe that it has just been a month since little Jackson came into this world, yet it's ever harder to believe that a whole month has passed us by and I still have not recorded his birth story. Being a mother of 2 under 2 is definitely demanding and extremely difficult at times. I hardly ever get free moments to blog about what is going on in our lives, much less free moments to run the vacuum or wash the dishes! There have been many exhausting and frustrating moments over the past 4 weeks, but they have all been more than worth it.

Jackson has grown so much in the past 2 weeks. His face is beginning to fill out and his little tummy is rounding by the day. His personality has started shining through and the sleepy newborn is starting to slowly fade away. He is extremely needy and wants constant affection. For the first 2 weeks he slept in his bassinet next to our bed (most of the time he was on the bili lights for jaundice) and he slept well. Since the bili lights were taken away he has refused to sleep alone, always wanting to be held. Last night we actually got him to nap on our bed for several hours which was nice. Normally he is in my arms or in the sling passed out. Of course I love giving him affection as often as he wants but it has been hard getting things done around the house. I have adjusted to doing laundry and taking care of Tristyn with a sling around my front side...I feel pregnant all over again!

Luckily Jackson has taken to nursing very well so we have both enjoyed the rewards of that. With Tristyn I tried so hard for the first month of her life to make it work but she just wouldn't allow it. I felt so guilty for letting her down and not being able to do what was best for her, so being able to do it for Jackson has been more than rewarding. I am very proud but thankful that it has worked out so well. As of now he nurses every 3-4 hours, stays alert for a few minutes and then shortly thereafter falls asleep. He sleeps quite often, he doesn't really have long alert periods. He has been quite fussy and difficult the past week but I believe he was having a growth spurt. He was nursing every 1-2 hours and that was physically and emotionally draining. Thank goodness he has stopped doing that for now!

Since the day Jackson was born he has had great control of his head and neck. At times it's unreal to watch him lift his back off of your shoulder and hold it for minutes at a time. Often times he gets fussy when you cradle him like a baby because he wants to be up on your shoulder looking around and observing. He is definitely quite different than my always snugly and never fussy Tristyn was. I guess this is just a precursor to the future! I've already told Josh that we're in for it when Jackson is older. I believe he's going to be relentless because he certainly is when it comes to crying for attention. If you don't hold him he won't quit crying...that's all there is to it.

We are still waiting for him to find his cute little voice. Yesterday morning he coo'ed twice while sitting in his chair in our bathroom while we were getting ready for the day. Josh got to hear him both times but I only did once. I am so anxious for him to start making sounds, other than crying that is!

I plan on posting his birth story this evening if I find a few free moments. I'm waiting on some times that my Mom had written down so I can make sure everything is in order. After I post his birth story I will most likely combine this blog with our family blog to makes things more simple.

My little one has awaken is fussy so I must go for now!