the blissed life: happening: carson taylor: two months

dear carson,

in just two short months you have wonderfully and positively transformed our lives. our once selfish nights, busy days, and carefree easiness are now centered around keeping you content which is a coordinated and shared responsibility, bringing your dad and i closer than we ever imagined. taking care of a new baby is a nerve-wracking, sometimes stressful, yet beautiful thing – someday i hope you are blessed enough to know.

this month you continue to surprise. after a night of crying and lots of googling we discovered that you have a mild case of reflux which is being treated and for the most part seems to be under control. i had no idea how your crying and discontent could be felt so deeply by my being. i hate listening to you cry!

you also outgrew your preemie clothes, nearly overnight and even some of your newborn duds are starting to fit a bit snug. it’s here that i should mention that it likely won’t be long before i have to pack them all away. you love to eat! in fact, we have increased your milk intake at each feeding by nearly 40% in just the past two weeks. you now have a double-chin and chunkier legs. at your last appointment the doctor confirmed that you are growing, both up and out. your head is in the 85th percentile and yet you're head control is strong - a surprise even to the physician. you now weigh 8 pounds and 8 ounces (33rd percentile) and are just over 20 inches long (22nd percentile). despite all of the eating you are not keen on sleeping longer than 3 hour stretches. i've started you on a routine to see if it will get us more sleep and so far it's working; you sleep soundly for 4-4.5 hours consistently after your nighttime feeding. (i NEVER thought i'd be that mom that put their baby on a strict schedule but it's working for us - hallelujah!)

you still enjoy being swaddled and have grown used to being carried in a wrap. this makes mommy happy since i love having that soft downy hair and baby scent near my face. in the past couple of weeks we have also started laying on your play mat and at just 1 day short of six weeks you rolled over!! i was so proud….and surprised. you've rolled a few more times since so i no longer think it was a fluke. you like looking at the lights and listening to the music on your mat and you ‘talk’ when it turns off as if to say ‘hey, what happened?’

finally i’ve nicknamed you ‘grunter baby.’ in addition to sweet coos and smiles you grunt CONSTANTLY. ask your aunt rachel, she’ll confirm. you grunt when you eat, sleep, wake, stretch, poo… you grunt all the time. dad and i have grown accustomed to all the grunting and have slowly been able to decipher which are true indicators of something more than your presence.

having you in our lives has been nothing short of a blessing. every time i look at you i feel so lucky!

love you

funny moment of the month: you played us. you took advantage of our sleep deprived minds and got your way. the other night i asked your dad to help with the overnight feedings (this mamma was exhausted!). around 3 AM i heard you squirm and coo and looked over to find your dad asleep. with dagger eyes i stared at him waiting for him to get up and warm your bottle, signaling that he’d take the feeding. he instead gave you your pacifier and rolled over. without a word i marched out of bed and snatched you up. dad just looked at me, dazed. i fed you and fell back asleep. over breakfast the next morning, with anger seeping from my pores, i asked your dad why he didn’t get up with you. that’s when you were exposed. dad explained that he had fed you only minutes before i snatched you up. he was obviously too tired to question what i might be doing and i was too annoyed to ask. you drank all the milk and gave us a good laugh! we are now night-talkers. ;o)