You are 1 month old today, buddy! Hooray! And what an exciting and eventful month it has been! You are the definition of an easy baby. You eat every 3-4 hours during the day and every 5-6 at night on average, which has been giving Mommy lots of rest (thanks, kiddo!) You've been spending more time awake during the day lately, very quietly looking around and taking in your surroundings. You can already follow objects with your eyes; you've even watched Mommy walk across the room a few times which is pretty impressive for your age. You've started cooing lately, and it's just the sweetest little sound in the world. And just yesterday, you gave Mommy your very first real smile, a sight that almost brought a tear to my eye. We've already discovered what makes you content vs. upset - here are some of your favorite & not-so-favorite things:
Favorites
Holding Hands - You really seem to take comfort in holding our hands. Your tiny little fingers curl around one of ours and it seems to relax you. And when your belly hurts, you grasp even tighter, a sign that you are in pain and need our help.
Eye Contact - You love to make eye contact with whoever is holding you. It just melts Mommy's heart when those very dark blue (soon-to-be brown, we think) eyes stare into hers.
Music - Music has a calming effect on you most of the time. We swear the lullabye CD we have in the car has magical powers; you quiet down almost immediately once we turn it on (just as it used to do for your sister.) And you also like listening to your sister sing to you; when you're sad, she tries to make you feel better by singing the ABC's. It's a good thing you enjoy it because I don't think she's gonna stop anytime soon!
Being Held - You love to be held and cuddled. You can be content laying on the floor kicking your legs or rocking in your swing (briefly), but you prefer to be up in someone's arms. And I do mean up, as you like for whoever is holding you to be standing (preferably swaying or bouncing.) Having a cuddly baby breathing softly on your chest is pretty much the greatest thing in the world, so we're not complaining :)
Mommy - Mommy is definitely your most favorite person, as is to be expected. My smell or voice can soothe you almost instantly when you're upset. I have one particular hold where you cuddle up against me really close that you realy enjoy - it puts you to sleep almost every time! You and Daddy are becoming good buddies, but nothing calms you down quite like Mommy (which makes sense, considering you spent 9 months in my belly & I am your food source.)
Not-so-Favorites:
Being Cold - Since day one, you've always hated being cold. Fortunately for us, you have a little temperature gauge, your nose, that we can check when you're upset. It gets very cold when you're cold, and it often leads to lots of crying. Most of the time, once you're swaddled up in a blanket, you're a much happier fellow. Unfortunately for you, the weather is only going to get colder. I foresee lots of fleece sleepers and heavy blankets this winter.
Bath Time - You are so not a fan of bath time. In fact, you've screamed through every bath you've had since the day you were born. We're pretty sure it has a lot to do with being too cold for you, even though you're sitting in warm water. Luckily, you don't do much to make yourself terribly dirty, so baths can be very quick and infrequent.
Getting Dressed/Undressed - Thankfully for all of us, you've already learned how to control yourself when we change your diaper and you haven't peed on us in a while. That always leads to an outfit change, which doesn't please you. And since it's just a little too cool to go without, we have you in onesies underneath your sleepers, so there's an extra layer to take off and put on. Once again, we're sure it'e because you get cold when we have to strip you down. We're really not looking forward to the poop explosion days that are ahead of us - lots more outfit changes are in our future!
The days have just flown by this month, and your personality has emerged more and more with each passing day. You are such a calm little fellow. You have your Daddy's serious eyes, with his very intense concentration. And you have Mommy's nose...and very strong lungs! So far, you're a lot more low maintenance than your sister was, but we'll see if that holds true as the months go on.
We just adore you, Joseph. You are like the piece to our little family puzzle that we didn't even know we were missing, a most perfect fit. Our days are so much brighter now that you're in them. We love you buddy!
Love,
Mommy & Daddy
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