Wake up, Ben

1 month old

Today Ben turned 1 whole month old!  (Insert cliche parent statement here of how shocking it is that they are this old already...it's SO TRUE THOUGH).  The past month has completely flown by and it has been the most wonderful month of our lives!  It surprising how much we aren't missing the care-free life we once lived (although pregnancy/being married to a prego definitely helps ease that transition I'm sure). 

In the past 2 days I SWEAR Ben is starting to smile in response to our smiles (it's happened a handful of times).  It could just be a coincidence that he is smiling as Greg and I cheesily beam in his face, but I'm convinced he is smiling on purpose ;) 

Ben has been showing increased interest in lifting his head up while laying on our chests.  It's so cute - he seems SO determined to press up and work that neck control. 

He has been grabbing my hair and necklace lately as well.  And speaking of my necklace, I forgot to previously mention the awesome "push present" Greg got for me.  It is so awesome - exactly what I would have picked out myself :)

We have had exactly 2 nights where Ben had some trouble sleeping at night.  Each time he woke up to eat he was incredibly fussy when we put him back down to sleep (which previously he had had no issues with).  I figured out that he was just HUNGRIER than he had been before, so we have since made sure that he is completely full before putting him back to bed.  He is back to being a self-soothing champ (for now).

This kid is so loved.  Happy 1 month, buddy!

Monitor-stalking

I am sure to have more pictures like this in the future...

Ben sleeps in a little bassinet-type thing next to our bed. Even though it is only 2 feet away from me, I still feel the need to have a video monitor set up so I can peer over and check on him throughout the night without waking him.


I thought this was a cute/funny pose I caught him in :)

3 weeks

The days and weeks are going by SO. FAST. Ben seems so much more alert now than he was last week. He now will focus on our faces and on a few of the toys we dangle in front of him. He also is awake more, which is so much fun!

Ben LOVES his dad. There have been several times that he will be fussy with me and almost the second Greg picks him up, his eyes get wide and he starts making little happy breathing noises :) We both can't wait to see him smile (on purpose). I'm told that day could be getting close!

Ben post bath

So fresh.
So clean.

How to de-fuss my 3.5 week old

Don't get me wrong, Ben is still a super chill baby. When he cries, it typically makes me laugh at how cute he looks rather than making me want to pull my hair out. (I realize I'm totally jinxing myself for the weeks/months to come by assuming this could last...)

HOWEVER, he has had at least a couple fussy periods a day for the past week or so.

I have learned the quickest way to calm him down. It involves a tight swaddle, a binkie (binky?) and a gentle jiggle. If I can do all of this in the glider, it's a bonus!

Here is how it worked tonight:

Newborn Photo Shoot

When Ben was 8 days old, my friend Brooke came over to snap some photos of Ben so we could remember what he was like when he was brand new :)  Here are some of our favorites: