1 Month

Little Man is now 1 month old. Wow, what a month we've had! To kick off the day, he had his first real bath. His umbilical cord stump had finally fallen off a couple days before, and I was happy to be done with the sponge baths. Cooper seemed to like getting a real bath much better than a sponge bath too; well, at least until I washed his hair.

"I sure do have a good looking belly button. And look at my round belly!"

Then he got dressed and posed with his elephant for his 1 month pictures.

Picture #1: "Mom, what is that thing?!"

Picture #2: "She's going to make me do this every month, isn't she!"

Picture #3: "Wait, what else am I going to have to pose with? I've heard there's going to be an old man in a red suit in a few months and an oversized bunny in the spring. This is crazy!"

After that we had pictures by the "Happy Birthday" banner I hung up in honor of this special day (I know...very corny).

"Mom, has this been the best month of your life or what!"

"You wouldn't believe how tiring it is being a one month old. All this eating, sleeping, diaper changing, crying, and picture taking is wearing me out!"

And then we just enjoyed a wonderful game day!

"I love my Crimson Tide!"

1 Month Special Notes:

~Cooper graduated from newborn diapers to size 1 diapers.

~He weighed 9 lbs, 3 ozs and was 21 1/2 inches long at his 1 month check up.

~He started doing real smiles right before he was 5 weeks old (nothing makes me more excited than those little smiles!).

~He's very strong and works hard to push himself up when on his belly and hold his head up.

~Sadie loves him. We were so worried about jealousy, but she has been great. She is very involved and likes to be with him all the time.

~Likes: laying on mine or Karl's chest, taking baths, laying on changing table and looking at the pictures on the wall above it, being held, moving around, his swing

~Dislikes: being in his car seat, getting his hair wet, going for walks in his stroller

~Love/hate: the pacifier-he's starting to figure it out though (he likes the Avent ones better than the Soothies), naps (he is so alert and doesn't want to miss out on anything), and nursing (oh wait, that's me not him! it's getting better though)

~He is sleeping on average 3 hours between feedings at night. I normally feed him at 10:00, in the 1:00 hour, and in the 4:00 hour. He fights going back to sleep after the 4:00 feeding, but eventually he does.

~Greatest Accomplishment: One night when I was changing Cooper's diaper, he peed straight off the changing table all the way to the corner of the rug in his room. Amazing distance! As a former kindergarten teacher, I know how important this is to boys, so my son should be quite proud of this as he gets older!

Baby Boot Camp

I cannot believe Cooper is almost 6 weeks old! These past 5 1/2 weeks with him have been the most amazing, wonderful, and fulfilling weeks of my life. They have also been the most exhausting, challenging, and unnerving weeks! Motherhood is tough! Now I know why so many people refer to the first 6 weeks as "Baby Boot Camp." Breastfeeding is not as natural as it might seem. Middle of the night feedings and a child who doesn't like to nap lead to a painful exhaustion. Dealing with a crying baby and having no idea why he's crying results in you crying too. Threats of a fever, blocked tear ducts, and changes in poop color create a gut wrenching fear in a new mom. However, each moment with this little guy is special. I cherish all the little things...the smiles, the way he cuddles into me when I hold him, how he stops crying when I pick him up, the look on Karl's face when he gets home from work and sees his little boy, Sadie running into whatever room Cooper's in when he cries, the constant peeing on me when I change his diaper, him falling asleep in my arms, everything. Everything is an adventure for both of us. We are learning each other, and day by day, I fall more and more in love with this baby. I never knew the capacity of love until I had a child.

My favorite pictures since we've been home from the hospital

Homecoming

There have been so many moments in the past 9 months that have been truly extraordinary. Finding out we were having a baby, seeing the heartbeat for the first time, seeing the baby and the heartbeat when I was afraid I was having a miscarriage, hearing the heartbeat for the first time, finding out we were having a boy, making it to full term, meeting our Little Man. All those moments are so precious and special (especially that last one), but there is one more moment that has left me feeling complete and filled with joy: bringing Cooper home.

I remember the first time I walked into our house, and I remember when Karl and I walked in after our honeymoon. But the best moment, and the one I will always cherish the most, was the first time we walked in with Cooper. That was one of the greatest moments of my life. When we walked into this house with our child, my heart was at peace. We were home.

And what would make such a memorable and special day even more perfect?

How about when you take your sweet little newborn room to room showing him his new home, and then you take him to his nursery--the nursery you have spent months preparing for him, shed blood, sweat, and tears in, sat in daydreaming about this very moment--and lay him down to change his diaper, and...

He pees everywhere and on everything around you and him.

Our feelings exactly! :)

Oh, the joys of a little boy!

Grandparents

Meet the Grandparents...

This is Cooper's Pappy (Karl's Dad).

This is Cooper's Nana (my mom).

This is Cooper's Grandpa (my dad).

This is Cooper's Niecee (Karl's mom).

Pappy, Cooper, and Niecee

Pappy, Cooper, and Grandpa

I can already tell that Karl and I will have to work very, very hard to keep Cooper from getting too spoiled from his grandparents; however, that is what grandparents are for!

Mommy Moments

If you know me well, you know I am a worrier. It's not a quality I admire in myself, but yet it is a quality of mine. I worried so much in my pregnancy, but I knew those worries would be nothing compared to what I would worry once the baby was here. It didn't take me long to come up with something once Cooper arrived either.

Breastfeeding has been a little bit (well, truthfully, a huge) struggle for us. Something that should be totally natural is rather difficult! In my early attempts to feed the baby, I accidentally touched Cooper's soft spot on the lower part of the back of his head a few times. No one ever told me that newborns' vision is very weak at first and that they have trouble focusing on objects; therefore, sometimes their eyes will cross a little. Well, I kept noticing that when Cooper would try to stare at something, his eyes would cross. After noticing the cross-eyed look on my child, I filled with fear.

Did I make Cooper go cross-eyed from touching his soft spot?!?!?!

The answer is no. The nurse politely asked me what grade I had taught when I told her my little fear. When I told her kindergarten, she said she thinks I would have heard about such a problem if it existed. The doctor was polite in his response too. He kept his back turned to me as he snickered when I asked him.

As it turns out, you have to poke really, really hard to cause any damage to a soft spot. Accidental touching does not cause any problems. Good to know!

Cooper's Birth Day

Our day began at 1:30 in the morning. I had gotten up to go to the bathroom and was unable to go back to sleep. We had found out at our appointment the Thursday before that we would meet Cooper on this day, and now the day we had dreamed of for so long was here. In a matter of hours, I would hold our child. I "accidentally" woke Karl up, and together we watched the minutes and hours pass on the clock. Once the alarm went off at 5:oo am, we only had 4 1/2 hours to go before the big moment! Talk about some serious nerves!!!

We got ready, loaded the car, dropped Sadie off at my dad's, and made our way to the hospital. All these other cars on the road were driving to work or home or wherever, but we were driving to have a baby! What a feeling!

My last bump picture! The car was packed, and we were ready to go!

Dropping Sadie off at her Grandpa's

Sadie and Maggie saying good morning

Our last pre-baby picture together!!

Karl dropped me off at Labor and Delivery, where I thought I would have to wait a little while and fill out paperwork. Oh no. They took me right back to a room, had me change into a gown, and got me hooked up to the machines. As I lay there waiting for Karl to find me, I just listened to Cooper's heartbeat. That is one sound that never got old to me during my pregnancy, and each time I heard it, I loved it even more. Once Karl got to the room, the nurse went over everything with us. I would get my epidural at such and such time, then Dr. K. would remove my cerclage, and then...and then...we would journey on over to the operating room for my c-section. It was just after 7:00 am at that point, and the c-section was scheduled for 9:15. Two hours have never gone by so quickly.

Things went along just as the nurse had said. I didn't do very well getting my epidural though. Within minutes after getting it, my blood pressure dropped pretty low, and I felt terrible. I felt queasy, sweaty, and I couldn't even keep my eyes open. That was a little scary for both of us. However, after getting a hefty dose of something in my IV, my blood pressure came back up, and all was good again. Interestingly enough, each time the epidural doctor came in to add to my dosage or just check on me, my blood pressure would drop. My body did not like him! I was very thankful for that epidural though when Dr. K. took my cerclage out. It did not come out easily, and I cannot imagine how it would have felt if I hadn't been numb!

Once the cerclage was out, it was about 9:00. How had we already gone from being hours to just minutes away from having a baby?! As they wheeled me out of the room to take me to the operating room, the emotions hit. I was about to have a baby. The baby we so desperately longed for and prayed for and spent the last 9 months falling in love with was about to be placed in our arms. I tried to keep it together, but as soon as Karl was able to join me in the operating room, I lost it. I don't think either one of us was prepared for the emotions that came with that precious time. Once they got Karl in his spot, it seemed like only seconds past before they said, "Okay, Dad. Get that camera ready!" And then they held up our child. My eyes are filled with tears as I just think about that moment. There in front of me was my baby. It was love at first sight. He was such a mess, but still the most gorgeous thing I've ever laid eyes on. Then the nurse brought him to me to hold. One of the nurses in the room took our first family picture.

Then Karl and Cooper went over to the table for Cooper to get cleaned up and weighed, and then Karl took Cooper to show our parents. We were reunited in the recovery room, and when they wheeled me in, I looked to my left where Karl was standing, and the look on his face stole my heart. He was smiling down at our baby, and his eyes were beaming. That was my first moment to see him as a father. He looked so proud.

We spent an hour in recovery, and when they handed Cooper to me, I felt a little panic. I know way too much about how to get pregnant and what to do and not to do when you are pregnant, but I don't know anything about babies! Everyone said it would come natural, and my fear was always what if it doesn't?! As it turns out, it does. I held our child skin to skin and nursed him and immediately, I was a mom.

After recovery, we went to our room and our parents came to meet and hold their first grandchild. From this point on, my recollection begins to get a little less beautiful and a little more blurry. The pain medicine was doing it's job well!

It was the best day of our lives.

Happy Birthday, Cooper!