Happy One Month, Jack!

My little one is one month old. He ushered in the occasion on Saturday with an atrocious night of waking and crying, which has been pretty rare lately. Maybe he was just too excited. More than likely, it was gas. Regardless, he continued to be miserable the entire day. Gas stinks. Literally and figuratively.

He had his one month appointment this afternoon. He's doing great - 20.5 inches (up 1/2 an inch from 2 weeks ago, even though he was measuring that same height at birth...) and 8 lbs, 10 oz. We talked about our gas/reflux concerns, and it seems we have things handled as well as we can. Jack is doing well and growing, so no complaints here! As long as he's not in pain, we can deal with a little fussy farting from time to time :-)

We are to the point where now it is impossible to imagine our family without our little Jackson. He is such a sweet baby. He, of course, loves to be held and cuddled close. He loves being outside and looking at the sky and the trees. Most of all, I am happy to say, he loves his mommy. I know this time will not last, so I will take pleasure in the fact that currently, he immediately calms when he is with me and relaxes and coos at the sound of my voice. I will always classify this stage of his life as his "bird" phase, for we frequently find him with his mouth wide open, searching for a bottle just like a little robin. It is so cute!

One of my favorite expressions he makes

I got a bit sad this weekend when I realized my little bird is growing so fast. He has outgrown a few of his newborn clothes and sleepers that were so big on him when we brought him home. It was a sad realization when I realized I was sorting them for the last time - no more babies will wear those sweet little clothes in this house. As much as I can't wait for Jack to grow out of the newborn/fussy/no sleep, etc. phase, I sometimes wish I could just freeze him at this size so I can snuggle with him a bit longer.

We have been graced with more frequent smiling lately, though I'm not ready to classify them as anything more than "my gas bubbles kind of tickle" laughs. He does coo up a storm, though, and it is awesome. We are looking forward to more meaningful interaction with him this coming month. We can't wait to see how he changes. He still looks like Ethan, but is getting his own distinct traits as well; his eyes have already started to lighten up to a nice blue shade, he's got very light and VERY long lashes like his brother, and has his own, unique reddish hair. I wonder if that will last or if his will change like mine did.

And, we are most looking forward to a solid routine that includes a good night's sleep...

Until then, happy 'birthday', little bird!