One Month Later

It's hard to believe our little guy is already one month old! The picture to the left is the most updated (taken the night before Caleb's official one month birthday...he's a real party animal). I've never known a month that can feel so long, yet go by so quick. Parenthood has certainly been an experience like no other. The first week was a "honeymoon" as I've heard it called. Caleb was really a peaceful, content little guy and did a lot of sleeping. After that first week, we've seen many different sides to our bundle of joy.

During Caleb's second week, we had Tyler's family in for the weekend. It was great to have them here to meet their new grandson! We enjoyed watching all of the grandparents together with our darling little boy. It was a very busy weekend, and Caleb was very tired by the time everyone left. He began to show us what sleepness nights mean in the days that followed their visit. It turns out that our baby who slept so much during the first week is really not a big fan of sleeping (during the day or night). We learned very early on that he has a very hard time falling asleep and often gets overtired to the point where it's nearly impossible to get him to settle down and fall asleep! As you can tell by the picture, Tyler has had a hard time keeping up with the sleepless nights. It wasn't such a big deal when he wasn't having to wake up for work, but since he's gone back, he's been a big fan of napping in the evenings when he gets home. I have also grown very tired of the tiresome nights, but am learning to catch up on my sleep during the day when and if Caleb settles down for a nap. Fortunately for us both, we worked out a better nighttime feeding plan where we both took on one feeding each. Since then, we've both gotten a little bit more rest!

Although we've had our moments of complete frustration with so little sleep, we have also learned to find so much joy in the times when Caleb shows his sweeter side. We love how serious he is about sucking his thumb (or sometimes his whole fist). We love how much he enjoys bath time (which has gotten so much better since that icky cord fell off in the middle of week three). Caleb rarely cries during his bath and makes us laugh as he tries so hard to get as much soap on his hand and into his mouth before we can wipe it off. We also love the moments when Caleb shows us his relaxed and laid back side. When he is calm and content, he is absolutely adorable. We sometimes just sit and watch him as he sleeps and makes some of the cutest noises we've ever heard. In the middle of sleeping he is also great at making funny faces and showing us spontaneous smiles. We can't wait until that smile actually shows up when he's awake! Caleb also loves to "talk" to us. He discovered his voice early on and has been cooing up a storm ever since. His favorite place to get all worked up and talk is when he's getting his diaper changed. As soon as he is put down on his back, his lips start moving a mile a minute and all sorts of cute cooing noises come out! I'm certain that once this little guy starts talking with real words, he'll be hard to keep quiet!

A few of the other highlights of this past month include watching our dog Chesney and her increasing interest in her new baby brother. At first, she had no interest in him and rarely even noticed he was around. Now, she is very attentive to him and often comes running when he starts to cry. We're hoping she continues to realize that he's part of this family and learns to like him before he becomes mobile!

In addition to that, we also enjoyed the visit from some of my dad's family. Caleb got to meet his first great grandparent...my Grandma Jane. The moment was very bittersweet. It was wonderful to see my grandma holding our baby. At the same time, it also brought about a bit of sadness in knowing that Caleb missed out on meeting and knowing several of his other great grandparents. Within the past year, Tyler and I have lost three grandpa's. All of them were so special to us and we certainly wish they could still be here to meet their great grandson. We know how much it would have meant to each of them to have him here.

It's not easy to wrap up an entire month into just a few paragraphs or pictures. So much has changed and happened in the past four weeks and I'm pretty sure I could already write a book about the ups and downs we've had. Overall, we know that this is just the beginning of an awesome and challenging experience. We are constantly reminded that God only gives us as much as we can handle and no part of this parenting experience will be too hard with His love and guidance. Caleb is a blessing from God and we are so thankful to have him here!