2 Months

We started the month out with a visit from Nana Barbie!! Micah loved her right away and she was able to soothe him with the rocking chair and the paci for two days straight! (Prior to this nursing was the only thing that worked!) Nana's visit gave mama a chance to get used to taking baby out of the house (and driving him around!) and Micah got to visit Starbucks, Target, Sprouts, Trader Joe's, and Babies R' Us. Mama loved having her own mama around and the visit went by much too quickly! On the 3rd day of nana's visit, right before she left, Micah remembered that he hated the paci and has only taken it sporadically ever since.

Mama and nana took Micah to his one month check up where he rolled from his tummy to back for the very first time! (4/25/14 exactly 5 weeks old!) Micah was perfect and came in at 10 lbs & 23 1/4 inches long!

Visitors: Auntie Carime came over and Micah got to meet his cousin K2; cousin Tammy & Noel came over (and brought Micah a swing to use!!); and Mama's friends from school Angie & Heather also met baby Micah this month!

From week 5 to week 6 Micah's favorite spot was the changing table over the washer and dryer! He loves to look at his little black and white pictures that mama hung, the cloth diaper laundry instructions, and the shiny washer knobs! Mama and nana bought Micah a "pee-pee-teepee" and giggled uncontrollably when we put it on him and he started to play soccer!

Mama is getting better at leaving the house with baby and made a few grocery store trips with Micah in the moby wrap or ring sling. He loves to nurse while mama is shopping and things have gone pretty smoothly, save for the times when mama is trying to check out at the grocery store line and Micah unlatches himself and thrashes around in search of the boob! Mama felt like super-mommy after doing her first big grocery trip with Micah and then nursing him in the moby while she lugged the heavy groceries up the stairs to the condo all by herself! Mama also met a fellow hypnobabies mommy for coffee at Starbucks and both babies nursed the whole time they chatted!

Early in the month Micah perfected both his pouty face and and his adorable smile! Mama and daddy first got a taste of Micah's "happy hour" at about 6:30 a.m. and this pattern continued for several weeks...all day he would be very serious but for a brief chunk of time between 6:30 and 7:30 a.m. he would be all smiles! Micah has the most adorable dimple and has mama and daddy wrapped around his little fingers! Toward the end of the month  (week 8) Micah smiles more throughout the day and has begun to giggle (his first giggles were in his sleep!) He loves to sing songs with mama and daddy, do "super-baby," and stare at lights!

Best smile in the world!

Micah is talking so much! He started finding his voice around week 6 or 7 and has increased his volume and variety of noises ever since!

Early in the month Micah began balding like a little monk...so funny!Toward the end of the month his hair is growing back in the front and beginning to thin out in the back.

Micah's male pattern baldness! <3

Daddy has become really good at rocking Micah to sleep and is often able to get him back to sleep without nursing (miracle!) 

Micah LOVES bath time and now has one almost every day as part of his bedtime routine.

This month we had our first church attempt, which did not go so great...we had to leave about 10 minutes into the service. Our 2nd attempt  (on mother's day) went much smoother as it was a smaller service and Micah was able to nurse the whole time while mama and daddy sat in the back. 

Daddy made our first mother's day extremely special and surprised mama with a ring sling, a handmade framed keepsake, and an awesome arrow necklace with Micah's name!

Mother's Day!

Daddy's first attempt at babywearing!

At the end of the month Mama had her grad school graduation ceremony and Micah did so well! He hardly fussed during the ceremony (the longest he had ever been away from mama) and afterward when we were walking him around and showing him off he was completely calm and alert, just taking everything in. We decided Micah must be one of those babies who loves stimulation, new environments, and meeting new people. 

By the end of the month Micah's eyelashes are suddenly very long and dark! He is just getting more beautiful by the day!


More photos from this month...

Mama and daddy have several nicknames for Micah including: 
*peanut
*peanut butter pie
*Micah bear
*punky poo bear/hunky punky poo bear
*pumpkin butt
*pookie bear
*pooks
*butter
*bubs
*bubsies
*babas
*cudddle buggle
....and more!

Happy One Month Baby Boy!

WOW...one month! I didn't think time could fly any faster but ever since he was born the days have just flown by. I can't believe our little peanut is one month old!!

We have just fallen more and more in love with him every single day! Here is a look back on his first few weeks....

Week One:
When we first brought Micah home, daddy and mama continually said to one another "oh my gosh, we have the best baby in the world." He rarely cried, was such a trooper at all of his pediatrician and midwife appointments (3 in the first week!), and was just the cutest little snuggle bug we could have ever imagined. The first night mama had to wake him to nurse and mama and daddy secretly thought to themselves that they been given one of those magic babies who love to sleep at night (we were wrong of course...so very wrong!)

We started to learn Micah's cues-for example, when he is hungry he does kung fu! We just couldn't stop staring at him and when we weren't staring at him we were staring at pictures we had taken of him....how did we make such an adorable baby!?

As it is for most new mamas & babies, nursing was challenging at first. We were concerned because Micah had lost almost a pound since birth and was just the tiniest little thing! We hired a lactation consultant to come to the house and help, but mama was in such a daze that once she left, we couldn't recreate any of the latches or positions that she had taught us.  She also mentioned that Micah was looking a little jaundice and that it had begun to to move down his body so we needed to keep an eye on it and alert the midwife at our upcoming appointment. Mama added this ailment to her growing list of things to worry about. Mama and baby were both getting frustrated with breastfeeding, but the next the day the doula at the birth center helped immensely. Once mama put away all the fancy pillows and forgot about the crazy positions and latches, she and baby found their groove and nursing became really natural. Micah couldn't get enough milky and has nursed non-stop ever since!

On Micah's one week birthday California was hit with some crazy earthquakes. Daddy was the only one to feel the first one but shortly after the entire house was shaking and we all felt the biggest earthquake we had ever experienced....a magnitude 5.1 that lasted for over 20 seconds. Our entire house was shaking so we scooped up the baby and daddy rushed us into the tub where mama began to sob uncontrollably and pray for God to keep her sweet baby boy safe. Afterward, there were about two dozen aftershocks and within a few days there were over 200 aftershocks. Having a child makes these events so much more intense and terrifying. We have never had so much to lose before...welcome to the world Micah!

Visitors: Auntie Cori came on Wednesday & Grandma Lind, Grandpa Sam, and Auntie Lindsey came on Thursday.

Week Two:
We were lucky that daddy could stay home for week two! We were all in such a daze, we never knew what day it was or whether or not we had brushed our teeth, but we were in baby heaven. Mama was nursing every 20 to 30 minutes and at his two week check up Micah had gone above his birth weight and came in at 8 lbs and 1 oz! 

Visitors: Auntie Carime came on Sunday & Uncle Anthony, Auntie Maggie, & cousin Anabelle came on Friday!

Week Three:
Mama was feeling a little chained to the couch with Micah's non-stop nursing but she finally figured out how to feed him in the moby wrap...and it was life changing! Hands free breastfeeding allowed for some laundry, cooking, and cleaning to get done (still not as easy as before, but at least somewhat possible!) Micah seemed much more content when he was worn all day and was able to be soothed by daddy when he got home from work where as in previous weeks he would scream for his "breast friend" any time someone else tried to hold him when he was awake. Mama loves keeping him so close all day too! This week Micah was more alert, made more eye contact, and had his first big boy bath! He wasn't sure about the bath at first but he eventually seemed to like it...not a big fan of the getting out and drying off part though! He LOVES to sleep during the day and keep mama and daddy up all night!

Visitors: Alison & Jen from mama's school!

Week Four:
Micah still has his days and nights mixed up and continues to have some tummy troubles! :( Mama took him out by herself for the first time this week to get his birth certificate and both of them were sufficiently traumatized by the experience! Auntie Lindsey came over this week and Micah let her hold him for over an hour so mama was able to get a few things done around the house, woo hoo! He also met a couple of mama's friends from school and cousin Joy this week! Micah continues to increase his eye contact and loves staring at the white and black patterns that mama hung around the house to provide visual stimulation and increase his neural connections! Physically, he is also very strong! When daddy holds him under the arms he can use his legs to "stand," he can sometimes self-latch at the breast, and he can briefly hold his head up all by himself!  Mama and daddy took Micah on his first "non-necessary outing" this week to Babies R' Us and Whole Foods. He wasn't very happy at Babies but was very content in the moby wrap at Whole Foods (mama's favorite place too!) Daddy and mama had fun picking out a bunch of cute surfer-esque spring outfits that should keep baby stylin' all summer long! Happy Easter Micah!! <3

Visitors: Auntie Lindsey, Cousin Joy, & mama's friend Tanya!