Ezra's First Month

How can it be that my littlest man is one month old already!? What's odd is that when I think about his age as one month or 4 weeks, for some reason that seems to represent a longer passage of time. But when I think about how long he has been in the outside world in days (all of 33), the time just seems incredibly short. I don't know why my mind plays tricks like that, but no matter how I look at it I can't believe he's already crossed this first milestone.

It's been a busy few weeks with lots of wonderful visitors who have come to stay and help out. Grandma Dorothy, Aunt Tara, Cousins Christina & Christian, Aunt Amanda, Grandma Rusti and Grandpa Larry. Ezra got lots of extra love from all of his extended family, and I am so happy that so much family got the chance to meet him so early on.

For the most part, Ezra is a pretty chill baby. He loves to be held or carried in my front pack carrier - he almost always falls asleep near instantaneously when placed in the front pack. He is also starting to enjoy spending time in his swing and on the floor on his play mat. These last few days he's been getting better at focusing on items, and I can see him tracking things with his eyes as they move across his field of vision. He doesn't mind spending time on his tummy and absolutely loves to sleep that way when he is laying on me. Technically he's rolled over for the first time already from his tummy to his back, but I think that was a fluke more than anything thanks to his big ol' noggin. :)

We went in for his 1 month check up yesterday. If his eating keeps up at the pace it's at, we're gonna have a little linebacker on our hands. :P He is in the 90/95th percentile for weight right now, so there is absolutely no concern for how many calories he's taking in! His height is in the 50/75th percentile and his head is measuring in the 90th percentile.

Weight: 11 lbs, 7oz (up 1 lb, 10 oz since his 10 day old appt)
Height: 21.5in (I think this is a little off, he's grown more than a quarter inch since birth)
Head: 15.5

I am trying real hard to take the time to enjoy him while he is this little. I know with Caiden, I didn't appreciate this time to cuddle and snuggle in quite the same way. But now that I am more aware of how quickly these little ones grow, I want to savor and appreciate these opportunities as much as I can. So more often than not, I am more than happy to just sit with Ezra on me while he sleeps. I'll read or watch TV or sometimes just gaze at him as he snoozes away.

One of our favorite things Ezra does is what we call his "baby eagle cry." He screws his little face up, gets good and red and lets out the littlest high pitched cry. It's hard to describe in words, but maybe I'll get lucky enough to capture it on video one of these days.

So far, Ezra seems to be a pretty good sleeper. (Maybe it's genetic? Hee hee!) He'll often take 3-4 hour naps both during the day and overnight. He gets us up twice at night - once around midnight/1am and again at 4/5 am. Some nights he'll go right back to sleep after eating and others he decides he wants to be awake for a good hour or two after nursing. And speaking of nursing, this boy is a great little eater (as evidenced by that 90/95th percentile ranking)! Sometimes he gets a little overzealous and takes in more than he can hold. I'm not used to having to deal with a lot of spit up as Caiden hardly spit up at all. But Ezra's doc assured us that it is perfectly normal. Even having occasional projectile vomiting is normal given the way it happens for Ezra. He feeds a lot more frequently in the evening and sometimes takes in too much. I was worried he might be developing pyloric stenosis but between his weight gain and the pattern I described to the doctor she is pretty certain that he doesn't have it. That was a big relief to hear!! Of course we'll keep an eye out just in case things change, but he is very likely to just grow out of this phase.

The boys and I have also gotten out on a few outings on our own. This has been a huge confidence booster for me. While it's not exactly easy getting everyone dressed, fed, and out of the house, at least I know I can do it and am figuring out how to do it well. (Major key is allowing more than enough time which is tough for me cuz I've always left myself just enough time to get out the door.) I also finally got over the hump (and fear) of being left on my own with both boys. This was something I was majorly nervous about but knew I'd have to deal with - I just needed to get it done and know that I could do it. Well, I've been managing pretty well on my 2nd week now, and while some days are certainly better than others, I'm getting the hang of it. It's not nearly as bad as I thought it would be, but it definitely is a challenge. The days seem to go quickly tho, and it often seems that B is home before I know it - quite a change from how my days used to go!

I feel like there is lots more that I want to write about, but this entry has already taken me three days to put together. I've also got a whole bunch of photos I'd love to share, but there are just too many to pick from. But I've created a new Duchette subsidiary site: The Son Times - Ezra Edition, that you can peruse to your heart's content. :)

 Ezra at one month