One Month with Landry

I'm shocked that a month has already passed since our baby girl joined us and made us a family of four!  It has been such a busy month that it flew right on by and I don't see time slowing down for us anytime soon since I will be returning to work in less than two weeks now to my busiest time of year.  

I'm going to re-cap the last month the best I can, but poor Landry's monthly update will not revolve so much around only her, but around all of us as I just haven't had time to update on everything else separately and it is all intermingled anyways!  Sorry sweet girl, if you ever have more than one baby someday, you will understand! 

We were pretty much a full week into miss Landry Kate's life when we finally got to come home from the NICU.  She did really awesome at night from the beginning.  I was setting an alarm on my phone to wake and feed her every 4 hours at night and she was pretty much waking on her own to eat every 2-4 hours during the day.  The only problem was Brent and I...we were so used to having those oxygen monitors on her at the hospital that it made it hard for us to sleep without that extra assurance that she was fine.  We have her sleeping in our room in a rock-n-play beside me, but we were also leaving the TV on (muted) all night so I had the light to be able to check on her anytime.  We decided to order a Snuza monitor to keep on her at night to make us feel better about that and so that when she is moved to her crib we can also sleep easier.  It is such a good feeling to know that if she were to stop breathing, we will know!

We spent most of the first week at home all together.  Brent was still off work and Carter was showing that he really had missed us and our home.  If Brent or myself left the room, Carter would have a freak out and cry "where daddy go?" or "where mommy go?".  So we just kept him at home and tried to help convince him that we weren't going to up and leave him for a week again.  But even after that week, he still was not into the idea of going to the babysitter's a few days a week the way I had planned.  I was hoping to keep him in the routine and also to get a little alone time with Landry, but every time I would mention sending him, he would say "no, I stay home with Mommy, Daddy and Sissy."  I was still taking him a few days a week and just bearing through his cries, but I was honestly just about to give it up and keep him home with me because the unnecessary crazy mornings of trying to get him and Landry both dressed and out to the car in the cold (and me at least out of PJ pants!) to drop him off when I was just turning around and going back home.  That was about the time Brent got laid off from work and has been home with me.  Now, even though Carter has still been crying about going, it is nice because at least Brent can take him so that Landry and I don't have to get out in the cold!  

Three days after we had returned home from the hospital, Landry had her newborn pictures made in the morning and her first pediatric appointment in the afternoon.  I can't wait to share her newborn pictures, I have them already and will post them in the next few days! And her doctor appointment showed that she was gaining weight, up from 8 pounds even at discharge from the hospital to 8 lb 3.5 oz in just 3 days.  

We went back to the doctor the next week on her 2 week birthday. Landry was up to 8 pounds 10.2 ounces (exceeding her birth weight!) and was 19 5/8 inches long with a head circumference of 14 1/2.  Everything looked great to the doctor and he actually pulled the last little tiny thread her belly button was hanging on by.  

Waiting at the doctor's office...2 weeks old!

We did quite a bit of running around during the month as well, much more than I ever would have dreamed of doing with Carter!  I think this time around I realize how easy it is to take a newborn places since they can pretty much sleep through anything and they aren't up running around and away from you!  So we have gone to a basketball game (my sister Raylee's 8th grade night for cheerleading), visited my work to show off the kiddos to my work family, went to church, and even took both kids out to eat last weekend.  All of it has been a success!  Every time we accomplish an outing without any major mishaps, Brent and I feel kind of amazed and high five each other for making it through.  

First church trip...3 1/2 weeks old.

Brent and I even left the kids for the first time to go watch American Sniper together as Brent had read the book while we were in the hospital.  My mom and stepdad kept Carter and Landry for a few hours while we went.  Landry took the bottle like a champ and while it was nice to not be on mommy duty, I was beyond ready to get back to my sweet girl when it was over!

In general, baby girl is loving bath time and the swing, much like her brother at this age.  She is nursing great, but she is like a little piranha when she first latches on.  Her nursing time averages right around 5-8 minutes and she is done!  She is a super laid-back baby, really only crying when she gets hungry or needs to burp.  She isn't much of a fan of the pacifier, but will eventually take it when she is gassy.  And I am loving that she is starting to look at us and follow us with her eyes when we walk by her!  I can't wait to hear her little voice and laugh.  As far as sleep goes, she is doing really good.  She just seems to want to be wide awake until after midnight, which isn't fun when you have to be up early with a toddler.  But once she is asleep after that, she has started going around 6 hours between feedings which is more than I could ask for, so I will deal with the late bedtimes for now to get that long stretch in! 

My favorite picture of her to date (non-professional anyways!)

She was such a big baby that she didn't even really need newborn diapers so we have had to do some swapping out, and she is officially out of her newborn clothes and wearing 0-3/3 months.  I have a feeling she is getting close to 10 pounds, but I don't know that for sure!

I feel like everything has been easier the second time around...I guess because we know what to expect and have had a little practice.  But the time is flying by even faster with her than it did with Carter.  Although, I do think we are handling her so much differently.  This time, we know how fast everything will pass, so we are just enjoying the moment instead of wishing for whatever comes next (sitting up, sleeping through the night, eating real food, crawling, walking, etc.).  So for now you can just find us soaking up all of the baby cuddles we can get! :)

And a little bit on the transition into big brother for Carter man: He is really doing great!  He really doesn't pay her a lot of attention besides trying to give her his blanket or give her a toy to play with him.  He always notices when she makes noises or cries, and his response is always "hush baby Kate!", which is what he calls her for the most part...I guess Landry is a little hard for him to say although he will say it if you ask long enough!  And the hush isn't like a nice shushing sound; it said in a very mean tone.  We always tell him that it is just her way of telling us she is hungry because she can't talk yet and we're hoping he will start being a little more nice about that!  He occasionally asks to hold her, and we try to oblige each time.  We just have to be really careful when he is around because he doesn't realize how wild his arms and legs can be and he makes us nervous that he is going to kick/hit her on accident.  Overall, I am really proud of how well he has done with her thus far.  He is doing awesome about not being jealous of her which was my biggest concern.