Our babies are two months old today! I can't believe how quickly they're growing and changing everyday. Here's a quick update on how everyone is doing:
Will:
Will continues to be a great eater and his efforts are paying off- he's our biggest guy right now. At their last weight check he was 8 lbs.,13 oz., so he is surely over 9 pounds by now! Newborn clothes are getting tight, but 0 to 3 months sizes are still pretty large on him (for now) so we're at that strange in between for the time being. His head has noticeably changed shape and is now quite round. He is still rolling over from front to back which has made tummy time harder to do. If he doesn't feel like participating he'll simply roll over. He recently has become very interested in the mobiles that hang in the pack and play and on their activity mat- he will follow them with his eyes and deliberately bat at them with his hands. Seeing this we decided to go out and buy mobiles for their cribs so they could keep themselves entertained during those awake moments while they're waiting for their turn to eat. Ironically, he hasn't seemed at all interested in the one hanging over his head and instead likes to stare at the blank wall.
Will is able to keep his head upright for longer stretches at a time and is arguably our happiest baby these days. He often has smiles for us, especially around when it's time to eat. He gets very excited for meals and often "pants" in anticipation of getting his bottle, like a little puppy. He has a temper on him, though! Mainly when he's hungry- he does not appreciate having to wait and gets especially ticked when he is the third/last baby to eat! Will has longer and longer stretches of being awake and alert, but he seems to be more of a daytime baby. He's often wide awake after our 8 am feeding, so we are trying to stay awake and have them out of their cribs during that time. He doesn't have a very good poker face and we are starting to recognize that a certain face he makes while we're changing his diaper surely means that he is about ready to take care of some business. It, naturally, is a hilarious face and keeps us on our toes during his diaper changes!
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| Wide awake early in the morning! |
Griffin:
Griffin is still pretty easy going, but more and more we're seeing a little bit of a feisty personality coming out! He's just behind Will in weight- he was 8 lbs., 11 oz. at their last weight check, so we're pretty sure he's also over 9 lbs. by now. He seems to be filling out faster than his brothers- we're seeing more and more of those delicious little baby rolls on him everyday! Hello thunder thighs!!! He's still in Newborn sizes for now, too, but like his brother outfits are starting to get pretty tight. He is a much faster eater these days, which we are grateful for! We call Griffin the most active lazy baby ever because he LOVES to sleep but is also constantly moving, even while he's dozing. He's always kicking his legs and moving his arms around, whether in his crib or on the ground. It's like he's still getting used to the fact that he can spread out and not run into one of his brothers! He often sleeps with his arms straight out to his sides.
Griffin enjoys his pacifier and boy does he get M-A-D if it falls out of his mouth and he can't reach it! That's probably the one thing that will really set him off. When he gets going with the loud cries, we call him Griffinagan, his monster alter-ego! He is still often the last to eat simply because he is relaxed and is generally content to lay in his crib (as long as that pacifier stays put!) until it's his turn to eat. He can also roll over from front to back, but he doesn't do it as often as Will. Like Will, he's getting better and better about holding his head up for longer stretches at a time. Griffin loves to sleep on his stomach so when we go for tummy time he will usually just settle in and nap on the activity mat. He's our night owl and is typically most alert after their 8:00 pm bottle, so he gets extra late evening attention from us these days. He is our grunting baby- we don't hear a lot of coos from him, but he will grunt and grunt and grunt all day long.
Cooper:
As I have mentioned before, Cooper has reflux issues which have caused him to fall behind his brothers in the weight arena. At his last check in he was 7 lbs., 8 oz.- gaining weight, but not at the same rate as his brothers. Part of this issue was that he threw up a lot with each feed. He is a great eater and always happily takes his bottle, but he would often throw quite a bit of it back up. Starting last Friday we began adding a tablespoon of rice cereal to his bottles to thicken up the milk and hopefully help little man keep more down. That seemed to do the trick! Since we've implemented the rice cereal regime he has kept more and more of his meals in his belly and seems much more content. Speaking of bellies, Cooper has developed an umbilical hernia, which causes his belly button to protrude out in a not-so-attractive way. We had the pediatrician look it over and are happy to report that it's nothing to worry about and something he will likely outgrow over the next couple years. Griffin also has an umbilical hernia, though to a lesser degree. The good news is that it doesn't bother either boy for now. We'll just keep an eye on them for awhile. He's still fitting into Newborn clothes perfectly, and my guess is he will stay in them longer than his brothers.
Cooper is pretty smiley these days, too, especially after he eats and is in a milk coma. Because of his reflux issues he gets a bit more one-on-one time with mom and dad after he eats and he will lock eyes and give you lots of his adorable lopsided smiles. I've been feeding Cooper the majority of the time now since for whatever reason he doesn't spit up as much when I give him his bottle. Lately he has been finding his voice and we'll hear him scream and yell as he tries out sounds. He is having longer and longer stretches of times during the day when he's awake and alert, but he doesn't seem to have a preferred time of day like his brothers. We're still working on tummy time with him- he's not rolling over yet, but he's a mover in his bed now! It's not uncommon for him to rotate 90 degrees in his crib while he sleeps. Cooper is most content when he's near Mom and Dad. We don't even have to be holding him- he just prefers to be close to us. For that reason he probably spends a bit more time downstairs than his brothers do. He'll happily doze in a rock and play while Will and I take care of chores downstairs.
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| His new favorite way to sleep in his crib |
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| Cooper's newest accessory- a bib during bottle time |
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| Poor buddy spends a lot of time in this position- ready for spit up at any second |
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| Lot and lots of time in this position |
As for Will and me, we are continuing to get more and more comfortable in our roles as Mom and Dad. I think our parenting styles are similar enough that we compliment each other well, and we've done a good job of talking through things when our opinions don't match up. Most of the time we're on the same page, though, which is helpful. Especially when we're spending Every. Waking. Moment together! (And we're awake for a lot of moments these days!) We realized the other night that the past two months we've been together non-stop, with the exception of a couple rounds of golf for Will and various errands when one of us makes a quick run outside of the house. By far the most amount of time we've been together in our 8+ year relationship- it's a good thing we like each other! Being together this much on little sleep naturally leads to some shortened tempers, but overall we're a great team and very lucky that we are both able to have this time at home together to bond with the boys.
Speaking of bonding, I'm really enjoying watching Will's relationship with the boys develop. As they continue to grow and show more of their personalities, Will has become more and more comfortable with them. He has admitted that the first few weeks were tough for him when he felt like all he did was constantly change diapers, feed, burp, and repeat. And although that's still our routine for the most part, the fact that the boys are more alert and interactive makes it easier for Will to bond with them. It cracks me up to see Will, who so often claimed to not be a baby person, love on his own babies. He even has a term for how he cuddles them- "smuggles" (smothered in snuggles). Whereas I'm mostly business during care time and try to feed the babies as efficiently as possible so I can pump, Will will "smuggle" every boy for a few minutes before he gives them their bottle. It's pretty adorable to watch, and the boys seem to enjoy Dad's scratchy beard kisses!
At two months, we are:
- Feeding the boys 6 bottles a day, and going between 4-5 hours between feeds. Will and Griffin are both taking 4 1/2 oz. per feed while Cooper is taking 4 oz. bottles with the rice cereal mixed in.
- Pumping 6 times a day, either before or after each feed for the boys, depending on whether or not I nurse them first.
- Nursing each boy at least once a day, sometimes twice if I'm feeling ambitious (and prepared to spend a LOT of time sitting in a chair with a baby attached to me!)
- No longer supplementing with formula- they are all strictly taking breast milk bottles or nursing
- Still working through about 30 diapers/day and a pack of wipes every day or two
- Getting baths every 2-3 days. We will likely be increasing to baths every other day soon as they are starting to get stinkier faster!
- Continuing to do at least one load of laundry a day- we're going through a lot more burp cloths and outfits these days as the boys are spitting up more with each feed.
- Spending more time with them in the bonus room and outside of the nursery as we try to establish set nap/sleep schedules for them in their cribs.
- Taking them on walks in the evening as often as the weather allows
