6 Weeks!

I feel really behind on my blog. I like to keep it up mostly so I can keep a good record. I have a terrible memory, so it's nice to look back and see details about things we did or info about the children. Anyway, little Donovan is 6 weeks old now! It's weird to think of him as a regular baby now and not really a newborn. At the same time, it seems like forever ago that I was pregnant and going into labor. I keep reminding myself (especially when I look in the mirror) that it hasn't even been 2 months! Kevin was on a business trip in China last week so my mom decided to come out and help me and finally meet Donny! It was great having her help.

So, at one month old, Donny weighed in at 10 lb. 6 oz and was almost 23 inches long. He is very healthy and doing well. Most of the time, he is content to just look around and calmly observe things. I'm sure Josie is plenty entertaining for him. He seems to be pretty easy going for now. He hates his car seat though, and has a problem coming out of sleep sometimes. He doesn't cry when he is tired and wanting to sleep. In fact, he falls asleep very easily just about anywhere, even in his crib! It's just coming out of it or being woken up that he hates. Because of this, he tends to be kinda fussy in the morning upon waking and slips in and out of sleep for a while until finally deciding which one he wants. Up until a couple nights ago, he had been sleeping in our bed mostly. I wanted to make sure I was getting enough sleep while I recovered and wanted to make sure night nursing was good and established before trying him in a crib. It started to seem though, that whenever I put him down and let him sleep alone, he slept better and longer. Josie always slept well wherever too and the transition from our bed to the crib, and then to her own room was very easy. So, the last 2 nights I decided to put him in the crib in our room when he was going to sleep (around 10?) and he slept a good solid 5 hours both times! He then eats an goes right back down. He usually wakes 2 times at night to eat. Not bad! The crib is next to our bed so we are still close by, but it was nice to have a little more room for myself to sleep. If it continues this way, he will probably just sleep in his crib all night and eventually we will move him into his own room (when I make one for him, lol). He is awake quite a bit during the day, but takes a nice looooooong nap at the same time as Josie. Awesome.

With both Josie and with Donny, I let them ease into their own schedule. I feed them when they are hungry, not on an hourly schedule. I am not a fan of hyperscheduling babies and just find it easier to let them do their newborn thing until it becomes apparent that there is some sort of routine starting. Not sure when this appeared with Josie, but it seems Donny has started to become a little more predictable with sleep. He at least goes to bed and awakens for the day at about the same time.

Josie has always had a healthy appetite. She ate constantly as a baby, but was very efficient at it so it was no big deal. Especially in the early weeks, I assume I will nurse pretty much hourly (or more!). I did with Donny for the first 3 weeks or so which established a substantial milk supply. I'm pretty sure I could feed a family of four now. Seriously though, I never understood why they say newborns (under 2 or 3 weeks) eat every 3-4 hours. Maybe it's just my kids, but I'm pretty sure mine would be starving by then! Plus, my milk supply would probably be lacking. By one month mine could go that long, but before then, it's like every hour. Now at 6 weeks, he usually goes about 2-3 hours in between but it's pretty variable.

Oh yeah, Donny gave us his first smile at about 5 or 5 1/2 weeks!! I was looking for it and was not disappointed. He now gives regular open mouth smiles showing us that adorable dimple!! Now I just need to catch it on camera. I love this time!

Seriously, I don't think he has stayed awake longer than 10 mins in this thing.

In Grandma's arms....

These pictures were all taken at the Blueberry Festival. More pictures from this in Josie's post.

Yes, that's a hair net she's holding. It's a long story.....

A little smile?......

He's getting so good at holding his head up!