Wallace | One Month

8.8.17 | One month old!



It's hard to believe Wallace has been with us for a whole month already, but it also feels like he's always been a part of our family. It seems like a million years ago when I was pregnant, so in that sense the first month with our baby seems like it should have been longer. It's funny how once the baby arrives it all makes sense: like THIS is who you are, little bugger! How could we have not known you?

More from our family shoot in a bit, but look at him!


Wallace is still a rock star baby, guys. He's had a few fussy evenings but nowhere near the caliber of Porter or Cecelia at this age. One night, after we had a very busy day out and about at the zoo for several hours, Wallace did cry more than he's ever cried before. It lasted for about an hour and he was just really upset, not fully wanting to nurse, couldn't fall asleep, etc. But then he passed out and slept great at night, seemingly overstimulated and wiped out from his tough evening. A few other evening hours have been like that: nursing, but not happy when milk was actually entering his mouth. Trouble falling asleep even though he's tired. Wanting to be held but NOT wanting to be held, you know...the normal 'fussy evening' baby stuff. But overall, he isn't inconsolable and it's definitely not every night, and we just keep reminding ourselves that Porter and especially Cecelia were SO MUCH WORSE. So thank you, Ace, for being much more chill than your older siblings;)



ATNR reflex, the PT in me loves this stage:


Will tolerate the swaddle but needs his hands by his face AT ALL TIMES. Also: cheeks and lips.


Mister muscle shirt.


He absolutely loves being held, loves walking around the house or outside, and does great in the Ergo for the most part. If he's not sleeping in our arms, he's probably sleeping in his Mamaroo swing--which is where he spends most of the night, too. He's obsessed with looking at our windows and will sometimes look us dead in the eyes, staring into our souls and making us melt over this child. My favorite early milestone? He's starting to smile at us! I haven't captured a great picture or video yet, but I am determined to prove myself on this one. I love love love when babies start smiling at you----it's such a great reward for the hard work it's been to care for this child so far. Keep it up, buddy!





Wait, what? Why are you making those noises at me, lady?


I've noticed that Wallace cries if we leave him alone on the floor/pack and play/swing when awake, but as soon as I send a sibling in to talk to him, he stops crying. He is a social guy, apparently, and just wants a buddy to hang with. He still doesn't love the car seat but we aren't using it too much anyway, and I'm thinking it's because he can't see anyone else around him in the seat. Luckily we have more than enough people to keep this baby company right now.



Still my favorite position ever.


As far as nursing goes, Wallace is still doing great. I don't have any idea how often he will eat but he tends to sleep more soundly in the mornings, then prefers to cluster feed in the evenings. At night he will usually nurse for the last time around 9 or 10pm, then first wakes up hungry at 2 or 3 am. That's a crazy long stretch and I'm so thankful for it! After that he will usually nurse every two hours or so, and throughout the day I'd guess it's around there, too. He doesn't spit up that much or that often, but it seems like he will barf more in the evenings when he is probably super full from constant nursing. He isn't a fan of the pacifier anymore but I'm going to keep trying, since it would be very helpful for comfort when he doesn't actually want/need to nurse!

Sucked his thumb one time!


Baby toes.


Nursing at the zoo in a nursing pod thing! Pretty sweet.


Sometimes he will still just stay on one side for 20 minutes, or sometimes he will take both sides. Either way I feel like I'm at my peak of making lots of milk for this baby. I will let down if I haven't fed him in an hour or two, and am constantly soaking nursing pads. When I pump each morning I get 6-8 oz now, and definitely feel somewhat engorged when I wake up for the day. This seems to be more on par for my supply with Cecelia, who was an excellent nurser, as Porter was already getting very finicky at the breast by one month. We have not yet introduced a bottle, probably because I'm nervous he will start preferring it more than the boob (like Porter!), but I know we should do that soon. I have a nice stash of frozen milk, around 80 ounces so far, which makes me strangely satisfied. I forgot about the numbers game with pumping and nursing, but I'm ready to rumble once I return to work.

Hashtag Lopsided


Wearing some cooler weather clothes on a day it was 66 degrees as a high.


Most common view:


I will NOT count down my weeks left on maternity leave, though. I will not! I'm enjoying being home with this baby and the other kids so much. This summer seems to be flying by at a crazy pace, with the month of August being the last of our true summer before the kids return to school on Sept 1. Then Wallace (and Porter) and I will have the month of September together, as we adjust to the bigs being in school all day. Then I return to work on October 2nd! CRAZY, so I will just soak it up while I can.

'Real' outfits slay me!


Superficially, he's definitely getting bigger. Not sure on the weight until next week at his one month appointment, but he comfortably wears 3 month clothes and size 1 diapers. He's growing some awesome cheeks and a few thigh rolls. Oh, and baby acne is in full swing, which is always so pitiful! No cradle cap yet but I'm sure it's coming. We think he looks a lot like Porter and Truman but sometimes also Cecelia. More often than not he mostly just looks like his own person but it's still so fun to compare our kids!

His unique little folded ear!


Not scrawny


Right? Looks fat here to me. Love this outfit, was Porter's, by Tea Collection.


Porter vs. Wallace---different face shape and lips, I think!


Nicknames for our baby: Waller McBaller, Wallipop, Walli-melon, Walli-present (Porter is coming up with all of these), Ace of Spades, and Acey Baby.

Best friends


Another big fan


Three for three


As you can tell, we are all still over the moon for this little guy. I catch myself staring at him daily, thinking he is the BEST unexpected addition to our family. Not sure how I got by without kissing his head non-stop.

Wallace | Three Weeks

I usually think of the three week mark as being a time when the newness wears off and reality sets in with a new baby. This is when they seem to wake up and we may enter a phase of very fussy evenings....but so far, so good for Wallace!



He is still a superstar nursing machine and stays latched on for at least 15 minutes or more per side. Many time he falls asleep at the breast but keeps sucking away. He doesn't spit up a ton but he has become super grunt-y when he has to poop, and still needs to be burped most of the time. He likes to cluster feed most evenings, switching from side to side, cat napping along the way, until it's my bedtime. He doesn't really like the pacifier anymore, I can't remember the last time he actually took it for longer than a few sucks here and there.





At night he will sleep for a solid 4-5 hour stretch at first, then it's anyone's guess as to how many other times he will want to eat. He's still doing well in the Mamaroo for nights and overall I guess I'd say he's up 2-3 times to nurse. For the past few days he gets super loud and grunts, wiggling around, at 5:30 am. I end up changing his diaper, nursing, burping, and un-swaddling him to try and get him to calm down. But both of these mornings I just come downstairs with him, let him hang out awake and happy for 30 minutes, and then he passes out for a long morning nap even before the big kids wake for the day. So he is definitely getting louder, especially in the early morning hours when he needs to poop or burp or move around, but sharing our bedroom with him isn't a big deal. I usually keep the kids in with us for about three months but Wallace will likely be with us longer due to the construction on the house, so I hope we continue our happy sleeping arrangements. Not too shabby at all, mister Ace-man!





During the day he is pretty content unless he wants to nurse or is tired but can't fall asleep. Best tricks of the trade include 1. Nursing, 2. Walking around with him in the Ergo. After reading old posts about the other kids at this age, I realized we had a huge toolbox for possibilities we'd use with fussy babies. Luckily, Wallace is good with nursing or walking. I got my nails done with mom and Cecelia this weekend, and Wallace woke up right when I left. He was very displeased that his milk bags weren't in the vicinity, so Nate popped Ace in the Ergo and went for a four mile walk with him. The baby slept the entire time on Nate and my husband is sporting some wicked blisters from wearing non-walking appropriate shoes. But he did say it brings back good memories of the other kids being this little, needing to walk around when mom is gone. Real glad this kid is so chill and usually easy to figure out. I keep saying, 'So FAR,' like the bottom will drop out with him, but as of right now he's still very laid back. Thank you, God!



He seems to be growing really well, wearing size 1 diapers now and starting to work some 3 month outfits into his rotation. I can't quite let go of the newborn outfits even though they are skin tight and sometimes difficult to get over his head. We don't have a doctor appointment until the one month mark so I guess I can verify that nursing is working well then, but if I'm going off of how content he seems to be? It's working just fine.



I'm pumping almost each morning while I can, and will get between 4 and 6.5 ounces in about five minutes. I don't know why but I'm really determined to have a bigger freezer stash of milk this time compared to last time with Porter, so I am doing my best to work pumping into the daily routine. I have a feeling this will be a lot harder with time but we will see!



Baby acne showed up right on cue at the three week mark, but it's not horrible just yet. He didn't cry at his last bath so maybe I should try doing that more often to keep his skin clean and dry, but nursing and wearing a baby in the middle of summer is just sweaty and sometimes gross!


We had our family photoshoot yesterday and Ace seriously rocked it so hard. He was asleep, then awake and happy, then needed to nurse two times but otherwise was down to stare at the camera and take in the chaos that surrounds him at all times. I can't wait to get the photos back and hope Porter's bad attitude didn't shine through in EVERY picture. #reallife



Currently my mom, dad, and Memaw are here for a visit with us. Memaw returns home tomorrow but my parents will stay until Friday, and it's SO FREAKING NICE to have the extra hands to help. Maybe that is why I don't feel totally beaten down during this postpartum recovery time.






Ice cream time!



Oh, and my eyes are officially not red anymore. It really did take a full three weeks for them to heal though. My butt is a lot better and I'm getting used to my breastfeeding boobs. Overall physical recovery is going much better now than it was even a week ago. I'm nowhere near my pre-pregnancy body or self just yet but it feels good to be inching in that direction, knowing that I want to breastfeed Ace as long as I can so the rest of the weight might need to hang on for several more months. Trying to embrace my new curves as they are temporary and important! ;)

Before family pictures, when I did my hair for the first time in weeks (months?) and applied makeup. No more red eyes!


Ace really does prefer his mommy right now, probably because he is such a stellar nurser and can smell me when I leave a room;) Again, since I have the help it's totally fine to sit on the couch and nurse the baby for hours on end. He usually naps at least one time each day for three solid hours and that one can be in the swing without issue, so I do get a break from constant baby tending.

The big kids are still enamored with their baby brother and still ask to hold him, give him kisses, sing to him, etc. I think Wallace is sort of in love with all three of his siblings by the way he looks at them when they talk to him. Also, he loves having his head rubbed and if I want him to go to sleep, I can stroke his nose and forehead and his eyes flutter shut. It's the sweetest!

New quilt from my mom! She's made one for each kid and this one is going to fit in his someday nursery perfectly. I'm going with black and white and geometric shapes.


The newborn sounds he makes are the most adorable. He loves to sigh and prefers to have his hands by his face at all times, but I'm still swaddling him at night despite his Houdini moves.

Porter, Cecelia, and Truman all at three weeks tell me stories of babies with fussy evenings (P and C) and a baby who could always be soothed by nursing (T). Sleeping stats seem to be consistent with every one of my kiddos at this point, but Porter was already having issues nursing for longer than 5 minutes on a side, which became a bigger issue when he decided to completely wean himself by six months. Also, both Cecelia and Porter already hated their car seats by now, but I admit that we haven't even tried it with Wallace in over a week so who knows!



One thing is for certain: we love this baby so much.

Wallace | Two Weeks

Two weeks already!! Still riding the new baby high around here, although it's seeming more real and obviously not perfect. Nate went back to work on Tuesday of this week, so my reality check hit this week. Turns out taking care of four kids can be somewhat chaotic, who knew? I mean, it wasn't too awful but there were certainly several times when Porter was crying, Cecelia was pouting, Truman was not listening, and Wallace needed to eat or be held or walk around. Luckily, even on Nate's super long twelve hour day on Wednesday, we all survived just fine.

Hand-me-down clothes from big brothers = the best!


Muscle man


Lois helped out by taking just Porter to the park, while the big kids were at daycamp. Porter needed that 1:1 time with his grandma and I thoroughly enjoyed my Wallace time! Then the big kids went to play putt putt golf with Tony during Porter's nap on Wednesday, which was also awesome for them (and everyone, really). On Thursday, Lois picked Truman and Cecelia up from Nate's golf camp and then she took Porter and Cecelia to a playground. Wallace, Truman and I hung out for awhile and then went to get Jimmy Johns for lunch as a treat. Friday was Nate's half day at work so we loved having him home around lunch time (duh) and obviously the weekends are the BEST ever.

Golfers!


We had several visitors this week and two meals were dropped off for dinners, as some of my friends have set up a meal train website thing for us. We've definitely never had that type of organized meal delivery from our friends but it's oh, so appreciated. In fact, Nate and I were saying the other day that we feel even more supported and surrounded by amazing friends this fourth time around compared to the first time around---without a doubt. Basically, we have a wonderful network of neighbors and friends and family that are a part of our beloved 'village' and we do not take it for granted!



Wallace is still fairly sleepy overall but I can tell he is staying awake for longer stretches now and might need a *little* more work to get him to fall asleep. He is usually napping for at least one mega nap each day---sometimes in the morning, sometimes afternoon----but that big dog nap will last about 3 hours or more. INSANE. The rest of the time he will be awake for maybe 30-45 minutes at a time, mostly content, and then will snooze for about an hour or so after that. He definitely prefers to fall asleep nursing, or will sleep while being held or on my chest. Actually, he is sleeping on my chest as I type this and I admit it's pretty much my favorite thing EVER. Gah, just the weight of him on me, with his little head under my chin? Yes, please. He also really likes the Ergo and the Moby wrap for being on the go and cuddling with me while sleeping.

Truman took this picture and we are both asleep here! Truman then woke me up by tapping me on the shoulder to say, 'I took your picture, mom. Because you guys looked really cute.'




I think he might be starting to show some preference to me versus other people, but that's understandable since Wallace and I are basically attached to each other at all times. Tomorrow I am taking the two big kids to the doctor for their very late well child checks and Porter will stay with Wallace and my in-laws. I'm nervous to leave mister Ace man but know he will be mostly fine without me for 1.5 hours. My best tip for my in-laws will be: hold him, walk around with him, keep him moving, and maybe he will just sleep the entire time anyway.



At night he is in the Mamaroo and will give us about 3-4 hour stretches at a time, usually waking just twice to eat. But of course, last night was different and he ate every two hours, so who knows? I'm liking being back in my own bed instead of the couch, but I am going to move the cosleeper away from the bed and just use the swing tonight---the cosleeper and sleeping flat in general are not Wallace's preferred methods. At all.

He's nursing well overall and has started cluster feeding in the evening hours. He'll normally go about 2 hours between feedings depending on naps but in the evening he mostly likes to switch from side to side non-stop, with only a little cat napping in between there. Not spitting up a ton but he definitely likes to be burped after feeding on one side, sometimes waking up enough to eat on both sides but sometimes just plugging away for 30 minutes on one. I pumped for the first time yesterday morning and got 5 ounces in about 4 minutes, during his morning mega nap. Of course he woke up as SOON as I was finished pumping, but then he was patient enough to nurse and wait for more milk to come in from me. So I think my supply must be a good fit for him, with only some coughing and choking during let down.

Selfies are hard with five people.


Me and my guy. And yes, my eyes still look like this, two weeks later.


Ace is still super chill and content and I'm trying my hardest not just roll with it, without bracing myself for it to change. I mean, maybe he will become cranky and fussy and harder to handle but for NOW he is freaking awesome. He seems more alert and loves to look around the house, especially at our windows and the TV. Fourth babies are surely exempt from the 'no TV until age two' rule, right? ;) I don't think he can see that far in front of his face but he does seem to look right at you, or right at the big kids as they hold him, like he's trying to figure out who these loud creatures are and why they are always yelling. For as laid back as he is, Wallace does nap the best when nobody else is around, go figure.

HANDSOME.


He did cry in his car seat twice this week, was sort of hysterical and the most we've ever heard out of him. But at least it's not EVERY time or immediately upon getting in the seat. Porter and Cecelia both had a severe hatred of their car seats and it was already happening consistently by two weeks. Wallace also seems more grunty lately, like he is working hard to poop or needs to burp while nursing or right after---I remember the other kids getting super loud and grunting a lot, too, and since it's not constant I won't really read too much into this one yet.

The siblings are still in love with Ace and literally fight over who is going to hold him. Truman keeps saying that he's so glad Wallace is here and is my biggest helper by far, Cecelia calls him her best friend and would hold him twenty times a day if he didn't nurse so much, and Porter gives the best big brother kisses ever. We are still working on Porter being gentle and not poking Wallace's eyes, or sticking his fingers in Wallace's mouth, but overall Ports has done great with his baby brother. I'm just really proud of all three big kids and it's crazy how huge they all seem to us now!

This was when Cecelia told me she likes that Wallace doesn't talk yet, because he is so quiet. Then she looked longingly at Porter...


And I mean...


Seven year age difference is boggling my mind




The dynamic between all of our kids is interesting and changing by the day. Even just having them home for the summer is enough change to shift things around a little, forcing me to implement some rules that don't really apply during the school year. Then throw in a new baby to the mix? It's a learning process for everyone! But so far, I've decided that 1. If you hit/push/punch/etc then it's an automatic 24 hours without screen, 2. You must ask to get up from the lunch and dinner table, 3. Kids have to clean up their disastrous toy explosion every evening before we head upstairs for bedtime. These three rules seem to be helping the constant battles but there are still plenty of times when someone is crying or whining. That said: summertime is still the BEST and we are enjoying it so so much!



These three at 'dozer days' in a giant firetruck. So fun!


And our lemonade stand, where Wallace and I sweat like crazy and the big kids made $16.22;)


Other things: Wallace's umbilical cord fell off at day 13 which is slightly earlier than the other kids. He is not a big fan of the two baths we have given him but he really did need them both, because his skin is pretty dry, he has a little clogged tear duct, and greasy toddler hands are all over this guy every day;)  Also, he used to love the pacifier in the first week but now he is not really having it. I wonder if that will change again? I'm going to keep pushing it to help him self soothe, but I'm also okay nursing him a ton for comfort right now, too. We will get into a nice solid routine someday, but two weeks is still 'anything goes' for me right now.



Highlights:
-a sleeping baby on my chest, all curled up and so cozy
-his smell: literally intoxicating when I sniff his head (which happens often)
-watching the big kids interact with their baby brother, I just cannot.
-Nate holding Wallace, making the baby look impossibly small and Nate look like a seasoned, pro-daddy.
-taking family walks with Wallace in the Ergo, Nate pushing Porter in a stroller, and the two big kids on their scooters.
-maternity leave in the summertime with the kids home, doing fun things as a family, and soaking in this new baby of ours.
-having a beer or a glass of wine in the evenings. I MISSED YOU, ALCOHOL!
-Wallace's laid back personality, his ability to nap well and often, and sleep great at night
-nursing a newborn again, marveling that they just know how to do this! Watching him grow and feeling proud that my body is contributing to his growth
-sleepy baby smiles and scared faces, assuming he's having 'bad dreams' and then very happy dreams. Or I guess it's just his reflexes as he works his way through sleep phases, but it's freaking adorable to watch his face contort as he sleeps.
-newborn grunts, sighs, squeaks, and sounds.

Two weeks down! Time is flying...

Porter at two weeks | Cecelia at two weeks | Truman at two weeks