Letters to Aden: Two Months

Aden,

You're two months old now, little buddy. Just like I knew they would, these last eight weeks have flown by in the blink of an eye. With Thanksgiving occurring days after you were born, then the Christmas season following, it's been a busy few weeks around here. 

In that short time, you've grown like a weed. You now weigh 12lbs. (I'm guessing, based on weighing you with our at-home scale), wear 3-6 month clothes and size 2 diapers. It blew my mind (and broke my heart a little) how quickly you were in and out of the 0-3 month clothing stage. Isn't that the peak of babyhood? When you're still teeny tiny and rely on mama for everything? Suddenly you've got chunky little thighs, a big round belly and the cutest grin I've ever seen. Soon you'll be hitting big physical milestones and I'm just not ready for it. You're growing up far too quickly if you ask me. Slow down, little mister. Stop it right this instant.

In addition to smiling, this month you started to coo at us with lots of "ah goo's." You'll also grab onto our fingers now. You still like taking baths and will smile from ear to ear while you're in the tub. You love your swing and particularly, watching the mobile rotate around on it. I busted out the activity mat this month for you to use and so far, you don't seem like the biggest fan. Part of it is because you tend to spit up every time you're laying flat on your back and the other part is because your sister insists on laying beside you. Two's a crowd sometimes, you know what I mean? Especially when the other party has lots and lots of energy.

 

You're eating about 3-4oz. of breast milk every 2 1/2 - 3 hours now, but really aren't on any kind of schedule. At night, you're usually asleep for the evening around 9:00pm and sleep a good stretch until 1:00am or 2:00am. Then it's feeding time every 2-3 hours from that point. During the daytime, you take the longest naps from 7:00am - 9:00am and 12:30pm - 2:30pm. You're sleeping in the bassinet (the same one all my siblings and I used, as well as your cousins) right next to our bed. I keep the mattress propped at an angle as you'll spit up when laid flat on your back. Until we see the pediatrician at your two month well-child visit next week, I'm not comfortable having you sleep by yourself in the nursery. I'm fairly sure you have acid reflux so it makes me nervous having you out of ear-shot while you sleep. I don't mind waking up / checking on you at night because you're an arm's length away and nursing sessions are usually a quick 20-30 minutes. Rarely do I rock you to sleep. You prefer to eat, burp and lay down after a nighttime feeding, or you're content to look around on your own before drifting to sleep. You sleep best when you're bundled up tightly as you love to be warm. This past month, winter temperatures dipped down overnight to -36 degrees in Minnesota (the coldest in two decades!) and the amount of clothing I had you dressed in was ridiculous. You wore a fleece sleeper to bed with socks and a onesie underneath, a Sleep Sack blanket, a knit hat, were wrapped in a warm blanket ... and your ears and cheeks were still chilled! Believe me, the heat in the house was pumping, but it was just so cold outside. I think you inherited my poor circulation, but as long as I keep you warm, you sleep pretty well for your age.

This month, you caught your first cold and I felt so, so bad for you. My always-happy little guy was  pretty uncomfortable, especially at night, and it's really the first time I've seen you that way. There wasn't much I could do for your congested head but rinse your sinuses with saline and comfort you the best I could. Your plugged nose make it difficult to eat and you spit up much more than usual. There's things I love about having a winter baby, but all the colds and bouts of flu going around aren't one of them. Due to the season and also because we're a lot more "on the go" than I was in Tory's early days means sickness is bound to happen. Let's just hope you stay healthy from here on out.

You're still such a calm little boy. Honestly, the first time I really heard you cry with authority is when you weren't feeling well last week. Even then, you sounded like a little lion cub with a tiny rowr. You're just so content most of the time and are happy being carried around in the Baby Bjorn, or chilling in your baby swing. It might sound strange, but I dream about running away with you for a day so I can spend some one-on-one time snuggling you in my arms. I have this intense feeling of mommy guilt, like I'm not spending enough time oohing and ahhing over you, and I want drink in every little part of you before you grow up too quickly. It's just that life with two kids is so all encompassing and there's not too many quiet moments around our house these days. Don't be mad at me, little boy, if I have to share my attention with your sister, or the house, or fifty million other things happening in our lives. Know this Aden: I love you more than you'll ever know and I'm doing the very best for you I possibly can.

Love always and forever,
Mama