Benton Update: 1 Month

Our baby boy is 1 month old today! Oh.my.goodness. It's so bittersweet... He's growing so fast, and he is so much more fun already. But, he's also not our little, tiny newborn anymore.

Some facts from Benton's first month of life:

-Wearing newborn and 0-3 month clothes. Only a few of the 0-3 month clothes fit, but he is quickly growing into them!

-Wearing Size 1 diapers.

-Eating 8 times a day for 20-30 minutes. He is also taking 2 bottles a day, which we started at 2 weeks. Our little man is a piglet, and he is eating 3 ounces at each bottle feeding. Landon and Benton love their bottle feeding bonding.

-Sleeping since his 1 week update has been a roller coaster. :) We have him in his crib, as he is a little noisemaker and we can hear every peep he makes. I can't imagine having him in our room...Landon and I would never sleep. We have slowly been figuring out our little man and what he needs to sleep well. From the beginning, we have been swaddling him with his arms in. He seemed to hate the swaddle, but he also slept really well once he fell asleep. We are now swaddling him from the armpits down and he is much happier!

-He is in a consistent eat/play/sleep routine. He does really well with the eat and sleep part, but we have to stay on top of things for the play part. :)

Random things that we don't want to forget:

-He is such a sweet and easy baby. We can pretty much take him anywhere or do anything with him, and he just goes with the flow.

-He rolled over from his stomach to his back for the first time at 10 days old. We had him doing tummy time, and he rolled over onto his side and then onto his back.

-Bath time has improved greatly! Benton loves it now! Sometimes we put him in his bathtub and just let him soak. :)

-Benton really enjoys going on walks with us. We went on our first walk at about 2 weeks, and we have gone on one everyday since. At first, he slept through the entire walk, but now he stays awake.

-He has a couple of toys that he actually "plays" with...a ball and an elephant that hangs from his activity gym. He'll push the ball around while he is on the floor, and he will punch at his elephant while he is in his activity gym.

-Today, at 1 month old, he started REALLY smiling at us. We make eye contact with him and smile, and he smiles back. Melt.our.hearts. His gummy little smile is the cutest thing I have ever seen.

-His facial expressions are still so funny. Our favorite is one we've named the "rabbid dog." :)

-Benton had his first playdate at 3 weeks old. Addie and Benton are destined to be longtime friends. Their first playdate was at the neighborhood swimming pool. Addie swam and Benton watched from the shade!

We loved our life before Benton arrived, but we are REALLY loving life now. He is so very sweet and cuddly, and he brings so much joy to our lives. :)

Things We Couldn't Have Lived Without: 1 Month

Here are some random things that we consider to be must-haves for the first month...

1. Itzbeen. We LOVE the Itzbeen. Love, love, love it. Basically, it is a timer/stopwatch type thing that allows you to keep track of diaper changes, feeding, sleeping, nursing side, time, etc. In the delirium of the first weeks, it was really nice to be able to look at the Itzbeen and know exactly how long it had been since the last time we feed Benton or changed his diaper. Now that Benton is on a schedule, we really only use it to know how long he has been nursing on each side or to look at the time. But, in the future, I imagine we will use it for things such as the time since his last dose of Tylenol, etc.

2. Video Monitor. We have the Summer Infant Slim and Secure Video Monitor. Sweet Benton is quite the noisemaker during naps and at night, and it is so very nice to be able to look at the video monitor and know that he is fine and sleeping! Landon and I love just watching him as he falls asleep.

3. Gerber Nuk Warm or Cool Relief Packs. I won't go into detail about these on the blog, but please buy these. :)

4. Lilypadz Reusable Nursing Pads. Again, I won't go into detail, but these make you feel a little more human in the midst of new mommyhood.

5. Bravado Nursing Bras and Tank Tops. They are the best. Just buy one (or ten).

6. Fisher Price Little Lamb Dream Swing. This swing has many different functions other than the basic swing. It also has a mobile, plays lullabies, etc. We don't use it very often, but Benton loves it...and I imagine it would be a lifesaver for a fussy baby.

7. Preemie Clothes. Who would have known that our full term baby (7 pounds, 3 ounces) would need preemie clothes for almost his entire first month of life! We had a few cute onesies and pants that he wore over and over again. I would recommend that you at least have a few preemie outfits, just in case!

8. A Good Stroller and Car Seat. We have the UppaBaby Vista Stroller and a Chicco carseat. Spend time researching your stroller and car seat...you will be using it often!!! Landon and I have a stoller that fits our lifestyle perfectly, and we are so grateful for it.

9. Boppy. I'm sure every new mommy has a Boppy pillow, but I would recommend having more than one. We have two Boppy pillows, one for the nursery and one for the living room/bedroom/etc. It is really nice to not have to search for the Boppy everytime it is time to feed Benton (which seems to be all day long).

10. Activity Gym. We have the Infantino Vintage Twist and Fold Activity Gym. Benton spends quite a bit of his waketime in the Activity Gym, and we love torturing him by shaking all the toys. Poor guy. :)

Does anyone else have something they couldn't have lived without the first month?!

Happy Father's Day!

Benton and I want to wish a Happy Father's Day to all the men in our life...

First, I want to wish a Happy Father's Day to Landon! He has amazed me with his love for Benton. They are buddies already. Landon is the best diaper changer, bottle feeder, burper, book reader, swaddler (really, he is the best swaddler ever), diaper bag packer, snuggler... I could go on and on. Benton is so blessed to have Landon as his daddy, and I am so blessed to have Landon as my husband and the father of my sweet son.

Next, I want to wish a Happy Father's Day to my dad! I am such a lucky girl to be able to call him dad, and now Benton is so lucky to have him as his grandpa (or Champ, as he is known around here)! Dad has always been loving and logical and reasonable and encouraging. He has given each of his daughters room to grow into their own person. Benton is going to have many fun years ahead of him with Champ!! Love you!

Russ! He is Landon's Dad, my father-in-law, and Benton's "Papa Son." :) He already loves sweet Benton so much and Benton already loves him! Russ is very dedicated and loyal to his family, and we are so fortunate to have his support.

Boomer Sooner Baby!

My Grandma Ward surprised us with an OU Build-A-Bear for Benton! We were so excited!!! Today, Benton was trying to sleep during his "waketime," so Landon and I decided to dress him in his Build-A-Bear outfit. Yes, we are delirious (look for another post soon on that...).

I Love My Paci...

Benton And The Blowdryer :)

I know I've told many of you about Benton's love of the blowdryer. He seriously LOVES it!

Our small group had a get together a few nights ago for Jamie, who is turning 30...so we packed up and headed over to the party. These pictures are from the party, where Benton put on the blowdryer show for everyone (thanks for the pictures Courtney!)...

No blowdryer

Right after we started blowdrying him
Well into the blowdrying session :)

Birth Blog: Benton's Birth Day (Dad Version)

May 25, 2010-

Jen wakes me up at around 1:30am to tell me that she thinks that she is having contractions. After a couple more contractions, I suggested that we start timing them. For the next 15 minutes she was having contractions between 3 and 5 minutes apart, so off to the hospital we went. I had always pictured myself scrambling to get Jen to the hospital, but because we were already scheduled to be induced that morning there really wasn't much left to pack. I think that really helped us to stay calm and relaxed instead of rushing around.

The drive to Baptist was a little surreal. There was absolutely no one on the road at 3:00am on that Tuesday. Jen and I couldn't believe that the next time that we would be going home, it would be with Benton.

We arrived at the hospital and were checked into our room at around 3:30am. You never would have guessed that Jen was in labor. It was not what I was expecting at all...Jen was always making me watch Baby Story on TLC and the women in labor were always screaming like crazy and in severe pain. Jen was so relaxed that I thought that she was going to fall asleep in her hospital bed. I was begining to think that either my wife was the toughest girl in the world or that those ladies on TLC were just a bunch of drama queens!

The rest of the night went by very quickly with the two of us just resting and our nurse Sylvia coming into check on us occasionally. At about 7:30am they started pitocin so that things would start progessing a little more quickly.

At about 8:15am Dr. K come in to break Jen's water. That's when I realized that while my wife is still pretty tough, those ladies on TLC were not exactly pretending to be in pain for the cameras.

For about 20 minutes Jen was in serious pain while we were waiting for the epidural. I was pretty sure that she was going to throw something at me or at the very least give me a pretty good cussing (which she has never done before)! However, true to her form, she very politely told me to sit on the couch, not to touch her, and not to say a word until she gave me a head nod indicating that the contractions were over. Needless to say, I didn't argue and was very compliant!

At about 9:00am it was epidural time...this was the part that I was most stressed about! I absolutely HATE needles! So when it came time for the epidural, I did what any man's man in my position would do...I closed my eyes and waited for them to tell me when it was over! Thankfully, I didn't pass out and Jen felt relatively great and was able to relax.

At 11:00am the nurse came back to check on us and I jokingly stated that I thought that she was dialated to a 9...little did I know, she was actually dialated to a 9! This was about the only time I started to get nervous...my mouth kept getting dry and I kept drinking water. The only problem with this is that I had to go to the bathroom what seemed like every 5 minutes.

At around noon the Dr. came in and it was showtime! They started preping the room and around 12:15pm Jen started pushing. I guess that I got caught up in the moment and forgot that I was supposed to be supporting my wife by standing next to her side and holding her hand, because somehow I ended up standing right next to the Dr. watching the whole thing! As Jen was pushing, the Dr. thought that Ben was sunny side up, but after a couple more pushes he said "Oh, nevermind, that is his head still coming." (On the ultrasound his head measured in the 98.6th percentile.)

Moments later the little man arrived. He wasn't what I had pictured at all...I was expecting to see a perfectly round chubby baby that was either bald or had a little blond hair. Instead, Benton was lean, had a huge conehead, thick dark brown hair, and a face so wrinkly that he looked more like a Shar Pei than he did of the little Gerber baby that I had pictured in my head. I was then able to cut the cord and the nurses took the little guy to his mother.

I will never forget the look of pure elation on Jen's face as they plopped him on her belly! It was litterally love at first sight! This little runt accomplished in 1 second what it took me 2 long hard years to do! I must say that I could have never dreamed that I could instantly love something so much! We were both overcome with joy at the sight of our little guy!

A few minutes later the nurse came to clean him up and to take his measurements...I followed her over to the table to inspect him for myself! As she was taking his hand and foot prints I noticed a large black mark on his butt cheek, so I asked the nurse if it was a birthmark. She told me that she thought that she accidentaly sat him down on the ink pad when she was doing his feet. A couple of minutes later she started to clean him up, but was having a lot of trouble wiping the ink off of his bum. Sure enough, Benton has a birthmark in the shape of Tennessee on his right butt cheek! From that point on, I felt very confident that we wouldn't have to worry about him getting switched out with another baby at the hospital.

Roughly an hour later the family came into the room to meet the little guy. I am one of the luckiest guys in the world. I'm married to the most amazing women who was a rockstar throughout the whole process and I had the cutest coneheaded baby in the world!

Thanks to everyone for all of your thoughts and prayers! Jen and I talk daily of how belessed we are to have such amazing family and friends! We are continuely humbled by how generous and thoughtful everyone has been and how loved we have felt.

Landon

Maternity Pictures

We had maternity pictures taken a few days before I was put on bedrest and about a week before Benton was born. We love them, and are grateful to Abby (Abby Coyle Photography, http://www.abbycoyle.com/) for catching this exciting time in photos.

Benton Update: 1 Week

Today, our sweet Benton is 1 week old. Where does time go?! Benton has been such a blessing to Landon and I, and we have loved this last week. He is a really good baby and has made being a first-time parent easy so far!!

Some facts from Benton's first week of life:

-Wearing preemie or under 7 pounds clothes. Newborn and 0-3 month clothes are HUGE on him.

-Wearing newborn diapers, though they are big and we have to fold down the front part.

-Eating 8-9 times a day for 30 minutes. He is a great little eater!

-Sleeping! He is a great sleeper. Since our room is close to the nursery, we have been putting him in his crib for his nighttime sleeping. When we put him down, he just coos and looks at us with his blue eyes and then falls asleep. What a sweet little guy.

Random things that we don't want to forget: :)

-Benton is loved by many!!! We have had a constant flow of people coming to visit him, both at the hospital and at home. We are so grateful for the support system that our family has, and we are even more grateful that those people already love him so much.

-He loves when we use the blow dryer at diaper changes.

-Bath time might as well be torture.

-He pees almost everytime we take off his diaper. If we don't take precautions, he would pee all over the wall, himself, us, etc. Yes, we know this from experience.

-He already needs a haircut. :( I can't believe my newborn baby needs a haircut.

-His favorite place to relax is on his daddy's chest.

-He has unbelievable head control. When he is laying on the floor, he can pick his head up and move it from one side to the other.

-He has many facial expressions. It's like comedy hour watching all of his facial expressions. My favorites are when he raises his eyebrows and when he wrinkles his nose. So cute.

We also had Benton's 1 week Pediatrician appointment today! He is doing amazing!! At birth, he weighed 7 pounds, 3 ounces. When we left the hospital, he weighed 6 pounds, 14 ounces. And now he weighs 7 pounds, 12 ounces. Ha! Let's just say that he has not had any trouble gaining weight!!! Since he is doing so well, the Pediatrician okay'd us to start a schedule/routine, and to let him sleep up to 5 hours in between feedings at night. Yes!!!

Stats from 1 week Pediatrician appointment:

-Weight: 7 pounds, 12 ounces

-Length: 21 inches

Happy 1 Week Birthday Benton! We love you and are so blessed to be your parents! :)