Lawson Erick is One Month!

I seriously have no idea where the last 4 weeks have gone! I thought that time flew when we brought Lyndi home from the hospital but that fails in comparison to how quickly this last month has gone. Adjusting to life with 2 littles under our roof is a little crazy but I am so thankful Lawson is here.

We are just smitten with our little man. I am obsessed with his birth date! I remember telling my friend who was due within a few days of Lawson about all the cool possible dates that our kids could have as birth dates. Well April 4, 2016 was one of them because 4x4 = 16 and he was born at 4:40 PM. Since I am a math person, I think that is pretty neat. Also he looks just like Lyndi did when she was born with lots of hair, big cheeks, big head, blue eyes and therefore is all daddy. Oh well - everyone says that Landon looks more like my family then I do so I guess it works. He has the longest fingers and toes I have ever seen on a baby. He can spread apart his toes more than I can. He also already has good head control when he is doing tummy time. He is pretty easy going which is great but he has had his moments and few rough nights where not a whole lot of sleep is occurring but that is to be expected.

The first week with Lawson was a little rough. His lungs were wet after he was born and as a result was having some breathing difficulty which resulted me in having a break down at the hospital. He also was experiencing some serious projectile vomit that the hospital staff and our pediatrician were concerned about. It seems that Lawson had amniotic fluid and blood in his tummy and needed to get it out but that subsided within the first week. Praise God!! That was probably the most stressful thing because he was losing a lot of weight which was already an issue due to his big birth weight. Bigger babies lose weight more quickly than average size babies. Lawson had almost lost a pound by the time he was 4 days old. This caused me to have to nurse him around the clock and feed him with a syringe the extra I was producing. That was exhausting but he did great and gained his birth weight back and then some by his 2 week wellness check. Another praise! Lawson still spits up a lot more than Lyndi did but as long as he is gaining weight I am trying to not worry about it. There is just a lot more laundry to be done and instead of sleeping on his back, Lawson sleeps on his side! Another thing we encountered was that Lawson was born with a sacral dimple (learn more about it here). I was not really concerned about this because both Lyndi and myself (apparently the one thing they got from me) have them and are fine. But because Lawson's has a tuft of hair coming out of it and the pediatrician could not see where it ended, he recommended that Lawson have an ultrasound on his spine to make sure it was formed properly. The results came back normal! God is faithful and blessed us with a healthy baby boy!

Other than the fact that his big sister gave him a cold at only a few days old, Lawson has been doing really well. His days consist of eating, sleeping, and changing diapers. We have been working on getting him on a more consistent schedule which has been paying off. He takes about 4 naps a day and is in bed around 7:30 PM. On average he wakes up between 10:00 and 11:00 PM to nurse, again a little before 4 AM and then I get him up at 7:00 AM and he will go right back to sleep until I wake him at 9:30 AM. I really have tried to implement a consistent routine for Lawson early on (once I knew Lawson had gained his weight back) since Lyndi had a huge sleep regression at her 6 week growth spurt. I am really hoping he is sleeping through the night more consistently and earlier on than Lyndi did. Only time will tell if this will pay off in the next month. But I really feel like we are on a great track and he is doing really well with the occasional sleepless night here and there.

Landon has been a huge help. He was able to stay home with me for three weeks which has been so nice. I really needed his help because I was dead weight getting in and out of bed. He took care of all of my medicine and helped me move around the house until I was more comfortable with my incision. He basically changed all of Lawson's diapers and would get him ready for me to nurse. If Lawson is crying and not hungry, he will take over and try to calm him down. I must say Lawson struck the jackpot when he got Landon for his daddy. I hope that we can instill in Lawson the qualities that Landon have so that one day he treats his future wife like Landon treats me. I also realized that with us separating from the military this year, this was the last time he will have this much time off. I tried to cherish it and was very sad when he had to go back to work. One thing is for sure, I love quality time with my little family!

The last 2 weeks were the first weeks where I was alone with the kids. Because of our routine that I was able to establish while Lyndi was with Lollie and PT in Houston for a week, I have been able to align Lyndi's afternoon nap with one of Lawson's naps which has given me a break and has given me a break. That has been nice when it works out that both kids are sleeping and I can sneak in a little nap or me time.

I am soaking in all the baby snuggles I can get because I know they are fleeting and loving on my sweet boy. Here are some of my favorite pictures from this month from Lawson's perspective...

Happy 1 Month to Me!

Lawson likes to:
1. Eat 8 times a day
2. Sleep all the time
3. Take warm baths
4. Snuggle with Mommy & Daddy
5. Ride in the Mamaroo

Announcement Picture
Lawson Erick Ludwick
April 4, 2016 @ 4:40 PM
9 pounds 10 ounces ~ 22.25 inches

Mommy and Daddy on their way to meet me!

I am a boy! Finally living life on the outside...
wait I am not too sure about this!

Looking just like my daddy!

There we go, I am all snuggled up!

Our first family picture!

On my way home!

My first night at home... sleeping on my mommy!

First appointment at the pediatrician. 

I love my Mamaroo and kisses from my sister!

Tank loves to sniff and lick me! He is now outnumbered!

I didn't really cooperate with the technician
during my ultrasound... being still with cold gel
on my back is hard work!

After my first real bath... I think I like it!

Snuggling up next to my sister while we
"watch the show".

Maybe one day I might follow in Daddy's footsteps...

Or maybe I'll follow Mommy's!?!?

Taking my first bottle like a champ!

Tummy time is exhausting!

Sleeping in my mommy's shirt she wore when she was little!

Lyndi showing me all my toys that I can play
with when I get older!

Only time will tell where these feet will take me!