Christmas Photo Shoot

One Month

Christian is one month old! He has spent 2 1/2 weeks of his little life in the hospital and 1 1/2 weeks at home. Here is what he has been up to...

sweet boy

my little bird

One Month Stats

(taken at 3 week check up)

Weight: 5 pounds 14 ounces- 15th percentile

6 pounds 5 ounces at 4 weeks

Length: 20 1/2 inches-91st percentile

Head Circumference: 13 5/8- 60th percentile

On our way to the pediatrician

Clothes: Christian is currently in a combination of preemie and newborn clothes. Because he is so tall, most preemie clothes are too short and since he is so skinny, newborn clothes are very baggy! He definitely has his dad's genes. :)

Playtime: Christian LOVES sitting in his bouncer as it rocks and plays music. He is starting to notice the animals on the mobile as well. He simply stares at them. He also used his play gym for the first time and loved looking at all the hanging animals. His best buddy is Bauer who tries to give him his bones and nudged his bouncer and play gum to make everything move! Christian also loves music and it always seems to calm him. We also love going on walks but C is usually asleep within minutes!

Sleep: This boy is unpredictable but he is sleeping in the pack n play bassinet in our room for a majority of 2-3 hour stretches. He loves to sleep on Mom and Dad's chest on his tummy.

Development: Christian is becoming more aware of his body. He loves to stretch out his arms and hands. He is looking at lights and toys more often. He will gaze in our eyes as well. :) We are awaiting to see his real smile instead of just his "gas smiles". Because he is a preemie, the doctor said that he could be delayed in some of his developments.

God's Timing

Since the Sunday last May that we found out we were pregnant, we have been counting down to this day. Today was Christian's due date. This was the day that I held in my mind, looked forward to, feared at times, and dreamed about. However, God had a different due date in mind.

One of the biggest lessons that I have learned through this whole process is that God's timing is not always the same as my timing but His ways are always for my good. From trying to get pregnant to gving birth to Christian, it always seemed that God had a different time table than I did. Kerry and I have discussed these past weeks the lessons and blessings that have come from Christian's early arrival to our family. If it had been on my time schedule, I would be worried about snow and travel during this record breaking Seattle snow event. On His schedule, God gave me rest at the moment I needed it the most and I had nurses 24 hours a day to help care for my newborn and allow me to recover. He has taught us the important of patience and ultimately trust in Him.

And the biggest blessing by far is that I get 5 whole extra weeks to gaze at, giggle with, snuggle with, and fall in love with my beautiful baby boy.

First Bath

All done! Love that hair! :)

Final Week

December 26-January 1

We were so blessed to be moved into our own private room in the NICU on the 26th. This meant that we no longer had to make the trek back and forth between home and the hospital which was both physically exhausting and emotionally draining on us both.

We settled into our new digs and began the task of checking off items on our going home list! We loved seeing the stickers get added each day and counting down how many more we had to get. Kerry and I watched a CPR video, had a car seat check, learned how to give his vitamins and add the calories to his bottles, give C a bath and attended the weekly rounds meeting. Christian learned how to latch on his own, eat without a feeding tube, gain weight, continued to breath without oxygen support, and got a hepatitis B shot.

We were so grateful for the nurses' patience in teaching us and the support and encouragement they offered. We also loved the yummy meals that poured in from friends and family and the help with Bauer at home!