Letters to Leah: One Month

1.20.13

Dear Leah,

I can hardly believe I am sitting here writing your one month letter. This past month has been the most amazing month of your mommy and daddy's life. You have brought so much joy to our life and the love we have for you in indescribable. The other night I laid in bed and got teary-eyed at the thought of you growing up. Silly right? I wish I could just keep you little forever! But at the same time, I love to watch you grow, watch your personality evolve, and watch you discover this beautiful thing called life. We are making sure to soak up every minute of this beautiful life with you baby.

Your one month appointment went great (1/22/13). Daddy and I were so excited for this appointment to see your progress! Your pediatrician said you are developing perfectly!
Here were your one month measurements:

One Month Stats:

Weight: 9 lbs. 9 oz. (50th percentile)  At Birth: 7 lbs. 13 oz.

Length: 21.75" (75th percentile)  At Birth: 20 inches

Head Circumference: 14.76" 

You are such a content little thing. I am convinced we have one of the easiest newborns, and for that, your mommy and daddy thank you. I feel well-rested most days, I am able to get a shower in, and I still feel like I have a little time in the day for myself. I know this may not last as you get older and sleep less, but for now, I am thankful. You never cry for long and are only fussy when you are hungry or just want to be held by mommy or daddy. Speaking of hungry; you love to eat. You are definitely my child! You have been breastfeeding great since the hospital, which we are so grateful for. You also love to sleep. Your first two weeks of life we were having to wake you up just so you could eat. You sleep through just about everything. The other night we went to our friend's house for game night, which gets pretty loud when you have competitive people playing Pictionary, and you slept through the entire night! You were passed around from one person to the next and you loved every minute of it. Our friends just adore you, which is so sweet to see. We are blessed with a great group of friends and I can't wait for the family date nights we have ahead of us and the relationships you will build with their kiddos.

Around week two you started to get fussy around 2:00 am until about 4:00 am. We soon realized that you just needed a large feeding before bed (3 1/2 - 4 oz) and then you slept great, only waking for your feedings every three hours. The hardest part in the beginning was waking up every 2-3 hours for feedings but my body has finally adjusted and it's not nearly as tiring, especially since you just go right back to sleep. Now at four weeks, we are all sleeping great at night (for having a newborn). You now wake up about every four hours to eat and back to sleep you go. We are keeping our fingers crossed that your great sleep habits continue!

Around week three we started to notice you were much more alert! You spent more time awake taking in your surroundings. You would sit in your swing or lay in our arms and just look all around the room. You would focus and stare at things for longer periods of time. We love watching you become more aware and discover life outside the womb. 

Your eyes are still deep blue, the same color they were at birth. We are so curious to see if you will keep your blue eyes like daddy or have brown eyes like mommy. Your hair continues to grow like crazy, and we love it! It was dark brown with light brown streaks at birth and it continues to lighten each week.  Daddy was bleach blonde when he was young, so we are curious to see what color hair you will end up having. It's so amazing to watch you change a little each day. When you were born you looked just like a clone of your mommy, but I think you are starting to look more and more like your daddy with each passing day :)

Some of your favorite things are your "mamaRoo" (swing), being swaddled, laying on daddy and mommy, eating, and sleeping. Ah, the life of a newborn! You love bath time! You wanted nothing to do with them during your first week of life, but now you love them. You also love when daddy talks and babbles to you! You always give him a little smirk here and there and it's adorable. Your daddy just adores you and it melts my heart. You are definitely a daddy's girl, but a mommy's girl too :)

You were in newborn diapers up until about a week ago and now you are in a size 1. You are still in newborn clothing but I see us needing to move to 0-3 month clothing very soon! Some of your current nicknames are Leahbug, Le-Le, Puppy, Baby, Schnookums, and Sugar Plum.

Everyday we learn new things and are finally feeling like we are in a great routine. We are learning this parenting thing as we go and are so thankful you have made it so easy on us. Being a mom to you has been the most amazing experience of my life, and will continue to be. I'm so excited for all memories we will continue to make as a family. We are so excited to watch you grow and to continue living this beautiful life with you.

We love you so much sweet girl!

Love,
Mommy and Daddy

Birth Story and Birth Video

coming next week!! :)