Easton: One Month

I meant to do this a while ago, and totally spaced it. So it's a little bit late...roll with it.

Vital Stats

Easton was 11lbs 10oz and 22.75" long at his 1-month checkup. He was in the 92nd percentile for height and 87th percentile for weight. He wears size 3-month clothes (and has since birth!).

Milestones This Month

Easton has been awake a lot more the past couple weeks. A lot more. He is pretty alert and likes to look around, especially at black/white contrast.

Sleeping

Easton is both a better and worse nighttime sleeper than his sister. He is better in that he is a more sound sleeper, so he doesn't wake Mommy up all night long with his little baby noises. He is worse in that he doesn't go for as long of stretches as Natalie did. He started out an excellent napper, but that has gotten worse in the last week or two. His naps will range from 30 minutes to two hours.

Eating

Easton is formula fed. He will take 2-6 ounces at any one mealtime. He eats every three hours during the day, and about every 4.5-5 hours at night. He has never gone longer than 5 hours at night.

Communication

Easton is a master at his main form of communication: crying. He will let Mommy and Daddy know when he is tired, mad, hungry, or bored. He started smiling more in the last week. Mommy loves to coax smiles out of him.

Play Time

At one month Easton's playtime consists mainly of being held, sitting in his swing or bouncer, or doing tummy time. He isn't a huge lover of the swing like Natalie was, and so far the activity mats haven't been a huge hit either. His favorite "play" activity is to lie in his pack-n-play and look at his bear mobile.

warm and cozy

When we first bought our house I wasn't too sure about the wood stove in the living room. It seemed like a big accident waiting to happen with kids. And a big mess.

But I love it. When I wake up on cold winter mornings and Darren starts a fire, it's wonderful. The upstairs gets nice and toasty.

 

We have a kid gate around it, which Natalie for the most part ignores. So far we haven't had any problems, and the gate seems sturdy enough to prevent accidents. We keep our heat set at 68-69, so on nights where it gets below zero, it's chilly in the morning. Nothing like a fire to make everything warm and cozy.

well, that was painful

My most recent shopping trip to Target, that is. E-x-p-e-n-s-i-v-e. You know it's going to be a bummer when you have things on your list like diapers, formula, and printer ink. Ouch.

Speaking of printer ink, what a rip-off! I think I should just take a tip from the past and start writing everything on a piece of paper. With a pencil.

staying at home

I have loved staying home with my kid/kids these past two months. It's nice to have time to get things done during the day, and to spend time hanging out and playing with Natalie. But it's definitely a different life than going to work. Things are slower, more relaxed, and way less interesting to the average person. The other night I was thinking about just how different everything was...

I always have exciting stories for Darren about how I changed the battery in the smoke detector or spent ten minutes scrubbing soap scum out of the tub.

I consider it a major accomplishment to get a shower in before 8:30am. This has happened exactly one time since Easton was born. For reference, I get up at 6:45 or 7:00, but don't have time to shower until 8:30.

I plan out my day in reference to nap times and awake times. Or perhaps loads of laundry.

I can wash bottles with my eyes closed. And change diapers.

Speaking of diapers, one day I counted how many I changed. It was a lot.

The highlight of my day is naptime. Or maybe bedtime. Or maybe the Swiss Cake Roll I eat after lunch...

But, I love it. Now if only we were millionaires and I didn't have to go back to work eventually.

Are You a Cow?

This past summer I stumbled across a customizable Sandra Boynton book called "Are You a Cow?"

The book goes through several animals, asking the child if he/she is a cow, duck, frog, etc., before the last page where is has the child's name and picture. Sandra Boynton has been one of my favorite authors for a while, so I knew when I saw this book I just had to get it for Natalie's birthday.

She thinks it's pretty funny and will often shake her head when I ask her if she is a lamb or "a chicken upside down." Then at the end when I say, "You must be a Natalie!" she smiles and points to herself.

Another winner by Sandra Boynton.

address changes

Normally I don't procrastinate so much, but there are still some credit cards and other places where I have not changed our address. Mostly because I can't do them online, since our address isn't recognized as an actual address by the ever-annoying USPS. Frustrating as all get out.

So yesterday I thought I would be on the ball and call USBank to change our address. It was an automated system.

Automated systems = major fails, in my opinion. I gave it my address, which actually went okay, considering when I tried to tell Target I lived on Violet Lane, it never understood and I got so frustrated I hung up. Well, USBank repeated my address back to me, and then asked if I needed to add an apartment number. If not, I was to say "I'm done" to proceed to the next step. Well, the stupid system couldn't understand me the five times I tried to say "I'm done" and thought I was actually trying to say "Apartment 999." Really?! Apartment 999?

Long story short, I ended up spending 15 minutes on the phone with USBank trying to change our address, and Darren still has to call since not all our accounts are joint.

I knew there was a reason I was avoiding this.

a trip back in time

When I was a kid we had a Wee Sing video. Wee Sing videos are silly stories that have lots of songs. Kind of like a musical for children.

For Natalie's birthday, my mom bought her a few Wee Sing DVDs.

She stinking loves them. They are a little creepy, and they drive me crazy. If I have to hear "The Big Rock Candy Mountains" one more time today, I think I will jump out the window.