Madilyn Rose (one month)

It’s a common phrase thrown around way too liberally*, but it’s true. So, unfortunately, true. “They grow up so fast.” I mean, seriously. How a month went by (more now that I’m posting this), I have no idea. It’s like I blinked, and here we are. Is it too soon to say that I already have baby fever for another? Too soon, right?

*You’ll probably hear me say that every month from here on out…just FYI

This girl. Oh, my. This girl has stolen my heart. Sure, her cry (wail, really) is probably the loudest thing I’ve ever heard—it seriously makes my ears ring sometimes—but goodness is she a good baby. I hate to jinx it, but things at night seem like they’re a million times better than they were with Julia. I remember not sleeping with her…at all; I remember crying because I was so exhausted. But with Maddie? She sleeps!! I have to wake her up to feed her, and even though my night is still full of broken sleep (and I’m still tired in the morning), I’m thankful for her nights.

Julia and Maddie are already best friends…Madilyn just doesn’t know it yet. Julia is in love with her; she gives her “Sister Maddie” hugs and kisses every single chance she can, and she helps me with throwing away dirty diapers. I mean, I feel like I hit the lottery some days with these two!

Don’t get me wrong—there are still plenty of tears, meltdowns, and temper tantrums (from all four of us), but things are better than I expected, especially for the first month. Granted, one week was spent in a hospital and the other three we had family in town helping us out. I suppose the real test of how things are going will be to see what this second month looks like.

Dear Maddie Roo,
Hi! I don’t really know how I came up with your nickname, but it stuck and now we all call you by that name all the time. Of course, I still love calling you Madilyn, too. My, oh my, did we have an interesting month together. First of all: I’m so, so, so incredibly sorry that I’m the one who most likely got you sick. As your Mama, I felt terrible, and seeing you in the hospital just added salt to my wound. I’m thankful you’re a little fighter and got all better.


On the flip side to spending a week in the hospital, I need to thank you for being a rock star at breastfeeding. I know I have some experience under my belt, but you just picked it up right away, like it’s your job. I mean, it kinda is your job, but still. You really rock at it, and I can’t tell you how happy I am that it came naturally to both of us. You’re gaining weight like a champ (the doctor was very impressed last week), and that makes me very, very happy. 


While I adore you in this newborn stage, I’m beyond eager for you to grow up a tiny bit. There are so many exciting things to come In the meantime, I’m going to enjoy your snuggles and cheek-to-cheek kisses that we have right now.


Love you, little Roo!
Mama

Dear Maddie,

Month one: Hospital. Screaming. Hugs. Poop. Kisses. More poop. Tub time. Tests. Road trip home! Dog licking. Poop. Big sister hugs. Food. Snuggles. Sneezes. More road trips around town. Ambulance. Another hospital. Tubes. Blood. Pokes. Medicine. Cries. Poop. Sleep. Wake. Test. Sleep. Poop. Etc………………………………………………………. Road trip home! Kisses. Snuggles. More poop.

So you had a very exciting first month lil lady. The above was just a taste of everything that happened to you over the last 30ish days. Despite getting a cold, getting a bad fever, and spending over a week getting better in a hospital, you’ve actually done pretty darn well. You’re big, by which I mean you’re already a pound heavier than when you were born (no small feat). You also have a realllllllllllllllllllly healthy set of lungs that are used almost hourly to let us know that you have peed you lil baby pants. All in all you’re a pretty terrific munchkin.

I love how you already can smile and coo at us, and it’s awesome watching you pass out in my arms when I rock you to sleep. It’s also great watching your big sister take care of you. She is always at the ready to rock you in your swing, get you a new diaper, or tell you to be happy when you cry. Hopefully you never ever ever ever get sick again and these next months are filled with nothing but more of your happy cuteness.

Love you,
Your papa.
Nicknames: MaddieRoo, Maddie, and Sister Maddie (maybe we’ll get more original as time goes on)

Likes: Being on the boob. It’s your favorite. Also, sleeping; I may call you Nappy Junior. 

Dislikes: Having a wet diaper. I mean, you really, really hate it. Also, gas…but nobody likes that either, so I don’t blame you

Milestones: Getting over RSV and coming home. Also, you’re up past your birth weight…

Weight/Height: 10 lbs and 21 1/4″

Clothing Size: Newborn…but I should really be putting you in 0-3 at least since newborn is super snug; I just need to dig around and find them!

Sleep:
You love it. I wake you up to eat every 3.5 or 4 hours at night.

Random Tidbits: Our first month together was a blur. Not because of the normal newborn phase, but because of the hospital stay, having family over, and your sister’s birthday party. Another thing: You also turn a shade of beat red whenever you get upset…so much so that I’m pretty sure I’m not going to put you in red or bright pink clothes, because you’ll clash. True story.

How are Mama and Papa doing?: We’re good! You like to freak out at night, just as your sister goes to sleep, which makes us sad since that’s our time to wind down.