Monday, January 14, 2019

tatum ross | 2 + 3 month update

trying my hardest to get this done NOW before tatum turns four months, and this would have to turn into a 2 + 3 +  f o u r  month post :)
time is flying yet somehow at the same time i actually feel like it has gone by just as it should. we've had this sweet, sweet babe in our lives for a little over three months now! and though it's hard to believe, i also feel like we're right where we should be.
i'm trying my hardest to be right in the moment with him and it's working. don't be sad about the past being gone, and don't be sad about the growing future ahead.
right in THIS moment is where we're meant to be.
and it is ever so sweet!
tatum name sign // quincyjeanart
month banner // hooray everyday

TATUM:
two months old :: 14 lbs 6 oz (90%) :: 24.8 inches long (>97%)

birth: 8 lbs 2 oz :: 20.5 inches
2 days: 7 lbs 10.5 oz
12 days: 8 lbs 10 oz
one month: 11 lbs 6 oz :: 23.5 inches
this boy is such a trooper. tags along amongst the busyness of our lives with three young children and often without a fuss. he is my easiest baby yet and is so so precious to us all!
...just how delicious is he here!? xoxo
between about five and eight weeks, we had a nightly "witching hour" that we had to work though. but that has gone and passed and i found that if i was able to get him to sleep before it began, we were more likely to soar through it. but not always. ;)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
giggles! sweetest sound on this planet! to get his little high pitched squeal to come out is on the daily agenda. 
this boy is so ticklish! 
he LOVES the bath. he could just hang out in there five times as long as his bath actually needs to take. as well as diaper changes. LOVES them! the second his diaper is undone and his little baby bottom is cleaned, he gives a soft little grin.
and melts his mama into a thousand pieces.
i love this baby boy with all my heart.
i crave him when he sleeps.
my heart misses him when we're busy and attention is focused elsewhere.
SLEEP
such a great sleeper he is!! he is down for the night between 8 and 9, a dream feed when brandon and i head to bed around 10:30/11, and wakes somewhere between 7:30-8:30. he used to have weeks of no wake ups during the night (amazing!!) and now we're at more of one wake up a night being our norm. generally around 3 or 4am. which in my book, that is still amazing!
we've got a pretty solid bedtime routine and that seems to make a difference:: dim lights, jammies + diaper change, essential oils rolled on bottom of feet, swaddle, white noise, essential oils (frankinsense + lavendar) in the diffuser in our bedroom, nurse, and down to sleep.
tatum is pretty flexible on how he goes to sleep during the day. whether it's rocking, nursing, or just being laid down. right around christmas, he took a strong liking to his paci and it is now sometimes a part of him falling asleep. if he's going to sleep on his own, it is most helpful! swaddling during naps helps for them to last longer, though he has sometimes fallen asleep without being swaddled while laying on our bed. which i have been very surprised about since he is out of that sleepy newborn stage!
three naps a day is where we're at. a shorter one in the morning about an hour or two after waking up, the biggest nap of the day in the afternoon (usually 2-3 hours, sometimes 4!), and then another small one around dinner time to get us though to bedtime. i always swaddle him during that afternoon nap to make it be a longer nap (which is also when tanner naps!). mama thanks the heavens for the stars aligning when this happens!
he's still sleeping in the snuggle me and i'm not sure i'll ever be ready to move him to his room. down the hall just seems too far away! though i know it will come where we're gonna need to be in our own spaces. we moved tanner to his room at four months so i'm feeling like it's coming on in our near future.
EAT
when he's sleeping so well at night, i feel like he makes up for all that time of no nursing and nurses so much in the day. which i am just fine with! i love nursing him. we have always nursed on demand and will continue to do so. tends to be about every 2-3 hours. i generally offer before and after naps. and any time in between if he's acting hungry.
by the thigh rolls and cheeks he's got, there's no question that he's a good eater!
PLAY
i'm loving his awareness of his surroundings. and the kids are too! as we've exited the sleepy newborn stage, harper and tanner get so happy when they feel interaction from tatum. harper often comments to me how tatum's eyes are open more than they used to be. she loves when he's awake!
he is entertained by everything around him and we've been slowly bringing out some of his baby toys to play with him. i love watching his little eyes and seeing him taking in all the newness that he is experiencing. 
adding two months together in this post- there are too many pictures i want to share! it would've been quicker and easier if i had just given access to my iphone camera roll. butttt that's not gonna happen, so here's a good ol' photo dump with our most precious pictures of our baby boy.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth