Asher's First Couple of Weeks Home

Well we've made it through Asher's first couple of weeks home.  He is going to be 3 weeks old Thursday...how is that possible?!  Never in my life have 3 weeks gone by so fast.  I always tell people, it's kind of a double edge sword because these past few weeks have been so challenging and I often find myself wishing for easier times ahead, but then I'm so sad at the thought of him getting bigger.  Seriously, I can hardly look at the pictures from his first few days because I cry (hello baby blues).  I want him to stay little, but I want him to mature at the same time, both for selfish reasons.  As challenging as this time is, I'm trying to soak it up and enjoy every little moment...even the ones where he is screaming and crying for no apparent reason ;)

A few things to note:

(1) No matter how many books you read, people you talk to, Google searches you do, blogs you scour, NOTHING can truly prepare you for the changes (difficult and joyous) that parenthood will bring to your life.  Seriously, Matt and I thought we had everything figured out and knew exactly what to expect, but until you've actually experienced it yourself, it's indescribable.  Never in my life have I gone from crying tears of pure joy in one second to tears of frustration in another.

(2) On that note, baby blues are for real.  Like for real, for real.  I had been warned about them, and as usual, I had read stuff and talked to people, but again, until you've experienced it, it's hard to explain.  I thought I would avoid them since I consider myself to be a very upbeat and positive person, but when it comes to postpartum hormones, it doesn't matter if you are Polly Pocket Full of Sunshine...they'll jump out and bite you in the butt! The funny thing is sometimes I will cry over something happy, and then other times I cry because I feel overwhelmed and guilty.  It's gotten so much better though, especially now that I am starting to feel more confident in my ability to care for him.

(3) Breastfeeding is no walk in the park, but overall, I'm really happy I chose to do it.  This was something I was very hell bent on doing, and I just assumed it would be easy...that he would eat every few hours, on schedule, it would take 15 or so minutes, then he would go to sleep, and wake up when he was hungry again.  Although we are definitely getting better with a schedule, sometimes I spend half the night nursing every 30 minutes, then he may go 3 or 4 hours before nursing again.  The first 10-12 days I literally felt like all I was doing was nursing nonstop.  He's an eating machine:)  Now I'm really trying to make each session last a little longer and then make him wait a little longer in between and it's going much better.  I also go to a breast feeding support group on Tuesday afternoons that I LOVE.

(4) I'm quickly learning that sometimes it's ok to stick him in his swing and just let him cry a little, mainly for my own sanity.  For those moments when he's been fed, burped, changed and cuddled (in other words, nothing is wrong and he's just fighting sleep), yet is still screaming, if I just put him in his swing and walk away for a little bit, he will fall asleep.  I felt so guilty about doing this at first, but now that I can tell when something is truly wrong versus when he's just exhausted, it's a lot easier.

(5) Getting out of the house everyday is crucial, at least for me.  Since the weather is warm and flu season has passed, we literally had Asher out and about at 4 days old.  We've been out to eat several times (even had a date night when my mom was here, just Matt and me!), Target, the grocery store, the Summit, Starbucks (a lot) and a baseball game just last night.  Plus we go for a long stroller walk everyday.  This is good for my own sanity, plus we're getting him accustomed to our on-the-go lifestyle right off the bat.

And finally, here are some pictures of the last couple weeks...picture overload!

Grandberry and Coach with Asher (3 days old)



Nanny and Asher (3 days old)



Paw Paw and Asher (3 days old)



Checking each other out (4 days old)

 

We love to sit outside at Starbucks (4 days old)



Obviously loves Target as much as mama (5 days old)

Riley was still a little unsure here (6 days old).  Maddux just ignores him.

 

Gas smiles (7 days old)

 

Date night! And my first glass of wine:)

Loves that paci (7 days old)

 

Just a boy and his dogs (2 weeks old)



Hanging with my daddy (18 days old)

He makes the funniest faces (18 days old)

  

1st Mother's Day (17 days old)

One of my favorite pictures of him (9 days old)