Gabriel's One Month Update

It's hard to believe that our sweet Gabriel Anthony turned a month old on November 21st! I once heard that the days with a newborn are long but the months go fast and boy is that the truth. Our first week home actually seemed to go by at a nice pace (probably because Brandon was home and we did a lot of fun little outings but also gave ourselves some time to rest), but since then it has just flown by. Gabe is about as sweet as they come and I love seeing him grow and watching him and Jackson interact.

Without further ado, I give you Gabe's first month:

Something tells me that every photo shoot from here on out is going to be photo bombed by big brother...

Weight: 9 lbs. 6 oz. (Up nearly 3 pounds since he was born... oy!)

Length: I believe he was at 21 something at his last appointment, but I will double check and update later.

Nicknames: Gabe, Gabey, Baby Gabey, Baby, Chunk

Wearing: Unlike his older brother, Gabriel outgrew newborn clothes in about 2 weeks and is starting to outgrow 0-3 as well... I definitely wasn't planning on him growing so quickly! 

Sleep: As long as I'm holding him (or he's sleeping in the crook of my arm), he sleeps wonderfully. On his own though is a big no-go. He does okay in his car seat, but cries a bunch at first before falling asleep. 

Gabe likes: Eating, Jax, cuddling, sleeping, diaper changes, bath time, stretching out on the floor, watching mommy and/or daddy, being held and bounced, rocking, singing, 

Gabe dislikes: Dirty diapers, hunger, tummy pains, when mommy sets him down to help Jax, car seat, being laid down for long periods of time

Mom & Dad's Favorite Things: How much he looks like daddy, watching he and Jackson interact, how cuddly he is, how well he sleeps at night (in the crook of mommy's arm -- which we swore we would never do again, ugh), his cute little jabbers and big eyes, and his adorable rolls of fat

~It's really amazing how similar, yet different the boys look! I can definitely see a lot of the same facial features (like their lips, eyes, and hair) and expressions, but at the same time they look so different (coloring, head shape, and noses) -- it'll be interesting to see how Gabe looks a year from now!

~We had Gabe's newborn pictures taken at around 17 days (which was close to when Jax had his taken) and got some absolutely adorable ones that I will share later this week :)

~For the most part, Gabe is a pretty good trooper wherever we go and does a pretty good job of just sleeping... (With the exception of a few trips where I had to either wear him in the Ergo or walk and nurse him while trying to keep us both covered.)

~This poor baby got sick for the first time at about a week and a half... it all started when I came down with a cold on Halloween, passed it onto Jax the next day, and then -- of course -- gave it to Gabe, who ended up getting really congested :( Thanks to the Nose Frieda, I was able to keep him somewhat clear, but found out at his two-week checkup that he wasn't only congested, but had an ear infection as well.. ugh! After 10 miserable days of tummy destroying amoxicillin, we went back to the pediatrician only to find that he still had it, but not nearly as bad as before. The doctor gave us the option to either start a new round of more potent meds or to try keeping his nasal passages really clear to see if that helped drain it. (This next part actually happened after one month, but since I'm late in writing this update, I'll just go ahead and finish the story!) At his next appointment, we had some good news and bad news: The good news is that his ear was clear -- yay! The bad news is that now he had it in the other ear :/ Since he eats like a champ, looks great, and was no longer congested, the doctor said we could just keep an eye on him until his 2-month checkup (since it didn't look too terrible) or start him on that new medicine that would just upset his stomach and make things worse. We decided to keep an eye on it for the time being and will find out in a few weeks if it cleared up on its own... Pray for us!

Oh and she also diagnosed him as colicky (which didn't come as a huge surprise), but I'll save that for his two month update.