one month letter

Little James Michael,
I can't believe you've been here a month already! So much has changed in just the past week. You've ventured into society a bit. Last week, I put you in my Moby wrap and we went on a couple walks while the weather was unseasonably warm. Each time, you remained fast asleep, which relieved your mama because I wasn't sure what I was going to do if I was 30 minutes into a walk and you woke up crying. I can just imagine how hard it is walking and nursing and trying to stay covered up!

Just this past week you've really started grinning and smiling a lot. At first, you only did it in when you were in a sleepy haze. But now, you recognize people and I can get you to smile by talking to you.

As much as I hope you'll always love your mama, you are definitely a daddy's boy. You recognize his voice and especially the way he handles you with his huge hands. He holds you in certain positions and it pacifies you instantly. I've tried these same positions, but to no avail.

You still make the craziest faces, and often wrinkle up your forehead with such ease that it's just like breathing for you. When you're awake, you love being held facing out so that you can see everything that's going on around you. You love staring at lights, but if you're somewhere with bright lights, you refuse to open your eyes.

One of your favorite positions is tummy down cradled on an arm with a chubby cheek resting in the crook of an elbow. Your grandparents (Pop and Meme) tell me that that was my favorite position to be carried, too.

Last Thursday, you had your first out of town trip. We headed to Gainesville for the weekend, and you caught your first glimpse of Lake Lanier as we ate seafood at Skogie's with a group of doting friends.

Friday, your Aunt Ellen babysat you for two hours while mama caught up on sleep. It was her first time seeing you since the day you were born, and you welcomed her with a diaper explosion that ruined two of your outfits, her T-shirt and the blanket she laid you on to change you. Lucky for you, she thought it was hilarious and probably loves you more for it!

Friday afternoon, you spent a few hours with your great Grandma and slept for more than an hour as she held you close. She's been waiting for you for years--just like Meme--only less vocal about it. She loves you dearly and handled you with such care.

At Meme and Pop's house, we discovered that you loved their bouncy seat, which has a vibration option. You sat there quitely in that seat during every meal we ate. I immediately though how great it would be to put you in near me in the kitchen so I could cook dinner at night--and ended up stealing the seat for my own use :) You're welcome buddy. This should be much more comfortable (and safer) than mama trying to hold you with one arm while preparing food with the other.

Saturday, you were quite the ladies man when you came to Aunt Ellen's bridal shower. You got ooohs and ahhhs and compliments about how handsome you are. Your Gigi (other great grandmother) held you for only the second time since you were born, and you serenaded her outfit with quite a load of urine. I guess you were just marking your territory.

Saturday night, you attended your first party--a surprise 80th birthday celebration for your Gigi. Mama and Daddy got out on the dance floor a few times, but your Gigi and Fred definitely put us to shame with their smooth moves. You were a sweet little boy at the party. Thank you for letting your mama have a night out!

The whole weekend, you did great sleeping in the car. You slept from Marietta to Gainesville, even though it took a while in traffic. But for some reason, after your Gigi's 80th birthday, you decided to cry the entire 40 minute car ride home. We're still not sure what happened other than it was dark outside. When your daddy played a music video on his phone and held it in front of you, you stopped crying for about 3 minutes. I'm not sure if that means you love music or light--or both.

You've pretty much beat the cold you got at 2 weeks old. You have tested your mama these past two weeks, especially on the nights when you wake up every hour on the hour. But last night your sleep pattern improved. Now that you're well, I moved from sleeping in your nursery to sleeping in my bed. We put you to bed at 11pm, late for you (and us!) but it was after Gigi's birthday party. Now that I've started pumping, Daddy was able to give you a bottle at 2am. That means you waited a whole 3 hours to eat--a rare occurance! Then I nursed you at 4:30am, 7am and 9:30am. Still every 2.5 hours, but anything is better than you waking up every hour to hour and a half. I got my first stretch of 5 hours of sleep, and it was incredible. I'm hoping that your sleeping woes are over now that you're feeling well.

Your first month of life has really flown by. I'm excited to see how you grow and change over the next two months when I'm at home with you full time. You're one special little boy--and yes, I realize I'm quite biased.

Love you always,
Mama

it's all about the little things

Right now, with James Michael officially 3 weeks old, life is all about the little things. Days and nights have blurred, as well as weekdays and weekends. But every morning, no matter how much I sleep, I wake up to this little guy, who melts my heart every day. Every morning feels like a fresh new day with great possibilities. I've made a to-do list, checked things off, and remade the list each week. Despite how much I am able or unable to accomplish each day, I've learned to look forward to the little things.

So here are a few of the little things that have become the little highlights of my days (after James Michael, of course) these past three weeks:

Steaming showers: Thankfully, I've been able to shower every single day since James Michael was born. They have soothed my body, relaxed my mind and rejuvenated my spirit. It might sound silly, but they are a little treat all for me, and also afford me 20 minutes each day all to myself where I'm not in baby mode because I know James Michael is safe and sound with James Jr.  I would highly recommend daily showers to any new moms out there.

A cup of joe: The couple days a week when I can manage to make a cup of decaf in our french press are amazing. Sure, I'm not getting any jolt of caffeine, but the taste itself reinforces normalcy. Plus, topping each cup with whipped cream makes it feel like a treat. And of course a warm cup of joe is perfectly fitting for cold winter days when I'm cooped up indoors.

Uninterrupted naps: The first week, it was hard to get my body to relax and take naps while James was home or my mom was here helping out. Plus, napping at 5pm in the afternoon just feels wrong. But I've  learned to take advantage of any nap time I'm given, and this past week I've had three glorious naps in the morning once James gets back from running morning CrossFit classes. Those 1.5 to 2 hour stretches have been enough for me to really seize the day and get things done, regardless of how much sleep I got the night before.

Grocery shopping: My first time out of the house by myself was when James Michael was just over 1 week old. My trip of choice was the grocery store. Many people hate shopping for groceries, but I've always loved it. Good thing too since I normally go about twice a week. I strolled through Publix, buying a bunch of healthy food and a couple indulgences, like Ovaltine for my chocolate milk kick.

Chocolate milk: Speaking of chocolate milk, that seems to be my main indulgence lately. I've got my option of Hershey's Chocolate Syrup, Nesquick or Ovaltine. Each morning and afternoon, I prepare myself a tasty glass of the rich chocolately stuff. Some days I use regular milk, sometimes unsweetened almond milk, and sometimes a mix of the two. They say you need 500 extra calories a day breastfeeding, and honestly, I think the only way I'm getting in those extra calories is from my chocolate milk cravings. Or at least that's how I justify it :)

Cooking and baking: Thanks to some great naps this week, I've been able to cook a couple dishes this week. First up was sweet potato fries. Simple, yes. But I managed to burn them just a little. It's definitely hard making sure I take things out of the oven in a timely manner with a newborn. One night, I also made sweet potato casserole and an Italian sausage and veggie dinner. And one afternoon I whipped up some gluten-free chocolate chip cookies. For me, cooking is therapeutic and fun, so I love that I'm finding time to get back into the kitchen during afternoon naps.

30-minute walks: This week marked my foray back into an active lifestyle--even if it was just a baby step. Last Saturday, at the two weeks postpartum mark, I went on a 30-minute walk at the river with James and our friend Adam while James' mom watched the baby. It was amazing to get out and be in the midst of nature. We even happened upon a random coffee house and stopped in for a tasty treat (white mocha decaf for me!) and just sat and chatted. Then Wednesday and Thursday, I was able to take a 30-minute walk each afternoon in the neighborhood behind our place while my mom and brother watched James Michael. It's amazing what good 30 minutes of sunshine and cold air in the lungs will do for the body and soul. Exercise has always been an positive outlet for me, and these short walks were hands-down better than a huge slab of chocolate cake. And if you know me, I'm a huge fan of chocolate. I just ordered a Moby wrap and plan to snuggle James Michael in it for a couple walks next week while the weather is still warm.

Super salads: Besides chocolate milk, the other major craving I've had consistently is for salads. I really didn't have any consistent cravings while I was pregnant (I've always loved sweets), so it's definitely weird to have those cravings now. But thankfully my salad craving is a healthy one and will help to balance out the chocolate milk craving. I've been using a base of spinach and spring mix, and common toppings include grilled chicken, clementines, feta, toasted pecans, avocado, grape tomatoes and cucumbers. My mom made a huge batch of homemade balsamic vinegar dressing with a bunch of ingredients she found in my pantry, and I used that for the first couple weeks. I'm due to make another batch this weekend.

2.5 weeks with baby james

Dec. 30 seems so long ago at this point. 2.5 weeks really has flown by. Every day I feel like James Michael looks so different. Even from some of the pictures I've taken, it's hard to believe they're all of the same baby. He looks different from every angle and makes so many different faces, from scrunching up his forehead to smirking after he nurses.

(Please excuse the tired Mommy eyes.)

Saturday night, James Michael came down with a cold and his sneezing became more frequent and he developed a cough. By Sunday the poor fellow was downright miserable--and so was his mom. Neither one of us has slept much the past couple nights--he wakes himself up often coughing, and I wake up constantly making sure he's still breathing ok. My mom told me it breaks your heart the first time your baby gets sick, but I just wasn't expecting it to happen this soon.

Luckily we had our 2-week wellness visit at the pediatrician's office on Monday, and it made me feel better she could check him out. Thankfully, the cough isn't in his lungs and he didn't have a fever. She said there's really nothing I can do for him, which is a horrible feeling for a parent.

But he's still nursing like a champ so I'm hoping that all those great nutrients will help his little body fight off the sickness.

Speaking of his appetite, when we went for his 48-hour appointment two weeks ago, he weighed in at 6 lbs 15 oz (he was 7lbs when he left the hospital the day before). The pediatrician told us that the goal for his two-week appointment was for him to be back up to his birth weight of 7 lbs 6 oz.

Yesterday, we were pleasantly surprised to learn that he now weighs 7 lbs 14 oz, so he gained almost a full pound in two weeks! Even the pediatrician seemed impressed, but reassured me that it's not possible for him to gain too much this early on.

So how am I feeling? My biggest hurdle continues to be lack of sleep. Luckily James has been coming home from the gym for a couple hours during the middle of the day and I've been able to take advantage of naps when needed.

I had hoped to do some small projects around the house and maybe come up with a future workout plan, but with James Michael being sick, my focusing is solely on him at this point. I did attempt to rep out a few pushups on my toes going chest to ground the other day. Um wow. I did two pushups and then had to switch to doing them on my knees. Despite losing the baby weight, it's been so long since I've done pushups prescribed that it's going to take a while for my muscles to readapt.

When I try on my regular clothes, I can tell that my body has changed a bit. Pants are tighter through the thighs and hips, which was to be expected, and I still have a little flab around the belly to tone up. But I'm very happy with how my body has bounced back just 2.5 weeks after delivery. I'm sure CrossFit will help remedy alot when I start back in a few weeks.

Once again, let me reiterate how much I can't wait to get back in the gym. James and I are both big fans of routine, and CrossFit has been part of my weekly routine for so long that it feels weird not being in the gym 4 to 5 days a week. He probably gets tired of me asking how the gym was every night when he comes home, but it's my way of staying in touch with CrossFit :)

During JM's long nap this afternoon, I did manage to make a sweet potato casserole using palm sugar, gluten-free flour and extra butter and pecans--because that's how we roll in the Hobson house. We're definitely not afraid of consuming fat :) And I'm still on my salad kick and have been downing some chocolate milk lately, too.

one week down, a lifetime to go

It's hard to believe that a week has already passed. James Michael is one week old, and we're slowly getting our groove. The first couple days were rough. I knew I'd be sleep deprived, but I thought I'd get more than 1.5 hours a night. The first night in the hospital, it seems like staff was coming in every 30 minutes to an hour to check me or the baby. Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful they were so attentive, but it didn't leave much chance for sleep.

When we finally got home, I was so anxious now that a little life was in my hands, that it was also hard to sleep because I kept an ear out the whole night listening to him.

He loves scrunching his forehead.

But day by day I've begun to relax and realize that James Michael is a resilient little creature. He's definitely thrived since bringing him home. The goal for his two-week pediatrician's appointment is for him to be back up to his birth weight of 7lbs 6 oz. With the way he's nursing now, he'll have no problem with that. He's got the same appetite as his daddy.

Since it was so warm today (64 degrees!), we took a short walk around our parking lot with Uncle Patrick as our escort. I think the 10 minutes of sunlight did JM some good, even though his eyes were closed the whole time.

 Stretching and yawning for Uncle Patrick

Now that I've gotten enough sleep to function on, I'm feeling quite good. I'm itching to do something active, but am making myself rest a few more weeks. I've lost 23 lbs in the first week, the majority of it in the first couple days after delivery, so I only have a few more pounds to go. I'm sure I'll start to lose some muscle mass soon, so I can't wait to start CrossFitting again mid next month.

I'm so thankful my mom has been there to help me out the first week. She's made me healthy home-cooked meals, helped me bathe JM, done laundry, organized the nursery and generally kept me sane.

james michael hobson III has arrived

Thinking back to Dec. 30 and looking at all the pictures, it's a bit surreal. After they broke my water, I labored for 7 hours, pushed for 45 minutes, and out came the most precious bundle of joy imaginable.

Meet James Michael Hobson III, who's even cuter than his daddy.