Mya's 1 Month Update ⋆ Growing Up Kemper

Quite possibly the fastest month of my life. And for it to be January?! The longest possible month of the year (for it’s days and for it’s just sheer miserableness!) That’s something to say about the speed this month with my Mya Girl has flown by.

Born on December 18th, Mya has already grown and changed so much over her first weeks. We’re inseparable and I’m oh so in love with you, baby girl!

Here’s the scoop on my sweet little girl. My partner in crime. My already best friend.

Sleeping

The very first thing everyone asks when I see them is, “How is she sleeping?” If you’ve had a child, you know that this is the make or break of the first few months. You’re in the trenches, but how far into them are you? Does your kiddo have any big stretches? Do they wake up, eat, and go right back to sleep? Or are you hanging out trying every trick in your book to get them back to bed? It’s a hard and it’s a beautiful time. You know it won’t last and you want to cherish it all, but you’re sleep-deprived, healing, and trying your very best to get all of yourself back while managing life, work, and a family. Whew! Jerod says it best when he says that if men were the ones that gave birth and were the caretaker of children, the population would cease almost immediately. 🙂

So Mya Girl. Coming off a four year old that no longer naps and a two year old that is already moving that way, I was not fully prepared (and certainly didn’t remember) just how much newborns sleep.

Because they sleep.

A lot. 🙂

I had Mya in her crib from the very first day. There are a lot of mixed opinions on that but it’s what works for us so that’s what we do. Her nursery is directly beside our master bedroom and we have a monitor on her that sits on my bedside table so not only do I still hear everything, but the walk is quick and easy to get to her for late night nursing sessions. It works for us and it seems to work for her, too.

Already, my little rock star has given me multiple nights of 5 hour stretches and even this past week, she gave me a 6 hour stretch! At just over four weeks old, I know just how lucky I am! I will never take this for granted. She’s also a babe that will fall asleep nursing and I can easily just lay her right back into her crib and she’s asleep for the next stretch.

If you’re reading this and wanting advice on how to get there with your little one…hear me out. I swaddle her, I use a sound machine, and I nurse her to sleep. All mixed reviews with people, but that’s what works for us right now. But more than that, it’s HER. Jacks was a good sleeper. Colt was not. Jacks was sleeping through the night by 2 months. Colton finally slept through the night at 20 months. True story. It’s not me. It’s THEM.

Eating

Mya took to nursing almost instantly after delivery (which was not the case for my two boys), so we had a good start. She feeds every 3 hours during the day and then anywhere from 3-6 hours at nighttime. When she got back to her birth weight at 8 days old, I stopped waking her at night every 3 hours to feed. I felt confident in her ability to gain weight and left her feeding schedule up to her “after hours.”

Schedule

She’s still very much a newborn so our schedule is not much of a schedule most days, but I’m starting to pick up on some of her tendencies she seems happiest with throughout the day.

8:00 : Wake for the Day, Nurse, Wake Time

9:30 : 1st Nap

11:00 : Nurse, Wake Time

1:30 : Nurse before Large Afternoon Nap

5:30 : Nap wrapped up in Boba Wrap

6:30 : Nurse, Awake Time, Bath

8:00 : Change into PJs, Bedtime Routine, Nurse, Down for Bedtime

Mya has been my calmest baby, my more “go with the flow” child, and one that has melted the heart of everyone, including my “not so easy to win over” Colton. 🙂 She adores her brothers and loves to watch them, even at their craziest. Loves it when Jacks sings to her and puts up with it even when they try to give her fist bumps and tickle her feet. I am whole heartedly obsessed with her and would much rather snuggle Mya than get to any checklist I have. I put things off, I have re-prioritized my life, and I’ve done a much better job of taking in these precious moments because they go by just too quickly. She’s my last baby and already I’m in disbelief that she’s one month old.