Aaron is 1-Month-Old

Dan and I have been trying to get a feel for Aaron's personality this past month. For starters, from the moment he was born and let out this screech of a cry, we've had a feeling he might become as fierce as his sister! She, too, developed a throttled cry early in infancy (though I do not remember how it sounded when she was born) and has definitely grown into it just as I anticipated. So with Aaron. . . we'll see. We keep saying that he needs to be pretty strong-willed if he's to survive his older sister!

Even those first couple days at the hospital, he fought so hard and shrieked when his diaper was changed. I couldn't believe how strong he was even then, and how loud he cried. Things haven't changed. He still hates his diaper being changed, and if I neglect him too long with feeding him or leaving him on his own, he truly sounds like a screeching eagle! It's pretty piercing and makes me worried for what his future personality holds! haha

Aaron is definitely our grumpiest baby. Ty and Aiyana were pretty easy-going -- yes, even Aiya most of the time, despite the cry I was talking about. They didn't fuss a whole lot and pretty much just laid quietly when they were awake, and at night I'd feed them and they'd sleep. Aaron, on the other hand, grunts and squirms and isn't real happy when he's awake. And at only a month old, that's not a lot of awake time to go on! At night, he's a bit hit or miss with how well he sleeps. It's about fifty-fifty with being a bearable, "normal newborn" sleep schedule or the waking up every 30 min to an hour fussing, to where i can't really fall into a nice sleep to recover. I think he's getting better though and it could definitely be worse. I'm glad he's not screaming non-stop. He's just often restless.

I'm hopeful that his "grumpiness" is more a case of upset tummy rather than personality, and him learning how to put himself back to sleep. I've been pretty relaxed about sleep training so far, feeding on his demand because if he's not awake, I definitely can't force him awake to eat. He's out! This past week, he has been waking up a little bit more during the day though, and I've started having him nap in his own bedroom with the sleep-sack, vibrator, and fan going. Most of the time it works fabulously, and I get nice long, quiet afternoons to myself with both the kids down. I'm excited to get him on a schedule in the next month or two.

One month pics!

  He's really filling out fast! I haven't weighed him recently but he seems so big to me now, even though people who just meet him still comment how little he is. He really reminds me of Ty sometimes. They don't look exactly the same, but they have similar expressions sometimes, or if he's wearing a onesie that Ty wore, it throws me off for a minute. I think about Ty even more than I usually do. But it's sweet and makes me smile inside.

In the past, Dan and I commented that we thought it'd be hard if Aaron looked like Ty. But as I bathe Aaron (where I most often reminisce about Ty and see their similarities), a happy peace fills my heart and I find myself hoping that Aaron does continue to look like Ty. Certainly not as a replacement. Aaron still feels different and like his own person. But one of the things that makes me saddest about losing Ty is not having a clue what he would like now as a three-year-old. With Aaron growing up, I feel like I get a piece of Ty back and can get a glimpse into what that future might have been like. 

Here are two pictures of Ty at this same age:

He seems slimmer and not as olive-skinned as Aaron, but they are definitely brothers. 

 

A couple more photos of Aaron, dressed and wide-awake:

In addition to getting Aaron onto a loose schedule, we are working on inserting the binky. He has little interest right now and I've wondered if I should encourage it or not. . . but I feel like it will help him settle down at night, and help with the whole napping routine. Usually he gags on it (which is a dangerous thing because he has a very sensitive gag-reflex! Look out, projectile vomit that has targeted me MANY a time!), but last night he kept it in his mouth for a good part of the night and we slept better. So we'll see! Let the training begin!