5 Weeks

Wow... tomorrow Sawyer will be 5 weeks old!  Crazy.  How have the last 5 weeks been?  I'd be lying if I said they were totally smooth sailing--  the combination of sleepless nights, another round of colds/sickness for everyone, kids that insist on starting their days at 5:30 am, and copious amounts of rain can be a wee bit exhausting.  But on the bright side, I feel like I've recovered pretty quickly this time around and Sawyer is a pretty great baby-- he eats well (and quickly!!), usually goes to sleep after feedings at night without a problem, only really cries when he's hungry or has a dirty diaper, and doesn't spit up-- it doesn't get much better than that!

Anyhow, I thought I'd just share a few new things I've learned along the way over the past few weeks, and a few things I've "re-remembered" from past experience...

1.  Babies who don't hate their carseats is a priceless gift

2.  Youtube videos on my phone are way way funnier during 3 am feedings than any other time of the day

3.  2 year old big sisters love love love their little brothers.  They can also be major smother-mothers-- Eme is constantly shoving the soother into his mouth, she loves to "play" with Sawyer in his crib, she makes sure the baby swing is always rocked extra vigorously, Eme thinks he must be covered with blankets at all times, and the other day I caught her peeling his eyelids back with her tiny little fingers as Sawyer was sleeping-- she was shouting, "He's awake Mama!!  He's looking at me!!"

4. On the other hand, 5 year old big brothers can be surprisingly super helpful.  Caleb has been so great with his little brother-- he's always willing to hold him, is very gentle, doesn't get irritated by crying, is willing to fetch things for me around the house, and is actually quite successful at calming Sawyer down when he's crying in the car-- turns out Sawyer really likes Caleb's rendition of the itsy bitsy spider.  It makes my Mama heart so proud.

5. My mom deciding to start potty training Eme the day I went into labor with Sawyer?  A priceless gift indeed.  I will admit that it is a little crazy taking a 2 year old to the potty 50 times a day when you've got a newborn in the house, but not having to by 2 sizes of diapers is so fantastic.

6.  Keurig machines are an absolute necessity if you are ever faced with a time when you need to live and survive on almost zero sleep.  Seriously-- best invention ever.  In the morning I'll be lying in bed hearing little feet running down the hall at 5:30 am and start to feel defeated-- and then, I remember that I can have instant hot (and awesome) coffee in about 15 seconds at the press of a button-- and suddenly the prospect of crawling out of bed is not so daunting anymore...

7.  Mini vans-- yup, I've got one now.  The jury's still out as to whether or not I'm going to love driving one for the next 15 years, but I must say that being able to strategically place your children in separate quadrants where they cannot reach each other is pretty fantastic.  Just saying...

8.  In the past 5 weeks I've started watching Duck Dynasty-- and I'm not afraid to admit it.  At first I was a little concerned that the lack of sleep was beginning to affect my sense of humour, but the more I watch it the more I laugh uncontrollably...  I feel like the Robertsons are very familiar to me... I feel like I know them in real life... I'm fairly certain that I know people like them back home and possibly in my family... it just makes it all the more funnier...

9.  The fact that Eme still cannot open closed doors is a rare and precious gift.  It is the only way that Sawyer can be completely safe in his crib...

10. Receiving sweet little notes from my 5 year old completely melt my heart.
 

 11.  Friends who stock your freezer with yummy (and dairy free!!) meals are lifesavers.  They are also wonderful, and thoughtful, and awesome, and pretty much the best thing ever :)

12.  French fries at Wendy's are also awesome... and so are photo ops of Caleb and I about to enjoy said french fries.

13.  Having Doug around during the day at times is the best thing ever.  I love that he's always willing to help out with the kids.  And last night he was totally willing to hang out at home with Sawyer so that I could go to my bible study without the distraction of a newborn-- it was so great.

14.  And to follow up on number 13-- babies that take a bottle on occasion so that you can leave the house for more than 2 hours at a time is pretty great.

15.  And to follow up on number 14-- my 5 1/2 year old electric medela breast pump is still going strong-- best investment ever.

16.  And finally... there's nothing better than a little sunshine.  The promise of springtime?  So exciting...

And there you have it-- a little glimpse into my life over the past 5 weeks.

It was kind of nice to take a little blogging break-- but I think I will be back soon-- there's been some progress made on a few projects around the house that I need to share!