Dear Emmett, 2 months

Dear Emmett Boy,

You are 2 months old now, and I'm only just writing my first blog post since you were born. I wish I had written before, because so much has happened that I want to remember. I wish I had written everything down, so that you could read it later and you could see how much I loved you these first 2 months. But I didn't write, because I've been too busy staring at you every second I can, and holding you and snuggling you and kissing your sweet little face.

You're growing so fast. I keep asking you to stop but you just won't listen to your mama! Every day when I come home from work you seem like a different baby- bigger and cuter and smarter. Last week you started sitting in our laps, content to just squirm and coo and look around at the world. Before you wanted me to hold you against my chest all the time, and walk around the house so you could see everything. You never liked me to sit for very long because you just love to look at things, and one view for too long got boring. But now you're a grown up baby, so you can entertain yourself and you love just sitting and being with your mom and dad. I hope that lasts forever!

You had your 2 month check up last Wednesday. I was so scared going there because everyone told me it would be a awful. The nurse gave you 4 shots, 2 in each thigh, and they hurt you so much! But you were a champ- you cried when she stuck you but not as much as I thought you would. You were so strong that I didn't even cry, which is a big deal because so far I've cried every time a needle get's close to you. I just hate seeing you hurting! When we went home, you were a sad baby all afternoon because your little legs hurt every time you kicked, and kicking is your favorite thing to do. So you just snuggled with your mom and slept on my chest all day, and we just hung out and enjoyed getting to be with you on a Wednesday afternoon. 

At your check up you were 10 lbs, 9 oz, and 24 inches tall! That puts you in the 25th percentile for weight and the 75th percentile for height.Tall baby! Your doctor says you are perfect and healthy and that made your mom so so happy. You are such a dream!

Your dad and I are so in love with you, our friends are probably getting sick of hearing about you. (Not really, they love you too..) We knew we would love you so much, but we didn't know it would be THIS much. We just smile at each other all day when we're with you, because we know you are perfect and we know that we made you, and it makes us love each other even more. Your dad says I call you an angel a hundred times a day, and I tell him that that's nothing, I say you are an angel one thousand times a day in my head. You're a perfect little angel boy and I'm just so happy and lucky to have you. 

Your dad and I had to go back to work when you were 6 weeks old, and it was so so hard for us. You were still so tiny and needed us so much, but we had to do it so that we can afford to take care of you and give you all the things you need. We did it because we would do anything for you, even if it's hard. Even if it means we don't get to be with you all day like we want to. I miss you every second I'm at work, and your dad and I talk about you all day long. And when work is over we rush home as fast as we can so that we can hold you and kiss you and tell you how much we missed you. But boy, do we wish we could stay home with you all the time.

Your favorite place to be in our house is in your nursery, lying on your changing table. Sometimes when you are upset, or tired, or mad or crying, we lay you down there and you immediately calm down and look around and then you are smiling in no time. It's our favorite place too now because that's where you smile and laugh the most. Every morning when we wake up I take you there to change your diaper and get you dressed for the day, and every morning you laugh and laugh and I laugh too and I also cry a little, because I just love you so much. Your dad and I worked hard to make your room special for you, and we're so glad that you love it there. We call it your happy place, and I think now it is my happy place too. It's the most amazing thing to see you look at me and smile, knowing that you know I'm your mama and knowing that you love me just like I love you. And knowing that you think I'm funny is pretty great too. 

Your favorite thing to do right now is standing up. You started loving it about a week ago. You are such a strong boy already- your dad holds you around the waist and you just stand there looking around, holding your head up like a champ, and we are so proud of you! We know you are a special baby and you're strong, and that you're learning faster than most babies do. Your dad thinks you'll be crawling in no time, but I hope that's not true because I want you to stay a little baby forever. I want you to always need me to carry you, and snuggle you and give you a million kisses. But I know soon you will be a little boy, moving around on your own and you won't need me to hold you anymore.

You are the most handsome little baby your dad and I have ever seen. I know everyone says that about their babies but it's really true with you. You are beautiful. And you were from the first moment we saw you. You had perfect skin and wide awake eyes and you were just so cute! Every day you get more handsome. And every where we go people tell us how they think you're such a good looking boy. It was hard for us to tell at first who you looked like- to me you looked like your uncle Micah for the first few weeks. And you still do a little bit, but now you have your mama's chin, and maybe my mouth too, and you look more like your dad every day. It makes us happy that you look like us. You're our boy, and everyone can tell when they look at you! 

I take pictures of you constantly, and post them to Facebook all the time for our family in Georgia to see. Sometimes I think you're gonna start calling my iPhone Mama because I have it in your face so often. But I want to remember every single look on your face and every single thing you did, and I want my family to see it too. They all love you so much, even the ones who haven't met you, and I want them to get to know you as much as they can from far away. We are going to Georgia next month, and I can't wait to show you off to everyone! You are going to be the most spoiled grand baby/nephew there ever was.

You are such an easy, happy baby. You only cry when you're really hungry, really tired, or when your dog brother Bagel barks really loud at the mailman and scares you to death. That is your saddest cry, and the one I like the least because you cry real tears. We're working on that, but Bagel just wants to protect you. Your dad pointed out to me that every night when you wake up to eat, when you start crying Bagel goes over to your bassinet and checks on you, and then when I pick you up to feed you he goes and lays down in front of the bedroom door. He stays there guarding the door until we are both asleep again. I am always so tired when this happens so I didn't notice, but since your dad told me I started paying attention and he's right! Bagel loves you after all! We weren't sure because before you came along Bagel got so much love and attention from us, but now we spend all our energy loving you and taking care of you, and Bagel kinda gets ignored, poor thing. I can't wait till you are older and you and Bagel are best friends. 

Your dad loves you so much. He can't wait till you are bigger so that he can play with you all the time, but for now he is happy to hang out with you, teach you about things, and play with you any way he can. He loves to show you your rattle, which you LOVE, and he loves to do tummy time with you and teach you how to kick your legs and lift your head. Lately his new favorite thing is laying you down and talking with you. You always talk the most when you're laying on your back, and you move your little tongue around your mouth to see what new sounds you can make. Your dad is such a good daddy and that makes me love him so so so much. He takes such good care of us, and doesn't mind doing all the work around the house after we get home from work so that you and I can be together and I can feed you and hold you, since I miss you so much while I'm at work. But he doesn't let me hog you, because he missed you too.

I love you Emmett boy. I hope to write you more letters like this, so when you're big you can read them and know all about what you were like as a baby. And you will see how much your mom and dad love you.

Please Help

Hello dear friends, I am back! I have lots to share with you about baby and about life with baby, but for today, I am coming to you with a very special and important request. I need your prayers!

My very good friend Joanna, who is a sister to me, is in the middle of a very desperate situation and needs a miracle. She and her husband Jordan have been trying to have a baby and/or adopt for some time now, and at the end of June (just about a week before Emmett was born), they received a call to come and meet their baby boy! I was so excited for the timing because she and I have always talked about having babies together! I prayed for her baby to come every day of my pregnancy, and it was just so amazing that her son came to her just when I was getting ready to meet mine!

It has been a long and complicated road since then, but suffice it to say that my sweet friend and her baby have been living with friends in the state where the baby was born, waiting for answers from the court. Her husband flies back and forth when he can, but they have not been able to take their son home yet.

And now things with the birth mother have become so messy that the courts are talking about taking the baby away from Joanna and putting him into foster care. So we need a miracle!

If you pray, please please please add my friend and her family to your daily prayer list, or just take a quick second now if you can. Some friends of the family will be leading a Novena (9-day prayer) beginning on Tuesday, so feel free to join in that as well.  Joanna's sister Rachel has posted all the info for the Novena on her blog,  so check that out if you are interested. But really, any prayers will be so greatly appreciated.

This family has been through so much, and I am so ready to see this story end happily.

Thanks SO much!!!






UPDATE:
Thanks so much for your prayers!! Joanna and Jordan have baby Judah, and he is theirs forever! They were able to take him home for Thanksgiving!

Emmett Arthur!!!!!

It's been almost a week since my little Emmett was born. Best week ever!!! Emmett is an ANGEL so far- so so sweet, so easy, and so cute! He eats like a champ, sleeps for long periods (which means mom gets some rest too), and he gives me more joy and happiness than I ever could have imagined. He's really the best thing ever.

I'll write about his birth story more later, but I wanted to jot down a few of the things that have stood out to me this week before I forget them forever. 

• When they first handed Emmett to me he was crying of course, but as soon as I started talking to him he calmed right down and just stared at me with total recognition. He knew I was his mama as soon as he heard my voice. How amazing is that? It was such a sweet moment watching him realize it was me. I just held him and stared back in so much awe. He was so beautiful.
• Watching Ray those first few minutes was enough to break my heart a million times. He was so calm and relaxed during my labor, which really helped me to stay calm, and once Emmett was out it was so fun to watch his reactions. He seemed a little timid at first, and I have to admit I hogged the baby for as long as they let me, but Ray was so sweet, standing over us and watching and he kept saying how cute Emmett was. I could tell he was in love right away. He has been the biggest help to me so far- he jumps to help me with everything I need, he loves to hold Emmett and spend time with him, and he still keeps saying how cute he thinks he is. It's true- he's really really cute!
• Being a new mom is overwhelming and incredibly emotional. This is something I expected of course, but it's worth saying. You become so filled with love all in one tiny moment, and your entire life changes. Not to mention all the incredible and intense changes your body goes through in such a short time. The first few days were such a high and so so wonderful. I have never been so happy and everything feels so perfect. But it's a roller coaster as well. You worry about your baby and you worry about being the perfect mom, and I find myself putting a lot of pressure on myself to do everything and be everything and it's starting to wear me out. I'm trying to remind myself to take it slow and to learn as I go. 
• Breastfeeding is hard. It hurts! But it's worth it. I was nervous about breastfeeding because I've read that so many moms have a really hard time with it, but with Emmett, it's a breeze. About an hour after he was born he sort of crawled his way down to my boob and with almost no effort at all he latched on and held on and he's been nursing like a champ ever since. But still, it's hard. I feel so badly for mom's who have to work really hard to feed their babies. It would break my heart to watch Emmett struggle to feed. Especially with my emotions being as raw and delicate as they are- I'm sure it leaves you feeling inadequate and like you're failing. That would be so hard. I'm praying for those moms! Today I pumped for the first time and HATED it. I had my first real break down afterwards because it hurt and it was awful and I just never want to do it again, but I have to because I'll have to pump a lot when I go back to work. Emmett wanted to eat soon after I finished pumping, and Ray wanted to feed him with a bottle because I'd just emptied all my milk, but I couldn't handle that and cried like a baby all over again. I'm just not ready to let go of that special time with him. Like I said, it's all very delicate when you're a new mom.

I'm sure there's more but Emmett is laying next to me with the sweetest little look on his face and I need to go snuggle him before I explode. I miss him even when he's right next to me. I'll leave you to bask in all the cuteness with a few pictures from Emmett's first few days in this world. Enjoy!

Meeting Grandpa Wilby! (We'll come up with a better name than that!)

Ugh, this one kills me. So content after his first feed.)

His Ree is his biggest fan!

Emmett loves his Aunt Rachel!

Here's a few of his visitors!

First car ride, heading home!

I can't stop kissing his squishy little cheeks!

Meeting brother Bagel for the first time. It went really well!