One Month Old!

Dear Carter, 

It's hard for us to believe but you are already one month old!  These last 4 weeks have been full of so many sweet moments with you and lots of memories that we have tucked away in our hearts.  You are a wonderful addition to our family and we are so grateful that the Lord chose to make us your Mommy and Daddy!  Here's a slice of what you've been up to during your first month of life...

This is the first of 12 pictures we'll take with your new bear!  We did the same thing with your sister, only she had a pink bear and a pink blanket, and we loved watching how she grew month to month!  Speaking of growing, you are getting bigger by the minute!  Right now you...

-Are definitely over 10 lbs!  Two weeks ago you were 9lbs, 5 oz but you have grown considerably since then.  We keep laughing because you are much bigger than your sister at this age!

-You are no longer in newborn diapers, I moved you up to size 1 about 2 weeks ago.

-You are also out of almost all your newborn clothes. 0-3 month things fit you perfectly.

-People love to tell us how big your hands and your feet are, and it's true!  You are going to be a big boy and it won't be long before you catch up to your sister :) 

With each week you are growing more and more alert and also predictable.  You like to eat about every 2-3 hours during the day, but around dinner time you eat every 2 hours until bedtime.  You are a great eater too!  I have loved nursing you because you are easy and you let me know exactly when you are ready to go!  The only time we see you get impatient and mad is when it's time to eat.  You always let me know that you are NOT waiting any longer by letting out a few grunts and snorts and eventually some screams  :)   You are MUCH louder than Ava ever was...You grunt so loudly all day long!  When you're sleeping, when you're eating, or even when you're just hanging out.  I can't believe how noisy you can be, but I guess that goes with the territory of being a boy!

For the most part however, you are incredibly easy going and mellow.  You love to look all around now and take in your surroundings.  You turn your head when you hear our voices and you love to stare us down and study our faces.  During the day you are napping 3 or 4 times, for a couple of hours each time.  You love to sleep in your swing or your bouncy seat, but not flat on your back yet in your bed.  You usually wake up crying soon after we lay you down.  We'll get there I'm sure.  Last week, when you were 3 weeks old, I think you went through a little growth spurt and you hardly slept at all during the night because you wanted to eat constantly!  This week, you have settled back down again and are falling into a nice routine.  I feed you around 9:30 and then we put you to bed around 10pm and you usually wake up to eat about 2:30am, then again at 5:30 or 6:00am.  It's not bad, but we're anxiously awaiting the day when you give us a good 6 or 7 hour stretch...You can do it Carter!!!  

By far, the most comments we hear about you are regarding your incredibly cute head of hair!  It's wild Carter and we love it :) You have a lot of dark hair, just like your sister, but underneath that we can see lots of blonde roots.  I'm sure it will slowly lighten with time but we love the "look" you have going on right now!  I have to wash it frequently because it gets greasy often now, mostly because so many people like to touch it.  We joke about having to get some "product" for you just to tame it a little bit :) As soon as I wash it and comb it, it just naturally does this little feather thing that resembles a bit of a faux hawk!  You're so handsome buddy, just like your Daddy!!

This is your newest trick and we love it!  You smiled for the first time with your Texie and then your Daddy, but two days ago you smiled for me and I just happened to have my camera in my hand to capture it!  This picture makes us laugh Carter, it's an unfortunate angle for you, but we think you look like a chunky monkey here!  

Of course that belly and those cheeks just mean there is more of you to love!  

We discovered this month that you look like the men in the Armstrong family :) 

Your eyes are just like your Great-Grandpa Armstrong and so many of your other characteristics remind us of your Grandpa Armstrong and your Daddy.  

 It's a good thing we chose your Daddy's middle name for your middle name too!  

I pray that you'll grow up to be just like him in many ways!  He's blazing a wonderful trail for you and Ava to follow, Carter.  We are all blessed to have Daddy in our lives, as the leader in our family.  He and I talk to Jesus daily about you Carter and we pray that you will never know a day when Jesus was not part of your life.  

  Your sister lights up every time he walks in the door and I know it's just a matter of time before you do too.  You respond to your Daddy's voice already and you love it when he cuddles with you at night and holds you close.  He is so good about walking and walking with you when you are fussy.  It calms you to be in his arms.  One of my favorite things about the night you were born is that you and Daddy got to spend some precious alone time together, before I woke up to meet you.  He stayed with you from the minute you entered this world and my first memory of you is when I was being wheeled into our room and there was Daddy to greet me, holding you in his arms.  I know he loved to introduce you to Grandma and Grandpa, Aunt Jennie and your sister Ava.  But I know he also loved the time he got to have alone with you.  That was a gift from the Lord Carter and Mommy is thankful to see it as that.  Your Daddy will have a tremendous impact in your life and in the kind of man you become and I'm so grateful that you have been blessed like your sister, to have him present and involved from the minute you were born.  

 Of course as soon as I laid eyes on you, I was ready to hold you in my arms and cuddle you close too!  I  loved all of the time we spent together in the hospital, snuggling and getting to know each other.  And Grandpa and Grandma gave us a wonderful gift when they took care of your sister for awhile so that we could get some time together.  It's a wonderful gift to have a son and I'm so proud that you are mine. 

Your first month has been a great one Carter!  

You are a relatively easy baby and such a joy to our hearts.  God surprised us with you and you've been a reminder of His overflowing and abundant grace to us from the minute we knew we were expecting you.  In fact, if you were a girl, we would have given you "Grace" as a middle name!  Your sister reminds us of God's faithfulness and you remind us of God's grace.  You are so dearly loved Carter and we celebrate these 4 weeks, asking and believing that we'll get many more with you.  

Happy One Month Buddy!

We love you!!