One Month Old

Welcome to the world, Charlie Lewis James! He arrived on August 4th at 3:46 a.m. He weighed 7 lbs 11 oz and was 21 inches long. I gave birth to a perfectly beautiful baby boy who shares a birth month with his momma! What a wonderful gift he is.

Charlie is officially one month old. I'm writing this with him "frogging" as his dad and I like to call it (you know, scrunched up like a frog) on my chest. What a blur of a month, and yet I still remember the day he was born so vividly. I went into labor the day before I was scheduled to be induced because his due date had come and gone. And I was ready to get him on the outside! Little Guy decided to come on his own just in the nick of time. I was pretty thankful for that. When we checked into the hospital at 7 p.m., the nurses kept asking me, "Why were you scheduled to be induced?" To which I replied, "Well...before today this baby wasn't budging!" We checked in at 7 p.m., my epidural came at 11:30 p.m. (PS- Epidurals are amaaazing), a few minutes after 3 a.m. we were ready to push, and Charlie was born 38 minutes later!

I would be lying if I said it was an easy first few weeks of getting to know this little guy and what it's like to be a parent. Between Saturday when we checked out of the hospital and Monday when we had his first pediatrician appointment, our baby had lost one whole pound in weight. We were in and out of several different doctors offices during his first week of life - a really fragile time when new parents should be relaxing, recovering, and enjoying their newborn. After listening to several conflicting opinions and suggestions about what was going on, we finally found out that Charlie was having problems nursing due to a pretty significant lip and tongue tie. We decided to have the procedure done to release his lip and tongue, in hopes of helping him nurse and to benefit him later in life. At one month old, Charlie's weight is well over 8 lbs! He is a completely different baby now than those first two nights when we brought him home. He's full, happy, and healthy. And we are so thankful. 



I got a journaling Bible from my husband for Christmas last year, but with student teaching, graduating, and preparing for a baby in the months following, I really didn't make time to learn how to use it well until I was verrry pregnant and couldn't handle being outside in the summer heat anymore (LOL). I went to town journaling in that thing. One of the verses that I journaled right before Charlie was born was Romans 12:12 and it has been the verse I've come back to so much over the last month. I have felt a lot of hope, affliction, and seen a tremendous need for prayer in my first few weeks of being a mom. This verse has really spoken to me in this new season of life. I have to be a mom faithful in prayer that the Lord would give me joy and patience in the midst of affliction. I have to be a mom faithful in prayer for wisdom on how to make decisions for someone who can't make them on their own.


The saying "the days are long, but the years are short" has already become undeniably true over the last month as well. Listen, a newborn can give you some looong. days.  But as long as the days have felt sometimes, I can't believe it's been one whole month of Charlie!! One whole month of learning, feeding, crying, laughing, growing, hardly sleeping, and cuddling until my arms are about to fall off. About a thousand times a day I will just look at Samuel and say, "He is soo cute!" Needless to say, I'm smitten and can't get over this little human with a fuzzy head of hair.

I wrote a little list of 10 things I want to remember about our first month of being parents and things we have learned about our son so far. Enjoy!!

Dear Charlie, 

Happy one month of life!!! It's been such a sweet month. Hard at times, but your dad and I have laughed more at each other and at the funny things you do than we ever have! 

Let me tell you some things I want to remember about your fist month:

1. The 2016 Olympics in Rio were happening when you were born, so guess what mommy and daddy did with you day and night in the hospital and during those first two weeks? Held you and watched Micheal Phelps win his final gold medals! (It was SO fun!)

2. You are the cutest stretcher.  

3. You get this cheeky little smile in your sleep sometimes and it's pretty hilarious. 

4. You seem to actually enjoy bathtime! You really like the sound of the running water and when mommy pours a cup of the warm water over your belly. Getting out and into the cold air is a different story though...

5. Things you hate: being changed (clothes & diaper) and when I can't feed you fast enough. Other than that you're a pretty content little guy. 

6. You love,  l o v e,  LOVE being swaddled. 

7. The face you make when pooping. Enough said. 

8. One of my favorite things about your newbornness is your hair! It's so soft, long, dark, and sticks straight up!   

9. Napping with you is like napping with a toaster oven. You are a little toasty furnace, Charlie!

10. So far your nicknames are Charlie Bear and (per your cousin Carson) Cha Cha. I'm sure there will be more to come!


Thank you to everyone for the texts, cards, meals, prayers, and the thousand other ways you have helped our family as we adjust to life with a newborn. We are surely blessed with some wonderful friends and family!

-Emily