Preston {1 month}

How time flies! Preston was one month old last Friday (I'm a little late posting) and I already can't even remember what life was like before he came into our world. The past month has been filled with so much joy, so much learning, so much change. But all in all, I think I am getting the hang of mommyhood. We have settled into a schedule each day, and for those of you who don't have kids yet--you could probably care less about this. But I have enjoyed other "new mom" friends posting their daily schedules with their babies--it is fun to compare!

7 am--Time to wake up! Feed him/diaper change/then I read him a book and do some tummy time before he goes back down for a nap.

**Once he goes back to bed, I usually do too. This gives me an extra 2 hours of sleep, which makes me happy! **

10 am--I have to wake him up to feed him again. Then diaper change/then we play on his rainforest play gym, or I place him in his crib to look at his mobile. He loves to stare at the moving objects! I play with him for a total of about 20 minutes, then he goes back down for a nap again.

**This time while he's napping, I get some "me" time. I eat my breakfast, drink my coffee, peruse blogs that I love, get on facebook, read a book or magazine, and lastly--I try to straighten up the house to get this out of the way for the day.**

1 pm--Wake him up to feed him again. (I think he would sleep all day if I didn't wake him to feed--he loves to sleep!). Afterwards, change diaper/playtime again for about 20 minutes. We sing songs and read books. I try to keep him awake until he starts acting sleepy again. Then he goes back down for a nap again.

**This time while he's napping, I have enough energy to do a workout. (But this definitely doesn't happen every day!) Either my mom will come over and watch him while I go to the gym, or I just do my Tracy Anderson or Billy Blanks Tae Bo Workout DVD. After that I shower, maybe do a load of laundry, eat my lunch, and try to play with Winston (poor buddy gets less playtime these days).

4 pm--Wake him up to feed again. Then, change diaper/playtime for about 20 minutes. Then, back down for a nap.

**I usually crash too after this feeding. Brett normally gets home from work around 6 to find me and baby napping.**

7 pm--I pump a bottle and Brett feeds him at 7 pm. This just gives me a little break from doing all the feeding myself, plus we want him to be used to bottles by the time I go back to work. Then we have family playtime, or we give him a bath about every other day. Then he goes back down for another nap.

**Once he's down again, we prepare and eat our dinner and hang out a little, watching our shows for the night. If I have any errands to run, I go now while Brett is home with Preston. It usually feels pretty good to get out of the house by now!**

10 pm--Again, I pump a bottle and Brett feeds him at 10 pm. This allows me to go to bed early, right after I'm done pumping. Brett puts Preston to bed right after this feeding and he usually goes right down. We keep our fingers crossed for an easy night!

Middle of the night feeding--Sometimes it is 4 am, other times it is 2:30 am, but whenever Preston wakes up crying is when I feed him.  Some nights are better than others (he goes right back to sleep after he eats) while other times we are not so lucky and we have to soothe him for about 30 more minutes to get him to go back to sleep. He only wakes up this one time in the middle of the night, thank goodness, so we feel lucky.

7 am--Start the day all over again.

As you can see, he eats 7 times a day and is a healthy, growing boy. Obviously not every day is exactly like this, and I am working on getting us out of the house a little bit more. Not sure why I am so intimidated to take him places--maybe its fear of him having a screaming fit out in public, or all the extra gear to pack up. Right now it just seems like more trouble than it is worth, but when we do actually get out I always enjoy it! All in all, he is just precious and I absolutely love being his mommy!

Preston LOVES: staring at his mobile, music of all sorts (puts him right to sleep), going outside in the backyard for fresh air, riding in the car, bathtime, eating, grunting and squealing.

Preston DISLIKES: Getting his diaper changed, being held horizontal instead of upright, losing his pacifier.

Every night I pray that he will have a loving heart and will always be considerate of other people's feelings. I pray that he will enjoy learning and going to school and will have a desire to stay educated and one day find a career that makes him fulfilled and happy. I pray that he will be a leader, not a follower, and that he will lead a healthy life. I pray that angels will watch over him for the rest of his life. Most of all, I pray that he will always be as happy as he has made me--so happy that his little heart could burst! Whoever he chooses to be in life, I will love him so much!