Cooking, Crafting & Kids: Happy One Month Birthday Makenzie!

Time sure does fly by when you have a new baby. I feel like it was just yesterday that I was counting down the weeks until her arrival, and now it has already been one month since her birth!

Many of our days are spent changing diapers, feeding little miss, and sleeping when she sleeps. Although I have to say lately I have been finding a routine that works for us so we can get things done around the house also. Time management, I thought it was important when I was in college playing soccer, going to school, and working. Boy is it crucial to manage your time with a newborn in the house.

As for Makenzie she is really getting a hang of scheduling her day. over the past couple of weeks she has developed a rather nice schedule that fits with our lifestyle rather nicely. She wakes up around 7am and goes to bed around 8pm, with many feedings, play times, and naps in between. She is now sleeping solid 3-4 hour chunks throughout the night, waking only three times to feed between bedtime and wake up time. It's amazing how rejuvenated you can feel after only 4 hours of sleep. ;)

She has also been enjoying more tummy time and playtime on her jungle mat, her new swing (which I love!), and the great outdoors. Makenzie still loves to go outside and stare at everything. She is so alert and aware of the things around her, it's fun to watch her examine the world around her.

She has started to take a bottle every once in a while and she loves it and so does Ross, and well so do I!

Here are a few things that have really come in handy in our first month of parenthood.

Babywise: I guess it is a controversial parenting book, but honestly the information on feed, wake, sleep scheduling is great. At four week Makenzie already has her own schedule and not by anything we did, it just came about naturally. I think it's important to have a few resources on hand and I definitely recommend this one to all new moms & soon to be moms.
Gripe Water: Found at any baby store or CVS, this stuff has really helped Makenzie'z gassiness and helped with decreasing her spit-ups.
Pacifier: I have to admit I was on the fence about using them this early (or at all), but in the end it is nice to use in those moments at 3am when she won't fall asleep after a feeding and all she needs is a little something to suck on.
Aden and Anais Swaddle blankets: Now I wouldn't usually be brand specific but these blankets are the BEST! They are perfect for hot summer nights (we don't have AC so some nights are pretty warm in our house) and great for super snug swaddles.

I am looking forward to the many adventures month number two has in store for us while trying to soak in the memories we have made in this first month. God is Great!

Here are a few more photographs of Makenzie from her first month of life.