THREE MONTHS WITH TEDDY

Teddy turned three months on December 27 and it was so special to celebrate our first Christmas with him! He is just the light of our lives and it meant the world to share him with lots of our favorite people visiting. You can catch up on his birth story, my postpartum recovery, and his one month and two month updates here!

month cards  //  shawl collar onesie  //  cable knit booties

similar to Teddy’s hat  //  Teddy’s snowsuit  //  my hat  //  similar to my coat

It somehow feels like it’s been forever since I gave birth and yet like three months have gone by in the blink of an eye. I’m not proud to admit this, but I cried hard when it came time to pack up his newborn clothes and move them to the attic. How many times had I fastened the velcro on his sleep sack since bringing him home from the hospital? How and when had he grown tall enough for his toes to reach the bottom of it? My heart ached holding those first newborn outfits up to his three-month-old body. Was he seriously ever that little? Did I take enough photos and videos to remember each week by? Did I etch every detail of him as a newborn into my mind? I’m so afraid of forgetting a single expression, anticipating how much I will miss this phase years or even a couple months from now. I know there are so many firsts to look forward to, but oooof, the lasts have been harder than I imagined.

chairs  //  outfit details

I feel very lucky that breastfeeding continues to come naturally to both of us. My secret hope had been to make it to three months and now that we’re here I don’t feel ready to stop, so we’ll keep going as long as it’s a good fit for us. Earlier this month he was acting fussy while eating and I got nervous that he might have some form of reflux, but our pediatrician says he’s what they call a “happy spitter” (meaning he spits up after most meals but doesn’t appear to be in any discomfort) so we try to burp him often and won’t stress about it as long as he’s still gaining weight. He weighed in at 11 pounds, 15 ounces when we had him checked at eleven weeks so he’s on the small side but still growing! Thankfully the fussiness has died down and he typically eats for 7-8 minutes on each side. I look back on those hour-long breastfeeding sessions in the first few weeks of his life and am so grateful for the increased efficiency!

infant bathtub  //  whale rinser cup  //  gingham washcloth

Around eleven weeks, Teddy slept for seven hours straight for the first time and Will and I woke up feeling like we could run a marathon. We had been using the Moms on Call schedule as a guideline for a while (you can see what that looked like at one month and at two months), but your comments on this post helped me realize that the early bedtime wasn’t realistic for us and it was okay to tweak it to our schedule. Lately our days have been looking something like this:

  • Breastfeed around 7 a.m. (he’s been waking up between 7:00 and 7:15 like clockwork)
  • Breastfeed at 10 a.m.
  • Breastfeed at 1 p.m.
  • Breastfeed at 4 p.m.
  • Breastfeed at 7 p.m.
  • Bath at 9:30 p.m.
  • Breastfeed at 10 p.m. and put him to sleep

Some nights bathtime and bedtime are even later, but with Will’s commute and the holidays throwing us off our schedule, it is what it is for now. Most days we’re down to six feeds and up to an hour of playtime or at least awake time (in his bouncer, his carrier, or the stroller) after each daytime feed. Because he’s dropped the middle-of-the-night feed when Will used to give him a bottle and I would pump, I’ve been breastfeeding him at every feed and only pumping afterwards if Teddy’s too tired to fully drain each side. Ideally I’d love to be pumping more and building up our stores of frozen milk, but so far I haven’t managed to make that part of the daily routine. We’re just happy that Teddy is sleeping for longer stretches (usually with 1-2 visits a night to pop his pacifier back in) and eating well during the day, because I feel like those outcomes have more to do with luck than any extraordinary effort on our part.

jacquard onesie  // playmat  //  ring

pacifier  //  anchor onesie

shawl collar onesie (my current favorite of his!)

It’s pretty crazy how much more alert Teddy is now than he was a couple months ago and playtimes have become quite entertaining as a result. He is obsessed with being on his playmat (which has become my go-to baby gift), looking in the mirror, and batting at his jinglebell. This month we also introduced these rings and these maracas to work on his grasp and it’s amazing how much more naturally that skill comes after a few weeks of practice! He’s kind of boycotting tummy time right now (which makes me sad because he’s loved it since he came home from the hospital!) because I think he gets so much more stimulation playing on his back, but I continue to put him on his tummy to start to make sure he’s strengthening the muscles he’ll eventually need to roll over and crawl. We’ve been taking lots of videos during his playtime and saving them to my IG highlights if you want to take a peek!

Teddy’s smiles continue to be the highlight of my day and we’re still waiting for him to really start laughing on a regular basis (we’ve gotten a few giggles and oh my gosh, my heart!). His new thing is wanting to be held up in a standing position for as long as our arms can hold him — he gets SO excited and opens his mouth wide and starts moving his feet like he’s trying to walk on our laps. We keep joking that standing is life right now because he will be so cranky and then start smiling the second he’s propped up on his feet. I need to post a video because it is the cutest thing I’ve ever seen!

striped onesie  //  my striped shirt

striped onesie  //  striped bedding

shawl collar onesie (told you it was my favorite!)  //  cable knit booties

Several of my closest girlfriends have either delivered recently or have due dates in the near future and it makes me so happy to know I’ll have a sounding board for parenting stuff going forward. I definitely don’t have all the answers and I’ve learned so much from so many of you! I’ve come a long way since Teddy’s delivery and my postpartum recovery and I’m feeling eager to get into stronger physical shape in the new year. I continue to be blown away by how much I adore this baby boy and by how much better I feel than I did when we first brought him home, and I hope I can be a reminder that there are brighter days ahead for any of you who are in the thick of postpartum recovery right now. Do read the comments here and here if you could use a little encouragement!

Teddy had a blowout on Christmas Eve and this sweater was all we had in the diaper bag… and this is my mom keeping him busy drumming on an empty Nutella container ?

Teddy’s pajamas  //  Teddy’s tartan slippers  //  my pajamas  //  Will’s pajamas

Heading into the new year, I’m feeling extra grateful for this space to reflect and share this very precious new chapter. I know not all of you are in a similar phase of life and it means the world to me that you continue to show up here and cheer me on despite the shift in focus. I’m excited to share that we have some major house projects in the works for early 2020 and I appreciate you sticking around this ever-evolving space when my personal style has consisted exclusively of pajamas and unwashed hair these past few months. Thank you for reading here, commenting with your wisdom, sharing with your girlfriends, and cheering me on as I’ve navigated the ups and downs of life as a new mom. I’m wishing each and every one of you the very best in the new year!

P.S. More baby posts you might like:

Shop the post: