Bridger's 5th Week

 

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Our little guy had a cute week once again. He has big plans for this weekend! 

Intentionality

While I was pregnant, I saw this image on Pinterest and it struck me in a big way. Those 940 Saturdays and the other six days of the week are going to go by so fast and I want to soak up every single moment with Bridger. I want to do my absolute best to remember all the moments, big and small. That is the intention of this blog- to remember. I also want to keep a constant reminder of my goal to be very intentional with the time we spend as a family and to seek out ways to help Bridger experience the world and to cultivate his passions and interests. In our five weeks as parents we have set out to share our time together, especially our weekends when we get uninterrupted time together in a way that makes us feel content when we end those weekends on Sunday nights. 

Additionally, writing has always been a creative outlet for me and now I have the perfect inspiration and muse in my son. 

To get started I want to share a recap of our previous weekend...

I had a very easy and enjoyable pregnancy but Bridger was in a frank breech position beginning way back at 24 weeks pregnant. We attempted a manual version once I was 37 weeks pregnant to try to manipulate his position to being head down but it was unsuccessful. Because of this I had a scheduled c-section on Monday, December 28th- his birthday. A risk of him being breech for so long was that his hips may not form correctly. When we were seeking out a pediatrician to care for our baby boy we were told that he would have to have an ultrasound done on his hips between one and two months of age. There was a possibility that he would have to wear a brace if the ultrasound revealed that his hips were disjointed in some way. 

Our weekend got started with his ultrasound appointment at the Children's Hospital which thank god, is designed very elaborately with every detail carefully thought out, as a castle. I fully realize that the castle is meant to calm children that have to visit the hospital but it greatly helped calm me as I carried my tiny one-month old through the front doors. Bridger was obviously blissfully unaware of the fact that he was in the hospital but I became quite emotional and nervous about what the ultrasound might reveal of my beautiful baby. 

We received a call from the nurse yesterday that his ultrasound had come back normal and his hips had formed correctly despite the fact that he was folded in half for almost half of the pregnancy. We were so relieved and once again I felt very grateful for the wonderful healthcare we have received during my pregnancy and in Bridger's first month of life. Our appointment last Friday was only fifteen minutes long and still took a lot out of me. I can't imagine being there as a parent for anything more serious and am in awe of parents who have to be brave for their children who might be facing a very serious illness or injury. The castle is definitely not just for kids, but for their parents, siblings, visitors and probably even the doctors and nurses feel comforted as they try to keep their patients safe and healthy. 

As new parents, we felt really proud of our Saturday. I met my wonderful friend, Kirsten, for a coffee date while Adam stayed at home with Bridger. Then we switched and Adam had lunch with one of his oldest friends, Paul. Later that evening we headed over to Adam's mom's house to have dinner with her and Adam's sister, Amanda. 

Sunday was big day for seeing just how much we could do with a sleepy newborn. We ventured out to M.B. Hackett for a delicious brunch and what felt like a gallon of coffee. We were seated next to a woman and her 19-month-old little girl. Luckily we had Bridger with us, otherwise we would have been completely ignored by the adorable little girl. But since we were graced with his presence she immediately noted that there was a baby seated next to her and she talked to him quite a bit and wanted to share her water and receipt with "baby." 

It was such a crazy thing to see a baby, who really isn't a baby, and know how quickly our little guy won't be so little. Even things like her hands seemed gigantic and I spent the rest of the day kissing Bridger's little fingers. 

Her mom asked us the typical questions like how old he was, his name, and how we were doing as new parents. This is something that Adam and I have greatly appreciated in the last five weeks. As soon as Bridger entered the world on December 28th at 9:39 a.m. we entered into a fraternity of fellow parents. New parents and more seasoned parents now seem to seek us out to share advice and simple musings about sharing everything in life with a tiny little person. 

This little man slept through our crepes and coffee like a champ

Harmon was our first baby and we have tried to help him feel that way despite our attention being pulled to his baby human brother pretty much constantly. So when we got home from our brunch date I took Harmon out for a long walk and we soaked in all the sunshine that now has quickly fleeted away. These dog walks have been perfect because Harmon gets quality time with me especially since its been hard to give him ample attention when my arms are usually full of Bridger all day. 

Everyday we get to see our baby become more aware of us and of his world and he is getting happier and happier. Witnessing someone's first expressions of joy is my new favorite thing ever. 

In the past couple years, I have become incredibly grateful for the lifelong friendships I have been blessed with. Now having a baby, I am even more in awe of the women that have graced my life. I was in love with this little boy well before I met him and so many of my best friends felt that way about him too. On Sunday Mr. Bridger wore an adorable outfit decked out in whales from my friend Molly. She gave me this outfit earlier this previous fall and it seemed gigantic at the time and now he fills out all 0-3 months of it perfectly. My friend Kirsten made him a gorgeous blanket and yesterday it was his mat for tummy time. I love putting him on blankets made by important people because then I can tell him all about that person while he is flexing his super-strong neck muscles. 
     

This fifth week is going wonderfully and I am trying to stay as present in every moment as I can despite my meltdown on Sunday evening about only having four weeks left of maternity leave. Being upset about that time going by too fast isn't going to help anything so hopefully I can go back to work and think about all the wonderful little moments we have shared and will continue to share. Plus I will have literally thousands of pictures of him to look at in my office.