Rhett's first month

Rhett has been such a blessing to our family. Rhett is our little surprise baby. When Caleb was 11 months old I thought I had a bad stomach bug, but was very surprised to find out I was pregnant. My whole pregnancy I was nervous about how I was going to handle two kids under two. I realize now that The Lord had it all planned out (like always). 

The minute we brought Rhett home I've been amazed at how much Caleb has matured (we still have plenty of meltdowns but he understands so much more). Rhett just fits in so well and I feel so blessed to have two healthy boys.

Side note ever since I was a teenager I told my mom that I was going to be a mom of boys (accurate so far) and that my brother would be blessed with girls (still waiting to see how that one turns out). 

Yes I'm a little outnumbered, but living on a farm is where these little boys can learn so many great life lessons. Life is not perfect at our house, but it sure is fun. 

Rhett is such a chill, go-with-the-flow baby. For that I am so grateful because c is " wild when awake ". Here is what he has been up to this first month: 

Weight- 11 lbs 6 oz.

Length- 22 inches at his 2 week appointment, not sure how long he is now.

  

Hair- a head full of dark brown hair. All that pregnancy heartburn paid off. 

 

Eye color- dark brownish blue I think he is going to inherit the Penn brown eyes .

 

Appearance- Rhett inherited his poppy Davis' flared nostrils. I see Daniel through his eyes. He has Caleb's pouty lips. I think he is built like the Penn's. He is much thinner through the legs than c ever was. 

Diapers-he moved to size 1 at two weeks old. 

Bath-Rhett likes his bath time especially getting his hair washed. Big brother laughs and enjoys helping. 

Paci- he is still not sold on it, but will take it when it's his only option.

 

Clothes- he wore newborns for one week and because of his length he is in 0-3 month clothes now. 

Sleep- he is very good at this. He is quite the napper. At first I worried because he was barely ever awake. His wake time is getting bigger now. 

Eat-Rhett is exclusively breastfed and nurses every 2-2.5hours during the day. He does not seem to eat as much as C did because he normally leaves milk behind with each feed. At night he has gone 5-6 hours a few times, but normally the longest he goes is 4-5 hours. 

Naps- he sleeps anywhere and everywhere and is very content doing it. The other night at the football game people were amazed that he snoozed through all the yelling and loud noises. 

Bed- he sleeps in the rock n sleeper beside our bed. I swaddle him at night mostly because he is so cold nature.

Outings- Rhett has been a pleasure to travel with so far.,He enjoys going outside with big brother too. This month we have taken Rhett to church multiple times, shopping, the fair, center valley, the doctor, the fire station when daddy's on shift, a football game, rides on the farm, and out to eat a few times. 

Baby Bjorn- Rhett enjoys riding in the baby backpack on my chest. This has been a lifesaver and helps me keep my hands free for C. This is how I sanely grocery shop with two boys too. 

Tummy time- Rhett is becoming more comfortable with tummy time. He is getting more control of his neck muscles and makes the funniest cross eyed looks. C loves laughing at his faces. 

Big Bubbie- Caleb is adjusting pretty well to having a little brother. We are still learning a lot about nice touches. If Bubbie is not around he says "Bubbie?" and throws his hands in the air. He loves his little brother and likes to help give him his paci and swing him in his baby swing. Sometimes he is even sweet and asks to hold him. I cannot wait to see how these boys grow closer and closer. I know we have our share of "disagreements" ahead, but wow they are blessed to have each other.

I will leave you with some pictures in honor of his First Month.

Rhett's birth story

I'm  going to try my hand at recording all of Rhett's first year milestones just like I did Caleb's. I know I have my work cut out for me since I have a very busy 1.5 year old to chase after..... So here goes nothing.

Let me start with Rhett's birth story. This is long and may be boring to some so scroll on down to pictures if you'd like. I'm so thankful I wrote Caleb's down because I've already forgotten so much.

When I was 39.5 weeks I went to see Dr. Nelson for my weekly appointment. He told me I was dilated to 3cm and almost 100% effaced. Let me remind you that I had been back to work teaching kindergartners for 3 days so I was absolutely exhausted. At my appointment  he asked if I wanted my membranes stripped to help speed things up. I very quickly agreed because I was ready to be  on leave. So he continued on. After my appointment my Braxton hicks contractions picked up, but nothing too painful. 

I did not feel great Thursday morning so I went ahead and missed school. All day Thursday I had steady Braxton hicks but nothing like I remember labor being like. My mother in law came and watched C so I could rest, but all I wanted to do was speed labor up so I swept, mopped, steamed the tile, caught up on laundry , and waddled two miles. After I walked I started getting some more intense contractions. I started timing the contractions and around midnight I told Daniel I thought we needed to go to the hospital because they were averaging about 4 minutes apart. 

We called in backup (the grandparents) to come watch C then off we went to have a baby...... Or at least that's what we thought. When we arrived to the hospital they monitored me for two hours and I had steady contractions (every 4 minutes) but was told I needed to leave because I was still at 3cm and apparently the pain I was feeling was not "active labor". I was told to wait until my next appointment with Nelson to see what happens which was a week away. I was heartbroken and hurting badly but we went back home very discouraged. 

When we returned home I labored for a few more hours then told Daniel it had to be time.

We were scared to go back to the hospital so Daniel called Dr. Nelson and he said come straight to the clinic so he could check me. At 8:30 am off we went to the clinic. I waddled in crying through each contraction. Dr. Nelson and his nurses were wonderful and worked us right in. I was a hot mess and just wanted to know what I was experiencing was the real deal. He checked me and said yep your every bit of 5 cm dilated and your water is very full. He said go straight to hospital I've already called and got you a room. Praise God!

We arrived at the hospital and got all situated. My amazing nurse checked me at 11:00 and I was dilated to 6cm. She asked if I wanted an epidural and I said yes mam. I got my epidural in around noon and was able to relax and get a little rest. Our second hospital visit was so much more enjoyable and everyone took great care of us. 

At 1:00 pm Dr. Nelson came by on his lunch break to check me and break my water. I was dilated to a 7/8 cm and he said he'd be back soon to start pushing. By 1:45 I started feeling some stronger pains with the contractions. I got scared that my epidural wore off and started crying. The nurse checked me and said I was at 9.5 cm. I had a small melt down, but my sweet husband was so encouraging. She said that pushing might actually make me feel less pain. I thought she was crazy, but was willing to try. 

We did a few test pushes with the nurses and she was exactly right. The pressure I was feeling helped me know when to push and I felt better after a few pushes. By 2:00 Dr. Nelson arrived and it was "go time". 

Dr. Nelson, my precious nurses, and my encouraging husband were all so supportive and made me feel like I could do anything. My contractions were long so I could get four sets of pushes in. That was very helpful. With Caleb, my contractions were never consistent even at the end so it was slow progress. This time was so much better, I'd push for a minute then have a small break then do it again. Dr. Nelson never had to use the vacuum or forceps. Daniel and I were so thankful. A little over an hour of pushing, I pushed one final time and Rhett entered this world.

 We did not know the gender so the first thing I heard was Daniel shout it's a boy and then I looked and he was radiating. I got some precious snuggles in with the baby then they took him to be weighed. I thought he looked so little but the nurses reassured me he was not small. The nurse shouted 8 lbs 10 ounces and I started laughing. My delivery was such a pleasurable experience this time. I'm so thankful God blessed me to be the mom of two sweet boys!