"Train Up a Child....."

Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

Yesterday was an exciting day for Brent and I as parents.  We were able to dedicate our sweet Dawson to the Lord in our Sunday morning service.  We knew from day one that Dawson is a gift that God has entrusted us with and that it is our job as his parents to "train" him in the right ways.  We are so thankful to be blessed with a Godly family, and we wish to give Dawson the same. 

Dawson,

Mommy and Daddy love you more than words can describe!  Each day brings us more love for you and more desire to raise you as best we can.  You have changed our hearts, our way of thinking, and our view of true love.  You don't know this now, but one day you will understand why we took you up in front of the whole church all snazzied up!   Yesterday, in front of your family and church family, we committed to raising you the way God has intended.  We can only pray that you will learn from our actions and see that we are committed to this goal . You are a blessing from God and it is our job as your parents to lead you in His ways so that one day you can be a Godly man like the generations before you in your family.  We will pray for you, instruct you and love you until the day we die.  You are such a little treasure and we are forever grateful that God chose us to be your parents!

Love,
Mommy and Daddy

 

 

From The Heart....My thoughts on motherhood lately!

The day I became pregnant was probably one of the most exciting days of my life!  I had looked forward to this day for so long and couldn't believe it was finally here. We had prayed for the right timing to become parents and were so excited when God blessed us with that positive pregnancy test!

From that moment on we began talking about how we would raise our child.  What parenting strategy would we use?  I love order and hate chaos...so I knew that I wanted to have some order to my days if at all possible.  We talked about bed times, feedings, where baby would sleep, good habits to maintain bad habits to avoid....etc.  I was set in my mind how this baby "would" be.  Well over the months of pregnancy I became so convinced that if I followed "parenting resources" I would have a happy sleeping baby.  Fast forward a few months to June and our lives forever changed when our little blessing was born!  Dawson Job Little stole my heart at 11:13 p.m. on June 3, 2013! 

From the moment he entered our world I knew my game plan.  We got home and the first week was very relaxed feeding every two hours and sleeping whenever little man decided it was nap time.  Week two we started our game plan.  Our goal was to get him into a routine of eat, play, sleep in order to straighten out his days and nights.  At night we would only feed him once he woke up.  This still usually happened around every 2-4 hours at that time.  Our goal was to "teach" him to sleep through the night early on by repeating this routine daily.  Well little did we know our sweet boy would suffer reflux, and milk protein allergy.  Once week three hit all of his symptoms exploded!  Arching back for feedings....screaming all day...waking out of nowhere in tummy pain.  It was pitiful and I did not know what to do!  I had told myself I wouldn't let Dawson get used to sleeping on mommy and wanted him in a bassinet or crib when sleeping at night.  I started out opposed to letting him sleep on me, but once I knew my baby was in pain and could only be comforted sleeping on mommy I gave in.  Due to the way I had "planned" everything I started to get frustrated thinking that I would have a baby sleeping on my chest every night in a recliner. Once we got his problems straightened out I started putting him back to bed in his room. It was so tiring the frequent waking...the small naps...all I could think was ...What am I doing wrong?  Isn't he supposed to find a pattern?  Once Dawson reached a certain aged I was determined to have him sleeping without waking every few hours.  Each night that it did not happen I would wake in frustration wondering why my "plan" wasn't working.  I began going to bed at night dreading what was to come.  When would he cry out? When will I ever get to sleep at night?  Then the next day would be filled with please nap so I can do some housework...etc.  (Looking back ...babies know if you are frustrated!)  One day in tears I began thinking....why am I so frustrated?  Didn't I know babies wake up at night.  Well yes, I did...but I had gotten a "magic number" stuck in my head of when he should start sleeping through the night.  The more I thought through things the more I became down right convicted....not just upset...CONVICTED!  I thought all the way back to Adam and Eve....I thought back to my grandmother....I thought back to my mom....when all of the sudden did a mom need to "plan" so much....when did all babies become so alike that a number could be put on when they would sleep through the night???  I started to think of how much of a unique creation my Dawson is from God.  I started to cry thinking of the nights I wasted worrying about him sleeping instead of holding him and cherishing that time with him in my arms.  Do I have a routine daily...of course....do I have nap times and play times...of course, but if they don't lead to my baby sleeping through the night does that mean I failed?  Well, at first I started to feel that way....but the more I genuinely thought about it the more I realized that...NO...I haven't failed....I have become more aware of my little boy and his personality and needs.  I have learned that he is so unique and he is an individual.  I have learned that this is the most precious gift I could have ever been given and to ignore that for an extra hour or two of sleep is down right selfish of me!   I love having a routine during the daytime and some nights it really helps and Dawson truly knows when it is bedtime.  We have been blessed with such an animated spirited baby.  I love his giggles, his smiles and his silly faces he makes.  He is growing so quickly and I want to cherish every moment of being his mom!  I am so blessed to even be a mom and I don't want to let a few missed naps and nightwakings make me forget how wonderful it is to be Dawson's mom.  I am at peace with the fact that it could be much longer than I had anticipated for me to get back to sleeping in a normal 7-8 hour routine....I am ok with not getting all of my housework done or going "out on the town".  For this short precious time my job is  to be Brent's wife and Dawson's mom.  For those working moms...WOW...I do not know how you do it!  As far as being a stay at home mom...I couldn't love it more!  Yes...some days I wish it were easier to get things done or go out and about, but I look at the big picture and see how fast this time is flying by and realize its only for a short time.  I don't want to miss one moment of my babies life!  So from here on out I choose to go with the flow and love my baby for who HE is and not what I had "planned" on him doing. 

Love my baby boy!

Lastly I wanted to leave a video that really touched my heart lately.  Sleeping and schedules are so small compared to many peoples problems.  I recently was reading a blog of a girl who goes to Summit Church in Durham who gave birth to a stillborn daughter this past spring.  WOW...I thought how can I get so frustrated when God allowed me to give birth and keep my baby here with me on earth!  There are so many people out there who only wish to be awake at night with their baby and going through the ups and downs of parenting.  I am so thankful that I get the chance to do this! 

Grab a box of tissues!

 

 

 

 

Dawson's 1st Family Vacation

Every year the Little side of the family gets together and ventures out on "Family Vacation".  We usually choose a lake in NC to meet at and stay all together in one big house.  If you know me and my nature at all...I over think EVERYTHING!!!!  Upon Dawson's pending arrival I was so nervous about taking my little tiny newborn on family vacation.  What kind of baby would he be...fussy,content...etc.  Then how will he be sleeping by then?!?  As a first time mom I was just so uneasy about being out of my comfort zone...which is home for me at this point.  We all agreed as a family that we would wait until mid to late August to give Dawson some time to adjust to the world and settle into a routine.  Now when you think family vacation most people think Mom, Dad ,baby etc....Nope this is not at all how we do vacation.  They are adventurous and not for anyone who does not love family/children!  We have Nana, Papa, 3 brothers and their wives and....get ready...a 3 month old, 10 month old, twin 1 yr olds, twin 2 year olds, a 4 year old, 8 year old and 10 year old!!! YES , all of us stay together!  Dawson did so well to be shared by so many people.  The first night he was a bit fussy and refused to nurse...I think he was a little overstimulation from his cousins wanting to love on him as soon as we got there.  The rest of the trip he did so well...of course his naps were a little off, but honestly his night time sleep was the best it had ever been!  Oh the irony....as soon as we got home that flew out the window...we are still working on that and getting into a good rhythm...but we got slammed with a cold and wicked 3 month growthspurt when we returned. 

Being so young, Dawson and I didn't do too many activities.  We mostly sat under the shelter at the dock and watched everyone swim and splash.  BUT my little guy did get to ride Papa's boat a few times!  I was (new mom remember) super nervous about him doing this....what if he gets too upset...what if he poops...what if he gets hungry...what if the boat breaks down (my normal worrisome self) but we ventured on and I knew he would be fine.  The first time on the boat he cried some....not because of the ride, but because of the life jacket. Once we got moving he would relax and sleep the rest of the time!  Of course, as Dawson does in the car, he would wake anytime we stopped.  I think next year he will love it!  We also tried out swimming, but he was not having any of that...understandable ...the lake was chilly, plus sun in eyes, plus life jacket...makes no fun for a 12 week old baby!  Next year I hope he loves it and plays and splashes away! 

First Boat Ride (please excuse our appearance)

 

All in all I would say Dawson did well and was a trooper on his first "Little" family vacation.  I am so thankful I have such a sweet little man that we can make many memories with for years to come!

3 Months Old!

I cannot believe that my baby boy is 3 months already!  Where is this time going to? Dawson you are such a big boy already!  I cannot stand how fast you are trying to grow up.  He has started changing so much this month already.  We are guessing he is somewhere around 13 1/2 lb to 14 lb this month and still a little over 24'' long ! What a big boy we have on our hands!  He has still been eating around 4.5 oz every 3 hours , but the past few days has been literally screaming for more! So needless to say he nurses with fury and if I make a bottle he will take 5-5.5oz easily!  As far as his schedule goes, he has got it down!  Eat, play, sleep he knows his cues and lets us know when he is done with each cycle with a little grunting!  As for playtime my boy is so much fun these days!  He loves to stand up and sit up. I think if we would let him he would try to stand on his own. He has been fussing lately until someone will assist him standing. No more newborn holding for him ... He wants to see the world around him!  He loves to watch Mickey Mouse clubhouse while I do chores or get ready in the mornings ( seriously the only show he will sit through). Once he's had enough tv he plays on his floor gym, then we usually try out the bumbo or standing before he's ready to nap. He is super vocal these days cooing and giggling ! It makes my heart melt to hear him talk to me :) 

As far as sleeping ... Well Dawson has been so unpredictable since birth! I guess you could say the one consistency is inconsistency hahaa!  His naps have gotten much better for the last few weeks and I can usually count on a 2 hour morning nap and 3 more naps that range from 45 minutes to 1.5hours . Night time is still a guessing game!  He has slept through the nights a few times but still has a few nights he will wake up starving here and there.... If its not hunger he wants his paci or has a super wet diaper soaking through.... We've been letting him cry it out some and he will put himself to sleep after 5-10 minutes and I will go pat his bottom to settle him and he drifts to sleep quickly most nights.... It is the soothing during the night that is not as easy for him .... Some nights the cry/paci work but others nothing at all works .  Those nights it is usually true hunger, a wet diaper or tummy ache!  Hopefully soon he will find a rhythm!  

Our sweet baby has a contagious smile and I would not trade him for the world!  To have had the reflux, dairy allergy,and tummy troubles he has had he is a great baby!  He is usually super happy during his wake time and just loves to interact with the world.  Dawson another month has come and we love you more each day!!!