miller lee
.one month.

hat c/o | photography

our handsome little man is a whole month old {a couple days ago} and i have no clue where the past couple of weeks have gone. this tiny little boy has brought us more joy than i could possibly express in words and it doesn’t seem possible we’ve been a family of 5 for over four weeks.
in some ways it feels like we were just being discharged from the hospital and in others i can’t believe just how much mills has changed!

stats

8lbs. 10oz {birth: 8lb} | 23in. long {birth: 22in}
we actually don’t have a ‘one month’ apt with our pediatrician…the next time we see him after the 2 week apt is at the 2 month apt.. but we did manage to need a weight check, so we landed ourselves a visit late last week! all is good and homeboy gained almost an ounce per day last week!! woo woo!! #heavycreamforthewin
we absolutely adore our ped and dr. e was so pleased with all of his progress! i’m still waiting around for the baby chunk to come and holding out hope we’ll have some rolls here soon…but, he seems to be following in line with his sisters in the skinny department.

sleep

this sweet boy is thankfully doing great in this department and is just starting to get out of that sleepy newborn phase. he is starting to be awake for about 30 minutes after feedings and then will nap on and off until his next feeding.  at night, he eats between 7 and 8pm and then sleeps until his next feeding between 10-11.  one thing we have done differently this time around is that we have miller sleeping in our room. the girls came right home from the hospital and immediately we had them in their cribs.  right about that time was when the american academy of pediatrics came out recommending ‘room sharing’ to decrease the risk of SIDS by nearly 50%.  our room is small and we just don’t have enough room to have a bassinet next to the bed.

swaddle c/o | dockAtot c/o

enter the dockAtot .

i honestly don’t know how i survived twins without this thing. while i don’t think it’s a ‘miracle worker’ to get your babe to sleep… it has made our lives so much easier throughout the day and night! after talking with a pediatrician in our office, we made the decision to co-sleep with miller in the dockAtot  in between us.  we make sure no blankets or pillows invade his space and it makes life 100x easier to nurse or check on him at any point.  **if i am too tired to safely nurse him in bed {which has happened} and think i might fall asleep, i will get out of bed to nurse him in his room in the rocker… i’m a nut about safe sleep and one of my biggest fears is falling asleep and jeopardizing his safety.**

the dockAtot is a multi-functional lounger, co-sleeper and playtime lounger, providing a separate sleeping surface that is tested for breathability. i was a little skeptical at first but when i shoved my face into the sides and found i could still breathe, i was excited to try the deluxe {made for babes 0-8 months} as our sleeping option.
we actually brought our dockAtot down to florida with us and it made traveling with an infant SO much easier!! no cribs, bassinets or extra space that is taken which is a hot commodity in our family.
**side note.. i use this throughout the house when it’s time for mills to nap or if i just need a safe space for him to lounge…you know, toddlers {x2}…serious lifesaver.

click this link {here} to receive $10 off any dock!

shirt

eat

this has been totally new territory for me… i had to exclusively pump for the first two weeks with the girls because they were being fed through IVs and then NG tubes. with mills, however,  we were able to do skin to skin in the operating room and get him latched on almost immediately.  we got him back on in recovery and then again 3 hours later in NICU.  i was determined to exclusively breastfeed him and hallelujah, we’re doing pretty good! he latched on right away and had such a strong suck {and not the best form} that he caused some damage. we worked with the OT, lactation consultant and doctors to get it worked out. we still have some work to do, but we’re using  a nipple shield and getting better day by day!
miller eats about every 2.5-3 hours, but we’ve been practicing the whole on-demand feeding thing…also new territory for me.  the girls came home on a strict schedule of eating every 3 hours and we kept with it so they could gain the weight they needed. if they were sleeping, we’d wake and never ever did we mess with it. on-demand feeding has brought a whole new dimension to nursing and really, i’ve enjoyed the bit of freedom that has come with it! miller tends to eat a really big breakfast between 7-8, and then will eat every 3-3.5 hours during the first part of the day, then starts to cluster feed towards the end of the day, eating every 2-2.5 hours.  through the night he’s eating about every 3 hours pretty consistently but every once in awhile we’ll get a 4 hour stretch!

play

there hasn’t been much ‘play’ yet, unless of course you count the toys, rattles and random objects that get thrown at him by the big sisters.  we’ve started working on some tummy time and buddy has some s t r o n g muscles.  he can wing himself off a shoulder faster than you can blink and hold his head up while being walked around or on his tummy.  he has started recognizing familiar voices and looked at me the other day and i think he ‘saw me’ for the first time…boy was he shocked, ha!

miller lee

miller, goodness gracious you couldn’t be more perfect. you are the sweetest addition to our crazy zoo and i simply can’t imagine life without you.  you are such a ray of sunshine and are the most laid back baby i’ve ever met…unless of course, you’re hungry.  you love to snuggle, but you’re happy to bet set down and wait patiently while your sisters demand attention.  you will never know personal space and will probably be the most tolerant human being on the planet after everything you put up with.  you’re sweet as pie and i can’t stop kissing you every chance i get.
your big sisters love you with their entire being and are so proud to show you off to anyone who will lend an ear. you will always, always have two big girls who have your back and i know it will be reciprocated.
you have the sweetest little cry in the entire world and really only save it for when you’re starving.  you talk and coo and grunt when you first start to get hungry and i have to say it’s my favorite sound to date.
you have the most perfect little facial features, those kissable pouty lips that make the cutest ‘o’ when you look concerned..that tiny button nose that looks just like your sisters’…and those fingers + toes, bub.  you have so much of ducky in you and literally anyone who catches a glimpse will comment on your hands and feet… i can’t wait to see where it takes you someday.
buddy, you complete our family and i couldn’t be more smitten over you.  your daddy and i love you more than you’ll ever know and you’ve simply made our lives whole.  you’re the perfect addition to our goofy circus and i just can’t wait to watch you grow…except i can, so don’t do it too fast 🙂
i love you with my whole heart, mills.

a special thank you to dockAtot for providing the dockAtot deluxe in exchange for an honest review.  as always, opinions expressed are 100% my own!

photo dump