What a month we’ve had with this little guy!  Nugget has been working hard at growing and he’s doing a pretty good job of it, I have to say.  He’s so much bigger than he was just a month ago – it’s amazing – and more than that, every day he gets more interactive, more alert, and more fun.

The best thing to happen this month was the above – smiles!  Nugget blessed us with his first social smiles a few weeks ago and has kept them coming ever since.  I live for those smiles.  He’s happiest in the morning, much like his sister was as a baby (and still is now – they’re both morning people, it seems).  I pretty much spend the entire day trying to coax those big gummy baby grins out of Nugget.  Lucky me, he’s pretty generous with them – especially for me.  Still a mama’s boy.

He also loves his sister.  Peanut gets quite a few smiles out of Nugget, too.  She’s still crazy about him.  She loves to stroke his head gently, play “pat-a-cake” and “this little piggy” with him, and give him the sweetest hugs and kisses.  We have to occasionally remind her to be gentle with him, but she’s usually very good about keeping it calm.  Nugget finds her completely fascinating (as do we all) and it’s just a matter of time before he’s trailing after her everywhere she goes, worshipping the ground she walks on as only little brothers can.

We’ve been out and about quite a bit this month, thanks to me finally figuring out the Ergobaby carrier.  It’s a bit awkward to get into, but once we’re in Nugget is comfortable and cozy – so much so that he usually goes to sleep.  Nugget has been on three hikes this month (one on Mother’s Day, one midweek to Knox Farm, and one to Darien Lakes for our monthly hiking project – recap coming soon), he took a few long walks around East Aurora, and he visited the Curious George exhibit at the Buffalo Museum of Science.  Our neighborhood, unfortunately, is not the most walkable – there’s really only one route I feel comfortable taking the stroller, and it’s pretty boring, so we’re spending a lot of time looking for other places to play.  As Nugget gets more engaged by color and activity, I’m hoping to keep getting him out and about so he can start exploring his world.

It’s been a good month.  I’m more awake than I was a month ago – thanks in part to Nugget stretching out nighttime feedings and in part to just getting used to operating on a sleep deficit again.  I think we’re figuring out this whole two kids thing – there’s a bit of trial and error still, but we’re working through the kinks and our little unit is starting to run more smoothly.  And I’m a lot more confident even than I was a few weeks ago.  I’ve gotten used to using my own judgment with Nugget (and not relying on a team of medical professionals to tell me what to do, the way I did with Peanut).  We’re getting to know each other and I’m so grateful to have this time at home to bond with my little fella.

Nugget at 2 Months:

Weight: 10 lbs, 12 oz – big guy!  He’s packing on the pounds and ounces and turning into quite the adorable little butterball.  I love it!

Height: 22 inches cooperative.

Clothing Size: Officially in 0-3 month clothes and I’m actually not sure how long they’ll last.  I bought him some Circo onesies and they’re already looking a little short.  (Carters usually lasts the longest, since they seem to be cut for longer torsos.)  I’m currently trying to shop for Nugget’s summer clothes and bathing suits for our beach trip and I’m at a loss – I don’t know if I should buy 3 months or 6 months!

Sleep: I didn’t write about sleep last month because there was really nothing to say – there was no rhyme or reason to Nugget’s sleep cycles, but that’s to be expected with a newborn.  As he’s gotten bigger, though, he seems to be falling into a pattern of eating one final time just after we finish dinner, falling asleep in our arms on the couch (we put him in his crib on our way to bed) and then waking up one for a feeding between 1:30 and 4:30 (depending on what time he last ate).  I can take one middle-of-the-night wakeup; I think that’s pretty darn good.  His pediatrician is fine with the long stretch at this stage – Nugget is growing well and there’s no question he’s getting his meals when he wants them and eating plenty of food.  We’re all sleeping better as a result of this stretching; may it continue.

Likes: Still 100% obsessed with Mommy, and I’m loving it!  He also thinks his sister is pretty cool.  But don’t worry about Dad – he gets plenty of smiles, too.  Nugget is a happy little guy and seems pretty pleased with the family he’s found himself.  He’s also a huge fan of the art prints in his room, and one in particular – a crowd scene featuring a cluster of woodland animals.  (I’ll show you the print, and the other art items in his room, in the next nursery decorating update – soon, I promise.)  The print in question hangs over his changing table and he loves to gaze at it.  He usually doesn’t even mind diaper changes because he is so enthralled by his little forest buddies.

Dislikes: Baths, being hungry – typical newborn stuff still.  And I don’t know if I’d call these “dislikes,” but he is deeply ambivalent about his swing and the pacifier.  He’ll tolerate both if he’s in the mood to be accommodating, and even if he is, he has a short shelf life before he starts voicing his displeasure with being left in the swing or offered something to suck on that isn’t food (the nerve!).  Neither of my kids are/were big into pacifiers.  Peanut used them because she was a preemie, but she weaned herself from the paci at six months, as soon as she could find her thumb (she’s still a thumb sucker, but that doesn’t worry me).  Nugget, I think, will be rejecting the paci even earlier.  Fine by me – I’d just as soon have my kids wean themselves from the paci rather than force me to officiate elaborate parting ceremonies when they’re four years old.

Favorite Toys: Nugget is still a little young to really understand and play with toys, but he has developed a pretty adorable attachment to a stuffed panda that Peanut got from Grandma ages ago.  Peanut likes the panda too but fortunately she’s been decent about sharing.  I expect it’s the high contrast black and white that attracts Nugget.  He can lay on his blanket and coo at the panda for a good five minutes, which is basically an eternity for a newborn.

Milestones: The best milestone this month – I already mentioned it above – SMILES, my favorite!  Seriously, the first smiles are my biggest joy in the entire first year.  I’m pumped that Nugget smiled so early – more time for me to enjoy those sweet happy grins.  We also had a not-so-fun milestone this month, though: Nugget’s first sick visit to the pediatrician.  It took Peanut 15 months (once she was sprung from the NICU, that is) to need a sick visit to the pediatrician, but Nugget wasn’t so lucky.  Peanut brought a cold home from preschool and Nugget eventually caught it after it had been making the rounds of the house for several weeks.  He had it fairly light; I wouldn’t have called the doctor at all over his symptoms (a slight cough for a few days and a little bit of a runny nose) but for the fact that he was so young.  We ran a humidifier in his room, used the nasal aspirator before feedings, and he was back to normal after about a week.  It wasn’t fun for him, though – poor guy.

Quirks: Nugget earned himself a new nickname this month – “Snort.”  In addition to his puppy squeaks, which he is still doing, he’s added the cutest little snorts to his verbal repertoire.  If he wants to tell us something really important, it’s usually communicated via a medley of squeaks and snorts.  It’s ridiculously cute.

Happy two months, Nugget!  Thanks for joining our family!