Grady is 3 Months Old!

Grady turned 3 months old on Jan 30th, and I am just now getting around to giving an update on him. Geez. Haha.

It's been quite the month! He got RSV right at the beginning of it, which was terrifying in such a small baby. He is all healthy and good now, thankfully.

As far as "stats", this is not a go to the doctor month but I weighed and measured him at Havens to get a rough idea. He weighs around 13 lbs and was about 24 & 1/2" long. He continues to be long and lean, with not a ton of fat rolls.

He dropped his middle of the night feeding about two weeks ago. So our typical sleep pattern is go to sleep around 6:30-7, I wake him to feed him around 8:30-9 and then he sleeps until 5:30am. It's kinda early but works well for my morning schedule so I will take it! Now, Griffins sleep got all crazy with his 4 month "sleep regression" so we will see if our pattern lasts.

He sleeps in his crib in a Velcro swaddle. He loves to be swaddled. For his naps at home now we swaddle him in a blanket and he just drifts to sleep happy as a lark. He is a mover at night now. He scoots himself all the way down his crib until he is kicking the end. He scoots sideways sometimes too. Every time I wake up and look in the monitor I am never sure what I will see. Ha!

He definitely does not spit up as much as Griffin did, but he is spitting up some after every feeding. He also spits up every single time you put him in the car seat.

This month he started really being expressive and having excited faces etc when you start talking to him. Griffin gets the biggest smiles every time he gets close. Maybe because he is smaller? I don't know, but it makes Griffin so happy.

He loves to lay on his back and kick those legs still. It's his favorite place to be.

The biggest change this month was me going back to work and Grady starting daycare. The first week was a rough one. He wasn't napping bc it was loud and they were not swaddling him, so he was getting over tired and fussy. They thought that meant he was hungry and told me every day I wasn't sending enough milk. Well I was sending all I was pumping, so that stressed me out. Ahh!! After that first week, he started napping there and "suddenly" they said he seemed content with the amount of milk I was sending. Ha. Whatever. Now we are in a groove and doing pretty well. There are only two actual babies in his class, all the rest are toddlers. Grady is the youngest. The only downfall is he is exhausted when he gets home and basically only stays awake for like 30-45 min after we get home. Then he sleeps all night. So we don't see a ton of him while he is awake during the week.

He started noticing the fan or toys dangling this month. He cracks up if Daddy makes him hit the toys on his bouncer and they start swinging. Too cute.

Griffin is still smitten with him, and it is looking like the feeling is gonna be mutual. I am so thankful for that.

Here are some pictures from the last month with Grady :-)
























































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Seasons... Be all There

Something I read from the Living Proof Ministries Blog that I needed to hear and remember and try to live right now (and maybe you do too):

"WHEREVER YOU ARE, BE ALL THERE. This is what God is showing me because in the busyness of life I can easily lose focus. Don’t be longing for another season and miss what’s going on around you now. This deception is one of the biggest lies of the enemy of our souls; the distraction and discontentment with where we are today. Embrace your season: SEASON – SAVOR EVERY AVAILABLE SENT OPPORTUNITY NOW! Some are more enjoyable than others, sure they are! Just as changes in seasons bring mosquitoes in summer or storms in winter, there are extremes in our lives. Some of you empty nesters may suddenly find yourself caring for both your grandchildren and aging parents. Some of you young women may be longing for marriage. Some of you stay at home moms or single moms may have to go into the workforce for a season to pay the bills. If our entire lives were one continuous season we wouldn’t have the changes we desperately need to help us grow. As much as I love to garden, if every day were spring or summer, I wouldn’t have autumn to harvest, or winter to dream and plan.....

 Embrace whatever season you are in now. RIGHT NOW. Don’t long for another season. I know the days may be long, but at my age, the years seem so short. So wherever you are, be all there. Because of Jesus, one day we will be “SEASONED TO PERFECTION” and live with Christ for eternity. Let’s get there one day at a time and savor our seasons as God wills. Because He has made everything beautiful in its time. (Ecclesiastes 3:11)."

I feel like all of us are always longing for the next season. Satan tricks us into thinking the next season will be easier/better/happier/more abundant/etc... and we miss out on the beauty of the season we are in right now. Sure it may be hard. They all are. Life is hard because we live in a fallen (sinful) world. Period. We may look around and think we are the only ones struggling, but we aren't. All are struggling in some way. Its the reality of sin. But Praise Jesus that we have a hope and a future because of His sacrifice.

Just a reminder today.

(read Jan's whole post here)

 

Getting In the Word this Year

It's a new year, and that usually means everyone sets out with lofty goals they desperately want to implement in their lives. And I hope all of you accomplish that. Seriously, even if you only last a month something is better than nothing right? Better to aim and fail than not aim at all.

Anyhow, often one big goal is to be in the Word more (at least for Christians). So I thought I would share what my quiet times are consisting of these days, in case it helps you to be in the word more as well.

In October I picked up a Jesus Calling devotional. I have heard so many people rave about how good it is, and I needed something short but good to focus me at the end of pregnancy. I am so glad I did. She has written the short devotionals for each day as if Jesus is speaking directly to you. So instead of it reading "we should focus on Jesus..." it says "you should focus on Me my child." Such a small shift that makes a big impact. I really recommend it. Even if you just have it on hand for days when you know you can't do your longer study or something.

So currently, I start with Jesus Calling. It has usually two or three passages at the bottom that the day is taken from, so I read those scriptures next. Almost always one of them is something I really need to meditate on, so I will rewrite it in my journal and just pray through it.

Then I journal some prayers. I have never been great at journaling, but in September a friend gave me a journal as a sweet gift out of the blue. That motivated me to use it so the gift wouldn't be wasted, and now it's turned into a habit. Yay! My journaling sometimes is long complete sentences. Sometimes it's phrases or single words about what I am praying for bc I don't have time to write the whole thing, so I pray in my head which is much faster.

As of Jan 1st I also added two more elements to my time: scripture memory and gratitude for the day. I have tried to be good at memorizing several times then given up. But I am gonna try once again. So I signed up to do the challenge with Beth Moores blog. You commit to memorize two scriptures a month. It seemed doable to me. So I write my verse each morning in my journal, then look it up to check my work.

After that, I add to my gratitude list. I am just keeping a running list of things I am thankful for. No certain number a day, just as many as I can identify in whatever time frame I have. I am doing this to try to cultivate a heart of gratefulness and the ability to see God's hand all around me. (Great book about that is 1,000 gifts by Ann Voskamp)











So though it sounds long, all of this can be 5 minutes in the morning, or an hour. It's flexible and that's what's working for me right now. I am just not in a stage of life where I can do a long workbook study or something. And in the past I have let that keep me from digging in, bc I didn't feel like it was enough. But the Word of God is powerful. Anytime spent with Him will change you. Period. Something is better than nothing.

I am also going to try a new bible reading plan this year, but take my time with it (so I don't think I'll finish it in a year or maybe even two). It's where you read each book of the bible 20 times. Yep, 20 times. To really let it get in your heart and mind. Find out more about that here: http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/how-to-change-your-mind1#When:08:01:00Z (you will have to copy and paste bc my phone doesn't let me do hyperlinks).

Two other great resources you may want to check out are:
- shereadstruth.com : they will email you a short bible study each day, or you can download the app or even order a hard copy of you prefer. Their studies are great.

- doorposts.com : they have several Bible Studies for Busy Mamas in their shop. And they are designed to take 5-10 minutes a day. I did the Colossians 3 one and it was soooo good! Try them out.

So what are you doing this year to get in the Word? Share your ideas in the comments to help others get ideas!

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Grady Pate is 2 months old!

Grady turned 2 months old last Tuesday, and decided to celebrate by getting RSV. :-( Luckily he is much better this week! Praise the Lord!

Some info on Grady at this stage:

- He is long. He is in the 76%tile for length! Ha.

- He is skinny. He doesn't really have any fat rolls, ha. I think he is in the 30ish%tile for weight.

- He started smiling and making excited faces this month. I love love love when they can get excited back when you talk to them. So cute!

- He started hard core kicking legs and moving arms on purpose. He loves to lay on his back and kick his legs like he is running a marathon.

- This kid is a stretcher! When you pick him up he immediately does the "c stretch", which is when he puts his head and arms back, arches his back and basically forms a c. Too cute. He is also a grunter! He is always grunting and making noises. Especially when you lay him down.

- He is not spitting up as much. For a few weeks we thought he was gonna follow in Griffins steps and spit up all the time. Thankfully it has lessened quite a bit now! I stopped eating dairy bc it was making him really gassy and unhappy, and I think that helped.

- He is usually sleeping 5 hr then 3hr now. He has done a few 7 Hr stretches now too. He goes right back to sleep usually so the night feedings don't really bother me.

- He is in 0-3 month clothing and filling the length out well now. He is long and skinny right now :-)

- He is sleeping in his crib now (well he was until RSV hit). I am swaddling him.

- Griffin is still loving him and loving on him. He has started trying to hit him or squeeze him etc when he has gotten in trouble, as a way to act out. It's to be expected I suppose. But he is still over the moon for Grady and always wants him near him.

- Grady is generally a really content baby. He loves to lay on the floor and kick his legs and chill.

- He loves to take naps on his belly.

- He has lost a lot of his hair :-( He still has a thick patch on his lower head/neck and it looks like a mullet. Ha!

- He took his first bottle with no problem! Griffin did the honors.




























































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Daddy, Will you play with me?

I have heard this question a bazillion times over the last week. And I have to give a shout out to Mr.Pate for being such a great daddy and always saying yes! It has been sooo helpful during this past week when I have been sick, exhausted, had a sick baby, or been totally over three year old fits. Thank you for being amazing babe! We love you!















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