Cullen’s first letter
February 22nd, 2010I didn’t start Maddie’s letters until she was 4 months old. We were quite overwhelmed in those first few months. It would be interesting to see some of what I might have said in those letters. I thought I might as well start Cullen’s monthly letters from his first month.
Dear Cullen,
Welcome to the world, little boy! I can’t believe your are already a month old. Time has flown by faster than ever before. I’m happy to have two more months of maternity leave, but I’m also sad that it is going by too fast.
For months, I wondered how the labor was going to unfold. I was so surprised at how fast you arrived! I thank you for the quick delivery, though I didn’t have time to get the pain medication that I was hoping to get! It turned out to be better that way, so everything worked out nicely for both of us. I was so happy when I was able to hold you just after you were born. This was a very sweet moment for me.
You came into this world with an extremely healthy scream and didn’t let up for several minutes. We called you our little pterydactyl as your cry was very piercing and loud! From the first day, you reserved it for when you were in distress. You only cried when you were hungry or getting changed. You do not like getting your diaper or clothing changed! For the most part, you have continued to be very laid back. It’s been a very pleasant beginning. Thank you for being an easy baby so far!
Your arrival in this world made us a family of four. Your big sister Maddie is so proud of you and met you for the first time in the hospital. She wasn’t sure what to think of you at first and mostly ignored you for the first few days. Once she realized you were here to stay, she has really embraced big sisterhood. She loves holding you, giving you kisses, and says goodnight to you every night. She affectionately calls you “Cullen Man,” and when you cry she comforts you saying, “It’s ok, Cullen Man.” I am looking forward to seeing how you two will interact together. Seeing you two together already makes my heart happy. I know you will have many fights over the years, but I hope that you will become wonderful friends.
Your nights have been pretty good. You are sleeping in a bassinet co-sleeper which is attached to our bed like a sidecar. I love it. It’s nice having you so close to me. This arrangement makes it easy for me to pat you when you’re restless, retrieve your pacifier, and pick you up when you need to nurse or extra cuddles. At night, we have found that you sleep best when you are swaddled despite the fact that you hate not being able to move your arms and legs. Once you’re swaddled, I help calm you by laying you on your belly on my chest and rubbing your back. I’m then able to easily and gently place you into the bassinet.
You quickly became an efficient nurser. The pediatrician and lactation consultant noted that you were tongue tied in the hospital. Doctors, nurses, and lactation consultants were worried about how it would affect your nursing, so we had your tongue tie corrected when you were almost a week old. It’s hard to say how much of a difference it made, but the clipping didn’t seem to bother you. Your weight gain and diaper output seem to indicate that breastfeeding is going very well. You weighed 8 pounds, 10 ounces at birth. We had your weight checked when you were about 4 weeks old, and you already weighed 10 pounds, 7 ounces! Wow! You are a healthy boy!
We have already had an unwelcome first. We spent two days in the hospital after you vomited several times and had a fever. After calling the after hours nurse, she advised us to go directly to the children’s ER. Even though you had the lowest possible fever, they take fever in newborns very seriously. Shortly after we arrived at the hospital, they informed us that you would automatically be admitted for observation and testing for probably two days. It was a bit scary to take you to the hospital, and I didn’t like all the tests that they had to do. You let them know that you didn’t care for them either, though overall you took things quite well. It was so sad to see you hooked up to the many tubes and wires. I’m sure there has never been a cuter patient with your teeny hospital gown.
All of the tests at the hospital were negative for various infections as well as RSV. This was a huge relief. You became quite congested by the second day in the hospital. Your sister had had a runny nose for a few days, so we’re guessing you caught a cold from her. You were a couple days short of three weeks old when you started to get sick. It’s been about 10 days, and you’re still recovering. You’ve been a bit fussier than usual and have had a hard time sleeping at night. I’m hoping you’ll be completely better soon.
You have quite a case of baby acne. It doesn’t seem to bother you, but it looks pretty awful. I’m sure it will clear up soon. Your umbilical cord finally fell off a few days ago, though it left behind a little piece that we’re still trying to treat. We’re glad you now have a belly button! You are doing pretty well with your head control and will lift it when laying on your belly. We still need to support your head when holding you, but you’ll be holding it all by yourself in no time. You smile involuntarily, and I’m sure we’ll be treated to social smiles before your next letter. You sleep most of the day, but you have more and more periods of alertness each day. When you are alert, you often will gaze at faces and seem to enjoy looking at your Mommy. You’ve taken to the pacifier very well. We introduced it to you when you were in the hospital as it soothed you through the unpleasant tests. It was a little earlier than I wanted to give you the pacifier, but obviously it has not interfered with your nursing given your weight gains!
I’ve been taking photos of you every day. It’s my goal to have at least one photo of you from every day of your first year. I apologize in advance for the fact that not every day has great photos. It’s tricky to take photos every single day! It will be a little easier when you start smiling and sitting up and such. Right now there are only so many ways we can arrange you in a laying down or slightly propped position!
We are enjoying getting to know you. You have been a very sweet little boy. I’m sure your easy going nature will come in handy with handling your curious, chatterbox big sister. You are a very loved baby. I’m looking forward to seeing what the next few months will bring. I love you very, very much Cullen Man.
Love,
Mommy
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