My Sweet Newborn

As many of you know, I really struggled with Levi when he was a newborn. I mean now he is the world’s best toddler, but he has not always been like that. When he was born he pretty much just cried and slept. Sure I was grateful for the sleeping, but all the time he spent awake was pretty draining. On top of that Levi did not enjoy any type of hugs and snuggles. He would never sleep on my chest, and would only let me hold him if he was facing out. Levi rarely smiled, and I do not remember him laughing until he was around 6 months old. As you can imagine this extreme grumpiness would suck the energy out of any new first time mom. Eventually Levi got easier and became the sweet, smiley, and affectionate little boy that he is today, but I promise those characteristics came later. Because of this experience I have dreaded going back to those early months with any of our future children that was until Parker came along.

Since the first night Parker came into this world he has wanted nothing more than to snuggle with his mommy. Parker was born at 10:30 at night, and after a thirteen hour labor I was beyond exhausted. My mom spent that first night in the hospital with me, and she was going to stay up with Parker so that I could get some rest. Well shortly after I fell asleep Parker just flipped out and would not stop crying. My mom tried for a while to sooth him, but eventually caved and woke me up. As soon as I took Parker I lied him down on my chest and he immediately calmed down and fell fast asleep. My mom could not even believe it, all he needed that night was his mommy. I am so grateful that I was able to snuggle and sooth my sweet new baby that night. It instantly made me feel so loved and cherished.

The next day I had come home from the hospital and Morgan and my mom were taking care of Parker so that I could take a nap. He again started crying uncontrollably. Eventfully they decided he must be hungry so they came in and woke me up to feed him. I remember walking out into the living room, where they all were and I started talking. As soon as Parker heard my voice he instantly fell asleep. It was like all he needed was to hear the sound of his mom’s voice so that he could feel safe enough to close his eyes and fall asleep. Since Parker has been born he has always taken extra comfort to having his mom close by.

Parker has just been the sweetest newborn and I love him so much. I now see why people cherish the first year of a baby’s life so deeply.  Parker just loves to be held and cuddled all the time, which I don’t mind at all. I love that Parker gets so much fulfillment from being close to me. He will just lie on my shoulder and snuggle till he falls asleep, and he will sit on my lap for as long as I am willing to hold him. Sometimes I get up in the middle of the night to feed him, and I just get so over whelmed with his smiles and stares that I cannot help but stay up for an extra hour just so I can just look into his eyes, kiss his little neck, and soak in all his smiles. It is like for those few minutes I completely forget how tired I am. I just become so over whelmed with his love all I can do is just sit there in aww as I think about how perfect my sweet baby is. He is always happy and smiling and he just has the sweetest laugh that I have ever heard. He is just such a happy boy, who loves life. He just melts everyone’s heart with his smiles and dimples, and I cannot get over how much I am dreading him growing up. I wish I could keep him this age forever. I know I have said the word smiles a million times, but I just cannot get over how smiley he is. He pretty much always wears a smile.

It is amazing to me how different two babies can be. I know Levi loved me with all his heart, but when he was a newborn he did not have the best ways of showing it. Now that he is older he loves to give his little brother kisses and hugs all the time. He is honestly one of the

most affectionate little boys I have ever met. I am so grateful for all the time I have with my boys, and I am glad I get to be the one to help them experience their different stages. It is fun to see their little personalities as they grow and experience all the different parts of life. I am  loving this stage of my life, and I am just so grateful for the opportunity that Heavenly Father has given me to be a mother to such beautiful little spirits who I love more then I thought possible.