Carter, Carter's progress, HUNTER, CARTER & CHLOE CARTER: MONTH 0-1 PROGRESS 6 September 2012

Happy 1 month Birthday, Carter!

OH HAI

 

Has one month flown by already?! Life as a family of four has been splendid, exhausting, and everything in between πŸ˜‰ It’s been particularly fascinating watching Carter grow, and seeing how he is similar to and differs from Hunter. I’ve actually forgotten what Hunter was like at this age, so I had to read back on my old blog entries to jolt my memory…

The best word to sum up Carter? Feisty!Β 

Our little firecracker sure keeps us on our toes! He is definitely more vocal in his opinions than Hunter was, and certainly louder. If he decides he wants a cuddle or a feed, he gets a cuddle or a feed – PRONTO.Β If not, all hell breaks loose and he can shout the roof off! We cut him some slack though, because being a second child, you really gotta have your say or you’ll be so easily ignored…!

Carter weighs in at 5.3+KG which means he’s stacked on a lot of weight considering he was only 3.7KG at birth a month ago. I suppose my breastmilk must be really fatty πŸ˜‰
 

  • EATING – Carter is 100% breastfed.Β Unbelievably, I was only sore for the first 1.5 weeks, so I really enjoy breastfeeding early-on this time around. I do have horrific oversupply and overactive let-down, so I struggle with that on a daily basis. It’s worse for Carter, who splutters and chokes at every single feed. This makes him pretty pissed off, so he’s often kicking and punching and shouting at me at the start of every feed (mainly at night, because he’s half-asleep and doesn’t appreciate it).
    He breastfeeds about 9-10 times a day… zzzz…! Fortunately, he goes about 3.5-4.5 hour stretches at night.. but then he feeds more frequently when I’m awake during the day.
Mr chubby cheeks all filled up on boob milk

 

  • SLEEPING – the really odd thing is that Carter was born with some sort of innate distinction between day and night. From the day he was born, he would sleep really really soundly through the night.. and just shuffle around when he starts getting hungry. Yet, during the day, he’s awake quite a bit and drifts in and out of little naps. He is put to bed at 7PM and sleeps really soundly til 7 or 8AM the next morning, though I do feed him every 3.5-4.5 hours when he shuffles around (can’t wait until he’s crying or he’ll wake Chris up as well as Hunter in the next room, as he’s so loud!).
Life’s pretty good when you’re a baby

 

  • PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT – When Carter was born, he basically did nothing, had his eyes closed almost all the time, and slept constantly. What I had to keep reminding myself was that he was born a full 4 weeks before Hunter was.. which was why he seemed really ‘underdeveloped’ in comparison. But, after week 3, Carter really ‘woke up’ and now he is a lot more interactive – he’ll focus on our faces, smile when I talk or sing to him, and is aware of his surroundings.
    He’s been doing Tummy Time and actually quite enjoys it. He’ll go for about 10-15 mins (eons for a baby!) before he’ll get tired. He’s actually flipped himself over (tummy-to-back) twice whilst doing tummy time.. because he’s so feisty!
Chilling out

 

Hunter is absolutely in love with Carter. Far far far more than we ever imagined or hoped for. His whole face lights up when he sees his little brother, and he always wants to kiss, cuddle or carry Carter. It’s pretty cool to see the brotherly bond already there, and Hunter is SO proud of him, going “baby! baby!” when friends come to visit, and wanting them to come over to check Carter out.

Proud big brother

 

Hunter is also a great babysitter. He’ll sit on the couch next to Carter and just quietly watch him. If Carter cries out, he’ll jump off the couch and look for me, with a very concerned and anxious expression and go “Mama! Baby… WAHHHHHH!” and insist I go over to Carter. It’s unbelievably sweet to witness πŸ™‚

On the flip side, if Hunter is upset or in a bad mood, nothing immediately cheers him up by us saying “Want to cuddle Carter?”Β He’ll immediately say YES, have a cuddle, and forget whatever issue he was crying over.

Cuddles

 

I love looking at Carter’s sweet lil face, especially when he’s awake and his big brown eyes look straight into mine. His hair is so infinitely soft, and his skin smells intoxicating. He’s simply delicious!

IΒ reallyΒ like this quote about motherhood: 24/7. Once you sign on to be a mother, that’s the only shift they offer.” How true! It is mentally and physically draining to be a mum of “2 under 2”, but now I wouldn’t have it any other way πŸ™‚

Baby-wearing!

 

 

Let’s Chat!




Let's Chat!

You make it look so easy! Gorgeous family… I love reading all your updates on Carter and Hunter. As a new mom myself, it’s fun to compare the stages and check how Baby is progressing…

Take care!

OK it’s def not esp in the first month.. lol.. but I hope it gets better! It’s tough having 2 under 2. Hope your bub is doing well too! πŸ™‚

This was one of my favourite updates, Beverly! It’s so different now because you have Hunter as a point of reference. I almost teared up a little reading about Hunter’s adoration for Carter. You’ve got a great little family and glad to hear everything’s going well!

It def is fun comparing with Hunter and seeing the similarities or differences.. guess that’s the benefit of having a second child! πŸ™‚

Karissa loved tummy time as a newborn and could do it for ages. She doesn’t like it now though, and starts fussing after around 5 mins or so.

I’ve a great big smile reading this entry. Love the anecdotes on how hunter is responding to his lil brother. Awesome!

Such a heartwarming sweet post! Hunter & Carter have the same lips, adorable! U r a lucky girl!

They tend to take after more of Chris’ lips, cos mine are fuller! Especially Carter. But the rest of him looks more like me, I think πŸ˜›

Both your boys are such little angels and you dont look like you just popped out another little one. Amazing!

Carter is very cute and I’m so glad things are going so well for all of you. I love the idea of Hunter being such a loving big brother. Long may it continue.