Marshall Update

A lot has been going on with our little Marshall lately, but I haven't found the time to blog about it until now (hopefully, anyways).

First of all, our little guy turns 1 month old tomorrow! Wow, time is really flying by way too fast!
It seems like each child grows up faster than the previous one did.

Here's the scoop on the past 4 weeks (in a nutshell, of course).

- Weight: Marshall was born weighing 7 lbs. When we left the hospital he was down to 6 lb. 8 oz. From there, he went up and down a little for the first couple of weeks. After going to the doctor for weight checks 1-2 times a week since birth, he finally increased his weight up to 7 lbs. again last Wednesday. Then, on Thursday, he was up to 7 lb. 2 oz., and yesterday he was up again to 7 lb. 8 oz.! The doctor officially graduated Marshall from further weight checks now until he is 2 months old.

- Jaundice: While in the hospital, the doctors diagnosed Marshall with jaundice and he was placed under the UV lights for one day. When we left the hospital, his bilirubin levels had dropped into a more normal range and were not expected to increase again. Well, that was not the case. After 2-3 more visits to the doctor, they rechecked his levels again last week and discovered that they were quite high again. Marshall spent a few days at home laying naked in the sunshine, and then last week, when his levels were rechecked, the numbers were down again. They are calling this "breast feeding jaundice", which apparently takes a little longer to clear up (6-8 weeks is what I was told yesterday).

-Sleep: Marshall has proven to be an excellent sleeper (most of the time)! This is how a typical night goes right now.
To bed at 8:30-9p and sleep until 11:30-12a. Eat.
Back in bed at 12-12:30a and sleep until 2:30a. Eat.
Back in bed at 3a and sleep until 5:30a. Eat.
Back in bed at 6a and sleep until 7:30-8a.
Although most nights I am up 3 times for feedings, I really appreciate the sleep that I get between the feedings. I've also discovered the importance of an early bedtime for me too--especially since I can't nap very easily anymore with 3 children around :).

Marshall is also beginning to form a nap routine. He's been taking a nice, long nap every morning from around 9:30-10a until around 11:30-12p. Then he usually naps again from 1:30-2p until 4p or so. Occasionally he'll nap again around dinner time as well.

I'm looking forward to a more permanent nap schedule and longer sleep increments at night too, but for a 1 month old, I am feeling pretty satisfied with how things are going.

I am hoping to get some good 1 month pictures up to share tomorrow, but for today, we are planning to get outside and enjoy this beautiful day with a walk and a trip to the park.