Good Times with the Gumps: Russell, 1 month old

This poor second child may not get as many milestone blog posts as his big bro did, but I'll do my best to keep up!! Excuse rapid changes in topic, misspellings, and general nonsensical blabber since my brain is totally garbled these days! Russell turned 1 month old yesterday, October 26th. Palmer turned 21 months the same day! Since their birthdays are 1/26 and 9/26 it is nice and easy to keep track :) Russell is eating and growing more every day, occasionally waiting 3 hours to eat, but this boy will not hesitate to nurse after only an hour and a half if the mood strikes him!

Just this past week he has been focusing more on faces and will turn toward my voice when I talk. A nice tight swaddle calms him when he's fussy. Pacifiers aren't really his thing, but he tolerates them sometimes. I have to be careful not to leave his pacis laying around because if Palmer finds them, he insists on jamming them in Russell's mouth, whether he wants it or not! See below.

For the most part, Palmer is doing great with Russell! He likes to tickle him, which is fine- we're just trying to teach him we don't tickle faces. He has just recently started to try and pick Russell up. Eeek! I'm going to have to be more careful leaving them unattended together.

Sometimes Russell will be happy while awake now, which is so refreshing! On a good day he will sit in the bouncy seat while I fix Palmer's breakfast, and he did awesome propped up on the couch for this little photo shoot. Looking forward to more happy moments and seeing his personality come out over the next few months! I recently bought a ring sling carrier by sakura bloom which he spends quite a bit of time in while cranky or sleepy during the day. This snuggle bug loves to be held by mommy. He will sleep in the sling while I rinse diapers or follow Palmer around while he plays. This napping in the carrier has become a necessity because with his older brother shrieking and launching hard plastic toys off the coffee table, there isn't enough quiet for a good nap in the swing lately. I'll get a pic soon of him in it! I like the linen sling even more than my Moby because it is MUCH cooler to wear and faster to put on, although the Moby is probably more comfortable for long periods.

If you are wondering, yes, life with two under 2 is crazy with a capital C, but I just try to focus on giving them all the love and attention I can, and worrying about the rest later :) I have gathered the ambition to do some real meal planning and grocery shopping tomorrow- I think my crock pot will be put to work this week in honor of the cool temperatures!

Speaking of things that go along with cool temperatures, Russell is wearing his first pair of wool longies in this pic! They are so snuggly and cozy, double as pants, and make for a very breathable diaper cover over his fitted cloth diapers. He also has some cute wool shorties we'll bust out on a warmer day :)