The Beautiful Life of Liam James: Liam James

Liam's personality has blossomed even more in the past month. Seriously though, how cute is he?!

But to be honest, there have been no huge changes for Liam between his fourth and fifth month (besides moving up a diaper size, discovering the world around him, etc.). In the last month, I am the one who has gone through some changes as I discovered more about myself, and what it truly means to be a mother.

I have to watch out for #1. Before baby, most people consider #1 to be themselves, but when you become a parent, you naturally become #2 and sometimes even #3 (after your spouse) without even realizing it. I drive myself into the ground making sure Liam is fed, clean, and happy and making sure I don't miss one second of his life. I was so afraid of leaving Liam to go do things for myself such as get my hair done, go to weekly Mary Kay meetings, shop for jeans that actually fit my post-pardum thighs, etc. because I was afraid I'd miss something or that he would be mad at me for leaving him. Finally, this month, I started leaving Liam with his grandma and grandpa or dad to do those things and you know what? It was refreshing. And to my surprise, I didn't come home to a baby that was mad at me for leaving him - I came home to a baby that was excited to see his mama, and that's an amazing feeling.
I get the final say in decisions for my son. For anyone who knows me, I like to fly under the radar, keep the peace, and make sure everyone around me is happy. This month has come with its challenges, and I have learned that as a mother, I get to make the decisions for my son and I don't need to explain myself to those who question my decisions. Liam is a baby and cannot speak for himself - so as his mother, I am his voice. For example, Chris and I made the decision together to wait to start feeding Liam solids. I've had so many people question our decision and make comments about how "they started their kids on solids at 4 months" and "aren't you afraid that he will become picky if he starts eating solids at 6-7 months?" I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that we have made the right decision for Liam. He is still gaining weight at an insane rate, sleeping great, has no tummy issues and is genuinely happy ALL THE TIME (unless he is hungry, of course). Why fix something that isn't broken?
Public Breastfeeding. (spoil alert: I use the words nipple, boob, nursing and breastmilk - if that offends you move on to the next paragraph). The hot debate right now, and I, someone who would rather fly under the radar and avoid confrontation, am going to publicly post my opinion on it (because, like I said, I am the voice for my son). First of all, I think that people who have never been parents don't get an opinion. I've heard everything from "no one wants to see your boob in public" to "figure out your kid's eating schedule so you don't have to feed him in public." All I have to say to that is YOU figure out my kid's eating schedule because I have no clue. Also, you are going to see what you want to see. I don't know of any mother who would completely whip her shirt and bra off in public to breastfeed, just saying. If you stare, yeah you will probably get a gander at my nipple eventually. If you glance over and see I am feeding my infant, look away and walk on if it offends you - I've seen skankier things at the mall and on Facebook. I have covered myself with with a nursing cover and then there are times I have accidentally forgotten the thing at home - deal with it. Besides, would you want to eat with a blanket over your head? I typically feed Liam breastmilk with a bottle in public because it is more convenient, but you can only take so much milk with you and keep it cool for so long. Not to mention if you ignore your milk-filled boobs for longer than 3 hours, they feel like they are going to explode and it fricken hurts. Trust me, you'd rather see me nursing my baby than pumping. All of these points set aside, if a mama wants to breastfeed her baby in public, why shame her? She is doing the best she can - and being a mama is tough enough without all the public humiliation of people giving her dirty looks while she is taking care of her helpless, hungry infant.

Now that I have that off my chest (no pun intended), let's talk about Liam!

Sleep
Liam continues to be an excellent sleeper and ALWAYS has his thumb in his mouth. We had four consecutive nights this past month where Liam was up every hour and a half. It was rough, but he was sick and just wanted his mama. And then just like that, he went back to sleeping 9:30pm-6:00am. He likes to eat at 6am then goes back to sleep until about 8:30am. He is legitimately the happiest baby I have ever seen when he first wakes up. It's my favorite time of the day!

Eating
Like I mentioned earlier, we opted out of starting to feed Liam solids at 4 months. At his 4 month check-up appointment, I was expecting the doctor to tell us to start him on solids, but she actually suggested we wait due to Liam's current size, how well he is sleeping, etc. She actually said that if I am still exclusively breastfeeding when he is 8 months, and he is as happy and healthy as he is now, she would be fine with that. I don't think we will wait that long, we will most likely start him on solids at 6 months. I am eager to see what his reaction is! So as of right now, Liam is just eating that good 'ol booby milk. He eats about 6-9oz every 2-3 hours. I swear he has the most random eating schedule of any baby - ever.