That’s been the question around these parts. Matt and I have been trying to adhere to a Montessorian parenting philosophy, which advises against the use of lots of external props like pacifiers, swings, bouncy chairs, etc.

But we’ve been struggling because the only way to soothe him to sleep right now is to walk him around in the Moby or the Ergo carriers (don’t get me wrong–I’m thankful that we at least have one reliable method–for the moment!). But it has been difficult because I’m still bleeding a lot, and I’m supposed to take it easy on the walking.

It’s also difficult if Henry needs to be soothed back to

At this very moment, you’re asleep on my chest, looking as cute as can be. Even though these early days of transitioning into life with a newborn have been difficult, we are trying to savor every moment. In three short days, you will already be a month old. A whole month! You are growing so fast. You had already regained your birth weight (plus several more ounces) a few days before the two-week mark. Plus, you truly have “Texas-sized” hands and feet.

We started calling you piglet early on because when you’re hungry you start snorting and squealing. You are the cutest little piglet with your bed head

Things are definitely starting to look up around these parts! Looking back on it, I think last Monday, the three-week mark, was the start of the upswing in our trajectory. The day before, on Sunday, I called a dear friend (and former colleague) of mine to chat about the difficulty of being a new mother. Our whole conversation was helpful, but she said something in particular that really resonated with me. She said, “You know, Sara, we’re the kind of people who typically get good results when we put in a lot of hard work and effort. But being a new parent isn’t like that.”

From that point on, I