The Reitz Family: Awesome Dawson

)hhhh. This baby. He is the best! We all love and adore him so much. I think he gets a thousand kisses a day from just me. I have to laugh, then step in to discipline a bit when I hear, "Mom! Asher's playing with the baby too long! It's my turn!" It's pretty great to have something we can all agree on at the same time, and that is that Dawson is awesome. He is so soft, squishy, loveable, sweet, and he smells like heaven.

From day 1, this little sweetie has been amazing. He nurses like a pro, he only wakes up once per night, around 2 or 3 AM, which is SO doable for a newborn. He doesn't cry too much, he doesn't spit up too much. He's just great, and I am grateful for him, so so grateful! Every time I look at him I think to myself, please stay small...don't get big! But he is getting bigger, every day, much to my dismay. Having a baby in the house again seems so new, and yet, like riding a bike, it feels like we've definitely done this before. This time around I want to be sure to enjoy every second I can. I think I've tried to with all my babies, but, since this will be our last, I want to savor it all.

At 6 weeks (March 23), this sweet little man smiled at me, and I nearly melted. I was so excited about it that I jumped for joy and that made Dawson cry. Oops. Sorry buddy.

Corey is so sweet to watch in daddy and baby mode. At night when Dawson gets a little fussy(and really it's only a little), he snatches him up and walks with him, bouncing as he goes or patting his bum. He loves to sit or lay with Dawson on his chest and have him fall asleep, which he did a ton at first, but as he's getting older he's more wiggly so it's not as easy. Corey is definitely savoring every second of this time with our baby, and I just love it. Is there anything sweeter or more attractive than a man who's a fantastic daddy? I think not. Dawson loves loves loves his daddy.

Every night in the boy's prayers, they say how thankful they are that baby Dawson made it safely here, or how grateful they are that we have Dawson in our family. His health and how great he is doing is appreciated every day by all of us. The kiddos seem to get it that babies don't come easy to our family and that this truly is such a blessing! It's sweet.

Asher adores this baby. He loves babies anyways, but he's always telling me how great it is to have a baby in our house. He is constantly about 6 inches away from little D's face, smiling, talking and playing with his baby bro. Dawson has started smiling and talking back to him and it's so sweet to see the brothers together. Love it.

Beckett too is mesmerized by his baby brother. He's got a little game he's started up that he calls 'Train'. When Dawson is in his rocker, Beck will start slowly sliding him from one corner of the rug to the next, making train noises, and announcing..."next stop! Mommy station!" or "Beckett station". Also, he's said a few cute things. Since I'm nursing the little guy all the time, the kids have been asking questions. When Dawson was around 6 weeks, Beck said, "It's cool how the milk is always ready to eat for the baby." I mentioned that it's always the right temp and amount too. His reply, "That's really special." Ahhh. He also said that it's fun to have a new person in the house. And when Dawson was smiling at the boys before baseball one evening, Beckett told us that Dawson was having a 'smiling party'. These brothers are so great, all three of them.

Other milestones/mentionables: When Dawson was about 9 weeks, he rolled from his tummy to his back while hanging out on our bed. I missed the first time, and thought it may be a fluke, so I flipped him back over and ta-da! He did it again. Also, he has an amusing cry when he gets mad sometimes. It sound like he's crying 'Moooom, Moooom". It's hilarious. When D is tired he does his little 'sleepy song' (as Claudia calls it, so cute) so I always know exactly when he's tired. It's like a song-moan-almost cry and is sweet as can be. This baby loves baths and also loves getting his diaper changed...seriously, if he's sad, you can change his diaper and then he's perfectly content. And his diaper doesn't necessarily need to be wet or poopy, he just likes it being changed!

Nicknames so far: Baby D, Daws, Buds, Daws-hog (Corey's own personal creation and fave).

A generous friend gifted us some pics and they were taken when D was 5 weeks old. They are so fun and sweet. Priceless. Thanks a million times over Pam! He's changed so much already, so I love to have these glimpses back to a tinnier Dawson.