42 Weeks Young!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Look at that big toothy grin!

To celebrate her 42 week birthday, Emily slept for almost 7 hours straight!!!!!!!  Almost.  She did wake up for about 3 minutes an hour after being put down, which took the total time of the sleep stretch down to 6 hours and 14 minutes, but that's still really good for her!  This mama was proud.  :)

AND, in other big milestone news, guess who got her second top tooth?!?!  Yep!  Emily's right central incisor finally started to cut through on March 9.  I felt like it had been coming forever, and now it's finally here!  Unfortunately that hasn't given her much reprieve in the discomfort department as far as I can see, because she's had a couple clingy / cranky days.  But luckily it's nothing a little extra TLC {and teething remedies} can't help cure!  My poor baby.  In fact, Emily's so crafty that she's invented her own teething remedy.  It's called "licking or pressing her mouth against anything that's cold".  See Exhibit A:

 

She is also extra fascinated this week with looking out the window.  Shep guessed maybe it's because she's tired of being inside so much due to the cold weather, but she does it even if we've just been outside for a long walk, so I'm not sure that cabin fever is the reason.  She pulls the curtain aside and stands there staring and sometimes banging on the window.  Never mind a penny for a thought -- I'd trade all the money in my bank account to be able to know what this smart, spunky little lady is thinking in that beautiful head of hers...

Emily loooooooves to look at books.  She can sit for 5 minutes at a time, entertaining herself, flipping through her books -- looking intently at the photos and text.  We officially have a little book worm on our hands!

This weekend Emily lost an hour of sleep thanks to Daylight Savings Time {like she needs any encouragement in that department...}.  She also visited Connecticut for the first time, and met several more family friends!

Just like our last road trip, she did great in the car on the way there -- sleeping a total of nearly 1.5 hours in the car -- but didn't fare so well the next day while coming home.  Ah, well, 1 out of 2 ain't bad!!

Emily tried crinkle-cut steamed carrots for the first time and was not a fan.  She eats pureed carrots pretty regularly and likes them, so I think it was the texture.  This girl has eyes for food, and chews very well, but doesn't really love the actuality of swallowing the solid foods.  But she is trying new things and making progress, so I'm proud!

In other news, last Monday was *hopefully* Emily's last day on Prevacid!  We tried weaning her off it back in September, but we ended up having to put her back on it because the reflux got worse a few weeks later.  But, since she's much older now and hasn't had that many reflux symptoms lately, we're hoping this is really the end of her need for meds.  Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Hopefully the snow storm that started out the week will be her LAST of this year!  I can't wait for spring to arrive, though it's funny to think that this will be Em's SECOND spring!  Yikes!!

40 Weeks Young!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy 40th, Em!!!  This week has been a busy one for you!

On Friday, you attended a baby music class for the first time!  It was entertaining to watch you listen to the music and look at all the other babies.  There is one song where the music instructor incorporates all of the babies' names into a song, and each of the babies faces lit up when they heard their names being sung.  You looked a little confused as to how this stranger knew your name.  You were crawling all over the place, playing with all the different musical instruments and tried to take the teacher’s bag and papers!  You did have fun singing and dancing though.  :)

On Saturday you took what might have been your first standing step!!  You were on your play mat and Daddy was sitting on the couch.  He said you might have took a step to get closer to him, but I only saw you out of the corner of my eye so I can’t say for sure. ;)

On Sunday you turned 9 months old!  To celebrate the momentous occasion, you tried stage 3 purees for the first time -- chicken with stars!  It didn't seem like you loved the little chunks, but you tolerated them and ate it up!

On Monday, you finally cut your first top tooth!  We've been waiting for that bugger to come out for a while.  You also possibly took 3 steps towards me -- or maybe just fell/fumbled, I couldn't tell -- while I was sitting on the floor in the living playing with you!!  You took a 1 hour & 2 minute nap in your crib on Monday morning!!!  {Mommy & Daddy were both shocked!}  Also on Monday, you tried pasta (plain rotini) for the first time!  You put it into your mouth and chewed it, but didn't really seem too impressed. Monday marked 39 weeks & 4 days since you're birth, so you've officially been out in the world longer than you were cooking in Mommy's tummy!

You tried pureed beef for the first time on Wednesday, and also tried a stage 3 chicken casserole puree on Tuesday!  You didn't love the beef, but I was able to water it down with some winter squash for you.  The chicken casserole was a no-go....you don't want the thicker/textured purees yet, and that's okay -- at least you tried it!  :)  

You've been making a lot of "ma" sounds this week.

You played with your stuffed monkey instead of crying when you woke up on Thursday morning!

All in all it was a fun-filled week!!!

34 Weeks Young!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

January 15, 2014 -- Yes I'm over a week late, but better late than never!  Let's just pretend it's still mid-January, shall we??  ;)

The past week was a bit rough.  Both Emily and Mommy have been sick -- 100.4 fevers + stuffy noses + sore throats = not a lot of sleep going on.  In fact, I'm pretty sure that lack of sleep is how Mommy got sick to begin with.  ;)  It all started over the weekend, when Emily had a low grade fever and would not sleep at all in the middle of the night unless she was being held.  I thought she was getting another tooth.  Saturday night was tough.  Sunday night just as tough.  I sat up in the chair in our room holding her from 2am onward both nights.  Then when I woke up with a fever on Monday morning, I realized the weekend’s fever and fussiness wasn’t teething after all.  Luckily, Daddy made it through unscathed and was able to help take care of Mommy & Emily.  :)  By Tuesday & Wednesday nights though, Emily was feeling better and was back to falling asleep like a good girl for bed time and waking up only twice in the night to eat quick and then back to sleep {her normal schedule}.  Mommy was still sick though.  All the stress about Mommy's first day at work was for naught -- I had to call out sick my entire first week!  It's no secret that I wanted more time home with my Emily, but that wasn't exactly what I had in mind.  ;)

Speaking of sleeping, 2 small sleep-related miracles occurred in this house over the past week.  First, last week there was a small stove fire in our apartment building, which thankfully was put out quickly before any injuries or damage were sustained.  However, for some reason neither the building staff nor the fire department could turn the alarm off, which very loudly sounded in our unit for over 30 minutes -- and Emily slept through the whole thing!!!!  I could NOT believe it.  The second crazy sleep experience occurred when she woke up after I laid her down in her crib for the night {which would usually be baaaaaad news} and then sat up and laid down 3-4 times in a row and then she laid down AND WENT BACK TO SLEEP!!  I nearly fainted from the shock as I watched on the monitor.  Fingers crossed that her sleeping skills are finally headed in the right direction!

At 34 weeks young, Emily is using her crawling abilities to venture out off her play mat.  Today, she made it as far as the bar stools!  She also "walked" the entire length of the couch while holding on to the cushions.  This girl is getting more mobile by the minute!  She also has discovered lots of new ways to get intro trouble.... time to do some serious babyproofing!

Occasionally, she will still sit on her play mat, playing with all the wonderful toys she got for Christmas:

This week Emily tried apples for the first time {mixed in with carrots}.  She also tried meat for the first time -- turkey with veggies puree, and LOVED it!  And of course there's her thumb.... which she occasionally attempts to nibble on through her shirt...

Happy 34 Weeks To Emily!

33 Weeks Young!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Look at me, I'm Thirty THREE {weeks old} !!!

Mommy tries to use her cute little sign with me to commemorate my weekly birthdays, but I keep trying to grab it!  So, she had to get creative and I got mad I couldn't reach it.

Here I am, happy again, because I forgot all about the sign and I love standing up on the couch!!!

This was a big week for me!

• I transitioned out of my newborn tub into a bigger infant ducky tub where I can sit up on my own while I'm bathing!  I'm not quite sure what to make of it yet, but I'm keeping an open mind.  ;)
• On 1/2, I decided to try out my new year's resolution.... I fell asleep at 8pm and slept until 1:40am!  When Daddy couldn't get me back to sleep, Mommy fed me at around 2am and afterward I fell back to sleep and she slept until 8:06am!  Woohoo!!!  A 5:41 stretch followed by a 5:24 stretch -- best sleep in a loooong time!  Mommy & Daddy are considering throwing me a party to celebrate! ;)
• I spent my first few days at daycare, and so far -- knock on wood -- everyone is surviving!
• I tried pureed mangos {bleck!} and also graduated to Stage 2 purees!  My first one was a squash, peas & pears combo, and I loved it {yum}!
• I went grocery shopping with Mommy & Daddy and sat in a cart like a big girl!

• Got my second flu shot, and barely cried!  The nurse had that needle in and out and my band-aid almost on before I even realized it!  I let out a little 1-second groan after I realized what happened, but by the time Mommy picked me up off the table I was fine!  I measured:  18 lbs 7 oz (with clothes & diaper on, 75th percentile), 28.5” long (97th percentile!), and 43.5 cm head circumference (62nd percentile)

Daycare Dropoff Day #1

Source

Yesterday was Emily's first day being dropped off at daycare.

The way our center works is that once a child is registered, she gets 2 "transition" days before starting full time.  Friday was our first transition day, which meant that Shep and I brought Emily in for a 45 minute visit.  During this time, she got to play with some new toys and meet some new friends while we filled the teachers in on important tidbits about Emily's habits and behaviors and gave them caregiving instructions.  Overall, it was a pretty successful visit, except that we found out the head teacher (and one of the main reasons why we chose this center) was out on vacation until mid-January, and Emily fell and bunked her head on the floor while trying to stand up against one of the jumpers.  :(

Over the weekend I was a wreck about this big change.  What if they didn't watch her closely enough and she fell and hit her head again?  What if she refused to sleep or drink milk at daycare?  We've been unsuccessful at introducing her to a bottle over the past 7 months..... what makes me think that daycare can get this done in a matter of hours?  And sleep.... fuhgettaboutit.  This child despises sleep.  It takes a large part of every day for me to get her to nap for 30-45 minute segments (sometimes taking 20 minutes to get her to fall asleep for each nap!), and I know they don't have that kind of time to spend getting her to nap.  I spent most of Sunday with my stomach in a knot and tears streaming down my face.  My little baby was growing up way too quickly.  To date, I've only spent a grand total of less than 20 hours away from her over her entire life and now she is going to daycare 3 days a week.  Naps and bottles aside, I didn't know how she'd react to being without her Mommy or Daddy in a new environment.

I knew I'd cry if I took her in, which would only upset her; not to mention make me look silly.  So, we decided that Shep would drop her off in the morning, and I'd plan to pick her up 3 hours later.

After all the stressing, it turns out that at least the first day was a lot harder on me than it was on her. Shep called me immediately after dropping her off, and said that she went right to playing with toys and didn't cry at all when he left her.  Well that was a good start!  So I did all I could to distract myself for the 3 hours -- first I got lost in some new mom support forums while I ate some cereal; then I put together a "simple" chili recipe in the crock pot (which took me forever because I both suck at and hate cooking!); and then I treated myself to what was meant to be a super long shower including washing my hair and shaving (gasp!), only to come out and find that what felt like an hour long shower lasted only 15 minutes!  But, the good news is that by the time I blow dried my hair and got dressed, it was time to go pick her up!  The 3 block walk to the center was especially quick; I had a spring in my step due to excitement to go see my little girl!

When I got there I spotted her right away and smiled at her, and she didn't smile back but instead looked a little confused -- perhaps wondering what I was doing there or where I appeared from?  I put out my arms to take her from the day care teacher and for a split second she turned her head away from me to the teacher's shoulder (which she does a lot when I'm holding her and someone else comes over to see her). I guess that means that she was comfortable there, which is a good sign!   But then she quickly smiled and reached for me, and holding her in that minute was the best part of my entire day, and erased all my worries away.  I was just so happy to see her.  Even though the 3 hours went by quickly on the one hand (I didn't get a chance to get the laundry or dishes done that I had hoped to do!), it seemed like forever since I'd held and hugged her.

To my incredible surprise (and Shep's great suspicion), she supposedly even took a 50 minute nap at daycare!  This is actually on the longer side of naps that she takes at home, and I was fully expecting her report to show no naps at all, so it was quite a shock to hear!  The teacher said that she fell asleep in the bouncer/rocking chair (which I can believe since she was up most of the night before and was exhausted for sure) and they transferred her to the crib from there.  She woke up when they laid her down (which is typical for her), so the teacher picked her up and rocked her a little bit in her arms to get her back to sleep.  I don't know how long it took the teacher to get her back to sleep, so she likely didn't sleep that whole 50 minutes, but for the first day it's not bad at all.  My only worry is that the teachers have told me they're not supposed to rock the babies to sleep, so I'm not sure how long they will continue to help her in this way.

They also tried to give her some pumped breast milk, which was very minimally successful. 2.5 oz were missing from the bottle I'd sent, but some of that was on the shirt they changed her out of and sent home with me, so I'm not sure exactly how much she actually drank.   The teacher guesstimated 1-2 oz.  First they tried a bottle, which she wouldn't take. Then the teacher tried spoon-feeding her a little bit.  And then finally they used the sippy cup.  This is the area I'm now most concerned about. Today I am going to leave her there for 4-5 hours, and hopefully that will get her hungry enough to use the bottle or sippy cup.  Unfortunately, my office is too far away for me to go to nurse her during lunch so I really hope she learns the sippy cup or bottle in the next 3 days or I'm going to be a mess next week when I go back to work and have to leave her there for 8 hours without eating.   :(  There are still a few more days this week for those daycare baby whisperers to work their bottle-feeding magic, so I'm not giving up hope just yet.  I will be crossing my fingers and holding my breath that she learns to drink.

In the meanwhile, I'm just so relieved that her first day went as smoothly as it did!  I snapped this photo of Emily on the walk home.  A picture is worth 1000 words, and it looks to me like she had a pretty good first day!

7 Months Young!!!!!!!

Last Monday, Emily turned 7 months old!  Whoever invented the adage "the days are long, but the years are short" was sorely mistaken.  The days, weeks and months just keep flying by!!!  My itty bitty baby girl is more than half a year old!

All About Emily:

• Measures 18 pounds, 3 ounces and 28 inches long; head measures 42 cm around.
• Still wearing size 3 diapers.
• Wearing mostly 6 months/some 9 months clothing and mostly 9 months footie pjs.
• Over the past month, has started pulling on/caressing the front of her own hair when she's nursing and tired.  I guess that's her way of trying to go to sleep?  It is the most adorable thing to see..... it just melts by heart and brings a smile to my face!  She has also on a few occasions tried to eat my hair when she's really tired.  This girl has a thing for hair!
• Speaking of hair, hers is really coming in!  It's beautifully blonde, and oh so soft.
• Learned how to sit unsupported, sit up on her own from a laying position, crawl and pull herself up onto her knees while holding onto something all last month!  She also got her first tooth this past month and has her second tooth on the way in!
• Is eating solids!!!  Emily eats oatmeal for breakfast every morning, and eats a veggie or fruit for dinner too!  So far she's tried sweet potatoes, butternut squash, avocado, carrots, peaches, pears, winter squash and sweet peas.  She's still a very messy eater, but she's getting better at it every day!  She immediately shoves her hands into her mouth after each bite of food, and she tries to grab the spoon away from us when we feed her!
• Still won't drink from a bottle and takes very limited sips of water from her sippy cup.  She mostly chews on her sippy cup or throws it on the floor.  She has gotten a few sips of water from her sippy cup on occasion and acts startled (not in a good way) each time it happens!
• Has mastered the art of throwing things off the side of her high chair to watch them fall!  Gotta love babies exploring "cause and effect"!  :)
• We've started teaching her a couple hand signs --- "milk", "food", "more", and "all done".  It's hard to tell if she fully understands what we're doing but I'm willing to bet she's going to surprise us one day really soon and sign on her own!
• Typically still waking up 1-2 times a night to eat.  She also babbles when about to go to sleep.  She surprised us a couple times this past month with some 6-6.5 stretches of sleep at night, and 2 nights of falling back asleep ON HER OWN IN HER CRIB two nights in a row {while I shushed her from the other side of the room for a few minutes}.  But now she's back into the throws of teething and all sleep has gone far out the window.  ;)
• Has gross smelly poop now that she's eating solids!  Ewwww...
• Had to slightly increase her Prevacid dosage earlier this month once she surpassed 18 pounds and started spitting up a lot more, even with the solid foods.  On this new dosage though her reflux seems to really be under control though -- knock on wood!
• Prefers to "sit spin" (basically, spin around on her bum while sitting, or do sit-kneel-sit scooting sequences) instead of crawling to get around her play mat.  She sits up as soon as she wakes up, and prefers to be sitting or kneeling on her play mat.  She also tries to get up on her knees, but hasn't quite gotten the hang of that trick.
• Has the CUTEST little baby smirk smile.  She did it a bunch before her first tooth came in, then stopped for a little while but is now doing it again now that her second tooth is cutting through.  She also makes blowing sounds with her mouth a lot while she's teething.
• Moves her feet like she's doing an Irish jig when you hold her up in the air under her arms and move her from side to side.
• Is able to pick up objects with one hand and pass them to her other hand.  Her finger control is getting better and she frequently spreads her fingers apart.  She loves pulling my hair, grabbing our lips, and sticking her fingers up our noses.  She isn't quite able to pinch things with her thumb and pointer finger yet, but I'm sure in the next month or so she'll have that pincher action down!
• Recognizes her name when it's called.
• Insists on trying to roll off her changing table at every. single. diaper change.
• Still loves reading books, but is now a lot more calm when being read to.  She focuses on the photos in the books and can sit quietly {for a little while anyway!}.
• Babbles repetitive syllables, uses her voice to express joy or displeasure, and responds to changes in the tone of our voices when we talk to her.
• Tries to put EVERYTHING in her mouth!
• Loves taking her socks off and playing with her feet.
• Laughs hysterically when we do silly play time and squeals with delights when we pretend to eat her belly.
• Loves to jump and has a blast in her jumperoo or jumping with help from Mommy or Daddy!  She also loves being {pretend} tossed up in the air, climbing up the torso of whoever is holding her, and scratching her nails against her crib sheet.
• Has recently learned how to play catch and gets very excited when she catches her ball!
• Has a wide open-mouth smile that is bright as the sun in summer!  The happiness on her face when she sees one of us walk in the room is worth all the sleepless nights in the world.

My Crib

Guess what?!

Mommy was nervous at first, but I did pretty well for my first night!  I fell asleep at 7:15 pm in Mommy's arms, and she slipped me into my crib without me even knowing!  She was a bit scared to take such a big step on her own {Daddy was working late} but since I've reached the weight capacity for my Pack 'n Play bassinet the clock is ticking!  I took 2 good naps in my crib during the day, so Mommy thought it was as good of a time as ever to try it out for night sleep too!  I woke up at 10:52 pm and was a bit confused, but Daddy picked me up and hugged me a bit before handing me over to Mommy to feed me.  I needed some extra reassurance that everything was okay since though I woke up in a strange place, so I stayed in Mommy's arms nursing for a lot longer than I usually do.  But, once I fell back asleep at 11:30 pm she stealthily slipped me back in my crib!  I slept until 5:22 am -- over 5.5 hours in one stretch! -- before I woke up hungry again.  After a quick early breakfast I slept for another hour and was awake and ready to come out to see Mommy & Daddy at 6:40 am.  Overall, it wasn't the best sleep I've had in a while, but by far definitely not the worst either!

Mommy and Daddy were pretty impressed with my first night in my big girl crib.  They said they hope I sleep even better tonight!  And maybe Mommy will sleep better tonight too.... she was too nervous to sleep well last night, that silly Mommy!

20 Weeks Young!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh, hello there!

Someone had her 20-week-birthday yesterday!

Emily is so active and rolls around so much when we lay her down on her back that it's becoming increasingly difficult to get any good weekly photos of her!  I think I took between 20-30 shots of her yesterday and this was one of the only ones where she is looking at the camera and her body isn't contorted into a half-roll.  ;)  She's such a cutie pie.

I realllllly don't want to jinx myself, but I *think* that she may finally be exiting the 4 month wakeful period.  The past 3 nights, she's slept much better, falling asleep around 8pm and waking up between 1-2am and then again at 6am to eat.  It feels like a vacation compared to the days a couple weeks ago where she was up EVERY. SIXTY. MINUTES.

Starting this week, Emily also has been sleeping in the bassinet of her pack-n-play full-time.  I used to put her down in the Rock n Play for the first part of the night because she slept better in it, but she got very squirmy and kept trying to roll over in it the past week or so.  Then, just in the past few days she figured out how to push herself up on her legs with her feet pressed against the bottom of the seat, so we haven't been using it the past few days.  It is the cutest thing though.... as soon as I lay her down on her back in the bassinet she immediately rolls onto her side, and then half the time immediately rolls onto her tummy.  She initially has a bit of a hard time getting comfy on her tummy, trying to stick her butt up into the air but not quite knowing yet how to tuck her knees underneath her.  With a little help or pat on the back though, she settles in and then has been sleeping pretty well on her side or tummy.  Of course I was a nervous wreck the first few nights she was doing it, checking on her to make sure her face wasn't planted into the mattress every time I heard her move around.  But she's been sleeping a lot better now, which is a relief.  Once we get back into a regular sleep routine, we'll try to tackle sleeping in her crib!

Emily has gotten very introspective this week.  Perhaps it's part of her current "wonder week" mental leap, but it's been adorable to see her awake yet calm, just looking out at the world, either in her stroller or sitting with me at home, with an expression on her face like she's thinking.  She's typically so active and easily excited that it was a little jarring at first to see her just sitting still in the stroller during a walk.  I think her brain is just processing even more information, and she is learning to focus more on objects instead of squirming around non-stop all the time.  I've noticed she also jumps or flinches every time Shep or I sneeze or blow our nose.  I'm not sure why she is more sensitive to this now than she used to be.... perhaps she's just more in tune with her hearing?  She also has been audibly laughing a bit more, which is just the most beautiful sound to my ears.

Another new habit Emily developed this week is tucking her bottom lip into her mouth.  Though her face looks ADORABLE when she does this, I wish she'd stop because the skin above her chin is getting all chapped from being sucked on.  I've been applying a tiny bit of lanolin ointment to it which I think has helped.... hopefully this is just a passing phase though.

Emily has been doing pretty well with teething after an initial rough start, but it seems to be getting a little worse again.  She has been biting down on my finger HARD, poor thing.  For an infant, she's surprisingly adept at grabbing my finger and navigating it directly into her little mouth.  And not in a gentle haphazard way either, no siree.... She does it with purpose and with strength!!!  She's also been a little more fussy than normal because of the teething I think, because I notice her getting fussy or clingy she is trying to shove her hands or any other close object into her mouth passionately.  Her toys don't stand a chance -- they all get covered in drool numerous times a day.  ;)

Exhibit A:

That flower didn't stand a chance.

She has tried biting down on me while feeding a couple times too, which hurt like heck.  When she did this I just unlatched her and said "no" while making eye contact.  Hopefully she learns that it is not funny to bite mommy while eating before the teeth come in!

17 Weeks Young!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Emily is growing sooooooooooo fast.  I know I keep saying that, but it's true!  See for yourself...

Yes, that is the same nightgown.  And yes, that is the same baby!  Where has the time gone?????  17 weeks, gone in the blink of an eye.  It was hard to snap a good photo of my little cutie pie this week because all she wants to do is eat her hands!  Nom, nom, nom, nom . . . .

She is teething BIG TIME.  She also has decided to go through the so-called "4 month wakeful period" a bit early.  Remember when she would sleep 6, 7 or 8 hours straight at night?  Not anymore!!!  Her sleep stretches started decreasing a week or two ago, and now we're waking up 3, 4 and 5 times a night.  Sometimes to a laughing baby, who thinks it's hysterical to wake up at 3:30 am and refuse to go back to sleep for an hour!  {That only happened one time so far, *knock on wood*!  But her adorable smile is simply too sweet to get mad at, even in the middle of the night!}  Like all things at this age though, it's just a phase and it will pass.  I like to think of it as a developmental progression, not a sleep regression, as the linked blog post explains.

Emily is learning so many new and interesting things -- it's no wonder her brain is too excited to sleep all night!  She is super active, and even more observant than before.  She gets easily distracted from eating or sleeping at even the smallest sound or sight.  She smiles A LOT and is getting more control over her little hands, which she has been holding out like little lobster claws over the past few days.  These days, she spends most of her time on her tummy, with head held way up high, trying to crawl.  Though, she still loves laying on her back and looking up at the adorable baby in the mirror of her play gym, whoever that beautiful baby is that smiles back at her!  ;)

13 Weeks New!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's her last day as a "newborn" and our once-little baby is getting sooooo big!  Just look at her!!!  Such a doll.

Even though it's a bit on the early side, I am pretty sure Emily is teething.  For the past week, she wants to shove anything and everything she can get her hands on into her mouth.  Exhibit A:

In fact, she's been shoving her entire hand in her mouth to the point where she gags herself.  Poor sweetie.  She can't quite figure out yet how to use the teething toys she has, but wet washcloths and my knuckles seem to be doing the trick.

Those beautiful blue eyes absolutely take my breath away . . .

She also hasn't been sleeping as well as she previously was.  It is tough watching her struggle with her discomfort, waking up in the night and from her naps the past few days with little whimpers.  Even though she's uncomfortable, between her reflux and gum soreness, she's still at heart such a happy little girl.

Even if a bit tired . . .

Postpartum Reflections

{Originally written on June 23, 2014 -- Sorry for the late posting!  I was originally waiting to post this until after I shared Emily's birth story but that took a little longer then I expected!}

In the first couple weeks after Emily was born, I did a lot of staring at her.  Who am I kidding, I still do.  ;)  But while she slept cozily in my arms, I realized a few things about my childbirth experience....

Labor & Delivery

I expected labor and delivery to be harder than it was.  Yes, my delivery was dramatic {and some might say traumatic} but aside from "the Pitocin incident", I think it was generally easier than I'd imagined.  Yes, there was pain, but thanks to modern medicine it was mostly bearable and more important, fleeting.  By the time Emily came out, I honestly didn't care about what I'd just gone through.  When Shep calculated the number of hours I'd been in labor and pushing, I was shocked.  It didn't seem that long while I was going through it.  I guess I was so distracted by the thought of meeting the newest love of my life that not much else phased me!  I recall Dr. R. express surprise at how I was smiling and making jokes during labor and praising how long I pushed for and how I "never complained once" throughout the long process.  I reminded her about my Pitocin crying incident, to which she thought my response was "appropriate".  Wow, I guess if a doctor with decades of years of experience delivering babies thought I did a good job at keeping my cool, that's something to be proud of!

Recovery

This is the category that surprised me the most.  Perhaps my 3rd degree tear {ouch!} is to blame, but my physical recovery was much more painful than I realized it would be.  Sure, I knew that my lady parts would hurt after squeezing a watermelon-sized baby out of a much smaller opening.  But, I didn't realize the extent to which that pain and soreness would affect daily functioning -- going to the bathroom, taking a shower, bending over, sitting down, lifting my leg up to put pants on...  I didn't feel like a fully functioning human until almost several weeks after Emily's birth, and didn't feel 100% back to "normal" until Week 5-6.

Sleep

Shep and I always joke that the only hobby I have in life is sleeping.  Needless to say, I was terrified of the lack of sleep, and how it might affect me.  Sleep deprivation, after all, is no joke -- anything that is used as a torture tactic is no walk in the park.  I'm not sure whether the lack of sleep I experienced during most of my pregnancy and especially during my last trimester primed me for the sleepless nights of new motherhood, or whether "new mom" adrenaline is to thank, but I didn't sleep more than a dozen hours the entire first week of Emily's life and I honestly did not feel tired.  I didn't sleep the night or day I was in labor, nor did I sleep a wink my first postpartum night in the hospital.  I think I was awake for over 48 hours straight and could not fall asleep, nor did I feel like I needed to.  I got maybe 1 hour of sleep during my second postpartum night and a maximum of 1 hour of sleep each of the first 2 nights we were home from the hospital.  But shockingly, I didn't feel it!  It wasn't really until the week leading up to her 4 week birthday that any fatigue hit me... but even so, it isn't nearly as bad as I'd once dreaded it to be.  In fact, I almost pop out of bed when I hear my little love start to stir or cry... in a way, she energizes me!

Breastfeeding

During my pregnancy, I was very worried about breastfeeding.  What if I didn't produce any milk, or it hurt, or I didn't know how to do it right?  To my great surprise, Emily latched on like a champ as soon as I got into my recovery room after her delivery, and she kept on latching and feeding like a pro for the first several weeks.  It wasn't until about 20 days after she was born that I started having some issues with her staying latched.  She would pull off, bob her head back and forth, and other fun things that made me question what the heck she was doing!  But, so far we've soldiered on through it and I'm counting on this temporary tricky patch to disappear like a designer dress on the clearance rack at TJ Maxx.

All in all -- every step I've taken to get to this point has been sooooo worth it, just to get to hold my sweet little snuggly in my arms.

Weekend Happenings

Emily had a big weekend!  On Saturday she met her Great Aunt Barbara and her cousin Myles!  Of course Emily had to dress for the occasion...

Every lady needs a little black dress for a special Saturday!  :)  Don't let the ruffles and ribbons fool you, though, because she is one tough cookie!  She loves to show off her strength by lifting her head and pulling herself up, even though she's not yet even 12 weeks old!

On Saturday night she slept from 10 pm until after 6 am.... an 8+ hour stretch and her new sleep record!

On Sunday, Daddy painted Emily's new bookshelf and hung a picture ledge in her nursery.  Now we can decorate her room with all the wonderful little mementos she's gotten from loved ones!

Last night she did an encore sleep performance and slept from 10:20 pm until 6:10 am!  She must have been tuckered out from all the weekend excitement.  :)

Sleeping Beauty!

Guess who slept through the night for the first time last night????  This girl!...

Emily slept for over 7.5 consecutive hours last night, from 10:51 pm until 6:32 am!  When she woke up we changed and fed her, and then within 20 minutes of waking from that loooooong slumber she fell back to sleep for another 2 hrs and 48 minutes!  We were both shocked!  I bet she had some pretty great dreams because when she woke up she was sooooooo happy...

It must have been the awesome panda pajamas!  Or maybe it was the Prevacid finally kicking in and calming her reflux.  Or maybe it was a fluke...

I have heard that as babies approach the 14 pound mark that they can start sleeping longer stretches because they don't need to eat as frequently.  Only time will tell!  The little sleeping beauty is snoozing away now.... let's see how long she sleeps tonight!  {I hope I didn't just jinx myself...}

Will We Ever Sleep Again?

As soon-to-be first time parents, we are trying our best to mentally prepare for the many changes about to come to our lives.  And while we don't know exactly how our lives will change until baby actually arrives, the one theme that keeps coming up over and over again is sleep, or the lack thereof....

You all know the song by Lorde called "Royals", right?  Well here's a funny parody Nicole stumbled upon by Josh Stearns and Erica Carlson that had us cracking up and shaking with fear at the same time:

My favorite part is:

And every minute’s like diapers, Thomas, splashin’ in the bathtub
Juice stains, snack traps, screamin’ in the minivan
They don’t care, we can’t remember the last time we dreamed
But everybody’s like swaddles, white noise, sleeping with your baby
Warm milk, rocking, let them cry it out now
We don’t care, we haven’t slept in a couple years.

I guess we better stock up on as much sleep as we possible can until the baby arrives!  Wish us luck!!