Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Two Weeks Old

BugBat is officially two weeks old today, tear! She's plumping up nicely though, and I'm finally beginning to get a little stir-crazy, since I've been more or less house-bound (not allowed to drive) since returning from the hospital.  Yesterday we finally made our first outing (other than the pediatrician) as a family, and Wombat took us to the office for about an hour and a half to visit everyone and catch up on mail, etc, followed by a quick trip to Target for more diapers (150 count on sale for only $29 - get them while they last)!  It was great to get out, but exhausting after only 3 hours since I had to feed and change her multiple times on the trip, despite my best efforts to prepare her beforehand.

The same day (Tuesday) great-grandma and Aunt Connie came to see BugBat for the first time, and it was nice to be able to show her off in a small group, as opposed to during this coming weekend's huge family reunion, which will be great fun, but also a bit overwhelming.  I hope to get some pictures with the other two new babies in the family, although they are 2-3 months older than BugBat, especially since Grandma Chris got them all matching outfits.

As of her two-week birthday, BugBat's tear duct has finally opened, and her eye doesn't get all goopy when she wakes up or cries anymore.  Her tummy and cheeks are also getting nice and soft, and I can already see a big difference in her appearance now, compared to her newborn pictures.  I trimmed her fingernails for the first time this week, and it may have been one of the scariest things I've had to do so far, but at least she's not scratching herself anymore.  What she IS doing, is grabbing onto the hair on the back of her head and pulling it until she cries, since she doesn't quite realize what she's doing yet haha.....I have to unpry her little fingers to give her relief, and sometimes she still manages to pull out some strands of her beautiful red hair to my dismay.

Anyway, here's some video and picture goodness from earlier this week and today:



Mommy's hand with BugBat's hand

Daddy's hand with BugBat's hand


Ohio State's youngest Buckeye:
O-
H-

I-

O!

Atticus-Cat being protective
  
Wombat is the baby-whisperer when I can't calm her down

1st Bath!


i
I think she liked it

Fluffy hair :)

Her red curls :)




Baby faux-hawk

Jack-Dog competing for attention



Four Generations





Sweet dreams, beautiful baby

Sunday, September 25, 2011

24-Hour Real Time Blog of the Life of BugBat's Mom

For kicks, memories, and for something "productive" to do:

4:20 - Laundry
4:22 - Diaper
4:26 - Nursed
4:34 - Burped
4:49 - Put down for nap
4:55 - Laundry.
4:58 - Googled and researched "infant development" as in, "what in the world should we be doing while she's awake?"  Good resources:
5:06 - Determined that simply talking to BugBat is the best thing to do at this point in her life.
5:20 - Grandpa Bill stopped by for a visit.
5:55 - Grandpa Bill left.
5:58 - Diaper.
6:09 - Began making dinner - pasta with meat sauce and cheese.  Boring but easy.
6:33 - Ordered Birth Announcements.
6:45 - Diaper x 2
6:45 - Mom and Ron stopped by for a visit.
6:50 - Ate dinner while mom held BugBat.
7:03 - Nursed BugBat; mom and Ron left.
7:09 - Burped.
7:23 - Diaper.
7:26 - Nursed.
7:36 - Burped.
7:40 - Nap.
7:41 - Awoke from nap and wanted comforted/held.
7:55 - Laundry with one arm.
8:00 - Attended to dog/cat with one arm.
8:15 - Nursed.
8:20 - Burped
8:25 - Nap.
8:26 - Snacked on applesauce while BugBat in swing.
8:45 - Watched this video and cried:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4vkVHijdQk
8:57 - Laundry.
9:18 - Diaper x 3
9:26 - Nursed.
9:42 - Burped.
9:48 - Nap.
10:00 - Read book "Red Fish Blue Fish"
10:08 - Diaper
10:10 - Nursed.
10:26 - Burped.
10:35 - Nursed
11:05 - Diaper
11:07 - Nursed
11:20 - Diaper
11:24 - Burped
11:50 - Nursed
12:02 - Burped
3:38 - Diaper
3:40 - Nursed
3:50 - Burped
3:55 - Sleep
3:59 - Needs comforted/held
4:03 - Nursed
4:13 - Diaper
4:23 - Nursed
4:25 - Spit up all over mommy and bed
4:30 - Laundry
4:45 - Nursed
5:50 - Burped
5:55 - Sleep?
5:35 - Diaper
5:40 - Nursed
5:55 - Burped
6:05 - Nursed
6:10 - Burped
6:15 - Diaper
6:20 - Nursed
6:25 - Burped
6:36 - SLEEP?!?!
*For the record, this may be one of the worst nights so far....up for more than 3 hours....not sure what is going on; none of us are happy campers right now.
9:26 - Diaper
9:30 - Nursed
11:50 - Diaper x 3
11:55 - Laundry
11:59 - Nursed
12:06 - Burped
1:16 - Nursed
1:32 - Diaper
1:35 - Burped
2:15 - Nursed
2:21 - Diaper
2:25 - Burped
2:30 - Took cute videos of her awake time:


3:01 - Nursed
3:14 - Diaper
3:21 - Nursed
3:33 - Burped

"For Baby" - John Denver

I'll walk in the rain by your side,
I'll cling to the warmth your hand.
I'll do anything to keep you satisfied,
I'll love you more than anybody can.

And the wind will whisper your name to me.
Little birds will sing along in time.
Leaves will bow down when you walk by,
And morning bells will chime. 

I'll be there when you're feelin' down,
To kiss away the tears if you cry
I'll share with you all the happiness I've found;
A reflection of the love in your eyes. 

And I'll sing you the songs of the rainbow;
A whisper of the joy that is mine.
And leaves will bow down when you walk by,
And morning bells will chime. 

I'll walk in the rain by your side.
I'll cling to the warmth your tiny hand.
I'll do anything to help understand.
And I'll love you more than anybody can. 

And the wind will whisper your name to me.
Little birds will sing along in time.
Leaves will bow down when you walk by:
And morning bells will chime.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

One Week Old Already

Not only do I now understand what "love at first sight" truly means, but I also sincerely appreciate how fast time flies now.  Today, BugBat is one week old.  I cannot believe it.  It seems like yesterday when I was miserably wishing to go into labor, and now she's been here for seven whole days.

Last night I had my first "moment" where I was watching her sleep and just began crying with love for her.  I can't even remember how life used to be without her anymore.  All I want to do is watch her sleep, watch her  look around, or watch her make adorable faces when she's working on a "project" haha.  I love the little head shaking she does when she's getting ready to nurse, and how she plays with her fingers in the middle of her meal.  I love her huge stretches and yawns, and how she likes to sleep with her hands beside her head, while kicking her feet out as if she were air-biking.

Wombat and I feel a little guilty, but we can't help but laugh at her wails sometimes - when she's hungry, she cries as if the world were going to end if she doesn't eat in 2.3 seconds. She must get the hungry-crankiness from me, and the loud set of lungs from her dad ;) Often, she gets so upset that it takes her a few seconds to realize when she is actually being offered the opportunity to eat haha. When she's happy, she squeaks and chirps, and often opens her mouth like a baby bird, which prompts her dad to ad lib her opera singing voice.   It's quite adorable and we really need to get some video of it soon.  She also makes content little sighs during her naps, as if she's resting after a really long day of work. Which is true, if you count all the diapers she produces (a lot!)

As for me, I'm beginning to feel normal again.  The best thing ever is lying on my stomach again after so long!  Feels amazing.  I've began walking a little bit every day, and since my highest weigh-in at 158 lbs, I'm down to 141 today.  Yay!  Upon returning from the hospital though, I was still 150, so it's true that you don't loose it right away, despite the baby weighing nearly all of that.  I think breastfeeding is really helping, since I've steadily lost 2-3 lbs each day since beginning.   I'm not in a hurry to loose it all since I want to keep eating enough to feed BugBat, but it will be really nice when I can finally fit into my old clothes again.  For now, I'm still wearing sweatpants and nursing tops, which is fine since I'm stuck at the house for at least another week.

Anyway, here are some 1-week pictures of both of us.  First, the BugBat in her princess bag (ok, several pictures of her, but I was playing with Wombat's new camera, and let me tell you, it is fun!  Love the rapid-fire shots):










And here is my post-partum belly, for anyone curious enough to look (I know I wanted to know what the heck it would look like, and I admit I'm pleasantly surprised so far, considering how big it got! FYI: This is a great website for other mommies looking to feel better about their mommy bodies:  http://theshapeofamother.com/)  Regardless, I'm looking forward to finally running again in a few weeks...hopefully the weather will still be nice enough by the time I get the ok.



ETA (Edited to Add):  Umbilical cord fell off on her one-week birthday, yay!

Monday, September 19, 2011

First Doctor Visit

Some quick stats:

At five days old, BugBat had her first pediatrician visit today - we were shocked to hear that she is already 8 lbs 7 oz!  That's a 7 oz. weight gain from birth, and 10 oz since the hospital discharged us.  So she is clearly eating well and I'm producing well; thank goodness the cluster feeding paid off.

Her length is in the 87th percentile, weight is 83rd percentile, and head circumference is 47th percentile (both Wombat and I have small heads, so that's not a surprise.  Happily that probably also led to less birth damage ;)

We only had one minor concern going into the appointment, which was that her belly button is sticking out a bit, and we hoped that wouldn't result in an outie...apparently this is quite common with babies and only 3% do not go in by 6 months, so we'll see how it progresses.  She also has a small blood spot in her left eye, but it likely resulted from birth and will fade within the week.

The skin on her hands and feet is peeling a little bit, but the doctor told us that is also normal and not to worry about putting lotion on it since it will peel regardless.  Other than that, BugBat's reflexes and senses seem to be working well, and she's producing enough dirty diapers.  Her feet still get purple from time to time, but her circulation is catching up with her and hopefully she'll either grow out of it or be like her dad (always hot, save for his hands and feet).

Anyway, BugBat is finally getting into an eating routine and I only had to feed her once last night, around 3...I can't complain at all.  Good job being so healthy so far, baby girl!  Bath time!