All Smiles Today!

It is getting easier and easier to coax a smile out of Miss Charlotte these days. Here is a smile she gave me earlier today - I only caught the tail end of it and not from a great angle, but I'm sure smiles will be able to catch with the camera as she gets older.


After yesterday, I sure did need that smile today! While still in the womb, she moved so much I called her a little monkey! Yesterday she was a little monkey too, almost driving me crazy because I could not lull her to sleep for more than about 15 minutes at a time. She was so tired and cranky. Today I've had a little more luck, but in honor of her monkeyness yesterday, I dressed her in this cute little outfit that Aunt Paula bought her. Its a good thing that she's a tubby little thing and grew into it before the weather turns colder.


Daddy has been out of town since Tuesday afternoon and we are both so excited for him to come home! Vicki came over Tuesday after work to give me an extra hand and saved the day. An extra pair of hands with Charlotte makes things SO much easier, especially after being alone with her all day. Last night we went over to Beta* and Grandad's house for dinner. I thought about staying the night, but Charlotte was still being a little monkey. We won't blame her though, she was congested and I forgot her Little Noses drops.

* Beta, instead of Grandmom, pronounced Bay-ta :-)

4 Weeks Old - A full month on the 26th!

Sorry we are a day late - we had a busy weekend, and as usual, Charlotte doesn't allow much time for Internet posting. She grows faster than the weeds in our flower beds (which is very fast!) and now weighs around 11 lbs. Imagine my surprise when I dressed her in one of her 3 month outfits and found that it fit! I was so excited I just had to run out and buy her some cute onsies fit for a princess. Yes, Charlotte and I made a trip out of the house on Friday afternoon to BabiesRUs for a couple of things I knew we needed. She actually fell asleep in her car seat, did not wake up crying at any stoplight, and slept through the whole outing. Whew!

Charlotte in the onesie she picked out:

Saturday my godparents came over to visit and brought Charlotte a sweet pink and white dress, some cute shoe socks, and her first piece of jewelry - a silver bracelet. After feeding and changing Charlotte, we drove down to Pearland to meet Lola and Lolo (Fred's parents) for mass at St. Helen. This time, we did not hesitate to put her into the sling where she slept soundly all through mass and as her Lola showed her off to anyone who wanted to see her. I really wonder at all the people who feel that because they are being shown a baby that they can touch it. That wouldn't bother me so much, except so many of those people touch her hands, which she loves to suck on. Now I understand irresistible tiny baby hands, but please, please, please, wash your hands thoroughly before touching them.

After mass, we left Miss Charlotte at her grandparent's house and Fred and I took off for a quick dinner at Gringos. I had my first Margarita in 10 months! Yummmy! While we were there, Charlotte flashed her Lola a great big smile. I must admit, I was a little jealous, because smiles from Charlee are still pretty hard to come by. But YES, she is smiling! I would say that she flashed me her first big smile when she was around 2 weeks old, but most people would tell me it was gas. I don't believe that, since we had eye contact and she gave me the big, open mouth kind. The last few days, however, she has started smiling a lot more often.

Charlee and Daddy:

While holding her earlier today, she kept fussing and I just could not figure out what was wrong. Finally, I walked into the other room, pulled down her Baby Einstein floor gym and plopped her down on it. BINGO - she just wanted something else to look at! Her need for constant stimulation at only 4 weeks amazes me; I thought newborns were supposed to not have much interest i the world around them. The star at the top plays classical music and flashes different colors, and today she did not want to stop looking at it. Now she also stretches out and puts weight on her feet, and can hold her head up (swiveling it back and forth to look at stuff) for a full minute at a time.

Charlotte on the floor gym (Gig'em Aggies!):

Postpartum

At almost 4 weeks postpartum these are the things I've learned:

1. Weight does not equal Shape
Though I am still 10-15 lbs shy of my pre-pregnancy weight, I have a section of my wardrobe from my heaver days that should fit. Unfortunately, it seems my weight is all in new places and very few of my non-maternity clothes fit. Also unfortunately, my maternity clothes are mostly too big. We'll see what happens if I drop another 5-10 lbs.

2. The dark line on my belly doesn't disappear when the baby arrives.
What the heck? It hasn't even started to fade!

3. An alcoholic drink now and then is important for survival and feeling like a grown-up.
Alcohol in breast milk is about the same as that in your blood. A general rule of thumb is that if you are okay to drive, you are okay to feed your baby. I also always feed Charlotte right before I have my drink, so it has time to filter out of my milk before she wants to eat again.

4. When the baby is sleeping in her own crib, work quickly to do whatever you need to get done!
She likely won't sleep very long before she notices that I'm gone, there is no more milk, and the rocking stopped, so if I want to eat lunch, for example, I better be quick about it!

5. Finishing a hot meal is a rare gift.
Enough said.

6. My hair is falling out!
Although a pregnancy book had to point it out for me to notice, my hair stopped falling out and felt nice and thick throughout my pregnancy. Unfortunately, the side effect of NOT being pregnant means that my hair has started falling out again. I enjoyed not having to clear the drain of my hair...

7. My baby is cuter, smarter, stronger, and way more advanced than any other baby her age.
Well, she is :-).

Slings!

I took a slew of pictures yesterday after Charlotte's bath in hopes of getting some that are good for sending in an announcement and some that I can frame. These are a couple of my favorite:


The below two pictures are of Charlee in the slings.

SlingRider:

Over The Shoulder Baby Holder (a ring sling)

I haven't really figured out the ring sling, but think I might like it better if I could figure it out - it doesn't pull on my shoulder as much as the black and white sling, and you should be able to use it in different positions to carry the baby different ways. Even so, I don't thinks she's in there properly the way I was using it this morning, even though she does look quite cozy! Both, so far, have been great for going from cranky baby to either quiet content baby or sleeping baby. LOVE that part!

3 Weeks Old!

This week has really flown by. I would have posted sooner - so many things have happened and we have some new cute pictures. Unfortunately, while Mary Charlotte sleeps well at night, she has NOT been sleeping well during the day, and it is hard to type using one hand.


For night times, two things have saved me:

1. The glider and ottoman that Jill, Elizabeth, and Mr. and Mrs. Knickerbocker sent us.
I figured that Charlotte is pretty easy to soothe, so I wouldn't need one, but I seriously wasn't thinking! It is the best way to feed her at night and keep her from waking all the way up so I can slide her effortlessly back into bed (after a diaper change, of course!). THANK YOU all for the wonderful gift!


2. Swaddle Me
This nifty piece of fabric has a place for Charlotte's legs, wraps around her arms, and velcros into place. As Charlotte nears 10 lbs, the little receiving blankets we have are not big enough for a good swaddle. Wrapped up in her swaddle me, she can't throw her arms out and wake herself up while she is sleeping, thus she sleeps longer before waking up.


Daytime brings a new challenge; Charlotte just doesn't like to sleep when the sun is out! Someone should inform her that newborns should sleep most of the time. Unfortunately, she yawns like crazy as she looks wide-eyed at the world. Awake, she will let me put her down for about 5 minutes before crying bloody murder - although on occasion she's been okay with sitting in her car seat being rocked (by hand, not in her swing). If, by chance, I've lulled her to sleep, once I place her in her crib she stays that way for 10-20 minutes at most. Holding her while she is sleeping or sleeping with her on the bed has been the only thing that would work. At last, today, I think I have found the solution!


Today I finally decided to try the sling my coworker, Catherine lent me on Friday. WOW. I went from screaming baby to sleeping baby in less than 5 minutes (maybe 2 minutes!) once I dropped her in there and started walking around the house. I pulled her out and plopped her into her crib where she has been sleeping for 2 hours! Many prayers of thanksgiving for that one! So I think I may have found the item that saves my daytimes. I think I might be able to figure out how to nurse her while wearing it (without the world knowing what I'm doing), so FREEDOM from the house might be at hand. I have another borrowed sling - an Over the Shoulder Baby Holder, that I'll have to try as well.

The other things that have saved me this week:

1. Fred
He changes a lot of the dirty diapers when he is home and holds Charlotte when I don't feel like I can do it any more. Because of him, I get a chance to eat, shower, change clothes, and take a couple of minutes for myself. He has run any errand I've needed run for the last 3 weeks.

2. My Parents
More specifically my Mom. Monday she brought me new groceries, and took us for Mary Charlotte's first meal out. She's invited us over with the promise of a full meal, twice. She's let me come over and hang out just so I can have somewhere to go.

In other happenings, I took Charlotte to her first party yesterday - a bridal shower for my cousin Luke's fiance, Megan. Its pretty much a lot of work to get her out of the house for something, but she was pretty good and did not cry much, but stared wide-eyed at her new surroundings.


This morning, since, Fred, Charlotte, and I were all up at 7:30, we were able to get it together enough to make 11:00 Mass, and managed it with MUCH more success than last time. She woke up from her brief nap, screaming, just in time to be stuffed into her car seat and get on the road, still screaming. I panicked a little as I realized the church lot was full and we'd have to park across the street - no quick escape if she woke up screaming. Of course, she was already screaming, so I am not sure why that was my number one concern. I climbed into the back seat and fed her until she passed out in my arms, her tummy a little fuller and exhausted from crying for 15 minutes. I didn't bother strapping back into her carrier, but just carried her into the church.

This time, we knew better than to go to the cry room, but sat at the very back of the church where they pull out the extra plastic chairs. I thought it was interesting that the average age of child back in the back seemed to be younger than the cry room, yet, the children were all much better behaved. I'd still like to work my way back into the main room of the church, but feel like we are getting closer! Charlotte cried out in her sleep a couple of times, but slept through the entire Mass. After such success, we were so bold as to take her out to lunch at Osaka, our favorite little sushi place. That went better than I thought too, not entirely relaxing, but I did get my raw fish!

Lifehouse - First Time

I've heard this song for almost a month and then I finally stopped to listen to the lyrics. After that, I was hooked.

We're both looking for something

We've been afraid to find

It's easier to be broken

It's easier to hide

Looking at you, holding my breath

For once in my life I'm scared to death

I'm taking a chance letting you inside

I'm feeling alive all over again

As deep as the scars under my skin

Like being in love, she said, for the first time

Maybe I'm wrong, I'm feeling right

Where I belong with you tonight

Like being in love to feel for the first time

The world that I see inside you

Waiting to come to life

Waking me up to dreaming

Reality in your eyes

Looking at you, holding my breath

For once in my life I'm scared to death

I'm taking a chance letting you inside

I'm feeling alive all over again

As deep as the scars under my skin

Like being in love, she said, for the first time

Maybe I'm wrong, I'm feeling right

Where I belong with you tonight

Like being in love to feel for the first time

We're crashing

Into the unknown

We're lost in this

But it feels like home

I'm feeling alive all over again

As deep as the scars that's under my skin

Like being in love, she said, for the first time

Maybe I'm wrong, I'm feeling right

Where I belong with you tonight

Like being in love to feel for the first time

Like being in love she said for the first time

Like being in love to feel for the first time

Bye Bye Umbilical Cord

Charlotte's umbilical cord finally came off. Not super exciting news, but now I can pull her diapers up a little more and we can wear outfits with separate bottoms. We can also take a nice, fully submerged bath! Bath time is going to be so much more fun.


**Updated to show our bath in the tub that Todd and his girls (soon to be Charlotte's uncle and cousins!) gave us. If possible, I think she enjoyed this bath less than the sponge bath. I guess she doesn't remember living in water the first 9 months of her life. Next time we'll use the mesh cradle (like you are supposed to!) and maybe she'll be happier. Maybe.**

Two Weeks!

So our precious baby girl is two weeks old today! She is growing so fast! I'm not crazy about the nighttime demands she has, but she's so sweet right now - I wish I could just hit pause and enjoy it longer.

Thursday we visited my grandmother, "Mom," at the nursing home. Don't worry, we were careful to avoid germs :-). We took a picture of the four generations of Christian women, and stayed with Mom until she finished her lunch. She isn't very responsive these days, but we were all enjoying a laugh (I'm not even sure about what) and Mom joined in with a chuckle. When I introduced the baby as Mary Charlotte, Mom's eyes got really big (her name is Mary Elizabeth).

Aunt Paula has been in town this week, and we've loved spending time with her, too. She bought Charlotte several cute outfits and made us shrimp creole for dinner. YUM! Aunt Fiona her fiance Todd brought us dinner on Friday night, and we spent Saturday with Fred's parents. Sorry, no pictures of those visits (pics from Paula later)!

Our little girl is not a very sleepy newborn. She always amazes me because she'll be wide awake for hours at a time. Usually she won't let me put her down, but as long as I am holding her, she doesn't cry. This is all fun until she wakes up just after 11 PM and doesn't go back to sleep until 4:30 AM. Luckily, we haven't had too many nights like that.

Unexpected Weight Gain

It's funny how some of my friends would come up to me and say, "Wow Fred! You haven't put on any sympathy weight." I have been pretty good about watching my diet and exercising, but that all went to hell when the baby came.

Elizabeth and I would slightly indulge in our food choices during her pregnancy. You know, the ice cream, extra Oreos, and perhaps eating out a little more. I was good with that and was able to maintain my weight through working out. The problem that I have now is people are giving us food!

It's not that I'm not appreciative of it. Of course I love it because I'm eating it. I'm just eating too much of it. My previous deterrent for me not eating much is that food costs money. When it's given to you for free, that barrier is no longer available. It's not that I'm hurting my pocket when I buy my meals. I just know that the largest expenditure I have is food. I'd rather cut back on the chunkiest parts of the budget.

So. . . . . . . . .

I think I'm going to go back on my diet again. This time I want to make it last till Thanksgiving. This means no alcohol, chocolate, soda, cookies, chips, or anything that creates a party in my mouth for a couple months. There will be exceptions, of course like UT vs. OU weekend, but I need to make sure I only do advanced schedule, off-dieting. I'm going to start my diet this Sunday.

Wish me luck and see how well I last!

Doctor, Doctor, Give me the News

Today we had our follow up appointment with the pediatrician. Charlotte is growing quickly! Since our last visit on Thursday, she has gained a full pound and is now 8 lbs, 2 oz! No more wondering if she's eating enough when she blows through a feeding in 10 minutes and refuses to open her mouth for a drop more. (How big would she be if she actually always ate the full 20 minutes?! Of course we still eat that long at least a few feedings a day.) That also explains why the size 1 diapers now fit better than the newborn ones. As soon as she is just a little bigger, she'll fit in the 0-3 month PINK outfits and dresses everyone keeps giving her. I can't wait!

An Adventure in Parenthood

So, yesterday, being Sunday, Fred and I got up and got ready to head to church, baby and all. Well, we didn't quite plan enough extra time to get ourselves and Charlotte ready, so we ended up going to a later mass than usual. No big deal.

First mistake - sitting in the cry room. I was so paranoid about her waking up and screaming to be fed that I didn't want to sit in the main church. Turns out, BAD IDEA. People in cry rooms don't seem to be there to participate in Mass. They are there to chase around their crazy, crying children. Okay, so I understand that sometimes two year olds can be that way, but there were families with MUCH older children running around, up and down out of their seats. That coupled with me trying to keep Charlotte sleeping and not starting at every loud noise someone made it impossible for me to concentrate on the Mass.

We made it all the way to Communion before the inevitable happened and she started to squirm and fuss. By the time we'd received Communion, she was outright screaming. I knew she wanted food and a diaper change; rather than breastfeed and change her in the nook at the back of the room, we bolted for the car. By now she was furious! I whipped out the changing pad and a fresh diaper and changed her in my lap in the back seat. "Not bad," I thought and handed her to Fred so I could finish cleaning up and feed her just enough to pacify her.

Then we heard it - another freshly changed diaper bites the dust (I know better; to wait until after she's been awake a while, but she won't eat if she's wet or dirty). And then we saw it - poop on Fred's Jacket, poop on her cute pink onesie, and poop all over the outside of her diaper. So her fury turned to outrage as I put her back on my lap and stripped her down, but not before Fred closed the car door on her little head (not hard - her head wasn't IN the door, just a little too close to it). As I was cleaning up the poopy diaper, I noticed suddenly that everything was WET as well (everything BUT her diaper...). Finally, I was able to comfort her with a little meal before strapping her, in only her diaper, in the car seat.

Once we were home and she was sleeping, Fred and I looked at each other and just laughed. Next week, I'm leaving him with a bottle of expressed milk and going by myself! We'll try again in a few weeks, but I'm NEVER sitting in a cry room again. The end of the pew in the main church that is next to the cry room door is where we'll plop ourselves next time, allowing for an easy escape if necessary. Charlotte will just have to behave herself.

One Week Old!

Okay, so I wrote this post, hit "publish post," and whammy, nothing, everything gone, so here it goes again. Sheez.

ANYWAY. Our sweet little girl is one week old today! We've had so much fun since I last posted on Wednesday.


Thursday we had a trip to the Pediatrician to check Charlotte's bilirubin levels since she had been a little jaundiced as we left the hospital. Everything checked out great! She weighed around 7 lbs 2 oz, so she didn't loose too much ground after birth (babies loose up to 7% of their body weight before leaving the hospital). She enjoyed this car ride much more than the one home from the hospital.


Once home we put Charlotte into her swing where she jammed to some tunes with Daddy. Fred said she was even copying him with her fingers, though I'm not so sure about that ;-).


After our busy morning, Charlee had her first bath! As you can see, she enjoyed being wrapped up in her towel much more than getting wet.


Friday was such an exciting day, because Charlee met her aunts Michele and Helen for the first time! Since our sweet little girl doesn't know anything about calendars and schedules yet, Michele and Helen had already left for school at LSU before Charlotte's birth. She loves her aunts very much and can't wait to visit them in Baton Rouge. At least Aunt Christy lives in town!