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!):