One month old!

Well, my little baby girl had a weight check at the doctor today, and the nurse had to move over the big 10 pound marker! She's exactly 10 pounds and 22 1/4 inches long at one month old! Amazing.

What a cute Lil' Punkin'!

Tuesday was my Mom's birthday, so we all went out to dinner. Brian & Tiffany got her a necklace that says "Nana"- that's what the grandkids will call her. Awww...

Since it was so nice on Tuesday, we went for a walk on the bike trail before it gets too cold outside. She loves the sun!

Grandma Marlene got to visit on Tuesday after the doctor said she was all better. Julia missed her kisses!

2 a.m.

To all of you who comment that "she's always sleeping"... here she is, wide awake and making every possible adorable face. What's the catch? It is two in the morning and there are no witnesses! Except Mommy, of course, who would not miss this for the world. (Or should I say, for all the sleep in the world!)

Doctor Appointment

Julia had her two week well baby check up and everything is great! She weighed in at a whopping 8 pounds, 13 ounces! I guess we've been doing something right with this breastfeeding, even though it feels frustrating at times. She's growing like a weed! The next appointment will be shots, yuck! I'll have to make sure Daddy is there for that one. I don't know who will need more comforting, Mommy or Baby! :)

Dressed for Church

Julia's first outing: a trip to church. Exactly one week old. Isn't she stunning in that bonnet? It's still a little big, but she's growing fast. At nearly 2 weeks old now, I already think she looks different. I wish there was a way to slow this down. Ideas anyone? :)

Lessons Learned

10 Lessons I've Learned as a Mother...
#10 Baby only spits up when Mommy doesn't have a burp cloth handy.
#9 Warm bath water makes Baby pee.
#8 Baby will smile (adorably) in her sleep all the time... unless Mommy has the camera, then she won't.
#7 Baby knows when she's strapped in her car seat and Mommy is ready to leave and she will poop to gain freedom from the seat.
#6 Baby can sleep for hours straight, unless of course Mommy has just gotten into the shower. Then she may find it necessary to cry even though she has a full belly and a clean diaper.
#5 Baby sleeps longer in bed with Mommy than in her own bassinet. (Really, it's true, although it may also be Mommy's excuse to cuddle with baby a few hours each night.)
#4 If Mommy gives Baby a bath and puts a clean, cute outfit on her, Baby will spit up more than you'd think her tummy could hold and make Mommy start over.
#3 Baby suddenly gets hungry whenever she senses Mommy has warmed herself a plate of food or just poured milk on her cereal. (Mommy hasn't had a hot meal in nearly 2 weeks.)
#2 Baby will wait until she is in a brand new, clean, fresh diaper to fill it with poop... every time!

And the #1 lesson I've learned as a mother...
Daddy is useless when Mommy needs him, and probably more helpless than Baby. His favorite phrases are, "Mommy, I think she's hungry," and "Mommy, I think she needs her diaper changed." (If Mommy truly needs help, she should call her own Mommy!)

And the lesson I've learned just now, while typing this, is that Baby will not stop crying just because Mommy ignores her. She will get louder and madder and kick harder until she gets her way.

More pictures!

Top: She's all strapped in her car seat and ready to leave the hospital. Can't get enough of that face. The outfit is actually a preemie size. Good thing too, the newborn stuff is still a little big. Don't let the cheeks fool you, she's pretty skinny. Born at 8 lbs even, but she lost 1/2 lb by the time we left the hospital.
2nd picture: Proud Mommy and Daddy! She sucks her hands when she's hungry, and she was born hungry!
3rd picture: John took this through the nursery window. He said she looked like a frog :) Don't worry, it's not cruel, she's in a warmer. That's why she can be comfy all naked and sprawled out.
Bottom: Striking resemblance to John... still can't get over that. Grandma Marlene made the bracelet she's modeling. So tiny!

Pictures!

Top picture: I love watching John hold her, especially when they're both sleeping. He's more of a natural than I thought. She just sort of melts into him. And she always opens her eyes really big when she hears his voice. I wonder if she recognizes it from when he talked to her in my belly.
Middle picture: Well, what do you expect, I was exhausted! Didn't even realize I'd dozed off until John took the picture. Something about holding a sleeping baby is so relaxing though... especially when she's yours!
Bottom: Couldn't you just eat her up! Those cheeks... back away Lucygoose, she's MINE! Notice the Mehok double chin, LOL. Poor baby :)

She's here!

Sorry this post is so long in coming, guys. It is taking me longer than I thought to get going again. So... how about I just start at the beginning and take you through it all. I'll try not to get too long winded.
Last Saturday night we stayed up late and I felt totally normal. I'd been having little contractions all week but nothing to speak of. We didn't turn in until after 1 a.m. and then I woke up at about 3:15 with a slow leak that was undeniably amniotic. I called the doctor's answering service and sure enough, she was off and there was a different doctor on call for the day. He called back and said to go to the emergency room right away. we loaded up and headed out. They confirmed I was in labor and we settled in for a long day. My contractions weren't bad at all. The nurse checked me (um, OUCH!) and told me I was 2-3 centimeters. I was impressed with that considering it was zero at the last doctor's appt. They started an I.V. so I could get the antibiotic to make sure I wouldn't pass the Group B Strep to the baby at birth. That set my entire forearm on fire as soon as it hit the bloodstream and it was 10 times worse than the contractions. Boy was I glad when that little bag emptied! From then on I just tried to rest, although that was difficult with the slow leak continuing, talk about uncomfortable. And actually, the backache I had was worse than the contractions. As time went on though, they grew stronger and I had more trouble talking through them. (Or listening, or knowing what planet I was on :))Then, sometime before noon (Can't remember, too out of it) the doctor finally showed up and checked me again. I was only 4-5 cent. in all that time. So he said he'd start me on Pitocin to make them stronger and then I could have an epidural if I wanted. I knew I was doing fine up til then but with Pitocin, I wanted relief so I agreed. They started the Pit. and called the anesthesiologist. Of course he was tied up though, so the Pitocin was killing me by the time he got there. It made it so that the contractions were a lot harder, but worse than that, the pain continued through in between them so that I didn't get the breaks I was getting before. Yikes. I was just at the point where I was telling John to go find the man and come back with him or don't come back at all when he showed up. Lucky for John. But to give credit to laboring women everywhere, you're not yourself at all. It takes you over, and when you feel that contraction coming on, you are in another place. And no one better come in to that place! Any way, the epidural man is my new best friend. After he left, labor was fun! If anything, it was too good! By the time the nurse checked me again that evening, I was at 10 centimeters but I couldn't feel enough to push right! They turned down the epidural and then we had to wait a while for it to wear off. The pushing was seriously hard work, but was still numb. I could feel sensation but not pain, it's hard to explain. I pushed for a long time but I enjoyed finally getting to do something productive. They even had a mirror so I could see that first glimpse of hair. Wow. They called the doctor in when I was literally minutes away from delivering. I don't think I can put to words the birth itself. It was truly the most amazing thing I've seen or felt. I still can't honestly believe she came out of me when I look at her. Once she was out they put her up on my chest and she just looked at me, totally alert, eyes wide open. She hadn't even cried yet! I only had her for a second because they thought she had swallowed meconium. So they took her to suction her and clean her off a bit. Then I heard her cry. It wasn't your usual loud, mad sounding baby cry. It was so sad and pitiful sounding, more like a squeak and not piercing at all. I fell in love with it. While they worked on her the good doc took care of the placenta and stitches. Once they were finished we got to have her back and everyone came in one at a time to see her for just a second. Then I got to feed her (which she took to wonderfully) and then she had to the nursery for a while. I was moved to recovery and it's all history from there. You don't want to hear about recovery, that was the miserable part.
I still can't believe how much she looks like John. When they brought her to me that first night I had to laugh. When she sleeps with her mouth open they look identical. I can't imagine being able to love her more than I do. I find myself losing whole chunks of time just staring at her. Nothing can prepare you for it. She's so totally perfect.
God was taking care of us though because when the pediatrician came by on Tuesday morning and I told her she'd been spitting up and crying a lot more than she did the day before,she decided to do an upper GI and they determined she has reflux. She's on two meds and they are working wonderfully. I am so thankful that they got it all sorted out before we came home though. It was heartbreaking to see her so miserable. She would spit up and then scream because it was hurting her and they she'd want to nurse because that would soothe her throat, but if she kept eating like that it would just make her spit up again. I was at my wits end that night and early morning without John there. Thank goodness she's well now and you wouldn't even know she has a problem. She sleeps a lot, feeds every three hours or so, and I even get some sleep! Like I said, she's perfect!
I have to stop, I've been writing forever. I'm going to post some pictures and I'm sure I'll have more to say later. Thanks for your prayers everyone, I could feel them, truly.