First Fever

It is a little past midnight and I am hauled away in the bedroom watching Allie like a hawk. Our little one had her first fever today (or at least the first one we know of). :-( The doctor said not to worry unless it reaches 100.4 and we are only at 99.4 as of now. I know, I know, the book said not to worry too I really didn't need to call, but I did anyway. I rationalized that since it was only 10pm at night it wasn't that bad to call after hours. It's not like it was 3am - thought I probably would have called if it was 3am too! Anyway, new paranoid Mommie here is going to try to get some rest now that Allie finally seems a bit calmer. I promise more cute pictures tomorrow!

Sophia Makes Me Smile!

Halloween is a Comin'

I love Halloween. In fact, the only thing I love more than Halloween is pumpkins. Not carved pumpkins (that is just cruel), regular plump round orange pumpkins. I usually have at least ten in the apartment on any given year.

When I found out I was going to give birth in August one of the first things that ran though my head (other than, holy crap it is going to be hot) is, 'I will get at least two Halloweens to dress up my baby before he or she has an opinion on what they want to be!' Even before I was pregnant looking at infant Halloween costumes was a big hobby of mine (I know, most people take up yoga or knitting).

I was a little disappointed to find out that most of the infant Halloween costumes run in 0-6 month sizes so I am not sure if Little Alyson is going to fit in any of the outfits I had picked out. Our daughter is just so tiny still! I may have to run by Build a Bear and see how big their clothes are.

The good news is that we will be in our new house by Halloween, which means we can take Alyson trick or treating! I can't wait. Take the poll and tell us what you think Alyson should be for Halloween. Notice that elephant is NOT on the list. That would just be too obvious.

Good Morning!

One Month Old!

Alyson Maya is one month old today!

Happy Birthday Allie Bear!

Gone Banking

Allie and I ran our first solo errand today to the bank! It only took two tries. :-) Here's a picture of our little bear in her sun hat.

Sleepy Bear

Allie bear falls asleep in the funniest poses. Here are some of her greatest hits.

Lists and More Lists

I have always been a list person. I make lists for everything. List of things to do. Lists of things I have already done. Lists of things that I may do in the future.

Turns out, when you have an infant crossing things off your list is very difficult. And when you are moving into a new house in a month the list of things you need to do grows exponentially. As someone with an A-type personality this has been very difficult for me to deal with. Around 9 or 10 at night when Bret relieves me from Alyson duty and takes the early late night feeding shift I pass by my long list of things to do on the kitchen table before retreating to the bedroom for some shuteye and it drives me nuts.

Today my plan was to go to the bank and return two phone calls. I have a bunch of checks to cash and I wanted to start an account for Alyson with the gifts she has received so far. I also need a bunch of quarters to do laundry on Wednesday when my folks visit and I can actually leave the apartment for a few minutes. But Alyson had another plan. After sleeping from 8 - 11:15 she decided to spend the afternoon cluster feeding and I have been basically attached to her until now while she is happily playing on her activity mat with the hiccups. Adorable!

So far I have returned one phone call, done the dishes and written this blog post. I guess what I have finally realized is that I really need to chill out about my list. So Alyson's baby book isn't completely filled out yet or the pile of laundry in my bedroom is spilling into the bathroom. Instead, moving forward my new plan is to try to complete two tasks on my list everyday. (of course that doesn't include activities of daily living like eating or showering - these are musts!) If I can do that the day should be considered a success. Of course, that is coming from someone who hasn't yet showered today and is still wearing maternity clothes not because she doesn't fit into any of her regular clothes but because she doesn't have time to sort through what fits and what doesn't.

Making the Grade

Nothing drives a parent crazier than charts on developmental milestones. The What to Expect books are chock-full of charts saying what your child should be able to do, will probably be able to do and may even be able to do at all the different months of age. While information is good, this also causes parents to freak out when their children brings their hands together spontaneously at six weeks rather than four. It also causes them to declare their child a genius when she flips her head from side to side at five days old rather than three weeks (yes, that was Alyson!) And of course obsess over whether or not they have achieved something. Did she actually smile in response to my smile? I am not sure. Maybe it was just gas. It was probably gas.

At our last pediatrician appointment I asked the doctor what we should be looking for over the next month and he said, 'for her to act more like a person.' I thought that was the best answer. Screw the books I say. We just need to let little Alyson become Alyson.

Making Weight: Part 2

Alyson went to the pediatrician on Friday and I am happy to report she is now 7 lbs and 13 ounces! That means she still hasn't caught up to her Daddie's birth weight and by the time she is two months old she will barely have caught up to Mommie's birth weight. She is just a tiny little girl.

If only I had a nickle for every newborn outfit I put back on the shelf when I was shopping for baby clothes. Everyone told me not to buy any newborn clothes because she would grow out of them in a week or two at most. But as it turns out, our Allie Bear will be in newborn clothes for at least another two - three weeks. Thankfully, Aunt Casey, Nana and Grandma have been picking up extra outfits along the way.

Allie celebrated her first Yom Kippur yesterday with break fast at her Aunt Mindi's apartment. She met all sorts of relatives. It was a lot of fun! She was too little to take to temple, so instead she relaxed on the couch with Dad and watched episodes of The Daily Show. She just can't get enough of John Oliver.

BBQ!

We took Alyson on her first outing to get her Daddie's favorite food -- BBQ! She had so much fun. She only went through two hoodies!

Miss Wiggles

Grunt. Squeak. Toot. Sigh. One thing I didn't realize about babies is what noisy little critters they are. Don't get me wrong, I knew they were noisy. I just didn't realize how noisy they are when they sleep!

Over the last week Allie has definitely started to become more vocal. Not in the sense that she is crying a lot or even much at all really (she really is a great baby - knock on wood). She is just starting to make more sounds. When we set up the crib in our bedroom in our tiny Manhattan apartment we knew the day would come when I would end up sleeping on our couch bed in the den. Turns out, last night was that night. After three nights of being woken up every fifteen minutes by squirming, tossing and mumbling I finally made my way to the couch bed where I slept like a (baby?) for three whole straight hours before I got up to feed Allie.

At first I felt like a terrible mother. After all, Bret seems to have no problem sleeping through her vocal antics and he adores being in the same room as her. But then I remembered that I will be an even worse (and cranky) mother if I keep trying to survive on such little sleep. I have always been a bit of a "high maintenance" sleeper as Bret would call me. The temperature needs to be just right, the covers need to be perfectly straight and the room needs to be dead silent for me to sleep (other than the hum of my air cleaner which I have become accustomed to ever since I was diagnosed with asthma) and God forbid all my favorite pairs of pajamas are in the wash. Disaster!

I remember my mother telling me that she kicked me out of her room after only three days home from the hospital because I was so noisy. She said I used to scratch the bed with my nails and it drove her crazy. How could she I thought? Well, now I know. Like mother, like daughter I guess. I feel bad sleeping in a different room but as long as Allie knows that when she needs me I'll rush in to be there, then that is all that matters.

Playtime with Mommie

Three Weeks Old

Alyson is three weeks old today! She really started opening her eyes this week and is staying awake for longer periods of time during the day (and much to her parents dismay, the night!) Here are some photos of our sweet little girl.

Playtime

Allie loves Jacques the Peacock. She loves staring at the black and white on his backside. You can tell she is just starting to recognize him when he moves. Pretty cool!

Eyes Wide Open

I miss Daddy

Today was Daddie's first day back at work. Boy, do Mommie and I miss him already! We love you Daddie! I tried my hardest to sleep as long as possible last night so Daddie could get some rest.

Fun with Dad

My Very Own Room

I visited my new house
this weekend. It was so much fun! I have my very own room. My nursery colors are pink, green and blue. Use the poll to tell Mommie and Daddie what color we should paint the room!

Two weeks old!

I love tummy time!

Making Weight

Alyson went to the pediatrician today and she weighed in at 7 pounds! She's doing such a good job of eating! That means we can start letting her sleep more at night if she wants to. Wish us luck tonight!

Homeowners!

It's official we are now homeowners! Can't wait to show Allie her new digs!

We also have a pediatrician appointment today. Hopefully our baby girl has regained her birth weight. Any guesses on how big she will weigh in? Winner gets a kiss from Allie.

Daddie Makes Me Smile

The Learning Curve

Ten days into being a mom I am hardly in the position to give anyone advice but here are a few things I have learned so far.

1) Best time ever. Despite the sleep deprivation, achy back, and swollen nipples this is by far the happiest time of our lives. And I am not just saying that because I think I need to. Being a mom has truly exceeded every expectation I could ever have imagined. I love my little girl and I love Bret more each day just for being her father.

2) Chill out. Most new moms are so worried about doing everything right and playing everything by the book. But what is more important is finding out what is right for you and your spouse. If you and your husband and baby are happy then who cares what the book says! I believe that creating an environment that is calm and safe will do more for our baby than worrying about what all the research points to.

3) Breastfeeding is hard work. I don't care what anyone says: nursing is not intuitive. It's painful. It's hard. It's exhausting. And it hurts — a lot! Alyson and I are still working on getting the whole breastfeeding thing down and in the meantime I have been pumping at least six times a day so she can take my milk through a bottle. At first it was awful watching her suck down a bottle of breastmilk when she wouldn't latch on directly to me. But now, I have realized it may actually be a blessing in disguise. The fact that she is taking to the bottle (and sometimes the breast) allows Bret and I to split up our feedings and enlist the help of other people in her mealtime. And given the fact that I have Lupus and desperately need to rest, this system really seems to be working for us. Last night I was able to get a six hour stretch of sleep!

4) Put Visitors to Work. Our apartment is literally like Grand Central Station. Alyson has had so many wonderful visitors come in to see her and we are so blessed to have so many friends and family stopping by. But there is nothing worse than visitors who stay for three plus hours and just play with the baby while Mom uses the free time to clean up the dishes in the sink, wipe down the bathroom or run to the store for supplies. The best visitors are the ones who let YOU play with the baby while they do the rest of the work. Believe me, play time is scarce. Alyson needs to feed every three hours. That means by the time we actually finish our feeding, clean up the supplies, change her (which usually needs to happen twice), get her dressed and I finish pumping it is almost time for the next feeding. Make your visitors sing for their supper! Ask for help or at the very least have them bring food over.

5) Take Time to Enjoy Her. Since Bret and I have been splitting up feedings we haven't been going to bed at the same time anymore. We started realizing how much we missed each other and instituted "bear time." Every night before I go to sleep (Bret takes the late night shift, I take the early morning shift) all three of us spend at least 30 minutes in bed together just cooing at her and enjoying her. We leave the dishes in the sink. We forget what the lactation consultant said about keeping my milk supply steady. We just read a story to her and talk about how beautiful she is and how lucky we both are. It's my favorite time of the day.