One Month Old. Thirty Months Old.

Update:  I forgot to add some picture collages last night - they're in the post now! :-)

Whew.  How time flies.  Baby Caroline is already a month old!  In her first month she learned to bring her fist to her mouth, and started to show a little bit of head control.  She lost her umbilical cord at eight days old and started wearing cloth diapers around three weeks old.  By her two week check-up, Caroline weighed 9 lbs, 9.5 oz.  The studio where we take mom and baby yoga no longer has an infant scale, so I can't tell you what she weighed at one month, but she is nothing if not an enthusiastic eater.  Her thighs and wrists are super-chunky, and I would guess she weighs at least 11 pounds at six weeks.

This Friday, Ellie turned two-and-a-half!  I made her half a cake to celebrate being 30 months old.  (This isn't something we will normally celebrate, but with all the attention and time that Caroline has gotten these past few weeks, I wanted to make sure that she was still feeling special.)

I do love these monthly photos, however, and hope to do them every six months for a few years :-)

A few sister pics:

My Mommy Must-haves.

It's been one month since Baby Sister arrived, and I thought I'd make note of the things that are my favorite go-to items as a new mama.  Many are things that we simply got out of storage that I used with Ellie, but some are new things I've learned of since Ellie was born.  As I jotted down ideas I realized that most of these things are related to nursing, but, let's be honest, the first four weeks of being a new mother, nursing is pretty much all you do! :-)

Nursing

The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding -

 

I read this book cover-to-cover before Ellie was born and consulted it again when she was a few weeks old.  I am pretty confident in my ability to nurse an infant, Ellie was exclusively breastfed until she was a year-old, but it is still helpful to have something to reassure me, even though I sort-of know what I'm doing.  Just a few nights ago, I checked it again to confirm that it is completely normal (unfortunately) for a two-to-three week old to cluster feed.

The first week of nursing was made easier by applying lots of Lanolin after every nursing and before showers.  Then my good friend Ashley told me about Lily Padz - slightly more expensive nursing pads, but much for functional!  I haven't used lanolin since I started using them a few weeks ago, not even before showers!!  They are supposed to last about 2 months/pair, so we'll see if I can get them to last that long, but so far they are totally worth it.

Nighttime feedings are made SO MUCH easier with our Itzbeen.  

 

I read about this on Brittney's blog before Ellie was born and used it every day until she was a year old.  We had to get a new one for Caroline, and I started using it as soon as we got home from the hospital.  It's great to know exactly how long she's been in a diaper, how long since she's eaten, which breast she nursed from the last time, etc.  I know when we start tracking naps, I'll use the nap timer to make sure she's upstairs for at least an hour before I go get her.  I use the Itzbeen during the day as well, but at night it's really great to have all the info on my nightstand and not have to think too hard about it as I roll out of bed.

   

I also use a little battery operated candle to give us enough light for nighttime nursing but not wake up Pete, or rouse Caroline too much.

Daytime feedings out of the house are made SO easy when I'm wearing an Undercover Mama -I have only used my nursing cover once since Caroline was born, as long as I have on the right layers, I just pop Caroline on the boob, and my tummy is covered by the tank, and my top is covered by my shirt.  WAY better than those plain nursing tanks because you wear a regular nursing bra with it.  I had two with Ellie - one black, one gray.  I just ordered a third - in navy - they are my favorite.

Baby Care
No too much to write about here - we have all the typical gear and equipment that parents buy for their infants (boppy, swaddler sleep sack, bouncer, etc).  The few things I wanted to mention were little time and/or space savers that other friends were using that we got for Ellie (and I hadn't heard of them before seeing them at my friends' baby showers).  When I was pregnant with Ellie my friend Rachael mentioned that one of the best moves they made was not buying a huge baby tub that takes up a ton of space.  We give Caroline her baths in our kitchen sink with our handy bath sponge and ducky towel.

Sheet savers - little pads that tie in the crib so if baby has a leak/blowout in the middle of the night you just have to change the sheet saver and not wrestle with changing a crib sheet while not waking the baby.  Changing pad protectors - same deal as sheet savers, but for the changing pad (because infant poo is sneaky, right?!?!

Aden & Anais Muslin baby blankets - great for swaddling, burp cloths, sun shades, quick nursing covers, etc.  We didn't have these for Ellie - love them!!

I guess that's about it - my daily use/go-to items for the care of our wee-est Wee One!

Swoon.

You guys.  Cassidy sent me the link to our slideshow of proofs from our newborn session on 9/27.  It's too amazing not to share.

http://vimeo.com/76493969

The password is my last name ;)

It's only up for thirty days, so don't bookmark it thinking you can watch forever and ever (like I wish I could). 

That's my daughter.

2013

1983

Sometimes I want to wring her neck.  And blame her actions on her paternal red-headedness.  But then I download pictures and remember my own childhood pictures.  And there's no denying it.

Other family happenings.

Within minutes of meeting her, Ellie gave Caroline her first seranade.

Caroline had her first bath at one week old.  Her umbilical cord fell off the next day, so her second bath was in the sink and she was much happier about it.

 The sisters have also had some fun on mommy and daddy's bed.

At her two-week checkup, Caroline weighed 9lbs, 9.5oz (!) and was 22.25" long.  (88th percentile for weight, 96th for height.)  Mama's milk is getting the job DONE!!  The doctor was pleased with her progress, and had nothing to say other than keep up the good work and see you at your two-month appointment.

Caroline has also been receiving her first lessons on naps from Daddy.  You may remember Pete demonstrating the importance of rest for Ellie as well.

Pumpkin Picking 2013

Sunday we went to our first event as a family of four. (!)  Our friend and neighbor, Amy, invited us to her mother's farm for the second year in a row for her fall festival, dinner, and pumpkin picking.  Ellie had a great time running around with all of her friends from our neighborhood, and I enjoyed being out of the house and seeing some other adults.  

There was the neighbor's goat for petting, 

and plenty of pumpkins and gourds for picking.

 

Daddy held both girls at the same time - doesn't he look like a pro?

 

Can you believe what a difference a year makes?!?!

So glad we've made such good friends in our neighborhood and that we all get to watch our girls grown up together.