The King in His Castle...and other Highlights

I truly can't believe it's been two weeks! M and I are soaking in every minute with our little one, and this bonding time has been invaluable to our little family! We feel so blessed with this mellow, sweet, adorable baby boy.

Here are some highlights from the first few weeks:

Sleeping:

While I swore I'd never be the type to have my baby sleep in bed with us, having a c-section caused me to be much more flexible in my ideas. Our plan had been for Zachary to sleep in the bassinet right next to the bed, but I quickly discovered that I couldn't sit up in bed without help, much less reach over the side of the bed to pick up a hungry baby. We had already invested in a S.nuggle Ne.st, thinking it would be a great device for Z to nap in downstairs on the couch:

Well, as it turns out, we are loving having Zachary sleeping in between us at night. This device also has a night light and plays the sounds of a uterus (!!!), which our little man loves! It makes tending to his needs (while I am still healing from the surgery) so much easier...and I truly enjoy being so close to him at night...another feeling I was not expecting to have! It's amazing how strong the bond is right away! The first 9-10 days were extremely sleep-deprived (oh boy, that's another post!)...but we are into a nice routine now and have found our rhythm in terms of sleep.

Eating:

Zachary is a champion breast-feeder. We never had any latch problems..the only thing that was frustrating at first was that it took my milk forever and a day to fully come in. I know that this is more common with a c-section (and hours upon hours of pitocin-induced labor), so I was trying to just go with the flow (or lack thereof, haha) and not get too worked up about it. I was also listening to all my friends say, "Oh you'll KNOW when it comes in!" This was throwing me for a loop because as it turns out, mine just came very gradually and I've never had an oversupply problem. Anyway, it's here and Z is definitely getting enough. At his 1.5 week pediatrician appointment, he had gained 11 ounces in 7 days!! We had been to the doctor when he was 4 days old because after birth he dropped almost an entire pound, and was slightly jaundiced. My milk coming in definitely fixed our problem!! I use a Bop.py Pillow and a Nipple Shield (and the Lan.sinoh nipple cream), and am loving the bonding time with my little man.

Other Fun Stuff:

Our Black Labrador Charlie has been an excellent big brother so far! Of course, I had some apprehension about the dog-baby relationship, but have found that our dog is a gentle giant! He only approaches the baby when he's invited, and is gentle with his kisses!

Zachary is much more alert in the past few days. He has more wakeful periods where he'll just look around or stare at us. He makes the cutest faces - one of which I'm going to do in a separate post. We love seeing his eyes open more as he starts to discover his world!

He is still wearing newborn-sized clothes, but he's so long (gonna be tall like his daddy - who is 6'3") I can see that he'll be moving to the 0-3m very soon. I already feel like he's growing too fast, which makes me want to spend every minute with him. We've already taken upwards of 300 pictures, as I'm so afraid we'll miss something great!

Knock on wood, but my little man is sooo mellow. He can sleep anywhere, anytime, and in pretty much any position! He slept almost all the way through a bath the other day! I'm not so naive to think that it'll be like this forever, but I'm enjoying it nonetheless. It has made our first two weeks together so much more manageable!

M and I (and various family members) found out very quickly that little boys LOVE to pee as soon as their diapers are removed. This has made for some HILARIOUS moments, and my poor mother has been the unluckiest recipient - all over her face and shirt - of the wee wee!

And (Finally!) some nursery pictures - with the king to make them official!

Cheer up, Charlie!

23 weeks!

Just checking in to report that Elfie and I are just plugging along, growing bigger every day and experiencing some of the not-so-joys of pregnancy! Lately, I have had quite a bit of pain and pressure in my lower abdomen, mainly triggered by walking long distances. Unfortunately, the longest distance my body seems to be okay with is to the park down the street from our house. In my book, this is just not nearly enough exercise. Oh yes, and the back pain and heartburn? They're still hanging around too! I don't worry about it too much since most of my pain is relieved the minute I sit down and relax, but will definitely be bringing it up to Dr. D at my appointment on Monday. I'm guessing it is just par for the course, and most likely ligament stretching...Has anyone else experienced this or something similar?

The nursery is coming along steadily. We are going to start our furniture shopping soon, and then it will really start to come together (!). Charlie (our canine "baby") has been moping around the house since I've become increasingly less mobile...but last Friday I found one way to cheer him up:

He loves to feel Elfie kicking away at my belly button! This is in the nursery..as you can see, I decided to get crafty with some canvasses, paint, and stencils. Funny that I have those done, but still need the majority of my furniture!!!

Halfway There!

Boy, oh boy!

I mean that in every sense of the phrase! Since Monday's appointment I have been busy picking out bedding (it is SOOOO cute!!), creating my color scheme, and researching registry items. It is SO OVERWHELMING! Thankfully (and I never thought I'd find myself actually feeling gratitude for this..), I have a few friends who recently had babies, and they are turning out to be excellent sources of wisdom and advice on the subject of must-have baby items. Tomorrow I will go to the pick up the paint for Elfie's room, and hopefully can get the room taped and tarped...... Ohmygosh I can't believe this is really happening!...... I've waited a long, long time to decorate that empty room. I'll post pics as soon as I take 'em!

On the "how I'm feeling" front, the heartburn is a constant!!! Thank the Lord for Tums and their soothing qualities, although I'm having to load up on fiber to counteract the, ahem, "effects" of a lot of calcium! Luckily it hasn't been too bad yet.

I am in constant awe of my changing body. When I pass a mirror, I can't help but strike a pose to see my bump from different angles! As I feel Elfie moving around more and more everyday, I can relax some of the anxieties that something might go wrong. Of course, I know that nobody is completely safe from complications and tragedy, but for now I choose to enjoy and delight in this amazing miracle. I get teary-eyed just thinking about holding my newborn son!

So...I am officially at the halfway mark. It's the blink of an eye when I consider what it took to get here, and I thoroughly look forward to the next 4.5 months and beyond!