Merry Xmas!

I haven't opened anything yet, but I have received my Christmas wish, achieved my New Year's Resolution, and otherwise been thoroughly blessed.



Daddy hates headbands, dresses, and the green shawl, but oh well. :) Indra and I have enjoyed several parties and outings. Am I a bad mommy for using my daughter as a social lubricant? She has been very effective.

My favorite time of day is our snuggle-nap. There is nothing like a warm baby in the wintertime.

I'm not looking forward to full time work on January 4th.

Cutie Bug

I'm taking pictures nearly every day, trying to find the best one to put on a Mug as gifts for Grandma, Grandma, and Grandpa. I'm not sure if I'll pick this one, but I do rather love it:



In other news, Indra only woke up ONCE last night. That, combined with a blissful snuggle-nap has left me feeling rather awesome.

Two Month Appointment

I took Indra to her 2 month checkup today. She now weighs 10 pounds on the dot. There are no concerns, though they still want to X-ray her hips in a few months.

Poor baby endured one oral vaccine and three shots. Though my dread of the shots seemed worse than the actual event. She cried, it was a cry I haven't heard much before, and I knew it meant "OUCH"! But, she calmed right down as soon as I nursed her. She's been very sleepy ever since, but she usually naps around this time.

I have the tylenol on standby in case she spikes a fever, but I don't want to use it unless needed. I read the latest research regarding how it can potentially reduce the immune response, which is the point of the vaccinations. If Indra is happy and isn't running a concerning temp then I'm not worrying about it.

I'm going to try to get us to bed early tonight by doing dinner at 6, bath at 7, bed at 8. We'll see! For now, I need a snack. :)

Back to Werk

I'm only back part time, but it has still been a transition. The first day, Thursday, was rough. Indra was crabby all night, I barely slept, then she made daddy miserable and would hardly eat from the bottle. Yesterday was better. I slept a little better, and she ate a little better. This made it far easier to bring her to Grandma's and have our date night. She had her usual fussy hour at Grandma's, but she ate well for Grandma.

Werk is nuts, my workload is more than full time, my boss will be out on leave as of Monday (giving me more to do) and I need to take a midday break to pump. I forgot to take this break on Friday, and, OUCH. I won't be forgetting again. I'm not sure how I'm going to get anything done. Yet, come January, I don't know how I'm going to be able to part with Indra for 8 hours a day. :( Maybe I'll work a little later and come home for lunches.

Here are a few pictures, including my Halloween kitty cat. Then, I must get to the dishes while Indra is still asleep:

Indra's Favorite Hobby

Breasts Runneth Over

I seem to be having a bit of an oversupply issue. I know, some would kill for such a "problem". But, they don't write in this space and I do, so let me describe what this problem has lead to:

- An overabundance of green poo diapers
- Boobs that try to drown the poor infant they are designed to nourish
- An infant with a resulting love/hate relationship for said boobs, making for very fussy messy feedings
- An infant that might just be the inspiration for the cherub fountains that continually spout water, except Indra is not spouting water.
- A gassy fussy hungry baby during the evening hours and thus: not enough sleep

I've done my homework, all of the authorities suggest block feeding for a while (offering only one side until the other demands to be emptied). Hopefully it will settle the issue over time. Until then, the abject adoration of our little cherub continues, starting with Indra and Grandma:

Bad Blogger = Good Mommy, right?

I'm finding my time/desire to update this blog is waning. I may consider closing this chapter at some point. But for now I need to make a reflective mommy post.

Little Indra is nearly a month old, and I couldn't imagine life without her. Already she is growing and changing. Her cord has fallen off, and she's making much more eye contact. We play a game called, "Mommy's over here!" wherein she sits on my lap and I lean left/right/center and she turns her head to look for me.

She has one primary nickname: bug. She is a beautiful little bug with big bright eyes and chubby cheeks. DH and I also sometimes call her a little pterodactyl due to the high-pitched reptilian squeals she emits.

She does scream and cry, mostly during diaper changes (she would much rather wear a dirty diaper than suffer the tragedy of having it changed) and her crabby hour(s) which are usually somewhere between 8pm and 2am. Thankfully DH guides her through the rough patch while I sleep. He's the night owl in the family.

Is being a mom what I expected? Yes and no. Some things are much easier than I expected. I imagined that breastfeeding would be quite a struggle. But, it has gone quite smoothly, so smoothly I am able to pump a bit and have DH take the first night feeding. She has no trouble with the bottle either.

Cesarean recovery has been another challenge that I overestimated. I'm walking, cooking, and driving without trouble. I only take OTC pain meds when I've really been out and about. I'm itching to get my all clear in a couple of weeks, not just for quality time with DH... the yard and garden need to be put to rest for the winter.

DH = superdad. I knew, in the abstract, that he would be. But, it truly warm-fuzzies me to see him love on our girl, bounce her and quiet her when I feel worn out, and latch her onto me with expert aim when she's hungry. She's lucky to have such a great dad.

Other things are tougher... namely the lack of sleep. Everyone knows that newborns inhibit parental sleep quality and quantity. But, no amount of awareness can truly prepare you for being dead tired-to-tears, holding a squaling infant. Thankfully I've only hit that point a couple of times, and things seem to be improving. Though our little bug still likes to eat every 2-3 hours around the clock.

Getting out of the house is tough. It seems impossible to fit such preparations into the feed/burp/diaper cycle. She's very hungry lately, but her weight gain exceeds expectations so it's all good. We are blessed: