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June 8, 2004
5 weeks old already! (6-8-04)
It’s amazing that 5 weeks have passed since Lily’s birth. She’s quickly changing from a newborn to an infant, and she’s acquiring all of the beguiling social skills that make babies so enchanting. I can see this transition whenever she smiles at me, or turns toward Daddy’s voice, or coos at her mobile while she follows the funky red triangle (her favorite) around and around. And there are the physical changes too—the ever-chubbier arms and legs that flail with excitement when Aden talks to her, the eyes that are obviously becoming brown, the hair that is subtly but undeniably growing in blond at the roots.
Aden is still in love with his sister. He loves to interpret her emotions. A few phrases that we hear often are, “She wants mama milk,” “Oh, I think her not happy anymore,” and “Lily likes me!” :) Sometimes he calls her by her name but other times he refers to her as “my little sister” and other times she is simply “my baby.” He helps me pick out her clothes and give her baths, and he has quickly accepted that when she is eating I can’t help him immediately, and he just has to be patient. At times like that he gets his little folding camp chair, sets it up by my chair, and sits and waits while frequently asking, “Is Lily done nursing yet?” I think it is payback for every time I said, “Are we there yet?” while I was on a car trip, LOL.
When we went to the pediatrician for Lily’s one-month check-up last Friday, she weighed 11 pounds, 7 ¾ ounces, and was 22 ½ inches long, which places her in the 97th and 95th percentiles, respectively. Having such a big baby is new territory for me considering that Aden has always been either average size or a little smaller. So far, Lily’s size has always been at least a month ahead of where Aden was at any given age—when she was born she was as big as he was at one month old, and now she is outgrowing clothes that he wore at 2 or 3 months of age. I always thought that moms who were so proud of their big, chunky babies were somewhat silly, but I have to admit that I did feel a little pride when the pediatrician commented on how well she is growing and thriving. But anyway, she is also a bit ahead of schedule on her social and motor milestones, just like her big brother always was.
Let’s see, things I want to record, not because they are that interesting but because I’ve already forgotten these details from Aden… Lily’s baby acne is in full-force, poor thing, and I didn’t remember how awful it could be. Hers started about a week and half ago with some very angry red blemishes on either side of her nose and in the middle of her forehead, and although those areas have cleared up, now she has hundreds of little red bumps on her cheeks, sides of her face, and on her scalp. It doesn’t seem to bother her but I really hope it clears up soon, admittedly because of my own vanity in wanting to show her off, LOL! Lily can also cry real tears now. At first they caused her a lot of nasal congestion, to the point where I thought she had a cold and I was contemplating getting the dreaded bulb syringe out, but now she seems to have adjusted to it.
Lily is still a pretty good sleeper, especially during the day. She takes several long naps each day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, and many catnaps in between and in the evening. For her naps, she either nurses to sleep and I lay her down, or she just falls asleep on her own in the cradle or crib. Unfortunately, bedtime is trickier. I have to lay down with her in bed and nurse her to sleep at around 9:30—any later and she is awake and incredibly grumpy until midnight or later. But even if we’re in bed at 9:30, sometimes she falls asleep easily and other nights it takes an hour or more. It seems like she’s more dependent on nursing at night, and doesn’t want to unlatch even after she’s been asleep for a long time. I’d like her to sleep for part of the night in the bassinette by our bed, which seems like no big deal since she’ll sleep alone during the day, but it doesn’t always work. It’s really a toss-up: put her in the bassinette so I’ll sleep better but have to wake up more often, or leave her in bed with us so I’ll get to sleep longer but in a much lighter and less restful way. Hmmm… oh well, like many parenting issues, I think time is the only solution.
Luckily I am not having too many parenting issues with Aden right now… well, not today at least, LOL. He is eating so much right now that I think he must be about to have a growth spurt. He weighs 29 pounds and is about 36 inches tall now so we’ll see how much he has grown by his 3-year check-up next month. He’s trying to master the fine art of hopping on one foot (a skill that continues to elude him) and has learned to ride his “bicycle” (actually a tricycle) all by himself. Much to my chagrin, he’s been heard to say “damn it” on occasion, and although I can’t imagine where he picked that up (blush) I will note with some small degree of pride that at least he uses it appropriately. I’m currently working on training both Aden and myself to say the slightly more acceptable “dang it.” :)
So, enough about my kids, because I am a person with serious issues to discuss as well—the most important of which is, should I cut my hair? Okay, so maybe it doesn’t rank up there with world peace, but my happiness does depend on it. I have these dry, fried ends left over from my previous coloring escapades and I’d really love to get rid of them, but I’d have to cut at least 3 inches or more off. I’d love to go for one of those short, layered, wavy/tousled looks but there is a certain convenience and security in hair that is long enough to put in a ponytail. So, my question for all of my friends who have either seen me in person or at least perused our family website and seen lots of pictures of me—what do you think? Would shorter hair look all right or will I regret it forever (or at least until it grows out)?
Other random thoughts, in no particular coherent order… I’ve almost managed to get all of my gardens weeded, oh happy day! But now I have a very itchy bug bite on my elbow that is driving me crazy. I got my new mother’s ring ordered so soon I will have a little channel-set row of emeralds to match my ruby ring from Aden. I’m going to have to go buy new nursing bras, as my size seems to have increased even more than it did the previous time. Nursing is going much more smoothly this time, no more sore nipples at all, but Lily is also an on-and-off nurser just like Aden was. I wonder why my kids do that? I also think that my bleeding has *finally* stopped, but I’m almost afraid to say it aloud and jinx it. It has stopped and started many times since one and a half weeks postpartum, sometimes to the point where I thought I was done for sure and then the next day I was going through 2 or 3 pads again. Why don’t I remember these not-so-fun details from last time? And Derek and I are absolutely hooked on the TV show Alias now—we’re renting the DVDs and are only partway through Season 1, so no spoilers, but I’d love to hear from other Alias fans on my TTM board. I appreciate all the posts about Lily’s galactosemia scare and hope to reply to them all very soon. And oh yeah, don’t forget about those hair opinions! Take care, everyone!
Tara
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