3 Week Update

It's hard to believe Eila has been in the world for 3 weeks now. The days seem to drag sometimes and yet the weeks fly by. Not sure if that makes sense, but it does to me! She's such a fun little ball of wiggles and faces. She loves her pacifiers, being held, mealtime and doing elaborate stretches. Sure, she's only a newborn but she exhibits wonderful neck strength already. As we try different bathing techniques, she is learning to tolerate baths. She much prefers being immersed in warm water than just having a wash cloth bathe her in the cold air. Who wouldn't?

Here's a brief rundown of our days (on average): 7:00AM alarm goes off. Time to eat! I change her diaper and feed her. She is usually most alert for this meal. At 8:00, I turn on the marathon of Saved By the Bell and we chill in the bedroom. Sometimes she naps and sometimes she sits and looks around. If she is asleep, I can sneak in a shower. If she is awake, she tends to get fussy when I am out of sight. Eventually, I move the Keekaroo changing pad and her Boppy lounger into the living room. Something about doing this makes me feel like less of a bum. Usually by 10:00, my mom is here and she loves to hold Eila while she sleeps and walk her around the house. She has also been awesome about running errands for me and helping to clean, which is so nice. What I need to do more of is take advantage of some of the time she is there to sleep. It's weird. I tend not to get tired until around 4:00PM. At 10:00, she eats again. This is one of the three feedings per day that she gets a bottle after breastfeeding (while I attempt to build up milk supply). I won't lie to you: bottles are just easier and more freeing. On top of that, she loves the formula. She chug chug chugs it and usually falls into a very restful sleep. But I haven't given up the good fight! At 11:00, I turn on The Young and the Restless and eat lunch. At noon, I switch to How I Met Your Mother. At 1:00, I switch to New Girl. Between 1:00 - 2:00 she eats again. Around 3:00, I switch to Friends. (Are you sensing a strong TV theme?) Around 4:00, she eats again and takes a bottle. By 5:30, Lucas gets home and we eat dinner, watch {more TV} House of Cards or basketball and I feed Eila around 7:30 or 8:00. My tradition after that is to pass out on the couch. At 11:00PM, Lucas gives Eila a bottle. She rests very well at night when she gets a bottle with this meal. Then, we switch from the living room to the bedroom and put Eila in her bassinet. We sleep until 3:00A, when I feed her. I put her back to bed, and the day starts anew at 7:00A. Throw in throughout the day various diaper changes.

Which brings me to how am I doing with all of this? I mean, on one hand, I have an easy baby and I am thankful for that. She sleeps well and eats well. I really can just sit down and be on my iPad or watch TV while she naps the day away. A lot of times, I just scoop her up and hold her. On the other hand, I have never been very good at being on house arrest. I crave sunshine and like to run errands. We just have about one more week until we can cautiously integrate her into the outside world (her one month mark combined with the end of flu season). And while I can drive now, I am on lift restrictions for three more weeks. Meaning, I cannot lift anything heavier than the baby. When you are by yourself, that means no car seat lifting (so no stroller). So, I still feel pretty restricted until the end of the month. I like to be on the move, but I am also trying not to rush her precious newborn stage away just to suit my lifestyle.

As far as surgery recovery, I very rarely need medication anymore. I might take an Aleve every so often if I run into some soreness. It doesn't hurt to laugh anymore, thank GOODNESS! I'm also down 19 lbs. (3 lbs. below pre-pregnancy weight) and one button away from my Levi's. I'm glad it all came off so quickly, but there is still a ton of softness in the abs and jeans are NOT cute on right now. Muffin top city! 

At her one-month update, I will share our favorite baby things and other fun milestones. From there, it will go to monthly updates! Who's ready for daylight savings time?!

Ciao!