Swaddling

I am now a huge fan of swaddling. I know, I know...I should have kept up with it after we came home from the hospital, and I did for the first week or so, but it was just so hot, that the blankets that I had to swaddle with were just a bit too warm. Well, now it's cold...and I mean cold (5 Degrees Celcius...really cold in F). This is just the high (!) for today. Brrrr...

Plus, the past couple of days, Amelia has been super fussy (possibly because of a growing spurt) and so she's been crying more than normal and has basically been an unhappy baby. Today though, being as scatterbrained as new mothers are, I finally remembered that my mother had given me a Kiddopotamus swaddling blanket made of fleece. Woohoo, two birds with one stone! It is super warm AND it is a swaddling blanket! So, I tried it out on fussy Amelia today, and lo and behold, 5 seconds later she is much calmer. Hallelujah! Wait, what is this I hear? Could it be? Quiet? Yes, I believe that is the sound that I am hearing. Sweet!

I also have the Miracle Blanket given to me by a good friend Janda and it is great as well. I believe I will try it out tonight again and have her in her sleeping sack...the miracle blanket is just a bit too light of a fabric to not have something else on it. Oh, and the other thing is, it is a bit complicated at night to undo it all (especially when your sleep deprived). However, we are getting more and more used to the whole sleep deprivation thing, so the unswaddling and swaddling at 3am may be a bit easier.

Now, I know that you can swaddle with any blanket, but my swaddling skillz aren't that good...yet. Plus, Amelia needs a tight swaddle, something that I need to practice a bit more. However, now that I know that this is a pretty sure fire way to calm her down when she seems unable to be calmed, I'm pretty sure my skillz with swaddling with anything on hand will become better, if not masterful.

And just to show you how much she likes the Kiddopotamus, I have proof. :)

My little worm :)


Sweet, sleepy baby...

Wee Little Fingers

This picture was just too cute not to post :)

Randomness

Here we are, 3 and a half weeks after Amelia was born and all of my posts have just been about her...and for good reason...she's just so freaking cute! She gaining weight like a rock star (well, more like a wrestler, but you get the point). She has gained about 820 grams in the past 3 weeks...that's 1.8 pounds! She's a good eater :). Another thing she is good at is sleeping (knock on wood!). She usually goes to bed around 11pm or midnight and then will sleep until about 3:30 or 4...one time she slept until 5:30!!! (I won't even go into the state that my boobs were in after that wonderful 6 hours of sleep...think rocks...that leak...)

She is also starting to become more aware of her surroundings, which is pretty cool. She'll stare at things other than the red wall or at shadows now. She has noticed the dinos that Markus got for her room (they're wall stickers and super cute...which reminds me I need to take a picture of them).

Life around here is slowly getting back to "normal". I cook lunch on those days when Markus can make it home for lunch...I'm loving having the grocery store less than 100 yards/meters from my front door! If I need heavy stuff, then Markus goes to the big store to get it :). We (Amelia and I) haven't been so adventurous as to go to the "big" grocery store yet, but I'm pretty sure it will come. However, Markus and I did take her out to a restaurant on Saturday, and she was absolutely perfect...for 2.5 hours! I pumped before we left so that she could have something to eat at the restaurant (and I could have a little glass of wine...which was awesome!). She was so good right up until the end when we were getting ready to leave and I had to put her little hat on...she hates the hat, and so she started screaming once it was on...but it was ok, since we were on our way out the door!

Oh, and we had Charlie for a bit this past weekend (we were going to have him all weekend, but Markus threw out his back and Amelia's eye was a bit infected, hence I was freaking out, so we only had him Friday and Saturday). Charlie is really good with her! I was just a tad nervous when they first met, but he is so cute with her! When she's on the couch sleeping and then all of a sudden makes a noise, Charlie goes over to be sure that everything is ok. He likes to give her kisses on her head and lick her hands (especially after she's nursed because there is more likely than not a bit of breast milk on her hands).

So, to end this post, here's the cute picture(s) of the day...my two kids, playing nicely :)

A: "Woah...that's a big black thing!"
C: "Mom...really...we have to keep her? Ok...I guess I'll manage..."

C: "Is that some yummy milk on your hands??? Ok, we can keep her..."

C: "I like it when we all play on the ground...especially since I'll get a chewy bone..."
A: "I've got my pucky...nom nom nom"

Pictures of Amelia...take 3

Yet another post with just pics of Amelia. These were all taken today...her 3 week birthday :)

Pictures of Amelia...take 2

Some more pictures of my little mouse :)

Amelia in her pink bear outfit...

2 weeks old :)

My little girl and I
Markus and Amelia...They look so much alike :)

Pictures of Amelia

I have realized that there are almost no pictures of Amelia up, save for those from the hospital, so the next few posts are going to be some pics of the most precious little girl on the planet...

Amelia, Nadine (my midwife) and I...Here she is 5 days old...

Grandma and Amelia
Here, I believe she is 1 week old...so little...

Amelia's first car ride...the ride home doesn't count since it only took 2 minutes...This was all the way to Hirschau, so it was about half an hour...

Amelia is 13 days old in this photo...so cute :)

Dear Amelia

Dear Amelia,

Today you are 3 weeks old...a whole 21 days! My how the time flies. It seems like yesterday I was screaming bloody murder in the Kreisssaal at the hospital :). You are still the cutest thing that I have ever seen...you are even cuter than Charlie when he was a puppy, and that says a lot because he was an awfully cute puppy :). But seriously, could you be any more precious?

There are so many things that you are starting to do it is amazing. For starters, you are a VERY good sleeper...this makes mommy and daddy really happy. The past two nights, you are sleeping about 5 or 6 hours straight. I know that there will be nights when this will definitely not be the case, so we are cherishing those nights when you do sleep lots. When you sleep, you make the cutest noises too...you grunt (I think your just pooping or pushing or both), sometimes you snore, you sigh, and sometimes you make this high pitched noise that is pretty funny.

What is really cool is that you are starting to focus on things that are a bit further away. When daddy came home the other day, you heard the noise and looked in that direction. It might have been a fluke, but it was an awesome fluke :). Also, you can focus on our faces when we are a bit further away. This is pretty cool. Some things you really like to look at are the red wall in the living room with the picture frames on it, and shadows on the white walls...all of these contrasty things are just so freaking cool to you right now.

You are also doing wonderfully at lifting your head. When you're awake, we have some tummy time. You like this tummy time too :). We practice on turning your head from side to side...you do this all on your own and the first time you did it, mommy and daddy were so proud. Also, you can lift your head really well, and hold it there for a couple of seconds, then your head is just too heavy, and you have to let it fall...but you're getting better and better every day :). Also, when you're on your tummy, you LOVE to kick your feet and it moves you just a bit. This is pretty cool...maybe next week you'll be crawling :). Ok, maybe not that quickly, but you know what I mean.

You are growing like crazy too. I can tell that when I change you, your chicken legs aren't so much chicken legs anymore...they're getting a cute layer of fat on them and rolls are starting to form. I love it. Oh, and daddy loves the fact that your cheeks are getting chubbier as well. He has this thing for cheeks...we've had this discussion. And your hair is getting longer...I still can't believe all that hair you were born with. Some of your clothes almost don't fit anymore. The newborn stuff will probably last another week, if that. So, it looks like mommy and daddy and you are going to be making a shopping trip next weekend...luckily, that is when mommy wants to show you off to her friends in Regensburg, so we can do some shopping there. FUN!

But, I have saved the best for last. There is one thing that you are starting to do that completely melts my heart and makes me love you more and more (if that is at all possible!). You are smiling. True, this happens when you are asleep, but it is a full on gummy smile, and you've got these cute little dimples in your cheeks. I tried to get a picture of it yesterday, but you got camera shy and stopped smiling. You also do this when you are nursing, so this makes me think that you are dreaming about booby, which you know, is quite alright :). That or you're dreaming about playing with Charlie when you're older...that is totally possible too.

Speaking of Charlie, you really like him. When he runs around, you try to follow him with your eyes. It is quite cute. He really likes you too. He keeps licking your head and your hands, and one time he got a good face lick in there, and you didn't mind at all...I'm betting you two are going to be the best of buds when you get a bit older.

Alright my precious sugar pea, you are wonderful. I can't imagine our life right now without you...no doubt it would be a bit dull around here without you. You bring a certain pizazz to our life that we wouldn't trade for the world. Yup, you're definitely a keeper!

Love you,
Mommy