So I'm a few weeks late, but in combination with my being a horrible journal-er to begin with and having a newborn around the house (not to mention Billy being sick for the last week or so)...being prompt about writing was doomed from the start!! hehehe
Anyway, Big Girl hit one month December 22 and daddy and I couldn't be happier or more proud (i suppose i should include tired and distracted here too but everyone fills those in on their own). The first month was tough, a lot of working out kinks and figuring each other out but it was an adventure that was God-guided and God-blessed!
I have one piece of advice for new mom's and dad's that I'm sure many have figured out before us - don't try to do it all!! I'm not talking about the house work or laundry, which is what most new mom's hear about. I'm talking about the sleeping!! Obviously we were a bit different than some in that we are formula feeding, so it worked out for us to do shifts, but I'm sure there are ways around the nursing as well. At first I tried to take the whole night shift during the week with the intention of letting Billy do it on the weekends. That is another option for some folks, but by the end of the second week of doing this, I was not only exhausted, but discouraged and felt so alone at that time of night. That mixed with my hormones getting back to normal made 9:30 every night a cry fest - poor Billy dealing with adjusting himself to a new baby and a hormonal and emotional wife. We talked, and decided we would do well to try shifts. So we began with my going to bed around 7:30-8ish and he taking from then until about 12 or 12:30. I would then be "on call" from then on equalling both of us getting about 6 or more hours of straight sleep. I'm not sure I can describe how much of a difference that made!
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We've also launched into a modified version of Babywise so due to that, we are both getting at least 6 hrs if not more depending on how long she sleeps and when the feedings land. Side note- if you are interested in the Babywise approach, check out the book at your local library or borrow it from a friend to scan through first to double check to see if it might be of use to you and your family or not. Some folks don't agree with the approach or it simply doesn't fit their lifestyle which is totally fine. Another thing to check out is a blog I stumbled across which has been super helpful. It's http://babywisemom.blogspot.com
She's changing
so much everyday, it's been so amazing to watch!! We stayed in town and had Christmas wit
h my family before Aunt D left for Florida. We had so much fun playing games, watching Christmas movies, decorating cookies, and adding a new tradition - creating play-dough snowmen!! hehehe Liz got a fun kitchen from mamaw and papaw and a fun first tea set from Aunt D. We (Billy and I) decided a while ago that we would like for our kids, while they're young at least, to attend Christmas Eve Servic
e at our church and wake up at home on Christmas morning. She's too young to remember this year, but we figured we should start the tradition now to get into the groove. We attended our little one's first Christmas Eve Service and were so moved. God is amazing!! Just a note to remember, Aaron (our pastor) talked about the passage from Mark that begins with the geneology of Christ (what a thing to talk about huh?!). Let me tell you... it was so eye opening!! We have no idea in our culture today what the birth story of Jesus truly tells about and how much it meant and means!! If your curious, check it out on Itunes, just look it up on the church's website at www.tpcc.org and your should find the link and directions.
We woke up Christmas morning with our little one :-) and had another new tradition, brunch with my parents at our house! So much fun!! We left for Billy's family's get-together soon after that. Lissy did really well with the car ride and even better than expected with all the new sights and sounds (believe me there were lots of them!! So much fun!!). I thought she might be super over stimulated and freak out but she did really well!! What a great little girl! She got a fun wiggly cow toy from grandma and grandpa which I'm sure she will just love here in a few months!! She gave us some huge gifts as well - she started cooing and smiling a bit in response to a face!! Ever since then it's been so fun to hear her "talk" to herself and to try and get a smile out of her!
I also started back to work, hanging out with Jackson at his house, and I think we're adjusting pretty well. Jackson is so helpful and wonderful with Liz, I hardly need to remind him to be gentle! Whenever she cries, he says "baby?" (which is all he calls her right now) and wants to go give her passie to her and rock the stroller if she's in it. So sweet! His little sister is due in about a month and though I'm sure it will be an adjustment, I don't think it will be as big as it could be. I think he'll be a great big brother. She did get herself to sleep with out any crying today, which was great because Jackson was down for a nap. I can't say it enough, God is amazing!!
