1 week old

A week! How has is already been a week since this little guy entered the world? It seems like just yesterday, but a million years ago at the same time. I feel like I've known him all my life. We informally celebrated by having lunch with grandma Shelley yesterday. It was a very lovely day.

2am with a belly full of milk and a dry butt. 

He is an excellent baby. He's very calm and relaxed and everything we could ever ask for. He rarely cries. I know he's hungry because he'll fuss a bit. He doesn't care for having his diaper changed. He nurses about every 2 hours. His latch is beautiful. Night time is going well since he's not a crier. He wakes up between every 2 and 4 hours, nurses, gets a clean diaper and is fine. Sometimes he'll be awake still, but is content to just snuggle me while I go back to sleep. 

I feel like I have so much to say about him, but I can't manage to verbalize any of it. A new baby, a new addition to a family is such a beautiful thing: a gift, a journey, a blessing. I can't begin to describe the feeling of one's own heart growing to make more room for more love for a new person, but it's miraculous. I didn't know how it would be possible to love another baby the way I love Stella. I feared they'd have to share love, but I was absolutely wrong. 

Cloth diapering is going well (Erik's even been helping wash them!). He fits in all his newborn diapers and probably will for quite some time. Sweet pea has the chickenest of chicken legs!

On Monday, Ian had his first pediatrician appointment. He's perfect in every way (of course, I didn't need anyone to tell me that). He had a touch of jaundice and we did a day on the bili blanket. That was no big deal. His numbers were: 19 on Monday, 17 on Tuesday (after the day on the blanket), and 15.4 on Wednesday. He weighed 6 pounds 4 ounces (a very, very acceptable weight loss) and we discovered that he's much shorter than we had though. Sheryl measured him at 20", but at the doctor he was only 18 3/4". He's a shorty like sister. His head circumference is 12.25". He'll go back next Thursday for his 2 week check up. 

Monday, he also visited the chiropractor for the first time. She mentioned that he just had a slight rotation of his spine and got him straightened out. He slept right through his adjustment. Why do babies need chiropractic care?

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1 week post partum

153 pounds (-12)

(my memory card in my camera took a crap the day he was born, so selfies for the blog it'll have to be ::ugh::)

It's funny to look at pictures of me from the past week because from birth to now I get progressively more tired looking. We've been going to be kind of late and waking up with Stella around 7. The sleep I get is pretty good though. 

I think I can finally talk about cravings again. Since Ian's been born I've craved grilled cheese and apples, New York style cheesecake, Olive Garden and plums. I eat just about in the same schedule he does (every 2-3 hours). There simply is no hunger like that of a nursing mom. I try to drink 150 ounces of water a day. 

At my midwife appointment on Tuesday Sheryl said everything looks and feels excellent. My uterus is shrinking back down nicely and my vulva/bottom area looks wonderful. She commented that if another medical professional happened to look down there and I told them I had a baby a week ago they wouldn't believe me. My bleeding is incredibly light. Not even heavy enough to compare to a regular period. 

I felt like my regular self right away after birth, but if I over did it doing anything I could definitely tell. A week later I'm easing back into doing a little more and I still get tired. Erik was an amazing help the first 5 days or so while I was on orders not to do anything. He did everything without being asked and would tell me to go sit down if he caught me up doing anything. As I've jumped back in his help has diminished a little. I definitely still need help and will probably have to nudge him along with gentle reminders from now on. 

My belly is mostly down. It's just kind of wobbly and that's alright with me for now. I'm not worried about it at all. I wondered if I'd notice any new stretch marks after he came out, but I don't seem to have any. All that's there is what I got from Stella. 

I'll try to write my birth story soon.