Annie :: 1 Month

My itsy bitsy Annie May turned one month old this week. I have a lot of blogging to catch up on but I wanted to write down a few, ok a lot, of things about Annie during her first month of life. I don't blame you for not reading these - it is mostly for my purposes. I am sure they will get shorter with each month.

Everyone says she looks like her dad. I agree completely and love it. I really can't see any of me in her. Barker baby for sure.

She has more hair on the back of her head than in the front and has random long spots. It has gotten quite blonde over the last four weeks. We are shocked - who knew it changed so quickly.

Her eyes are looking really blue.

She is a complete mama's girl at this point. I can't tell you how much it melts my heart. But I do feel bad for James. I am sure this will slowly change as she gets to a more playful age.

She is still in newborn clothes and diapers. I am shocked. She does wear some of her 0-3 months but they clearly drown her.

She is a total binkie baby. She will suck on just about anything though. I catch her sucking on her thumb every now and again. It is pretty cute - but my dentist Dad would say otherwise.

She is also a blanket baby. I have had several people notice it.

She falls asleep best when her head is on my chest and she is in the froggy position. When she is trying to fall asleep on James she does the froggy legs and snuggles right into his chin - grunting the whole time. It is weird and funny.

She constantly keeps her hands up by her face - she was like that in her ultrasounds.

She loves white noise.

Sometimes she likes being swaddled - sometimes not.

She spits up a few times a day - but just a little.

She has had baby acne for about 10 days but we think it is going away.

She is a great burper - it is going to be lovely once we start taking her out more and more I am sure.

From day one she has been a great eater and nursing has been really easy - other than the whole milk coming in saga. {That was rough. Painful. Huge. And absolutely hysterical} She opens her mouth and sticks out her tongue to let us know she is hungry. She eats every two hours - if not every hour and a half. It makes going anywhere challenging but I hear it will get easier. For now I am completely content staying in my pajamas and looking into those deep blue eyes. Her stomach does not do well when I eat beans or dairy. I have cut them out for now and hope she gets more used to them over time.

Sleeping is definitely not her strong suit. She basically despises every sleeping rule. Hates sleeping on her back. Hates her bassinet. Tolerates her crib for the first few hours. And loves our bed - especially if she can sleep on my chest. Since snuggling in mom and dads bed is one thing I hope our children will do - I am already a sucker. James says we are toast when it comes to real parenting - and its true. We've pretty much given up hope on the bassinet.  I am doing the best I can and trying to get her to sleep in her crib for longer periods of time. We are up to about three hours. The rest of the night she is in our bed. Oh well.

Her eating habits spill over into the night. She eats every two hours like clock work. Yes - I am tired. James sleeps through it all. I don't know what it would take to wake that man up - but I don't mind since he is a working man and I get to stay home. I did wake him up a lot during his paternity leave purely because I wanted him to feel my pain. It usually takes her a bit to go back to sleep and for some reason she has had several blowouts and they've just happened to be in the middle of the night. One time she pooped all over James. It was classic.

She usually wakes up grunting at about 5 o'clock. Not crying - just grunting and fussing. I conclude that she is sick of me after a long night of feedings and snuggling. It is usually the only time of day that she is completely content laying on her back next to her Daddy. She quite likes her morning snuggles. James loves it so much he cuts his morning routine short so he can bask in it longer.

At around 3 weeks she really started looking around. I can still remember the first time she looked deep into my eyes. Nothing better. Now she loves anything with a lot of contrast. If I don't cover her face while rocking her to sleep she gets too distracted and it takes her forever to fall asleep. She is really looking around.

She hates her carseat. But after a few painful and unintentional {darn that California traffic} 10 minute meltdowns - she is getting better.

While we were in St. George she marked 4 weeks old - and she gave me a little smile. She is constantly trying to smile but can't quite figure that mouth out.

I told my Dad that she is really advanced with how well she can hold her head up - I swear she is. He looked at me, smiled and said "And so it begins - you already believe your kid is a superstar." I'd have it no other way.

I think she is a great baby {despite her sleeping habits} but maybe I am partial. James was extremely lucky to have quite a long paternity leave. I have loved having him around and was sad {and scared} when he had to go back. I was very thankful for the time we had at home. What a blessing it was to have him bond with Annie. Now we are on our own during the day and learning how to navigate through every day tasks like showering, cleaning and going to the store. I will admit - it is harder than I thought. I've laughed a lot - cried quite a bit - but loved every.single.second of her first month of life. I can only pray she has too.