Four weeks already!

Whew! I frankly don't know where to begin with this post...while it has been only four weeks since Penelope was born, our lives have changed so completely! I think what Doug said a few days before Christmas, when we realized we hadn't bought a single Christmas gift, pretty much sums up our priorities now: we have everything we need now. We don't need any "thing--" we have the ultimate gift--our precious little daughter. I can't even imagine wanting anything after having her...not that I required too many material/luxury things before the little gal was born...but nothing compares to her. I think, as long as we can witness the healthy and happy growth of our little girl, we are the richest, most privileged folks on the planet.

With that said, I am so appreciative of all of the "things" we received from folks in preparation for Penelope's arrival! We sped through so many of the diapers we received and she is already beginning to outgrow some of the clothes she received! Having a swing to put her in so I can go to the bathroom or just take a quick break is wonderful and we took a very pleasant walk the other day with her in the baby wrap! I (we) are also so appreciative to those who have made us dinners and have come over to help organize, clean, or just hold the baby while I eat lunch! Now that Doug is back to work full-time, I am so appreciative of the help we have received...I can't thank everyone enough.

I am sneaking in the writing of this post during one of Penelope's naps. I know, I should be sleeping too but it is so hard to do so when I need to eat or pay bills or whatever! When P is awake, she is pretty much on the boob all of the time--which of course is where she should be at this point--but that doesn't lend itself to too much "me" time! Now, believe me, I expected almost all "me" time to disappear forever after Penelope was born but sometimes even moms need showers and a tooth-flossing (and to reach out to other adults even in only via this blog).

It's amazing that Penelope will be four weeks old tomorrow! In one sense, I cannot imagine life without her--has she only been with us (on the outside) for four weeks?!?!? In another, I still look at her in complete amazement: she is OUR daughter?!? She is that being who grew in my belly for nine months!?! Needless to say, the last four weeks have been nothing short of earth-shattering for us...pretty stressful but more incredible and rewarding with every passing day...

So I should probably tell you about the girl herself, eh? Well, she is amazing, beautiful and hilarious! Sure, challenging too but only in a couple of aspects: breastfeeding and evening fussiness. Other than that, she's a dream baby. She loves to be changed and swaddled. She also loves to eat...something that has come on recently because at first, neither she nor I could figure out how to get her fed. Consequently, she lost A LOT of weight and our pediatrician got us "finger-feeding" her (Doug's job...excellent bonding time). Finger-feeding is supplementing her with breastmilk through a feeding tube on the end of Doug's finger that she can suck from to get the milk. Our pediatrician does not recommend giving babies the bottle before six weeks so the finger-feeding is a compromise--we needed to supplement but didn't even want to risk nipple confusion. So, with the finger-feeding, P began to build up her strength and learn to latch...and now she breastfeeds almost exclusively. We'll probably transition from finger-feeding to bottle around six weeks not because she necessarily still needs the supplement but because Daddy enjoys feeding her and I know she enjoys it, too.

She has put on about 7 ounces above her birthweight (as of last Thursday) and has grown about an inch. Her head is definitely bigger and she is getting a double-chin! She is pretty demanding when she wants to eat but is equally curious about her surroundings; she is so darn aware and you can almost see her brain functioning more and more every day. She recognized our voices immediately...straight out of the oven she knew who Mom and Dad were. That was the most profound experience of my life--seeing her for the first time and the nurse placing her on my chest. Tracy actually has a small video of that moment and I am so glad for that!!

Speaking of her, she is beginning to wake up so I need to bring this to a close! I'll try to get back on soon with another update!