Big Girl

Our little newborn is starting to look more like a baby. At 5 weeks, her newborn clothes are packed away, and she's quite comfy in 3 month sized onesies. At the doctor's office today, we found out she's put on over two pounds since birth and now weighs in at 10 pounds, 11 ounces.

Green Baby

Today, Eleanor is trying out her gDiapers for the first time. They are kind of like cloth diapers, kind of like disposable diapers, but much more than "kind of" earth-friendly. They've got a cloth, washable outer "gPant" and absorbent refills which are 100% biodegradable that you can flush, toss or compost. So no diaper that will sit in a landfill for 500 years. They aren't necessarily any cheaper or more convenient than disposables, but they are definitely "green." Oh, and they are MOST definitely adorable.

Bjorn!

I love my Baby Bjorn (Thanks Brooke)! Because Eleanor is a baby who needs to be held at all times or else she starts screeching, the Bjorn allows me to actually occupy spaces other than the glider in the nursery. Like outside! Our sling played a similar role, with much more strain on the back of course, until a million of them were recalled. And yes, I got a "mom haircut."

View from above

Mad or Sad?

Last night, when I went to pick up some dinner at the Thai restaurant down the street:

Lisa: Hi. I'm hear to pick up an order for Avent.
Mean Thai Lady: Ah, yes, here you are. That will be $35.75.
(Lisa hands debit card to Mean Thai Lady)
Mean Thai Lady: So, are you pregnant?
**sound of crickets**
Lisa: No. I just had a baby.
Mean Thai Lady: Oh. Sorry.

I don't know how to feel about this. Obviously there is a part of me that is a little sad that I still look pregnant enough for someone to ask if I was, even though I've lost 30 pounds in the past 4 weeks. Admittedly, I probably gained a little too much weight, and the last 15 pounds are going to be hard to lose, and I know my body will never be the same regardless. BUT STILL....

What the hell? I am still in a smaller size (by far) than the average American women (though I suppose that is a bit too large, not only by Mean Thai Lady standards), and I know LOTS of girls with tummies bigger than my seemingly still pregnant one.

Maybe I'm overreacting - it could be hormones or the fact that I got two hours of sleep last night. Literally, two. Hopefully the prescription we got this morning for baby Zantac will help.

Little Legs

Issues

Now that Eleanor is over 3 weeks old, it's high time she start developing some problems, right? Right now, all we've got are: sleeping issues and eating issues. Oh wait, that's half of what she does. Sounds like a girl with a lot of troubles then.

Don't get me wrong, Eleanor is still a very healthy baby. I am just having to suddenly work a lot harder to keep her that way. We have an appointment tomorrow with her pediatrician to talk about possible "silent reflux," as diagnosed by the nurse/lactation consultant at the Breastfeeding Center of Washington.

If she does have silent reflux, and if I am going to continue breastfeeding (or breast pumping every two hours as the case may be), and if we don't jump on the medication bandwagon right away, I will have to experiment with eliminating things from my diet, one by one, a few weeks at a time. The number one culprit: dairy. Yes, all dairy.

Tell me: exactly how does one live without cheese?

Pictures!

Sunbathing

Making Eleanor Proud

Ryan's blog for The Economist, Free Exchange, has been nominated for the National Magazine Award for Digital Media. Needless to say, Ellie and I are very proud.

I'm so glad that our daughter will grow up with the example that Ryan will provide; a parent that loves what he does (and is good at it). I couldn't care less what Eleanor decides to make a career of, just as long as she is happy doing it. That being said, it is always nice to have a doctor around for the casual diagnosis at dinner. That and a mechanic. Man would it be great to have a good car mechanic in the family.

Sleep!

Just when I think this whole baby thing is totally kicking my ass, Eleanor decides to wake up ONCE in the middle of the night for a quick meal, then falls right back to sleep. I think I got almost 7 hours of sleep last night; it was fitful "there's a baby in your bed" sleep, but it was sleep.

Concern

First Bath

Because Ellie is surely advanced in every way, her umbilical cord fell off quite early and we were able to give the little girl her first proper bath on Friday. Cuteness ensued.