Somewhere Out There...

I humbly apologize for being MIA lately. Mommyhood has been all-consuming, as Amelia is what we will call a "high maintenance" baby. Since day one we have had tummy troubles, and she never wants to be put down. I think it's a combo of colic/reflux. We did finally get her on Zantac last Friday and after a terrible day of screaming (her) and crying (me) two days ago, things are a little calmer and she is actually sleeping for a bit in her Rock n Play now.

I have stopped breast feeding, which was a difficult choice for me even though it wasn't something I ever honestly liked doing. Since I couldn't put her down I wasn't able to pump much, so I was the only one who could ever feed her and it was very stressful for me. She seemed to be in more pain with her stomach issues after BFing, so I thought it was for the best for both of us.

Other than that, I need to work on transitioning her to sleeping somewhere other than on me on the couch or recliner at night... I miss my bed, and the current arrangement isn't going to fly when I go back to work in three weeks *tear*. I should note that while she is sleeping on me at night she actually does pretty well with only getting up once or twice a night to eat - I'm hoping this continues when she's not attached to me like a little koala baby (see below).

She is stirring, so I'm going to try to add a couple of pics (in reverse chronological order) for now and I swear I'll be back again someday! Hard to believe she will be one month old tomorrow!

Trying out her playmat for the first time yesterday

Excited to watch her first Bengals game

How we sleep a lot

Mommyhood 101

Things I have learned in the past week or so:

- I miss sleeping in a bed, laying down. Four hours of sleep sitting up on the couch with a baby on my chest is the new "sleeping in."

- Having a newborn is harder than I ever imagined. I am genuinely second guessing having another child even though I've always wanted more than one.

- Receiving blankets will catch on fire if microwaved for too long. (I guess that's why the nurses suggested putting them in the dryer to try to calm her tummy...)

- Showers are a glorious commodity.

- Just when I think we've got it figured out - nope. Nice try.

- When you're looking for something to watch other than infomercials at 4am, there are only a handful of channels to choose from (including Food Network, ESPN, and Fox in case you're curious).

- My mom is awesome. I wouldn't have survived this long without her help.

- I liken breastfeeding to The Da Vinci Code - seriously, why is it so hard to figure out? I doubt cave people had La Leche League to help them.

- Apparently I will miss these sleepless days and nights when they are gone, according to every mom out there.