Sleepy baby Elise at two weeks old
Whew…we survived the first week! Surprisingly, the second week wasn’t so difficult either! Elise sleeps most of the day. In fact, I feel like all she does is sleep. To my surprise, we have already been able to take her out for the first time, and I have actually been able to get some work done this week.
Nights have been more daunting as she wakes up 3-4 times to feed. Feeding her has been; without a doubt, the most challenging part of new motherhood. I feel like we are both gradually getting the hang of it, but I don’t feel overly confident in my abilities yet. I think this has a lot to do with all the information provided on breastfeeding. The hospital tells you to feed your baby every two hours, for a certain amount of time on each side, and that they should be getting so many ounces at each feeding, which to be honest is just stressful and overwhelming. Elise never eats according to these schedules or times. At first, this had me worried. However, I soon decided to set aside all that information and instead follow my own instincts (based off Elise’s cues). Relying less on all the “rules” has made things much better.
One very enjoyable aspect of feeding little Elise is that when she falls asleep afterwards I get to watch her make all kinds of cute reflexive faces in her sleep. This week she has been giving quite a few reflexive smiles in her sleep. It is so adorable and has me looking forward to her first real smile. Her reflexive faces crack me up, because she can go from smile, to frown, to raised eyebrows all in a split second. I captured a few of these moments on video. It is always fun to watch her sleep, mainly to see what expression she will give next.
Thankfully, Elise is a very good baby and doesn’t cry as much as I would have anticipated. When she does, it quickly gets our attention, as it is very distinctive. She does not have that typical, “WAAAA”, baby cry that we were expecting. Her cry is more like a short high pitched yell or squeal. It is pretty funny to hear; she means business!
Spit up is another hot topic this week. I swear that I have a little puke machine for a baby. I’m well aware that spit up is perfectly normal, but…WOW…was I surprised at how many burp clothes I would go through in one day. I had to go out and buy more because we went through so many (hint on the essential baby shower gift).
I also did my first load of dirty baby laundry this week. I was amazed at how many outfits she went through due to spit up accidents. So from now on, I keep a bib on her for at least an hour after feedings. It helps keep her dry, but mommy and daddy often find ourselves changing clothes too. There is only so much you can do to prepare for spit up. Clint gets hit with the spit up far more often than me. I pretty much live with a burp cloth attached to my side, while he takes his chances and often becomes her target. As messy as it can be, her adorable face makes up for it!
My first bath
Elise had her first bath this week! The doctors told us to sponge bathe her up until her umbilical cord falls off. Her cord just fell off the middle of this week, so we got the green light to give her a bath. Grandma and grandpa were there with us to document it all. We expected her to cry and fuss but she didn’t. She absolutely loved the water and was content the entire time. We got her all clean and then bundled her up in her pink hooded bath towel.
This week was also Fourth of July, Elise’s first holiday! Uncle Colin came up, from Santa Barbara, to visit his new niece. We got the entire Pierce family together for a July 4th BBQ (Elise’s first BBQ I might add). We went outside and set off fireworks with all the neighbors. Elise slept through the entire thing. Not a sound fazed her. I guess this is where the old adage sleeping like a baby comes from.
Elise's Toes - July 4, 2009
