In the mornings I'm very awake and happy. Today it's raining really hard and for some reason I like the sound it makes, so I keep looking out on to the porch. 

No, Resli isn't in this picture. It's just that it's been raining so hard that we have a lake outside our back porch, and we thought it was worth documenting. But there are more pictures of Resli below.!

Remember when I was so small I used only half of the pack'n'play, and even then I hardly took up any room? Well, look at me now! I'm growing so fast.  

Mr. Bear is one of my favorite toys, at least this week. I look at him and grab his fur and sometimes I even smile at him. 

If you stick your tongue out at me, I'll stick mine out back at you! 

I love to look at the floor lamp in the living room. Why lights are so amazing to me is unclear, but they're fascinating! 

Growth spurt!

The books say that babies get another growth spurt around six weeks. Resli, being exceptional (as we all know), got hers at five weeks. It started last Tuesday, when she began wanting to eat ALL THE TIME. We're talking every hour or so, and since you count from the beginning of the feeding, that means there was something like a 20 minute window when she did not want to be eating. This coincided on Wednesday with my 24-hour stomach bug, which was a bit dehydrating. So by Thursday or Friday I was convinced that I could never make enough milk to feed this creature, that she would starve and hate me for life and that she was going to fail to thrive, that horrible phrase in all the books, and it would be all my fault.
The books also say that in about five days the feeding demand and milk supply get their acts together and sort themselves out. That seems to be true. (Why I didn't trust the books to begin with is anybody's guess. But you guys know me... I do much better when I can worry myself silly!) Here it is Sunday and mother and baby appear to be slightly more in synch once again. Phew.
As for evidence of the growth spurt, well, her hands are noticably bigger and chubbier just in the last day or two. Her preemie outfits don't fit her anymore. And she's very alert and awake (when she's not eating!) and working very hard on smiling at everyone and everything. We won't get to weigh her again for another 10 days or so, but she's definitly growing. More pictures will come soon as photo evidence.
Love to all,
-Gillian

Just when you think you're growing so big and so fast, someone comes along and reminds you how very small you still are. 

Cute baby! 

Daddy comes home from work early most days so that we can spend time together. But sometimes we just sleep. 

"Tummy time" helps me build strong neck muscles. But boy do I hate it sometimes! 

Daddy shows me all the cool stuff I can look at in my play gym. He's so smart. 

Thanks to Dr. Harvey Karp!

Most new parents have probably heard of Harvey Karp's book The Happiest Baby on the Block. Harvey and I had heard about it, but last week - after too many very sleepless nights - we sat down and watched the video. As Harvey said, it made him want to cry seeing how easily this man was able to calm and soothe a screaming baby. According to Dr. Karp, the first three months of a baby's life are the "fourth trimester", and replicating womb-like conditions is a soothing thing for them; it's all about activating the "calming instinct." How, you ask? Well, he has five Ss: swaddling, sushing, lying on their side, swaying back and forth (kind of jiggling), and sucking. The sucking is usually taken care of by nursing, but a finger or pacifier helps. The swaddling is really hard - Resli grunts and groans and makes you think she's totally miserable all wrapped up tight like that. But then you pick her up and put her under your arm like a loaf of french bread, bounce her up and down -gently- a little, and loudly "SSSHHHhhhhh" in her ear (supposedly what it sounds like in the womb?!?), and she's OUT like a light. It's like flipping a switch, it's an instant change. She's snoring within seconds and, usually, you can put her right down in the crib and she's good for 3 or 4 hours. If she gets an arm free, though, she'll wake up - that's how powerful the swaddle is.
After we watched this video, we went out and bought a swing (see the picture below), which has already made up for its cost by allowing us to sit down and peacefully eat dinner, together and without a baby in either lap, for the past week. And we bought a white noise machine that we turn up nice and loud in her room, make the whole place a big womb! And, at the risk of jinxing our luck, we've had great success. Since then, she has slept more and more soundly at night than ever before. And we're starting to feel a little more like human beings! A little, not a lot. But every little bit counts. So, thanks to Dr. Karp for his miracles!
Some pictures follow, of the Ss in action and some other adorable moments.
-Gillian

Here I am, the "happiest baby on the block"! I'm swaddled up (with my legs free for the harness, but it's the straight-jacket aspect that's important), swinging away. I've already been sushed a lot and jiggled, and now I'm out like a light. Magic! 

Last week I celebrated my one-month birthday. Can you believe how fast I'm growing? 

Getting my diaper changed is okay if I can watch the mobile go around, and I have Mr. Bear to keep me company. 

Hello blog! Yes, it's been a while. And yes, this picture is a little blurry, but my eyes are open! I'm awake a lot more these days and looking around a lot! 

My mommy kisses me a lot. She can't help it. 

One day we went out to eat lunch at Leonardo's. Yummm, pizza! 

Mommy and Daddy went to a benefit dinner and left me home alone... 

...But I had aunt Meliss to take care of me. 

Another busy week!

It's been a while since the last post, we all apologize. It's amazing how the days speed by, even if you don't do much of anything.
But we've been busy here. Aunt Meliss was in town for 5 days and we had lots of fun. One night Mom and Dad even left me alone with her, and she fed me a bottle and everything (you can see in the pictures above). We also went over to the Wards' for Granddaddy Ward's birthday.
What else... I've had lots of baths, and I still like them. I just went for a long walk with my friends Rori and Max, and we went and visited Bonnie and Joaquim. I slept the whole time, but the weather was beautiful and it was good to get out.
Here are some pictures of what we've been doing lately - enjoy!