our baby: 4 weeks
I’m not sure if this will be a weekly thing or a monthly thing yet. Sometimes there’s A LOT to say, and other times, not so much. So, we’ll just see how this goes.
I can sum up the past 4 weeks into one word:
BLESSED.
Blessed not only that MacKenna is really a wonderful baby, but because we even have the opportunity to love such a sweet little thing.
The past 4 weeks have been a lot of trial + error. Most of the time, I feel like I have absolutely no idea what I am doing, which is probably true. No book can really tell you how to take care of a baby because every baby is so different. But, I figure since she’s still in one piece, I must not be doing that terrible of a job as a mom!
MacKenna is good at 2 things: sleeping + eating. Although she is much better at eating than she is at sleeping. And of course, these are the 2 things I have the most questions about. Is she sleeping too much? Is she sleeping enough? Is it too hot or too cold in her room for her to sleep comfortably? Should I wake her up to eat during the day? Should I still be making her eat every 3 hours? Should I wake her up at night to eat? If she is making noises at night but isn’t crying, should I still try to feed her? All I can say is, thank goodness there are other moms out there with the same questions!
As far as sleeping goes, MacKenna has been in her crib since the day we came home from the hospital. We have the pack + play tucked away in our room, but we felt more comfortable with her in her crib because of our fancy shmancy monitor that detects movement along with sound. We had a few false alarms in the beginning due to improper placement of the sensor pad and the fact that she likes to roll over on to her side. But, the past few weeks have been scare-free for the most part (although not worry-free). She usually wakes up once or twice in the middle of the night to eat, so I am still definitely a #zomiemom, but we’re hoping those wake up calls get closer and closer to morning.
My only complaint about her sleeping is that during the day, she wants to be held until she falls asleep, which means I get nothing done. I know I shouldn’t complain because I love holding her + it’s a great time for us to bond, but it would be nice if I could be a little productive during the day instead of a couch potato with her!
Breastfeeding has been going wonderfully! We struggled the first week to get her to latch, but since then, she has become a pro. I’m still nursing her every 3 hours during the day and then letting her wake up on her own over night. And man, have her cheeks filled out! I can’t wait to go to the doctor next week to find out how much weight she has gained!
Although I love being able to nurse my little girl + bond with her, no one really tells you how much of a time commitment it is. We are still planning our outings around when she eats (except if we are going to my parents) since I’m not quite comfortable nursing her in public yet. We did try the bottle this past weekend since Matt + I have our first night out without her coming up this weekend. But, since I’m still exclusively breastfeeding her, I’m not getting much out when I pump and haven’t quite figured out how much she eats. I’m thinking we’re going to have to practice a few more times this week before we really have it all figured out.
As for me, I’m still adjusting to this whole parenting thing. Living by someone else’s schedule stresses me out a bit and I’m still learning that I don’t have nearly as much freedom as I used to now that a baby is in the picture. I’ve certainly had my ups +owns these past 4 weeks, as I’m sure most new moms do. There are times I really miss being pregnant, but then I look at her sweet little face and know how much better my life is with her in it.
Like I said, I feel truly blessed to be holding my baby girl in my arms every day!