You Know You're a Mom When....

I know this list will get longer, but the following occurrences have reminded me that I'm now a mommy. So here it goes....you know you're a mom when:

1. You try for several days to make it to the grocery store to pick up that same loaf of bread and jug of orange juice.

2. Going to the grocery store, or anywhere for that matter, is the highlight of your day. (I guess this only applies when you have an infant....I hope)

3. Daily showers have become more like every other day showers.

4. You eat breakfast when the rest of the country is preparing to eat lunch, and the same with lunch and dinner.

5. You will manually remove what the nasal aspirator couldn't get and it doesn't bother you.

6. After cleaning a seedy, mustard yellow diaper (for us nursing mom) you discover that a few of those seeds are now on your knuckles and it doesn't gross you out.

7. Your bra not only tames your milk jugs, but it also doubles as a catcher's mitt for run away spit up.

8. Your days are no longer measured in hours (or billable hours for us attorneys), but rather in the number of poop and pee diapers your little one generates and in the number of feedings your little one has had.

9. Your living room has been overtaken by every baby gadget known to mankind.

10. Your vocabulary changes and you regularly use phrases like "play dates", "latching on", "poo poo", "pee pee", "shhh, shhh, shhh, it's okay", "night night time", etc.

11. You can only be away for 3-4 hours max if you're nursing, otherwise delicate parts of your body will feel like they're going to explode.

12. You can hardly remember what it feels like to get 8 consecutive hours of sleep.

13. You would miss all of your favorite shows but for the advent of the DVR.

14. You can't go five minutes without talking about your little one.

15. You don't have time to update your blog. (This entry has been save in my drafts since March 15...sad!)

16. You wake up to this sweet face (which makes the aforementioned items more than worth it!):

Easter 2009

We continued our journey of experiencing Zoe's "firsts" by celebrating Zoe's first Easter! Both of Zoe's grandmothers came to town to spend Easter with us. It was a good weekend. We had Zoe's picture taken with the Easter bunny on Saturday. I couldn't get her to smile to save my life, but it was still fun. We also took Zoe to church for the first time since her birth, and she was great. It was nice to be back in church after two months. Zoe was overstimulated from the weekend's events. By Sunday afternoon she was pretty fussy, and she fell asleep two hours before her usual bedtime. Poor thing!

We bought a new camera, so here are some pictures:

2 Months!

Dear Zoe,

Yep, you guessed it....I can't believe it's been 2 months!  I know I start most of my letters to you this way, but I'm truly astonished at how fast the time is flying by.  While I can still remember the day you were born as if it were yesterday, parts of that memory are starting to fade.  That makes me sad.  In hindsight, I wish we would've taken just one more picture or recorded a thing or two that day, but in all of the excitement of that moment, I think we unintentionally missed a few opportunities.  I just never want to forget that magical day and all the details that went with it.  I love you so much!

In the past week, you've been doing more of what you started in weeks prior.  But you made a new friend this week.....the ceiling fan!  LOL.  You LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the ceiling fan, Zoe.  It just happened one morning and you've never looked back.  You stare at the ceiling fan incessantly; we can't break your stare.  Initially you just stared at the ceiling fan.  Now you also smile at it, talk to it and sometimes the ceiling fan even makes you cry.  Mean ceiling fan! :- )  But don't you worry, I've got your back; I get after that mean ceiling fan when it upsets you.

To celebrate your 2 month birthday we did something really un-fun; we got your 2 month immunizations.  Daddy and I did some research on immunizations and decided we didn't want to overload your little body with so many immunizations at once.  Your pediatrician was understanding and compromised on a couple of shots.  We have to take you back for those on your 3 month birthday.  Another not so fun day.  Sorry, pumpkin!  You were such a big girl when you got your shots, Zoe.  You cried upon the initial prick of the needle, but that was it.  When it was all over Mommy cried though.  It just breaks my heart to see tears in your eyes, but it was especially hard this time because I knew they were tears of pain.  Although I know you need the immunizations to keep you healthy later in life, I still felt bad for allowing someone to inflict pain upon you.  After your shots you were pretty sleepy, and you didn't have a strong appetite.  You also spit up more than usual.  You ran a low grade fever, which lasted two days.  On the second night you were so cranky, and you would only sleep if it was on Mommy's chest.  This made for a long night, but I enjoyed snuggling with you.  Although you're still a little cranky, I think you're getting back to your old self.  Despite how crummy you felt, you still managed to give Mommy sweet smiles here and there.  You're such a big girl!

You're growing nicely.  You now weigh 9lb. 14 oz. (25th percentile), you're 22 inches long (37th percentile) and your head is 38.25 cm (38th percentile).

Mommy and Daddy love you so much, baby girl.  You are the light of our lives!

Love always,

Mommy

***No pictures this week~ our camera is still jacked!  But it's in the shop, so pictures will be coming soon***

7 Weeks

Dear Zoe,

You're 7 weeks old, sweetness. Can you believe it?! Neither can Daddy and I!

This week you've done quite a bit. First, you're starting to grasp things, and boy do you have a tight grip! One day you grabbed a handful of Mommy's hair as I was passing you off to Daddy. It took several attempts to get you to release your grip. I think it's really sweet when you fall asleep on my chest with a tight grip on Mommy's shirt as if to say "don't let me go, Mommy." I just love it.

All the tummy time you hate is paying off because your neck is getting stronger. You've been lifting it higher and higher. When Mommy and Daddy are burping you against our chests, you like to raise up with your forearms to check us out. You're such a big girl!

This week you've been smiling like crazy. I love all of your smiles, but the ones I especially enjoy are the smiles you throw my way when we wake up in the morning. As soon as I look at you and say "good morning", you greet me with the most delicious smiles! You're also starting to make a few small cooing noises. They are the cutest sounds ever. And you've also been following Mommy and Daddy with your eyes a lot more this week. Watching you grow, develop and explore is such a blessing.

This week you started cluster feeding from 6-10pm. Boy is this tiring for Mommy! The first few days I didn't know what was going on, but then I remembered reading something about cluster feeding. You want to nurse every 30-45 minutes. I feel like you're eating me alive, girl! :- ) I'm getting used to it now and have just resolved that my evenings will be consumed with non-stop feedings. The reward for Mommy is that you'll usually sleep until about 4:30am after a long evening of cluster feeding. Ahhh....

Oh, this week Mommy started a bed time routine with you. Before feeding you at 10pm, Mommy reads you a short bed time story. After you eat and while I'm burping you against my chest, I sing to you. You typically fall asleep pretty quickly. Then I swaddle you (you like being swaddled again as long as I keep your left arm out) and place you in your bassinet. Eventually I want to start this routine earlier in the evening, but this is working well with your cluster feeding for now.

Daddy and I love you so much, Zoe! You are so amazing, and you are so loved.

Smooches,
Mommy

***No pictures this week ~ our camera broke ~ boooo!***