Thursday, November 15, 2012

Alayna.......Already 1 Month Old!!!

Today, November 14  marks Alayna's 4 th week of life!!! If this is any sign to come on how fast time goes when you have a child I think she will be one year old in a blink of an eye.  Let me just state that Maria and I have loved Alayna before she was even here on the outside but since she is with us that love for her is unspeakable.  We both could not imagine life without her now.  She has consumed every part of our heart, our time we spend together, our thoughts, and even our sleep. 

Alayna though is a very good sleeper.  She only wakes when she has a dirty diaper or is hungry. On most days she will give us a good 4 hours of sleep before she cries to let her daddy know its time to change her diaper.  Yes, I am one of those dad's who gets up in the middle of the night and changes their child.  So give me some credit for that. Not saying I deserve it but I have heard stories where it is all placed on the mother's shoulder to get up all through the night.  Maria and I though have actually been sharing in all of Alayna's diapers.  We have a schedule I change her on weekdays when I get home from work until the time I go back to work.  So my shift is from about 5 pm to 7 am. Then Maria takes over until I get home and trust me she lets me know that she appreicates when I come through that door. 

As far as Alayna being feed that is all Maria.  I change the diaper and hand her off to be breast feed so I am out of the feeding equation.  But we have already started Alayna on feeding from a bottle and she takes it just fine.  We started adding probiotics in a little breastmilk to help with the diaper rash that she had for the last 3 weeks.  Thank God your diaper rash is getting better Alayna. 

Also, Alayna loves to suck.  Well imagine that she is a baby.  We were told by everyone if you plan to breast feed no pacifiers. I was in agreement on that but I actually gave in when we were in the hospital.  If anyone has ever heard of cluster feeding that's when we had to give in.  But she loves her sucker thats what I call her pacifier and has no nipple confusion at all.  I guess we are pretty thankful she takes anything a bottle, a sucker, and loves to breast feed.  

We have noticed that Alayna is growing and gaining weight especially when I look at the pictures that we first took of her.  She still however fits in newborn clothes but she is almost getting to big.  She was born weighing 6 pounds 9 ounces and left the hospital at 6 pounds even.  She now weighs about 8 pounds 9 ounces.  Alayna loves to eat as you can tell.  She takes after her dad!!  We can also tell that she is getting longer as well but we have not measured her.  This weekend she will be going to her 1 month checkup so we will get all the offical measurements. 

Alayna loves to look around but she also finds something in a room and focus in on it.  I know for one thing she loves what I call Mr. Fan.  We basically have a ceiling fan in every room of the house and it seems like her eyes always gravitate to them.  If she is upset I will hold her up and say look at Mr. Fan you love him. I know I am nuts.  But not only does she focus on the fan she will just stare off and look at something. I try to get on her eye level and look at what she is viewing but sometimes I really have no idea what she is locked in on. 

Maria and I could not be more happier right now in our life holding our little miracle Alayna.  We just cannot imagine she is a month old now!!!!!! 

As always I have pictures to share.  These photos were taken over the weekend by my sister in law.  I could have posted 50 photos but I narrowed it down to 4. 















6 comments:

  1. Glad to hear things are going so well man! Really happy or you guys! Alayna is adorable my friend! It seems like it was just yesterday that you posted about her being born. Time does fly!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes things are going well. It does feel like yesterday for us that she was born. Time flies when you are having fun :)

      Delete
  2. I remember cluster feeding well! Oh, the endless hours sitting in the same spot, nursing non stop! Luckily, baby gets more efficient as they get older and Kaylee can eat in about 5 min now and won't eat again for hours. It does get easier!

    Alayna is so cute! Kaylee had an obsession with the fan (we called him Mr. Fanny) around the same age. It is so cute and a nice way to keep them occupied for a little. Glad to hear things are going well!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That cluster feeding was really something else. Plus the milk wasn't in yet so it mad it that much worse. Really 5 mins is all she needs that will be a god send for Maria. I tell her that it will get easier. But when does it start to get easier???

      So after rereading my blog I actually forgot to write that I call the fan Mr. Fan and Mr. Fanny!!! Look at that, how we have the same unique names!! I guess I am not the only one making names for the fan :)

      Delete
    2. I remember around 3 months things got much easier. Less diapers, faster feedings, longer stretched between feedings, more sleeping at night, etc. They also start to get a lot more social (which is so fun!) around that age. The beginning is so tough, but I promise it does get easier. We are at 5 months and I went to visit a friend with a 3 week old and realized I had completely forgotten how demanding a new baby is! Made me realize how much easier Kaylee has gotten. 2 more months may seem long, but it sneaks up on you and she will get increasingly easier.

      Delete
    3. I am not complaining but I never really realized the major commitment. Don't get me wrong, I always knew that there would be a major life change when she was born but it just feels like you are always changing and feeding her. I mean it has gotten a lot easier because we have a routine down now.

      Thanks for following my blong and leaving comments cyster :)

      Delete