Four weeks... forever

Greer turned four whole weeks old yesterday, but I feel like she's been mine forever.  It is really hard to remember or care about life before her.  That seems extreme, especially coming from an independent woman like myself, but I really don't feel like a whole lot has changed.  I don't know... it's just weird.  My life is very different right now than it was four weeks and two days ago, but it feels very natural.  I think it helps that I have the world's best baby.  ;)  Okay, that may be a bit of an exaggeration, but she really is so easy.  She totally goes with the flow and has already dropped a night feeding.  I may be the most well rested new mom out there.  Other than some fussy evenings where she's been tough to console maybe two or three times (usually if she hasn't napped well), she is just chill and if she's crying and I need to intervene, she usually calms down very easily.  I am following the Moms on Call schedule and Babywise techniques, and for us, they work.  I think she'll be going from a 9pm feeding through to a 6-7am feeding by 8 weeks at the rate we're going now.  She's down to a 9pm, 2-3am, and a 6-7am feeding with one random night where she went to 4:45am and then 8:45!  We have been lucky that nursing has been great, though she is sometimes difficult to nurse (we don't usually get it done in 30 minutes... sometimes as much as an hour thanks to gas).  I definitely have plenty of milk, which will be such a blessing when I go back to work, because who knows how my milk supply will be affected then.  I need to start getting on a pumping schedule so I can stock pile the liquid gold, but I've been able to pump at least 3 ounces in a short amount of time after nursing, so if I start pumping once a day, we'll be golden for a while.  :)

She's starting to get more interactive and I love the mornings with her.  She's so happy and talkative!  I am going to start back to CrossFit next week I think (waiting on them to get me signed back up), and the only downside of that is that she nurses at 9am and the class I'll be going to starts at 9:45 so I will have to rush out the door two mornings a week (she will come with me) and her happiest time of the day will be spent in a car seat at the gym.  But, she'll have lots of stimulation there for sure.  :)  We'll just see how it goes.  It's only two days and if I decide it isn't worth missing that playtime, I will just start going to the 7:15pm class after Matt gets home.

We had a little "scare" with her when I noticed a lump on her neck.  I had noticed it before but it was small and I really didn't think anything of it.  It's only noticeable when she turns her head in a certain way, and it didn't strike me as being abnormal in any way.  But last week, I was busy kissing her all over (this is something that happens ALL DAY LONG... I cannot kiss her enough), and the lump was huge.  So, I took her in to see the pediatrician and she has what is called fibromotosis colli.  It's a benign tumor and is generally not serious and should resolve itself.  However, she was sleeping with her head always turned one way, and that is either the cause of or a result of her head being turned that way.  So, we are doing some stretches with her and I got this little pillow that cradles her head and keeps her from turning all the way flat on one side.  She was also developing a flat spot on that side of her head.  It looks like the tumor is getting smaller, so I think it's working.  We'll discuss at her one month appointment Monday, but I don't think we'll need to do any physical therapy or other intervention at this point, thankfully.

We've been very busy in Greer's first month of life.  We've gone to a wedding, she's accompanied me for the best pedicure ever thanks to my dear friend Meredith (amazing gift!), we've been to the grocery store a few times and the pediatrician three times for good measure, gone on plenty of walks, gone to the Dogwood Festival and Botanical Gardens, attended Greer's first birthday party for her cousin Madelyn's fourth birthday, seen lots of visitors, gone to church, received so many amazing meals thanks to our friends, family, and church (SUCH a blessing... cooking is not high on my list right now especially with a 6pm feeding... I guess I will have to start cooking dinner at like 4 when the meals stop), changed more diapers than I ever imagined (three in the matter of her middle of the night feeding last night!  ha!), and experienced an amazing love and gratefulness to God for bringing us all together.  Oh, and taken a lot of pictures!!!  :)  Picture overload begins now...

Matt (top left) + Kristin (top right) = Greer - she looks more like her daddy here but she's got my mouth and I think my eyes (shape, not color)... I'm pretty sure she has her daddy's nose and I think she's going to have hazel eyes like him... no idea where she got her small head and forehead!  ;)

 

First bath... uncertain but she likes it now :)

Where do the groceries go??

True story.

First wedding with good friends!

Fatherhood.

Party outfit

Two of my favorite girls - Madelyn and Greer meet for the first time :)

The BEST friend (and aunt) a girl could ask for!

 

Rocking the bow... and maybe the last time in this little sleeper.  Waaaahhhh.  It's my favorite newborn item of hers!