Every day is a change

Adeline has been growing and changing every day. Even though I see her every day, I can see the changes. She now is able to do tummy time for 15 minutes at a time and hold her head up the whole time. (picture below). She also has the most adorable outfits. I originally told everyone "no pink", but I am realizing how striking her dark hair looks with a pink outfit. I have taken her to Target multiple times, been to a couple restaurants, even took her to Costco. I know some say it is best to keep the baby in isolation until they receive their shots, but for my sanity, I need to get out and about. Hanging out with her at home is fun, though. She is so happy in the mornings. She even enjoys "dance parties" with me. This entails turning on the David Guetta Pandora station and letting me move her arms and legs to the beat. She is all smiles throughout our "dance parties". She is also sleeping in longer stretches, but only in the late evening. She sleeps really well in her car seat. She sleeps about 4-5 hours while in it. She still sleeps about 3 hour increments at night time in her rock and play portable bassinet. Every day I fear "will she become colicky today? It could still happen", but no signs yet. She is pretty happy. If she starts to cry, she is easily distracted. Her cries after bath time, though, are pretty loud and intense. Thank goodness my hormone levels have leveled out or I would be crying with her. Nick is a wonderful father and enjoys spending time with his little girl. She adores his face and is responsive to his voice. I feel increasing love for Nick every day. I have always fallen more and more in love with Nick daily, but this new chapter in our lives has shown me how to love him in more ways. He is truly a great man and I am so lucky to have him. As for me, weight loss has plateaud. I have stopped at 15 pounds over my pre-pregnancy weight. I am sure once I get the "all clear" from my doctor to work out, I will be doing more than just daily walks. I have lost 25 pounds, though, so I don't feel too bummed out about what the scale says. After all, it took me 9 months to gain 40 pounds.. I knew it would not come off within 5 weeks. No one is that lucky! Until the next post, here are a couple of pictures. The first one is Adeline showing her amazing neck strength during tummy time this morning. The other picture is her in one of her cute outfits on gma's lap. Even though she is 5 weeks, the newborn outfits are too short for her. She is now in the 3 month outfits.

One month old

Oh my goodness! Adeline is a month old already! So far, she has successfully gained weight to about 9 pounds, she holds her head up magnificently, and she has been smiling every morning since 3/29. Real genuine smiles! She has been sleeping in 3, sometimes 4, hour increments at night. She has not shown any signs of colicky behavior, and I hope she stays that way. I am a bit nervous about her care situation in September. We can't afford nor do we want to put her in day care. Something for us to think about and plan. I will try to post more when she lets me.

23 days old

I feel bad for ever wondering why new mothers always take so long to update their blog. I was thinking "babies sleep throughout the day, don't you have 15 minutes to update your blog?" I have been super busy with naps, thank you notes, and who knows what else. She is growing so quickly. She went through a growth spurt (I believe) over the past few days where she had to eat every hour and a half. This was really hard at nighttime because she would not let us sleep. I did ok, I think, but it was really hard on Nick. He enjoys his sleep and needs it to be aware. I do okay for a little while without sleep. The only downfall is that if I'm really tired, when Adeline cries, so do I. Last night, though, she slept in 3 1/2 hour blocks. It was heavenly! Here are some pictures for your viewing.

First time in crib up the hill

Today, I was able to pull together my emotions and courage to drive Nick and Adeline up the hill to our house. Adeline had been to our house last Friday, but Rachel drove us up. Today, we drove up around 11. It was very cold up the hill. It was even hailing. The temperature outside was 38 degrees. Thank goodness for Betsy and Bob. They turned on the heat at our house and brought in a portable heater to warm up our bathroom. Adeline did great. I was worried she wouldn't sleep in her crib (since all she has been sleeping in is her rock n play (which is an upright bassinet). She slept from 12:45-3:20. Even I was able to sleep from 1-2:30. Grandma "Tutu" (Betsy) then held her for a short time while Nick and I ventured to the hot tub... rather... Nick sat in the hot tub and I dipped my feet in. It was SO nice not to have a big belly to have to accommodate to while sitting down. I don't miss being pregnant. People say they forget about the downfalls of being pregnant, which is why they have no problem getting pregnant again. I should probably write down all the reasons I did not like being pregnant so that I don't fool myself into getting pregnant again in the short future. I'm not saying we don't want other kids, but let's see how we do with one first. :) Here is a picture of Adeline in her crib today.

13 days old

She is super cute to look at. She is the apple of our eye.

I can't wait to see what she looks like next week. It is amazing how fast they grow.

Babies are a blessing and stress

Anyone who is a parent, I'm sure, understands my heading. I love love LOVE Adeline. I find myself staring at her non-stop. When she wakes me up at night, I get a bit frustrated, but when she is calmly sleeping moments later, I forget any annoyance I had with her because she is so perfect to me. My hormones are a little bit more controlled, but I still find myself getting anxious and overwhelmed. We have only gone out in public 3 times: the doctor office, trip to get her birth certificate, and off to get food and visit family. I was on edge all three times. I'm not sure why I am so anxious, but it draws me to tears each time. Adeline has been doing well, for the most part, with sleeping. Her sleeping has become a lot better at night time ever since we purchased the Rock n Play. It is like a bassinet but is more upright. This helps with her gas. The scary part is listed in the reviews for the rock n play. Many parents have said that because there is not enough padding, their kids end up having misshapen heads that require a correctional helmet later on in life. I have been laying down blankets to try to prevent this. She sleeps so perfectly in it, but those reviews scare me. A lot scares me these days. I know that it will pass, but until then, I will have to endure. For your viewing:

She is here

What an exciting weekend! It started with Thursday night of some El Calderon enchiladas. Then we went on a night time walk with Steve. He was walking so fast, it was hard for me to keep up. Yet they say walking induces labor. That evening, I was experiencing strong contractions, but only strong enough to cause discomfort. I finally fell asleep at midnight. At 3 AM, I woke up with the strongest pain ever. I took two steps out of bed before I felt a gush of water. I couldn't believe ny water had broken!! My mom drove us to the hospital within 20 minutes. Then the contractions hit. Never have I experienced such pain! Luckily, the nurse ordered me an epidural within 20 minutes. They gave me petocin to help speed things along. I progressed from a 3 to a 9.5 working 7 hours. It was then discovered that the way she was placed, I would need a c-section. After giving me more drugs, they wheeled me in to surgery. 10 minutes later, she was born: Adeline Savvyanna Zontos. 7 pounds 13 oz and 20 inches long. Born at 2:08 PM on 3/2/2012. I didn't get to see her for two hours until I regained sensation in my body. More stories of the weekend to come.