Nursery

I'm just now getting to posting pictures of Lu's nursery. Oh well, at least there is one accessory that wouldn't have been there a few weeks ago if I'd posted then.

Memorial Day Weekend

We had a great Memorial Day Weekend! Friday night we had our usual condo routine, which Z was thrilled about! This little girl seems to like the condo too.

Then Saturday, we took our little ones to the mall and had burgers at Riff Burger. Yum!  The mall makes mama happy, especially when the kids were just as happy! Sunday, our friends, the Mukhtar's came over with their girls. Lu slept through most of the visit, so she doesn't yet realize that these girls are going to be her pals one day. It was great to see them, and then we went and met my parents at Pita Stop.

The timing for this holiday worked so well for us, because Nick got one more day off of work to hang out with us! We got up on Monday and went back to the condo to let Z have some pool time. He had a lot of fun, and we all took a nice nap when we got home.

That night we went to our ol' trusty Superior Grill. Once I covered the carrier and kept the air from blowing on her, Lu was fast asleep in the restaurant, another successful outing and a fabulous weekend!

Comparisons

I can't help but compare Lu to Z and how he was at this time, not to mention how they look! The very first thing I thought when she entered the world was how much she looked like him. But, so far, their demeanor and preferences couldn't be more different. Lu is relatively chill. She likes to sleep on her back, which judge me if you want to, but Z would only sleep on his stomach. He loved to be held and rocked, and sometimes she just wants to be put down. This has been the most surprising to us so far. Sometimes we just look at her sleeping on her back in the bassinet and look at each other, like "What?! Is this our child?"

She also seems to be a much more efficient eater. She usually nurses for about 30 minutes, where Z would go for an hour sometimes longer. I guess she's fallen into her second child role already!

So far, she does pretty well in the car too, and we have taken her to all kinds of places with relatively no objection from her. I think we've been out to eat about 5 times and we've even taken her to the mall! I can't tell you how many times we had to bail with Z, because he would scream his head off on outings. As long as she is warm, she is pretty content.

She is only 2 weeks old, so I'm sure this could and will change, but so far this little princess has been pretty low maintenance.

 2 Weeks Old!

Hospital Stay

Our hospital stay was thankfully pretty uneventful. The Labor and Delivery room and nurses were really great! There was all this natural sunlight coming through these huge windows in the room and everyone was very sweet and attentive. My hospital has a brand new women's center, and I was pretty excited to take advantage of that. When I got transferred to my recovery room, I was a little less impressed. I think they have gotten too big too fast and didn't have enough people to cover all the patients. There were several times when we would ask for things and the nurse would act like she couldn't be bothered to help. I should be thankful that I didn't need much attention, and I'm sure there were probably other women there that needed more. I just had a wonderful experience with the nurses and facility for that matter with Z, so I guess I just expected the same or better this time.

We were strongly encouraged to room in with her, even at night. People, that was not so easy. Lu is a sweet baby, but she was a little less so in her first days. Looking back, it was great though, because we totally bonded, and sometimes it can be hard to bond when you are in the hospital and there are people coming in and out of your room taking the baby and checking your vitals all the time. Sleep was a little tricky, but we managed.

As I mentioned earlier, I went into labor Wednesday morning. Of course my mom and Nick were there for the birth itself, then my mom left while we got settled in our room and my dad came up from Sylacauga and picked up Z on his way. My brother came, and Nick then went and got his parents from the airport. So all of our family were there by Wednesday night. After Z got his present, Nick's parents took him to get "chicken n fries" and home to go to bed. We are so thankful they were there to take such good care of Z while we were in the hospital and after! We couldn't have done it without them! My dad hung out with us that night for a while, then there were three for the evening. The next day was very chill.  We hung out with Lu, relaxed, and took a couple of walks around the hall (that was the main event). Nick's parents brought Z over again for a bit, and then, our dear friends the Gambino's came and brought us Taziki's. After a day and a half of hospital food, that was the most delicious gyro I had ever had! It was perfect and so good to talk with them about something other than babies!

We went home the next day around lunchtime, and we were so relieved to have gotten through the hospital stay and be taking our little girl home! There is something special about that time, but we were glad when it was over!

Sleeping Beauty

Bath

Lu has one thing in common with Z, she really likes bath time. Especially when we wash her hair and rub her little head

Play Time!

After a particularly rough night, we decided we need a 'plan' for Lu's sleep. I know she's just a week old, but we always feel better if we have a plan. So, we have decided to give her some alert wake time during the day to try and train her to be sleepier at night. First up, playmat. Verdict: she already seems to like it!

I almost don't want to say this because it's so early and I know things can change, but so far, we haven't had to do as much soothing to keep Little Miss calm. She's been a pretty good eater and doesn't really cry much unless she is hungry. Her little voice is so sweet and soft. She's already a girly girl!