Our first week home

I can't believe it has already been 10 days since our little munchkin joined our family.  Can you make time stand still because I am already struggling with her getting bigger and changing.  I want her to stay this way forever!  Any yet the thrill of being able to help her and watch her grow and learn and experience new things is such an exciting thing as well.  I suppose this is what it means to be a momma.

So Alythia arrived at 4:40am on Tuesday morning, 6/11/13.

Yes that's right, she arrived on her due date, prompt and very obedient.  (birth story to come later)  I had given her strict instructions that she was not allowed to start coming until after 5pm on Monday the 10th as I had too much work to finish up before she arrived.  She obeyed and started coming at 4:30pm.  12 hours of labor is definitely not easy and I asked myself many times what in the world I was thinking trying to do this, period, let alone medication free!  She arrived with little complication and we proceeded on with learning all about her and she about us.

Rob and I have been just so enamored with her.  She is an absolute doll, both to sit and stare at and to care for.  She is content almost all the time, sleeps fantastically, eats wonderfully and has already gotten on a fairly good schedule.  She wakes once at night to eat and sleeps for about 5 hours in between those feedings.  She is so alert and aware of everything going on around her.

We brought her home on Thursday morning.  I wanted to come home Wednesday but the pediatrician asked me to stay the night if he promised to be there first thing in the morning to check her out and discharge her.  We agreed and he did as he promised.  Pediatrician was there at 7:30 am and the OB was there at 8:15 am to check on us and discharge us.  As is always the case, we waited around for another 2 hours for the nurse to get the paperwork processed and actually let us leave but we were home before lunch and off to a good start in our little home.

My mom arrived from Michigan on Tuesday afternoon and planning to stay for a couple weeks to help us get adjusted to life as new parents as well as help prepare meals for us both to freeze and while she's here and to help with laundry.  She is always such a help whenever she is here and this time was no exception.  She has helped us to prepare several meals to have during the time we move and are getting settled in the new place so that we have that off our plates and can focus on the house and the baby.  I tell ya, I could certainly get used to having a housekeeper and laundress around, it's been so wonderful having her here both to help us and to get to spend some quality time with her granddaughter during her first few weeks of life.  I am so blessed to have the mother the Lord has given me, she is a treasure and I never want to take that for granted.

We were instructed to make Alythia's first doctor's appointment for Monday June 18th to see how she was doing.  She had been tested for her bilirubin count at the hospital and was a little high but not serious at the time.  At her appointment her doctor decided to do a blood test to check her levels and it came back with a level of 17.  I'm not sure what normal was but he said it was fairly serious and that she should start phototherapy that day.  He ordered us a light bed and it was delivered that evening.  We were instructed to keep her in it as much as possible and only take her out to eat and change her diaper.  She was not too thrilled to be confined in a tight space and forced to be on her back.  She stayed in it as much as possible and though it meant a fairly restless night of sleep as she was up every 2 hours, we were able to make it through.  We went back for her follow up blood draw the next day and her levels had dropped down to 13.3!  Even the doctor was shocked by the levels and we were able to take her out of the bed with the condition that we would keep an eye on her and see if she seemed to get any worse again.  We are so thankful that she was able to get the help she needed quickly and that she responded so well to the treatment.  We are still praying that she continues to keep her levels in the normal range but are so grateful for a doctor that will respond so quickly to her needs, God is good.

She has been doing so well with everything since she has been home.  She has gone out on several outings, taken a couple walks around the neighborhood, went jogging with daddy on Father's Day, had her first Sunday at church, went out for her first desert outing on Thursday night with the whole family and has just been a rockstar the whole time!  I can't ask for a better baby.  I could just stare at her all day long and never get tired of marveling at the Lord's goodness and handiwork in creating such a unique and special little girl.  I am humbled and honored to have the privilege of being her momma.

A few more photos from week 1.

Father's Day family photo

6 days old

my favorite face to make, so curious (2 days old)

~Becky