One Month Photo Shoot

Annabelle is one month old! I wanted to record a few things each month. I went ahead and made those little signs through one year because I knew I wouldn't do it each month unless I was prepared.

Things I want to remember from this first month:
- Annabelle eats every 2 1/2 to 3 hours. If she sleeps longer than that, I wake her at 3 hours and 15 minutes to feed her.
- A few nights she has slept for four hours at a time! But she's only done this a few times. Most of the time she is fussiest at night...from the evening nap through about midnight. We are working on it though, and tonight she is moving to her crib for the first time (say some prayers for me...this kills me but she's five weeks old and I believe after a couple of nights she will sleep better this way...don't worry, we have the most amazing video camera that is glued to my hand any time she's in a different room.)
- She doesn't take very long to eat at all! She loves to eat and I think she chugs her food. I bottle fed her a few times to be sure she was actually eating enough since she's so fast and she eats about 3 ounces in five minutes. It's crazy!
- Her wake time is getting a little bit longer, but I still struggle to keep her awake for very long. She loves to sleep during the day, but I think if I could keep her up a little longer before her naps she would sleep better at night. That's what we are working on these last couple of weeks before I have to go back to work.
- She loves her dada! So so much. Any time he makes a sound she looks around for him. It breaks my heart, it's so sweet.
- She is already out of her newborn clothes (tear) and wearing 0-3 months. She's so long and chunky. It gives me so much comfort to know she is gaining weight and growing, but how much did I cry when putting away her newborn clothes...

Annabelle has been the most fun these past five weeks. We can't believe how blessed we are. I can't remember my life without her and I don't want to. She's absolutely perfect.

One Month Old!

Sweet Baby Belle is already one month old today. We can't get enough of this little (big) girl. She is so much fun every single day. She is already settling in to somewhat of a schedule. She is eating and sleeping wonderfully. I could complain about a few fussy times or the lack of sleep, but it's impossible to do when I look at this tiny blessing. She is the very best thing ever! And really, since I've cut dairy, she's rarely fussy at all and has only cried a few times. This makes me feel really bad about the times she did cry because I know it was because her stomach was hurting her.

Right now she really loves to be held and look up at you and to talk. I ramble on and every once in a while she coos or "talks" back to me. I love her wake time so much. She also loves to be read to. We take turns reading to her and she really seems to look at the pictures. She also loves bath time. She loves the warm water and really relaxes.

She takes at least one nap a day in her crib and one on us :) I try to only hold her for one nap a day because I don't want her to get used to having to use one of us to get to sleep, but it's so hard. She is absolutely precious and snuggly. She has been napping anywhere between 35 minutes and 1 1/2 hours at a time. Every once in a while she makes it to two hours. And at night she has been amazing! She will usually give me at least one 3 hour block of sleep throughout the night, if not more!

And she loves to eat! She has taken a bottle a couple of times. The first one David gave her and it was special for him to get to be with her. I try to let him do that once a day. And the other day one of my BFFs gave her her bottle and this really set my mind at ease. This particular friend is the one that will be watching her every day when I go back to work. This friend is a true angel and a blessing to our family. I have no worries about leaving little Belle with her. It's such a comfort that she will be loving her and taking care of her all day, and now I know Belle won't struggle to eat while I'm gone.

She is a healthy, chunky little angel. I can't believe she's already a month old. If every month is this wonderful, I can't even imagine a more joyful life.