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My Milk Works!

We took Eva to her pediatrician on Friday for her 1 month check-up. Eva weighed in at 10 lbs 14 oz! That means she gained almost 2 pounds in the past month, which means I am totally capable of making food for my child—nutritious food, even—and getting it into her little body.

I just had to take a moment to brag because my world has become very small in the past month and you better believe events like this are a BIG FREAKING DEAL. Mike took me to Dairy Queen to celebrate because I read somewhere that dipped cones from Dairy Queen are particularly good for the mothers of breast-fed babies.

I did too read that.

Cute Like an Airhorn

So today Eva had an appointment with the orthopedic surgeon to check on her hip. She was a perfect angel until she remembered she hadn’t eaten for at least 15 minutes. At that point she launched into a fit designed to notify the city of Eau Claire, and its surrounding area, of just exactly what she thinks of this awful world she’s been born into.

Due to the demonstration Eva organized, her appointment was a bit of a blur. While she squirmed in my lap and screamed about the meals she was missing, the doctor adjusted some of her straps to allow her more movement.

And that was it.

So basically, we know nothing more than we did before her appointment (except that Eva’s got lungs the size of Kansas). We have an appointment in about a week with some bigwig from Rochester who apparently is the guy to bribe if you want to get your kid out of her harness. He’ll look Eva over and let us know how much longer she’ll have to be strapped in. We’re hoping her hip will be formed enough that we can remove the harness at that appointment, but chances are he’ll say she needs another couple weeks or so. At which point we’ll release Hurricane Eva and the good doctor will be forced to see things our way.

Keep your fingers crossed!

The Best Baby Ever in the History of Babies

I really can’t believe that Eva has been with us for a month already. Is it too early for me to say They grow up so fast?

Eva had lots of company this last weekend: BOTH (!) sets of grandparents came to see her…and so did her Great-Grandma and Grandpa Paulus. What a lucky, loved little girl!

Every day she seems to be a bit more aware of her surroundings—Sunday night she discovered her fingers. Did you know? She has 10 of them! And they’re great for sucking! Mike and I couldn’t have been more proud. Of course, by Monday she completely forgot about them, but boy oh boy did she have fun while it lasted.

Also, our little monkey is clearly a genius. She has accomplished everything our “What to Expect” book says she might in the first month. And she’s already got a couple things from month 2 under her belt. Next week, Mike and I are going to buy her a little violin. Seriously, we’re talking prodigy here.

What an amazing month it’s been. Happy 1 Month Birthday, Baby Girl!

Just Us Girls

Hey—Mike got a job! I’ll let him be the one to tell you all about it, but he started this morning. Today is the first day Eva and I are home alone together. Alone. Together. Without anyone else here. Just the two of us. Me and her. She and I. No one else. Alone.

You know what? It’s going really, really well!

I think I’m going to like this Mama stuff.

More Pictures? Fine.

I don’t know about you guys, but Mike and I are getting really sick of looking at pictures of our kid. I mean, it’s been 3 weeks. How long can this go on? Seriously, she’s not even cute anymore.

All of a sudden she’s become hyper-alert and aware, and she learned how to do this annoying smiling thing. Not adorable. Not even one teensy bit.

Oh. I can’t do it! Somehow, as each day passes I fall more and more in love with our little girl. I’m not sure how it’s possible, but it’s true. I’m more than a little concerned about how many hours of the day Mike and I spend staring in awe—either at her or at each other. Meals are not being cooked. Laundry is not getting washed. The cats have had to learn how to feed themselves and clean their own litterbox. An entire family of dust bunnies has moved into our living room. I have had a $20 gift certificate to Dairy Queen in my possession for 3 weeks and I HAVE NOT USED IT.

This is serious, people.

At this rate, by the time she’s 10, Eva’s dad and I will be drooling zombies, permanently molded to the couch, capable only of uttering the words Eva…so…cute. Love…her…so…much. Pass…cheetos. I’m wondering why no one told us about the sappy brain-mush part of parenthood. There should have been a warning. Seriously.

Two Weeks? Already??

Whew! I can’t believe it’s already been a week since I’ve posted here. Sorry! I’m not ignoring you all, I just…had a kid, I guess. I’m breastfeeding Eva (so far), and for the past few days she’s been Eating. Every. Hour. for at least part of the day. I think she may be going through a growth spurt. However, business seems to be a bit slower today at the Mom Café, and I’ve managed to get my boob out of her mouth long enough to write a small update for you all. (Click this sweet picture of Eva and her dad to see a bigger version.)

First off, thanks for the supportive comments and emails about Eva’s harness. We’re adjusting to it. Slowly. Eva and I had to relearn how to nurse since she’s been strapped in because now she’s this stiff little board (Mike calls her an ironing board), rather than the squishy, cuddly little baby I had gotten used to. Which may have to do with her frequent meals as of late. I’m getting used to seeing her in her sling, but I have to say, I look forward to the 2 hours a day that she’s not in it. Everything seems to go just a little easier during those times.

Mike’s still battling the Flying Poops. At the moment, we’re a little afraid of bathing her because bathtime? that’s a long time to be without a diaper. My parents were in Eau Claire to see all of us Eva last weekend, and we were treated to a lovely story about my own bowel…um, tricks…as a child. All I can say is, “Sorry Dad,” and “Well, now we know she is truly my offspring.”

Eva turned 2 weeks old on Tuesday, and as a thank you for keeping her alive (and fairly clean) for another week, Eva bought her parents a gift. (Yes, in our family, our kid is the one with the money.) Our household now contains a Graco Luvin’ Hug Swing, and we’ve all been gently, and gratefully, delivered into the Land of 3 Hour Naps.

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Aaahhh.

Explosive Bowel Movements

OK, so... Eva can shoot poop further than I can hit a golf ball. In the past 24 hours, I’ve experienced two instances of what our What to Expect in the First Year book calls “explosive bowel movements.” It was kind of hard finding entries about this, because farties, squirties, and raging airborne poopies are not in the index. Thankfully, this activity is normal—yet startling.

I was able to witness these astonishing EBMs because they occurred while I was changing her diaper. I’m sure they happen all the time, but Eva’s Carebear diapers usually contain the unholy chaos. The first time it happened, I was reaching for a fresh diaper and holding her butt in the air when I heard these cute little bubbly noises. I looked up and saw a little... pre-poopie. Then she just let’er rip. Her poop flew a third of the length of the freaking nursery. I actually yelled. Luckily, there was nothing fabric-based in the landing zone.

The second time, I was a bit more prepared for it (no girly screaming on my part), but I didn’t quite catch it in time. Had her butt been at a steeper angle, it might have gotten ugly. These were by far the most challenging diaper-related moments I’ve had as a dad (I was also learning to change diapers around Eva’s new harness). Welcome to parenting, I guess.

All that said, I think EBMs are pretty damn funny.

Poor Little Frog

So we went to see the doctor today. Sigh. Eva was a very good girl—so well-behaved. She never cried, not even one little whimper, even though the doctor was pushing and pulling and bending her little legs into unnatural positions. She didn’t make a peep.

Which is more than can be said for her mama.

Yeah. It was tough. I knew I loved that little girl—I’ve only known her for a week and I can confidently say that if anyone ever threatened to harm her in any way I would pull a Jekyll/Hyde-type transformation and rip their eyebrows off. With my teeth. But I wasn’t prepared for the absolute helplessness of watching a (very kind) doctor poking at my baby and knowing I couldn’t (and really shouldn’t) do anything to stop him. I had to sit on my hands to keep from grabbing my kid and making a run for it. I kept telling myself “we’re here to help her,” over and over again.

But I didn’t crack. I held it together while he explained that her hip was in very good shape, but needed a bit of guidance in order to form correctly. I smiled and nodded politely as he told us the best thing is to put her in a little harness for the next 4–6 weeks so her little legs would be held at the correct angle. I bravely changed my baby out of her darling little summer dress and into a sensible onesie so she’d have something between her precious skin and the harsh Velcro of her harness.

I did well. I really did.

Until the doctor put the harness on and backed away from her and I saw this:

I looked at my poor little baby girl, only 1 week old, all strapped into that contraption, and my heart broke. I lost it. The doctor was very understanding—he let me pick her up right away, and he said lots of nice things about how soon she’ll be out of the thing, and how she’s not in pain, and that we can even take it off for a few hours each day. And, on an intellectual level, I understand. I know all of those things. But standing there in the doctor’s office, holding my baby in her new little sling, all I could do was cry.

Man, parenthood is hard.

First Week Down

I don’t know if you guys have heard, but we had a baby.

Yes, really. Truly. We did!

And she’s fabulous. As Mike said, “It’s pretty lucky that we happened to have the cutest baby in the world, isn’t it?”

I need to take a minute to thank all of you. They don’t make enough cheesy words to describe how much all of your well-wishes and encouragement meant to me and Mike as we were waiting for little Eva to arrive. It was such an incredible thing to be lying there in labor and have Mike relaying a steady stream of messages from all of you. Mike and I (and now Eva) are so lucky to have such amazing, supportive people in our lives. We both have piles of emails to answer (and we will get to all of them), but for now please know that your messages were received, and cherished. Thank you for your kind words.

Ahem…so anyway.

Eva turned 1 week old yesterday. We didn’t have time to hire the team of clowns and balloon twisters (yes, that’s what they’re called) that Eva requested, but we did take her to a party. She got all dressed up in her pink ruffly number, combed her hair, and made quite a splash at the Volume One 4th of July party (a major event, for those who don’t know…major event). 

We intended to stay for 45 minutes or so, and ended up being there for over 3 hours. The three of us got a bit of practice at feeding/diaper changing somewhere other than at home, and—I’m happy to report—we all did quite well! Though it was nice to be back home afterwards, just the three of us and our kitties.

Tomorrow, Eva has an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon. When the pediatricians examined her in the hospital they thought she had a slight “click” in her hip (technical term), which could point to hip dysplasia, and would mean Eva would have to wear a little harness for a month or so. However, the next pediatrician to examine her couldn’t detect a click. He said that her hip just seems a little lax, and that he’ll be surprised if much intervention is required.

This all makes sense to me because I’m positive my baby girl has super powers and is healing herself. Seriously, she gets it from her mom. If you don’t believe me, ask MY mom about the time I cured my own cavity. Yep—I went in to have my first cavity filled, and the dentist couldn’t find it. It was gone. Super powers. Clearly.

So, think of us tomorrow at 2:30. We’ll let you know how it all shakes out.

And again, because I can’t say it enough, Thank You! We love you all.

P.S. You can click on all the above pictures to see bigger versions!