My in-laws came to visit 10 days after Ellie was born. After the first day of their visit, my mother in law, after spending quality time with Ellie and getting a good sense of her temperament, pegged little Ellie perfectly...
"angel baby" she called her.
Maisie wasn't a difficult baby (okay she was, but I prefer the word challenging, more than difficult haha). Maisie had no predictable patterns, would constantly snack (breastfeed) around the clock often nursing more than 45 minutes and never giving me or the areas that fed her a break... even at night. Oh man, especially at night. Breastfeeding was hard, extremely painful and so not intuitive, but we worked at it until it became second nature. She was crazy colicky from the hours of 8pm-10pm and then the rest of the evening was just a party for her, that little night owl. I thought that's just how all babies were because I hadn't known any different... until now.
From day/night one, Ellie has had an calm demeanor. She mainly slept (that's what newborns are supposed to do right?) but, she slept so much those first few days that I would have to wake her up to nurse her. I have heard of very few babies that actually did that and I was always extremely jealous because those few days after birth are exhausting and the first time around I don't think I caught up on those missed hours until Maisie was over a year old (just kidding... but not really). Anyway, I have been keeping a strict journal writing down all the times Ellie nurses, is changed and sleeps and after a week and looking at all the times, I was completely blown away. Ellie almost to the minute fed with 4 hours inbetween. And the best part? She's quick and efficient. She quickly chugs her meal and is just happy to be held and cuddled (I'm sure the full belly helps out a lot too).
She rarely cries, but when she does it's usually just a few quick loud yells. It honestly sounds more like loud complaints than a cry. Sometimes they come out of no where and are sudden, but she is easily soothed and predictable. It doesn't take long to figure out her deal because if it's close to the 4 hour mark, she's ready to eat. If not, she might have an air bubble or needs a diaper change. I have also noticed that she starts moving her arms around a lot before she "cries". I guess it's her wind up. So if I see her wiggling around a lot, I will just immediately trouble shoot the problem before she gets upset. I think I have heard her really cry 3 times. Once when she was born, the other during a shot and the last when Austin was clipping her nails and accidentally got her skin (I was pretty upset about that last one).
2 weeks old
Things I love about Ellie:
Her top lip when she's hungry and ready to eat. She pokes it out into a duck bill shape (little ducky lips). It kills me every time.
Her noises... she makes this sharp inhale sound that kind of sounds like a goose honk. Also, her little squeaks and rapid little breaths when she's rooting around.
Her little neck that tries to support her heavy head. She succeeds for only a moment before her head jerks back down. She mostly does this when I am burping her or when I have her propped up on my shoulder.
The way she sometimes mistakes our cheeks for food.
The way she only wakes up twice to feed at night/early morning. Once at 2am and the next at around 6:30am
Her little birth marks. 3 to be exact! She has one on her thumb almost under her nail and it's just a cute little spot. The other is on her belly right on her diaper line. Just a shape that is slightly darker than her normal skin color. And the last a perfect tiny polka dot on her shin. I never thought birth marks were cute before, but she has darling little ones.
Her sweet little spirit. Our home feels more complete and sacred now that she's here.
Things Ellie loves:
Nursing.
Daddy's singing.
Baths.
Jelly Pop pacifiers and ONLY Jelly Pop pacifiers.
The sleepy sheep aka white noise.
Being carried in the Solly wrap (thanks Kate).
When Maisie talks and sings to her (which is a lot!)
Things Ellie doesn't love:
When mommy eats spicy food (sad for me)
Any other pacifier other than her beloved Jelly Pop.
When Maisie distracts Ellie when she's eating (eating is serious business in Ellie's book).
Hitting herself in the face with her hands.
3 weeks old
I was prepared for a hard time after she was born, but honestly it has been so much easier than I could have ever imagined. My recovery was amazingly quick and my days are filled with more baby cuddles than I had anticipated (I thought Maisie would be more demanding of my time, but she has been so helpful and self efficient that I really get to spend so much time cuddling and loving on both my girls). Little Ellie has seamlessly fit into our little family and has filled a piece that we didn't even know was missing. We all just completely adore her.
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