Let's start with the day she was born.
After a traumatic experience (aka childbirth), I was so overcome with love that all the pain and blurred memories up until that point were immediately forgotten. I finally got to meet this amazing life we created (as well as put a face to those KICKS that were keeping me up every night). She was place in my arms for the first time. It was magical.
Then my epidural wore off. Not so magical.
I looked like crap. I was juiced up with IV fluid and missing half the blood in my body. But I was suddenly a mommy to the most beautiful little girl in the WORLD. I couldn't believe she was here, and she was mine.
That's all I remember about our first few hours.
The next day was Sydney's first holiday. It was Valentines Day. How appropriate? A celebration of love.
My brand new baby, and my brand new diamond earrings...
..were enough to get me through the pain of being gutted. (Yup, I got a push present and didn't even have to push!)
On day three, my milk came in. It wasn't nearly as painful as the c-section, but it made a hearty effort. Good thing my baby was as hungry as I was wanting to feed her! She was such a good little breast feeder too (as long as I could keep her awake enough to latch). I deserved it after all I went through.
Five days after being admitted to the hospital, we were finally sent home ALONE with our very own baby and a prescription for 50 Percocet.
It was the car ride from HELL. I think I felt every rock in the road.
My Sydney didn't make a peep though.
Home, sweet home. I had never been so happy to be home. This first day was filled with boobs, diapers, and pain killers. There was lots of crying (on my part mostly) and I had never felt so thirsty in my life. Still unable to move, I had to rely on Jason to take care of everything. And I mean EVERYTHING. He even had to help me pee! When Sydney wasn't feeding, she napped in her Boppy right by my side.
When bedtime rolled around, I realized I had to put my baby in her crib. OH. MY. GOD. It was the end of the world. My baby had been less than one foot away from me since the day she was born.
This is where I would like to nickname my video monitor "The Savior". It was a rough night, but we made it through in one piece.
Over the the next couple days, I slept when I could,
cried often, and tried not to be too demanding of Jason. I honestly cannot remember even eating that first week. If it wasn't for Jason, I probably wouldn't have. He even took over all the diaper changes.
That first week also included Sydney's first bath.
She still had her umbilical cord, so she couldn't get that wet. It was awkward and sweet and filled with anxiety all at the same time. How else is a new mom supposed to feel when her baby cries?
At one week old, Sydney had her first outing to the Pediatrician's office.
Stepping outside into what seemed like the gateway to heaven, I savored the warmth of the sun on my face. I was waddling in pain, but at least I was only on Tylenol by that point. The appointment went perfectly. Sydney was 6lbs 7 oz. Little porker! Her doctor said most babies are just back up to their birth weight at that point and she was way over. He asked what were feeding her. "Just the boob," I told him!
We made it through our first week as parents. More importantly, Sydney was still intact.
On February 28, 2009, My hormones got the best of me. Here was my email to Jason:
"Did you give her formula last night? You left the evidence on the counter. I'm so pissed. You wake me up next time if she's not taking the breast milk."
I have nothing against formula, but I was already upset about having to supplement Sydney until my milk came in, and breast feeding was going so well. How dare he "poison" my baby's digestive system!
At exactly two weeks old, I managed to convince Jason we just HAD TO HAVE professional shots of Syd because "she was never going to be two weeks old again". The actual shoot was a total disappointment, but we still got a few good pictures out of it. This was my favorite:
Soon after that, Syd had her first out-of-town visitors: Nanner Dianer and Pop-Pop Bill. Sydney was adored, gawked over, and loved. Mommy, on the other hand, hadn't up until that point, had to "share" her baby. It was hard. I felt selfish. But I didn't care. I MADE her.
While visiting, we had went out to buy a few cute girly outfits and other baby items. One being a breast pump. I got to have a beer after months and months of sobriety. I also was finally able to get some relief from the engorgement. PRAISE THE BREASTPUMP! Jason and I even got out to see a movie. I was worrying about my baby the ENTIRE time, but it was so nice of that Nanner Dianer to give us a break.
Sydney officially lost her umbilical cord at two weeks, and got her first real bath shortly after.
This went much better when bubbles were involved.
March 10, 2009:
March 20, 2009:
I officially quit my job to be a stay-at-home-mom. (2nd) BEST DAY OF MY LIFE.
In the middle of March, I bought my first book about Baby's first year. When I was pregnant, I used to tell Jason what was growing and happening each month, so when he started asking about her, you know, when she was actually here, I had no idea what to tell him. I had books galore on pregnancy and NOTHING on babies! It's format was week by week so it was interesting to read. It told me what I could do each week for her development and bonding, milestones, etc.
March 25, 2009:
I had my six-week postpartum checkup. Lost 24 pounds since birth-20 in the first week and then I seemed to stall. Everything looked great.
March 26, 2009:
March 28, 2009:
Sydney had her first day at the park.
It was the first week I had no doubt she was smiling.
AND the first time she went fishing.
April 12, 2009:
Sydney's First Easter.
We dyed eggs!
I also played photographer.
April 15, 2009: Our first breastfeeding shot
May 5, 2009: I started this blog. :)
It's so hard to remember all the little things when you're running on five minutes of sleep. I mean, look how delirious we looked those first couple weeks:
I swear, we were very happy.
One thing I never want to forget, is the startle reflex. This is when the baby jumps in her sleep, arms reaching out.
It was the sweetest and funniest thing I had ever seen.
I don't want to forget her hilarious "poop face".
Thanks to this vision of humor, I always knew when to declare "Daddy's turn!"
I especially never want to forget how phenomenal Jason was those early days.
He was a natural at fatherhood, and helped out without one complaint. I don't know how I would have gotten through everything without him.
And now? Now I just want to punch him in the face. Just kidding. Sydney wants to punch him too.
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