I'm back!

It's been awhile.

Levi turned a month old on Tuesday (or Sunday, if you consider 'four weeks' a month).  It's been good...not easy, but good.  My mom was here for the first two weeks, and Chris went back to work after a month and a half off a few days later.  I may or may not have cried for about four days straight (placental encapsulation sort of saved the day...perhaps I'll blog about that someday!).  But we got through it.

Breastfeeding (yes, I'm breastfeeding, and doing so happily) is going incredibly well - Levi gained 2.5lbs and grew 2" in his first month of life.  He's still a little munchkin, but he's outgrown his NB - sized clothing and is about to outgrow his NB diaper wraps too.  A trip to Modern Natural Baby is in order in the next few days, so we can continue to cloth diaper successfully.  We've been using entirely too many disposable diapers lately (errands, combined with the inconvenience of stuffing a bulky cloth prefold into an almost-too-small wrap).  And while I'm not getting as much sleep as I'd like, he wakes up consistently at 2:30 and 4:30 to eat if we put him to bed between 11pm and midnight.  I can't really complain...he's just shy of five weeks old, and he gets hungry/poopy/lonely often and easily.

Levi's about to wake up, but I'll leave you with one thought (to be expounded upon later).  It seems like a lot of women on the BabyCenter October 2012 birth forum are asking "when do things get easier?" or something along those lines.  The first month of life is frustrating, exhausting, and sometimes miserable.  I don't claim to have had a rough run of it by any means, but I've had my struggles.

I realized today as I was putting the third load of laundry of the day in the washer (after cleaning the bathroom for the first time since Levi's birth) that the answer to the above question is "Today!"  And "Yesterday!"  Also, "Tomorrow!"  I may not have realized that yesterday was the day that things started getting easier yesterday, and may not realize that things got easier today until next month, but every day is progress in the right direction at this point.  Today is the day that I was able to take Levi out for three hours without a peep from him.  Yesterday was the day we figured out that cloth diapers are easier on his skin (after a few days of mostly disposables).  They're small things, but they add up.

Maybe your kiddo's been screaming for three days straight, but today you figured out that he only likes Soothies pacifiers.  Perhaps yesterday was the day you got up the courage to tell your MIL that you, not she, is the mother of your daughter.  Tomorrow might be the day you and your son figure out a latch that works for breastfeeding comfortably and successfully - or it might be the day you decide that formula would be best for your sanity and your baby's growth.  I don't know what's going on in your house - my point is that progress is a continual parade of tiny, tiny steps.

But hey - I'll take it!

Pictures, for those who are interested.

Levi and Chris

Sometimes, a screaming baby can be absolutely adorable

And the first smile caught on film (er, 'imaginary film').  He was awake for this, but his eyes were closed at the moment I managed to snap the picture.