Seven Weeks

Almost seven weeks in, and I can't believe how fast the time has flown. Most of it has disappeared into an abyss of bludgeoning sleep deprivation. Sleep problems are one of those things that are desperately important to the person going through them, but deadly dull to hear about for everyone else, so I'll try to spare you. Suffice it to say, for the first five weeks Hazel rarely slept longer than forty minutes at a time, all night long, week after week.

I think the year Cora was born she and I just nursed and napped our way through that whole first winter, but of course this time with a toddler in the house, "sleep when the baby sleeps" is a thing of the past. I've had one child up all day and the other one up all night, and I would like to regale you with about ten single-spaced, double-sided, crazy-person pages detailing my suffering, but we should just move on instead.

About a week ago I moved Hazel's bassinet into our room and sidecar-ed it up to my side of the bed. About that same time, she went through a definite growth spurt. She outgrew her newborn clothes, she started making eye contact, she gained a little head control, we got a few smiles out of her . . . and she started sleeping better! Right now--knock on wood--she's achieving that newborn holy grail of sleeping in three- and four-hour stretches most nights, and that changes everything. Maybe that happened because of her moving into our room, but really I think the she just finally made the developmental leap.


So I've been pretty grim and bitter about the sleep thing, but that having been said, that's the only thing I've had to be grim and bitter about. Hazel is a good eater, she's very healthy, and she's pretty easily soothed. Sleep issues aside, she's an irresistible little creature. I looove the infant stage, and Hazel is a fine example of an infant. When Cora was born I really tried to savor all of her fleeting baby days, and I'm glad I did. Even though we're busier now, I still have managed to sneak some time to snuzzle Hazel's neck, or examine the way she wrinkles her forehead when she works to lift her head up off my shoulder, or trace the swirly hair patterns at the crown of her fuzzy duckling head. I love this tender time.


On the more statistical side of things, at her four-week appointment Hazel was already measuring at the 82nd percentile for length and the 66th for weight. It didn't take her long to jump to a bigger-than-average size--it'll be interesting to see if that's the growth curve she settles into long-term.
Another thing about Hazel is that she actually likes tummy time. Cora, and many other babies, would protest the entire time she was placed on her stomach, but Hazel seems to think it's a terrific way to hang out for a little while.


We're slowly working out the logistics of being a two-kid family. By the six-week mark I'd already completed and returned my first freelance project since Hazel's birth, though that mostly served to convince me that maternity leave exists for a reason. But the back-to-work leap is already done.

It's tough getting out with it being the dead of winter and all, but the girls and I have managed some short outings alone. We've done Hazel in the sling baby carrier and Cora walking and holding my hand, Hazel in the sling and Cora in the stroller, and both girls in the car. I finally chose a double stroller and it's on order. I feel like no one likes double strollers and having to use one is a bit of a bitter pill to swallow, but we'll definitely need one. We'll see if we like this one.

Cora has adjusted really well to Hazel's arrival and we're very proud of her. That's a separate blog post--coming soon, I hope.

So with Hazel sleeping a bit better and winter two-thirds over, I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Hopefully we'll begin to establish a bit of a routine that we'll all enjoy, and then we'll start getting ready for our big move to Minnesota this summer. Busy times!