Finally Okla-HOME: Malone Marie: Week 3

Well, it's Monday again, and you know what that means: Time to hop in the blue chair, bust out the orange sign, and pose for your camera-happy momma. Today you are 3 weeks old!

Soooo...what's been goin' on with you, Sweet Pea?

We're operating on roughly the same 3 hour eat/wake/sleep schedule as last week. Sometimes, try as you might to stay up, you are just far too tired to keep your eyes open and drift back off to sleep after nursing, instead. But, more often than not, you're awake (or at least semi-conscious) for a little over an hour before going down for your next nap. If I fail to lay you down when you are feeling sleepy, you ~~politely let me know it's time~~ yell in my face until I put you in your crib. At night, you are still going slightly longer stretches of 4-5 hours. There was one night this week when you were up twice, but other than that you've been kind to Mommy and have just woken once between 10pm and 7am. Thankfully, at this point you fall right back asleep as soon as I wrap you up in your swaddling blanket.

Though I won't know exactly what you weigh until your 1 month appointment in a couple of weeks, I know for sure you are a growing girl! Your once too-big newborn clothes are fitting much better (I'd venture to say some are even snug!), and though you're still in size newborn diapers, I think perhaps you could stand to move up to size 1 once we finish off our current box. I just love seeing how your belly is starting to fill out and get round; now to put some more meat on those skinny arms and chicken legs of yours! :)

You're still soaking multiple outfits a day (both yours and mine) with spit up. Like I said last week, it doesn't seem to hurt you, but you're not a fan of the wipe-downs and wardrobe changes that are necessary afterward. We haven't had any more projectile episodes, which is a relief; instead, you let it flow out here and there, a little bit at a time. Our house is strewn with burp cloths -- over the edge of your crib, on your glider, on the back of the couch, in your bouncy seat, and everywhere in between!

You lost your belly button stump this past Tuesday. Well, technically, Mommy might have helped a bit. That black thing was literally hanging by a thread when I woke you for your newborn pics that afternoon. Rather than worry about keeping it in place, I opted to sterilize some small scissors and snip it off -- making sure that I cut on the black, dead part, of course. It still hasn't fully dried out, so I'm continuing to clean it out with alcohol. You actually have a small umbilical hernia, which basically looks like you have a major outie belly button. I was really concerned about it at first, but after consulting with our med/peds friend Dr. Megan (both over the phone and at church this past Sunday), I was assured that it was not infected and learned that these types of hernias usually resolve themselves in the first year. Hopefully your abdominal muscles will completely close, and everything will go back into place! If not, I guess surgery is an option, but that would be way down the line.

I really can't wait until the inside of your belly button completely dries up, because that will mean I can start giving you realbaths! Though they're not an every night occurrence, sponge baths are kind of getting old. You lose patience with me pretty quickly, and I can understand why, since it's pretty hard to ensure that you stay warm while I wash you down. The experience will be so much better when you can lay back in a comfy, sponge-lined tub and have warm water poured on your belly. I hope your evening bath will be the first part of an enjoyable bedtime routine, just as it was with your brothers.

Fussy froggy!

Vitamin D drops help change your tune.

As I mentioned in the post about YaYa's visit, your newborn photo shoot did not go so smoothly. You, Sister, gave your momma a taste of the DRAMA that everyone keeps telling me comes with having a girl. For a short time at the beginning, you were fine; after that, you basically cried for two hours straight. On a handful of occasions, I was able to calm you down (often by nursing -- Tiffany saw way more of my boobs that afternoon than I'm sure she'd anticipated!), but as soon as I tried to put you somewhere for a picture you would flip out again. I kept thinking that you'd finally wear yourself out, throw in the towel, and fall asleep; that didn't happen until the very bitter end. About an hour into the shoot, we tried to get some pictures of you with your brothers, who were looking so handsome in the matching pink button-down shirts I'd bought for them. Of course, they were anything but cooperative (despite some significant bribery goin' on), and I'm fairly certain Tif wasn't able to get a sibling shot that was anywhere close to decent. The stress continued when we attempted a family pic. It was chaos, with you wailing and the boys trying to wiggle out of our grasp and off the bed. At that point, I was on the verge of a breakdown, thinking about all the money we were spending and the fact that we were not getting the pictures that I wanted to get! Tif promises that she snapped some good ones; if anyone could work that kind of magic with subjects like us, it is her. I guess we'll wait and see when I get our CD of images! (Needless to say, Mommy felt she'd earned the right to unwind with a glass of wine after you kids were in bed that night...)

You lost it when I tried to put you on this chair during your shoot;

a few days later, you were perfectly happy to pose here!

My favorite time of day with you is first thing in the morning. It's just you and me, since your 7:00 wake-up time is a little earlier than your brothers'. (Or, if they are awake, they are still playing in their room.) You are understandably eager to nurse, and I don't have to coax you to stay awake like I do at other times during the day. When you are finished, you are so alert. I just love chatting with you as you lay in my lap or on a blanket on the floor with that expectant look on your face, making your sweet little baby grunts. One-on-one time with you is so very precious; I guess that comes with the territory when you're raising child #3. I try to cherish every second of it!

Hanging on Mommy's every word?

Locked in on the light coming from the lamp behind me.

Your big brothers have continued to show you attention and affection sporadically throughout the day. I get so tickled watching them tend to you and hearing them talk/ask questions about you. Kaiser has been particularly concerned lately when you fuss after being laid down for a nap; he will say, "Mommy, I think you need to go 'shhhh' Malone," and then when you have settled down, he will say, "She's not making a peep, Mommy!"

Kaiser makes a pretty comfy pillow.

Porter making silly faces for his "Mah-yone".

I have all sorts of terms of endearment that I use with you throughout the day -- Dumpling, Chica, Babydoll, Lovebug. While Tiffany and I were talking about your name, she suggested a nickname that I've also really taken to: Maloney Baloney. It's catchy and quite fitting. :) More often that not, though, I call you Malone Marie. (I do the same thing with your brothers, Kaiser Justin and Porter Knight.) I really just adore your name -- the alliteration, how it flows. Hopefully someday you will love it as much as your Daddy and I do!

I think I might have a serious problem: I can't. stop. kissing your face. Every part of it -- your forehead, your cheeks, your nose, your chin, and of course your lips -- is just begging to be smooched. It's like an addiction. I hope someday Mommy's kisses bring a smile to your face, but lately you've been kind of grimacing when I plant one on you. Maybe you're caught off guard or something? I'm so sorry, Daughter, but I just can't get enough of you!!!

Here is more cuteness captured this week: