These Are a Few of Our Favorite Things

(Note from Amy: The fabulous and talented Drew has been writing all of our journal entries so far. Though full of wonder and enthusiasm about Gia, I haven’t had the wherewithal to write until now. I look forward to writing and sharing more with you as the weeks pass.)

Gia is an amazing, intelligent, substantial being with a big spirit in a tiny, adorable, delicious little body. The past 12 weeks with her (outside my body) have been full of surprises, joy, incompetence (mine), learning, familiarity, complete unfamiliarity, smiles, tears (hers and ours), spit up (hers) and of course, our obsession with her bodily functions. We’ve never felt such need and fervent desire to keep someone safe, happy and healthy, often at the expense of our own sleep. Nor such appreciation for our own parents and the sacrifices they made, and love they gave … and continue to give.

So, of course we, like all new parents, are a bit low on sleep. But oh, to wake up and see her contagious, happy smile in the morning when we “finally” wake up and look at her, is to feel instant sunshine in our hearts. Since you don’t get to wake up with her and spend every waking moment watching her grow and witnessing her blossom, here’s a list of some of the things we love about Gia these days, so you can feel like you’re here, too!

1. Her amazingly expressive, impossibly cute face
2. Her fresh, smooth, soft yummy baby skin
3. Her super-stretchy body upon waking up
4. Her enthusiastic hair at any moment of the day
5. Her light-the-world smile
6. Her beautiful pink lips
7. Her lusty appetite
8. The way her tiny perfect ears move rhythmically up and back, forward and down as she nurses
9. The way she embraces her food source
10. Her adorable vowel sounds
11. The way she’s just started really “singing” back to us
12. How cute she looks in pink
13. Her clear communication: We really know when all is right in her world and when she’s not happy (even if we don’t know exactly why)
14. The way she likes riding on a shoulder, head held high like royalty
15. The way she sucks sometimes thoughtfully, sometimes frantically on her pacifier
16. The mesmerizing way her hands move as if through water, conducting an invisible orchestra
17. Her consistent need to have her hands out, and ability to Houdini them out of the swaddle, Moby wrap, out from under the blanket, etc.
18. The ways she tries so ardently to fit her whole fist into her mouth
19. The warning signs before a meltdown: Holding her breath, her face turning red, the lower lip getting thin and wide, then sticking out and then quivering …
20. Her soft, round belly
21. Her chubby little thighs
22. Her little zori toes (the gap between her big toe and its neighbor)
23. Her quiet alertness during her nightly bath
24. The way she watches Drew and wants to know where he is
25. The way she falls asleep and naps cozily in the Moby wrap
26. Her little fringe of brown eyelashes resting on her round, kissable cheek when she sleeps
27. Her warm little swaddled body consistently migrates toward Amy all night long
    
28. She teaches us to surrender, to learn and to play every day
    
29. She inspires love and adoration wherever she goes (even in cyberspace)
30. She reminds us every day, that every human being is actually a miracle

These, of course, are just a few of the highlights! Thanks for tuning in to the latest installment … there will be more to share with you soon!

Photos - Week 11

We remember when...

There is a legend about a land very similar to our own. Only it is a land where people go to sleep at around 10pm and wake up in the morning after sleeping many hours in a row. It is a land where people can go out to nice restaurants easily, and where they can take spur of the moment trips. Sometimes, if you are up a 5am with your baby you can almost hear those strange folks snoring. . .

Parenthood really helps you to appreciate the little things. Drew went out with a friend to an upscale restaurant last week. Something that he did with reasonable frequency over the last several years but never since Gia was born. It was as if all his senses were enhanced. The food tasted amazing, the conversation was so connecting, and he felt so alive. Who would have thought 3 months could make such a difference? Likewise, when we get just 15 minutes alone to cuddle and talk when we aren’t exhausted, it is like being on a fantastic vacation!

Fortunately, we have finally figured out how to consistently put Gia to sleep on her own at night. She is still in our bed and Amy needs to nurse her to sleep but then she can leave and Gia will sleep on her own for hours. This has given us so much more free time together. Unfortunately, we are usually very tired at that point and haven’t been able to do the same thing at nap time. In addition, the first leg of Gia’s sleep is her longest, so by staying up while she sleeps we are actually cutting into the longest stretch of sleep we can get (3-4 hours). After that Gia wakes every 1-2 hours. We started reading a book on how to help you baby sleep (“The no cry solution”) but is seems that before the age of 4 months there isn’t a whole lot you can do. Nevertheless, we have been keeping a log of Gia’s naps, bed time routine and night waking. We can really see how much lack of sleep affects her. She is much crankier (us too).

We love our life with Gia even if not every moment is enjoyable. She has gotten so smiley and lately keeps trying to fit her whole fist in her mouth. She also seems fairly obsessed with looking at daddy. One time, Amy had her breast right next to Gia’s face to feed but Gia didn’t even notice it because she was looking at Drew. Eventually, Drew had to walk behind Amy so Gia would notice the boob! She is also quite a talker. We have a movie of Drew and Gia chatting, although admittedly it is all vowel sounds…Look for the movie to be posted in the next few weeks.

We are sorry we have been a little neglectful of the website. There just never seems to be enough time in the day or week or month! Please know, we love you all and will do our best to keep you in the Gia loop!

Photos - Weeks 9-10

Photos - Week 8

Gia at 2 Months

In two days Gia will be 2 months old! We can’t believe it. It seems like just yesterday that we were in the hospital with her and yet at the same time it feels like we have been living with her forever. Drew has been back at work for the last few weeks. Since he writes these journal entries, they have been less frequent because of his reduced free time. We apologize to Gia’s fan club! Drew works from home which is very nice but has been an adjustment for all of us, since he is home but not always available. It has also forced us into more of a schedule. Drew will usually play with Gia for about 30 when he wakes up so Amy can shower and do a few other things before another Gia feeding frenzy. Drew will also take Gia in the Moby wrap (kind of like a baby sling) during part of the day. She sleeps and he is still able to work.

This week we established a nightly retinue for Gia. Shortly after dinner we give her a bath then Amy reads to her (if Gia is cooperative). After that Drew wears her in the Moby wrap and sings a Buddhist chant to her for 10 minutes while walking. She is usually asleep by this time but it is only a light sleep, so we keep her in the Moby while Amy reads a book out loud. After about 30 minutes we transfer Gia to the bed. She usually wakes up after a little while and Amy nurses her back to sleep. When she is done we all go to sleep. On a good night Gia wakes up to feed twice during the night and on a less good night she wakes every hour. Since so much of our attention is focused on Gia or on everything else we still need to do on our own, it has felt nice for us to have so much time all together each night.

Gia is such a sweetheart. She gets more social and attentive every week. She now really enjoys her play mat. When we used to put her down on it, she would just stare up at the ceiling, now she looks all around at the animals and other objects that hang down just out of reach. When we are luckily she will get in a smiley mood and we can play little games with her. She also has the cutest habit of laughing in her sleep. One night at around 5am, Drew was awake and was startled by this very loud HEE-HEE-HEE that came out of Gia! We love how we are all learning and laughing together.

Movie - Noisy Gia Snuggles with Mommy