Isabelle's first month flew by... it was busy, overwhelming, full of rewarding moments, and for me, an emotional roller coaster!
December 30, 2009 was a regular day, except it marked the end of Izzy's first month of life. We had a low key day... in the evening we sang to her and cut a small cake (Caribbean Rum cake to be exact... we had too many cakes around so didn't get her a proper cake.. oh well, she didn't mind :)).
By the end of the day, I couldn't believe we made it thru the whole month... the day we brought her home I couldn't even see past the next couple of hours. The only thing on my mind at the time was figuring out how to take care of her. Even though Shel and my Mom were around to help care for her, I felt so much pressure, mostly because I had the huge task of keeping her fed, which they couldn't help with. Believe it or not that was one of the most challenging things I've had to deal with... and it is supposed to be so natural. Yea right... not for me and Izzy!
Taking care of a newborn is hard... even with 3 adults around, we were exhausted that first week. We were totally in love with the lil one and had a ball getting to know her, but were happy to have the first week behind us! It was a milestone worth celebrating... we made it without breaking her! And to top it off, she was gaining weight steadily... which was one of my biggest concerns.
12/4/09 (Day 5):
After that, each week that came and went felt like we were getting more used to our roles as parents. I had plenty of help from my mom who kept us fed and kept the house looking great. She also helped take care of Izzy all day... and especially during the morning so we could sleep in and at night so I could get a head start on sleep for the night. I also got to take long naps... ah, the good old days!
12/6/09 (Day 7):
12/9/09 (Day 10):
Life was surely abnormal during that first month... no time for our needs, we were just consumed with Izzy and her needs. As I said, it was overwhelming, but wouldn't trade it for the world.
12/10/09 (Day 11):
She was so fragile, yet so strong... she had a whole range of entertaining expressions on her face... her arms and legs were in fully swing... usually she put her dukes up like she was about to punch us out :) Her body, arms and legs were so thin, and her skin was dry and scaly for most of the first month. Her eyelashes were short, but started growing longer week by week. Her hair was beautiful and long and just crazy... her little lips were so small and so adorable, especially her bottom lip, which I just wanted to eat up. And don't even get me started on her eyes... nothing sweeter in this world than the tender looks she gave us...
Shel and I loved how she would just lie on our chests in her fetal position... she was such a sweet little package. She frowned a lot during her first month... she would raise her brows which created deep wrinkles on her forehead... she had the look of an inquisitive little gopher. She started smiling early on... like in the first week, but usually it was when she was falling asleep, or when she had gas. By the end of the month, she was smiling much more, and didn't seem like it was just due to gas or drowsiness :)
She has such wonderful qualities, some of Shel's, some of mine and some all her own. I'm looking forward to seeing her personality develop and get a feel for who she as a person. So far, she's a little bundle of awesome.
12/10/09 (Day 11):
As Izzy gradually becomes less and less dependent on us over the years, I will surely miss her in her first month of life!
Isabelle's 1 Month Birthday (12/30/09):
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