Growing

We went to the Dr. today to weigh in and Bella is 5lb 14oz, 6oz more than last week. She's growing like a weed, for her. I've attached a picture of a friend's baby who is actually a week younger than Bella. Wow! I didn't realize how small she really is!

Last night was the first night we had to let Bella cry to calm herself down for bed. It was hard, but she finally calmed down and slept soundly the rest of the night (except for her 3 AM feeding, of course. We'll be ready when we can cut that feeding out!)

Bella is still sleeping most of the time so things are pretty quiet during the day. I am finally finding time to write thank you notes to all of our amazing friends and family. Better late than never, right?

Home from Brownwood

We went to visit family in Brownwood, TX this weekend. We got to see Grant's side of the family and had so much fun! They hadn't gotten to see Bella since she came home from the hospital. Gran and Pa Pa Harris were very anxious to get to hold her as well as her cousins Henley and Holden. Grant's sister also came down so she could spend some time with us, (of course it helps that we are all Red Raider fans and Grant's brother and sister-in-law were having a game watching party. :)) As you can see from the pictures, Bella didn't have to worry about not being held. :) Cousin Holden was the sweetest. He just wanted to kiss her all the time. Henley was a great little mother.

She did really well in the car seat. No complaints and she slept well in her pack-n-play. We did have to plug in my iphone next to her so we could play music since we left her cd player at home. The whir of Gran's computer helped as well.

When we went to the doctor last week he said to watch Bella and if she started acting hungry in between feedings to go ahead and increase her volume. This weekend she's started taking about 70ml instead of her 50ml. She's growing so fast! We go back to the doctor on Tuesday so we'll get her current weight then.

2nd & 3rd Days

So far so good being home. Bella seems to be adjusting well. Letting us know when she's hungry and when she can sleep a little longer. She can still is a noisy sleeper, but she seems to be getting better at settling herself down.

We took her to the Dr. yesterday and he said everything looks fine. She's up to 5lbs. so she's legal in her car seat now. She'll go back once a week to be weighed until our next appointment with him to make sure she's gaining enough weight.

We braved Target by ourselves today and she didn't make a peep in the car or in the store. I guess she likes her car seat.

Here are pictures of Daddy feeding her and napping after. :)

We Are Home!

I am glad to announce that we are finally home! We came home Sunday afternoon. Things have gone very well and have been low key. Bella is such a good baby! We survived our first night and actually had a better night than our night at the hospital. Bella was very restless that last night in the hospital and our bed left much to be desired. She settled down nicely last night and rested comfortably. Thank you Christian for the lullaby CDs they are a huge help!

She's still getting used to the bottles we have at home so we are going to get some new nipples tomorrow and see if that helps. It's hard to find bottles that are calibrated low enough, 60 ml is not very much.

Grant and I are finding it is hard to get much done, we just want to sit and stare at her all day. Dad is a little jumpy (he'll kill me for saying that), but calming down as he gets used to her moving around and noises. We've already had a couple of visitors as you can see, but we have to be careful. We are ready to show her off, but are going to have to do it in small numbers. She is very susceptible to germs as you can imagine.

We're Coming Home!

We are so excited to be coming home! We will do what the hospital calls "Rooming In" tomorrow and then come home Sunday. Rooming In is where they have us stay in a hotel room there in the NPCU and make sure we are able to take care of Bella's needs.

Bella lost a little weight Wednesday because she stated taking all feeds by bottle, but then she gained some of it back yesterday as her body adjusted. Last night she was 4lb 11oz.

We have the stroller and car seat and the car seat safety expert from the hospital helped us install it. Since Bella is not quite the 5lbs our car seat calls for we are going to bring her home and then not take her out in it much until she reaches 5lbs or more. The crazy thing is she is long enough that she actually fits in it pretty well it's just the weight that is the problem (see pictures).

Bella has actually started getting a little fussy when we don't feed her fast enough. She has been waking up when it is time to eat and is ready to go as soon as we can get her bottle ready. Of course her fussy is just a little mousy squeaks, maybe a few short cries, but nothing over the top.

Exciting News

Bella has started bottle feeding every feeding and they are talking about sending her home!!!!! Not sure about timing or details, but will post about that when I find out.

Lots to Tell

I know it's been a long time since I have posted. I have been chastised for that. :) We had a wonderful "Reunion Shower" on Sunday and it was so nice to see everyone! So many people and so much love. We are definitely a lucky family!

Bella is doing fantastic! She is now 4lb 10oz and bottle feeding every 2 out of 3 feedings. The doctor didn't say this, but the nurse seems to think we might be able to come home early next week. So far so good with the increased feedings. She took all of her 9am and 12pm bottle feedings so we hope it will continue tonight. We are finding that Bella almost always takes her whole bottle for me, but may not always take it for anyone else. Hopefully that will improve also. She's starting to get better about waking up on her own for her feedings and rooting around for her bottle. It always helps for her to be awake when we try to feed her. :)

Also the bedding is finished and ready for Bella. Here's a sneak peek.