February with Cambria

As Andrew and I drove home from the hospital on February 8, we kept remarking to each other that we couldn't believe this was happening.  We couldn't believe that we had a baby!  We weren't just talking about it anymore--Cambria was here and we were officially parents.

Andrew will admit to you that he drove as if he was carrying the most precious cargo ever (and we sure feel like Cambria is!)  It was his first big responsibility as a dad.

We got home and put Cambria on the bed between the two of us.  We were exhausted!  But there was no way two overly cautious new parents were ever going to be able to fall asleep--what if we rolled over and crushed her?!  Of course that wasn't going to happen but we both were so freaked up that we finally got up and started walking aimlessly around the house.  What were we supposed to do now?  Cambria was sleeping so she didn't need us but we were both on high alert in case she did.  It's so funny to reflect on those early days.  I wish I could express it better.  We had no idea what we were doing but we also had nothing to do.  Newborns are so awesome at sleeping as much as they do!

We set up a Pack & Play with a bassinet insert in our bedroom for Cambria and she slept there at night.  For the first couple of weeks, I put a little hat on her head at night because I was worried that she would be cold.  Silly Mommy!

Cambria was such a noisy sleeper!  She would grunt all night long and it was tricky to sleep with all of that racket!

We used a sleep sack for her but more often than not we found ourselves doing what we called "The Double Swaddle."  It just meant that we wrapped her up nice and tight in two swaddling blankets.  Thanks to Pinterest for the swaddle diagram!

Cambria was as good a sleeper as any newborn.  It was me that had trouble.  I was so freaked out that something would happen to her.  Was she too warm?  Was she too cold?  Was she breathing?  Did she need me?  What if she woke up and I didn't know it and she started crying?!

On the second night that she was home, I just kneeled down and turned it over to Heavenly Father.  I begged him to take care of Cambria and to help me feel the inspiration of the Holy Ghost if she needed anything.  I prayed that Andrew and I would feel prompted should she ever be in any danger.  I knew that by turning it over to God, I could trust in Him to keep our little girl safe.

On February 9, we decided to give Cambria her first sponge bath.  Bathing is Andrew's special time with Cambria.  He read up on what to do in Your Baby's First Year.  Thanks to Devin and Katherine for recommending that book to us!  As they say, babies don't come with manuals so we were desperate for any guidance ha ha!  But we didn't need to be so anxious--Cambria (and Daddy!) did great!

First outing to the pediatrician

The next day (February 10), I took Cambria to the pediatrician to have her bilirubin levels checked.by Dr. Mutch at F. Read Hopkins Pediatric Associates, Inc.  She was looking a little jaundiced in her first few days.  She had to have her heel pricked which was sad and she hated being naked and getting weighed.  Poor thing!  She was 7 lbs. 10 oz. and all in all, she did a great job for her first visit!

Andrew's break was over and so it was just me and Little Miss at home during the day.  I loved it.  We had a little spot on the couch that became "hers" that we covered with a blanket and I let her nap there throughout the day.  As she slept, I couldn't resist giving her lots and lots and lots of kisses.  I just would sit there and wait for her to wake up so that I could be with her.  Every time I walked by her whether she was awake or not, I would lean over and tell her over and over how much I loved her.

The best time of day was when Andrew would get home from school.  I would sing "I'm So Glad When Daddy Comes Home" as he walked in the door and he would sheepishly grin.

 Five days old and we are in love with this beautiful girl!  She means the world to us.

Daddy loving on Little Miss

One week old

Sometime in the night of February 16, Miss C got a brand new belly button to show off!  Daddy discovered it in the morning when he was changing her diaper (Daddy is always on "diaper duty" when he is at home.)

So we had to celebrate by giving her her first bath on the night of February 17.  She sure didn't know what to think of it.  And she was a little bit slippery for us to keep propped up!

Cambria was a good little eater as well.  Every time I nursed in the hospital, I asked the nurse to come in and watch me and help me to know what to do.  I had a little trouble initially so I did use a shield to get things going.  I was nursing one side at a time for 45 minutes and keeping a faithful record of this as well as all of her diapers.  Surprisingly, none of the nurses told me that 45 minutes was probably a little long and I just had no clue how long you were supposed to nurse for.  Cambria was happy as could be to keep nursing that long as well.

I started dividing Cambria's feedings between both sides and was nursing 20-25 on each side every 2-3 hours.  We started her on a pacifier February 18 to give me a little break, too.  Cambria never seemed to want to stop nursing once we started so I usually had to break her latch.  I also was having trouble learning all of her little cues and so most of the time I just assumed she was hungry and so I would feed her.

I phased out the shield gradually on one side during the day and then the other and then finally at night as well until Cambria no longer needed it at about 3 weeks.

This girl has her Daddy's heart!  We were so lucky that Andrew had a bunch of cancelled school days, late starts and early outs due to the heavy snowstorms that Lynchburg kept having.  It was quite the winter!  And we just loved being able to hibernate together at home as a family of three.

 Cambria always had her cute little mittens on to keep her hands nice and toasty and because I was too chicken to try and cut her fingernails.

My mom drove out from Indiana in mid-February to visit and help out.  It was so nice to have her there!  She changed every diaper the whole time she was there and would hold Cambria so that I could shower or nap.  I even got out and ran some errands!

Cambria had her first babysitter (Grammy) on February 20th.  Mom sent Andrew and I out to eat on her tab and stayed home with C.  It was so nice for the two of us to have some time together and celebrate our two year anniversary a little early.  I worried the whole time about being away from Cambria but she did pretty well.

Andrew and I went to eat at The Neighbors Place.  We had gone there a few days before Cambria was born and the waitress who had served us then came over to our table to ask about our new baby.  That was sweet.

Grammy sent this photo to us so we wouldn't worry

Tuckered out from all that growing!

Right before Cambria turned three weeks old, she had her first big growth spurt.  I knew it was supposed to happen at that time but I didn't necessarily know the signs of a growth spurt and so it wasn't until she was done (and basically slept for two days straight) that we realized what hit us.

Cambria was so inconsolable during that first growth spurt.  We couldn't do anything to make her happy.  She ate constantly and went on what we called a "nap strike."  No sleep and lots of fussiness was hard on us.

Also, she was kind of gassy at the three week mark and we wondered if all of my dairy throughout the day was upsetting her stomach.  I finally had to cut back on my 6 or 7 daily servings of milk and cheese.  That was probably for the best for all of us!

I remember one night during her growth spurt, I just laid her down on the bed next to me and looked right into her eyes.  I started crying too, and softly whispered to Cambria how much I loved her and how much I wanted to be a good mommy to her and help her to be happy but that I was still learning.  She calmed down as she listened to my whispering and looked right into my eyes.  For me, that was one of my earliest true bonding moments with her.

We just love being parents and we love Cambria so, so, so much!