Life on the Road Less Traveled: 10/11/15

The big news with Miss Zoe is her growth. She is growing like a weed and the statistics prove it. In just one month Zoe nearly gained two pounds and one inch. At her one month visit, she was 9lbs, 3oz and 21 inches long, putting her at the 52nd percentile for height and 54th percentile for weight. It didn't take long for her to outgrow her newborn clothes (length-wise). I can't say I'm surprised at her growth...Zoe eats like a champ! Not only does she nurse often, she takes big gulps and seems to eat quickly. Thankfully, I don't have any problems producing the milk she needs, and she is often satisfied after a full feed.

Her schedule is fairly predictable. She wants to eat every 2.5-3.5 hours most of the day, and generally nurses more often (like every 1-2 hours) in the evenings (dinner until 10:30p bedtime). She's been fairly consistent with a 10:30pm feed, a 1:45-2:45am feed, and a 5:15-5:45am feed. Like her sister, she sleeps well in the mornings, sometimes going 4 hours. She does great going out and sleeps well in her carseat. She also generally likes to swing and has no problems sleeping through the various noises in the house. I'm surprised when she sleeps through Darwin's barking and Rose's loud chatter (and poking and prodding).

Unlike Rose, Zoe is not as fussy during the evening witching hour. It could be that I nurse her much more in the evenings, or it could be her personality, I'm not really sure.

During the day, we've been trying to keep Zoe in the main room(s) of the house with us, or with her car seat shade open if we are out, and I've been swaddling her only at night. She often fights the swaddle, unless she has already passed out when I put her in it.

Another characteristic of Miss Zoe is that she is extremely vocal. She squawks and grunts more than any baby I've ever heard (not that I've heard many). Both the midwife and pediatrician commented on how vocal she is. She'll make all types of noises for 15-20 minutes sometimes when she's waking up. Unfortunately, Colin is a light sleeper, so her noises keep him up much of the night. I can sleep through some of the early ones and start getting myself ready to feed her when they get louder and it seems like she is almost awake.

During Zoe's first month, she got to spend a lot time with her Avo (my mother), and we had visits from Vovo (my dad) and grandma and grandpa (Colin's parents). She's gone to a few story times and has been out and about quite a bit. She'll often come grocery shopping or run errands with me while my mom or Colin stay with Rose. In some ways she is easier to care for than Rose. I can pop her in the moby wrap and run errands with only the occasional stop to feed her (every 3 hours or so) during the day. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to do much in the evenings because Zoe wants to nurse so often. I'm hoping that the evening cluster feeds are preparing her to sleep longer at night.

Rose still loves her sister, showering her with kisses and showing Colin how to hold her when he appears to be doing it wrong. Whenever Zoe cries, Rose yells "mommy, Zoe crying." She has also started suggesting "Zoe milk" - that I need to nurse Zoe to stop the crying. We've been trying to redirect her to practice what we do with Zoe on her babies. Sometimes it works and other times she still wants to help. I can't put Zoe in the swing when Rose is around because she wants to push the swing and she does it pretty hard. We also have to be careful when Zoe is in the car seat or on the floor mat. Rose often wants to pick Zoe up to hold her.

During Zoe's one month appointment, she received a clean bill of health. She doesn't appear to have any problems hearing or with her development. Over the past few days, I have noticed her really focus on our faces like she can see them better. She's also been following the cars on the musical mobile above the changing table. Going into her doctor's visit, we were concerned about a very severe-looking rash on her face, but were relieved to have a confirmation that she just had a bad case of infant acne. She also has significant cradle cap, which Rose also had. After almost two weeks, the acne appears to be disappearing, with a few spots still on her neck, but the cradle cap remains.

I can't really tell if she is losing more hair, but she definitely still has a significant bald area on the top of her head. Her eyes are a deep, rich blue, so Colin and I predict she will be a blue-eyed girl. You can't tell from any of the photos. I probably need to take one in the sun/outdoors with natural light. Only time will tell us what colors her eyes will be. Now that she is filling in, I think she looks less like a Miller. We aren't sure who she looks like now. Her face is much fuller and her arms and legs are filling in a bit more slowly.

I'm again grateful for a healthy girl and look forward to the next four weeks. Hopefully they will include longer stretches of sleep, resolving acne and cradle cap, and some first smiles. We just have to get through any fussiness, which is supposed to peak at 6 weeks.

Here are some pictures from weeks 2-4. The final picture is the most recent from this period. Who do you think she looks like?