Daniel is a Week Old...

I will try to post an up to date picture today.  Babies change so fast! 

Mostly we are doing well. Kevin continues to "hold down the fort" in keeping the house in order and the children busy.  Mornings are my best time and then I feel worse as the day goes on. 

I am thankful for lots of experience as a mom of a newborn.  The first few weeks post partum are a delight, and they are hard as well.  I am SO tired, and of course I'm recovering from fairly major surgery.  This time around, I am dealing with a catheter while my bladder heals. It should come out tomorrow -- I HOPE SO.  I PRAY SO!!

But there are such delights as well...the delights of seeing our other children adore Daniel, of seeing his sweet little baby face many times during the day and night!

I am gradually working to teach him the whole "day and night" thing.  He is a very tired little guy and often eats and then sleeps for 2.5 hours before I wake him up to eat again.  The last couple of days, I've given him baths or otherwise stimulated him after a couple of daytime feeding.  My hope is that he'll realize that days are for being awake (at least some of the time) and nights are for sleeping.  Last night he didn't do great as he was up for a couple of hours. 

One thing that I know helps (from past experience) is to teach the baby to fall asleep on his own.  This is to say that I try not to "nurse my baby to sleep".  It is tempting to do that, especially when I'm tired, and indeed I do often nurse him to sleep at night. But during the day, I want him to learn to fall asleep by himself.  He will have periods of wakefulness in the middle of naps, and if he can calm himself down and go to sleep without nursing, that is a good thing!  So far he hasn't needed much prodding to sleep...he is very tired.  Except at night, occasionally :-).

So yes, we are doing well. And I am tired. And we are very blessed.