Camille is 1 month!

Camille turned 1 month while we were out of town this past weekend.  Oh, what an eventful month it's been!  It's crazy how much I already love her even though she keeps me sleep deprived and seems to get extremely colicky at night.  I'm really hoping the colic is a quick stage for us because man oh man, I'm so tired ALL THE TIME!  Not only is it tough being sleep deprived, but it's also hard to keep up with a toddler when my tank is running low. 

Up until this point, Cami hadn't made any major milestones, but two days ago, she smiled back at me for the first time.  A real smile.  None of that, "Was it just gas or do you think she really smiled?"  This was 100% legit.  I was talking to her and she gave me an adorable gummy grin.  I was even able to get her to do it several times in a row.  It was too cute.  Newborns are so precious, but it's so nice when they start to become more interactive. 



 

Wide awake at midnight




 

Our nightly scream session.  Most nights she screams continuously from 10 pm until 2 or 3 am.  Last night she gave mommy a break and only screamed from 12 am to 2 am.  Yep, ONLY 2 hours straight!  Good thing I know it'll get better.

 

 




 





This one was is an iphone picture and an attempt to catch the princess smiling. I wasn't quite quick enough. She was playing in her bouncy seat while big brother napped. I can't wait until some of their naps coincide. That'll be a great day!

I did it again...

Yep, I went out of town this weekend.  I told myself I wouldn't do it after the drive to Tennessee took so long, but I went to my cousin's wedding in Mississippi on Saturday.  I really had to talk myself into doing it because I'd be on my own with the two kids.  Yes, my parents and siblings would be there, but Rob wasn't going to be able to go.  I could have stayed home, but for some reason, I felt like I needed to be there.  My Grandmother hadn't met Camille yet, I really wanted to see my cousin get married, and I also wanted to be able to visit with the rest of my relatives.  My parents and sister (Alli was in the wedding) had to be at the rehearsal dinner Friday night.  They were leaving Thursday, but Tripp has school on Thursdays so I couldn't leave until the next morning.  Matt was nice enough to wait until Friday to drive with me.  I wouldn't have been able to go without him and his help.  Rob wasn't too keen on the idea of me going with both kids sans him, but I assured him I could handle it.  Matt was such a huge help and his sweet girlfriend, Becca, even agreed to drive out of her way to meet us so we wouldn't have to go out of our way.  She's currently getting her second degree at Auburn.  We met her at the halfway point of our trip, in Birmingham.  The kids were both really good the entire time, but what would normally have been a 6 hour drive to Laurel turned into a 10 hour trip!  Becca's car battery died twice, once in Birmingham and then again in Meridian, Mississippi when we stopped to eat.  That on top of traveling with a one month old infant made for an extremely long trip.  We didn't arrive in Laurel until 10:30 pm that night.  That's 11:30 Eastern time! I was happy my parents had already checked me into my room, which connected to theirs, and helped me get unpacked and settled in pretty quickly.  We all ended up going to bed immediately in hopes to be semi-rested for the next day.

The rest of the weekend went very smoothly.  We got to spend some quality time with family.  Tripp loved playing with my cousin Erin's boys, Noah and Caleb.  The three of them got along really well and had a blast dancing at the reception.  Tripp had so much fun he didn't want to leave the dance floor all night.  My dad followed him around and it was really adorable watching them boogie together.  Although it was a short trip, I'm really glad I decided to go.  Seeing all of my relatives was completely worth it. 

We left early Sunday morning so we could make it back home at a decent hour.  The drive went a lot better than the one to Laurel.  We made it back in about 8 hours instead of 10.  We still had to stop pretty frequently since I'm breastfeeding Camille, but there weren't any major car problems!  I'll have to say I'm done with road trips for awhile now.  I honestly don't mind them, but I'd like to wait until Camille is going longer stretches between feedings to go anywhere else.  Oh, and it would also be VERY helpful if she was sleeping through the night on our next trip! 

My grandmother, Grandmere, meeting Camille for the first time!



Hanging out with the family in Grandmere's hotel room

Noah and Tripp after the ceremony

Caleb and Tripp

Tripp didn't leave the dance floor all night!

My Dad followed Tripp around all night since I was taking care of Camille.  They had so much fun dancing together.

Mom and Camille.  It was really cold outside so Mom stayed inside with baby girl for a bit so I could dance with Tripp.

The dress Camille wore to the wedding was a dress Grandmere made for me when I was a baby.

This pretty girl was one month old that day!

Off to Tennessee

This past weekend, Rob had a CRNA conference in Murfreesboro, Tennessee (right outside of Nashville) so the kids and I decided to join him.  My mother-in-law was also nice enough to accompany me up there.  We had to take two cars, because no adult can fit in the back of our 4runner with two car seats, and I wanted to have someone with me during the day so I would be able to take both kids out.  I'm not brave enough to attempt any solo adventures by myself yet.  Rob left extremely early Friday morning to get to the conference by 8:00 a.m., but we didn't leave until after Camille's Pediatrician appointment.  We weren't in a rush and Rob wasn't due to finish up until 6:00 p.m. that evening. 

The drive up went well, but took almost double the time it normally would...6 hours for a 3 and a half hour drive.  Road trips always take longer with children, but you can expect to add even more time when you've got a nursing infant who's not really on any type of schedule yet.  Rob met us at our hotel after the last speaker finished and we all went out to dinner.  That was our big outing for the day.  We were pretty exhausted from traveling and headed back to the hotel post-dinner to get some "rest"... or as much rest as you can get with a newborn.

Saturday, Rob was at the conference again so Claudia and I got breakfast and then took the kids to the Nashville Zoo.  When we first drove up, I was incredibly impressed.  We have an annual pass to the Atlanta Zoo, which we love, but this zoo looked even better!  We were pretty disappointed when we got inside and started walking around.  The zoo was closing early due to a Halloween Bash and there honestly weren't very many animals.  The zoo is also extremely spread out so it seems like you have to walk a mile between each habitat.  I will say that the scenery is prettier than the Atlanta zoo, but a two year old isn't really there for the gorgeous landscaping.  The Atlanta zoo is better in that there are so many animals to see and you aren't walking far from one to the next.  Tripp kept asking to see the lions and bears and we never did find any.  There was a limited selection of animals at best.  Camille did great and only started to cry when she got got hungry as we were walking back to our car. 

That evening, we met up with Rob at the conference center and then went to grab dinner at Chili's.  The kids seemed pretty worn out from our zoo outing so after eating, we all decided to go back to the hotel to hang out and put them to bed.  To make it easier on us and to make sure Tripp would be able to sleep, we got an adjoining room with Claudia.  This way Tripp could sleep in her room and not be woken up by Camille during the night. 

On Sunday morning, Rob had to be at the conference until noon so Claudia and I just hung out at the hotel, let Tripp watch cartoons, got ready and packed, and went to eat at the continental breakfast buffet.  The highlight of my trip probably happened during this breakfast.  We were sitting in the restaurant, there was only one other older couple in the room, when I looked up and who do I see?  None other than the starting quarterback for the Chicago Bears, Jay Cutler!  I'm a Falcons fan, but also a football fan in general so I knew it was him right away.  I did the dorky thing and said "OH MY GOSH" really loudly.  He looked straight at me, but I felt kinda stupid so I never did ask for his autograph.  I called Rob to tell him what happened when we got back to the room.  He said I should have asked if Tripp could get a picture with him, but my phone happened to be charging in the room.  Darn!  Oh well, it was still neat to spot a celebrity at the Hampton Inn & Suites of all places!

We met Rob at the conference center around noon and the rest of the day consisted of traveling home with a few stops to nurse and one to eat at Cracker Barrel for lunch.  We may not have done a ton while we were in Tennessee, but I'm just proud of myself for making the trip only 3 weeks after having Camille.  Would I ever travel that soon after just having a baby again?  I told myself no at the time...

Hanging out in the hotel room after dinner Friday night

Getting ready to head to the Nashville Zoo

Checking out the parrots

Grammy and Tripp looking at the Elephants--"Elenants"

Not too sure what he was staring at...

The little princess

Eating a snack before heading back to see Daddy

3 weeks old

We went back for another check-up at the Pediatrician on Friday and here are Camille's 3 week stats:

Weight: 9 lbs. (57%)
Length: 20.9 inches (53%)
Head Circumference: 14.3 inches ( 41%)

My gal on the scale at the Ped's office

Overall, our little family has adjusted well to our new addition.  Tripp really loves his baby sister and will say "It's a Camille" anytime he's talking about her.  He loves to tell us when "Camille's sleeping" or "Camille's ki-rin (crying)".  We frequently have to tell him to be gentle or to let her sleep since he constantly wants to touch her, but I'm thankful he adores her as much as he does.  Our biggest challenge thus far has been her reflux and not wanting to sleep much.  Tripp was a constant spitter-upper, but he always remained happy when he did it.  Camille, on the other hand, rarely spits up, but is in lots of pain from her "silent" reflux.  It's so bad that you can actually hear it when she's eating. She often pulls away from me while nursing and screams her head off.  When I went to her appointment on Friday and talked to Dr. Overcash about her symptoms, the doctor agreed that it sounded like she has pretty bad reflux.  She started her on a medication called Zantac, which won't cure the reflux, but will help it be a lot less painful until that little GI tract matures.  Camille is on the max dose for her weight since she seems to be so uncomfortable all the time.  I'm hoping this helps her sleep a little better too.  I do realize that no newborn sleeps well, but I know the amount of sleep a newborn should be getting and Camille doesn't come close to that.  Every baby wakes up every few hours in the beginning, but they should be sleeping in between feedings.  This hasn't been the case for Miss Camille.  It takes her somewhere in the realm of an hour to an hour and a half to settle down after each feeding and by then, it's time to eat again.  I'm really hoping the Zantac works so we don't have to try a stronger medication, but I'm willing to do whatever I can to help my baby.  After I left the Ped's office on Friday, I went straight to the pharmacy to drop of her prescription and she got her first dose that night.  We think we are seeing some improvement and hope this continues.  Rob and I would really benefit from a couple more hours of zzzzz's each night!  I'll be sure to update on her progress soon.  In the meantime, here are a few pictures of our first few weeks at home. 

So in awe of his new baby sister

We were discharged home on a gameday so Camille HAD to sport her UGA attire!

She was so jaundiced that first week.

First bath at home.  As you can see, she didn't love it.

Tripp and Rob take a lil' kickers soccer class on Saturdays and love it.  Camille and I sit in the stands and cheer them on.

Tripp wanted to sit in Grammy's car before she left.  He also wanted Camille to sit with him.  Too cute!

Pepere and Camille

I love this one.  Tripp just loves his Pepere.

Tripp enjoys holding his little sister.  He'll say, "Have Camille" and hold out his arms.  I don't mind as long as we're sitting down. 

I love the cross-eyed look newborns get as they try to focus. 

Focused on playing games on the iPhone

Painting pumpkins with our buddies at the Davis' house

Lyla and Camille.  Lyla loves babies!

Gas smiles