Week 3 update

To keep everyone updated our little Brynlee is almost 1 month old! Within the last couple of weeks it seems like she has done so much growing and had so many firsts!

I was finally able to let go and let her start sleeping in her crib rather than in her bassinet as close to my bed as possible. I was worried that I would be panicked the entire night and listen super intently to the monitor to hear any sign of a noise that she needed me to run in and hold her but to my surprise she slept great and so did I! She still wakes up every three hours but she has taken to sleeping on her own very well. She is also starting to get in her sleeping patterns and we can generally tell what times she will be wide awake and alert and what times she will be completely out.

Besides her future husband Koleson, she has another best friend...her binki. She acts like it is the end of the world if it falls out or she wakes up and it's not right there to sooth her. She will frequently shake her head from side to side as fast as she can to find it, which is pretty entertaining to watch until she gives us that look like "you jerks! Give me my bink!!".

Although her need for her bink gets old around 3 AM and sometimes makes it hard for us to determine if she is really hungry or if she just wants her bff, she does look pretty cute with it in her tiny little mouth. When her bink is not available she has resorted to finding her thumb, which is adorable! I have been warned that her sucking her thumb is a terrible habit,but I think her Grandma Marchant and I agree that it is so stinkin cute that I will allow it for now.

Baby Brynlee

As many of you may already know our beautiful baby Brynlee Kate has blessed our little family with her arrival! She was born January 31 was 5 pounds 12 ounces and 19 inches long. She is healthy and thriving! The delivery went well (thanks to the epidural). We arrived at the hospital around 3 AM and were admitted around 4 and had a chance to sleep for a little bit by the time our parents arrived. Around 7 I felt like the contractions were starting to get uncomfortable so I decided to get the epidural. Soon after my blood pressure dropped dramatically and so did Brynlee's heart rate. The nurses immediately gave me meds and oxygen until I was stable...Cody was a little concerned about it when he woke up since I didn't feel it necessary to wake him during all the fuss. After a couple hours of waiting and having my water broken she made a fast arrival after only 19 minutes of pushing...thank heaven for my sake!

I have had a great recovery and felt pretty much back to normal two days later. The doctors have kept a close eye on Brynlee because she is so tiny, but she has continued to grow and is such a wonderful baby! She is a great eater and for the most part sleeps pretty good. We are in the process of getting her body in the habit of sleeping good at night rather than during the day...this decision was made after two or three nights of staying up with her until 3 or 4 because she didn't feel like sleeping. When she is awake she is bright eyed and happy with an occasional smile. I personally like to think it's because she recognizes me but others may disagree. : )

She has been so much fun for us! Cody and I have been lucky enough to have time off work so we can both be home with her for the first few weeks. It has been nice to just relax as a little family before the craziness of life kicks in. We have also enjoyed all the visitors that have come to meet Brynlee.

Since we have been home Brynlee has only left the house for 2 doctors visits and to grandma and grandpa Pool's and Marchant's houses. Also, this week we gave her her first bath! She was much better than we expected, she actually enjoyed it and didn't make a peep until the time came to get out and dry off. She also doesnt enjoy being lotioned up but she does better if her daddy is holding her hand.

We are pretty sure she has a good sense of humor already since she likes to frequently play pranks on us. She has the mischevious habit of peeing on us as soon as we change and put a clean diaper on her... which is pretty funny for me to listen to when Cody is in the other room changing her and I hear "baby girl! That's not cool!" followed by "babe, can you get me another diaper and another outfit??" It is especially funny when she does it a couple times in a row...although rather annoying to be going through that many diapers within 5 minutes.

All in all, our little family is doing great and we love our new baby girl! We feel so blessed to have her and love being parents!