Six week review

My sweet Selah is six weeks old! She is so much fun and I'm loving being her mommy. I usually call her my "sweet Selah" but sometimes I call her "Spikey Selah" because her hair is so... spikey! I love it - it sticks straight up. At first it was only a hair or two, but it seems that after every bath more and more of her hair is spikey. I am pretty sure she might develop a natural Mohawk soon! :)

At her 1 month appointment she weighed in at 11 pounds, 10 ounces and I'm certain that she is over 12 pounds now. She is getting noticeably bigger every day. What a fun stage. She gave me her first smile the other day (the 29th). I was talking sweetly to her and rubbing her belly after a diaper change and she looked up at me with her wide eyes and then broke into a smile. My heart melted. I am so thankful for my little daughter!

She loves being held and making eye contact. The other night when praying  for her Jason specifically prayed that we would always make time to look into her eyes during the day. Her first few weeks of life she demanded to be held... which of course can't always happen when you're chasing two other little ones around.I felt bad that she had to cry, but in the past few days she has adapted and is now content to sit in her swing or crib and wait for when mommy can come and hold her. Literally this is the third day that her day time have resembled a normal routine and she has been content with where mommy places her. Sometimes she still protests, but she ends up giving up after 5 minutes or so verses the hours (literally) of crying that she would do before.

Her nighttime sleep has gotten into a nice pattern as well. She has always been an okay sleeper - there have only been two nights (both when she was 2 weeks old) where she was up most of the night. Other than that she was pretty good about waiting 3-4 hours between feeds. Around 5 weeks of age she began sleeping for 6 hours straight and then going back to bed for three hours and then back to sleep again for three hours. It was a nice twelve hours that she was in her room. The past two nights she has slept 7.5 at once and then goes back to sleep for 3 hours. What a good little girl!

Now, I won't lie, the transition from two children to three proved challenging at times. It was hard physically to try and keep up with the two little ones while not getting a lot of sleep at night in those first few weeks. It was hard to get back into the swing of nursing (in the past six week I've already had mastitis three times). It was hard to listen to Selah scream when I couldn't tend to her needs right away. It was hard to listen to Jonah cry when I couldn't tend to his needs right away. It was hard to listen to Havana whine when I couldn't tend to her needs right away. It has been a work out keeping all three kids in clean diapers and well fed. Jason and I are still trying to figure out how to get chores and paperwork done as well as how to have time for each other.

However, despite the growing pains... life have been so much sweeter since bringing Selah home. My heart grows watching Havana and Jonah interact with her. I am having fun with my three little ones and wouldn't change the hardest day for the easiest day pre-Selah. Having three kids is different, but so amazing. I am learning how much I need the Lord. I need Him and His grace for each moment and it is amazing to watch Him give me energy despite a lack of physical sleep. He gives me grace when I have nothing left, He allows me to laugh instead of breaking down in tears. He grants me individual time with each child. He is teaching me that His grace truly is sufficient.

At the Kentucky State Fair! 

I've never been one to stay at home very often. I usually have the kids out daily. We have still had lots of family fun trips since Selah has been born (the zoo, the fair, playgroups, church, friend's houses, etc.), but I've been home more than normal and that is where I see His grace coming through. He provides me with the energy to make my home a fun atmosphere for my children - He helps me come up with fun ways to play with the children. He has helped me from becoming bored. He is answering my prayers to be my strength for each moment and He is teaching me to take full advantage of this age... enjoying it and planting seeds in the hearts of my babies!

The Lord has provided me with an incredible husband who helps out with the children so that I can take a nap...or a bath. He even watched all three children the other night for several hours so that I could spend the evening scrapbooking with friends!  He has also provided me with amazing friends who help me with my children when we get out of the house, come to me when I don't feel like I can leave, and who encourage me in my quest to be a godly mother. The weekly play dates I've been having with them have meant so much and have helped me feel connected to the human race in a time when things don't seem normal.

My heart is overwhelmed with love and gratitude for the life I'm living. My children are so precious (to me :) and I am learning to fully enjoy this stage. This is a stage of messy faces, messy diapers, and a messy house! This stage can best be described (at best) as organized chaos. Yet, this stage is so full of innocence. My children, while they get disappointed if they don't get their way, don't know what name calling is, they don't yet know about how people can be malicious, and they don't know what it feels like to be rejected. They are unaware of hurricanes, national debt, famine in Africa, and unsolved crimes. They live in a sheltered little world that I hope to keep them in as long as possible. They wake up each day and spend their time playing, singing, dancing, and laughing. They know that they are loved by their mommy, daddy, and Jesus. They know mommy and daddy love each other. They know they love each other! It is a sweet and innocent time and I'm so grateful to have three little ones entrusted to my care!