I am loving this motherhood thing. It is everything I dreamed it would be the past five-and-a-half years. And I have much more to say at a later date on this topic, but I just wanted to say for now that I am so completely happy that it does make up for that terribly difficult time of waiting. As bad as that was (and it was bad) is as good as this is.
Not that I intend for this blog to become a detailed account of my child's every movement, but for now that is my life so I'm going with it. So here goes...
Believe it or not, Clara slept through the night last night (well, again, I'm up late so we're talking Monday night here). I've been told, though, that it may not necessarily be a good thing, since, being a preemie, she still needs to eat and gain weight. But I've also been told it might be okay as long as she is eating a lot during the day (which she is).
And by sleeping through the night, I mean she slept from 12 p.m. until 7 a.m. I was shocked when I heard her cry, looked at the clock and saw that it was morning. Maybe it's true what they say - that God blesses those of us who have struggled for so long with good babies (or was that cute babies? Both work for me).
So I know this is not something most new mothers say, but tonight I think I'm going to actually set an alarm so I can wake her up to eat. I'm going to let her sleep for five hours (if she even goes that long). It may not be an issue; last night could have been a one-time occurrence, but we'll see. And I'll ask her doctor about it the next time we see him.
We are SO excited that Clara's other set of grandparents are coming tomorrow! My parents are making the trip from New York and we can't wait. My mother-in-law, meanwhile, will be leaving tomorrow. She's been with me since we got home and she has been such an incredible help. It's just nice to be able to ease into taking care of a little baby, since there's always someone there to help out.
You should hear my mother-in-law and I all day long - we just can't stop saying how adorable Clara is! She is so sweet and we can't get enough of her.
It's late now and, just like I posted at this time yesterday, I should be getting some sleep. So here's today's picture (I have been so busy that I haven't even had time to take pictures!) taken with my camera phone this evening as she slept on my chest. It was so sweet I just had to capture the moment:
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Sleeping baby
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I just happened across your blog when trying to find a saint for women wanting to get pregnant. I used to always wear a St. Andrew's medal and although not Catholic (I am Methodist and married to a Baptist pastor) I believe in the power of the saints. Anyway--I wanted to say that your daughter is gorgeous! I have two adopted and very precious children. Olivia is age 29 months and Ian is 19 months. It is my greatest desire to have more children, through birth or adoption, but I am ever estatically grateful to be their mother. Many congratulations to you!
ReplyDeleteSo freaking cute!
ReplyDeleteYes, keep telling us that motherhood is better then what we are even dreaming, because it is really all I have left to keep me going!
I need to hear it's worth the fight! :)
Isn't it just so great to be able to enjoy her in the comfort of your own home? I remember the transition of being in hotels and all the travel with our boys during those first days with them to finally just relaxing on our own bed...preparing their bottles in my own kitchen. Oh, how I miss those chest-snuggling naps they would take. :*)
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to hear that she is sleeping pretty well. She is so cute.
ReplyDeleteLike Sew said, please keep telling us about the blessing of motherhood!
Don't wake her up! Let her sleep if she is eating during the day. You'll just train her to wake up if you do that. Of course, this is what I have heard, not from experience!
ReplyDeleteShe is so cute, K! I love the sleeping picture! Can Clara come over here and talk E into sleeping through the night? He still gets up between 3-4 am, haha! :) I bet your mom can't wait to get her hands on her precious granddaughter!
ReplyDeleteK_ She is so adorable. When we brought our little angel home she was, and still is (8 months now)such a good baby. She slept through the night a few times, the first of which was the third night we had her home. I always think God knows when I am really in dire need of a good night's sleep. So happy your MIL has there helping out and now your parents are coming.
ReplyDeleteSew- I agree with K. As bad as it was being IF is as good as it is being a mom. So very much worth it. Hold Fast.
She looks like an angel when she's sleeping!!!
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad that the dream has finally become a reality!
She is wearing the little outfit we gave her, she is so sweet.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with sew, I am living vicariously through your new found motherhood and finding much hope for my future! Praying as always!
oh, I'm stalking your blog. I love hearing you say it's as good as IF was bad............Keep enjoying mommyhood !!
ReplyDeleteI don't have any experience with preemies, but in an ordinary situation I would not wake a sleeping baby. I had to wake both of my girls when they were jaundiced, but I made the mistake of waking my oldest child every two hours for several weeks after that and it took several months for her to sleep through the night consistently. I left my other daughter to wake on her own and by two weeks old she only woke once a night. By the time she was two months old she slept through the night (7 hours).
ReplyDeleteLOVE IT!!! :)
ReplyDeleteYOU ARE SO RIGHT! Or is it God giving us such beautiful, charming children or us being SO AMAZED at motherhood that they just seem that way?
ReplyDeleteNope. My daughter was a model child, seriously. Still is, most of the time, haha!
:)
PS Bonnie, I prayed the Novena to St. Gerard - look him up!
ReplyDelete3 days into it, I found out about the crisis pregnancy that would one day be our daughter!
This time around, the same WEEK I venerated a relic of St. Anne, I got pregnant.
It's not magic or anything like that, and God will answer your prayers in HIS time, but having friends like that praying for me at the very throne of the Almighty? I'll take it!
Prayers for you and for all women still struggling. I think about 99% of the women on this blog have been there, done that, or are still doing it.
I came across your blog through the Building Cathedrals blog that I follow. Just wanted to say...congratulations! And if you ever find yourself in need of community support, I have to say the message boards at iVillage.com have been a great help to me. Everything from playgroup clubs to preemie boards, etc.
ReplyDelete"As bad as the waiting was (and it was bad) is as good as this is"...here's to hoping I'll someday be able to describe marriage in the same way :)
PS-For anyone else trying for babies, the St. Girard medals worked for my cousins and me (and actually, some of us were not even trying...)
It is definitely uplifting to hear how wonderful motherhood is from someone who suffered for so long! Makes me optimistic that I might get there one day myself...
ReplyDeleteClara is just gorgeous, and I love all of the pictures!
OH MY GOODNESS! I have been out of the loop lately. I was gone for the holidays and have been struggling to catch up on everyone's blogs, so I am just finding out about your MIRACLE for the first time!!! Holy crap, I am SO HAPPY for you!! CONGRATULATIONS!!! This is amazing, and your baby is beautiful. I am so glad you are loving it, and I just can't believe how suddenly your story flipped around! Congrats again and again!!
ReplyDeletePS- I LOVED moving you from my TTC blogroll to the success roll :)
ReplyDeleteIt is wonderful when it finally happens and I think those that struggled to get here might not neceessarily enjoy it more, but I do think we appreciate it more. And when she does wake in the middle of the night, or whatever challenge she might present, you will remember the nights you laid in bed crying, wondering if you would ever be a mommy. And you will be grateful for the chance to be up being one!
ReplyDeleteSo sweet...and yes, motherhood is all its cracked up to be!
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad that motherhood has been so wonderful for you so far! I'm just so happy for you!
ReplyDeleteI set alarms to wake the baby, too, for a while. She was just so sleepy when she was only a month or two old, but she needed the food!
You waiting a very long time for this new life, you write about it as much as you need to!!!!! Just think of the hope you'll give others.
ReplyDeleteI just can't get over how you came to be clara's mother, truely a miracle!! Oh and i love you had to update your blog to a 'stay at home mom' and i also love you have help from your family. I'm sure this is a dream come true for them as well!!!
She really is so darn precious!! And I can't wait for you to keep talking about motherhood on here.... it's your vocation!!! And you're living it!
ReplyDeletehmmmm... check with your doctor on feeding her.
ReplyDeleteWhen we had the preemies in the hospital we *would* wake them up to feed b/c they would get too sleepy and needed to gain weight. Oh, yes, we woke them! Usually by putting a light on, some noise, moving them around, unbuttoning their outfit, unswaddling them. I always felt mean but they needed to eat! I really don't know at what weight you don't need to worry about waking them, so check with your doctor.
You're a fabulous mama!!! So very happy for you I could scream.
Love the pic. Whatever you think is best is probably right. I learned to trust my own judgment with C. I only woke him to eat in the night when I had mastitis and he wasn't getting enough at one time, losing weight. Instead of waiting for the doc to tell me he was doing better a week later at the appt, I saw it with my own eyes after 3 days and stopped waking him. I am glad I didn't wait or it may have been a habit-but you know if she is getting enough to eat during the day or not. Sometimes I would move feedings from every 3 hrs to every 2 in the afternoon until bed so he got one extra feeding-that way I felt I filled him up before bed. Also, formula "sticks" better than breastmilk, so babies fed that way are known to sleep longer. It is a good thing! Enjoy it! :)
ReplyDelete"And I can't wait for you to keep talking about motherhood on here.... it's your vocation!!! And you're living it!"
ReplyDeleteCouldn't have said it better myself, Shannon!!
I bet you're no longer questioning whether your desire to be a mother was truly from God :)
It's a gift to all who follow your blog that you are so generous to post all the photos of your beautiful baby and your journey to become a mother. I've found myself checking in every day. I'm so glad that God answers prayer and that miracles happen every day. Your baby is lucky to have come to such a precious family. She has a wonderful life ahead of her now!
ReplyDeleteOh! And as the mother of 5, grandmother of 5 and 5 foster kids in between - let sleeping babies lie.
ReplyDelete