Hayley - 3 Weeks Old

Hayley turned 3 weeks old on Thursday, and she sure has accomplished some feats this week! The biggest deal and the cutest thing (in my opinion) is that she found her thumb. She was asleep in the bouncy seat and all of a sudden she was sucking on her thumb! It was so adorable! She hasn't done it since that one time, but it was a moment I was so happy I got to see. She also has decided she likes her pacifier, which is a relief, and she finally will stay in her swing without screaming. As she is getting older she is starting to like all these things I have for her, the Bjorn, the bouncy seat, the swing...which is great for me because I don't have to hold her every second to keep her content.

I have started pumping this week to get ready for the dreaded day when I have to go back to work, and though it will only be 3 days of work, it breaks my heart that I will be missing 3 whole days of her life every week. I'm sure I'll get used to it, but right now the thought makes me so sad. I am enjoying every moment I have with her now. I am also extremely lucky my company is letting me stay home for 3 months. So I am thankful for that. Well, Hayley wasn't at first too happy about the bottle, she screamed at Dave everytime he tried to give it to her. So off to Babies R Us I went to try to find a better bottle for her, and last night, my mom gave her the new nipple, and voila! she took it. It was such a relief for us all.

Dave has been back to work now for 2 weeks and I can't wait for him to be on vacation again. His mom comes on Wednesday, and Dave is taking the whole time she is here off of work. It will be so nice to have his help again. Though I do have to say, my mom has been a huge help. She seems to be the only one who can get Hayley to sleep for her morning nap. But hey, I learned from the best - I sit here at 8:30 in the morning and got her to sleep on my own.

Hmm...what else? I went to a breastfeeding group on Tuesday at the hospital. This is a free group that new mom's go to and I already met so many new mothers like me that all live around here. The biggest thing I think I will get out of the class, since nursing has come quite easy for me, is that I will make some friends and be able to have play dates and such for Hayley. Dave and I are also looking forward to meeting some couples that have kids like us. Also, I went to TopCoder on Thursday with Hayley and got to show her off. It was so much fun! I am sure I will visit again, but the first one was a success. Many people got to hold her and she was in a great mood. I wish I had taken a picture of Mess holding Hayley to show to his new bride...He definitely needs to get in some practice!

Here are some cute pics of my little one I thought I'd share...


On a side note, not about Hayley, my 93-year-old grandfather, Grandpa Oakes, was in a severe car accident on Monday afternoon. It was all over the news here because it shut down I-95 and he had to be airlifted to Yale New Haven Hospital. He hit a tractor trailer truck and kind of went underneath it. They used the jaws of life to cut him out. I saw his car on the news report and it is a miracle he survived. He cut his neck really bad - including his jugular vein and a ligament. He also has cracked some vertebrae in his neck. He is not paralyzed, but will have to be in a neck brace for the next 6 months. Please pray for his quick recovery.