they grow up so fast

Wow. I have been meaning to post for the past few days, but my kiddo has kept me so busy I haven't even had time to shower or eat (D has literally had to spoon food in my mouth whilst I am nursing Maya) let alone even think about getting on the computer. I just can't believe how the days are already flying by. But, after a late night with a gassy baby, she is passed out next to me now, giving me a few minutes to finally update.

One of the reasons Maya has kept her mummy running is because this little girl wants to eat ALL THE TIME. We are exclusively breastfeeding her so she is constantly on my boob. At this point, she eats almost every hour. And when you factor in changing diapers, cleaning up spit up, trying to keep up with the laundry, and everything else baby-related, I am quite literally busy morning, noon and night.

But all this feeding is certainly not in vain; baby girl is already about 9 pounds (based on daddy weighing himself on our home scale and then weighing himself again holding Maya and doing the subtraction - so this is not an exact measurement) and is officially in the size 1 diapers. Size 1 is the next size up from newborn (the smallest size). Which means only one thing: Baby's got back. Also notable is the fact that Maya's cheeks are getting chubby and she's got a double chin now. Cute cute cute. I loves me a chubby baby.

Maya is also smiling now, which I personally think means she's super advanced for her age. Sure, most of her smiles are sleep-smiles or gas-smiles, but I can confidently count THREE separate smiling incidences where either D or I were able to elicit a sweet baby smile IN RESPONSE to our smiles. Taking into account that Maya is only 2 weeks old, doubters and naysayers are understandably plenty. But I know my baby and I know what I saw. I was even able to catch one such smile on film:

In our two weeks of trial-by-fire parenting, D and I have come to discover that we both excel at different parenting skills. I find it interesting that with no prior training, both of us have naturally come into our own with certain aspects of parenting.
For example: D is REALLY good at changing her clothes, getting her to fall asleep and distracting and soothing her when she's upset. I am REALLY good at knowing instinctively what she wants, reading to her (we like Goodnight Moon) and getting her to smile. D and I have become such a team when it comes to managing the care of this baby, it makes me wonder how things will be when D goes back to work after this week. Honestly, I am a bit scared. Thank goodness my mum and dad are coming back to town.

This is getting to be a bit of a long and rambling post, mostly due to the fact that I have been wanting to post every day for the past several days and am now just getting a chance to empty my brain here. I should wrap it up. But before I go, I want to leave you with the lessons I've learned from Week Two of being Maya's mummy:

1. There is a thin layer of dried breastmilk/spit up covering nearly every surface of my house at this point. I have learned to accept it.
2. NEVER remove the dirty diaper from under baby's bum before there is a new one unwrapped and ready to go.
3. Meals just don't happen, at least for the first few weeks. It is imperative to have cupboards well stocked with snacks that can be eaten quickly with one hand and no utensils. Even cereal is too much to manage for the most part.
4. Take lots of pictures. Every day if possible. Babies really do change every day.
5. Keep trying on those baby outfits that are a bit too big. By the end of the week, they just might fit.