First shower

So, Stasa hates sponge baths, but LOVES the shower. She was quiet and happy the whole time and only peed on me twice - once in the shower and once while I was drying her off. As soon as she was dried off and dressed, she passed out. Now I know the easy way to put her to sleep. She looks so clean and I love how fluffy her hair is.

This is definitely the way she's getting cleaned from now on. Super easy.

Our cutie pie

Sleeping on mommy and daddy's bed after eating this morning


Sporting her new hat from Aunt Jenny and Uncle Dan

2 Weeks Old

Stasa is 2 weeks old today! It's our first day alone since Tom went back to work today. She just gets cuter every day. And that's a good thing, because her cuteness saves her when she just won't go back to sleep in the middle of the night.

2 weeks post partum

I've made it to the 2 week mark and feel great. Here's my 2 week PP list:

1. Breastfeeding has gotten much easier - we're both getting the hang of it now.

2. I only have a few more pounds to drop and then tummy tightening.

3. I've had virtually no pain since giving birth.

4. My heartburn is GONE!

5. We're actually getting a decent amount of sleep everyday.

6. We're all still alive. =]

Boppy love

Stasa loves relaxing in her boppys, especially when she's all bundled up.

I can move!

Ultrasound day

We took Stasa to get an ultrasound on her sacral dimple today. She hated being undressed (she's a very modest baby), but calmed down once we covered her with the sheets from the table. Of course she also pooped and peed on the table. The doctor came in and scanned her dimple and back and said everything looked good and that we have nothing to worry about.

So now we're done with all of the extra tests for Stasa. She only has her routine appointments left.

Meeting some of the cousins

Pete and Tiffany brought Luke and Mariah by to meet their new little cousin. Stasa was very well behaved and sat peacefully in her cousins' arms. We still need to get some pictures of Stasa with her Aunt Tiffany and Uncle Pete.

Thank you, Aunt Peggy!

Dear Aunt Peggy,

I love my new pink outfit! Now no one will mistake me for a little boy.

Love,
Stasa

Details

Our day in pictures

After the 5:00 AM feeding

8:00 AM nap time

Morning diaper change

Morning awake time

Early afternoon nap

Still nap time

Even more nap time

Afternoon diaper change

Play time with Daddy

More play time

More pictures

Hanging out on Daddy, trying to burp

Sleeping in Mama's arms

Awake time - this is before she peed on her clothes

Big foot Merkel

Naptime with Daddy

Making presents in her diaper

All bundled up after one of her morning feedings

Visiting Grandpa Merkel

Sponge bath

Stasa got her first home sponge bath today. She needed it since she's been dribbling milk down her face and neck. She was not a fan of bath time at all, but at least she came out of it smelling good. In the second picture you can see that the cat was really interested in Stasa's bath. I think the cat just likes it when the baby is on her level. It certainly wasn't jealousy on the cat's part because she hates bath time, too.

Confused kitty

"Hey, mom, what is this thing?"

The poor cat is still trying to figure out what this new addition is. Anytime Stasa's in the pack n play, the cat sits right next to it staring and sniffing. I think she likes the baby being on her level, but doesn't know what to make of her. We've encouraged the cat to come up and sniff the baby when we're holding her. She's only come up a couple of times - she mostly just sits a few feet away from us looking at the baby. I'm sure the cat will have Stasa trained in no time to give her people food. I just know that cat's up to no good.

Daddy's little girl

Stasa decided to dress just like Daddy today - white undershirt, blue pants and white socks. The only difference is that Stasa wears her pants like an old man - up past her belly button - just like her Uncle Jeff.

1 Week

Stasa is one week old today. She weighed in at 7 lbs at the doctor's and is now eating more and more at each feeding. It usually takes two weeks for newborns to regain their bith weight. This proves that Stasa is an overachiever - we've got big plans for her. She's my new retirement plan. =]

Last night was the first night both Tom and I got a decent amount of sleep. I'm hoping that wasn't a fluke and we get just as much sleep tonight.

Nap time

Mama taking a much needed nap.

Falling asleep on Daddy's chest - one of her favorite places to be.

Stasa's awake time

Hanging out at home

I just can't stop taking pictures of Stasa - she's just so cute.

Stasa "helping" Daddy during one of her feedings. Every time I say feeding I think of sharks during their feeding frenzy.

Stasa's big feet in Daddy's hands

Stasa's Vermont Teddy Bear, sent by Tom's new team

Hanging out in her Pack n Play - look at that little smile...that usually means she's up to something in her diaper.

Freedom!

Free at last! Stasa's blood work came back and her bilirubin levels are LOW! She gets to go home today. We're just waiting on the discharge papers and we're going to see another lactation consultant before we go. Yay! Homeward bound!

Another night

Well, the doctor decided to wait to check Stasa's bilirubin levels in the morning, so we're here for another night. We've spent more time in the hospital with her than at home. Hopefully her bilirubin levels will be low enough in the morning so we can be discharged. It's not so bad here, but we can't just hold her all of the time since she has to stay under the lights. The only time we get to take her out is for feedings and diaper changes.

She's funny, too. She's been giving us some good burps after eating and really lets it rip in her diaper. If you're holding her you feel it coming out and you can hear it across the room. She's got no shame.

Hospital update

The on call pediatrician came by around 11:30 AM to let us know the bloodwork results. Stasa's bilirubin levels are down to 15.5 - they were 20 when we were admitted last night. They want to keep her under the lights until 6:00 PM tonight and they'll do another blood draw to see if the levels go down more.



She's getting plenty to eat, we're feeding her every 2 hours, and she's had PLENTY of dirty diapers. And man does she scream bloody murder if she's wet. I'm hoping this mean it'll be easy to potty train her - I know that's way off in the future, but I'm always thinking ahead.

Here are a couple of pics of the StasMonster in her isolette/tanning bed.

Stasa's stylish biliband mask - she needs it to protect her eyes from the bili lights. That little sliver of blue light underneath her is the biliblanket. They want to get as much of her exposed to the lights as possible. And man is that blanket warm! They should make them in adult sizes.



Stasa's big foot almost hanging out of the isolette. She's completely content in this picture - full and dry - two of her favorite things.

How do you say it?

We realized when we chose Stasa's name that people would automatically pronounce it the Russian way. Here's a crash course on saying her name the Greek way.

Anastasia: Ah-nah-stah-see-ya (with the emphasis on the "see")

Stasa: Stah-sa

I know Grandma wasn't too thrilled that I've already shortened her name to Stasa, but that's what I like and I'm sticking to it. I've even caught myself shortening her nickname to Stas (which Tom doesn't like), but that's just how lazy I am. Pete told us how to say little Stasa in Greek, but I've already forgotten. I'll have to ask him again because I remember it was really cute. Plus she is our little Stasa.

A few more pictures

So so tired - Stasa looks awake in this picture, but she does this a lot in her sleep. She loves sucking on her fingers and moving her head around.

The yummy ice cream cake from Uncle Pat and Aunt Peggy - I can't wait to eat more of it!

Tom, Stasa and the new Great-Grandma

Grandma was so great with Stasa - gentle and calmed her down - I loved seeing her hold her and talk to her.

Back at the hospital for the bilirubin phototherapy - poor Tom looks exhausted. He let me do most of the sleeping today and didn't really get to take his own nap.