{ Six Weeks }

Dear Little Lainie,

Today you are six weeks old! Just think: Before you were born, the doctors told us that if we were really super lucky, maybe you would only have to stay in the hospital for just 4-6 weeks after you were born. You were better than really super lucky: You were blessed by Jesus with what is probably the record for the shortest hospitalization of any CDH baby: eight days!

So now here you are, six weeks old, and tomorrow you will have been home for five weeks. You are still the sweetest, mellowest little girl. And when I say little, I mean little. At your four-week checkup, you weighed 7 pounds, 10 ounces, which puts you in the seventh {yes, 7th} percentile for weight. We chose well when we nicknamed you Peanut prenatally--you are such a tiny little peanut! But your newborn clothes are starting to get just a tad snug...and you were literally swimming in them when you came home from the hospital.

At six weeks old, you love:

~ being held, by pretty much anyone. You love physical contact, and sleep a lot better if you are touching someone.

~ snuggling

~ stretching. If stretching were an Olympic sport, you, my dear, would be a medal contender. You seem to abide by the idea that you can never stretch too frequently or too vigorously.

~ sleeping next to Mama

~ your pacifier. Sometimes.

~ Daddy talking to you

~ being in the Baby Bjorn. Anytime. Anywhere. You love it!

~ holding your head up. Your neck is ridiculously strong.

~ having your bottom thumped and/or being jiggled up and down

~ farting. It makes you grin.

~ sponge baths. You get really quiet, then start making your happy, singsong sounds.

What you don't love:

~ real baths

~ tummy time

~ diaper changes

~ losing your pacifier

~ not being able to see/feel Mama when you think you ought to

~ camera flash

~ feeling the wind

~ being buckled into your carseat {though once your carseat is in motion as we walk to the car, you're fine}

What I love about six weeks old:

~ you're going for slightly longer stretches between feeds--up to 5.5 hours a few times! {Translation: a little more sleep for Mama! Yay!}

~ your baby smell

~ how incredibly soft your hair is

~ the way you immediately curl up into your comfy position and nestle when I put you on my chest

~ how floppy and relaxed you are after you eat

~ all the little noises you make while you sleep

~ the ever-so-slight beginnings of rolls on your thighs and upper arms

~ wrinkles on your wrists...rolls will be coming soon!

~ your smiles

~ your dainty little toes

~ how you stop crying or fussing immediately when I pick you up. Every.single.time.

~ your eyelashes...just yesterday I noticed they are getting longer, and they are oh-so-pretty!

~ happy grunts while you eat. Sometimes throughout your entire meal.

~ your long, long fingers

~ the hilarious incongruity of the man-size burps and farts that come out of tiny little you

Here are a few snapshots from the last week or so. When I look at these photos compared to ones from a few weeks ago, I can't believe how much you've grown. Even though you are still itsy-bitsy for a six-week-old, you've changed so much in a short amount of time!

:: tummy time, in the 30 seconds before you decided it was pure torture ::

:: talks with Daddy ::

:: sweetest little smile in your sleep ::

:: your first BBQ and bonfire, at Luke and Joanna's house {you slept through the entire evening} ::

:: keeping Daddy company while he works {if someone can't hold you on their chest for your nap, this is your second favorite way to sleep} ::

:: not entirely sure what you think of the bouncy chair! ::

:: in your happy place: the Baby Bjorn ::

:: first trip to the local beach--proof that we DO take you outside!! ::

:: it was a gorgeous evening...first your Daddy and I had burgers at Shake 'N' Go, then we got ice cream cones at Ivar's and ate them as we walked down the beach ::

:: sleepytime with Grandpa {Mike's dad} ::

:: typical reaction to the flash going off in your face ::

Lainie Bug, we couldn't love you more!!

Happy six week Birthday!

Love,

Mama