Jen Russum

Eisley Avalon (One Month)

Eisley Avalon (One Month)

Growing // Eisley is our largest baby yet (and that's saying something!). To my shock, she was born at 9 pounds, 4 ounces. She dipped below 9 pounds at a few days old, and she was back up to her birth weight in less than a week. I'm guessing she is around 12 pounds now, but she won't go in for a well-check until 10 weeks. She was 21 inches at birth (although Micah says it was a sloppy measurement), and she was 22 3/4 inches at two weeks of age. Basically, she's a darling giant. Eating // Eisley could star in one of those YouTube videos that shows a newborn baby instinctively climbing to the breast to eat. She basically did that in her first ten minutes of life. Ever since then she's been a champion eater, just like her sisters. However, she eats faster than Zianne and pukes less than Talitha, so it's a win/win all around. Wearing // Eisley has been in 0-3 month items since birth. I just pulled all of our 3-6 month clothing out of storage, because I realized she will probably need to start wearing it before we move in a few weeks. I got tons of size 1 diapers at my baby shower, and I frantically tried to use them up before Eisley got too big. I moved her into size 2 about a week ago. I try to err in switching diaper sizes too soon, because blowouts are caused by too-small diapers. Doing // That ol' sleep/eat/wake cycle... eating every 2-3 hours, napping anywhere from 40 minutes to 2 hours. The trick to ensuring a long afternoon nap is giving Eisley a quick bath right before it's time to sleep. After her bath, I put her in just a diaper, swaddle her, and she usually sleeps deeply for a couple hours, which is great because I've needed time to wrap up some stuff for the school year. On the days Z and T are home, I usually put Eisley in the Solly Wrap and walk to the park with all the girls. I should also mention that Eisley has gone to at least 15 house showings in her first month of life. We have been trying to buy a house, but have also been looking at rentals as a back-up, so she has seen a lot of real estate in her short-time on earth. Loving // Milk, baths, being swaddled, being held, having her butt patted, hearing the word "hi" in a high pitched voice (good thing I'm a master at this) Tolerating// Talitha in her face for approximately 12 hours every day... Loathing // Red stop lights and stop signs Nicknames // Eisley girl, Baby Sissy, Eyes-ee (Talitha's pronounciation) Mishaps // Pink eye invaded our house when Eisley was two weeks old! Zianne got it, then me, then Talitha. Eisley had a clogged tear duct at the time, so I had been massaging her eyes with my fingers multiple times a day upon doctor's orders. As you can imagine, I was pretty horrified when I discovered I had been touching my newborn's eyes repeatedly with sick pink eye germs. I really don't know if Eisley got it or not. For a few days, both her eyes were goopy. Now it's just back to the one eye with the clogged tear duct which is finally getting much better. Upon the advice of a pediatric nurse and many friends, I shot breast milk into her eye at least once a day to try to keep her eyeballs healthy. Side note: pink eye is the WORST. Milestones // Met Ga, Pa, Bestemor, Auntie KK, Gee and Wanda, survived the most stressful newborn photo shoot ever (because it was sabotaged by the awful behavior of her older sisters), slept five hours at night (once), attended a conference in San Diego with mom and dad and got to stay in a hotel ... Read more

Dear Eisley (one month)

Dear Eisley (one month)

Dear Eisley, I forgot what it's like to have new baby placed on your chest - all warm and slippery and utterly new. Blood circulates down to your hands and your tiny feet, and your skin slowly changes from white to pink. Your chest is pressed to mine as your lungs fill with air for the very first time. I forgot how hard it is to name a baby... to speak a legacy over a child's life with the words you put on the birth certificate. I forgot all the funny sounds newborns make. The squeaks, the grunts, the desperate whimpers for milk. I forgot how the diapers and the tiny clothes seem too big at first. And then three weeks and three pounds later, they suddenly seem too small. These newborn days rush by faster than my memory can keep up. I forgot what 3am feels like. I forgot how tired I would be - that I would struggle to keep my eyes open and fall asleep with you in my arms. I am adamantly against co-sleeping, except when I'm too exhausted to care. I forgot how cute it is to see a little baby curled up on my husband's chest. He has introduced you to the NBA playoffs and the ESPN commentators as you doze. You are oblivious to all the sports acronyms but perfectly content to spend the evening in daddy's arms. I forgot how entirely needy babies are - completely vulnerable in every way. I forgot you would show me my own need for a Savior with your floppy head and wet diapers and endless appetite. I forgot what it's like to have a baby fall asleep in my arms, giving little half smiles and deep breaths of abandon. It's a great privilege to be trusted so completely. I forgot what it's like to love a human being so fully even though you've only known her for a few days. I forgot what it's like to revel in your novelty while also imagining who you will someday become. I forgot. But I write it down now so I can always remember. Love, Mama ... Read more

Tired

Tired

  The exhaustion is like nothing I've known... I'm convinced you have a special kind of adrenaline with your first baby, a magic chemical mixed in with your swirling hormones that makes waking up in the dead of night feasible. With Zianne, I would power through 3am wake-ups, intent on a "full feeding on both sides" just like all the books advised. I remember ordering a shirt on my phone in the middle of the night because I was alert and in the mood for some online shopping. I was adamantly against co-sleeping, so I would never dare doze off with the baby in our bed. Instead, I remember walking around the room with determination, patting Zianne to sleep before slipping her back into her crib. I was so energetic, it was as if I  was sneaking in a workout before my six-week visit with my OB. Talitha had the wonderful trait of being the best sleeper of any baby I've known. She started sleeping 4 hour stretches at night our first week home from the hospital. Had she been my first, I would have diligently set my alarm to wake and feed her every three hours, but I was tired and she was gaining weight. Her four hour stretches grew to five and then six hours in just a few weeks. There were a few times we would both fall asleep in my bed mid-nursing session, because my tiredness overcame my caution about co-sleeping, but for the most part Talitha was a dream of a sleeper. I felt more rested than a mom of a newborn should. And then you came along, my sweet third daughter, and I am tired. Oh so tired. I have no adrenaline for middle of the night feedings. None at all. I fall asleep with you in my arms or hanging off my breast every night. You are a more typical newborn, waking up every 2 to 3 hours to fill your growing little belly. And I stumble around the room in the semi-darkness, trying to feed you and change you and settle you with my eyes half open. I pray every night that you will sleep for three or more hours at a time, because I am desperate for rest. During the day, my eyes ache with lack of sleep. I sit on the couch holding you, as I watch your older sisters play and fight and toss their toys around the living room. My body grows even more weary as I consider disciplining them or cleaning yet another mess. You lie on my chest, breathing steadily, your whole body rising and falling to the motion of your baby lungs. You give me a half-smile as you sleep. They say it isn't a real smile until you are six weeks old, but I'm convinced there must be something genuine about it. You must sense that I don't sleep at all on your behalf. Your eyelids flutter and your lips break into a small grin as if to say, "thanks mom." And in that moment, with my tired, stinging eyes, my aching back, and my exhausted mind, I can only piece together one thought... "I get to be your mother." The privilege overwhelms me. ... Read more