enjoying the babymoon

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It's only been 10 days since we brought out daughter Adelle screaming into the world. I've been enjoying this time for the most part - bah to you, postpartum hemorrhoids! It goes by so very quickly, and her face is constantly changing.  The "new baby" smell already seems like it's wearing off too quickly.

Some of my favorite things about having a brand new baby:


The smallness - the head resting on my elbow while the little bottom sits in my palm.
The curled, balled up way she cuddles in to my arms or on my chest.
The smell.  New babies have a distinct smell. Sniffin' babies is a new mama drug.
The sounds of a baby rooting for some food.
Kissing those sweet baby cheeks and lips.
The newborn cry (although we try not to let crying happen to much).
Baby bobble-heads. So cute!

As for me, I feel like I've been doing well. Spectacularly, in fact.  I suspect this has much to do with the way I spent the first few days postpartum. On the day she was born, I spent most of the time laying in bed, except for one trip downstairs, when I showered, greeted our first visitors, and got some dinner. The next day, I stayed in bed all day, except for trips to the bathroom.  I rested. People brought me food and drink. Visitors came to me. I napped. The next day, I stayed in bed, except for a trip downstairs to shower, get some lunch, and then back upstairs.

So you see how it went.  I actually rested.  I focused on not being up, on letting other people do things for me. After having the first two kids, I sincerely think the way I have felt has to do with the quality of my rest and inactivity.  Yes, it seems obvious, but until I experienced it myself, I would have thought my recovery after the first two was pretty good, too.

There are a few things I've been using that I think have made a big difference in how I feel, physically.

The Belly Bandit. Wow. I seriously recommend this, or something like it. I haven't felt like my innards are falling out. It helps me remember to sit up straight. If I leave it off for a few hours, I can tell, and I'm ready to have it back on. People have commented that I look slimmer than I did after the last two, and I totally attribute it to the belly bandit.

Earth Mama Angel Baby postpartum stuff.  Monthly comfort tea, earth mama bottom balm, and the bath herbs. Oh, and the Booby Tubes. Bliss, Cold Bliss!

iPad. Seriously.  I think this is what allowed me to stay in bed for so long.  Thanks Apple!  I surfed the internet, facebook and my forums, watched shows on netflix, and managed not to go stir-crazy.

Another thing that's different this time around is that I feel like "myself"mentally, and even somewhat physically - I feel comfortable in my skin and body, and I'm able to focus and think on things outside just surviving the day, and outside of simply staring at my newborn all the time (I still do that a lot, though). Even though I'm sad to think of my new baby loosing her new-ness, I'm ready to get right back to working on projects that were unfinished before Adelle arrived.  The sewing projects are things I can start on, as well as some computing projects.

I have the wisdom this time around to continue with low-key activities for another couple of weeks, but I think that once I'm at the 4-6 weeks postpartum mark, I'll be ready to start tackling some of the big things we have coming up over the next several months, like getting ready for my 5k!