It's a blur

We've had a crazy couple of weeks since we left Atlanta and I'll be looking forward to getting home tomorrow. We're enjoying one final night in sunny Orlando and will hit the road tomorrow. It's going to be a long drive, having to stop every few hours to feed Courtney but it's been worth it.

We left Hartford on Friday (we being Paul, Courtney and I) and flew to Orlando. I was sad to say goodbye to my family and I'm sure they were sad to say goodbye to Courtney!! We had an excellent flight though, Courtney behaving like a champ again and arrived without incident. The Budget rental car line in the airport almost caused me to have a meltdown but that's another story.

We've had a great visit in FL with the Holder family, both immediate and distant. Courtney met many of her relatives at her great-grandmother's 90th birthday party on Saturday, which was quite a treat for us all. I'd always heard about "the farm" but have never been and was really glad to finally get to see it. For Paul it had changed a lot since his last visit but since I had nothing to compare it to, I thought it was beautiful. The party for Grandmom was a huge success with great stories and happy memories shared and new memories formed. Courtney and Erik (another new great-grand) were big hits, almost as popular as the guest of honor!

Grand mom with all the great-grand kids

We've learned a great deal about over-stimulation when it comes to Courtney. All day holding of the baby and passing her off from person to person results in a terrible evening for her mom and dad. Both Christmas day and the day of the birthday party, Courtney never laid down for a nap, and man did she have a meltdown later. Both nights there was screaming, pacing, shushing and general stress (for P and I) from 11pm - 1am or so. One night it resulted in 7 straight hours of sleep but the 2 hour meltdown was a bit more than I could handle.

It's hard to believe that Courtney is already almost 6 weeks old. I'm glad that I'm not on maternity leave as it would already would be 1/2 over, I don't know where the time has gone. She's gotten really big and pudgy and is as cute as can be. She's smiling a lot more and not all of those smiles are gas related!!

Wish us well on our journey tomorrow and let's hope that traffic isn't terrible!!

Baba and Courtney

Courtney and Baba

Four generations of Quiroses

Wednesday was a very special day for me, Courtney got to meet her great-grandmother, Cecilia (aka Baba). It was their first meeting and it was so special. Baba seemed enthralled and amazed by her namesake and I know that I was all misty and trying not to break out in tears over it all.

For those that don't know my grandmother, or have heard of her but never met her, she is an amazing woman. She came to the US as a single mom with an 8-year-old in tow to start a new life and give him all kinds of opportunities. She's succeeded far beyond what many could have expected of her, she's a remarkable woman. I feel honored to have such a wonderful person as my grandmother and am thrilled that Courtney can carry on her name. Baba said yesterday that she has some important things to tell Courtney, I can't wait to hear what they are!

Our big trip

It's been a long week since our 5.5 hour sleep stint. That night was followed up by another good night and then several bad ones. One of those nights wasn't totally Courtney's doing but a mild set back on the dogs part (he's fine, just a strain or something). Either way, I'm pooped.

But, about our big trip!! I was a mess, really nervous about our flight. We got to the airport and since Courtney isn't a big help in carrying things, I was left to carry everything. I looked like a bag lady or some novice traveler, I'm sure. However, most people were very nice and helped us through security and with all of our junk. I was nervous about sitting next to some evil man on the plane, a professional business man who was all anti-baby. That didn't happen though. Instead, I sat next to some woman who couldn't have been more anti-baby and more unfriendly. I mean, she was so cold towards us that I could have cried myself. She needn't have been a beotch though, Courtney was an ANGEL!!! She made nary a peep for 99% of the flight and when she did make a peep, I fed her and she immediately stopped making noise. She slept the entire way, didn't spit up on me (or the evil lady, too bad) and was as cute as could be. What a relief!! Grandpa and grandma met us in Hartford, all of our luggage arrived and we were whisked away, no problems anywhere. YAY!!

Courtney seems to be experiencing some type of growth spurt or something as she ate all night long (and all day today for that matter) and allowed me to get no sleep at all. I think she misses her daddy and their special tummy snuggling before bed time. I know personally I miss Paul terribly, not just because I miss him but because this single parent thing is HARD. I have a whole new respect for single parents, I just can't imagine.

5.5 Hours!!!

WOW!! Sleep for the adults!! It was awesome!! Courtney let us sleep from a little before midnight until 5:40 this morning. Amazing. I feel like a new person.

We're off to CT on Tuesday and I'm a bit of a mess about the flight, it's just Courtney and I, no Paul. I mean, it is what it is and there's nothing I can do about it but I'm worried about the take off and landing, a screaming baby, all the stuff, what do I do if I have to pee, a screaming baby, some mean, anti-baby guy sitting next to me, all while Courtney is yelling and screaming and carrying on. It's stressing me out!! And we have to pack. Courtney has TONS of clothes to choose from while I, still 10 pounds over my pre-pregnancy weight, don't have quite as many choices of things to wear. I guess that just means I won't have much to pack.... However, since we're packing for CT and FL, all in the same trip, we're going to have LOTS of stuff!!

Courtney is getting so big! She has little fat rolls on her arms and legs and her face has really filled out. She's smiling at me here and there when I make loud kissing noises and even looks a little entertained by my antics. She does this adorable stretching routine when she wakes up that I definitely have to capture on video. What do you think these little people are thinking about? She looks so serious sometimes....

What a difference a night can make

Chillin' in the boppy

Last night was awesome, as awesome as can be expected. Courtney went down for bed at 10:30, woke up at 2:15 or so and then not again until 7. It was fabulous!!! I never thought being awake from 2:15 - 3:15am would considered fabulous, but it was. Knock on wood that we can get another night like last night!!

Our First Tummy Time

And tummy time is over....

What a week!

It seems like an eternity since I posted last on Monday. I've drafted this post at least 100 times in my mind, mostly at 1am, 2am, 3am and so on but never seem to get around to it during the day.

I went to the doctor on Monday and it turned out that I had an infection, not in my incision but in the skin underneath that. I was running a pretty high fever a couple of nights in a row and I ended up on antibiotics. It wasn't horribly painful but it looked terrible and got pretty nasty there for a while. It seems to be doing much better now and the odds are good that I'm going to survive.

Courtney continues to be a love. We'd had some really bad nights and one where I ended up being awake from 1ish until almost 6. I think the exhaustion causes my tears to flow freely and I had a total breakdown the other night. (I almost had one in the vets office this morning but managed to keep it together.) Courtney continues to be a really happy baby and I can't help but love all over her.

We did have the wonderful folks from Mom's on Call come out yesterday morning and help us through some things. She showed us how to trim Courtney's nails (and she trimmed them for us), how to give her a bath and walk through the night time routine, how to swaddle her in a way that she can't break her little arms out and how to develop a schedule. She's awfully young to be on a schedule but it's good to know that we have something to shoot for.

Paul has been amazing through all of this. He's been taking care of me, the baby and the dog, all at once. My guess is that he's sleeping at his desk during the day because it's not like he's getting much here. He's been a saint for sure and is up for Father/Husband of the Year.

Strike a Pose

Already with the beauty queen poses!!

We continue to have good nights and bad nights. Last night was a bad night - Courtney ate at least every 90 minutes. I'd finish feeding her and get 10-15 minutes of sleep and she'd be up to eat again. And it wasn't like she'd nurse for the usual 15 minutes or so but for 45 minutes to an hour at a time. Needless to say, it was an exhausting night!!

My c-section incision seems to have taken on a life of it's own and I need to go to the doctor today to get it checked. My guess is that it needs to be drained (sorry for all the info) but I'm hoping whatever they do to it, they can do it at the office and it's painless.

Today is our first day home alone. Courtney and I have been home alone for short bursts here and there but today it's just the two of us all day!! So far so good!!

I hope I have enough warm clothes for her for our outing to the doctors, it's snowing out!!!