Twelve Weeks : Growing like a weed

These monthly updates keep creeping up on me (this one is coming a little early - she's not officially twelve weeks until this Monday). My little girl is growing up SO quickly. I know I should be happy that she is thriving and developing and doing so well, but man does it kill me to think that time is just going by way.too.fast. 

We have a really good month together. I finally feel like I have emerged from the "newborn fog" that so many mothers refer to and am feeling rejuvenated and fresh. It may sound corny, but I feel like Jules and I are making a pretty good mommy/baby team. I feel like I have this little side-kick that is like a best friend. We hang out all day and I talk to her for hours and hours, she smiles back and coos at me and makes me feel like I'm the best thing in the world. I love it. I love her. I love all of it so so much.

This little girl is growing like a weed. It is absolutely amazing to me that in just eleven weeks Jules has already doubled her birth weight. I think about how it took nine months for her to grow, develop and pack on the pounds in the womb. But seriously - seven pounds in eleven weeks?! There must be some good stuff in that milk she's getting.

Casein point,  we left for our family Thanksgiving on a Wednesday. I was quite proud of myself for being ahead of the game and getting all packed the weekend prior. Alex had most of the week off from school, so we left Tuesday to spend some time in DSM before heading down to Springfield. Wednesday morning rolls in and we are at Alex's parent's house. I pull out the clothes that I had packed for Jules, and grabbed one of the 3 month outfits that she had worn on Saturday. I was shocked when we put it on her to find that it was too short in the arms and legs and it was so tight around the belly/chest that she looked uncomfortable breathing. Most of the other outfits I had thrown in were nearly too small as well.  It's just crazy to me that in 3 short days she grew/filled out THAT much. Needless, we are well into our 6 month outfits and 9 months aren't too far out of reach either.

She also has found her hands. I'd say 95% of the time she is awake she is focused on chewing, eating, sucking, or making this super loud smacking nose with her hands. It's quite cute actually; her way of self-soothing I would say. This also means she's not taking the binky very well these days. I was a thumb-sucker (a bad one!) and Alex was as well. I was hoping we would be able to train her with the bink, as someday we would be able to take that away. A thumb? Not so much. But it's what she likes. I still have her sleeping in her bassinet next to my side of the bed and lately I'll wake up in the middle of the night to the noise of her trying to suck her thumbs (yes, she's currently trying to suck both at the same time...) Oh, my sweet Julia.

I know I've said it before in other posts, but I really can't say enough about what a good and happy baby she is. She's so easy to please. Sometimes I'll have her hanging out in her boppy - be it on the couch or the bed and I'll walk out of the room and then walk back in and her face just LIGHTS UP. Seriously, a smile so big it makes her eyes squint comes across her face and her arms go all crazy and she kicks her legs like she's getting ready to take off. It's cute. It's Julia. And I just cannot get enough of it. Sometimes I'll purposely walk out of the room and then walk right back in so I can see her do it all over again.

Just this past week or so she's also learned to giggle. The first time it happened she was laying on our bed in a onesie on top of a blanket (she LOVES to just hang out in a onesie) and Alex and I were just tidying up the room and folding laundry. I had turned the ceiling fan on and all of a sudden we heard this chuckle come from Jules. Alex and I both looked at one another and we were like "Did she just laugh?!" and as we were asking that, she did it again. I tried relentlessly all day to capture another with the video camera, but no dice. I was giving her a bath this evening and had the water pretty warm and covered her up with 3 wash cloths so she was super warm and comfy - just as I was doing that a big smile came across her face and she let out another belly chuckle. Alex happened to be in the living room and heard the laugh from the bathroom and bolted in with the video camera to try to capture it, but again, no dice. Little girl gets camera shy! Hopefully one of these days we'll be able to get one of her first laughs on film.

Now that maternity leave is over and I'm back to work (well kind of) - we are making sure to slow down on the weekends. As much as we love to travel back to Des Moines to spend time with the grandparents, both of us also feel that we need to soak in these moments as young family with just the three of us. Last weekend was spent doing low-key things, like going to Costco and getting samples and then coming home and putting on pajamas and letting Julia entertain us. This coming weekend will likely be the same. We're just slowing down and embracing the new normal.

If there is any word to describe how I feel in these moments, it's just incredibly happy. I feel like life suddenly has this magic in it, where I see the world through the eyes of a child again. Part of growing up and turning into an adult numbs you to the simple things in life. The real world just gets so busy, deadlines, places to be, commitments, responsibilities, etc. Julia has renewed that for me. She's allowed me to feel the little things again. To take notice of the small wonders in a simple world. The amount of love I have for this little girl in unreal. It's so deep I can feel it run through my veins and I can feel it in my bones. I feel so connected and so incredibly close to Julia that it's like I've known her from my day one. Motherhood is just amazing.

Xo,

KBG