So many faces

Blogs are interesting. We make, well at least I make, some profound statements on this forum. I have told you I was going to start running, learn to make bagels, make BellaRose a whimsical birthday cake for her 1st birthday. A lot of the goals I have accomplished, many only slightly, and some not at all. There are so many faces to the blogs, they are very manic if you ask me, or allow us to show our manic personalities. When Hollings first came home I was thinking there was nothing to this 2nd child so I told you, then Hollings became textbook colic, and I told you that. BellaRose was the same way, but I thought there was no way I could survive another colicky baby so I did research and lots of it. Hollings now gets gripe water, mylicon, sleeps on her left side, and turned 6 weeks old and started smiling. Who knows why the past couple of days are better, but they just are. Of course as we know it could all change. I will just embrace these last few days of her being content because now BellaRose is giving me a run for our money with wanting to learn how to potty train. She has done awesome and gone on the potty way more then her accidents, but my goodness the accidents! All I can say is thank the good Lord for hardwood floors! No wonder the baby weight is going away, I don't stop going all day except to nurse. I am not sure I told you but Hollings is now 9lbs 14 ozs. So the nursing must be going well. She also gave us 7 hours of sleep the night before last and a great stretch last night.

Thank you sweet girl!

Here are some of Hollings' many faces...

She is such a thinker

Smiles

The long awaited first smile! I had Hollings on the activity mat yesterday, the very same one that BellaRose loved and I got the first real smile. We needed that smile, I needed that smile. I can hardly believe that I was actually able to capture on a camera phone.

Thank you sweet Hollings!

BellaRose at 2 months on the activity mat

The girls

We are still here, but in the thick of newborn world. A lot is going on and some things I am not ready to talk about at the moment. I thought I would just give you some fun pictures of the girls. Hollings is not really smiling yet, but I just happened to catch this one picture of her. BellaRose got some new clothes, these shorts being one of them. She is a silly girl who makes me laugh daily.

a comparison

Hollings in the first week

BellaRose in the first week

Hollings at 3 weeks

BellaRose at 3 weeks

BellaRose is of course bigger but I still think that they do look alike. Here I thought BellaRose had a good bit of hair when she was born, I had no idea. BellaRose is looking at the pictures as I type this blog and she just saw the picture of herself in the tub and said "hey that's Hollings", so there you go.

So I have a confession, it seems to be that I have made having a 2nd baby seem like a breeze, that is not the case, but it is SO much easier the 2nd time around. When we are sleep deprived though it seems just as hard. It is tough when we are up all night and can't figure out why she won't sleep, or why she won't stop crying. It is just the trials of having a newborn. It is tough to lose the freedom of just being able to go at will, but instead having to plan my life in 2 and 3 hour segments. There are still the lonely times, but having BellaRose to talk to helps out so much, and music helps too. When I am tired it is hard to feel grateful, but when I have sleep I feel guilty for not feeling grateful ALL the time. We are so grateful that she is beautifully healthy. We do love her so much, and we love our family so much. Sometimes it feels they will be a newborn forever, but here she is already a month old! How did that happen already!

Life as it happens

I don't have a whole lot of words for this post. I think that the pictures sum it up. We have been living life, adjusting to life with two, although it does not seem like quite as big an adjustment as I was thinking.

BellaRose adores Hollings. I am SO thankful for that report.

Hollings at her 2 week check up and was 8lbs, she is such a little peanut. Still not to BellaRose's size at birth, but we are close.

The first bath!

BellaRose helping with the 1st bath and "skating" with daddy in the snow. This snow was last week and was the prettiest snow of the year by far. Huge flakes!

The second bath, much more pleasant

Family outing to the woods. It was so wonderful to get the whole family outside.

Making a connection

I like to connect myself to the day my children are born, you know besides the obvious facts of carrying them inside my body (which I still don't get!) and delivering them.

With BellaRose she was born on the 22nd of May and I am the 22nd of Rocktober. There is the connection, plus it might make it easier for Worth to remember our birthdays. I was hoping Hollings would be born on the 22nd too, but we all know that did not happen. What did happen is she was born on a Sunday (see where I am going with this?). I was born on a Sunday, thus my name is Sunday, well Domenica which is Sunday in Italian and also Hollings' middle name! So there you go another connection!

I have to share these pictures below because I just can't get them out of my mind. The top one was taken her first week home and the bottom one was taken when she was 20 weeks old inside the momma. SO wild, I mean look at the little top lip and the chin, not to mention the nose. It is amazing that a picture like that was taken while she was living in my belly. Technology is pretty amazing, just like my iPod touch and Kindle app. (goodness I am making connections all over the place today and using a lot of parenthesis) , that helps me out a ton during midnight feedings!