Rachel is 1 month old!

Sweet Rachel. You are 1 month old and we just love you so much! You are growing like a weed, at 22.7" long (94%) and 10lbs and 9oz (75%). We sure do mange to make large babies and we are so glad that you are growing well. You sleep like a champ, and even at 5 weeks you still really haven't woken up very much. You like to take a long afternoon nap (usually 1-4pm) and then go to bed at 7pm, sleeping a long stretch during the night. Most of your sleeping is done in your crib and the rest in the swing in the dining room when you are fussy. We do enjoy the fact that you don't room-in with us anymore and we all sleep much better! You are wide awake during the witching hour, which makes eating dinner tricky. Back are the days of wolfing down my food in order to care for a little baby. When you are awake during the day, you are very happy and love to watch your brother as he plays, sings and looks at you. He loves to snuggle with you on the couch or in his bed before nap time. You love bath time, even when he accidentally dumps water all over your face! You love taking naps in the Bjorn but aren't a fan of the ergo yet, since we both produce so much body heat; you get really hot and angry and let me know about it! You also don't like to sleep while moving, but that seems more to be a product of your reflux and not so much the movement. The Zantac seems to be working, we think (and we hope!). 

Your hands finally came unfisted and you are starting to grasp things and bring your hands to midline.  You have a strong preference for looking left, so we are working on stretching your neck and getting you to look more to the right. You enjoy tummy time as much as any newborn can, and love looking at yourself in the mirror. When you have had enough of tummy time, you get so worked up that you can roll over onto your back. Now that is as girl who can get what she wants! You are very calm and attentive when we read stories to J and I hope that you will also grow up to be an avid reader like your brother. You have started to pay attention to the world, especially when we are outside. You seem to perk up when the birds start chirping or when the sun comes out. Now that I have started to run again, we can explore more of the world together! 

Thank you for making our lives a little richer and sweeter with your presence. We are grateful for you each day, little R. 

Proud big brother