And Now, Here We Are.

So, do you like the new look? The old one looked a little generic, and since we have little Had, we should probably start injecting some pink into our lives.

I find myself here, writing on the blog, at 5:40 in the morning, and I haven't been to sleep yet; if there's one baby cliche that you know is right, it's the hectic schedule. You'd think since there's 4 of us and 1 of her, we'd have the advantage: you'd be wrong.
I'd stake about 25 onesies on it that Hadley is now firmly in control of our family. And she's only been here 10 days!
Well, anyway: onto the post.


5 Things I Wasn't Expecting

1. I worry about her. I'm not her mom, but I am her sister; even so, I didn't think that I would still suffer the New Mom Syndrome: staring at the baby, unable to sleep, fearing SIDS and choking and her punching herself in the face with her flailing baby arms (which, incidentally, she's done).

2. She has two colors: red and redder. She turns positively tomato-like when she is displeased!

3. This kid farts. I'm not even kidding. Sounds like a truck driver after a Grande Nacho Plate.

4. The whole World of Parents is suddenly pretty clear. Before, it was hard to identify with stories of baby antics, but I literally could talk for an hour about trying to change a diaper while she's kicking and squirming so hard. Or spit-up, or rooting, or the varieties of bottles--it's weird! It's like I've sort of left the teenage me behind.

5. She had jaundice, TWO clogged tear ducts, and a yeast infection in her mouth, all in the same week. Poor kid!


5 Cliches

1. Chubbiness. Those cheeks! Those arms! Those legs! I told Mom (rather sappily, I might add) that kissing her cheeks was "like kissing a little gossamer cloud."

2. Burping her. Virtually every movie I've watched that has a newborn in it, especially the yuppie-era ones, they always have a scene where one of the parents leans the baby over their shoulder, gives them a couple of pats, and--gaack!--a waterfall of chunky spit up flows down their back. She does burp, but not like a big old beer-and-chips belch (love ya, Dad!), and plus it's cute.

3. I give you two words: Diaper Genie.

4. Her smell. The first time Mom and I were away from Hadley, we were shopping and kept smelling her all over our shirts and hair. It's powerful stuff: the delicate scent her little skin gives off is just another thing to love about her.

5. Being afraid to break her. It's funny: one minute I'm all smug about having this baby stuff down, the next minute she rears up her head in a fit of neck-muscle-exercise-ity and you have to hang on to that kid!


5 Things That are Different...and Not So Different

1. Sure, babies are pretty much synonymous with "change" in every language, but that doesn't make it easier. When she's my age, I'll be 36. As my uncle put it, she's in a way an only child. Kevin and I can't stay here forever.

2. Meals will never be the same. Sure, now it's just keeping an eye on her in her little bouncy seat on the counter behind us, but soon we'll be entering the Land of High Chair: we already joke about a certain someone throwing Cheerios or little pieces of chopped-up spaghetti at us.

3. At least our viewing options during TV time aren't limited. You can watch Rambo, with guns blazing, or horror movies, with screaming and sudden music changes, and this little baby will not budge an inch.

4. We have 8 animals, 6 of which have the mobility to cause harm to Hadley--my dog, Corky, has quickly fallen in love with her and all her smells, particularly her diapers, but the cats seem out of sorts. And we all know how diabolical cats can be.

5. I've discovered that somewhere, deep inside him, my dad has been harboring a baby voice with which to coo at Hadley. First it was disturbing, and now it's cute.


At this point, you're probably thinking, "Yeah yeah, 5 Seconds Until I Exit Out of This and Start Playing Solitaire" but thanks for reading.
Pictures coming later today!