Pink = GIRL

There is one question that addles this Mommy's brain more than anything right now.

"Is that a boy or a girl?"

Variations of that question include: "What a cute boy!", "How old is he?" "Oh, he's adorable!" and "Is that a girl?"

The reason this gets under my skin SO badly is that, while we've kept the big ticket items like the stroller, swing, and crib bedding gender neutral (so we can get use out of it again in 5 years when we have our next baby), Lily looks anything but neutral when we take her out. She is always wearing dresses or little outfits that are incredibly girly (think pink, hearts, lady bugs, and the like). She is always wrapped in a pink blanket, and there's usually a pink burp cloth or pink pacifier somewhere nearby. Does any of that scream "boy" to you? I didn't think so, but apparently, it does to 90% of the general population.

It's also not a one time thing. Today marked the 5th time in less than a week that someone has asked if she is a boy or girl. The first time, she was wrapped in a hot pink blanket, wearing a onesie underneath that said "Daddy's girl." Granted, the onesie was covered so I can't fault the questioner there, but the pink blanket should have given it away, right? The next several times were at a Chinese restaurant. To break down the scene, Lily was crying and JP was holding her. She was in a yellow dress with white polka dots and pink flowers, and pink shoes with pink flowers. JP was holding a solid pink receiving blanket and had a pink flowered burp cloth on his shoulder. She also had a pink pacifier in her mouth. Apparently, that screams boy?

I'm all for no gender roles, don't get me wrong. If we had a boy and he wanted a doll at some point, or wanted to learn to cook, cool. And when Lily is bigger, she'll play in the dirt with a Tonka dump truck, shoot guns, climb trees, and generally do all the tomboy stuff that I did when I was little. But darn it, she's going to do it in pink shoes and frilly dresses, because SHE IS A GIRL!!!

What a difference a baby makes!

Last night, JP and I had the pleasure of babysitting two of our nephews while my sister-in-law and brother-in-law went to a concert. The concert didn't start until sometime after 10:30, and they ended up not getting back to their house until sometime after 1 am.

Now, seven weeks ago, before Miss Lily turned us into early birds, staying up late was so not a big deal. JP worked nights, and I just was a night owl. When I was pregnant, Lily was a night owl, too, always kicking me and punching me the later it got. Not so much now...now she falls asleep around 10:00 and wakes up once around 2 or 3 to eat, and then falls back to sleep until about 8.

Fast forward to 1 am last night. Both JP and I were so tired, we ended up crashing at Joan's until this morning! Neither one of us could muster the energy to drive home! And today, all we've done is sleep...including Lily! We got home this morning and ate breakfast, then took a nap. Auntie Dodie came to visit Lily, and as soon as she left, we all 3 fell asleep again until almost 7! As I'm typing, Lily is asleep again and I'm soon to be!

It never ceases to amaze me how something so tiny has changed our lives so much!

Another...since JP and I have both been on maternity/paternity leave, we've been getting up early every day. We've been getting things done around the house, and we've been able to eat dinner at the kitchen table almost every night for the first time in pretty much ever. JP has decided to go to day shift, so he'll be home every night with us. I really love that. I love that he'll be home for dinner, playtime and bath time every night! I know he'll miss his shift because he's been with them for 7 years, but luckily he'll still have the same days off, so we'll still get to see everyone. It's cool how much of a family they all are!

I knew that Lily would change our lives immensely, and so far, she has in just the six short weeks she's been here. I wouldn't change those changes for the world!

Wow, I'm a blogger!

I figured the easiest way for people to keep up with us and get their daily dose of Lily was to create a little blog...my little corner of cyberspace to write about our little family to my heart's content. So, here it is. There is no guarantee it's going to be anything special, but it will be a peek into our lives, so you can share in some of Lily's moments (good and bad) and Mommy and Daddy's moments.

As of last Friday, 5/21/10, my little munchkin was 6 weeks old. Six weeks, already! I can't believe how fast time is flying. She weighs somewhere over 8lbs now, probably close to 9, and at the last doctor's visit 2 weeks ago, she was 21 inches long. When we brought her home from the hospital, she was 5lbs 12oz and 18 inches long, so she's growing like a weed. It's amazing to look back at pictures from those first few days and then look at her now. She was so much tinier, and the funny thing is she is STILL a lot tinier than other babies her age! But at the same time, she's starting to get that cute baby chubbiness...her little cheeks, fingers and arms are starting to get chubby. We're starting to get some real smiles every so often, and she's starting to notice the mountains of toys we have stuck all over her bouncy seat (which is her favorite thing in the world) and her car seat/carrier (which is her 2nd favorite thing in the world). Everyday she notices something new, and it's so cool to watch her discover the world.

She eats....oh lawd does she eat! Some days it feels like we're constantly sticking a bottle in her mouth (which explains the chubby hands, fingers, arms, and face I mentioned above). She was gaining around a pound a week after about week 3 or 4, and there's no denying this child when she decides it's meal time. We can't get the bottle warmed up fast enough for her sometimes!

JP and I are pretty much adjusted to the Daddy and Mommy life. We love having her around and watching her grow. Now, I won't deny it...the first few weeks, we were total zombies. I told JP the other night that the first month seems like it's nothing more than a series of naps, feedings, and dirty diapers (the dirty diapers are a whole different world...I'll sum that up by saying it's amazing that so much can come out of something so small). After getting into the swing of things, life is still a series of naps (though they're about 5 hours long at night now),feedings, and dirty diapers...but with all sorts of cool things in the middle.

We are both very lucky in that we have 12 weeks of maternity and paternity leave. We are getting to eat dinner together at the dining room table for the first time in...well...ever really.We both get to experience all the joys of having this beautiful little baby. We are getting the chance to bond as a family and it's really amazing! We are looking forward to experiencing Lily's first 4th of July before we get back to the daily work grind.

So, I guess that's all I will write for the first blog. I have so much more, but I'll have to save it!