Loving Zoe

Zoe Josephine Ruhlman Niessen was born at 12:28 February 8th. More than once I've burst into tears just looking at her. Maybe partly post-partum hormones awire, but I've seen it happen to her daddy too.

I was'nt able to imagine bringing her home and what it would be like having a baby here, in our house, that we were all responsible for. But its totally natural. Not necessarily easy, though we're luckier than most in that my mother in law is here cleaning and cooking and helping out. And today I feel quite fantastic as I slept for three two hour blocks last night! The last few mornings I was teary and bleary. But we have fallen into co-sleeping and Zoe simply loves to sleep on daddy's chest. It's funny, because my medical student husband had been very resistant to co-sleeping; the official Pediatric line is "don't do it." But Zoe much prefers the bed (specifically daddy's chest) to the basinet. And he loves every minute of it. If I hold her she wants to nurse continually all night. If he holds her between nursing sessions, I get to wake up happy and alert and he so very very much loves the snuggle time.

And all that research and deliberating about cloth diapers has turned out great so far. She started out in the diapers from the hospital and, although people say cloth leaks, more than once she wet through diaper clothes and blanket. I thought she might be a bit little for the cloth I had (she's a bit little for basically all her clothes) but just yesterday I went ahead and tried, and it worked great! She is so cute and seems more comfortable and they seem to do a better job than the hospital supplied 'sposies. Now that I know what I like (chinese prefolds with snap-e and prorap classic) I am anxious to get some more wraps. Most of my family has looked at me with a very skeptical "oh you will see that you are crazy" look upon their face. But so far I am super excited that they are working, they are cuddly, they are cute, and they are going to save us tons of money! Yay! Next up: picking out a wrap for wearing Zoe as we go out and about.

Thank you everyone for all your really kind words of love and encouragement and congratulations, it is so fun reading all the facebook notes - for the couple of you that read this in blog version instead of the imported to facebook version, we have started collecting pictures in a facebook album (you dont need to be a member to see them) at:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=89880&l=2f851&id=545100313