Each week is getting easier than the next.  Yay!!!  This week’s picture was taken in the same outfit we brought her home in.  She fits into it so much better now that she’s gained a little weight!

We’ve had a lot of people ask if we have a nickname for Annabelle and if we’ll be calling her Anna or Belle or Elle or Annabelle.  We haven’t really decided what she’ll go by as far as a shortened version of her name but we do have a few nicknames.  As many of you know, we’ve always called our little girl “bambino”.  Bambino is Italian for “baby” or “infant” of either sex.  The feminine is “bambina” but for some reason we never got into calling her “bambina” once we found out we were having a girl.  So, our nickname for Annabelle started out as “bambino” and has morphed into “bino” or “beans” depending on what kind of mood we’re in.  Dusty also likes calling her “Mrs. B” which comes from him calling me “Mrs. D”.

Our motto is still “go with the flow”.  We’re feeding her when she’s hungry, we’re letting her sleep when she wants to sleep.  For those that know me, I’m a little OCD as well as a planner but choosing to not put her on a strict schedule has worked really well for us.

For us though, going with the flow doesn’t mean we’re not making plans.  We’re still doing things, like going to a one-year old birthday party and going to a Labor Day picnic and taking her with me to Book Club and taking her to Whole Foods for date night, but we understand that if it doesn’t happen the way we planned, it’s still alright, we just improvise.  I’m learning fast that feeding Annabelle can really control what’s happening and when because she eats so often.  For example, when the three of us went to Whole Foods, just as we were getting ready to go inside she got fussy (it was getting to be dinner time for her) so we headed back to the car so Annabelle could have a quick snack.  As a side note though, none of this means I don’t dream about the day she’s on some kind of schedule and we can predict with some kind of accuracy when she will eat and sleep.

When people ask how she’s sleeping my go to answer is that she’s great one night but the next she’s a little devil.  One night she’ll sleep for a stretch of three hours, get up to be fed and then fall right back to sleep.  And then the next she’ll want to be fed constantly and only wants to sleep in our arms or not at all.

Annabelle eats like a champ.  As I mentioned earlier, she’s not on a strict schedule but most days she’s eating every 2 hours or so with some shorter or longer times in between.  I’ve started reading as much as I can on pumping and asking all of my girlfriends about what they’ve done.  I’m already thinking to myself that I’m going back to work in five weeks and I want to make sure it’s a smooth transition, and that Annabelle doesn’t go hungry.

This week Annabelle and I started getting a little air!  It finally cooled down and we went on walks through the Old Market and down by the river and park almost every day.  It’s a great release for me because we get out of the apartment and I get some exercise as well.  It’s also nice because on Annabelle’s bad days, when she only wants to be held, I get a small break and she absolutely loves being in the stroller, often falling asleep.  I’ve been walking around 4 miles or about an hour each day and it makes me excited to be able to exercise for “real” and hopefully will make the transition back into a more rigorous exercise routine easier.  Friday I met up with another friend of mine who’s a new mommy for a walk and we were able to chat about new mommy stuff which was another great release for me.