The Lollipop turns One! (Month!)

Zahra is officially a month old - my goodness how time has flown and how much she has changed these past few weeks. I know I have been on this rollercoaster before but it feels just as surprising to watch her change by the day.

To celebrate her one month birth-aversary (which luckily coincided with our Thursday Mommy and Me brunch) we had the whole neighborhood clan over for spinach and leek casserole and some fun play time. There were 12 kiddoes here under 4 and two were still measured in weeks! Zahra got some loving from her favorite Mahncke Aunties and Zayd got to play with someone more mobile than his little lolli.

An update! Zahra can:

• Control her head enough to look about, crane her neck towards the gripe water or towards her lunch!
• Go to sleep in her own bassinet with some gentle back patting.
• Sleep for five straight hours on occasion (rare but wonderful!)
• Survive her first cold! (Well, she is surviving it and I know she can...poor girl!)
• She seems to be in the 8 pound range but have to wait for her six week appointment to really get her weighed.

Zahra is different from big brother Zayd:

• The car is not a go-to solution for her.
• She screams less and mostly when eating or right afterwards due to our hindmilk/foremilk overproduction issues...sigh.
• She is significantly less interested in sleeping on top of you.
• There is a lot more vomit.
• Loves her binky! (I have called her Zar Zar Binks but Sam says you can't make up a Star Wars nickname after the worst Star Wars character of all time...what do you think?)
• Unlike her brother, she seems to noticeably calm when mommy picks her up! (And noticeably fuss when mommy hands her to someone else!)

Mommy is better at it this time:

• Mommy can distinguish the gassy cry and face from the hungry cry and face from the tired or overstimulated cry. Woot! Makes it easier. No wonder she cries less!
• Mommy is considerably less stressed.