Hiking at McConnell's Mill

Since we brought Newlyn home from the hospital, we've done a pretty good job of getting her out and about with us. She loves riding in the car, but is a bit of a backseat driver and will start to whine if we get caught in traffic or stuck at a redlight (this is one of her many endearing qualities). Her first roadtrip to visit family in Maryland went very well, so we figured we could change things up a bit from the usual trips to Target, Babies R Us, and the grocery store and head out for a hike to McConnell's Mill State Park. The heat and humidity have returned to the 'burgh, so we decided to start early so we could finish the hike around lunchtime for a picnic at the park.

Now that Newlyn is big enough, she's able to ride in the Baby Bjorn carrier. If you're not familiar, it's one of those contraptions that make you look like you're about to take your infant skydiving. She loves it. We did a moderate two mile hike that follows the Slippery Rock Creek and is mostly in the shade. Lauren & I took turns with Newlyn in the Bjorn and two miles seemed to be just about the perfect length to coincide with her next feeding!

We're looking forward to taking her on more walks through Frick Park and back to Ohiopyle in the fall.

Family Everywhere!

We survived our first road trip with Newlyn last weekend. We drove to Maryland to visit with family. We stayed with my grandma ("Girty") and were able to see my Uncle Tracy and my mom. Girty loved the baby and spent hours holding her, which gave me a lovely break.

On Saturday, we ventured to the Frederick area for my grandfather's 85th birthday party. It was a mini family reunion and many of my cousins travelled in from out of the area. It was my dad and Vikki's first time meeting the baby. Everyone doted over her and again, she stayed in other folks' arms for several hours. She's such a good baby...doesn't complain about having new people hold her and rarely fusses in general.

On Sunday, we headed to Bedford to see Darren's parents. Luckily, Darren's uncle was in town from Tennessee, so he was able to meet the baby as well! Most of Bill and Judy's close friends were able to stop by to see the baby, so again, lots of new people held her. When we came home, she just wanted to hang out by herself and stretch out. She spent all of Monday morning in her bouncer - just happy to have some time to herself.

Newlyn will be six weeks old this Thursday and it's amazing to watch her develop. She's smiling more and more (although still not regularly in response to us) and can hold her head up for a while. She had her one-month doctor's appointment last week and she's in the 75th percentile for height and 50th for weight and head size. She's gained 3 pounds and 2.5 inches since birth! I'm particularly happy about this fact since it feels like I spend 100% of my time feeding her.

One Month

Newlyn turned one month old today! The time is passing very quickly and as much as I want her to grow and become more interactive with us, it's sad to think about how fast it's passing by us. Pretty soon, I'll be back to work and missing her like crazy!

Newlyn is a great baby. She really makes motherhood seem very easy. :) I'm hoping it stays this way! We haven't been to the doctor for a few weeks (we'll go later this week), so I don't have an official weight for her, but according to my rough estimate, she is about 8.5 pounds and 21 inches. She's gained nearly 3 pounds since her low point (5 pounds, 7 ounces) when she was sick and over 2 pounds since birth! She's eating like a champ (feedings are somewhere between 1.25 and 2.5 hours apart) and is sleeping well. She still eats 4-5 times at night, but usually goes right back to sleep after eating. We have her out and about constantly and she's really easy to get around with. We're going to the library for baby lapsit each week and she's really well behaved. We've visited my offices and Darren's as well. Everyone loves meeting her!

The Lloyd's came over for a visit yesterday. It was Newlyn's first time meeting Aunt Dana and Uncle Rob. Grandma and Pap Lloyd hadn't seen her in nearly three weeks, so it was obvious to them how much she's grown and how much stronger she's become. We went out to dinner together and Newlyn was a champ through all the loud noises during the meal. We sat outside at a restaurant in the southside and there were dogs barking and motorcycles riding by. She barely even flinched!

Here are the photos from yesterday.