8 weeks

Eight weeks today and I’m starting to have hope that things are going to get a bit easier. Willow still sleeps through the night, usually waking up for feedings around 1, 4 and 6 a.m. But some nights she only wakes up twice. And one night she only woke up once – at 1 a.m. That was heaven.

Even better is that she’s starting to take some naps during the day and to be more content to spend some time in her Bjorn babysitter and occasionally, even the swing.

Yesterday was a milestone in that I cooked my first dish from scratch since her birth. It took days to choose the recipe, get the ingredients, line them up, then find time when I could manage to prepare it. I ended up doing much of it while bouncing Willow against my chest in the Ergo, or entertaining her in the babysitter. But I ended up with a pot of stew – enough for several servings to go into the freezer for later and some to eat fresh.

My relations with both of the kids seem to be back on keel. River is happy and well-adjusted. Willow is filling out and I love to marvel at her smiles and her increasingly strong body. I don’t like being home alone with both of them, but I’m starting to venture out with both of them more often, usually doing something each week. Normally it’s just to church, but yesterday we went to a planetarium with a friend and her son, and perhaps soon I’ll start going to the gym. I’ve only gone to places where there is another adult present to help keep an eye on River though – no shopping trips with them both yet.

My only real break remains my three weekly excursions to my statistics class. Who would have thought that statistics would be my welcome release? But it’s a start. Hopefully one of these days I’ll again be able to devote several hours to knocking things off my to-do list, reading a book, or doing something fun for myself.

Starting today I am upping my daily step goal by 500 steps per week and reducing my caloric intake by 25%. Since my caloric intake started out very high, and since I’ve already had to eliminate sweets, white carbs and other delicious things, I don’t expect it to be too hard initially.