Eluned G. Sharron Bethea » February 2008 Journal Entries » AboutMyBaby - online baby scrapbooks, photo albums, videos, birth and pregnancy announcements

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Thu, Feb 28, 2008 1:00 PM
Els loves her some good window. She'll happily look out a window for quite a long time (all her other needs having been met).

Her favorite window seems to be our big downstairs front window. I'm guessing it's either the vertical blinds, which provide a nice contrast of light and dark, or all the activity outside. (We live across the street from a park; people come and go all day.) Or both.

Her second favorite window seems to be our upstairs front window; there are two big trees right outside putting out their spring growth and moving in the breeze. We're going to rearrange some furniture in the office to move her Pack'n'Play underneath the window.

Els loves going outside too, but she almost always falls asleep within seconds.

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Wed, Feb 27, 2008 10:00 PM
Today was Els' 2-month appointment. She weighs 8 pounds 12 ounces (on Dr. Zimble's scale) -- only 2 pounds over her birth weight, but 1 pound 10 ounces over her weight at 1 month.

And today she had her first vaccinations: 4 shots and an oral vaccine. We were prepared for her to be fussy, have a mild fever, etc. The 3 of us spent the day resting so Will and I could hold her all day. But she seems to be tolerating the vaccines really well. She's sleepier than usual, but otherwise seems fine.

Dr. Zimble doesn't want us taking Els out until April because of flu and RSV. She doesn't want us to leave the baby in the nursery at church yet, which also rules out child care at the YMCA. Dr. Zimble said we can take the baby to church if we keep her with us; I might just try that soon.

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cousin Cindy: Hi,
She is absolutely adorable. I love the pics with you guys asleep. I have some of the same with Sarah and us right after she was born. Please notify my mom of updates. She wants to be on the list. charlotte1215@bellsouth.net
Hugs, Cindy and Sarah

Sarah: Glad to hear she's gained so much weight. And no bad reaction to the vac's. Great news!

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Fri, Feb 22, 2008 12:00 PM
Last weekend we had a bunch of my family down to visit. My Mom actually stayed with us for more than a week. My Dad drove her down the first weekend, drove home, then drove back the second weekend to pick her up. The second weekend, my Aunt Ginny came down with him.

I do miss them now that they've gone home. (Don't tell my Mom, but the first time she left, right after Els was born, I cried the rest of the day.)

But I think Will and Els miss them the most. Will, because he finally got some chunks of uninterrupted free time again.

And Els because this little girl loves nothing more than to be the center of attention, and with 5 people around to adore her, she was in someone's arms literally from sun-up to midnight.

Plus, we finally cleaned out the garage! Both cars are parked in there now (for the first time since we moved in).

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Sarah: Whew! Cleaned out the garage? That is an accomplishment and a half. I'm sure Els did her share of the work ;-)

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Tue, Feb 19, 2008 5:00 PM
8 pounds 3 ounces! Binky is a rock star.

The plan is this: Normally, a baby is more efficient than a pump, but that doesn't appear to be true in our case. So now Binky has me nursing for half of Eluned's feedings. For the other half, I pump and feed her breastmilk from a bottle.

This is working out great for everyone. Eluned's weight is really picking up nicely. I get to nurse her, but I don't have that tied-to-the-baby feeling. And Will has become a key participant in feeding her (he gives her most of her bottles). It's also nice because when I go back to work I'll be pumping milk for her anyway, so it makes that transition easier.

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Sarah: Sounds like everything is working out well. I love the pictures!

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Sat, Feb 9, 2008 12:00 PM
Nico was right -- babies are cat repellent.

Zhanshi is slowly warming up to Eluned, and by "warming up," I mean, she is now mostly indifferent to the baby's existence.

Belle won't get near Eluned, makes a face if we bring the baby close to her, and bails the second the baby starts crying.

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Cindy: So what is the new feeding plan? Supplement or ?

Sarah: I had never heard that before, but it makes sense that the cats, who were the masters of the household, would resent being upstaged. Do you think that's what's going on?

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Thu, Feb 7, 2008 1:00 PM
Binky is brilliant.

At her 1-month checkup last week, Eluned weighed 7 pounds 2 ounces and measured 20 1/2 inches. She's following the growth curve, and Dr. Zimble is satisfied.

However, at her next appointment with Binky (our lactation consultant) almost a week later, she weighed 7 pounds 3 ounces -- different scales, but still, she should have gained more. So Binky changed our plan. Her new concern was that my supply might even start to decrease at the rate Elu was eating.

Sure enough, the next morning, there was a noticeable dip in my supply. But by then, we were already following the new plan. And at her weight check just 2 days after the appointment, Elu had gained almost 4 ounces.

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Sarah: Sounds like Eluned and her Mom are pretty brilliant, too!

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Sat, Feb 2, 2008 7:00 PM
"Eluned" doesn't mean anything, the way "Kathryn" means "purity" or "William" means "resolute warrior." Rather, Eluned is a very old Welsh name, and a part of their folklore.

The oldest version of Eluned is a local guardian spirit or goddess of a spring in Wales. When Christianity came to Wales, the church embraced Eluned; she is a Roman Catholic saint and martyr.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Eluned
http://www.freewebs.com/llanddew/llanddewwellsainteluned.htm

Eluned also appears in one of the Arthurian stories. She has the ring called "Eluned ddedwydd" (Eluned the fortunate), one of the thirteen treasures of the Island of Britain.
http://www.celtnet.org.uk/gods_l/luned.html

Comments:
Sarah: Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I looked at the new pictures just now. What a beautiful little girl! Interesting info about her name. I'm Welsh (half) myself, so I'm interested in all things Celtic.

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