Week One!

We've survived our first week as a family of five (actually, almost two weeks).  I'm so sad that Chris is going back to work on Monday.  We've had a really wonderful week off together.  I'm so lucky to have a husband who is such a hands-on dad.  We spent lots of time playing in the back yard and even managed to take a trip to Hartville on Thursday.  True, it may have taken us twice as long to get ready, but we managed to get everyone out the door and had a great time shopping.  Not sure how I'm ever going to do this on my own, but I guess I'll learn!  So far, this has been a much smoother transition that I could've ever anticipated.  It probably helps that our lives are already chaotic with two kids, so throwing another one into the mix hasn't changed our norm too much.  Three kids under four--I still can't believe it!  I'm anxious to see how this week goes.  The kids are heading back to school on Monday for part of the day (they've been off for two weeks--should be interesting) and Claire and I have a doctor's appointment for my two week checkup.  Thankfully, Papa will be along to help us out since I still can't lift the kids.  Hopefully, that'll only last for another week.

Claire had her first visit to the pediatrician on Monday.  She left the hospital weighing 6 lbs, 12 oz.  Four days later, she was back to her birth weight and doing great.  We don't have to go back until she's one month old to do shots.  That's music to my ears!  She has been nursing really well.  At birth, we were told that she was slightly tongue-tied and it might affect how she was able to nurse, but it obviously hasn't been an issue.  I'm pretty happy to avoid any procedures to have anything clipped or snipped where her tongue is concerned.  She has been doing pretty well with sleeping.  She had two nights this week where she went five hours between feedings.  I don't think I've had that much sleep since I got pregnant! 

We had our first attempt at newborn pictures on Friday.  It was a flop!  Claire was awake the entire time and refused to lay happily.  We're going to try again this week with hopefully much better results.  I think we managed to get a really cute family picture though, so at least it wasn't a total loss.

Meredith and Jack are still doing great with their new sister.  Meredith kisses her all the time and Jack likes to rub her head and make silly faces at her.  We're finally starting to get back to our normal bedtime routine for both kids.  Watching the three of them together makes me so excited for when Claire gets a little bigger and can actually play with her brother and sister.  Meredith and Jack play really well together (90% of the time) and I'm sure Claire will fit right in.

Some pictures from this morning:

Claire napping in the playroom.  Not sure how she sleeps with all of the commotion!

"Here Claire.  You can cuddle with my bear."

Sisters

Waiting for Daddy to fill up the water table.  They were so excited!

Playing in the water

Baby Claire

Claire is here!!!  Claire McCain Rooney was born on Monday, May 7 at 7:25am.  She weighed 7 lbs, 5 oz and was 19.5 inches long.  My c-section wasn't too awful and I'm feeling pretty good, all things considered.  Meredith and Jack are so in love with their new sister!  They have helped give her baths, change her diapers and love to help with anything where she's concerned.  Jack isn't always sure about his new sister (he's sometimes afraid to touch her because I think he worries about hurting her), but Meredith is all over her.  She told us that Claire is "beautiful like a princess" when she came to the hospital the first time.  Claire is a wonderful baby--very laid back and sweet.  She is long and lean with huge feet and big, beautiful eyes!  Nursing is going fairly well and she is a pretty good sleeper.  We feel so blessed to have this perfect little angel in our family.  She was exactly who was missing and we adore her! 

My biggest stress with the delivery was being away from the kids, but they handled the separation like champs.  Mimi and Papa brought them to the hospital twice a day while I was there and it helped all of us immensely.  Mimi camped out at our house all week and Papa spent most of the week at the hospital with Claire and me so Chris could go between both places and spend time with all of us.  I really have the most amazing parents in the world.  They took care of our family and made things run so smoothly.  I love them so much!

So far, I'm amazed at how smooth our transition has been to being a family of five.  Chris is home all week this week and I'm looking forward to lots of quality time with my favorite people.  What a perfect gift for Mother's Day!

Some pictures from our first few days home:

 Meredith and Claire when we first got home.  This was the same outfit that Mere wore when she came home from the hospital

 Claire in the tub.  Daddy does baths at our house and took charge for her first official bath

 She loves to be swaddled!  She also loves her binky, which is a first for our kids.  Meredith and Jack wanted nothing to do with them!

 Jack and Mere have a new hiding spot--Mere's closet.  They call it their castle and love to play in there together.

 Helping give baby sister a bath

 Riding on the tractor at Mimi and Papa's house.  Jack said Claire could ride on the tractor, but only in the wagon

 Daddy and his girls

 Claire and her boys

 Meeting Claire for the first time.  Jack is sharing his gorilla

 Think she's excited?

Newborn photos are this week--can't wait to see how they turn out.  More posts to come!