Bad: The election has been over for more than twenty-four hours and we still have no frigging idea who won. How is that even possible?

Good: Pictures of Kielle, now on Flickr.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/53248320@N04/

Enjoy the adorable babiness!


Oh, and in a note to the post below - man, it's been a while - Kielle has now gone off dummies again. Once she figured out how to suck her fingers/thumb she appeared to lose all interest in the rubber prosthetics.

Boy, is giving your child a dummy/pacifier a loaded issue. And heavily skewed to 'against'.

It's bad for the baby!

Bad for her teeth!

Germy!

Fosters emotional dependence on objects!

You're only doing it to shut her up!


No, actually, I am not doing it to shut her up. After some discussion, Eric and I agreed to give her a dummy TO STOP HER FROM PUNCHING HERSELF IN THE FACE.

No, really.

Kielle wants to suck her thumb. She wants to suck her thumb very, very badly. She's been trying since she was about twelve hours old. The trouble is, even at nearly two months, she still can't get her thumb to stick out from the fist, nor can she hold her fist in place properly against her wee mouth. Now, at first she was philosophical about this. But for the last couple of weeks, she's been getting more and more determined.

And that has resulted directly in her bopping herself in nose, eyes, cheek and chin over and over again. Even when she gets the fist in the vicinity of her mouth, it won't stay put. Once it slid up and her thumb got jammed up her nose. Plus, sometimes the thumbnail makes scratches (one about three millimetres from her eye) And the more frustrated she gets, the harder she flails. And the harder she hits herself. And then she cries and cries, and who wouldn't?

So now she has a dummy. After she hits herself in the face a couple times, her fist is taken away and the nice, non-violent dummy is put in place. And I have trouble believing that not letting her beat herself up is a bad thing.

I know there's been many a debate on the subject of whether Supremely Perfect Awesome Sunshine-Farting Princessy Characters who are technically original count as Mary-Sues. My position on this is that yes, yes, they so very much do. In some ways they're even worse, because there aren't any familiar and likeable characters around them to take your mind off them!

Anyone who disagrees?

Read 'A Woman of Quality' by Frances Hodgson Burnett, which you can find for free right here --> http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/1550 at Project Gutenberg.

Clorinda is quite possibly the Sue-Queen. It starts with her mysterious strength and charisma AS A NEWBORN and goes on from there. Plus, she literally gets away with murder! Because he blackmailed her and he TOTALLY DESERVED IT and her sister (the feeble, plain one who worships her) literally DIES OF GUILT because she didn't turn Clorinda in but she's okay with it! Because Clorinda got a happy ending! With the Superlatively Awesome Earl and their six perfect and brilliant and fearless children and I am seriously not making any of this up.

I read it all the way to the end, waiting for some sort of twist, but... nope. O.O It was *special*.

Moment of Random Awesome:

Finding a large 'BAD WOLF' scrawled on the back of a stall door in a public restroom.

Best graffiti ever.

Long-term sleep deprivation sucks ass.

I have been trying to come up with a post that doesn't revolve entirely around baby Kielle, but have been drawing a blank. She's a 24-hour job at the moment, literally... since Staff is working, he can only help with morning and evening feeds, as he's gone most days and has to sleep at night.

She's going onto soy formula. Maybe that will help the wind, and the endless fussing and refusing to settle. The only times she would sleep today were when she was a) in the pram being walked around, or b) being held. She has finally consented to nap in her bassinet at about 6 pm. I am very, very tired.

Pictures are up on Facebook. I am soliciting recommendations for a non-facebook place to store pictures... I know there are places you can put your pictures up, but not sure where or which are the best/ easiest for a sleep-deprived zombie to use. Suggestions, anyone?

Breastfeeding hurts. Everyone who was breastfed, go thank your mothers right now. Because they *suffered* for you.

I am still not sure what colour her hair is. It looked dark at first, but as it's growing out it's showing signs of being dark blonde - it goes goldish when the light hits it right. And sometimes a little reddish...

EDIT: The sleeping lasted all of twenty minutes. Shoot me.

Babies are extremely time-consuming. O.O And do not sleep much, and worry their mothers by feeling as if they have a fever when the thermometer insists that their temperature is perfectly normal every single time.

Yes, I took her temperature seven times. I think I'm officially overprotective.

Today we make our first big outing, which is going to feature more walking than anticipated - she needs a blood test, and since the facility within an easy trainride doesn't have anyone on today who can do an infant heel-prick test, so I have to go to the one that's twenty minutes walk away instead. That's by far the longest walk I've done since the caesarian, and I'm a little apprehensive. But there's a shopping centre there, so I can stop and sit down and have some sushi before trying to walk back.

Annnd it looks like rain. Goody. Fortunately, the pram came with a rain-cover.

So this is what being fully conscious feels like. I'd almost forgotten.

I've been a mother for five and a half days now. Until now, I've been averaging maybe four hours of sleep per day. But yesterday I got to come home, and Kielle and I (and Staff) spent last night in our own beds. It was great - she woke up to feed a few times, but went straight back to sleep afterwards. I'm actually up before she is, feeling rested for the first time since before she was born. It's a good feeling.

Thanks to everyone for the good wishes and congratulations... Staff brought me a printout of all the comments to his announcement of her birth, while I was in hospital, and I got all teary. Thanks, guys.

I will post pictures on Facebook sometime today - can't now, as Staff is still asleep and I don't know where he saved them.

EDIT: A couple of pictures can be found here --> http://www.youtube.com/user/CousinsApart#p/u/2/LGEE3bJjyP8 in a video blog thingummy done by our friend Gavin (the awesome DM), who came to visit me in the hospital. The mention of me, and the pictures, start at minute 3.07, if you don't want to watch the whole thing.

( The Gory DetailsCollapse )

In about forty-five minutes, I will be at the hospital.

In a couple of hours or so, I will be in labour.

By this time tomorrow, unless it goes very badly, the baby will be born and I will be mother to an organism outside my own body.

It's a weird feeling.

Prayers, good vibes and positive thoughts are appreciated.

How does one affix an eviction notice to one's uterus?

(And in todays Mental Images Nobody Needed To Have, what form would bailiffs take to conduct a uterine eviction? I'm picturing tiny dwarves with those hard hats with lights on, atop a cheap but correct suit and a stern demeanour.)