Two Week Update

It's hard for us to believe, but Reagan has now been with us for two whole weeks. At the risk of sounding like every other parent in the world, the time is really flying by. Let me rephrase that . . . the time is flying by for me. I get the sense it is dragging by for Susan since she remains housebound by a medical protocol which was probably designed for mothers who struggle to recover from c-sections. As I've mentioned in this space before, she truly has remarkable recuperative powers. Nonetheless, she's not allowed to drive until at least August 18th, and since we really can't take Reagan anywhere yet, Susan remains a prisoner.

Reagan is doing well, but she has yet to settle into a set sleep routine. Oh, she still sleeps for probably 22 hours a day, but for two of the past three nights, her two "awake" hours have followed her middle-of-the-night feeding, and she will fuss and fuss and fuss until someone picks her up and carries her around a bit. This situation is not ideal. Last night, I ended up bringing her downstairs at about 5:00 a.m. so Susan could sleep some more, and there was nothing on TV to watch. Reagan and I ended up falling asleep to the movie "Cabin Boy," which may well be the worst movie ever made.

Tonight, we're trying a new approach. After focusing on keeping her awake more during the day, Susan gave Reagan a sponge bath after the evening feeding, which seemed to wake her up pretty good. With any luck, the additional awake time today will translate into additional sleep time tonight. We're not expecting her to sleep through the night or anything; we would just like her body clock to be properly synchronized. Now.

If anything, Amanda has gotten even cuter in her dealings with Reagan. She has stopped asking quite so many questions and now seems more interested in "helping" with her baby sister. Suffice it to say, however, there are limits to the contributions a two (almost three!) year-old can make to the care of a newborn. In fact, her help is pretty much limited to holding things (diapers, burp cloths, etc.), but it's good for her to feel involved. Amanda also wants to kiss Reagan a lot, which is just adorable.

I almost forgot to mention another milestone in Amanda's life -- she has now pooped on the potty two times in a row. She's been using the potty for No. 1 for a few weeks now, but The Deuce has proven to be a formidable opponent. We're not ready to declare victory just yet, but there's light at the end of the tunnel.