First Month

We call her Squiggles. Dahlia Jean had so many potential nicknames – DJ, Dolly, Baby D – but Squiggles is the one that sticks. When she is awake, she is never still. Her legs and arms go up and down, side to side. Her face has so many shifting expressions. To me, she is squeaky, squirmy, and feels so squishy. Sometimes, I think she’s as difficult to carry as a kayak. She may weigh 9 pounds and 10 ounces on paper but she never feels solid enough to hold with any confidence. Squiggles is a boundless bundle of joy!

We celebrated her 1 month birthday last week. Squiggles had just taken her first flight ever for Megan’s orientation to the DNP (Doctor of Nursing Practice) at the University of Michigan and she met Megan’s parents. . Despite all our worries, Dahlia was just perfect through security and on the plane. Everyone says that babies get much tougher on planes later on in life, but we feel very lucky that Squiggles travels well. . Besides, everytime anyone sees how awesome she is at every thing, they always say that it only gets tougher. Whatever. Squiggles is amazing!

Now that all the flights and friends are over with, Megan and I have developed a routine with the baby. Surprisingly, nights are easy and we are getting 6 to 7 hours of sleep. Dahlia is more challenging during the day. While we have excellent methods of calming the baby, we have no idea what to do when she is calm to keep her calm. Megan and I are squeezing in all the cleaning, cooking, and studying in between all the tense moments when Dahlia tries to tell us what she wants. We had originally thought that we would be using cloth diapers; that fantasy is over now that we know how many diapers she goes through.

This past week, I started work again. It feels so strange. While my month off sometimes felt like a lifetime, I loved every minute of it. Suddenly, work feels like another world. costa rica . I’m inspired to be more efficient but I’m also more frustrated when tasks lack the discipline of a solid plan. Unfortunately, my time at work means that Megan has to balance studying for her program with the most difficult time to work with Squiggles. This usually means that I come home and take on Daddy duties full-time so that Megan can prepare for her classes. Time to create a new routine!

Living on the beach has been a blessing since we had Dahlia. If the tide is low, we walk near the water barefoot. While it would be nice to be closer to work to avoid the long commute, I would never want to give up sunrise at Cape Canaveral. Enjoy the photos!