My Little Annalynn Faye

Please know I expect no one to read this! It's long and It's only true purpose is for me to look back at!

I guess everything that's been said about a 3rd child is true...hardly anything gets done for that poor 3rd child! Rex has a baby book that has some stuff in it, Laynie's was purchased but never written in, Annie does not have one! I did great with blogging about Laynie's 1st year...and here I am, with an almost 6 month old and writing my first blog about her!

Let's see if I can summarize nearly 6 months in one blog!

Our most amazing and wonderful surprise ever, our precious baby girl Annalynn Faye Robinson was born on January 7 at 11:14 AM weighing 7 pounds, 4 ounces and measuring 20 inches long. (Real talk confession: I had to look up those specifics! That's terrible!!) I was so so certain I was pregnant with a boy! Waiting to find out the gender until birth was so neat! Corey got to see first and was the one to announce that it was a girl! I just kept saying "OH MY GOSH!!" over and over again!! I could not believe it! The video capturing that moment is yet to be edited but will come soon! It was an awesome moment and I'm so glad we waited!

Birth was very mellow! I was much more awake and aware this time than I was for Rex or Laynie. I started out with the fewest amount of drugs in comparison to the others so that's what I was more awake. Annie was hungry right away and went straight to the breast when they brought her to me in the recovery room. She latched perfectly and instantly! We had our couple of hours of skin to skin before moving to my room. Recovery wasn't terrible...I wouldn't say any worse than my other two. Rex was immediately interested in his little sister. He was a little sad that it was not a baby brother but that quickly went away. Laynie was a little more uncertain and initially said she wanted to hold her then pushed her away. That didn't last long either...she grows more and more interested in her as time passes.

Nursing went well. the nipple pain did not last nearly as long as it did with Laynie. We went through the typical phase of her wanting to eat quite often at the beginning. It was a lot more difficult doing this with 2 other kids than it was with 1. My mom and Eli came to get the big kids every day at the beginning to take them to Ms. Anna's so I was home with just the baby. It was a huge help! My mom also came and spent the days with me when Corey went back to work. I exclusively nursed for about 4 weeks then introduced one formula bottle. I felt like I wasn't keeping up with her so I started supplementing. I started pumping but never really established a routine and didn't pursue it for long. I returned to work at when Annie was exactly 8 weeks and pumped my first day back. The next day, I was able to go to her at lunch to feed her. The next week, my Aunt Mary Lynne took a huge turn for the worse in her sickness so my mom was not able to care for Annie as planned. I had to leave work early one day, ended up staying home the next day when she passed, so I was able to continue nursing  those days. I had enough pumped to get her through the rest of the week once I went back and continued nursing and supplementing through the following week, which was spring break. I nursed of and no, mostly in the evenings and mornings through 10 or 11 weeks before I officially completely stopped. Managing nursing along with my crazy schedule, my big kids crazy schedule and everything in between going on was a lot, which is why I stopped. I feel good about the amount I did and am glad I did it. Sometimes I miss nursing her but not much. Being able to have Rex help feed her, especially in the car has been WONDERFUL!

Annie is definitely the chunkiest of my 3 babies and I LOVE it!! I just love those rolls and she's got the chubbiest cheeks! She started eating 4 ounces for every meal probably around 3 months. Between 4-5 months, she would sometimes want 6 ounces but usually was satisfied with 4. She drinks that regular Infant Enfamil and has not had any problems with it at all. Not spitting up, no outstanding constipation, like with Laynie and Rex. We introduced rice cereal around 5 months. She has gotten constipated a couple of times since then but it hasn't been anything major. She really likes her rice cereal and also likes oatmeal cereal. at 5 1/2 months, we introduced jar food vegetables. So far, she loves peas but isn't too sure about sweet potatoes! She's still regularly eating every 2-3 hours and now has cereal around mid morning and jar food for dinner.

She grew out of her newborn clothes fairly quickly and went through the 3 month phase crazy fast! Before I knew it, I was having to bust out the 6 month clothes! I feel like things are going so much quicker with her than with Rex or Laynie. I guess that is probably typical with the 3rd child. At 2 months, she weighed 10 lbs, 14 ounces, at 4 months 14 pounds, 2 ounces. To everyone's complete shock, she measured in the 92nd percentile for height!! I have NO idea where that is coming from! I cannot wait to see what she weighs and measures at her 6 month check up to see if she is continuing on the same growth trend she's been on! She is currently in size 2 diapers and wears mostly 6 month clothes and some 3-6 months.

Annie is such a sweet, happy baby. Initially she seemed to be a little more clingy than Rex or Laynie were. Momma may have "spoiled" her a little but...well..she's my last baby!! I have to hold on a little longer! As she has grown, she has proven to be a good good baby, much like her brother and sister! I didn't think it was possible to be blessed with 3 easy babies but I have been! Whens she fusses, it's one of 3 things: she's hungry, tired, or wanting out of whatever she's in (swing, jumper, etc.) It is very easy to figure out what she needs if you know the last time she ate and/or slept. she started sleeping through the night at 2 months! Her day naps vary and can be a longer nap or should could have cat naps throughout the. Right now she likes rolling around on the floor, relaxing in her swing, and jumping in her jumper thing. She sometimes puts herself to sleep. She has been sleeping in her bassinet-co sleeper thing since she was about 2 months. I'm in total denial about putting her to sleep in her crib upstairs. I am seriously not wanting to transition her so will probably continue using the bassinet for as long as possible! upstairs just seems so far away!

She has the cutest little squeal when she laughs and loves being entertained by her brother and sister! If there's one thing I know for sure, it's that she will never be bored! Rex and Laynie are both absolutely in love with her and want to play with her all the time! It is absolutely beautiful to watch! They can sometimes get too close and I have to remind them to give her space a lot but for the most part, they are really good with her and truly just love her to pieces!

She is an absolute joy and we cannot imagine life without her!

Fingers crossed I keep up a little better from here on out!