First full day as a mother ...

I got out today to meet Shannon and Derick with their new son, Asher ... and Joanie with her new baby girl, Hayden for lunch. It was nice to get out for a while with Noah. He was so adorable finally dressed in normal, boy clothes! Today, Larissa said that Noah is going to be very sexual! I said, "Why do you say THAT??" In her broken English, she said, "Mmmm ... he's soooo handsome ... and those eyes ..."

Today was my first full day to be a mother!! I think "Parenting 101 should just teach ... nap, change diaper, feed, play and love on each other ... REPEAT.

I've been advised to keep Noah on the same feeding and nap schedule as the orphanage. I'm also trying to feed him the same types of foods. I am giving Noah a bottle of Kefir early in the morning and late at night.

What is Kefir you say? I had to look on the internet ... "Kefir is a fermented milk drink that originated in the Caucasus region in Russia. It is prepared by inoculating cow, goat, or sheep's milk with kefir grains. Traditional kefir was made in skin bags that were hung near a doorway, and the bag was knocked by everyone passing through the doorway to help keep the milk and kefir grains well mixed. Kefir is becoming increasingly popular due to new research into its health benefits."

Twice a day he gets what they call a milk porridge. For lunch, he gets more substenance. Today, I fed him borsch soup with mashed potatoes mixed in it. Yeah, I know ... sounds deeeeeeeeelicious! Right? Well ... all that matters is that he loved it! He eats sooooooo good! What an appetite! He won't stay underweight for long!

For his naptimes ... I lay him down and he goes straight to sleep. It just floors me! He's such a good baby, I feel I need to pinch myself to see if I'm dreaming!







The orphanage loaned me not only his crib but also a walker. Today was his first day to get in a walker and he loooooved it! The above pictures are his different expressions!

Toward the end of the day, I had to change my VERY first poo poo diaper. I had been dreading the moment. Well ... I SMELLED it and I knew it was time. So, I pulled down Noah's diaper to find a perfect, solid, little log! Whew! Sigh of relief! I used a baby wipe to clean him up ... oh, so easy and no mess ... then all of a sudden ... out starts another perfect not so little log! So, I strategically caught it with my baby wipe. I'm laughing and thinking ... "Well, is there anything else I can do for you sir?"

Then, I gave Noah his very first EVER bath. I've heard nightmare stories about children from orphanages and how they are scared of baths at first ... so I was anticipating a possible fit. We got in the tub together and he was just amazing. I washed his hair and bathed him and afterwards ... he finally smelled like a little baby should. Then, we cuddled and cuddled before I put him to bed. My co-worker, Pam Holtzclaw, told me ... "Don't listen to what anybody else says ... you hug and kiss your little boy as much as you possibly can ... because before you know it, he'll be in high school." (I teach her adorable son, Drew.) So ... I'm taking her advice!