welcome back, you nasty things

They've made a nasty comeback. I don't know who they are, thinking they can just prance back into my life like they had never left, whipping me around left and right, leaving me beaten on the ground, groping for something solid to hold on to.

Yes, my hormones have returned.

AAAAAAAAAAAH!

There is something SO frustrating about being able to think logically about a situation, being able to tell myself that it's okay, that it's a very normal thing, that there's no problem here, while my eyes well up with tears and my voice gets all quivery. ARG! Makes me want to thrash my 'mones around a little - take 'em for a ride and dump 'em on the side of an old logging road, hoping no one ever lays eyes on them again.

Aaaah, but then they DO make me looooove my kiddles! And Ryan? WHAT a wonderful man!!! And my midwives? I could hug and kiss them and cry and thank them for all that they did for me while I was in labour! And the weather? It could be sleeting, slushing with icy rain and snow, and I could look outside and proclaim, "WHAT BEAUTY IS HERE!!!". And the world in general? I can do anything! The sky is the limit! No, the heavens are the limit!!!

Catch my drift? I'm a little off my rocker.

And yet, I'm doing my very best to remain even-keeled. Thankfully the 'mones have only been rearing their head in spurts, not leaving me in constant strife. Sigh!!!

So how is it going, you ask? Very well, I'd say. Things are pretty good here in Da Koch Land. Plava is doing great as a big sister, though I'm starting to wonder if she's tiring of answering the same question again and again, "Are you a big sister now?". How can you resist though? She really seems to love Pito! She's learning, slowly, how to love her without smothering her, though that lesson may need to be taught and re-taught over the next few months... She's doing pretty well with the fact that I'm usually holding a baby and can't hold her, and Ryan has been giving her lots of extra attention.

Her sleep has suffered somewhat - suddenly she's waking at night and crying for us, but all it takes is a little visit to her room to let her know that it's not time to get up yet, and she's back out in no time.

And little Pito? CHARMING little thing! She has won us over and continues to amaze us every time we look at her. She certainly has a good set of lungs but is generally very peaceful. As most babies do, she has her squirmy cranky time each day when it seems that her stomach is upset (I don't blame her - her digestive tract has never been put to use before!!). She sleeps like any newborn should - up and down - hungry, grunting, sleeping, grunting, hungry, grunting....etc etc. To be expected! I am handling the sleep loss fairly well at this point. There's nothing like having Ryan around to allow me to have a nap in the afternoon. Aaaah!

Pito is much more alert than Plava was. She's wide awake for lengths of time during the day already, whereas Plava was sleeping solid for weeks it seemed. She is already lifting her head and looking around at 2 weeks old. Plava, as you can imagine, was floppy for quite a while. It's so interesting to see that this tiny brand new baby is already so different from her big sister. It's exciting to not have a clue who she'll be as she grows up. I can't wait to see her come more and more alive as she gets older. I can't wait until she first smiles and starts to coo. I can't wait to hear her laugh. I can't wait to see Plava make her laugh. I can't wait to see her move, crawl, walk, and to hear her first words. Yay Pito! I'm so glad you're here!!!