7 Days Old!

Little Kensington is already 7 days old! Where did the week go? Here's an abbreviated summary for those of you wondering what's been going on behind the scenes that led up to this new little (very little) addition.

Background
I decided in the fall to adopt again, after weighing the issue for quite some time. Once I decided to go ahead, things began moving quickly. October was spent completing an updated homestudy and other paperwork. By early November, all the necessary information was with the same domestic adoption agency that I used to adopt Emmerson. The bulk of November was spent waiting. Midway through December, I was told about a possible situation in which a birth mother was due in early to mid-January. We were officially matched on Wednesday, Dec. 23.

On the night of Dec. 29, I was fortunate to have a conference call with the birthmom, who'd just had an epidural and was in labor in Utah! About an hour after we got off the phone, baby Kensington arrived, weighing in at just 5 pounds, 7 ounces, and measuring 18.5 inches long. I hightailed it to Utah as soon as possible the next day (Emmerson is with her grandparents), and soon afterward had a very emotional meeting with both the birthmother and the birthfather! Kensington was officially placed with our family later that evening, in a very bittersweet moment.

Now
Despite her diminutive size, baby Kensington (also called Kiki and Kenzi) is doing great. She is eating like a champ and appears to be an easy-going baby. At first she was eating only an ounce at a time, every 3 hours or so. Imagine! A shot-glass size meal! Now she's up to two ounces for the most part. She is incredibly alert for a newborn and has many periods where she's awake for two or more hours at a time. She initially had her days and nights a bit mixed up, but I've been working on that and she's already getting rotated in the right direction. She also smiles more than any other newborn I've seen!

I was nervous about how tiny she was, but the doctors assured me that she is just as strong and healthy as a 7- or 8-pounder. She does wear preemie diapers, and even those tend to fall down around her skinny little bottom a bit. Preemie outfits are a bit small, while she swims in newborn outfits (there is a seriously huge difference between a 5-pound baby and an 8-pound baby -- even though that's the size range for which most newborn outfits are geared). Just tonight, her umbilical stub came off. She seems to have a touch of jaundice so I'm keeping an eye on that. But Kensington is a thriving, beautiful baby -- with that gorgeous shock of dark hair!

We can't go home until all the ICPC paperwork is done. I can't wait for Kensington to meet our family and friends!

Getting ready to get sprung from the hospital, Dec. 30, wearing the typical hospital garb.