PS Mommy Thread-Newborn to 12 months!

[Mara]

the Kids are all soo cute!

it strikes me almost every time i see pics on fridays just how much of a blend the babies are..!! and how much they look like the PS'ers posting. it's still so funny and amazing that i've produced a CHILD..and one that at times can look like me. HA!

drk..yay for a great appt! can you drop down the pumps to just your most 'fruitful' ones or do you think it would affect you overall? i cutout my third one since i only got like 2oz and was hoping that the other 2 would go up because of it but nope, they stayed the same so i really 'lost' the 2oz. but i don't miss that pump time while at work, what a PITA it was to have to lug it all in every day and worry about when to find time etc.

i am still squeezing out about 1-1.5oz per pump so 2-3oz per day. it's not a lot but i split it between his morning and night bottles and also supplement sometimes from the freezer stash to give a little more, i still have about 15oz in the freezer so could go another 4-5 days when the bb's give up. J is a week shy of 6mo and 6mo is my goal so i am happy we will make it.

today i gave J baked plums and it was HEElarious. I read that the skin is the most tart so I tried to peel most of it off after baking but some of it kind of baked in i guess because i put his first spoonful in (with a little oatmeal to give better texture) and he did this hilarious scrunched up face along with a body shiver/spasm. i tried one more and same thing. so i tasted it and it was a little tart. i tried mixing in some squash (what i had unfrozen as i had just made it) and same thing. but the funny thing was he ATE it and seemed to like it! he just kept doing the shiver and funny face every time. he ate all 2oz and i wished i had the camera going. so i guess next time i will need to mix it with something really sweet like sweet potato or peach to try to counteract that tartness. but on the plus side, this kid seems to be fine with eating everything!

 

[Bliss]

OMG, these gorgeous baby photos are making me want to speed up the remaining 6.5 mos... I wanna meet my baby already!

Yours are all so gorgeous! MonkeyPie, your baby is so handsome! DrK, your DD is beautiful... love the laugh! Anchor, your son is a sleeping angel. So sweet. Lux, your DS is beyond beautiful - those eyes!!!! Mara, J sleeping looks like the sweetest cherub ever! AmberWaves, your little one squealing in delight is beyond precious! taovandel - I love the shark pic! So handsome and that hair! Phoenixgirl, your Claire is amazing! You sure dress her in the best duds ever. Sha...Sha, your DD is sooo pretty!

Wow, wow and wow! There is a sale on Hautelook for onesies... the organic cotton ones are only $6 each, down from $24. I picked up 3 after seeing this thread because your babies are so cute in their little outfits, I couldn't resist starting on baby shopping!!!

 

[taovandel]

Mara: I have a video on the site with Evan doing the funny little shivers as he eats Peaches....so cute!

 

[Mara]

Tao I'll have to check it out. I felt bad on one hand, but on the other it was so funny AND he didn't seem to even care!

Bliss, that is the cutest onesie!! It is sooo fun to buy baby clothes, I must stop shopping. I just bought 2 pairs of shoes on See Kai Run. J is growing SO fast that I have to buy a lot bigger sizes for him to be able to get a fair amt of use out of things. I wish he'd stay in each size longer.

 

[drk]

Mara - Yep, I'm afraid that if I cut out that extra pump session, my supply will drop even more. As it is now, adding it back in and pumping ever 2 hours during the day has allowed me to just keep up with what K needs. I think the extra bits of solids she's getting are what is bumping up her weight gain. We'll see if I can keep this schedule up to 5 and then 6 months - not so sure I can, but I'll give it a good try.

 

[KimberlyH]

Bliss, the other two things I forgot to mention were that one, I didn't want lots of people around because I just wanted to be with my family of three. We're lucky to be surrounded by family and friends who all wanted to come be a part of her joining our family, but frankly I just wanted to cacoon. I know a lot of women struggle in the beginning with adjusting, but I didn't, I was in love with her from the moment I knew she existed and as I said I just wanted to be with her and my husband. It was hard to balance our need to be together and wanting everyone who asked to come to be able to do so; I think we did a good job of it. My sister and two closest friends, who all live out of town, have been able to come meet her and spend some time with us, which is great but when they've gone home I've been ready, as has my husband; we spread their visits out over about 3 months so that we had some time to ourselves in between. But included my mom staying with us for a week at the beginning, at a certain point we were just ready for everyone to go home. Which leads into the other thing I forgot to say, I wanted to figure things out for myself. Even with my mom here to help, I still did pretty much everything for Jane. We moved 4 days after she was born, so my husband was in charge of the move and my mom was in charge of me and I was in charge of the baby. She spent a lot of time just holding her and loving her, which I'm so glad she was able to do, but diaper changes, feedings (I am breastfeeding so she couldn't have done that), middle of the night wakings, were all up to my husband and I, and that's how I wanted it to be. My mom was suprised at how little I asked of her, because it was the total opposite with my sister when her son was born. You may feel as I did/do and you may feel totally opposite, and that will help you decide how many people you want around, because you may need the extra hands and you may just want to be left alone.

Mara, I knew you didn't intend to imply that, which is what cracked me up.

****

Little Miss rolled tummy to back yesterday. And put herself to sleep last night (no crying). I'm not counting on the putting herself to sleep thing happening again, but was glad to see it's possible for her to do so.

 

[jcrow]

3 months [born apr 7]

bliss - super cute onesie and i love that it's kimono style. those are so hard to find! i almost bought one, but last night i went through e's clothes. she has so much that she won't even get to wear! good thing they are all hand-me-downs.

kim - yay on rolling! AND on putting herself to sleep. that's WONDERFUL!

 

[Mara]

i went to HL last nite too and had 3 items in my cart but in the end i couldn't justify $10 shipping considering how many clothes J has... i really wanted the blueberries romper but they were sold out. and i am not sure J could fit in 12mo anyway, the length said 28-30 and we think he is about 28.5-29 already. but we'll find out in another week and a half!

i really wish more manuf's made long and lean kids clothes. the 12mo weight says things like 22-26 and J is prob about 17, but the length is what we need. gap's stuff is great for him because it is more long and lean and carters onesies are usually long and lean too.

kim yay for rolling!
drk hang in there.

AFM...totally TMI question for moms but looking for some feedback. so this is my third cycle of AF returning and the first 2 were kind of normalish but this time i am literally bleeding like a stuck pig. it's a little worrying since the flow is pretty much at least double of what it was before and what it used to be. is that normal? i have heard of women having worse periods but i didn't know if that meant cramps or flow or both or what, but for me it's not cramps, i actually have less cramping than i used to but this flow is just crazy. i am a little worried but i feel fine. i just took an iron pill to help replace the blood i am losing since i am already close to anemic anyway. this is my third day and normally by now the flow is almost nothing but it's still going. and last nite i had to change my pad twice (NEVER do that..EVER!).

on a similar note, did anyone feel like things down there changed 'shape' after giving vag birth?

 

[Sha]

everyone!

Thanks for all the comments on D.

Loved all the recent pics, as usual!

China - did I get that right? Is that a pic of a 4- month old O standing? Wow!

Sabine - Jacks looks so cute digging into his watermelon! By the way, do you take out the seeds, or is that the seedless kind? Just curious...

pg - Claire is just adorable! Love her bathing suit, and expression too.. Dalila had that same uncertain/apprehensive look on her face when I took her to the beach for the first time. She was like, "What is this?? I don't think I lke this....!!" then started to cry. The second time I took her she loved it, though. I guess it just took some getting used to.

tao - that visit looks like so much fun! I always wish that we had places like that where I live.

Amber - how cute! The simple things in life, eh?

Mara - J is so pinchable! LOve how his hands are clenched together....so adorable.

Lux - love those eyes! Your little man is almost 7 months already? And he's crawling too? Wow. Dalila is almost 8 months and still lunging at things...but no crawling, yet. She cries most everytime she's on her belly, but loves pulling up to stand.

anchor - cute pic!

drk - K is getting so big! What a lovely smile.

MP - lovely pics! I like the onesie, too.

 

[MonkeyPie]

Mara, my first AF was crazy heavy and my last one was almost not there, though it still lasted a full week. I think it takes a long time to get back on track. Don't worry unless you get light headed or start seeing spots.

Micah has had a really rough two days. All day yesterday and today he has been restless and unhappy, fussy and crying more than he ever has. He's such a happy baby usually that it's weird. And yesterday he refused sleep all day long, then had a really restless night (he wiggled, grunted, and turned over constantly, but kept sleeping). Today he is sleeping in excess and he's upset when he's awake. I don't know what's wrong. It kind of feels like a growth spurt, but he had one once before and he wasn't unhappy, just sleepy and hungry. I feel like his teeth are bugging him a bit because he keeps biting really hard on my hands and fingers when I hold him, but no bumps or teeth in sight (except his one crazy molar that hasn't moved). Poor baby, he just seems so uncomfortable, I hate it.

 

[Burk]

I am so ridiculously behind.... super long week of volleyball camps so every second I was at home was spent with kiddos or getting things ready for my mom for the next day. Tayva is in serious mommy withdrawal which I love! Anyway, I really want to go nap while the kiddos are but I'll try to catch up later tonight.

Now, for the real reason I had to log in. I had to share this with those who would understand and truly feel my horror-our deep freeze broke. Yes, that is where the small stash of BM I had left was being stored! I cried. Do you guys think that the milk had thawed and some had melted (but there was still some frozen in each bag) that as long as I smell it I can still use it? Just re-freeze? Or no? I smelled it all and it smelled fine. It's not a ton, but enough to make it to 6 months which was my mental goal......

 

[gingerB]

burk - . i'm so sorry. i know you wanted to hit the 6 month mental mark but hinestly i don't know if i'd take the risk of re-freezing. i've read a bunch on storing BM since i've been eping and every place i've looked re-freezing is a big no-no. i would prob just us what i can now as fast as possible and know that K has benefitted this long and is going to be just fine.

 

[phoenixgirl]

Aw, Burk, so sorry! I was once told (on here, can't remember by whom) that it was OK to refreeze as long as there were still frozen spots in the middle, but I couldn't find anything to verify this online. As long as it smells OK, I'd still use it.


I've been off of the mini-pill for over a month now, and still no AF. I guess it's the BFing. Anyone else at 8+ months with no AF?

 

[vespergirl]

Mara, I hate to say it, but for me, I used to have periods that lasted only 5 days before I had Andrew, but after, they lasted 8-10 days, and the bleeding was twice as heavy. It stayed that way for all 3 years after I had him, but I don't know what will happen now after my second because they haven't resumed yet.

And, yes, things change shape down there. I thought maybe it was because I had an episiotomy, but maybe for everyone, I don't know ...

 

[drk]

Burk - how tragic! I think it was on the la leche league bulletin boards that I read that you can refreeze the milk as long as it isn't entirely thawed, ie there are still ice crystals in it. If it was totally thawed, I guess I'd just gorge him on BM within the first 24 hours. If you refreeze, as long as it still smells good when you thaw it, I'd think you'll be ok. Hope you caught it in time.

I haven't gotten AF back yet. I'd love it it were lighter than before. I use the Keeper (Diva cup like), and I usedto have to wear a pad at night and empty it ever couple hours the first 2-3 days out of 7 total. At any rate, I've bled like a stuck pig for years Mara, and only became anemic at one point.

Ginger - I'm practically following you on the EP front. K isn't really so happy at the breast these days, and the only time she'll feed happily is in the middle of the night. Otherwise, I feel like I get more out when I pump every 2 hours during the day and fairly frequently at night, rather than trying to wait and coordinate with when she wants to eat. We'll see how it goes, but I ended up pumping during most of the days this weekend rather than feeding her at the breast, and it's been working pretty well. Plus I kind of like to know how much she's actually eating, since we've had all those weight gain issues.

 

[Bliss]

Burk, sorry about the deep freezer breaking down. When I read that, I inwardly went, "Noooooooooooooo!!!"

MonkeyPie, hope your little Micah feels better soon. Poor little guy.

Mara! HA! I know, HL is insane on shipping. It can't be that much to ship tiny onesies! With your little bean sprout, maybe it's best you didn't get the blueberry romper - he's gonna grow out of that as you're putting it on him! It sounds like he has a ton of really cute duds already with his built in closet of fun! I love how you ladies say you go shopping in your closet. What a thrill! Hahaha, those shoes on his little feet are going to be too cute. Hope AF goes back to normal soon.

KimberlyH, you have such a strong support system! Wow, I wish I had family nearby so they could come and help! Your DH is awesome in that he took care of the move. Then your mom took care of you and you took care of the baby. How nicely did that work out? The intimacy you got to share with your baby sounds like heaven. Who knows what kind of parent I will be, but I think I will really appreciate my mom and MIL coming to help. My friend said when her mom came, it was all about taking care of her and making sure she slept, ate and recovered from the birth. When her MIL came, it was all about seeing the baby. LOL... You sound so good with the baby like a Baby Whisperer! I feel like I will have NO idea what to do! Thankfully I have some time between now and then to prepare! On and YAY for Little Miss rolling and sleeping on her own with no crying! Wow, two big events in one day!

jcrow, thanks!!! There are still a few left. And after reading Mara's post about shrinking cotton onesies, I'm tempted to buy the bigger sizes as well. With your accessorizing and style, I bet your e has a TON of super cute clothes that she hasn't even worn yet. Hand-me-downs are the best, aren't they? I hope we get some. Girl clothes are the cutest and every time I see a dress or outfit with strawberries on them, I silently pray for a girl! We'd love a boy, too. But there is just something about a little girl that is too fun! Love love love the girlie clothes! Oh and thanks for mentioning the kimono style being easier! Another valuable lesson I learned from the wise mommies on PS! I look for kimono style newborn clothing now since so many mamas here recommended them! Plus, I bet our kid is going to have a gigantic head!!!

 

[Mara]

bliss...it's so funny but J was only 8lbs when he was born and hardly gained any weight in the first month but after that it was all bets are off. he's like a corn stalk! i never would have guessed he'd be so crazy now, he was in newborn clothes until 1m+ in age and wore newborn diapers for 3 weeks. we had hardly any newborn stuff since everyone told us get 0-3mo but it swam on him (except gerber, it fit). now he's outta control length wise. and LOVE the kimono stuff, we still buy it here and there, like from under the nile, etc. it's just a CUTE look for them.

thanks for the info on AF ladies... yeah it's just SO unusual for me. i know your flow can be diff after baby but i guess since the first 2 were not that diff i thought i had escaped, ugh i really hope this is not the norm because it's SO stifling! i have been afraid to leave the house for too long not knowing what will happen and i went to my friend's pool and was constantly checking stuff out to make sure it was ok. i called the advice nurse since a few times today it was like soaking a pad every 2 hours (never in my life has that happened), and she said don't worry unless it's every hour for 4+ hours OR the flow lasts 10+ days. wow. i used to have long heavy periods when i was younger but as i have aged things have totally slowed down or HAD.

and umm yeah I hate hate hate having AF back. but i don't like the alternative either.

burk..OHNO. i never felt comfortable re-freezing based on spotty data online but i DO go off smell when i unfreeze so i guess if you don't want to just power through it in the next 12-18 hours then freeze what is still frozen, and use the rest? and just go by smell as you unfreeze.

mp...sorry to hear M is not being his typical sunny self. it could be a growth spurt or teething or both, who knows. i have found that J is not typically bothered so much with 'external' issues, aka being hot or cold or having a too tight onesie on him or poo on his butt. usually if he is a total crab it is because something inside is hurting. yesterday he was like this, would just break out screaming or crying inconsolably, we finally gave him a teething tablet and some gen.tylenol later and then a few hours later he was totally fine. hang in there, hopefully it will pass.

drk...J started to refuse the boob too when i got back from maui, i assumed it was the time with it being SOLELY bottle but i think that is also when my supply dipped so i feel like it was a combo of dip and too slow of a flow to him. so i just moved to EP.

i'm happy to report that i now have a good stash of 'food' in the freezer for J. today i made apricots and corn so now we have zucchini, cauliflower, peas, corn, summer squash, plums, apricots, and peaches. i've been wanting to do more mixing so now we have a good base. he is eating about 3oz at 'dinnertime' at 6pm and within the next 3-4 weeks when we get nanny care figured out i want to have them add in a lunch at around 11:30am...then we'll do 'two meals' for a few months before worrying about adding a breakfast in. those moms with older kids, does that sound like an ok plan? i just can't deal with adding a breakfast into my schedule since it would be me feeding him before work and right now i can barely give him his bottle and still get ready. he is still getting about 24-27oz of milk/formula per day (based on his own hunger, we haven't cut any liquids out ourselves

speaking of nannies, my friend's aunt who nannies came over today to meet J along with my friend's mom--who absolutely just LOVES J. he was a total angel for them the whole time (typical of anyone who meets him and/or someone new)..and the aunt was smitten. she can do PT care for him and between the mom and aunt they can cover 3 full days a week so if i can do the nanny share with my other friend for 1-2 days then i will be covered without having to get unvetted strangers to watch him. also this way i could go PT and still work 3 days if i was able to find the right gig. a total bonus is that he will learn spanish from them, i only know enough to converse in an emergency and i really want him to learn so they will speak only spanish to him (and me, i better brush up on my understanding skills). we'll see how it works out but i am keeping fingers crossed.

 

[gingerB]

morning ladies...happy monday! ha.

mara - yucko for AF. i was on the heavy side pre-A. i shudder to think what she has for me now. big YAY on the food stash. i did some babyfood cooking this weekend also, but i'm being much more ginger (hee ) than you right now with what i'm feeding him. until 6 months we're doing ony avocadoes, sweet potatoes, winter squash (butternut and acorn), bananas, pears, and apples. For A we've only done "dinner" on the weekdays and add in "lunch" on the weekends. lol on the avocado...j knows what's up....avocado is the BOMBdiggity

drk - it IS really nice to know how much is going in. and i don't believe at all that bf'ing is more bonding than bottle feeding, it's how you interact with your baby while feeding them that matters. the extra washing is a pain, but you just have to o what you have to do y'know? glad at least the pumping thing is working out.

AFM - we went to see buble i concert on fri -- really nice to have some grown-up time! i was giggling at all the sreamming grandma's, then realized i prob had a big thing in common with them -- this was prob the latest they've been out in a long while too! lol

A's been doing this really cute head tilt thing. it's like he's checking out what things look like at a different angle. silly boy!

he's also pulling up on all fours once in a while . he had been "accidentally" moving fwd a bit when we put his toys out of reach during tummy time, but a couple of time this weeknd i could see him coordinate for a tactical move forward!

he's starting to really take to solids more consistently now. we tried pears this past week and he did the funny face and shiver thing (i think it was too tart) so i mashed in avocado ( ) and it was a huge hit. i also did a meal with pears, avocado and sweet potatoe. he literally grabbed my hand and was trying to eat so fast i couldn't scoop it in quick enough so he started trying to eat my finger. it was funny, but it also showed me he what he was doing because he wasn't biting or sucking as his usual, but gently using his lips to try to pull food off. he's a genius, i know lol.

i did started doing food on a slightly larger scale this weekend. prior i was making only a few servings at a time as we were not consistent with the solids thing. i'm using my wilton's silicone bite size brownie molds to freeze 1/2 oz portions that i store in ziplock freezer bags. i love that i can poop them out indiviually and the 1/2 oz size lets me mix more. easy peasy and minimal mess. this is working out so far, but i can see that once he starts eating more i'll want bigger molds so i'm eyeing some 1 oz size silicone molds on amazon right now.

psa -- a+a stuff on sale at diapers.com. i'm scooping up some sleeping sacks for myself and swaddles for gifts.

 

[KimberlyH]

Bliss, I'm no baby whisperer I've just had lots of practice (I'm the youngest of 36 cousins on my dad's side 34 of whom have children, I started babysitting when I was 10). Your instincts will kick in and you'll figure it all out (and when you do something wrong it will be funny. My husband managed to put a diaper on Jane backwards, when he asked me how he'd done I had to decide to tell him or just let it go because he was so pleased with himself; I told him and it still makes us giggle 4 months later). Moms and MILs are of great help when you feel stuck, too. It was really nice to have my mom with me telling me I was doing a great job when breastfeeding got hard, she also did little things like keeping my water glass full that really helped because in those first days it's easy to forget to take care of yourself too. And we are lucky, I just wish everyone lived close by!

Mara, that's a lot of baby food! Awesome. John grows lots of our own fruits and veggies and I'm looking forward to turning them into baby food.

Burk, can you taste the milk and see if it's still good? I would feel comfortable refreezing if I could taste test it. I feel so bad for you. How frustrating.

 

[Mara]

ginger...hee but you add cinnamon!! J is just about a week shy of 6mo and so far he seems to have a stomach of steel so we'll see. i read to add cauli later but i'd already given it to him (oops) and he had no issues with it so we kept it in the roster.

so last nite i mixed together corn, apricot, avocado and a tiny bit of oatmeal and someone LOVED it. as in i'd never seen his mouth open so wide and he was practically coming out of his bouncer trying to get more since i wasn't fast enough. he ate about 3oz of it!

i looked at the A&A stuff on Diapers and those classic sleep sacks were $19.99 just a week ago. it seems like they totally raised the price for the sale. boo! i am still hoping they'll come onto BS soon!! we only have one of the classic so far and it's GREAT for the summer, i really wish that BS would have them soon.

oops gotta get ready for work.

 

[MonkeyPie]

I am so looking forward to feeding Micah more things now. Only two more weeks until he's "allowed"...hehehehe.

He's feeling and acting a lot better today. My mom said he slept well and has been smiley and happy all morning, more like his usual self. Thank goodness - he was freaking me out. I still have no idea what the problem was.

 

[jcrow]

burk - my heart sank reading about the possible loss of you bm. so much hard work! hope you can save it!

--

so miss em just put herself down for a nap in her CRIB. after nursing i put her down like usual. and like usual she woke up and flailed her arms all about. i put on the white noise app and laid the phone in her crib but out of her reach. i turned on the monitor and closed the door. after a few minutes/seconds her eyes closed and see what out. no crying involved. yay!!! hopefully she can do it again tomorrow. haha.

 

[anchor31]

i'm happy to report that i now have a good stash of 'food' in the freezer for J. today i made apricots and corn so now we have zucchini, cauliflower, peas, corn, summer squash, plums, apricots, and peaches. i've been wanting to do more mixing so now we have a good base. he is eating about 3oz at 'dinnertime' at 6pm and within the next 3-4 weeks when we get nanny care figured out i want to have them add in a lunch at around 11:30am...then we'll do 'two meals' for a few months before worrying about adding a breakfast in. those moms with older kids, does that sound like an ok plan? i just can't deal with adding a breakfast into my schedule since it would be me feeding him before work and right now i can barely give him his bottle and still get ready. he is still getting about 24-27oz of milk/formula per day (based on his own hunger, we haven't cut any liquids out ourselves

Mara - I think that since he is still getting as much milk as he wants and he's not quite 6 months yet, it's probably just fine. I'm following guidelines from a document put together by pediatricians and nutritionists I got at the hospital and J's pedi also recommends it. It says:
Week 1 = breakfast (cereal) and dinner (cereal). Week 2 = breakfast (cereal), lunch (veggies) and dinner (cereal and veggies). Week 3 = breakfast (cereal and fruits), lunch (veggies and fruits) and dinner (cereal, veggies and fruits). Week 4 = breakfast (cereal and fruits), lunch (meat, veggies and fruits) and dinner (cereal, veggies and fruits). They strongly suggest introducing cereal (rice, oats, barley) and meat (chicken, turkey, lamb) before 7 months to make sure the baby gets plenty of iron. However, those are guidelines, so I'm not saying everyone should do the same. I strongly believe that all moms and babies are different and we have to do things as we can according to our circumstances! So if you can't manage breakfast right now, don't sweat it.

 

[Mara]

thanks anchor...! that is good to know actually. i never got any sort of guideline from our pedi, she was literally like 'start foods whenever, have fun'..! she is pretty old school. so i have been reading some websites and things with some guides on 'what, when', but again didn't want to do anything crazy strict on a schedule since it's just too much for me right now. like ginger, on wkds we give J a 'lunch' but it's not consistent, the only thing i have been consistent about is dinnertime. he seems to want more solids so he prob will take to a lunch just fine but my mom was not being consistent about it so i just cut it out because she'd try to give him solids at like 3pm which obviously he won't take solids again at 6pm then.

good to know also that meats should be intro'd before 7mo. i was going to wait on meats for a while just because they seem so GROSS hahaa. also J gets iron through his formula so i wasn't too worried about that but maybe we should start on meats in the next few weeks.

for those mommas starting meats soon, are you making your own and pureeing it? i am kind of thinking i am chicken on that since the thought of pureeing meat products seems sooo icky mentally, so might try earth's best for meats to start. still thinking it over.

 

[vizsla]

i'm holding off on meat for awhile too. for some reason i feel like it's too hard for their little bodies to digest. and i guess i'm a little biased as meat, in general, grosses me out - jarred meat? ewwwwwww. DH and i decided awhile back to take this whole food thing very slowly because of our family history of digestive issues/illnesses, so i'm trying not to rush things. i guess until c can start 'chewing/gumming' food i'm putting meat on the back burner. corn has me all freaked out too (i just keep thinking back to burk's babe and his allergy) and strawberries for some reason... am i a freak??
c has been LOVING frozen cut up grapes in his little mesh holder - particularly because he's teething... and really, any frozen fruit - and frozen teething biscuits too (soy/dairy free of course.. which means we have exactly one brand to choose from).. he cried the other day when i took it away from him, but he doesn't really like puffs. weird.
food is still really hit or miss with him. he definitely prefers his bottle. but if we catch him in a good mood he'll eat a ton, just not consistently. more than one serving of cereal a day binds him up terribly and he strains so hard to go to the bathroom - then cries.. sad i decided to mix pears into everything... he totally knows the color of prunes and turns his head when they are mixed in with other things. he's actually started shaking his head 'no' when he doesn't want something.... it's hilarious.. right *now*

he's full on army crawling and rocking on his knees, but not crawling-crawling. amber, piper might not have any teef, but she's cruising and c is sliding around on his tummy. it's actually kind of funny to watch him on the wood floors - he just pushes himself around backwards.

he LOVES the water.. like, love love loves it. a friend of ours has a pool, which has been nice - now, i wish we had one of our own. yesterday we were supposed to go over to her house but there were terrible thunderstorms, so i set up his baby pool in our kitchen and filled up some bowls/dishes of water so c could splash around. DH thought i was nuts, but was splashing around with him within 5 mins.

his laugh is infectious and makes my heart melt. every night i have to hold back tears when i walk thru the door after work and he squeals and throws his hands up for me. i just love him so much, it's amazing how big our hearts are isn't it?

i'm still working on on finding a better work-life balance, but it's a lot harder than i had anticipated. we have a pretty aggressive savings/investment plan in place and anything less than what i am making right now would put that in jeopardy. since we started saving later in life, DH and i have some ground to make up. i know in my heart that something will work out, i just don't know when. the real conundrum is that if i get a new job i would probably have to work there for almost a year before being covered for any type of maternity leave. this puts a little glitch in the 'viz family planning schedule.' this, too, will work itself out in time.. but i want it to happen tomorrow

sleeping is awesome! we've had to do a few nights of CIO because c started waking consistently at 2:30a. for the first few days i woke up and got him - he stopped crying immediately, so i knew it wasn't anything other than just wanting some cuddles. if he wasn't feeling well/teething/poopy diaper etc. (from our long history of crying at night) a swift pick up would have done nothing to calm him. it stinks each and every time he cries, but for c's health he needed/needs to sleep.. i just think about this and repeat 'i'm doing this for him, i'm doing this for him" until he stops crying.

CIO probably happened (for c) at the exact right time it needed too. i think back and wonder how DH and i survived - i really wonder how we did it. how did we eat?, do laundry?, get behind the wheel of a car?, maintain friendships?... anything. it was probably the darkest part of our relationship. and not because we aren't head over heels in love with c, but it just took such a toll on US. i think our relationship suffered (is still suffering??) because of it. resentment is an awful beast. we've both said things under duress that we regret, but can't take back. i resent DH for not having a more stable job - and he resents me b/c i haven't been supportive of him. i know we will get past it, but it's just another one of those things that will take time.

hmmm what else is going on?? i guess that's all for right now. work is still silly busy... no me gusta dust for an interview on friday... although i'm not sure i even want the job, i think i just don't want to be here anymore - not really the best reason but i'm going and putting my best foot forward.... we'll see

 

[lovelylulu]

5 weeks

Hello Ladies

My first post in this thread as an actual mama took a while!!

Nora was five weeks this Saturday and I cannot believe how quickly time has flown, while at the same time it kind of feels like forever. We've been lucky to get a pretty easy babe. She has her moments, but so far they have been pretty much related to gas discomfort - the noises that come from my poor little girl . I've been EBF and beyond it being a little tough in the beginning due to N's extreme sleepiness, breastfeeding has been going well. We introduced her to a bottle around 3.5 weeks without a problem to give me a little more freedom and my husband a chance to get a little more involved, but I'd say she's still feeding about 99% of the time at the breast.

So here's how Nora came into this world. I had just finished up a week at work, and that Friday my husband and I went out to dinner. It was sooo hot and I had planned to work right up to my due date which meant another week of work in front of me and I just remember complaining that I didn't know how I'd possibly make it through another week in proper work clothing. We went to bed and the next morning when I woke up (bright and early as usual in the 3rd trimester) and went to the loo, I *thought* that maybe my water broke. There was no gushing, more like an intermittent trickle. Since this was my first baby, I had my doubts. I told my husband, but basically dismissed it because it was over a week until my due date. We took our pups for a walk and about a block into it, I was becoming more and more convinced that my water had in fact broke. We got back to the house and DH went out to get coffee and some breakfast. I was still trying to sort out what was happening. After I finally became convinced, I decided that it was absolutely imperative that I tidy up my house, throw in a load of laundry and take a shower After all that cleaning was out of the way, I rang my dr's office and left a message because it was the weekend. My call was almost immediately returned and I was told that I needed to go to the hospital within the hour because there is an increased concern for infection once the membranes rupture. DH came home, we sorted out who'd come take care of the dogs and then off to the hospital we went.

It was all so surreal. It was a gorgeous sunny morning. We had such a nice ride over to the hospital because I wasn't actually in labor there was no pain. Just giddy excitement. We were admitted around 11:00 am and after the nurse confirmed that the membranes were ruptured and that I was still at 3 cm (same as prenatal appointment), the dr. came in to explain that in this situation (broken water, no labor) she wanted to start a pitocin drip in order to get things going. She let us know that she needed to deliver the baby within some time (24 hours I think) of the rupture. I immediately said that I wasn't entirely comfortable with that plan, because I wanted to avoid a c-section if possible. However, if I didn't have the drug and the contractions never started, I would definitely need a c-section, so I agreed to a drip. That was hooked up around 12:45 pm.

At 2:30 pm, we turned on the USA v England world cup game. I love soccer and it was a great way to pass the time. At this point, I was having smaller, pain free contractions about every three minutes or so. By the end of the game, the contractions were getting stronger and were now every two minutes apart. At around 5 pm, I started to feel nauseous from the pain and after about another half hour of seriously close and painful contractions, I requested an epidural. The epidural was administered at 6:00 pm and by 6:15 pm all was right with the world again. I could feel my legs, feel the contractions, but the pain was gone. At 9:00 pm the nurse checked my progress and I was a bit over 9 cm so they started prepping for the delivery. I was so excited and ready for this to happen, but the dr. was no where to be found. Finally, at 10:00 pm the dr showed up and I began pushing. and pushing. and pushing. but that baby did not want to budge.

They had been monitoring my temperature regularly because of the concern for infection and a little over an hour into the pushing my temp was reading 105. There was obvious concern and I could read it all over their faces - if I didn't push this babe out soon, they were going to have to have an emergency c-section. They added antibiotics to my iv drip, called for the neonatologist and gave me a few more contractions to try to deliver the baby. I have to say that, despite being in an entire room of people, I have never felt more ALONE in my life. Because despite all of their support and encouragement, I was the only one that could get this baby into this world. I was exhausted from pushing and truly scared for my baby. I remember trying to drown everything out and thinking that we have to do this baby, you and me together baby, we have to get you out. And just minutes later, at 11:37, Nora was born.

Normally, they put the babe on your chest and allow you two to get acquainted, but given the fever, she was whisked over to the neonatologist. At that point, my husband was like "is it a girl?" and they let us know that in fact it was a girl, and that she was just fine!! It felt like they kept her over at that incubator f.o.r.e.v.e.r to make sure that she was okay and all I wanted to do was hold my little girl and see this little person. However, our time apart did allow the dr the opportunity to stitch up my 3rd degree tear ouch! Finally, I had her in my arms and she was/is delicious!!

And now we're five weeks in the future and I'm sooooo thankful for this thread because I have a lot of questions

 

[gingerB]

quickie post before i run off to shovel dinner down:

viz - yay for continued good sleep!!! sorry work is being a downer -- hopefully this new position will be better. job dust coming your way.

lulu - what an angel! love your birth story. this thread is def a sanity saver in the first few months.

mara - true..afterwards i did think about it but so far so good so no harm no foul? lol. our kids are all thriving still despite any boo boos we've made so far...good thing babies are so resilient eh?

question: we haven't started rice cereal yet but are planning too. recs on brands? where to buy? i know there was a discussion at some point and i'm too lazy/no time to go searching

 

[Sha]

lulu - sooooo cute! awwww..... Welcome to the mommy thread!

Burk - so sorry about your breastmilk..... That really sucks.

Re: solids/meats - I'm waiting to start meats until 8 months. I hope that's okay. ??

Mara or any other Babyfood experts... To make pureed peas from frozen peas, do you just microwave the peas, add water, and blend? I need puree some peas and apples tomorrow.

vesper - glad C is still sleeping well. Sorry about the relationship issues. Hope you guys get to reconnect now that things have settled down some.

jcrow - yayy for your LO putting herself to sleep!

ginger - I use Gerber but I think Earth Best was recommended in that last discussion we had on rice cereal.

 

[Mara]

Sha... I just steam the frozen peas, then puree them with some breast milk (or formula or water if you don't have BM)...peas puree really thickly so you need a bit of liquid to thin them out and get a smoother puree. You can also save some of the pea steaming water and use that. I did the same with corn as well.

re: Cereal...we use Earth's Best after a friend told me that Gerber had like 20 ingredients in theirs and EB is literally two or three...the rice, iron and I think Vit C. and Ginger for you guys...I don't even know that I'd bother with rice cereal.I'd move onto Oatmeal or Barley since you already are giving fruits and veggies. We just used rice because that was the first food he had and it's supposed to be good for allergies, but now we do EB Oatmeal but I'd like to try Barley at some point. I think that Mtj is giving her J Barley based on the pedi's rec.

that said, I know Mandarine gives her boys quinoa and she started at about I think 6 or 7 months, she wrote it to me and I forgot. But I want to try that too at some point. Def more nutritional value than rice or the oatmeal flakes even.

and yup thankfully the babes are resilient hehee.

I have to report, we ordered the 2010 bumbleride bigger canopy and it came today. at first we were like WTF its the SAME SIZE as the old one, we got jipped! But we decided to put it on and lo and behold it's bigger and significantly too, even though the size itself is deceptive until you put it on. I love it! We immediately put it down over J and went out for a walk--the sun was so low in the sky which is usually when the old canopy would put sun all over his eyes and face, but this kept him totally shaded down to belly. He was quiet as a lamb the entire time. YAY!!!! I am ecstatic.

 

[ljmorgan]

Hi ladies I need some pajama help! My LO is nine weeks old and I need to figure out his sleepwear situation. We keep our home around 69-70 even though it has been blazingly hot outside lately, Baltimore has been sweltering! When he first came home he slept in onesies loosely swaddled in the Aden + Anais blankets. Now we let him sleep on his stomach, and he was sleeping with the A + A blankets double folded on his lower half, but now he's starting to move around at night and I don't feel super comfortable with blankets in there with him now. He's started to kick the blanket off and his legs are cold when I get him when he's woken up.

My questions are:
1. What temp do you keep your house and what does your LO sleep in?
2. Where can I find soft, good quality long sleeve/leg pajamas?
3. For A + A owners, do you think they're safe in a crib?

I was *thinking* about long one piece pajamas, and then the thicker A + A sleep sacks. Would that be too much for the temp we keep our house at? The one layer A + A sacks seem like they may not be warm enough. I can't believe I'm not sure how to keep my kid at the right temp at night! All help is appreciated