New Life With a Baby

[Peony]

This DDC has not been very active lately, it's so hard with everything that has happened here. I've been hanging out in Nov since they are more chatty so I thought it was time for another update thread. I want to hear how everyone is doing.


DD2 will be 6 weeks old tomorrow, times flies. I still am adjusting to life with two dc. We have gotten so thrown off track with this never ending pertussis. I feel like our life has just stopped, we are just sitting at home day after day. It tooks like dd2 has taken a turn for the worse. I've been watching her like a hawk for 3+ weeks now, just mild coughing, but today it's different, I can tell it's progressing. I had finally made plans to get out tomorrow, I was going to hold my first LLL meeting since she was born, but it looks like I'll be canceling.

On a positive note, DD2 is finally growing into her 0-3 month clothes, she is such a little peanut. The few people that have seen her always comment how on tiny is she, she was 6lbs 11ozs when born but looks much smaller. Her head is very small, her eyes seem to take up all the space on her face. Her tummy seems to be calming down some, she isn't crying in pain aas much as she used to. She still sleeps all the time and has to be held while sleeping, hence the reason I'm on MDC so much. DD2 is a good little nurser, we've had no issues in that area, now if she would just sleep after 3am, that's seems to be the only time where she is wide awake.

[mamajody]

we are also doing well. Adjusting to 2 infants in the house has been interesting (to say the least). I am finally starting to see a turn for the better in DD's behavior. She is getting back to her old self, but I am afraid the holidays are just going to derail this, and we will have to start all over again in January. The boys are growing, and are finally starting to chunk up a little. I had to go back and look at DD's baby pictures to see how skinny she was for the first few months. My boys are little string beans. They are both nursing pros now, at 8 weeks, and we nurse singly and in tnadem depending on the time of day. While they are both good sleepers, there are 2 of them, and they do have different needs at diffferent times. That is the challenging part of our day right now. How to get to everyone as quickly as possible without losing my cool. we are battling the first cold, so sleep is at a premium right now. Thank gooodness they sleep in the swing. DH thinks he is getting tendonitis from holding babies upright in his sleep. This too shall pass.

[BCmamaof6]

Things are finally stating to get a little easier around here.
Anna is 12 weeks (she'll be 3 months next Monday!!!)
She is a needy little person who sucks up an awful lot of time.

I'm not sure how many of you will remember...but she was born with a birth defect. (Macrodactyly...which is very rare) We saw a pediatrician a month ago. We have our follow-up apt soon. From there we have to see the pediatric orthopedic surgeon at Children's Hospital. They will do x-rays & MRIs to try to determine the extent of her deformity.
We have been praying all along that it would be the static type (which is less serious)...but we fear that it is actually the progressive type.
At the very least Anna will be faced with multiple surgeries. The worst...we don't even discuss.
Her reflux seems to have improved a bit. Her herniated belly button looks almost normal now. Her colic is supposed to magically disappear at 3 months...we're still waiting for that. She is still very gassy & often screams in pain for a long time before doing the loudest burps I've ever heard a baby do. I've tried modifying my diet...it doesn't seem to make a difference (I do, of course, avoid gas-causing food, milk, chocolate, etc like the plague)
Her sensitive skin is still a major issue...breaking out in rashes & excema...and really dry skin. Thankfully she has had no bum rashes! (knock on wood) I'm sure that is due to the fact that she is in organic cloth diapers & cries the second that she pees/poops to be changed.
She actually communicates her needs quite well. And is quite predictible...she has settled into her own little schedule & we try our best to work around it.
She sleeps amazingly well...provided that she is being held or cuddled.
She loves to be carried. She will often cry until she is tightly wrapped in the Didymos & then instantly calms down & falls asleep. (Ah...money well spent! )
The children all adore her & argue over who's turn it is to hold her. Such a relief to have extra "arms". It can be exhausting to hold her for several hours on end.
She's a great little eater & although she was a month early & 6 lb 14 oz at birth she is now well over 13 lbs!!!
Even with her little quirks & issues she is a precious gift & we all feel truly blessed to have her.

[PuppyFluffer]

I've been guilty af being missing in action around here!

We are doing really well. I can't believe how much I love this little baby and how smoothly she's blended into our lives and how easily our lives have accepted her.

Older dd (4.5 years old) is so accepting and loving of her. She has not had one moment of acting out or being jealous of the time the baby takes. We talked about the demands of a baby all through out the pregnancy and dd kept saying "It's ok, I'll share my mommy or daddy or mommy milk or toys or what ever else we're talking about in the moment" I am surprised to see that this has really been our reality. If I am nursing the baby and she wants something and Daddy is home...she will say "It's ok, I'll go ask Daddy." It's far smoother than I ever expected.

Baby dd is doing great. She's up to 10 lbs 4 oz and nurses well. Her latch is still not quite the best but I just reach down and roll her lip out correctly and it's better. I have some concerns about a dietary allergy. She has some skin irritation in and around her eyebrows that may be eczema or cradle cap. I am leaning more towards eczema. I have eliminated all dairy and will see how that helps over time.

I have taken a ton of photos of her. Photography is a hobby of mine anyway and having a baby is just a nice subject to work with!

My dh is out of town occasionally and dealing with two kids solo is interesting but we manage well. Thank goodness older dd is really a caring sweet kid too so things go fairly well all in all.

How are the rest of us?

[katiesmom]

Ds is really fussy and cries a lot. He only sleeps in his swing or in my arms. It's exhausting, but I know that it is short-lived. DD was the same way until about 6-7 mos. He has a bad latch, and despite 2 trips to the LC, we can't seem to get it right. I'm going to try a chiropractor and see if that helps.

He doesn't really eat that much, and is gaining about 4 oz a week, but that's better than losing!

DD has adjusted really well, she's a great helper.

I'll say a prayer for your little ones, BCmamma and Peony

[LavenderMae]

Little one is 6 weeks old now. He still has pretty bad gas, poor little thing but it does seem to be improving. He is getting big. I'm not sure what he weighs now, I'm curious to know. He is really easy going for the most part. He does cry some with the gas (stupid gas). He does love being held a lot, while he sleeping too (hence why I'm on MDC so much too). His latch is not always so good but he is eating great and gaining wieght. It's new for me to have a baby with not so great of a latch but he's figuring it out.
Oh goodness the smiles!!!! He has really started to smile at us (and not just randomly) and it's just so wonderful. He also has started making that happy glee sound when he smiles really big, it's so cute. He coos a little too which has to be the sweetest sound ever, I can't wait for him to really take off cooing.
DD and ds1 have really adjusted well at this point. It was a little rough with ds1 in the begininng. I think he's finally forgiving me for having another baby. DD is a big help with the baby, I know if I let her she'd be the mommy. We spend a lot of time together awwwing over how cute he is!

BCmamaof6, I'll keep Anna (and you and the rest of your family) in my thoughts!

Peony, I hope dd2 gets well very soon and it never gets too bad!!

[starlein26]

We're doing as good as we can be. My son was just diagnosed with a brain tumor and he'll be undergoing surgery on the 14th. As horrendous as this is...it's the best possible news about his condition that we could have gotten. All the doctors we saw thought he had a progressive genetic condition...but his MRI revealed otherwise. They all intomated that we could pass this on to other children. We even had a neurologist tell me, 3 days before giving birth, "I guess it's too late for an abortion" !!!!!! WTF. So, needless to say, we're trying to find the hope within this tragedy. I posted about my son in the SN forum if anyone's interested.

My daughter is beautiful and thriving! She's amazing. She needs to be held ALL day but who can blame her! She gets cold easily when not being held so I think that may have something to do with it. My son adores her and he seems to have fully accepted her into our family! He occasionally asks for extra attention and love but who can blame him either!

Dh and I, particularly me, are sort of running on empty these days with our son's cancer and a new baby but I'm trying really hard not to fall too far. It doesn't help that I'm having major problems getting support from my family. My two sisters, who were supposed to come out to be with us for the surgery, bailed out last minute. I guess they can't handle it...but we would have really needed them.

Anyway, we'll see!

Lots of love to everyone this holiday season!

Esther

[BCmamaof6]

Oh Esther! My heart goes out to you mama! I will be thinking of your little guy & will light a candle for him on the 14th. Blessings to you & your family.

[starlein26]

Originally Posted by BCmamaof6

Oh Esther! My heart goes out to you mama! I will be thinking of your little guy & will light a candle for him on the 14th. Blessings to you & your family.

Thanks so much!

I hope all goes well with Anna! She's adorable!

[Peony]

Esther, I also will be thinking of your son, keep us updated.

[LavenderMae]

Esther, I too will be thinking about your son and hoping he recovers quickly from his surgery (I'll keep him in my heart on the 14th) and many many healthy vibes to him!! I just want to hug you right now, I wish I could offer you real support instead of only internet support.
I'm sorry your sisters bailed on you, I really wish they hadn't. I hope you will end up getting the support you need!
Oh and shame on that doctor for saying that to you, how tacky, heartless and rude.

[starlein26]

Thanks guys! I appreciate your support!

[sleepypeanutsmom]

At the moment I'm exhausted! We are also battling our first cold, too, (hi Mamajody!) and it is miserable. It started last week with my dd (5 years) vomiting all day and for her it turned into a cough that has lasted for a week now. Dh got hit hard with chills/fever/cough/etc middle of last week. My symptoms came on a little slower and I think I'm developing a sinus infection. I was shocked that the babies came down with it a few days ago. I thought that breastfeeding would prevent them from getting it as the antibodies would be in the milk. But, maybe that is just for the first few weeks???

Luckily neither baby got the full force of it. Finley developed the cough and Jade is dealing with the snot, so they are sharing the full cold. It is so hard to see them feeling like this! Tomorrow is their 8 week check-up with the pediatrician so we'll see what he has to say about it. I'm just trying to nurse them as much as possible and get as much sleep as I can.

I saw my midwife last week for the 6 week check-up and my small tear healed up fine. She weighed the babies and Finley is 13 lbs and Jade is 11 lbs. We were both thrilled with their weight gain. It is amazing that they can gain so much from just watery ol' breastmilk! It is certainly magic stuff!

It is wonderful to connect with you all here again!
Take care mamas!!

[Peony]

Originally Posted by sleepypeanutsmom

I was shocked that the babies came down with it a few days ago. I thought that breastfeeding would prevent them from getting it as the antibodies would be in the milk. But, maybe that is just for the first few weeks???

Luckily neither baby got the full force of it.

That's the power of breastmilk, your babies didn't get the full blown cold. Babies are born without much of a immune system, it takes years before it's fully functioning, so if you weren't breastfeeding then the cold could of been worse. Breastfeeding doesn't prevent every cold, ear infection, etc... some children will still get lots of them but those children could of been alot sicker if they didn't receive breastmilk.

My DD1 is a walking virus, she always has something, but nothing has ever been serious, and no ear infections ever. I know that is a huge difference over what health she could of had if she wasn't bf for almost 4 years. I wasn't bf and was in the hospital as a child for one illness after another, I got pneumonia numerous times along with chronic ear infections. So compared to that, my dd1's numerous little colds are nothing.

[ColoradoKat]

I will continue to keep you mama's and little ones in my prayers. Life is just so precious. I think about it all the time now that I am a mom and when I look at my little one who has opened a part of my heart I never knew I had. The instinct to keep them safe is very powerful!

We are doing well, making the transition into parenthood as well as can be expected. Neva sleeps well at night, 4 hour stretches. I however am having a hard time going back to sleep with her. She is pretty happy and really starting to smile! I love that! Here is our first family picture. I love looking at it and couldn't imagine my life with out her!

http://quick.holdthatpic.com/36026

[starlein26]

Originally Posted by ColoradoKat

I will continue to keep you mama's and little ones in my prayers. Life is just so precious. I think about it all the time now that I am a mom and when I look at my little one who has opened a part of my heart I never knew I had. The instinct to keep them safe is very powerful!

We are doing well, making the transition into parenthood as well as can be expected. Neva sleeps well at night, 4 hour stretches. I however am having a hard time going back to sleep with her. She is pretty happy and really starting to smile! I love that! Here is our first family picture. I love looking at it and couldn't imagine my life with out her!

http://quick.holdthatpic.com/36026

Thanks!! You have a beautiful family! You should be so proud!!

Making the transition into parenthood is very interesting isn't it! I read so many books the first year or two so that I could better understand and accomodate this new role. One of my favorites is by Daniel Stern, it's called The Birth of a Mother: How the Motherhood Experience Changes You Forever.

Best wishes!