How is everyone doing? --share a pic? - Page 2

[josybear]

eli is great. we had a scare last month when he had a pyloric stenosis and had to get emergency surgery, but he's bounced back and is fat and happy as can be. he's 12.5 pounds at 7 weeks, a real tub 'o lard.
his brother has some trouble adjusting, but things are a LOT better than they have been.
dctexan, i know the hell you're going through, and i promise it ends. one day you'll be reading a post like the one you wrote and nodding and saying 'i remember that...'. really, it's brutal but you can do it. i didn't know how i'd do it with two, but i can. sometimes they're both screaming and i haven't slept in days and i have an abcessed tooth right now (!) but i'm capable of getting them calmed down and taken care of. it's less daunting than it was when i had just the one, even.
it really does get better.

pics & videos of my boys http://s69.photobucket.com/albums/i68/ducaks/

[dctexan]

Thanks so much ladies. Hearing that I am normal and that it WILL be okay is really good. I know part of it is that I am so super emotional (darn hormones), crying at the drop of a hat (especially when people are nice/empathetic) and just so so sleep deprived. I am having a really hard time adjusting to the sleeping 2 hours at a time (even though I really CAN'T sleep more than that without waking up, even if the babe is still asleep) and I just feel so trapped and tied to the babe.

[mamamoo]

Oh, Emily. I am so sorry. I imagine it is so hard. I do remember with some of my kids feeling that way. And then the guilt becuase you "should" be feeling a certain way. It gets better(and if it doesn't you might want to ask for help because you could be suffering frm ppd, btdt too.), and someday you will not be able to imagine how you lived without him.

[dantesmama]

Jasper will be 6 weeks old tomorrow! It's going by so incredibly fast, and he's getting so big. 8-9 at birth, 8-10 at 1 week, 10-8 at 4 weeks, and about 12.5 now. He has several chins and delicious little rolls of fat everywhere.

Jasper is higher-needs than DS1 was - but then DS1 was a very, very mellow, laid-back baby (and still is), so this is probably just what it's like to have a "normal" baby! He's in-arms or being worn almost constantly. He rarely wakes up more than once or twice a night, although mornings are a little upsetting for him because he always has gas and a huge poop right after waking. We've been getting social smiles since 2.5 weeks, he was tracking objects at about one week, has great head control, bats at his little cloth gnome rattle, and is very alert and active. He loves to sit on my lap in the sunroom and watch the trees through the windows. Lately he's been experimenting with his voice, which is fun to listen to.

DS1 (who will be 2 in a week and a half!) has been amazing. He's very affectionate and gentle with the baby, which I'm eternally grateful for. The other morning the three of us were dozing in bed after dp left for work, and I woke up to find DS1 trying to change Jasper's diaper - he had a wipe, and had unsnapped Jasper's pajamas and was in the process of taking off his diaper! He looked at me and said, "Uh-oh! Weenie! Baby poo! Baby pee!": He loves holding his baby brother, and when Jasper fusses, he strokes his hair and whispers, "Sssshhhh." He's been very generous about sharing his milkies, too.

I just wasn't prepared for the guilt. Even though we had planned to have closely spaced children, I still feel awful that DS1 isn't getting 100% of my attention anymore. There are a lot of things I can't do with him unless the baby is sleeping in the swing or dp is home - running around the backyard, block play, etc.

Watch my (short, promise!) slideshow!

[Twinklefae]

Mamas, those are some cute babies! I'm also not a fan of the newborn stage, and DF is incredibly frustrated as most of the time there's not a lot he can do when Orion is upset. It's getting better though, and will continue to.

My big stress is that we're moving tomorrow. Orion is 3 1/2 weeks old. I must be nuts!: Wish us luck!

[ashleep]

Good luck!

[dantesmama]

Originally Posted by Twinklefae

My big stress is that we're moving tomorrow. Orion is 3 1/2 weeks old. I must be nuts!: Wish us luck!

Ack! I thought *I* was crazy for moving in my next-to-last month of pregnancy!

Good luck!

[mommysusie]

Originally Posted by Twinklefae

Mamas, those are some cute babies! I'm also not a fan of the newborn stage, and DF is incredibly frustrated as most of the time there's not a lot he can do when Orion is upset. It's getting better though, and will continue to.

My big stress is that we're moving tomorrow. Orion is 3 1/2 weeks old. I must be nuts!: Wish us luck!

Good luck! We moved to a bigger place last weekend. It was so frustrating, but I am almost done unpacking and everything is coming together nicely.

[PPK]

Elijah is doing well, and so am I despite lack of sleep.

We saw some early smiles beginning the second day, and now he's smiling back at us! At nearly 6 weeks he's really filling out alot and looks so different already! I can't guess how much he weighs but at 10 days was 9.6, up from 9.2 at birth. I would guess somewhere around 12 lbs+ now.

He sleeps 3-4 hr. stretches, but like a pp said, its before I go to bed, after that it's usually 2 hrs, then at 4:30 he's been grunting to get up till I get out of bed at 8...very weird, very frustrating. But he takes a few 2 hr naps during the day and is great in the car.
We had some fussiness last week, but luckily its gone and I can put him down for 10 minutes at a time.

I really had no idea how much it really is a full-time job taking care of a babe! I thought I'd have all kinds of free time to work on different projects,read, cook, etc...heck, I can't even eat half the time (although the upside to that is I've lost alot of weight) .

Even though its been crazy with so little sleep, I just keep thinking that he is going to be our only one (only want one), so I'm really cherishing every moment, well, except for my daily mini-meltdown around 5-7...

Here he is at around 4 weeks

http://www.flickr.com/photos/1158173...3809/?edited=1

[PiePie]

we are doing well. i make a point of getting out of the house every day, now that i have passed the 2 week point. the sling is key! i go for a walk every day (trying to someday fit into those pre-pregnancy pants) and i have been going to lots of meetings of my local API, Holistic Moms, slingin' mamas, etc. groups. I have no friends locally who are SAHMs so I am really trying to broaden my circle. I am starting to chat with some of the same folks I see at the same things, so I am cautiously optimistic that I will make new friends. DH and I also go out and about the city with her a lot -- she has been to all the hip new restaurants, a nurse-in, a campaign fundraiser, a concert at Lincoln Ctr., etc. I love promenading her around the hood -- everybody thinks she is the most beautiful baby ever, and I get lots of positive feedback on the sling. I am on a mission to nurse on every subway line in NYC -- so far we are doing pretty well. She likes the train -- I think it's the vibrations.

DD is also doing very well. She has reflux, and I have eliminated dairy from my diet in the hope that that will help her. I miss milk, cheese, and ice cream so much! And it has been less than a week. DH wants to go directly to the medicine (Zantac) because he hates seeing her in pain. But mostly she is a happy baby (which is why any crying is so out of character). She sleeps well and just pushes me in the night when she wants to nurse, so that's great. We only very recently started nursing in the side-lying position. I think it's going well though I do have some pain in the left areola right at a bump that comes and goes (hope it's not related to our new position). BFing is so easy now -- I can't believe it was just a month ago that I found it so hard!

She has her first cold, and it took a lot to work up the courage to suction her nose. It seemed so violent! But she was happier afterward. She has been nursing very frequently (except at night, when she sleeps) but not for long -- like constant snacking -- I used to resent nursing every few hours but now I love nursing every few minutes!

DH is so unbelievably cute with her. He was away on business and I put the phone up to her ear so she could hear him and she hugged the phone! I am jealous that sometimes he is better at reading her cues than I am.

My hat is off to all of the mamas who are accomplishing a move. We are looking for a new place, but very slowly. I had a marked increase in lochia so I am trying not to overexert myself.

Emily, have you considered getting away from Benjamin just briefly? I am going to try to schedule a massage for myself this week when DH can watch her. She has taken expressed breastmilk in a bottle -- DH said she made a face, but she won't starve. And I think a little pampering will do me good. Just taking a shower feels so rejuvenating. Life's little luxuries!

[MamaRabbit]

Babies are 9.5wk, and getting so bigger. Bigger (even adjusted by 3wk) than DD at this stage! Sleeping at night in 4hr stretches now with cluster-feeding in the evening. Holding up heads well, smiling, and cooing. I love this part! Breastfeeding has been so easy that I'm actually surprised. Siblings are slowly adjusting.

Recent pic from 8wks.

[PPK]

very cute, I love the t-shirts!!

[BabyDakota]

Originally Posted by MamaRabbit

Babies are 9.5wk, and getting so bigger. Bigger (even adjusted by 3wk) than DD at this stage! Sleeping at night in 4hr stretches now with cluster-feeding in the evening. Holding up heads well, smiling, and cooing. I love this part! Breastfeeding has been so easy that I'm actually surprised. Siblings are slowly adjusting.

Recent pic from 8wks.

did you make those onsies or buy them? i would love to have one for ds. i found out after the fact of course, that my brother almost called 911 from NY, (we are in NC) while I was laboring at home! i told him if the paramedics showed up, i would have drove to NY to beat him up! lol. home births rock!

[MamaRabbit]

My friend from the USA made them and mailed them I think they're ironed on. So cute!

[mom22girls]

Hello - I feel like a total stranger. Three days after we got home from the hospital, we had to check into the children's hospital because of Shea's jaundice/sleepy baby syndrome. I think I may have posted about it. Shea even had a feeding tube (NG) for a bit, and we had to do some cup feeding because she was too sleepy to latch on...once we got home, I started with a nipple sheild and she's been nursing and gaining like a champ. We're now working on weaning from the sheild. Then I got blocked ducts/mastitis which I let go too long trying all the natural ways of getting rid of it, because I knew in Sweden it's difficult to get antibiotics. Finally, when I couldn't function anymore, I went to emergency where they gave me a blood test to see if they could give me antibiotics (your infection has to rate a 50 or above). I was 107! I felt like telling the nurse that I had two other children that I had collectively nursed for 4.5 years and I knew when I needed antibiotics but.... Anyway, the infection got worse before it got better, two days later I was 185, but the lactation consultant showed me a trick with a breastpump and it really helped clear the blockage away! Anyway, all the extra nursing Shea did really got her growing and she's now 4150 grams (haven't done the conversion to pounds, but she's gaining at least 200 grams per week!)

Now we're all home and healthy (physically: ) although having the three children is a challenge. Dh went on his first overnight trip since Shea has been born so tonight is a scary one for me. I keep telling myself that every day it will get a little easier!

Hope you all are enjoying your babes!

Take care!

[crunchymommy26]

We're doing well. Eloise will be 6 weeks on Tuesday. She's a great sleeper, even through her noisy noisy older brother.

She's up to 10ish pounds from 7.10 at birth, so she's gaining well. she's a little piglet!!!

Here are a few pics
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a21...1306_0_ALB.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a21...eauty004-1.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a21...my26/je002.jpg

[PiePie]

Josy, Sorry little Eli (and your family) had to go through that. How did you know what it was? Was his spit-up going REALLY far?

Heather, The sleepy baby --> hosp thing must have been scary. DD did a lot of falling asleep at the breast at first. What was the trick with the pump the LC showed you? I

[QueenOfThePride]

Ack, I was just NAK, reading this thread when DS had a poop explosion! It was everywhere, running down my skirt, the boppy, ICKY! So we're back from cleaning up. I even showered, and bathed the baby it was so bad. LOL

[PiePie]

poop explosions are the bane of my existence. whom can i say this to without making them think i have a completely pathetic life? i used to talk about supreme court cases; now it's poop and spit up. :

[dantesmama]

Originally Posted by PiePie

poop explosions are the bane of my existence. whom can i say this to without making them think i have a completely pathetic life? i used to talk about supreme court cases; now it's poop and spit up. :

DP comes home from work and tells me about his day, and the only news I have to share is that DS2 spit up so copiously on me that it had pooled in my bra between my boobs.