The Post Partum Mama Check-In

[mandalin24kd]

So, how are we all doing?

My babe is sleeping and eating great! I'm horribly engorged, but using the opportunity to get some milk stored. My gibbly parts are starting to heal. I tore a little up to my clit, but not bad. So, peeing sucks. And I'm a week out and still getting winded walking around.

I'm so glad my dh took vacation this week! It's been so amusing watching him do my job. He asked me how I've never slit my wrists and said that he would never think I was a crazy "B" again! I LOVE IT!

And, oh, yeah, I LOVE MY BABY!!!!!!!

[Kendra_]

I'm feeling pretty good.
My nipples are sore on and off but not too bad. My back however feels like it's falling apart. I only tore a little and got three stitches which feel fine. I picked up my 20 some pound sister less than a week PP which was an incredibly bad idea.. I'm not sure what muscle it is but it's behind and above my clitoris and it's causing me tons of pain :.

The boys are 12 days old and I am absolutely in LOVE. Great nursers.. If I didn't tandem I would never be able to get out of bed. I'm leaking all over the place though and the boys are starting to smell a little like sour milk.. i should start thinking about washing them up. They were just weighed today and Oliver only gained 2 ounces but Dylan gained 6 ounces. They don't cry unless they are hungry or pooped. I having issues with them peeing out of the newborn diapers.. so i'm going to try size ones to see if i can stop changing their clothes & blankets 5 times in the middle of the night.

[DiannaK]

Hey all!
Booby feeding is going awesome .... I've even quit wearing my breast pads ... since I'm only leaking a tiny bit at night. Boys went to the doctor yesterday .... they have BOTH gained 2 lbs since their 2 week check up .. they are weighing in at 8 lb 9oz!!

I don't have any tear issues .... that has long since healed .... I'm just left with a bit of bleeding (STILL), hemmrhoids, and I THINK I have some bladder prolapse.

Still sleep deprived ..... but really no more moodier than when PG.

[mamaspirit]

Hey ladies! Things are ok here. My mom is going home tomorrow... boo hoo, I'm a bit worried about how I am going to get my 35 pounds toddler in and out of his crib as I am still on lifting restrictions from the c-section.

Freya is doing marvelous. She is getting a double chin and chubby arms and legs. I have had some issues with foremilk/hindmilk imbalance, but I'm getting that worked out. Today all of her poop has been yellow and thicker so thats a good sign.

Anyway, I'm off to bed to try and get some sleep...

[sunmamma]

Originally Posted by mandalin24kd

I'm so glad my dh took vacation this week! It's been so amusing watching him do my job. He asked me how I've never slit my wrists and said that he would never think I was a crazy "B" again!

Just popping in to get a reminder of what the postpartum time is like! I just had to comment on this....I LOVE IT!!!! So funny!!!! :

[JustVanessa]

Hi all! I have been zoning on the couch for the last 4 days and not on the puter much

Billy is great. He is an awesome nurser and sleeps a 3-5 hr chunk at night which is keeping me sane. My crotch still feels like its on fire! My doc only gave me 2 stiches but I have a bunch of micro tears that make peeing really really bad. I have been taking Advil for it.
I am having NB diaper issues too. It seems like the prefolds don't fit under the covers...I may have to wait until squeaker gains some weight until I use them.
He was 7 12 at birth and yesterday was 7 5. So the doc is happy with him.
Big brother is a bit out of sorts....pushing lots of boundries but he loves his little brother.
My mom is here right now and has been a godsend. She reorganized my kitchen yesterday (by my request) and cleaned all the cupboards. I think she is going to paint the bathroom too! My grandmother is coming tomorrow, she is staying in a travel trailer in the yard, so Byron is going to get lots of attention and spoiling. Dp is working this week, but is off next week, which is working good considering I have my mom to help right now.

OK....off to do diaper research and find out what the heck I am doing wrong!

[kltroy]

Originally Posted by mandalin24kd

And, oh, yeah, I LOVE MY BABY!!!!!!!

So does your baby have a name yet????? Inquiring minds want to know!

[N8'sMom]

typing w/ one hand.............

been recovering/recuperating and trying to get bf-ing down so haven't been on the computer much

having some bf-ing issues...she won't take my left boob and it's dripping like crazy. why would she not take it?? any advice?

[Kylahroo]

Juniper is doing quite well, I guess! But, boy, does she nurse a lot, a lot, a lot!! I seriously don't remember our other kids doing this (dh doesn't, either). If she's not asleep, she's nursing, 24/7. I'm sore. The initial latch on is still very sore and I'm hoping this is due to poor latch issues early on. The pain goes away quickly, though, so I'm not too concerned. If it doesn't get better in another week or so, I'll have it checked out.

Most nights she sleeps through, only waking to nurse or for a possible diaper change. This morning, after 11 hours in bed, I finally just got her out of bed at 9am! Time to get up, girly girl! I really liked the 2.5-3 hour chunks she let me sleep, though (of course, when she wakes to nurse, she wants to nurse for at least an hour - I get a lot of reading done).

Due to the cesarean, I obviously don't have any issues "down there" which actually is very nice. It's our 13th anniversary today and if I wasn't still bleeding, I'd consider DTD! My incision is healing nicely and I'm no longer taking Ibuprofen for pain/swelling. Working on walking now - trying to get my speed up. I really don't like coughing or sneezing - that hurts.

She was 9#15 at birth, 9#2 at 2 days (after 15 meconium diapers), 9#7 at 3 days and 10#1 at 6 days. She's big and solid. I'm guessing she's close to 11# by now, especially with all the nursing!

I was 179 at delivery and 161 on day 3!! That was a nice surprise. Although not unexpected - I seem to lose 1/2 right away, another 1/4 within a few weeks and then hang on to the last 1/4 until I work on getting rid of it.

Dh is home. Home until July 9th or so. It's been very, very nice. We're testing a new sling fabric that dh has fell in love with so he's wearing Juniper a lot. She has at least one 2 hour nap on Daddy every day. He loves the down time! Watches movies on his iPod.

Our older kids have been at our cabin with my parents all week. My MIL is coming today to watch the younger two. Dh and I are getting haircuts and going out to eat for our Anniversary. Some alone time! Woo-hoo! Well, with baby, of course.

[Kylahroo]

Originally Posted by N8'sMom

having some bf-ing issues...she won't take my left boob and it's dripping like crazy. why would she not take it?? any advice?

Are you right-handed? My kids have always prefered my right breast, but so have I. I have a harder time holding baby in my left arm as my right arm is dominant. Have you tried laying down to nurse? She may not be able to differentiate between the two if you're laying down. At night, I sleep on my right side, Juniper on her left. I nurse from both breasts, just lay more on my tummy when she's nursing on the left breast.

I have heard of babies only nursing on one side. Other than looking very lopsided, she'll get enough milk from one breast. But, you may want to pump the other breast for a while to help with engorgement.

[mandalin24kd]

Originally Posted by N8'sMom

having some bf-ing issues...she won't take my left boob and it's dripping like crazy. why would she not take it?? any advice?

Try the football hold on that side!!!!!! Bet you anything it works!!!!

[N8'sMom]

yes i am right handed
it is difficult to do the holds on that side, so it's probably
got something to do w/ that

yes...definitely need to pump

[*Karen*]

Things are going great, but I think I am overdoing it a little. We had to go out shopping and buy lots of pink since all I had was gender neutrals. And I have to say, she looked like a boy in them! Anyway, all the going out has left me pretty sore. I also tried to talk 2.5 miles to the park and back. Not a good plan. I made it there, and sent DH for the car to get back.

Adina has only lost two onces since birth, but she lost all but two diapers of her meconium at birth. (That was some pretty poopy water!) She is on the gain now, and is 8lbs 2ozs.

She is nursing great, and how much she sleeps is insane. I feel like I should wake her, but she is nursing about every 1-2 hours during the day and every 4 hours at night. I got two four hour chunks last night. She take two two hour naps during the day. I usually hold/wear her for one, and get stuff done during the other.

Diapering here is going GREAT. I LOVE my preemie prefolds. She is actually still in the preemie covers too. The NB ones are just too big. And she was not a tiny baby! I'm glad I got them, and will tell everyone else to too! The only thing with them is that the preemie diapers are too small to do an angel fold, you have to do the twist fold. I have a KL 0, but it is just so bulky on her right now that I love my PFs. Her XS BG AIO is so so cute and I'd love more, but I know she will be out of them in no time, so I think I will get 6 smalls.

PP bleeding is already slowing. I switched to cloth because I just couldn't handle disposable pads. They are soooooo yucky. I've just been using infant prefolds because I don't have any mama pads. I always used a diva cup.

I have something going on with my boobs though. There is something that feels like a clog, but it isn't getting any worse. I CAN'T get it out. No pumping, massaging, showering, rice sock, nothing! So I am thinking it is just a milk duct that is huge, but it is tender to the touch. I am terrified that I am going to ignore it and then get mastitis.

[Oonah]

We're doing great. Baby regained birth weight by day 4 and gained 11oz in 3 days, no more jaundice thank goodness. Still, she is so tiny at 6lb 11oz 1 week ago...it's so hard to imagine that my other two kiddos were still in my belly when they weighed that much.
I can't believe how relaxed I am with this babe....way more than I was with my other 2...I love it.
We've scheduled our vasectomy consult for next week....I'm having second thoughts...dh isn't. I don't necessarily want more children but I don't know if I am quite ready to make that decision permanent....but we'll do the consult and schedule the procedure when the time is right. Oh how I wish I were 10 year younger
packed up my maternity clothes today....still undecided on whether or not to sell them or store them for a while....probably the latter until we finalize our plans.

Have any of your babes lost their cord stumps yet? We haven't yet and I can't wait for it to happen...since our babe is so small, our cloth dipes (kissaluvs size 0) were irritating it (even with the front buttoned down for the stump) so we're using sposies until the stump falls off.

[anjasma]

We are doing well...Saryn went from 6# 8 at birth to 6# 3 at three days. One week later she was 7# 8 and now over 8#s at two weeks! I have started introducing cloth dipes to her, but she really seems uncomfortable in them. I am using prefolds & flats with prowrap covers, and whenever she has them on she is super fussy, like from the instant I fasten them on. Any idea what I'm doing wrong? I really want to use cloth, but not if she is miserable in them!

So glad engorgement is over! And this time, no leaking and I don't feel let down like I did the first time. I am just ravenous, much more so than when preggo. And I am much happier if I can get a shower every day! Bleeding is slow (but can't go away quick enough...I hate this part!)

Nights are really going well! She sleeps great and wakes to eat every three hours or so, then goes right back down. And big sis is loving every baby bit and is a huge help. So is dh...I really feel spoiled!

[ShawnMarie]

We're doing well here, but DD eats non-stop. If she is not eating she's sleeping, so I am a bit sore.

She is also tongue-tied which causes some issues with the latch, hoping that will resolve itself since we are not planning to have her tongue snipped since she can push it past her lips. (So many varying opinions on this!)

Did have issues with her crying when wet with the cloth diapers. Resolved that with a different fold, fleece liners and a cover. Be glad when the cord is healed so we can use our fitteds. Right now they come up too high and you can't easily fold them down. Without them we only have a dozen dipes so we're doing laundry like crazy.

My DH is now a stay at home Dad and DD1 (13 soon to be 14) have both been helping out since I've been playing moo-cow nonstop. I don't know how new moms do it when they don't have anyone home to help.

I'm completely healed, hardly bleeding and horribly missing DTD with DH. I don't think he's going to be the one having a hard time waiting till we get the OK, it's going to be me. (Plus we want more DC and with me being 38 I know time is precious.)

[skg_7]

Going well here, too. I think the Baby Blues have passed, for the most part. That was tough, especially around Days 7 and 8.

Daniel is 12 days old today. Last time he was weighed was on Day 2, which is weird, I know. It was an oversight on the midwives' part. So I'll have my doula weigh him tomorrow. I have no concerns about his weight as he is nursing like crazy and has been since the moment he was born.

Sleeps in roughly 3-hour increments, sometimes 4.

Breastfeeding now is going well, but I had 6 days of engorgement. Six days!!! And cracked nipples. Now it only hurts for about the first 20 seconds.

Our 3-year-old is adjusting nicely after a pretty rough start. That's been unexpectedly hard on all of us, with such mixed and strong feelings for me. My heart was breaking as I watched him struggle and act out, but at the same time I was angry with some of his antics and not able to parent him very gracefully for the first week. Thankfully it's getting easier for us all.

[Jazzmin]

Things are going well here too. My aunt was here for a week and she was such a help! She cooked us lunch and dinner everyday and took the kids to the park. Everyone in the house benefited from her visit- esp DS2.

Nursing is going well. She really likes to eat! She weight 7lb 15oz at birth and then 8lbs even 3 days later, I don't think she lost much weight. Like Nate's Mom, DD preferred one breast over the other. The football hold and my breast pump really helped the situation- she loves both now

My sleep is surprisingly good at this point. I have been going to bed early and waking up when DS2 wakes up. DD wakes a few times a night to nurse, but not for too long. We are grasping the side lying position- not too much longer and I will be able to lie down while nursing, yay.

I boxed up all of my maternity clothes a few days ago. Then today an ad came in the mail for a local consignment business looking to buy maternity clothes. I think sometime this week I am going to sell them all! Not sure I want any more kids within the next 3 years.

DH is taking his last class this summer and is only out of the house for an hour and a half each day, thankfully at nap time. Him being here is such a help. He doesn't start his job until September so everyone gets to be at home for a few more months. I am really glad things worked out this way.

So far things are on the up and up. This has been my best postpartum experience ever.

[Kylahroo]

Originally Posted by Oonah

Have any of your babes lost their cord stumps yet? We haven't yet and I can't wait for it to happen...since our babe is so small, our cloth dipes (kissaluvs size 0) were irritating it (even with the front buttoned down for the stump) so we're using sposies until the stump falls off.

Yes, at 6 days. Thank goodness! We had the same problem you're having with cloth. One day, she was bleeding a bit and the cloth stuck to it. We didn't know it, pulled too hard and it really yanked her cord out a bit (which made it bleed even more). We bought a pack of sposies at that point and used them until it fell off.

We're having no problems with cloth right now. I absolutely love my FB's and wish I had more than a dozen! They work really well at keeping her dry. She HATES to be poopy and is wetting every 20 minutes so it's really hard to keep her in dry diapers.

[*Karen*]

Our cord fell off at 5 days.

We didn't have any irritation issues with cloth, but I was really careful about it. Also, we use preemie diapers that fit her really well. I think most diapers are just too big for newborns. I have a KL 0 that is still huge on DD.

I'm sure your cord will come off soon! Then the KLs will work great.