PS Mommy Thread-Newborn to 12 months!

[taovandel]

Lulu: Things that surprised me about labor. It goes by sooooo quickly. I was in the hospital for maybe 14 or 16 hours in labor---but it felt like Meresal''s quick delivery! Just take everything in...it''s an amazing time in your life.

I wish I had asked someone else to take pictures in the Delivery room...my husband was on duty for that....he got amazing photos and a lot of great memories...but, I wonder if it took away from his experience...I never asked...maybe I should.

Also know that you might throw up. I was surprised that I threw up a few times...I had bad "morning" sickness my entire pregnancy...so I had to eat every few hours or else it got really bad. I couldn''t eat in the hospital...so I wound up throwing up. I think in my moment of puking in a bag in front of my husband was the moment I realized how much he loves me. haha.

Also, I remember being super cold the entire time...like shivering and chattering...I think Meresal mentioned this also. It kinda scared me at first...so know that that could happen to you to.

Along the lines of taking pictures...I wish I had been in more pictures....I was aware of how crazy I looked so I didn''t want to be in any pictures....I regret that now.

Don''t worry if your delivery doctor isn''t who you wanted it to be. The nurses do all the work and get none of the credit. The Dr. comes in for the last few pushes...but the nurses are the ones who motivated you for the hour before to push.

Epidural---you will get a catheter. So remember to hide the pee bag when guests come in..hehe.

You could poop or fart when in the pushing stages...it''s normal and no one really cares....including you.

Recovery: They will give you the biggest hugest pads in the world---I was also given tucks. You will also receive a squirt bottle to put water in to clean yourself.

Nurses will come in every few hours to check on your bleeding and to make sure your uterus is shrinking back to size...so having a ton of guests come see you in the hospital is a bit awkward because you have kick them out.

At my hospital you couldn''t leave until a nurse saw you walk to the bathroom and sit down on the toilet....and you had to report back if you could pee or not. So be aware that this might happen to you. I was surprised about it---I''m a really modest person and I like my privacy. I had a great nurse who made a huge joke about it and was like "Oh, you are one of those....." hehe. But after 5 times of her looking at me to see if I was bleeding I could care less about her seeing me pee!


Trying to think of other surprising things I wish I had known.....can''t think of anything else.

I hope this helps.

 

[Mandarine]

HOLY DROOL MONSTER BATMAN!!!!!!!!!!

So I'm letting Lucas sleep on his belly if he's little heart desires ...otherwise I would literally have to flip him over every two seconds until he falls sleep (which as we know could take 2 hours!).

Well, when he's on his belly he drools like a MONSTER. He's in a pool of drool. I just went to flip him over and he was wet all over because of the drool

What should I do?.

 

[cdt1101]

Date: 4/27/2010 7:20:42 PM
Author: Mandarine
HOLY DROOL MONSTER BATMAN!!!!!!!!!!


So I''m letting Lucas sleep on his belly if he''s little heart desires ...otherwise I would literally have to flip him over every two seconds until he falls sleep (which as we know could take 2 hours!).


Well, when he''s on his belly he drools like a MONSTER. He''s in a pool of drool. I just went to flip him over and he was wet all over because of the drool

What should I do?.

Lex used to do this too (he was always a belly sleeper), I just let him sleep that way. I figure if he''s content in his own drool, who am I to disrupt that

 

[Sha]

Date: 4/27/2010 7:20:42 PM
Author: Mandarine
HOLY DROOL MONSTER BATMAN!!!!!!!!!!

So I''m letting Lucas sleep on his belly if he''s little heart desires ...otherwise I would literally have to flip him over every two seconds until he falls sleep (which as we know could take 2 hours!).

Well, when he''s on his belly he drools like a MONSTER. He''s in a pool of drool. I just went to flip him over and he was wet all over because of the drool

What should I do?.

How about having him sleep on an absorbent rag/towel?

 

[steph72276]

Lulu, ditto to what everyone else has already said and I really second what Tao said about getting over any modesty issues pretty quickly. I am very modest, and was mortified that when I had visitors, a nurse came in a emptied my catheter out right in front of them like it was nothing. After that, I told Adam no more visitors except parents! Seriously, these nurses do this everyday, so it is no big deal to them, but it was to me. All I could do was make a joke about it and apologize with a flaming red face

 

[vizsla]

Super duper quick as I am posting from my phone. But I wanted to answer blen. Has your hard spot/ duct area gotten bigger? Have you had symptoms of mastitis? Is your skin red above the clog? Is it painful to the touch? Does your skin look like there is a water blister underneath? If the skin is not red chances r you prob do not have an abscess. Yet. The skin turns red (as well as the other things I mentioned) after it has formed and too late. Not all abscesses require surgery. Little ones can b drained at the doc office. You will need to get a bb ultrasound to see. Mine was the size of a softball and actually had dead tissue that they removed as well. I kept thinking it was a blocked duct but. Yeah. Not so much. Not to scare you or anything but an abscess is nothing to mess around with. If it bursts, then you can go septic ( a point my surgeon made very clear when I asked for the 1000th time why I needed surgery again).
Boy I''m full of great posts today.
I''d ask for an ultrasound if it doesn''t resolve in 24 hrs. Have they put you on antibiotics?

Lulu thritto on what Tao said in particular. And everyone else. My personal pref. Was also sending babe to the nursery at night so I could sleep. That may have been the last time I did that

 

[Mara]

lol re modesty in the hospital, oh yeah there is none of that. the nurse actually would not let me pee alone the first time...it was soon after my epi so they wanted to make sure i could walk and also they want to check your pee for blood and clots. so yummy!! i was like uhhh... so she took me in and i had to pee in this little kiddie toilet thing then she looked in and went 'looks great!'... awesome. after that thankfully i could pee on my own and just had to report back any super large clots or lots of bleeding. and yep they come in and check you a lot... and yep for there not being a lot of modesty...after the birth my dad came to visit the next day and since you are all swollen and outta control down there you don't have much control over anything. he walks in and is all hey how's it going etc and i am going hi and i farted so loudly. we all looked surprised...it was hilarious. but i had no control...hahaa. anyway.

i also felt cold and shivery, not sure from the drugs or epi or hormones or what.

and yah the first night , well it was the morning already but we had them take him to nursery so we could get at least a few hours of sleep, we were both exhausted. it was only like 4 hours of sleep but we felt so much better and we kept him with us the next night. he LOVED the jaundice light thing and slept like a 'baby' in it...we had to wake him up when it was time to feed. so having him in there with us was not an issue after the first night.

cc, re blocked ducts...i mentioned i get them quite often, they do seem to drain out but then they come back so i have had mine for a few weeks now but they aren't painful and aren't red or anything like that at all. so i just figure they are prone to blocking and try to make sure they drain by massaging them. if you don't feel like the site is angry or painful and you saw the dr then i wouldn't worry too much?

mandarine, i third leaving him in the drool. i always figure if something isn't bothering J then why mind hehee. i mean he sleeps in his 12 hour diaper all gigantic and full of pee. gross!

just have to say i love target. i just got formula for $5 off (20%), and they have a special on sensitive swaddlers where if you buy three packs you get $5 back etc. i saved a ton by stocking up. yay.

 

[jcrow]

just popping in to say hello! i wish i would have read up on this thread before little e was born. ah well.

for those that don''t venture into the preggo thread, little e was born april 7. hubs is back at work now and all the family/help has left so it''s just e and i during the day. things are going well, she sleeps + eats and is now starting to have a couple awake periods where we do lots of interacting, singing, playing, etc. with her.

 

[phoenixgirl]

Ginger, I''m so glad it''s not cancer. So glad. But yeah, that doesn''t make the rest of the stuff any easier. I get you on the perspective stories too. It''s so easy not to see the forest for the trees when you''re a manic, hormonal, sleep-deprived mess. Just take it one day at a time and give yourself permission not to be perfect all the time.

I know I''ve been kind of MIA recently. The AP exam is next week, and I''m holding all these extra prep sessions for the kids. After next week, it will be all downhill until the end of the year (and work! School''s out . . . for . . . summer! School''s out . . . for . . . ever!). I''m looking forward to being able to relax with my family, and shop for groceries, and exercise, and make home-made baby food, and read books. People mention a book I should read or buy me freezer thingies so I can make my own baby food, and I''m like, um, do you realize how crazed and tired I am and how I spend all of my free time on my lesson plans? This is no way to live! At least, not unless I made at least three times as much and had a stay-at-home husband!

In fact, I think it''s time to get in bed!

 

[anchor31]

Date: 4/27/2010 8:46:54 PM
Author: jcrow
just popping in to say hello! i wish i would have read up on this thread before little e was born. ah well.

for those that don''t venture into the preggo thread, little e was born april 7. hubs is back at work now and all the family/help has left so it''s just e and i during the day. things are going well, she sleeps + eats and is now starting to have a couple awake periods where we do lots of interacting, singing, playing, etc. with her.

Hi! Congrats and welcome to the mommy thread! I''m glad to hear little E is doing well... You must be tired and probably emotional now that DH is back to work and family are gone, but don''t hesitate to come here if you need any support!

 

[taovandel]

Welcome JCrow: E is beautiful....definitely come visit here if things get crazy with family and husband gone....

 

[Mandarine]

Thanks guys!!!

So the drool monster could just NOT get comfortable. He kept rolling over to his belly, swimming in his drool, crying, etc. Finally I decided enough is enough. Got the good old positioner out and put him in it. Sleeping like a baby within 5 minutes.

I have no idea if this is a good or bad idea...but I figured until he gets really good about rolling back and forth then maybe he should be contained

. I will elt him do whatever he wnats for naps because I don''t wnat to go through "positioner rehab"...like I did with swaddle rehab!.

So what do you guys think?

Jcrow Welcome!!!!!

E is so beautiful!!!!

Congrats!!!

 

[Blenheim]

Welcome, Jcrow! That's so cool that E and G share a bday.

Ginger, I'm really glad to hear that it's not cancerous. I'm sorry that you're dealing with all of that though.

L&D - I got the shakes too, with a natural delivery. It surprised me. Evidently it's the hormones.
It also surprised me how quickly labor went by. I didn't have a short labor by any means (43 hrs), and it really wasn't too bad until transition and then, while intense, it just flew by. I pushed for something like 2.5 hours and it feels like it was just minutes.
What was considered normal as far as post-delivery clotting went really surprised me. Be prepared to pass a bunch of yucky stuff. Like, up to golf ball size.

Ditto PHOTOS. And while it's really cool to have a picture of the baby coming out, tell your photographer to get some photos that do not have prominent vag or nipple.

Lesson learned over here...
We had discussed how involved DH would be in the birth, and with us that went out the window too. He was going to be on the business end of things, but I ended up pushing out G while kind of squatting in front of DH, hanging onto his neck and shoulders. (Poor guy.)
I've had four epidurals for back-related reasons, and felt like crap with them. I know that some others sing their praises, but that was the beginning of my inspirations for a natural delivery. Going drug-free is HARD but I felt good as soon as George was out. I barely noticed the placenta coming out - I gave a little baby push and that was it.

Viz - thanks so much for weighing in! The one on the left has stayed about the same size and the one on the right (yes, I got a double whammy) has gotten bigger despite me working on them. Neither's the size of a softball (holy cow!) but the left one's about 1" in diam and the right one's about 1.5" in diam, and they're both about the length of a thumb, so pumping/expressing is youchy. They're painful to the touch. No symptoms of mastitis, skin's not red, doesn't look like there's a water blister underneath. They didn't put me on antibiotics, but then again I don't have a fever or signs of infection. They did do a blood test to rule out infection, and I guess if that comes back positive then they'll probably address antibiotics then. So you'd give 24 hrs? They're so big that I'm feeling doubtful right now that they'll be gone by then.

Mara - normally if I had just seen a doc who said I was fine, I'd feel okay, but I just wasn't sure about her. (It was my first time seeing her.) I think that she was most concerned about ruling out cancer, which obviously is something that I don't want to have, but it wasn't really what I was worried about. She didn't seem to understand why I was concerned about plugged ducts that haven't gone away at all a week later, or really offer any suggestions for getting them to go away.

Um, it is weird that I don't know what gymbucks are? I guess I'll try to google it tonight.

ETA - Pandora, thanks for the dress recommendation! I've been having a time because the styles that I naturally gravitate towards have non-stretchy fabric that doesn't work terribly well for bfing, like sheath dresses and the like. I've found some cute wrap ones and am trying to figure out which to buy now.

 

[taovandel]

I''ve actually been thinking of trying for a med free birth next go around. The epidural was nice and all but mine was waaaaay to strong and I think it hindered me a bit.


I also agree----make sure the husband knows that even though they say they aren''t going to be involved...things fly out the window during the pushing stage. Nerves, anxiousness to finally meet your LO, nurses telling you to look, etc.....all of this just makes the husband want to look. My husband was very vocal to me that he wasn''t going to look....He wound up holding my leg. The very first time the nurse said she could see his hair...he looked voluntarily.

All rules/plans get thrown out the window when you are in the actual delivery process.

 

[KimberlyH]

Tips for Lulu:

The best thing I did to prepare was remind myself childbirth has been done for many years by billions of women, that my body was meant to do this and that everything would be just fine.

I didn''t feel the need to be in control ofvery detail of the process, that helped when things changed. I was open to going with or wihout meds, etc.

Choose who you want present prior to delivey and discuss with your doc. There was so much going on prior to my being induced I forgot to do so and ended up in an awkward situation in the delivery room.

Revel in every minute. Relax. Breathe.

Take time to talk to your spouse privately. I wrote John a letter and gave it to him the night I was induced. It meant a lot to him as so much focus is placed on the mother.

*********

more later, need to feed littlr miss piggy....

 

[mtjoya]

Date: 4/27/2010 10:43:57 PM
Author: KimberlyH
Tips for Lulu:

The best thing I did to prepare was remind myself childbirth has been done for many years by billions of women, that my body was meant to do this and that everything would be just fine.

I didn''t feel the need to be in control ofvery detail of the process, that helped when things changed. I was open to going with or wihout meds, etc.

Choose who you want present prior to delivey and discuss with your doc. There was so much going on prior to my being induced I forgot to do so and ended up in an awkward situation in the delivery room.

Revel in every minute. Relax. Breathe.

Take time to talk to your spouse privately. I wrote John a letter and gave it to him the night I was induced. It meant a lot to him as so much focus is placed on the mother.

*********

more later, need to feed littlr miss piggy....

Ditto, what helped me out the most was breathing. My friend also suggested to think, "mind over body." That helped me out the most. I kept thinking, this is a natural process and my mind is stronger than my body. I can''t feel anything, I am weightless. That helped out a ton!

 

[lovelylulu]

you ladies are absolutely amazing with all of this insight and advice. thank you so much!

as far as photos, who would be a good alternative to my DH that would also be in the delivery room? I don''t think that I''m having anyone other than DH witness this event!

 

[Mandarine]

Lulu, I''m glad everyone is giving you some advice!. My delivery was pretty "easy"...I say that since I knew it would be a c-section.

-Post delivery though the MOST important thing I have to say is SPEAK up. I had a breakdown regarding BFing because I was getting VERY little help...and I really really really needed some help!. I think part of my failure with BFing was due to mistakes don very early on at the hospital.

-Not sure if someone mentioned this...but give yourself and your husband time alone with the baby before ANYONE else comes to see you guys. I treasure those moments that it was just teh (four) of us with our babies. I don''t think we said much, we just all sat there (well, I was laying down!) just taking in all the beauty of our babies. think we were by ourselves a good 2-3 hours before we allowed his mom and my sister to come in the room.

****

So my drool monster slept until 6:2am this morning!!!

So he just needs to have limited freedom

The sleep positioner worked great....I think I''ll use it for a week or so and then try to take it away to see what he does. Maybe by then he''s over the "must roll over and swim in my drool and then freak out" phase

 

[fieryred33143]

lulu-I found, at least in my experience, that if you ask the nurses they''ll do it for you. I had FI, the OB, my labor nurse, and another nurse in the room. I have no idea what that nurse was doing there lol. She could have easily taken some photos. Also, sometimes the baby nurse (the one that does all the newborn procedures) will come in before the baby is born so you can get her to snap a quick photo.

****

So Sophia is thisclose to crawling

.

She goes a couple of steps before sitting which is awesome. I think she finally realized that she can get to places a lot faster and with less effort if she crawls rather than drag herself across the room. Of course we have to bribe her with the usual stuff: cups filled with water, pots, pans, cell phones, remotes (the ones that work, not the ones we don''t use anymore

)

I really hope she gets the hang of it by Saturday. We have 2 birthday parties to go to, one at a park and another at a museum. She will have so much fun if she can crawl around, especially at the museum

. So exciting!

 

[vizsla]

lulu -have your L&D nurse take pics! mine did i think i had a pretty "easy" labor compared to my friends and the ladies here (extra special shout out to pandora

however, the one overwhelming consensus amongst them is that you will remember exactly zero discomfort the second you hold your baby. i hesitate to use the word 'pain' as i never thought anything was *painful* (am i going to get beat up for this?) ... i remember that it didn't feel *good* but i can't remember the actual feeling, KWIM? it's a weird wild ride and advice given here has really been fantastic - but your delivery will be exactly that.. yours so if you remember our 'advice' ? awesome... and if you don't.. well that's awesome too! the second you hold your little girl everything else - the last 9 months - labor - delivery - will become a distant memory.

but i would ditto mandy and try and spend a little time with your babe before introducing her to the world.. it was a very special time for the three of us

blen - my midwife was very concerned when the size didn't get smaller after 24 hrs of doing the warm compress, massage etc. clogs *should* get smaller. by the time i had my abscess i was over the mastitis and felt "fine". also, i couldn't feel the softball in my bb.. if i describe my BB as a clock the clog felt like it went from 12-2. but it was MUCH bigger underneath. if you are concerned i would have your midwife either try and work the clog out for you (this is UBER painful) or ask for an ultrasound to see what is going on in there. an abscess is pretty visible. my doc used the same ultrasound machine they used for my belly

mandy - i think that the sleep positioner is an AWESOME tool! i might try mine again tonight!

wait wait wait.... WELCOME JCROW!!!!!!!

and crawl crawl crawl sophia! you can dooooooo eeeettttttt!!! and then watch out fiery

 

[E B]

First nap of the day, so I have a minute to post. Yay!

Ginger- I'm so glad to hear it's not cancer, and I'm so sorry to hear about the rest of it. Sending many e-hugs your way.

JCrow- Hello and welcome to you and baby girl E!

Mara- Your 'no modesty' story made me *ha!* out loud. I had to quickly cover my mouth so I didn't wake the baby. He's still snoozing, thank goodness.

lulu- We had my mom, my MIL, and DH in the room. Someone was snapping photos (no vaj shots) and I'm so glad s/he did. We've got some great ones of the second he was placed on my chest. I look so tired, but *so* happy. And I third (fourth, fifth?) everyone who says modesty flies out the window during and after birth. I'm a pretty modest person in general, and my mom was surprised at how un-modest I became during the whole process. Everyone else has given you great advice. You're going to do great.

Mandarine- Glad to hear the sleep positioner worked!

fiery- Yay, Sophia! That's what Henry did too- just a couple of "steps," then sit. Within a few days of the first steps, he was fully crawling. It'll be no time.

I bought H a pair of little swim trunks from Target, and we're going to hit the local pool this week. Can you take babies into the adult pool? I hope so, since I wasn't able to find a swimming class that wouldn't interfere with his nap schedule. I figured I'd just take him into the pool for now and hopefully a class will open up later in the summer that'll work for us.

Second report on "true" solid feeding (for Fiery): The other day, we gave H a big chunk of banana to chew on. He'd been doing well with the smaller banana pieces, and I kept reading that large pieces they could hold would be even safer, so we gave it a shot. Bad idea. H took a couple of delicate nibbles, and then proceeded to SHOVE the whole huge piece into his mouth.

Good thing we were sitting right there- we got most of it out, and he happily munched on the small pieces we didn't get. Pandora, Blen, whoever else is doing BLW: Where did we go wrong?

On a happier note: Anyone have any specific Mother's Day wants/needs/plans in mind? The first Mother's Day (for most of us, right?) is a pretty special one, IMO.

 

[jcrow]

re: mother''s day. my family is driving in that weekend to see the baby and our new house. they live in another state and i haven''t seen them since february. so, that''s how we''re spending our first mother''s day.

 

[steph72276]

Good morning! Just got back from a nice long jog/walk, it is BEAUTIFUL here today! Heading up to the mall in a bit to get the boys some summer clothes. E was 3 months yesterday, time is flying by! Hope everyone has a lovely day!

Mandi, hope you have a great day, Happy birthday!!

Mara, I''ve taken the stroller out on two jogs and love it so far, taking it to the mall today. Hope everyone there is feeling better and G didn''t pass on the sickness.

CC, Cute pics! I love his hat...I''m on a mission to find a good one today!

Viz, thanks for the info on ibuprofen.

SoCal, sorry about the sleep issues, hope it goes back to normal soon.

Blen, gymbucks are for a children''s clothing store, Gymboree. They have these promotions all the time that if you spend $50, you get a coupon for $25 off so it''s a really good deal if you were going to buy anyway.

Jcrow, congrats! So good to see you here and glad everything is going well with precious little E!

PG, yay for school almost being over!!!

Fiery, yay for S almost crawling!

EB, I think he will be fine in the adult pool as long as he has the little swimmie diapers on. I need to check those out, I wonder if they make them small enough for my E? Mother''s day weekend is going to be crazy for us. It''s Adam''s birthday that weekend, my cousin''s college graduation (and I''m helping throw her a party) and then Mother''s Day. I would actually just love to sleep in and have my boys make breakfast! What about you?

Hello to everyone else, I''ve gotta go run and take a shower while E is napping!

 

[ChinaCat]

Morning ladies!

Fiery- Yay for crawling!!! She''s going to be full-on crawling by this weekend, methinks!

Jcrow- WELCOME!!! So nice to see you on the other side! How''s it going?

EB- I also got O some swim trunks at Target! Maybe they are the same.

They are sooo cute. I also got him some little "surf" shoes that look just like some DH has. I need to check into a swim class. Putting that as number 5672 on my "to do" list.

Speaking of a to do list, I have been blog shopping lately (trying to find my fave ones and put them in one spot so I can do a quick update reading every morning) and one I stumbled upon that I wanted to like was about Zen habits. But the first post I read said to get rid of the "to do" list. Umm, clearly zen habits are NOT for new moms. I can''t remember ANYTHING these days, I would so get fired if I got rid of my to do list. Even with the to do list I totally forget stuff.

Lulu- You''ve gotten great advice. But as you can see, we all have DIFFERENT advice! So I would say go in with an open mind. I totally agree on the pictures, having some time alone with DH and baby, speaking up and asking questions, etc. Ditto on the nurses being the thing that matters, my OB came in at the very last minute (literally). But I will say that I did NOT have that this is so wonderful feeling at first. My labor did hurt and I do remember it. Unlike some lucky moms on here I HATED pushing. And I had a relatively easy labor/delivery. The recovery is hard and you will be asking yourself every day, are you kidding me with this? Because there''s something new every day that is either painful or overwhelming. I was amazed at the fact that this little guy came out of me, but to be honest, I expected to have this moment of recogniiton when I saw him, like OF COURSE that''s MY son. Nope, he was a stranger to me. I instantly loved him and felt fiercely protective, but I did not have that "so in love" feeling until later. I really hope and wish you do that have that instantaneous feeling, and many do, but wanted to warn you in case you don''t. It''s ok, it''s normal and you WILL have it soon. Also, I was not prepared for how needy a newborn is, and they are needy for YOU and pretty much you only. My DH and mom were there to help, but nursing is non-stop for the first few weeks. I wish I had felt less guilty about letting others take him when he didn''t need to nurse. The key to recovery is to remember to take care of yourself. DH''s job should be to take care of you. Ok after saying all of this "negative" stuff, I will say that he is the brightest light of my life and so worth every painful moment.

 

[drk]

Ginger - so glad it''s nothing cancerous. I didn''t realize you''d gone through all that for the BFing. Sounds like you''ve got a great supply now - I''d love to hear how you managed to turn things around like that since I''m still struggling here.

Lulu - I reminded DH to take some photos after she came out, since my Mom arrived too late to do tha. We''d also gotten a flip video camera from my Dad for Xmas, and he got some great clips of us bonding after birth, and made a labour and delivery video to send to far-away relatives. They loved it.
I also wish I''d bought a pump far sooner and started adding that in to boost my supply.

 

[KimberlyH]

continued...

Mandy, hang in there. You''re doing everything right (says the mom whose kid won''t sleep in the p''n''p when it''s butted up against the bed and she is sleeping less than 1 foot away

)

Steph, my obstacles are so minor they aren''t even worth the empathy. We truly feel so lucky that she is such an easy baby. I can deal with sleep and breastfeeding issues are manageable (albeit a bit painful, she tried running away with my nipple a few times this morning).

Mara, have a great trip.

Amber, thanks for making me feel like I''m not failing cuz my kid won''t sleep in the "appropriate" place. I just tell myself it''s because she already loves me sooooo much!

Ginger, I hope you''re feeling okay. No words of wisdom, just sympathy.

Welcome, jcrow.

fiery, hooray for your big crawler!

*****

So we had the big 2 month appt. She didn''t even react to her shots, other than crying during them. She went from 3% to 10% in weight, 10% to 25% in length and her head grew an inch, but I can''t recall the percentiles. She''s a whopping 7 lbs 10 oz and 21.5 inches long, my big girl! It was the first time we were in the waiting room and didn''t have the smallest baby (there was a preemie 2 day old in the room). I''m so pleased with her growth.

She finally hit 21 inches, so I got to take her for a long walk in the sling yesterday. We met up with a friend who has a 3 week old and had a great time. I''ve got 12 lbs. left to lose before I get back to the weight I was prior to this pregnancy and another 5 to get back to my original weight, pre-miscarriage. I gained 29 lbs, so I''m pleased with my progress.

 

[fieryred33143]

Yay Kim for a great appointment

EB-I''m sorry but that made me laugh! I''m glad he''s doing well with it though. Sophia can''t seem to understand what''s food, unless it looks like puffs

 

[anchor31]

lulu - I loved having my mother there with us for the delivery. We are very close and she was an amazing birthing coach. I find it funny that people suggested pictures so much, because I actually got rid of the inly picture DH took of me while I was in labour. I looked exhausted, in pain and straight-out terrible.

I wouldn't be comfortable asking the nurses to take pics, they are busy enough as it is.

Re: mother's day - My birthday is the Thursday before, so I was hoping for breakfast in bed or something, but we'll have to go to church to present J to the parish before his baptism the next week-end. Plus it's going to be the first full week-end in our new house, so I'm sure we'll be very busy... I do hope I'll be able to catch some sort of break though!

fiery - Yay on S almost crawling!

 

[jcrow]

thanks for the warm welcome everyone!

ChinaCat - things are going well. starting to figure it all out. nights are a little rough, but they are getting better.

 

[gingerB]

mandy - yay for a solution! glad lucas is sleeping peacefully again

lulu - ditto on what everyone else has said - esp the nausea, the post delivery fog. and super ditto on the no visitors for a few hours. we did not do this to my regret. oh and i was not prepared for how my body would feel right after. euphoria when i first saw him then a few minutes later i felt like i could NOT keep my eyes open. and for the first few days -- i understood what another pser had posted -- i felt like i had been hit by a mack truck.

viz - i am still really worried it''s an abscess. i''m scheduled for an u''s next friday. that was quite an ordeal you went through. how did you do the slow wean? my ob called to check on me and when i told her my concerns re: cont to bf -- she told me to keep going and that we would handle issues as they come. that made me feel so much better.

jcrow -

pg - yup -- sometimes i find myself getting sucked into the details and need to just step back for a minute. and just to balance out the perspective stories, my friend called to check on me and after i updated her, told me she had a question to ask but didn''t want to ask anymore because it felt dumb compared to what i was going through. i convinced her to go ahead and ask, and it was re: a work issue. not quite dramatic as mastitis/abscess/bfing drama, but very important to her. which also made me realize that although my problems may not be as dire as others, it is also ok to feel yuck-o about them.

fiery - gooooo sophia!!!

eb - i can NOT wait to take A to the pool. he oves bath time so much i hope he''ll have a ball in the pool

steph - happy 3 months to E!

cc - thanks for your lead...will keep ya posted. is O feeling better?

drk - i pumped pumped pumped and pumped. 8-9 times a day initially, at least one during that critical 1am-5am hormone peak period every night. drank a LOT of water and ate oatmeal everyday.it took a while for my supply to increase, but it slowly but surely it did. hope things get flowing for you soooon!

kim - yay for a great 2 month appt and yay for the progress on the weight!

mara - lol...A is a flapping duck in his bath too. hubbs calls it his supahstah dance. it is ridiculously cute.

blen - boo for the plugs

=======================================================

in a better frame of mind today. bb isiues still

i have a plugg in that area again and no u/s available until next week. really really not looking to have an abscess right now.

we got A to do that real baby giggle again!!! and i got it on video -- def a the highlight of my week

trying to wrap my mind around starting work again. and trying to savor every moment with A.

all of ya''ll have been so great -- the support has been priceless. funny how i can''t talk about a lot of this IRL -- so coming here and venting and getting the support and btdt advice has been such a relief for my sanity. thanks ladies.