Tag Archives: newborn
As I enter my third trimester for the 4th and final time (yes, I mean it this time!), I feel an odd sense of peace. Not only because every week that goes by gets me closer to a healthy baby and the end of just another miserable pregnancy, but also because I know this will be my last. It reminds me of high school and the weeks leading up to the big end of the year test which required countless practice tests, memorizing totally useless facts, and so much stress from parents and teachers. The second I handed in the test was total peace for me. I instantly forgot the bullshit I will never need to know and all the stress was lifted. That feeling is what I desperately look forward to once my boy is born. Don’t get me wrong, there will be weeks of very little sleep to […]
Postpartum depression is a roller coaster of emotions following giving birth. It can happen to fathers and mothers, and can manifest immediately or months after birth. For me, it came around 4 weeks postpartum with my third child. It is different for everyone who goes through it, but this is my version. My newest little lady is immensely beautiful and I could stare at her and snuggle with her all day long if I could. I try, but the other two littles running around preclude that fantasy! Thankfully I have an amazingly experiences baby-snuggler in the house who wants nothing more than to love on my newest bundle (Thanks Gg)! The only time I do not feel totally head over heels in love with Gabi, is the 5 minutes or so two times per night when she stirs me from my not actual sleep with her crying of hunger. […]
An 18 month old, a 6 week old, a husband, and two dogs under one roof… Sounds like the beginning of a joke! Well, it is my new reality, and one with which I am quite pleased. Sure there are some tantrums, many stinky diapers, vomiting fits, face reddening screams, and days that just don’t seem to go right no matter what I do. However, the majority of the time there are smiles, laughs, giggles, games, coos, new words, wonder, love, gratefulness, and so much more! SLEEPING: As of last week, we have a great routine down pat with Amelia (6 weeks) and Lili (18 months). Lili goes down like clockwork around 6pm (with the recent time change it bumped up from 5pm) and then Amelia cluster feeds, to go down in the pack n’ play in our room at 7pm. Lili sleeps until 730/800am and has been sleeping 12-14 […]
Breast Engorgement Amelia and I went home from the hospital on day 2. My milk came in the evening of day 2. Engorgement started in the morning of day 3 and was awful until day 5. Thankfully, she latched immediately upon being placed on my chest after birth. I needed to use nipple cream almost immediately, and shortly switched to Lansinoh Soothies Gel Pads which were a godsend! I hadn’t planned to pump because I didn’t want to mess up on demand feeding, but I was so engorged the inflammation was out of control and I felt like I was going to pop. They were hot to the touch, held indentations from my nursing top, my hair follicles were visible from across the room, and even the lightest touch made me cringe in pain. Don’t even get me started on how horrible it was to shower without any support […]
4 days in… It’s that moment when you realize your life is so amazing that you feel bad writing about it publicly because you feel like you are showing off. But you do it anyway 🙂 because you want to spread the joy to others! Perhaps it is my post-natal rush of hormones giving me such wonderful warm fuzzies, but they are undeniable regardless. I have my beautiful, vivacious 16-month-old Liliana who charms her way through anyone’s heart. My new addition, Amelia, is a sweet and squeezable cutie pie. My husband, Alec, is so supportive and helps with Lili every morning he is home. Our two dogs, Aedan and Maya have adjusted wonderfully to having another little one around. And, of course, my family and my husband’s family have been so supportive and wonderful, I really couldn’t have imagined a better situation. This time around is overall much better […]
I have been very torn about writing too prematurely thinking I may jinx Lili’s schedule, but she has been solid for a couple weeks now. I want to preface this by stating I did not really do any formal sleep training, as it was simply not needed. I did not do cry it out (she is too young anyway) or any other special techniques. Not to say Lili came out as an amazing sleeper, but I just gently instilled very good habits very early on and it is paying off. Please note, she will sleep about 2-3 hours for her main nap but does wake in between sleep cycles (about 45 mins into the nap) and fuss a low dull whine for about 2-3 minutes and then zonk back out without intervention. This is a normal waking pattern for infants…adults wake between cycles as well but often do not ever […]
It happened! I am in love! Well, to clarify, I have been in love with my husband for well over 7 years, but I am in love with my little girl. 4 weeks after giving birth to her, I looked at her adorable face (which bears striking resemblance to her father) and my heart melted. It was such a wonderful feeling I had wanted so badly to feel. She then started smiling at me and chatting (the way babies chat) and that is when everything changed. I look at her differently and inherently feel differently toward her. When she cries, albeit very seldom, it hurts me a bit more than before. When someone tells me how lovely and beautiful she is, it uplifts me a bit more than before. Now…the funny thing is that something else changed during this wonderful time. I now can honestly think about having […]
I had some reservations about posting this, as it is likely to receive a good bit of negative critiques. However, I realized that I am not alone in this, and other mothers should be aware of this and know it is normal and OK. I see this beautiful baby sound asleep on my chest and I feel…nothing. Actually, that’s not true, I do feel something but it isn’t positive; it’s guilt. I feel guilty for some reason because I do not feel that feeling every other mother talks about. All I ever wanted was to be a mother and I pressured my husband to have children sooner than he initially wanted. I was so sure that having a baby would so instantly enhance my life and just make my heart burst out of my chest like it does when I think of my husband. I am well read when […]
I am often asked, “Why do you love newborns so much?” Is it their innocence, their fragility, their helplessness? Certainly a combination of those attributes, but also their daily, almost hourly, maturation. It seems as if their hair grows just a little bit longer while they are down for a nap. They are more curious every day, and gain strength in their extremities at an impressive rate. Babies are a miracle and a mystery of the world, both human and otherwise. Babies are tiny humans, and learn how to be a human by watching, hearing and mimicking the world around them. These tiny humans are born with everything they need to not only survive, but to flourish in this tough world. They can breath air almost immediately after birth, when they have been swimming in fluid ever since conception. They can hear, while still in the womb. Their hearts […]