Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Matthew's new "fussy hour"

Something is up with my baby boy. The last few days, he's been "fussy" after about 2 pm. Nothing seemed to help. Nursing didn't help, rocking, swaying, singing, patting, burping, rubbing didn't help. A car ride only helped for a while, and so did a stroller ride. He was just fussy, fussy fussy. It was heartbreaking to see my baby boy crying so hard that his face turned red, he started coughing and he overheated, which made him more upset. This went on for hours, only interupted briefly when we tried a new thing, like his swing. We finally decided to head out to Shoppers for some Gripe water. Maybe that is his problem? So we bought the Gripe water and came back as soon as we could. The Gripe water seemed to help and finally, we had a calm, quiet, happy baby. Ahhh...sweet relief: time for bed. Ok, not quite. As soon as I took Matthew up to his room, he woke up and was unhappy again. Back downstairs we went and I finished watching the movie with a baby in my arms. At midnight, Matthew was "asleep", so I took him upstairs. It took another 45 minutes of rocking and swaying to convince him to lay down in his crib, but I finally got to sleep at 1 am. I'm hoping his new "fussy hour" is just a tummy upset problem and that the Gripe water will help prevent the overtired, upset, fussy crying jaunt that never seems to end. We shall see.

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Holy Big Boy Batman!

We had two appointments today. TWO! The first was to the Lactation consultant. First we weighed him. Drumroll please ... 10 pounds 5 ounces! WHAAAAA? He's HUGE! Of course, he wasn't all that small to begin with. The appointment from there went well. He's latching fine now and I'm still struggling with oversupply and forceful letdown, but he's coping. They're not worried about him getting too much foremilk since he's gaining just fine. The prescription is the same: hand express before each feed, two feeds on each side during the day, but alternate sides at night so I don't get too engorged and uncomfortable. I didn't make another appointment, but will call if I have issues again. Here's my latest picture of my big boy!

Our second appointment was a mommy appointment. I had been referred from the hospital to the Maternal Mental Health Clinic because of my history and weepiness in the hospital. We talked a lot about my history and concerns and the psychologist agreed that I did have post-partum blues, but they seemed to have resolved now. Matthew was hot and sweaty and not very happy. He was also hungry. The second appointment really screwed up our feeding schedule, so by the end of the appointment he was really really hungry. I tried to feed him in a private room, but it was very difficult without a pillow or anything. 30 minutes of feeding, crying, changing, feeding, crying later, I decided it was best just to get home ASAP. Too bad mommy decided it was a brilliant idea to save $20 and 15 minutes of frustration and park at the mall and walk to the hospital ... in 37 C heat! BAD MOMMY! We were miserable, but walking in the stroller seemed to calm Matthew down, despite the heat.
Mr. Man is a bit upset by all the day's activities, the heat and the screwed up feedings. We're hoping a nap will do him wonders. Daddy is trying to put him down right now, so we'll see how that goes. On an unrelated note, Daddy is sad today because his beloved Germany soccer team lost. Very sad, but we didn't really expect them to get this far. Maybe they will win the consolation prize next week!

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Opa's Cottage!

We took Matthew for his first visit to Opa's Cottage over the long weekend. We went up on Thursday all by ourselves and set him up in his playpen in the living room. It worked out well and I nursed Matthew in the living room. The rest of the weekend took some adjustment. It's tricky business when you don't have ALL your equipment with you. Matthew was good for the most part, but I just need to figure out how to participate in cottage activities with him. My sister in law had a brilliant idea. We put Matthew in his Snugli and I carried him around with an umbrella! That way he stays in the shade and I get to hang out a bit.

Since R was with me all weekend, he was able to take Matthew downstairs at 7 am so I could sleep for an extra hour or two. This is how I found them on Sunday!


We're heading up to the cottage again this weekend, a little older and a little wiser. (I can't believe my 29th birthday is on Thursday! And my Mr. Man will be 1 month old!). We hope to put together the old crib and then move the playpen downstairs again for afternoon naps and changes. It should be fun! Matthew's big cousins can't wait to see him again and watch the "big show" of the diaper change. Oh how fun everything is when you are 6!