Lucy and Mimi (my mom)
This post is probably going to ramble a bit, but so much has been going on that I want to try to get it all down before I forget!
Lucy came home on Thursday to a house full of family anxious to meet her. We didn't even get in the door before her great-grandparents came out to see! I think she is so lucky to have so much family- 1 great-great-grandfather, 4 great-grandmothers, 2 great-grandfathers, 2 grandmothers, and 1 grandfather (plus one in heaven!) We had a lot of fun taking pictures and guessing about who she looks like. So far we think she has my eyes and hands, Brett's mouth and feet, and possibly her grandpa's hair (dark and wavy). She is also long and lean like both Brett and I. But she is changing everyday- so who knows? Personally I hope she keeps her dark blue eyes and dark hair!
On Friday we went to her first appointment at the pediatrician's. Lucy's doctors are Dr. Neibaum (who is a DO instead of an MD, which I love), and Dr. Petranaus, both of whom are awesome! They are totally supportive of our alternative vaccine schedule and have wonderful bedside manner. You can tell how much they love babies! Lucy had a great check-up. She had dropped from her birth weight of 6 lbs 3 oz to 5 lbs 15 oz, so a total of 4 oz- which is definitely normal. I'm sure we'll have no problem gaining back those 4 oz plus some in the next two weeks! I just can't wait until she gets a LITTLE bigger so we can start cloth diapering. She had no signs of jaundice still- in fact, Dr. Petranaus didn't even order the blood work because she looked so good. The slight murmur that Dr. Neibaum had heard when Lucy was born was gone- it's very common for newborn hearts to take a while to settle into their rhythms. Now all we have to do is take her back to the hospital to re-do her hearing test, as Lucy passed in the right ear but not the left. I'm not too worried about this either, because, again, it's very common in newborns.
On Saturday Lucy got her first bath. And I don't mean her first bath at home- I really mean her first bath, since she didn't get one in the hospital. I can't say she loved it! She had another last night (Monday), and screamed bloody murder the.whole.time. Normally crying doesn't really get to me (by-product of being the oldest of seven), but this was driving me crazy! I felt so bad for her. Lucy felt a lot better, though, when she got a lotion massage- probably because I let her stay in just her diaper, cuddled up in one of her super-soft blankies. My child is a total nudist- I don't think I even bothered dressing her (besides diapers and blankets) for a couple days- she was so much happier that way. She loves to cuddle skin-to-skin on your chest and will lay like that for hours.
Sunday was pretty uneventful, besides my mom having to return home to PA. I really felt bad watching her go. She was so helpful and supportive! We are talking on the phone now more than ever, though, and we will *hopefully* be traveling to PA next month for Lucy's baptism. Oh, I almost forgot- I decided to try on some of my pre-baby clothes and was so excited to see I could fit into all my jeans! YAY! Running does a pregnant body good :-) Most of my dresses are still a little tight, mainly because my jeans sit UNDER my belly while my dresses have to go OVER, but I'm sure they will fit again in no time. I will say that I need to work on gaining some weight because I definitely think I look too thin. When I left the hospital they weighed me and I was already below my pre-pregnancy weight. It's just so wonderful to be able to walk in my closet and pick out whatever I want to wear- no size restrictions! I also splurged a little and put in a JCrew order. But I figured I worked hard while I was pregnant, and I didn't buy any new non-maternity clothes for a whole 9 months, and very, very few maternity ones (since I wear a uniform to work anyways). I am totally excited too because my awesome father-in-law said I could pick out an outfit from JCrew and he would buy it for me! But that is a decision that will take much contemplation, so I am still drooling over the website waiting for a certain cashmere sweater to go on sale.
On Monday we went for our first walk outside, and I got the hang of my Moby. Lucy seems to really love it! I have two different holds/wraps down so far, and am getting much quicker at putting it on. I love that I can walk around with it and hide her from people's dirty hands. Also on Monday, I was changing Lucy's diaper when I realized she had lost her umbilical cord already! Even though it looked perfectly healed, I was a little concerned that it was so early- only 5 days- but according to Dr. Sears and a few other sources it's fine as long as it's not bleeding (and it's definitely not). I'm going to credit the early healing to the fact that I used witch hazel instead of alcohol on her cord.
Brett also had to go back to Athens that night so he could work in the morning, so last night was Lucy and I's first night alone. I was a little nervous being in the house by myself, but we did great- AND Lucy nursed both her late-night feedings (2 am and 5 am) in bed, with me, in the side-laying position! I was pumped about this because it is so wonderful to be able to cat-nap while you nurse. My technique is to wake up when Lucy lets me know she's hungry, nurse her on one side until she's done, get up and change her diaper, then crawl back into bed and offer the other side. The other plus to this is that Lucy is already pretty chilled out by the time we get to her diaper, which is a good thing because she really doesn't like to be changed.
Overall we had a wonderful first week, and are now looking forward to getting Lucy's swing in the mail, which Uncle Stevo so graciously bought her. I also started a master's class this week, so while Lucy sleeps during the day I am busy with that. It really helps to pass the time while Brett's gone and it's good to have some adult conversation/academic thinking.
Go Tigers!
4 comments:
Love the recap! Sounds like you two are really getting to know one another, and it's awesome that the co-sleeping thing is working out :)
Can't wait to meet little Lucy!
I'm glad everything is going so well thus far! I also love using my wrap (well, sling really) when I go out in public. People want to see her but they won't touch her because that's definitely my personal space! Eleanor's cord fell off at 7 days...I don't think 5 days is too early. Our hospital told us to not put anything on it at all, and that seemed to work fine.
I'm glad the cosleeping thing is working for you! I am just way too much of a light sleeper and all of her little sounds would keep me up. I tried nursing her in bed during the night, but I kept dozing off and I would wake up in a panic. I did that one time, and for the next 2 days every time I woke up I would jerk up, heart pounding, and start fumbling through the sheets looking for the baby - even though she was safe in her cradle or in the other room with Hunter. For my sanity's sake, I never did that again! I do feed her like that sometimes around 5 or 6 AM if I'm awake but just not ready to get up yet, but not in the middle of the night because I'm afraid I would fall asleep and roll on top of her. I wish it worked for me like it does for you! Oh, and I think we started the cloth diapers when she was 8 days old. I was just waiting for the cord to be gone - I thought the diapers might be too big, but they worked fine. (Bumgenius)
Hey Beth!
Co-sleeping is definitely a very personal decision- it doesn't work for everyone, and there's obviously nothing wrong with that! I think that every mother has to make decisions about what works best for her and her baby, and I'm just lucky that co-sleeping works for us.
Lots to say!
I'm so glad the drs you got are supportive of the alternate vaccine schedule. My pediatrician isn't, but I don't really like her anyway. Luckily, I haven't needed a relationship with her anyway. And I am the one who is responsible for my daughter, as you are for yours, so their opinion doesn't sway me when I've done a bunch of reading.
Will you have your 2 week checkup soon? I can't wait to hear how much Lucy weighs now! Awesome on the no jaundice & no murmur!
Elyana screamed and cried at her first bath. I now think part of it was she was cold, part was the new sensation. By 3 weeks old she loved them though! What I did in the interium was not bathe her much, and when I did, I finished and let her lay naked skin-to-skin with me and nurse. That soothed her. We continued that for a long time, but add a diaper sometimes after a few accidents. :)
Aren't wraps & slings the greatest?!? I adore both of mine and she still gurgles with excitement at times when I pull them out.
Elyana's cord fell out 6 days after she was born. I was glad!
Awesome about the prepregnancy clothes! I really loved getting back into most of my jeans by the second week postpartem, but my shirts still don't fit because of my increased bust and my still-there-belly. But I'm still working out, I'll get there! You're a great inspiration!
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