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6 months+

Kacie — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 01:31:43 +0000

Johnny-Johnny-WOO-WOO (sometimes I call him that…idk why) turned six months old on Saturday! We were moving to a new apartment that day so I didn’t have a chance to blog.

Stats

On the 19th, he had his six-month visit with the pediatrician. He’s 18 lbs. 2oz., 26.5 inches long, and doing well in every way! He has about 15 ounces to go (as of the 19th) to triple his birthweight of 6 lbs. 5 oz. He’s so cute and chubby now, and I can hardly recognize him from his early days.

Skills

At the beginning of June, he started sitting up without help. Well, I’d have to put him in the sitting position first, and then he’d hold his balance. He’s not yet able to pull himself into a sitting position, but soon probably! At first, he could only sit unassisted for a few seconds, but now he’s able to go for a minute or two.

He becomes distracted and topples to the side. I do my best to catch him, because if I don’t his face will hit the floor. Ow!

Just today, he started rolling from his back to his front. He’d been able to go the other way for quite some time. Now that he can do both, I imagine he’ll soon realize that he’s able to roll around the room and beyond now. Good thing I’m starting to baby-proof!

I know with “baby-proofing” I won’t be able to remove every possible danger. I’ll do my best to get rid of the obvious ones, but my main intention is to slow him down and buy myself some time if I need to run across the room to keep him out of harm’s way.

He’s giggly and more social. He’ll smile at strangers and when they smile back, he’ll lower his head as if he’s bashful.

Nom-nom

He loves chomping on anything he can get his hands on — including his hands, toes, me and inanimate objects. We’ll see his first teeth pop in soon I’m sure.

We’ve introduced solids and he just loves it! The applesauce I’ve given him was a bit tart, and he would make a face, shudder and then open his mouth for some more. Heh.

He’s still an avid nurser, but he goes longer between feedings now. Maybe he takes more in per feeding? I don’t know.

Sleep

Now that he’s six months, the risk of SIDS has gone way down. He’s usually waking just once per night or so, sometimes twice. I think we’re ready to start to move him out of our room and into his own. I expect this will be a gradual process. I’ll probably wait until we’re unpacked before we do, since his crib isn’t assembled and I don’t know where the hardware is.

Diapers

We’ll be trying cloth diapers to save money and be a little more friendly to the environment. Also, his disposables leak pretty frequently, and I’d like that to come to an end.

I had him in a Happy Heinys pocket diaper last night with just one insert (silly me) and he filled it up and leaked through it. Whoops.

He leaks through disposables overnight a lot, so it’s no real change. Next time, I’ll know to double up on the inserts.

I had him in a BumGenius pocket one-size diaper for a few hours tonight. He’s already on the largest rise setting but the waist has a lot of room to grow. I wonder how long he’ll fit in them. The velcro seems to dig into his belly when he’s sitting. I don’t know if I just had it on too snug or what.

I ordered a three-pack of Smartipants pocket dipes to test, and on Friday I’m meeting a mom at Panera who might sell me some diapers.

Ideas to help with your childbirth recovery

Kacie — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 04:12:56 +0000

WARNING: This post is for pregnant ladies. It contains lots of TMI that’s “too much information,” Grandma, but I’m sharing it in the hopes that it’ll help someone. If you’re squeamish about childbirth things, don’t read it! Instead, go to this web site.

Ah, recovering from childbirth. We touched on the topic in my Bradley childbirth class, and I remember reading about it in one of my pregnancy books. Still, I didn’t quite process the effect childbirth would have on my body for a few weeks after delivery.

I was so focused on learning about how to get the baby out and how to parent a newborn that I neglected to really learn about what would happen to me.

My experience is unique to me. Other moms might have an easier or harder recovery time. You might not tear, really! I’d like to share what worked for me and what I plan to do next time in the hopes that it can be of some benefit to you. Please don’t let this post scare you from childbirth! It really isn’t that bad — it’s uncomfortable and painful at times but you’ll be fine. It’s just, there are things you can really do to make yourself more comfortable and I want to share my bag of tricks with you.

Normally, I don’t spend much money collecting things to pamper myself. The post-partum period is one exception well worth making.

TMI warning: When I gave birth, I had a second-degree tear. My midwife stitched me up, though apparently she didn’t do it right. I healed wrong and scar tissue developed. I had surgery on Friday to repair me. It was called a perinoplasty. Lovely, right? Anyway, I’m experiencing some of the similar discomforts of the initial childbirth recovery, though not quite as bad.

If you’re giving birth at a hospital, be sure to ask during the tour what freebies they’ll give you to make your recovery easier. That way, you’ll know what you will still need to buy.

When she heard I needed surgery, one of my friends gave me this postpartum recovery kit. It has helped so much! I’ve used all of it. Loved the tea, the sprays, balm, and bath herbs. The bottom spray and balm has been just as effective as the medical-grade stuff I received from the hospital, but its made from natural ingredients which is nice.

You can get the same kit a little cheaper from Amazon.com, and you can get free shipping. Here’s my affiliate link for it if you wanna use that.

Donut pillow - Oh, my aching tookus! After you send a human through your birth canal, you’re going to be sore! And swollen! And tender! Putting pressure on your bum can really hurt for those first days and on the car ride home. Get a donut pillow from the pharmacy and bring it with you to the hospital. I didn’t have one, but boy do I wish I did! I had one for my surgery recovery and it was worth every dollar of that $20 it cost.
Sitz bath — Your hospital might send you home with one. It’s a handy little bowl that fits inside the toilet seat. You fill it with hot (or cold) water. It has a bag for you to put more water in, and you can add more water as the water in the bowl changes temperature. You’ll sit in it for 20 mins or so per day, several times per day to make your perineum feel better. It’s nice! If you don’t have one, you can try using your regular bath tub. Be sure to get the OK from your health care provider.
Peri bottle — Also from the hospital. A peri bottle is simply a small water bottle. Fill it with warm water and squirt it on your perineum as you go potty. It’ll take away some discomfort (especially if you had a urine cathether — UGH!). It’ll also help rinse away some lochia, which is the blood and clots that you’ll lose after giving birth. It helps to keep you clean. Just dab some toilet paper to dry yourself. Don’t even bother trying to wipe right away.
Colace — A stool softener. I requested a Colace while in the hospital because I was terrified of going poop. It made that first poop as a mom much easier. You won’t bust through your stitches (I think…) but it kinda feels like you’re going to, so a gentle stool softener (not laxitive) can help. Ask your doc.
Dermoplast – My hospital gave me a can of Dermoplast, which is a spray designed to alleviate itching, burning and general pain. Its cool mist did feel good, though it made the air smell terrible. Toxic, even. A possibile alternative is the Earth Mama Bottom Spray, which is made from natural ingredients. I’m using that for my surgery recovery and I love it. It has a nice fragrance of cucumber.
Bottom balm – After spraying, you might find comfort with some bottom balm, also from Earth Mama. It’s cooling and soothing. I’m using this now, too.
Tucks pads – Some women deal with hemmerhoids. The hospital might send you some Tucks pads but if not, you can make your own with some witch hazel.
Mesh undies — Your hospital will probably hand you some mesh undies. They’ll probably pop a pair on you without you even realizing it, while you’re cudding your baby. These things are so handy! Since they’re disposable, you don’t have to worry about ruining your underwear. They will hold your pads and cold packs.
Ice packs — Some hospitals will have cold packs that are specialy designed for the perineum. Be sure to get some to take home with you. They’re cool enough to help with swelling, but not so cold as to give you frostbite. Put it straight on your perineum and put a heavy-duty pad under.
Maxi pads – In the first few days, you’ll need the huge hospital-grade maxi pads. You’ll be bleeding a lot. Fear not. Change em every time you go to the bathroom. You’ll probably want to have some long pads with wings when it’s time to step down in absorbancy. After maybe two weeks of that, you might switch to a lighter pad or a pantiliner. I think I bled for about four weeks, though it wasn’t much after maybe that first week.
Exercise ball — I loved my exercise ball while pregnant, and doncha know it’s handy for the post-partum time. If you don’t have a donut pillow or want to sit somewhere else, the exercise ball can still support your weight without putting too much pressure on your bottom. Bonus: Hold a fussy baby, sit on the ball and bounce! Calms em once in awhile.
Rice socks — Rice socks are handy for just about anything. I used warm ones on my boobs when I was painfully engorged with milk.
Lanolin – Helps with cracked and itchy nipples. You won’t need a huge tube, and hopefully you won’t need to use it for long. Other uses for lanolin: lip balm, baby rash soother/preventer.

Maybe you won’t need some of these things. Maybe other products/tools will be on your list. If so, tell me! Post a comment and help a lady out. And if you’ve had a c-section, please share what special things you did to help your recovery. I’ve heard holding a pillow against your belly can help, but other than that I have no clue.

One final thing: Your body is going to undergo RAPID hormonal changes as soon as your baby is born. You might feel weird, or develop some ‘baby blues.’ This is extremely normal. If you feel overwhemed, talk with your husband, mom, health care provider, or friend. We’re here for you!

Winners!

Kacie — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 11:54:06 +0000

Thanks to all of you who entered my Little Debbie muffin giveaway. The randomly selected winners are Judy, Beth, and Julie. I have e-mailed the winners already and have heard back from them. Hope you get your package soon!

Little Debbie muffin giveaway

Kacie — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 18:23:08 +0000

The folks of Little Debbie have sent me a box full of Little Debbie muffins to try. The flavors are: Cranberry & Orange, Double Chocolate, Blueberry, Lemon, and Chocolate Chip.

Unlike my last Little Debbie giveaway, these are not 100-calorie muffins. Cut one in half, share it with a friend and that’ll give you closer to those 100 calories ;-).

If you’d like a chance to win a box of your own, please leave a comment below telling me what you’re up to today.

Entries will be accepted until Saturday, June 6 at oh, how ’bout 10 a.m. EDT? I’ll randomly select a winner from valid entries. Good luck!

Oh, if your entry doesn’t show up right away, give me a chance to go through the comments held in the moderation queue.

A relaxation technique for expectant mamas (and others!)

Kacie — Fri, 22 May 2009 02:03:56 +0000

I have a few friends who are having babies sometime this summer. This post is for y’all.

In my Bradley Method childbirth class, we learned a variety of relaxation techniques. One of these I still use whenever I’m tense, preparing to have blood drawn, a dental procedure done, or the like. You simply concentrate on a few areas of the body, making sure those areas are as relaxed as possible.

For me, these areas are my face, fists and shoulders. More specifically, I make sure my jaw and forehead are totally relaxed. I find that if I concentrate on keeping these areas totally limp, the rest of my body follows suit.

As you prepare for childbirth, why not practice keeping those areas relaxed? Or, if you notice that another part of your body is routinely tense, add that to your list of areas to consciously relax.

Even if you plan on having an epidural, you’ll still be in active labor before the epi is administered (unless you’re being induced or whatever). It’ll be good to have some relaxation techniques to get you through it while you wait on the anesthesiologist. And, while you’re sitting impossibly still for the epi, you’ll want to be relaxed, no?

Another benefit of consciously relaxing certain areas of your body is it serves as a distraction from the pain.

I found that when I was in labor and my body was mostly relaxed, my pain was much less than when I was tensed up.

Hope this tidbit can help you!

5 months for Johnny!

Kacie — Wed, 20 May 2009 17:13:17 +0000

My little Johnnycake is 5 months old today! I feel bad for not updating this blog more often. After all, I found time to give weekly pregnancy updates. Obviously I had more time while pregnant. Having baby changes, oh, everything.

Johnny is now in size 3 diapers and has been for maybe two weeks. He was simply soaking through the size 2s overnights and they were starting to get tight. I have a few packs of size 2s left and I’ll exchange them for 3s later on.

I’m estimating that he’s getting close to 17 pounds, though my home scale isn’t sensitive enough to know for sure. He’s certainly feeling heavier and looks longer.

I have a 25-gallon storage container full of clothes he’s already outgrown. He’s mostly in the six-month size, but it really depends on the brand. Johnny’s Aunt Shannon sent him some cute PJs from Baby Gap and they say size 12 months, but he fits into them perfectly now.

Johnny is quite alert and smiley much of the time. He looks around, drools, munches on his fingers and even his toes! He’s now able to grab things like teething rings, blankets and other people’s fingers and he puts them in his mouth.

Yesterday, I was holding corn on the cob (first of the season! must be shipped from some other country…) and I held it close to his mouth to see what he’d do. He clamped down on it and started sucking away. Heh.

He seems pretty interested in food. I’m not quite ready to start giving him solids, but we are getting close. He’s had little tastes of some fruits and veggies and seems to get a kick out of it.

Nursing is still going well and he is much more efficient with feeding quickly. He sometimes completes a full feeding in 10 minutes or less (I’m guessing — I don’t time it).

Shane is good at making Jonathan laugh. I make him cackle or giggle. Shane makes an exaggerated face and then tickles him or covers his face with a burp cloth. I’ll blow raspberries on his belly or will clap his hands together.

He’s getting better at sleeping during the night, but he has a keen sense of mommy radar. If I’m not within arm’s reach or closer, he’ll wake up. Every time. I don’t know if he can sense my body heat, sounds of my breathing or scent or what the deal is, but the guy is good.

For the sake of my sanity and everyone’s sleep, Johnny sleeps in my bed. Yeah, yeah, I know when I was pregnant how adamant I was about him only sleeping in a crib. Oh, how little did I know.

It works well for now, but eventually we’ll transfer him to his own sleeping space and then his own room.

I work really hard at making sure he gets good naps throughout the day. At the first sign of his tiredness/fussyness, I feed him and then lay him down or put him in his swing. The swing works really well at times, but we’re starting to try to wean him off of it.

He sometimes screams his head off in the car, and it’s just awful. If we’re more than a few minutes from our destination, we’ll pull over and try to calm him down, but it doesn’t always work. Sometimes he’s fine with being in the car but it’s a crapshoot.

Johnny rolls over from his tummy to his back, but never the other way around. He doesn’t seem to like being on his belly much, so he has no motivation to roll that way I guess.

He babbles and squawks and has lots of conversations with himself and us. It’s a hoot!

Bathtime is loads of fun. I put him in the tub and he just seems so relaxed. He’ll splash and kick and carry on.

I just love him to bits and I’m excited to see what new things he’ll do this month!

Johnny is 4 months old!

Kacie — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 20:01:41 +0000

Johnny is four months old today! In some ways, it feels really short and in others, it feels like an eternity.

I took him for his four-month checkup today. He was 25.5 inches long and 15 lbs., .5 oz. Growing steadily! He’s in the 50th percentile for weight and 75th for length. He’s gunna be a tall guy I hope. I’m going to predict that he’s 6′2″ when he’s all done growing. Check back with me in 20 years or so and we’ll see.

He rolled over for the first time last weekend! He was on his tummy, propped himself up on his arms and tilted his head to the side. His heavy head helped the rest of his body roll over. He did it twice and was too cranky to do it some more. He did it again the following day. Love it!

He’s babbling all the time and munching on his fingers. He’ll grab on to things and pull it toward his mouth. Gotta be careful what he gets his hands on.

If we hold his hands or body, he likes to stand up. He’s too top-heavy to have good balance, but he’s working on it and soon enough he’ll be able to stand on his own.

He’s still exclusively breastfed and I’m continuing to be glad that it’s working so well. It’s definitely easy and convenient for me now.

Our pediatrician said we can start him on baby cereal, but only if we want. I don’t particularly want to at this point, but maybe more as he gets closer to six months of age. Right now, he doesn’t need it for the nutrition or calories. The doctor said it’s mostly for practice and to help supplement his feedings if he doesn’t seem satisfied with feedings from me.

Since nursing is no trouble at all now and he does seem to like it, I’m not going to rush into introducing those “solids.” I think I’d like to wait until he can sit up on his own. That ought to make feedings a bit easier to do.

I’ve been working hard to make sure he gets good sleep. I watch his cues and when he starts acting sleepy, I put him down for a nap (pretty much always in his swing) or if it’s bedtime, we do our little bedtime routine (quick bath, diaper change, pjs, nurse) and then he goes to sleep.

The first few days were a bit rough, but now he’s sleeping much better. We had been putting him to bed around the time I went to sleep, but that didn’t work so well. Now, we’ve moved his bedtime to about 7 or 8 p.m. and he’s much less fussy. He’ll sleep for several hours (a few nights ago, it was 5 hours) and then I’ll feed him and he goes right back to sleep. He’s pretty much sleeping until around 7 or 8 in the morning, with a few nighttime wakes.

He’ll be awake for an hour or so and then he’ll have a little nap. Right now, he takes about three naps per day.

His days are more predictable now and he’s much less fussy. I’m able to get more things done during the day and it’s nice to have a few quiet hours with Shane in the evening.

Johnny smiles all the time but we have yet to hear a big belly laugh. When he laughs, it’s sort of like a cough. I guess I’m not funny enough for him. Maybe I’ll take him to open-mic night at a comedy club somewhere.

3-month breastfeeding update

Kacie — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 03:37:10 +0000

Johnny is still exclusively breastfed and I’m happy to say that it definitely has gotten easier as time marches on.

The first two weeks (or so…my concept of time around that period isn’t so good) were definitely the hardest. Two people had to figure out a totally new thing. Sure, it’s “natural,” but it still takes some practice. Sometimes I had difficulty getting him to latch properly. Other times I had some engorgement. And there were a few times when I had horrible pain. It was all I could do to continue to feed him and not run out the door, screaming into the night.

We worked on our latches and holds, and the more we practiced, the easier it got.

I’m estimating he has nursed anywhere from 700 to 1,000 times. That’s a lot of practice for both of us, yah?

He can latch himself on without my assistance most of the time. I’m able to feed him lying down now, which helps a ton. When he was a few weeks old, we couldn’t get that position to work. Perhaps he was too small, or I was just too uncoordinated. I think it’s harder to help a baby to latch on in that position, but once they figure out how to do it on their own, it works out better.

Popular advice states that a breastfeeding duo should continue on breastfeeding as long as it works for the baby and the mother. I’m very glad to say that it is working well for the both of us.

When I first got going, I thought, “Let’s just stick it out for a few more weeks and evaluate things then.” I didn’t want to feel bad if we didn’t make it to three months, or six, or whatever. I hope that once he sprouts teeth it won’t be a problem!

I was given an electric breast pump and I’ve used it just a couple times. I hate pumping. It’s uncomfortable, time-consuming, and just a big hassle. Also, I feel like a cow.

We have one bottle. It came with some freebies I got at Motherhood Maternity.

I had a dentist appointment one morning and decided to pump some just in case the appointment went way long and Shane was left with a screaming baby. Johnny didn’t know what to do with the bottle. He sucked a little but getting liquid from a bottle involves a different sort of suck, and he seemed kinda confused. I don’t know if he got any milk from it. I’m sure if we worked at it some more, he’d get it sorted out.

But ya know what, I don’t want to. Pumping is supposedly supposed to benefit me by allowing someone else to feed my baby, but really it’s just more work for me. I have no reason to be away from him for longer than 2 to 3 hours at a time. So, to pump simply to have Shane feed him with a bottle, I’d have to take the time to pump, clean and sterilize bottles and the pumping equipment, and store the milk.

Later, he’d have to heat the milk to a satisfactory temperature and figure out how much he needs to eat. Right now, I have no idea how much he eats per feeding. It’s enough, but whether it’s 2 ounces or 8, I couldn’t tell you. He knows how much he needs.

And, intermittent pumping would affect my supply. By pumping, my body would think that I’d need more milk and then I’d have a bout of oversupply (not fun) and leaking (not fun) until my body regulated itself.

I don’t think that pumping would allow me to have more sleep at night right now, anyways. Since my body is used to feeing him every so often, if I miss a feeding, I leak. I’ve woken up a few times soaked and sore because he has slept longer than usual. So much for getting more sleep, huh?

So yeah, pumping only creates more work for me. No thanks. I can see how pumping would be beneficial to a mom who is away from her baby for regular periods of time. A pumping mom has my respect — it’s gotta be way harder than doing formula!

Ooh, another perk for breastfeeding: I get to eat a ton of food and don’t gain weight. It is awesome.

Johnny seems to like it, too. He can be instantly calmed by nursing (some of the time). He doesn’t appreciate pacifiers; in fact he usually gets really mad when we try to give him one.

I’m still not 100% comfortable nursing in public. I don’t want to offend anyone. I know it’s ridiculous to think that, but I can’t help but feel a little uncomfortable every time I do it. I feel a lot better about feeding him in public when I’m with friends or family. I try not to be obvious — I use a sling sometimes, or I cover up with a scarf, cardigan, or blanket to latch and unlatch. Maybe I’ll feel easier about it as time goes on, but I’m not so sure.

I’m just really fortunate that breastfeeding has worked so well for us. I know it isn’t always the case.

3 months!

Kacie — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 02:42:49 +0000

My little guy turned three months old on Friday!

Three months isn’t long, but when it’s your whole life, it probably feels longer. I’m guessing he is at least 12 pounds. I hold him and stand on our bathroom scale and then set him down and weigh myself again. Our scale isn’t the most sensitive thing, so it might be off.

He has grown out of a lot of his newborn clothes and some of his three-month items. We still have him in size 1 diapers (he’s been in those since 6 weeks, I think) but I expect that we’ll move him up a size soon.

He’s getting more alert and I just love it when he smiles at us. Still no big belly laughs, but he does a little chuckle grunt thing that’s sorta close to a laugh.

He is sleeping better at night, though he still only sleeps four hours or so at a time. But, at night, he’ll nurse and then go right back to sleep so it isn’t bad at all. I’m so used to getting short bursts of sleep that I don’t know if I’m able to sleep longer anymore. Maybe I’ll get to try it out sometime.

DQ value menu

Kacie — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 21:39:26 +0000

A value menu haiku:

Cheeseburger, o-rings
And a strawberry sundae
All for four dollars!

Dairy Queen is finally rolling out a value menu. Gotta love that! You can choose any combos of the following: cheeseburger, hot dog, chicken wrap, onion rings, fries, side salad, medium drink, small sundae, or a small dipped ice cream cone. Two choices are $3; three are $4, and four are $5. Not a bad deal!

As far as what kinda deal I’d make with DQ to try the value menu for free…I’d blog about it. That’s good, right?

BTW, I’m blogging about this in the hopes that I’ll be among the first 250 bloggers to mention the deal, and then I’ll get a free gift card. Woot.