Mental Leaps?

Alex keeps changing his schedule periodically.   Recently, he's pushed his bedtime back to 11 and I'm gently nudging him to get it earlier, aiming to get him back to being sleepy at 9.

He just got over a period of nap fighting.  Throughout October and November he simply refused to nap at his regularly established times.  Sometime in early December, he went back to wanting naps. Now, he's pushing the first one earier than it used to be.  I used to be able to count on him getting tired at 11 AM. Now, he wants it at 10:30. Recently, he's been waking up in the middle of the night. I figure that will change again shortly.

It seems that these may all be phases of mental development.  Right after turning six months at the end of September, in addition to getting his two bottom front teeth, he seemed to have made leaps and bounds in mental connections. I saw object permanance when I hadn't seen it before (like, we can't just hide the remote anymore to make it "gone"). He stopped babbling for a while, seemingly intently listening to everything.  He's now more physically rambunctious than he was before. He can't crawl yet, but he insists on standing while holding on to things and seems suddenly determined to walk.  He shows signs of recognizing and understanding certain words and even phrases.

All of those large leaps in his connections seemed to have occurred simultaneously with his nap refusal and changes in sleep times.

December 21, 2007

Peaches and Cream, Hold the Peaches

Chalk up another peach hater - Alex. He's not crazy about any fruits, but peaches are out on the curb as far as he's concerned. I get much further with apples and pears.

I hadn't thought much about it until I had peaches for dessert shortly after trying to give them to him. I totally "forgot" (took for granted?) just how tart they can be.

Ooops...sorry Alex. No more peaches for a while.

October 30, 2007

Discriminating Audience

Lately, Alex can't be entertained by my dancing or singing while he's in the bouncy seat, so I have to directly interact with him.  Dan gets home at about 7:30, which is also the Alex's dinner time.  If I don't want to eat at 10 PM, I'd have to find a way to feed Alex and cook. 


Even if he's not fussing, I just don't like to take the chance that he'll be near me while I take out something from the oven or move a hot pot from the stovetop.  So, keeping him in the kitchen with me is out of the question.

So, these days, a hot full dinner is made possible by Dan feeding him while I make it.  Sorry Dan! You had a hard day, but here's a bottle!

August 31, 2007

Nurse-to-Sleep Becoming a Habit?

When Alex was a newborn, I was totally exhausted. I was nursing Alex to sleep in the early morning. He'd wake at about 5 AM and I would take to nursing him in my bed for that feeding. He'd fall asleep and so would I. Then he'd wake again at about 7 or 8, which I could handle as a waking time for myself.  That lasted only about 3 weeks after I started doing it. (Could have been longer, I suppose, had I started doing that earlier.)


He grew out of it. He eventually started dropping feedings, including the 4-5 AM one, and just sleeping through to 7 or 8. Now he needs a bottle to sleep for a nap only on certain occasions, like if he's having a rough day or if he just got a lot of happy stimulation beforehand.  It got to a point at which now, he lets me know he wants a nap even if we're playing at that time.

I hope it stays this way.

August 22, 2007

Teeth? Already?

I just felt a sharpness in Alex's upper gum. He was out of sorts all day yesterday and today he was really a handful. He didn't start crying from it all until about 7 this evening, but I think it was made worse by utter exhaustion because he wouldn't nap much. I gave him infant Tylenol and used Infant Ambesol, along with frozen teethers to help him, but obviously they do just so much.


I called my mom to tell her about it and she looked up my teething history in my Baby Book. I teethed much later than Alex is (him, 20 weeks, me, almost 8 months), but I teethed really quickly. I got my second tooth about two weeks after the first. My mom said that these first few teeth are really painful for babies and that these painful, icky days go on for a long while. She can't recall specifics though. I'm her youngest and in my 40s.

It kills me to think that he's in that kind of pain (I can recall my wisdom teeth coming in) but I can't give him anything powerful for the pain.
 

August 20, 2007

Roll Over! Roll Over! (The breakthrough)

This week, I reached my goal of spending more Tummy Time with my crotchedy hater of Tummy Time. I did it aaaaannnnnd....he rolled over this week! For a guy who hated, hated, HATED to be on his stomach at all, he was a bundle of milestones this week. He goes right up on his arms the minute I put him on his stomach. He now loves rolling from his stomach to his back - amazing himself the first time he did it. Now he can't get enough.

My pumping schedule, sadly, has to go. I've spent three weeks trying to get my supply back up by pumping every two hours and it just won't increase past 6 oz a day. I've been taking More Milk Plus for the same amount of time and that's still as much as I get. I wanted to keep him on some BM until he was 6 months old, but it seems I have to drop it when he's 5 months old. He won't latch anymore either.  Bummer.

But at the same time, I'm excited about the future, knowing that BF'ing had to end sometime.  Being freed from pumping 8 times a day will most certainly help with spending more time with him. I was spending some 3 to 3.5 hours a day on pumping. Our "play time" came with his on the bed with me while I pumped and sang to him...or watched Dr. Phil (Alex seems to like his voice.)

August 19, 2007

Insta-Nap!

When Alex went into his clingy phase - wanting to hang with me all the time and not napping - I took to taking him out in his stroller. He'd stay awake and entertained on the first leg of the walk and in about 15-20 mins would be out. He'd stay asleep the whole way back and for at least an hour or two later.

Must be the motion. Kinda like Jeep-ing would bring.

July 30, 2007

"Ahhh-lix! AHHH-lix!" Already? Amazing!

This is a link to the video of Alex trying to say his name. He's sixteen weeks old here. (Not quite "four months", since it was July 19.)  We're simply amazed.

July 21, 2007

Scheduling a Newborn

I've been reading so much conflicting information on scheduling a newborn.  Some sources say it's necessary for a future school routine.  Some sources say that any schedule established in newborn life will long be history by age 5.  It's best for the newborn for a parent to just respond as needed.  If there's a schedule to keep, the newborn's body will keep it. We have no schedule here yet.  I also have a hard time getting him to take his naps due at around 12-1 for at least two hours and again at 5-6 for at least two hours.

I feed on demand. My pediatrician informed me (when he was two months old) that he wasn't able to learn how to anticipate events at that age. I'd have to just go with the flow until he showed signs of understanding that events can happen again with some time delay.  I'm getting only some signs of this lately. He seems to be able to judge what's about to happen by noticing what room we just walked into - which either calms him down if he wants that event (like feeding or changing) or gets him upset if he doesn't want that event.  I've also noticed that he now understands what a bottle looks like from a distance and he will calm down if he witnesses me pouring milk into it.

Afterall, we are talking about someone who doesn't yet understand that if he chokes from drinking too quickly and pulls his head away from the nipple that the nipple won't be in his mouth when he stops coughing. He has to put it back into his mouth. 

July 18, 2007

Jocularity! Jocularity!

Alex has a few "hilarious" events in his world. They include his L'il Dino mobile being cranked up, Mommy sticking her tongue out, being fed when he really only wanted to be held, sitting in his Pod seat - even though he can't hold his head up enough to be left alone and having Mommy or Daddy repeat his baby language back to him exactly as he said it. I think the last one is due to his being overjoyed at the thought that he actually communicated something.

July 15, 2007

Alex's Favorite Toy - Mama!

Alex will be 14 weeks old as of tomorrow. At 8-10 weeks, he first showed the signs of reaching for toys and he'd swing his arms to hit them, but then he lost interest in it.

6 weeks later, he's still far more fascinated by hanging mobiles, colored lights and music than he is by toys on his eye level.  He just grabs at us a lot. At about 8-10 weeks, he started grabbing my hair or my hands when I'd feed him. Now he grabs my clothing a lot and tries to hold his bottle.
 
Toys? Blah. They don't move like you guys do.
 

July 3, 2007

Mommy Learning Curve

No sooner do I finally get a handle on what Alex's cries or calls out mean than they become more complex two weeks later, because his development moves along. At first he cried only because he was hungry. I had the habit of changing him for every feeding and burping him halfway through.  Then his needs got more complex. He started rejecting the midway burping and I had to figure out what that all meant. I learned to burp him after the whole feeding only to have to eventually return to mid-way burps anytime his appetite grows to the next ounce.

Recently, he's learned that he can cry to have his diaper changed alone. If I changed his diaper before a feeding, I could expect howls. Get to the feeding first, then he'd let me know if he wanted a change.  Now he actually cries to go to sleep or be alone. We've been puzzled at his screaming towards the end of a feeding. Trying to burp him brings angry shouts and even swinging arms pushing us away. I'm finally getting it that he will now cry to be put down for a nap or to be left alone with his music and mobiles.

I'm sure once I build in the nap response into my repertoire, his communication skills will just get more complex and I'll miss the cues again.

Man, this learning curve is brutally fast.

July 2, 2007

Mommy Survival Skills

I just found that the easiest way to have fresh formula which is also at a temperature that Alex will drink right away.  I've been stashing a small can of powder in my diaper bag and filling up a 16-20 oz bottle of water to bring along. I found that premixing formula wasn't working since I had to keep it cold in a thermos next to an ice pack. Alex won't drink cold formula.  Yesterday, I was desperate to find a way to warm up the formula I had or somehow get new. I stopped in a convenience store, bought a can of powder and non-refrigerated bottled water.  I mixed formula with that warmer water as needed. I wouldn't have to keep the water cold like I would with mixed formula. (Those 2 oz bottle 8 packs are a total rip-off.)

I had Alex in Manhattan yesterday and it was too hot for him to nurse. He hates the heat and won't stay still for it when hot. Sigh, just like his mom. Oh, and about the heat. I cool off his receiving blankets in my diaper bag by inserting a mylar ice pack in the same fold with them. He loves having a cool blanket to lie on.

June 30, 2007

Turning a Sleepy Corner

Alex slept through the night twice!!! Last night - 10:30 PM to 6:30 AM.  Wednesday night - 9:30 PM to 6:30 AM!

And he's mostly BF'ed with only some supplemented formula! WOOT!

June 30, 2007

Diaper Change! Diaper Change! Yay!

Alex goes wild with the giggles and laughs when he knows he's going to be changed. In the middle of the night, it's all my husband can do to tear himself away from playing with him on the changing table because that's when Alex will chat and laugh up a storm.


I know it must feel good to get out of a wet diaper, but cause for glee like this?
 

June 24, 2007

Sniffles in a Little Nose

Alex has sounded like he has a ton of congestion lately.  To aid his sleeping, I tried to create an incline by placing a towel underneath the sleeping surface of his bassinette. He never managed to stay within the incline, but always wound up sliding down, with only his neck propped up at the turn of the incline. I figured that was worse.

Then Dr. Glassman told us that the congestion is normal. Out came the towel. Alex is a lot happier.  He hated that incline.  Good thing he doesn't need it to sleep like other babies do.

June 24, 2007

Moment of the Day

Those big toothless grins are day makers.


My Moment of the Day came when Alex was a little cranky after his dinner. He had been quietly entertaining himself in his bassinette for a long time, but eventually got bored and wanted company. I took him out and placed him on my bed with me.

He chatted up a STORM! He kept cooing, ooohing and cah-ing at all different volume levels. He would smile broadly while we chatted. I played some games with him and he just kept it up.  Then Dan joined us and it still went on while Alex chatted with him too. It took at least 20 minutes before Alex had to retreat from overstimulation.

It was one of the chattiest moments I've had with him yet.
 

June 22, 2007

No Tummy Time!

Alex hates Tummy Time with a passion. He wants to move and roll over when he's in that position. He winds up getting frustrated and crying over it.  A while ago, I was out walking on Mamaroneck Avenue with Alex in the Jeep pocuh, a physical therapist stopped us to see Alex and chat.  She told me that Tummy Time on your chest still serves the same purpose as being on a hard surface. Since he loves that most of the time, we do that a lot. I also tote him around in my Jeep carrier daily and he's gaining a lot of head control that way too.

His head control is really good for his age. He was able to roll over in one direction when he was only days old, but he's since lost interest in doing it now.  He doesn't have good dexterity in pushing himself up with his arms, but he doesn't appear to try very hard either.

Dr. Glassman said that it's not expected at his current age.

June 22, 2007

Chow Hound

Some babies eat tons in one meal, had a few times across a day. Not Alex! He's still eating at least 7-8 times a day.  He won't get on a normal schedule either. He eats roughly at 1, 5, 8, 10, 1, 3, 6, 9 and 11. Unfortunately for us, the meal he seems to be dropping first is the 11 PM one.


Oh well, at least he's happy and thriving.

June 21, 2007

Bad Temper?

I think Alex may have a bad temper. I can't yet figure out if the quick frustration level is due to his personality or just his age.


He has LOTS of "rules", it seems and will display an expression of frustration if we break them. He has select positions he wants to be in while breastfeeding. He sometimes wants to be BF'ed. He sometimes wants to be bottle-fed. If we go the "wrong" route, he will push away the breast or bottle in what seems to be a frustrated and angry gesture. Right now, I have him on my lap nursing as I type this. He seems to want me to stop because he keeps grunting as he'll do when annoyed and feeding and he's using his legs to push against my arms as I type.

We're pretty quick to respond to his vocalizations and it seems he's now used to that. As a result, if I pick him up and turn towards what he considers the "wrong" room to attend to whatever need, he'll vocalize a grunt or cry in objection.  We fear giving him too much "Tummy Time" because he gets PO'ed when he can't turn over...which is the result of too little Tummy Time. But if we leave him too long like that, he cries in frustration.

The good thing we've noticed is that he seems to be differentiating complaints now. He's taking to vocalizing a loud call instead of crying sometimes when he wants our attention.

It may be just the age. I dunno yet.

June 21, 2007

The Battle to Save Supply!

I've been battling my breastmilk supply ever since Alex's sixth week. I had to break down and supplement with formula when my little preemie dude hit his second growth spurt at that time. Rather than his cluster feedings lasting only a day or two, they lasted for ten days that time. I simply couldn't keep up, nursing him every hour sometimes. I broke down and supplemented with formula, fearful that it would kill my milk supply.


That was six weeks ago and I was able to get my milk supply back up by just pumping around his formula feeding. He's in another cluster feed marathon now and I had to bypass some BF'ing again, but by pumping often, I was able to get the milk supply back up. I went from a low point of his diet being some 60% formula in some weeks to it now being about 20% formula.  What used to be only 2 oz per pumping session is once again 4 oz per session and still increasing.

I try to remember that stress also decreases milk supply as will a poor diet and a lack of sufficient water.  I also went an entire day on formula while pumping to store. I was able to get 34 oz stored in the freezer, which allowed me a headstart on pumping surplus when I returned to BF'ing for all feedings save two.

Here's hoping I can save it.  C'mon Alex! We both need this!

June 16, 2007

Yeeeow! What was that??

Alex had his immunizations recently.  His post shot symptoms lasted about two days. The physical side of it showed up as lots of sleep and little appetite.


But the emotional trauma. Yeesh! He howled at the slightest thing and needed to be rocked all the time.  He seemed to get past it and trust us again after two days.

Sorry little guy, but it's necessary.  Stay healthy, if cranky!

June 14, 2007

Aliens Stole My Baby

I can think of no other explanation.


Last Saturday, I had my normal 10 week old. He cried only when he was hungry or needed a diaper change. He loved to talk and laugh. He could get hours of entertainment out of his mobile, ipod Munchkin with the changing lights or his Bobblin' Band bouncer.

Sunday, he was suddenly the Unhappiest Baby in the World.  He cries constantly (during the day only so far). When eating, he pushes the bottle or my breast away, then cries becauss he's hungry. He refuses to nurse at times and also refuses the bottle. He cries as if he has gas, but cries when I try to burp him. He cries if I talk to him. He cries if I leave him alone.  He just cried now and I had to stop and pick him up to walk around.

He doesn't arch as if he has gas or reflux. The only thing that seems to calm him down is my walking around with him. Even then, if I Jeep him up and am out for too long, he'll start crying - especially if I stopped walking at any point. He's 11 weeks old today. I've been going through this for four days now. I have no idea what I'm doing wrong. I have no idea what brought on this sudden change in his disposition. Is this some developmental phase?

Once Again Walking Around With Alex. 
 

June 13, 2007

Sleepy, Sleepy Mama

Not getting any more sleep on this end yet. I really don't expect to until Alex is four months old at least. Normally, Dan takes the 1 AM feeding. Lately, he's had to wake Alex up for it and Alex won't take a whole meal at the time, but he'll still eat. If we don't wake him up at 1 to eat a little, then he'll wake up at 3 to eat a little. This may mean he's phasing out that feeding. We don't know yet.


This morning, he wouldn't even take a whole meal at 5 AM, when he's usually ravenous at that time. He broke it up as half a meal then and half a meal an hour later.

June 11, 2007

Father and Son

I took Alex to the nearby marina on Friday afternoon. I told Dan to meet us there after work. I was able to capture this cool pic of Dan and Alex:

So I made it into a card for Dan. You can't FIND "First" Father's Day cards anywhere! I got First Mother's Day cards. Sigh.

I think he'll like it.

June 10, 2007

Hush Little Baby

When Alex smiles and laughs he does those "full body smiles" that infants his age do. The laugh takes over his whole body while he flails his arms and jerks his legs. It's really wonderful to watch.

I need those laughs these days. I could use with more sleep, of course. I can expect to keep losing sleep for the next 4-6 weeks unfortunately. He's kinda-sorta sleeping through one feeding sometimes. At this point, he sleeps longer than he normally does at his 1 AM feeding. For a while, he'll grunt and groan like he's about to wake up because he's hungry, but he won't wake up. When he does, sometimes as late as 2:30-4, he'll only want one ounce instead of his usual four at that time. He does the same thing during his long nap during the day. He should want to eat at 1 PM, but struggles to stay asleep instead.

I'm really trying to shedule some tiring events right before those sleep stretches, but it's tough to do. It's especially tough to plan a bath after his 10 PM feeding because I'll have dishes from our dinner in the sink at the time and I don't get always get the chance to wash them because he's often awake and needs attention. If I take time to do it at 11 PM after his feeding, he'll have fallen asleep already. Then giving him a bath seems to defeat the purpose.

Oh well. That's the way it goes for infants, I guess. I still have to try to sleep when he does.

June 5, 2007

Two Months Old

Alex went to his two month old check up on Thursday. (He's 9 weeks and 2 days old today, June 1) The Tallest Preemie in Westchester now measures 22 inches and weighs 10 lbs, 12 oz. The doctor is thrilled with his growth and weight gain, as well as his big eating for such a little guy. He also began his immunizations at this check up. He received immunizations against polio, diptheria, tetanus, whooping cough, hepititis B, pnuemonia, influenza and rotavirus (a digestive tract attacker). Needless to say three shots and one oral administration in one day left him completely beat. He slept through half his meals through the next 24 hours. When he did eat, it was 2/3 of what he would usually eat. Today, when he started coming out of the reaction, he ate with a vengeance, but couldn't handle it. He tried to down his "Hungry Man" 6 oz meal that he takes from time to time. Not a good call. After a 24 hour cut back, he was spitting up the last ounce he could even try to drink. Then he'd get frustrated over not being able to eat more.

The poor thing was more emotionally traumatized than feeling physically pained from the immunizations. Yesterday, when he wasn't sleeping, he'd cry almost inconsolably unless he was held up against my or Dan's chest and rocked.

On the development front, he's now laughing spontaneously all the time save any time I want to capture a picture of it. Then he stops and stares at this thing in front of my face. He's showing a strong interest in grabbing for his toys, expressing frustration when he can't reach them. He gets all grumpy when the mobile in his crib stops. He's getting very sociable. He now wants to be in his bouncer in whatever room contains the action. Last weekend we had three of Dan's friends over and Alex would not sleep in his bassinet in the living room while they were here. He just HAD to be in his bouncer, placed on the floor at the egde of the dining room, where he slept through hours of adult talking and laughing. He loves to be in his bouncer next to my desk chair, napping while I'm on the computer. He loves to be on the bed with Dan, napping while he watches TV. He's also showing a strong desire to talk. He talks to us, to the pets, to the Munchkin iPod on his crib, his favorite doll, his mobiles, the herbs and flowers on the porch and something to his right when he's seated in the den with me. He now looks forward to at least 20-30 minutes of conversation with Dan when Dan gets home from work each evening.

June 1, 2007

Photos from Late May

Trying to crawl up on Daddy. (Taken 5/25, 8 weeks old)

A rare occurrance. I actually CAUGHT a smile on film. (Taken 5/25, 8 weeks old)

Since I gave him back the hammock, he's liking baths more. Not LOVING them, mind you. But not crying through them either. Sitting in the warm water = OK. Being rubbed all over with that slimy stuff on the cloth = So NOT OK (Taken 5/25, 8 weeks old)

As usual, he sleeps through an outing. It was more exciting for us because he kinda, sorta fit into this jacket for the first time. He's getting into normal 0-3 mos sized clothing now, though still on the low end of it. (Taken 5/27, 8 weeks old)

Contented because he's getting his diaper changed in this pic. (Taken 5/27, 8 weeks old)

Chilling with Mommy while she watches TV. (Taken 5/27, 8 weeks old)

In the Mommy Chair! Wow! He was all excited with the newness of it when I first put him in it. That's my glider in the nursery. We sit there to nurse. (Taken 5/29, nearly nine weeks old)

A more pensive look in the Mommy Chair. (Taken 5/29, nearly 9 weeks old)

Capturing another smile. This is during a conversation session with Dan. They "gah" and "goo" and "snort" to each other for 20 or more minutes. Alex loves it. (Taken 5/29, nearly 9 weeks old)

A new game I read about on my Baby Center website: introduce the baby to new smells and watch their reactions to realizing that the scent changes. I took him onto the porch and snipped some lavender (being sniffed here), rosemary, basil, spearmint and sage and let him sniff them a few times. The lavender got lots of giggles and glee. The rosemary and sage bombed; the rosemary probably because it smells too much like soap. (Taken 5/29, nearly 9 weeks old)

Hanging out in the den with Mommy. This is a chair I had placed to the side while Dan was cleaning out the closets. When he's in the den with me, he sits in his bouncer which is located in this spot (to my left). He will look to his right and talk for half an hour straight. I have no idea what he's talking to. It's not me, because when I talk to him in response he turns towards me and looks stunned - as if I interrupted something or he forgot I was there. (Taken 5/29, nearly 9 weeks old)

These are just neat pics of a duck and her ten ducklings. Dan and I spotted them while out with Alex and walking towards our shopping area. The small creek shown there is the Mamaroneck River which runs through town. I can't wait until Alex can see and understand these things. There are plenty of rabbits, skunks, cardinals, blue jays, seabirds, mallards, robins, woodpeckers, mourning doves, titmouse, swans and racoons in this area (along with the standard squirrels, including black ones, and sparrows). Just on my porch, you can see nearly all of those things save the mallards, swans and seabirds. It'll be great when he can see them and understand that they are living moving things.

While we watched, she banished one duckling to the water. Have no clue why or what happened to him/her afterwards. You can't see him/her in this pic because it's sitting in the river near the shore.

May 30, 2007

The First Music Video

We just put a video together of a collection of stills and tape of Alex. We haven't designed our webpage yet, but we put up a link to the video already so that friends and family can see it.

May 25, 2007

On Breastfeeding

[Written in response to my mom who apologized for being at a loss on advice with a breastfed baby.
]
In the 60s, virtually no one breast fed in this culture. Not even the hippies. We were all pushed onto "better life through science" then. I gotta say that my life would be much easier if I formula fed him exclusively. It can take up to an hour's worth of breastfeeding just to make sure he gets a full meal at his new demand level until my body clues in that he needs more now and then makes more. It would most certainly be pretty hairy around here if I breastfed AND had other kids around. I do it because our "better life through science" has now moved into admitting that science can't yet create the formula that replicates everything in breastmilk and I don't have any older children. How women who have 3, 4 kids all close in age do this for their younger kids is beyond me. I know Kathleen had a hard enough time breastfeeding her youngest and she only has one older child.

According to Alex's pediatrician and the lactation consultants at the hospital and my breastfeeding class, I was to expect that Alex would not sleep a 5-6 hour stretch through the night until he was at least 3 months old. Formula fed babies sleep through the night earlier because formula is so much denser a food. Breastfed babies do not sleep through the night so early because breastmilk is a much lighter food and it's that much more efficient a food. The baby uses it up much more quickly than he would formula. It's common for breastfed babies Alex's age to STILL be eating every two hours. It's also common for them to have far fewer bowel movements, because their bodies use up the breastmilk that well.

I spoke to a pediatric nurse at his doctor's office yesterday about the lack of bowel movement yesterday. She said that with his diet of at least 50% breastmilk (some days more), I can even expect that he'd go DAYS without a bowel movement at this age. (He finally had one last night). The pig out he's been on is apparently also normal for his age and growth rate and that demand will be higher still because of the breastfeeding. It's kinda the equivalent of using high octane fuel. It has less gunk in it, so the engine burns it up faster - but runs better for it.

The pediatrician told me that I have to wait for his intellectual development to show signs of being able to understand anticipation of events before I can have any prayer of setting a rigid feeding schedule for him. Without Alex being able to understand that if I don't respond right away, I will eventually be coming, I'm fighting a losing battle on setting it down in stone. Alex has shown only a slight ability to anticipate events in the past two weeks. These days he will stop his crying and smile when we put a bib on him or when I place him on the Boppy pillow in a position for breastfeeding. Two weeks ago, he didn't yet understand what those actions would mean. I've also extended the breastfeeding times for him so that he'll get a little bit more than usual, which will last him a bit longer. That's made life a lot easier.

The thing about breastfeeding is that Alex and I will reap the benefits from it all by the things that don't happen, so it's hard to measure the success. I'll know it worked when he gets fewer ear infections or colds than he would have without it. We'll know that it worked when his IQ is higher than it would have been without it. Thing is, there's no way of knowing what the lower level of success would have been. For my money though, the fewer nights I spend pacing the floors at 4 AM with an infant screaming from the pain and discomfort of an ear infection, the better. So, it's all worth it.

We don't see the doctor again until the end of May/first few days of June, depending on when I get the appointment. The appointments are to be set for his month passage days - approx. May 28 for two months, June 28 for three months, etc. I'll let you know what comes of the next appointment. (He's supposed to start his immunizations then.)

May 17, 2007

Feed-a-thon

Alex is in a growth spurt, so it's been tough keeping up with his appetite. For some days at a stretch it was trying sometimes because I was dealing with a constantly hungry and therefore, grumpy baby. Yesterday in particular, his appetite was just off the scale. At 8 lbs and some ounces, he managed to drink somewhere between 28 and 32 ounces in about 30 hours. That's about 30-35% more than a baby his weight should be taking in. Though I was told to expect this by both his pediatrician and from reference articles and books, we're still going to call today and ask about it.

Today he's a totally different baby. Dan fed him 9 oz between midnight and four am this morning (two different feedings). I fed him AGAIN from between 5:30 and 7:30 when he spent about a total of 50 minutes at the breast (probably got about 5 oz) and had 2 oz of soy formula. He slept from 7:30 to 11:00. When I woke him up to eat he was quiet, calm, happy and giggling again. Maybe after his non-stop pig out of yesterday, he's got some left over for today. I just finished feeding him again, this time about 60 mins at the breast and he's just a little cranky right now because he wants to play. (I had to eat lunch.)

He's not pooping today. Again, I was told to expect this with a largely breastfed baby. Their digestive systems act maturely earlier because breastmilk is such an efficient food. (As young as one month old, a breastfed baby can have adult type bowel movements, as in a day or two without any at all.) I'll still be asking about it though.

Despite this, he seems quite fine. No crankiness like he feels bad - except when hungry. No sleepiness in excess of his regular sleeping. No fever. Plenty of wet diapers and alertness otherwise. I'll be taking him out to play now. That should tell me whether he feels satiated and whether he has his normal temperament and alertness level.

May 16, 2007

An update and some new pics of the little dude!

A few weeks ago, Alex had a bout of diarrhea, or so I thought. Turns out it was just a brief reaction to my having given him formula. At the follow-up check up - which was on Apr. 26, Alex was estimated to weigh about 6 lbs, 10 oz, which would have been a 6 oz gain in a week's time. At the time, he was just hitting about 3 oz per feeding, with a lot of them being 2.5 oz. He's not due for another check-up until the end of May, which will be his 2 month old physical and when his immunizations begin.

Over the past three weeks, his appetite has grown by leaps and bounds and it appears that he's grown with it. He's currently up to between 5 and 6 oz with each feeding which can STILL occur every three hours sometimes. Last week, known as a "growth spurt week" (6 weeks), he was regularly drinking 5-6 oz with 3 to 3.5 hours inbetween. Last night was the first night he took seven ounces. But, we estimate that he weighs only about 8 lbs now. That kind of drinking is a pig-out for an 8 lb baby if he were to keep it up. I can tell that the growth spurt is working. He's finally reaching the end of wearing his preemie clothes and now fitting into some outfits that I received as gifts. Well, three onesies to be exact. He must be using all of that food because his solid waste diapers have slowed down considerably from about 10-12 a day to about 5-6 a day. Also normal, I was told. It means he's getting taller and his intestines are growing longer along with him. It also means he's using more of the food we give him.

I'm hoping this feed-a-thon doesn't last into blimping him up. Due to the quick jump, I've had to use more formula to supplement because I can't produce that much milk. I'm really hoping I can stimulate enough production to catch up, which means nursing in the middle of the night instead of using bottled pre-pumped milk. With this kind of eating, I can't keep the pre-pumped milk on the shelves long enough to supplement any feedings with extra.

I'm also suspecting that he's allergic to the milk-based formula. He's had a rash on his face that started to spread to his neck and he's getting nasal congestion. I switched to the soy milk based formula yesterday and, so far, he's had just as much of that as he's had of breastmilk today. I hope to see if the rash and congestion clear up from the switch. I know that he has less gas already.

On the fun front, Alex now smiles and laughs spontaneously and in response to us. He definitely reaches for toys and other things he wants to hold (like my hair) and sometimes gets upset when he can't reach them. His vision is much more far sighted now, judging from the things that I've noticed will catch his attention. He's staying awake for longer periods in the mornings and days - with only two occurrances of wanting to play at 3 AM (so far). He can hold onto some round link toys and he loves them. He doesn't seem to like to turn over any longer, but his neck is getting stronger anyway. Now, when on his stomach, he always lifts his head at least 45 degrees. He's been showing some ability to lift his upper torso up on his arms too. He's shown a love of music already. He will fuss in his crib if I don't turn on the Munchkin iPod player Mildred gave me. It has a special mix for him with soft pop tunes and some new age Celtic music.

He'll also sleep in his crib very easily. He doesn't seem bothered at all by its large space size or by the fact that Dan and I are not in the same room with him all the time anymore. We still keep him in the bassinet in our room for over night and Dan is still sneaking in some co-sleeping in the early mornings. (Sigh).

Enjoy the pics!

May 15, 2007

Photos from Early May

NOT enjoying "Tummy Time". We're supposed to let him play on his stomach like this at least once a day so that he learns how to raise his head and learns the motions of crawling. He loved it the first two times we did it and never as much again. He much prefers "Tummy Time" spent on top of Mommy or Daddy which defeats the purpose because he falls asleep there within minutes. (Pic taken 5/1, aged almost 5 weeks.)

This was a better Tummy Time session. Pic is blurry because that's the way it goes with Alex. He's either asleep/about to be asleep or he's awake, active, laughing and moving.  (Pic taken 5/3, 5 weeks old.)

Great smile even if those feet are whizzing around. Pic was taken 5/3 at 6:20 PM - one of his usual, Active-Mommy-Let's-Play Times, after his afternoon nap.

His usual response to most toys right now. At this point, he's more interested in us than in toys. (Pic taken 5/5, 5 and a half weeks old.)

This is the usual result when I take him out to establish a "play time" with toys. We took out all of those toys to see which, if any, he grooved to. Eventually, he took to the linked rings, but not this day. He was entertained a little by the teething ring sheep in the upper most left hand corner, but only when I sang "Bah, Bah Black Sheep" with it. Pic taken 5/5.

Finally the crib! We were able to set it up a couple of days after it arrived. We ordered and paid for the set on 3/2, being told to expect delivery in 7-10 business days.  It arrived two months later when Alex was more than five weeks old. WHAT a tale. I will never again use Babies/Toys R Us for large purchases like furniture or purchases of a lot of items.

You'd think he had gas here. I always thought he had gas when he'd twist like this. Nope, he likes to twist like this when he wants to wake up. Pic taken 5/5, five and a half weeks old.

He took to the crib surprisingly well. He seems fascinated by the mobile and by the dinosaurs on the bumper. He liked it even better when I put the sleep positioner down and added the iPod Munchkin to play his favorite tunes.
Pic taken 5/6, five and a half weeks old.

Sitting up is sooooo much more relaxing and fun than stupid ol' "Tummy Time". These pants don't yet fit him. Poor thing either wears sleepers or goes pantless in onesies. Pic taken 5/7, almost 6 weeks old.

Morning with Mommy! This is his favorite Play Time - about 8 AM. That's his usual mood in the mornings. Pic taken 5/8, almost 6 weeks old.

Can we play now Mommy? (5/8, 8:30 AM)

No, I asked "Can we PLAY now? Is this play? What do you mean you have to eat?"  Pic taken 5/8, almost 6 weeks old.
 
 

One of his favorite "Cuddle Times", between 8 and 11 PM. Pic taken at 10 PM (5/8).

May 15, 2007

Happy One Month Birthday Wishes

Arrived by email from Christine today.  I responded.

Why thank you! And a happy, uneventful birthday it was. I bought him a cap with a brim since we've discovered that he really doesn't dig the sun on his face. Another bottle was had without any candles. Some fussing was done at some wee hour and life went on. We have new pics, but Dan hasn't uploaded them yet. I'll be sure to send around another batch when I've got one.

He also just passed his original due date of 4/29. Preemies start really growing in leaps and bounds once that happens and Alex seems no exception. At birth, he weighed 5 lbs, losing just 2 oz while in the hospital. He was released at 4 lbs 14 oz. It took him about four weeks to break 6 lbs, but it seems it will take only about 2 weeks for him to break 7 lbs. He now weighs about 6 lbs 10 oz, having gained 6 oz in a week's time. It's great news for his growth and as an indication of his nourishment, but it's also way helpful for me. The older he gets as now a "full term" baby, the better he is at nursing directly. Nursing directly usually takes about 40 minutes for him to get a meal. That's opposed to 10 minutes if fed the same milk from a bottle. Now he's starting to get a full meal from direct nursing in 20-30 mins. For the times I don't have a pumped store at 4 AM, this is much easier on me. Yay.

His vision has improved too, so now he gets more stimulation as he can see further and therefore, so many more things in his field of vision. Again, great news to see the improvement, but it also means that he's just that much more stimulated and excited by his environment. It takes much longer for him to calm down to a sleep. Oh well.
One more month of this round-the-clock business. Just one more month...

Oh, and one more birthday present for us. He can now smile spontaneously. We've tested it out, checking to see if the smile comes at appropriate times like in mimicry of our smiles or in the middle of a game. We're pretty sure now that the smiles are real. That was the bestest b-day present in the whole wide world.

April 30, 2007

Photos from Late April

Lost in the swing. Pic taken on 4/18 - aged 3 weeks. He's not that much bigger in it yet, but he has an easier time sitting up now. That sleeper fits him much better now also. I've been told that swings are a great way to get a baby to sleep. It hasn't worked yet. The only time he likes to be in the swing is if I'm in the same room at the time. It has brought us peace at our dinner time sometimes, as long as the swing was right next to the dining room table.

Second outing in the carriage (4/21, 3 weeks old). He managed to stay awake just long enough for this pic, I think. Who knew a carriage ride outside would be the ultimate sleep aid?

There goes Dan, paving the way for a world full of pain for us later. In the mornings, after his second daylight feeding (approx. 8-9 AM), Alex often wants to stay up and Mommy wants to eat breakfast. This is Dan's way of getting him to be calm again. I asked him the other morning how he likes his first doll. Pic taken 4/21, 3 weeks old.

Deceptively calm. Pic taken during the afternoon when Mommy would prefer he sleeps. Yeah, well. (4/29, 4 weeks old)

April 30, 2007

Yo, Guy! No Switching!

Alex went into a new routine for a couple of days.  Normally, I can count on longer sleep periods at night. Recently, he flipped that business to the day and shorter naps at night. I had to stop that business right away.
I did it by working on his eating, making certain I bottle fed (pumped) him at night and breast fed during the day. I then gave him his baths at night and made certain that I had no lights on or much noise going on during the nights.  So far, with the heavier feedings, baths and darkness, I've seen him sleep pretty tightly at night.  I also encouraged a play time during the days or evenings, depending on when I can get one.

As you can see, I tried a whole compound approach, so I'm not sure which of those individual things really did the trick.  I just know that he's back on track.

April 16, 2007

Eat, Little Guy, Eat!

Since Alex was a 35 week preemie I had to allow formula use for the first few days of his life until I got a good milk flow in.  At the time, his weight and eating were big issues for him. Then, earlier into my breastfeeding, his suckling ability wasn't that great.  He's 38 weeks old right now and I have finally seen improvement in his suckling, but still I was concerned.

I'm able to get 4-5 oz combined with each pumping session. It seemed incredible to me that my little slacker preemie could possibly do better. I was told by lactation consultants at my hospital that he will be able to fully eat at the breast as he got closer to his due date. I just took my breastfeeding class last Saturday and the lactation consultant there reiterated that full term babies are a lot more efficient in suckling milk than a pump is. 
When Alex finally took a whole meal at the breast, he slept longer than he ever did with pumped milk before.  He showed all signs of satiety after a 40 min session and didn't get interrupted sleep from hunger afterwards.

A sigh of relief.

April 16, 2007

Still in My "Pregnancy" - But Not

When I was pregnant, experienced moms told me that I would miss being that way when I no longer was.  It was tough to believe them. My pregnancy was an utterly miserable experience from Month One onwards.  I was lucky to have had no medical issues, save my little one arriving a month early.  But the symptoms - dear LAWD!  I was sick constantly.  Sleep? What was that?  I've had better sleep now that he's here - and waking every three hours - than I had throughout nearly all of my pregnancy.

The only good thing about it was feeling Alex move around.  Those brief moments throughout the day and night would make the physical misery worth it.

Yet now, here I am, terribly sad that my little one arrived so early and I didn't get to experience the anticipation of delivery in my ninth month.  There was no real waiting for me. There wasn't any preparation or excitement period. There was the unexpected night of "Hey...what's that water feeling going on down there?" and the arrival at the hospital in which I was utterly clueless.  I even asked the nurse admitting me "What can be done to stop it?"

Her answer: "You give birth. That stops it."

And so I did, about 15 hours later. I was bewildered, scared, not excited at all because I was so worried about his health given the circumstances.  He was OK and needed no breathing assistance ever. But, of course, he had to get out for me to know that. Sigh. I can't really explain this sadness I have well. I guess I'll get over it, but in the meantime, I'm still in my "pregnancy" with one and a half weeks to go.  It just bums me out.
 

April 16, 2007

New Parent Jitters

And the new and exciting theories of infant health care and development just keep on coming to confuse and confound even more than the last one. They scare you to death with this stuff.

For example, when Alex came home, we had no sheets ready yet for his bassinet. You have to wash all new stuff of baby-ness straight from the package. So say “they”: The fabric has been handled by a lot of people and machines prior to packaging and then it’s been stored with silica gel to prevent humidity from damaging it during shipping and storage.

Then there's the sleep sac he’s been wearing. It's recommended because now you’re advised to not even use a blanket on a newborn. The loose blanket poses a suffocation risk. These sleep sacs are blankets that – as you can see in the photos – are worn like clothing. It can’t come loose to wrap around his face. However, it's suggested that you use blankets a LOT while you're awake and watching the baby. The conflicting theory is that newborns, especially preemies, require a tightly confined environment to mimic the small amount of space they had in the womb. Preemies in particular, it's theorized, are still developing as they would have in the womb. The whole process is dependent on them still feeling like they're in 98 degree water all the time, in a tiny, dark space and rocked a lot like they were when the mother would walk around. Go figure.

How DID we survive when our parents didn’t know all this stuff in the 60s? One wonders. Does anyone know of any family on your block or even immediate neighborhood who lost a baby our age due to unwashed baby stuff or loose blankets? Do any of us know any preemie born people who wound up emotionally messed up or intellectually slow by not being swaddled all the time until they got to their due date? Of course, after they tell you this stuff, you can't make the leap of faith to NOT heed it.

The Sleep Sac

His second morning home. That’s his “What’s this stuff?” and/or "Who are you people?" stare.

The not-so-good ol’ days when it was hard to feed him a whole bottle. Now he’s in a growth spurt and wants to eat every two hours and sometimes every hour. (This is a good thing. I keep telling myself that at 2 AM, 3 AM, 4 AM…)

We had a cold front move in the first week of April. (I’m sure it hit DC and PA too). The socks that don’t fit became necessary. He kept losing them in the sleep sac. I gave up on these green ones eventually. Next month, he can be a more stylishly coordinated baby. You know, when the nice stuff he has fits him and all.

He’s been showing an early ability to grab things. He was able to hold the pacifier to his own mouth when only days old. (Though I think he’s forgotten this skill now.) He was able to do this with the bottle at 4 days. Today, he even held up the bottle (15 days old.)

April 12, 2007

He's Home! The First Week

The first week of his being home proved to be challenging in getting him to 60 ml every four hours and much more successful of at least 45 ml every three hours (winds up being the same 13 oz in a 24 hour period.) These two weeks have, indeed, been sleep depriving. That's just the way it goes for a newborn. The thing is that the sleep I do get is FAR better sleep than I got throughout seven and a half months of my pregnancy.
So, yeah, he keeps me up at night and sometimes for hours. The thing is that I don't feel as crappy as I did when I was pregnant and was up for at least two hours in the middle of each night anyway.

And, of course, this isn't someone else's baby I'm losing sleep for. It's a world of difference when it's your baby. Even poopy diapers are fascinating to me and Dan now. (Well, that and the fact that breastfed babies don't produce solid waste that smells badly.) I have to keep reminding Dan that such things are fascinating to only six people on the entire planet: me, him and our parents. Nonetheless, I suggested that he stop discussing these things in detail to everyone he speaks to, like his doctor's receptionist or the college students who work at our supermarket.

April 6, 2007

Coming Home

These are the most recent photos we uploaded from Alex's birth and eventual coming home from the hospital on April 2.  He was released after the neonatologists were satisfied that he could go four hours without eating and that he would eat 45-60 ml at every one of the six feedings from the previous 24 hour period.

This is our favorite pic so far. Still in the hospital, about 3 days old here. Not only is it an adorable pic, but he’s laying on his side. He wasn’t placed like that. He does it. That’s way advanced for a 3 day old. I’ve since learned that many newborns in recent years are coming out of the womb with motor skills that were previously considered advanced. Turning his body, for example, shouldn’t be a skill until about 3-4 months. Better diets and health in the mothers maybe?

“Preemie” defined. That’s Dan’s finger he’s holding.

Our little shrunken guy. He’s only gained 9 oz since this photo was taken, but he already looks so much fatter. He’s slightly jaundiced here as most 8th month preemies are. I’ve also been told that breastfed babies stay jaundiced longer, indicating that the blood bilirubin level that causes jaundice may not be such a bad thing after all.

One of the hospital’s Going Home presents. The T reads, “I got my first hug at Greenwich Hospital – NICU”

Dwarfed by the car seat on the way home from the hospital.

Dan singing to Alex the first day he was home. (April 2)

April 2, 2007

Getting Stronger in NICU

These pics are from our camera. Dan was able to go get it on Thursday while I was still in the hospital. The photo download picks up from my shower.

I included this pic of my stomach because it surprised me to see it like this again. This breastfeeding thing has been the best weight loss program that has to be known to mankind. Too bad you have to have been pregnant recently for it to work. This was taken on Saturday, March 24, when I weighed about 172 lbs. Since my maternity clothing has been loose for the past few days and my stomach seemed oddly "small" when I looked at my reflection today, I weighed myself this morning out of curiosity. I've lost a little over 22 lbs in two weeks.

Greenwich Hospital gives a special celebration dinner for new parents on the night before the mother is to be released from the hospital. (In my case, the dinner was Thursday March 29). The choices for dinner are filet mignon, roast salmon, roasted cornish game hens or lobster tail. Since I'd been deprived of shellfish for eight months, you know I went right for the lobster tail along with shimp cocktail for an appetizer. The dinner also comes with champagne which was OK for me to have in small amounts despite breastfeeding. This room was the postpartum room to which I was moved at 8 PM on Wednesday night. (March 28). That would be the room in which none of you could find me. Without a phone card, I was unable to make long distance phone calls and my cellular service did not work well in the hospital.

Dan with champagne at Celebration dinner. (March 29)

Dan and Alex on Thursday night (3/29). He was finally allowed in the NICU that evening.

Alex getting his first feeding from Daddy - Thursday night.

Alex close up. Fed by Daddy. Thursday night.

Alex, doing what he'd do after 15-20 ml of milk for the first three days of his life - sleeping. The tube was reinserted to feed him the remaining 20 ml.

Alex, after waking a little.

Alex's birth card from the nursery (NICU in his case). I had asked them to insert his full name so that my father-in-law could see the middle name. Gerardo hadn't known that we gave him the middle name "Gerard" until Orquidea pointed it out on the card to him. Dan doesn't have a middle name, so I think it might not have occurred to my in-laws to ask us what Alex's middle name would be.

A big moment for us on Friday afternoon. Alex got "promoted" out of an incubator and into an open bassinet.

My father-in-law, Gerardo, meets Alex on Friday afternoon. (March 30)

My mother-in-law, Orquidea holds Alex on Saturday afternoon. (March 31) You can see the tube in his nose which indicates he still wasn't taking full feedings from the bottle.

Me leaving the hospital on Friday afternoon with the leopard Donna and Ellen gave me Wednesday night. It was depressing to have to leave the hospital without a baby. I insisted on holding the leopard instead. The saint pushing me is Nurse Mary - witness to The Screaming Hours of 9:30 AM to 11:00 AM on Wednesday while waiting for the anesthesiologist and while he worked for about 15 minutes to get the epidural in.

April 1, 2007