We got back from Orlando this past Sunday and I'm already having major vacation withdrawal!
The weather was beautiful, just gorgeous! Sunny and blue skies all week long and super warm. Elliott was a great little traveller - I was a bit worried about our flight going there as it was SUPER early (6:30 am departure!) but he did fabulously. I was most nervous when we were standing in a never-ending winding line at customs (just before you get to the part where you take off your shoes and go through the detector) - he woke up from sleeping just as we were about 10 people away from talking to the U.S Customs official and there is no where you can go. Luckily for us, we just took off the blanket that was on his stroller so he could see us and he made it through just fine.
Once we were on the plane, we bf'd because if he didn't have something to eat he would totally freak out. He was fine but I felt a tad awkward as those seats are tight as it is with one person, nevermind baby trying to suck at your nipple. Sorry for the straightforwardness but that's what it is. LOL.
We also gave him .5 ml of aD.vil so that if there was any pain in his ears, it could help a little.Then, just as we were heading down the runway and we heard the engines rev up, we gave him a bottle so his ears wouldn't pop but after a few sucks - he fells asleep! We kept blowing on his face and shaking him so he would suck (which he did, to appease us I think hehe) and once we were at the max altitude, we just let him sleep. Slept for almost an hour (it was only a 2 1/2 hr flight) and then woke up, ate a bit and played the rest of the time. It was bliss. Coming back home was a WHOLE other story. He had missed his nap and would not fall asleep, and even worse, would NOT take a paci or bottle as we were descending. Instead, we had a wailing, screaming, squirming baby for a good 10 minutes. I even whipped out my boob at one point (no cover) just to see if it would help calm him down. Nope. Finally, I gave him to my hubby and he was able to pat him and calm him down - and then he just zonked out right on his shoulder. I didn't even want to look at anybody because I could just imagine what they were thinking! I think one of the worst things (as a single person) was sitting next to a screaming baby with no where to go! Oh well - we made it through and all is good :)
The rest of the trip was great with the exceptions of a few meltdowns-vomit-in-car situations but looking back now it just made the trip that much more memorable :) My favorite moment was sitting on a beach chair at Daytona Beach with Elliott sleeping in my arms, watching the waves crash and kids laughing and playing. We didn't do Disney as we want his first time to be one that he would truly appreciate and enjoy it. I can't wait to see the look in his eyes when we get to tell him one day that we are taking him to meet Mickey!
Thanks for your comments and feedback on my last post about drying up. I have continued to put him at the breast as much as I can but alas, my supply is just not keeping up with his demand. I am going to do it for as long as I can, but now that we're doing solids as well, I'm thinking our bf'ing time might end soon rather than later. :(
Oh! and Elliott turned 6 months - holy cow - 6 MONTHS! I think back to this time last year and I remember praying every month - please God, let us make it another month, and another, etc. Now that I see how interactive he is, how curious he is about the world around him - the babbling and the laughing - I am so thankful that he is growing up so well and each month of his life outside of my tummy is a constant reminder of what a blessing he is!
Here are a few pics from our trip!
Elliott has his first taste of solids this past Sunday. Just plain ol' rice cereal. He LOVED it! We couldn't keep up fast enough with the spoon he was practically lunging at it and using his hand on our wrist to bring it to him faster. Oh man this kid is so funny.
We got the whole thing on video and it cracks me up every time I watch it. I had put a baby food processor on my baby registry so I can't wait to start making some food for him down the road - hopefully he likes all kinds of food just as much as his mommy! :)
My goal with breastfeeding was to do it as long as I could, and when we first started - I have to be honest - I didn't enjoy it. The dryness, the pain, the twisting, the yanking - let's face it, it wasn't exactly the sweet gentle bonding time that I had envisioned.
Then things got better little by little. E learned how to latch properly, he wasn't as frantic just before I put him on the breast as he was before, and when we had a good nursing session going, it was wonderful. I even enjoyed those wee morning hours when it was just me and him, mother and son. Calm, quiet, peaceful.
But now it seems that I am either drying up and/or his appetite has increased to the point where I cannot keep up. I have to admit, it's partly my fault as I haven't pumped in a long time and he's been eating from a bottle 3 times a day. So of course we would get to this point. Now that we're here though, I don't want to wean him off so quickly because I still like the convenience of being able to whip it out and not having to wait to warm a bottle. Lately, before we give him a bottle, I will put him on the breast first, and then after his 'appetizer' we move onto the bottle. There is definitely not enough breastmilk to satisfy him - but I'm doing it so that I don't lose it completely. Our feeding goes like this: 1st feed - breast; 2nd-feed, breast and bottle, 3rd feed-breast and bottle; 4th feed - breast, 5th feed-bottle - 6th(last) feed-breast. With this 'system' of feeding, he still sleeps 11-12 hours each night.
So the question is, to help with keeping my milk, would Fenugre.ek or Ble.ssed Th.istle work in my situation or is it just at the beginning for mothers who need to get their milk production going?
In other new news, we are going away to Orlando (!) for our first family vacation together and I am trying to get everything in order - I feel like there is so much to bring for just one tiny little baby!
Oh, and today is my birthday! I woke up this morning to my little guy laughing in his crib. Let's just say: Best Present. Ever. ;)
So I had been waiting for E to reach this milestone of rolling from back to tummy since it's around the 5-6 month marker for most babies but now that it's happened - it's totally freaking me out!
Yesterday morning he woke up earlier than usual, around 6 am - so I fed him and put him back to bed, only to find him crying 20 mins later as he had rolled onto his tummy and was frustrated because he didn't know how to roll back.
So I know this will only be temporary until he learns and masters the "from-tummy-to-back" skill but I had a hard time falling asleep last night because I kept thinking he would cry any minute because he had flipped and didn't know what to do. He woke up once around 5 am and I went to check in on him and he was yep, on his tummy. Rolled him back and he fussed quietly for a few minutes and then back to sleep. He is still sleeping from 8pm to about 730-8am so I'm really hoping this whole rolling thing doesn't interfere too much with his awesome sleeping.
We are trying to teach him to roll back so hopefully he gets it soon - but man, stressful times! I can't even imagine when he learns to crawl and push himself up....tell me this gets easier!
My lil' man is 5 months already and I still can hardly believe it :) I am so so blessed to be his mommy and I thank God every day for sending us this happy, active, curious little boy.
Some highlights of the past month so I don't forget:
- Caught on video: Elliott's first continuous laugh outburst (you know, those contagious baby laughs lol) when I asked my hubby to distract him while I was cutting his fingernails - my DH started waving his hands with a silly face and saying 'whohoohoo, whooohooo' over and over again and for some reason, it cracked him up, for like, 2 minutes straight lol
- He hates sitting back in his bouncy chair now, he's always lunging forward and wanting to sit upright - although, I borrowed a Bumbo* from a friend and he doesn't seem to want to sit in it for too long
- He started grabbing his toes and feet while lying on the changing table
- Still working on his grasping skills - he can usually grab his toys and shove them in his mouth but sometimes I see him getting frustrated and instead of grabbing the toy his fists are balled up and he basically uses his forearms to shove it into his mouth
- He's had the odd wake-up-fussing-turn-into-screaming-bloody-murder a few nights after sleeping for 2 hours or so - I would try to shush and re-assure and rock but would eventually have to nurse him back to sleep - hopefully this was an outlier and not a habit - happened a few times in the past week..for the most part, he is still sleeping 10-12 hours a night so I am praying that will stick
- Every day E gives the biggest grin and laugh when Daddy comes in the door from work - melts Daddy's heart that's for sure ;) I smile too because then I get a break! well, if making dinner counts as a break LOL
- We went to our first Mommy and BabyFitness class together last week! It was pretty intense and I loved working out with E and I really think he enjoyed it too - loved seeing other moms and their babies and especially the last half hour dedicated to the babies with songs, puppets, bubbles and parachute
- E loves it when I dance and make a fool out of myself in front of him
- DH started putting E on a workout ball for his tummy time last week to help strengthen his arms and he loves it! We're noticing a difference in his upper body strength now
- my wrist is still not doing so great - I'm pretty sure I have tendinitis but I haven't had time to go see a doctor so a wrist brace is helping somewhat - those darn heavy carseats and just repetitive baby lifting :(
- OH almost forgot this - not that it's a highlight - well - neither is the previous bullet - but I got my period back last week. I was a bit surprised it came back so soon and frankly, I could do without having to worry about that again but alas, no such luck. I guess it's time to think about birth control. huh. I don't want to go back on the pill so I need to see what other alternatives are out there - Any input would help!
I met up with some of my co-workers today for a baby shower/lunch and the more they talked/vented about work, the more I felt like I really did not want to go back to work. or at least, back to that job. I'm really dreading it and every month that goes by I feel more anxious. I know I am really lucky to have 12 months for maternity leave. I really am. But I think that I will start looking at what other jobs in the same field are out there and see if it is worthwhile to make a change now that I have some time to think about it.
Still catching up on some blogs but I think of you all often and I hope you are doing well!
and Elliott is approaching 5 months next week! Whaaat? How the heck did that happen already? It's been a while since I last posted so forgive me if this post is a bit random and scattered.
Let's see, where to start? Elliott is such a happy baby, I really am so blessed that for the most part, all he does is jump up and down on my lap and shriek with happiness and babble endlessly. We have the best conversations during the day - sometimes I feel like he really understands everything I'm saying to him!
Our daily routine is pretty much set now, and the whole napping thing has definitely improved although if I miss that "window" - then it is a whole other story. I have gotten him used to going down for a nap while he is still awake (and in his crib), and he'll talk to himself for a bit, fuss and then usually fall asleep on his own. Only on some occasions do I have to intervene and rock him a bit and put him down but we are trying hard to wean that out since we never have to do that at bedtime. Thankfully he is still sleeping like a champ at night - now he goes down just before 9pm and up the next morning at 9 am - but lately I've noticed a few times he would wake up in the middle of the night (3 am or 4 am) wanted to eat, then going back to bed until the usual wake up time. I'm hoping that it is just a growth spurt and nothing permanent - I know I'm spoiled with long sleep but I would like to keep it that way thankuverymuch!
At the last ped appointment, I told the doctor that I thought my little guy was showing signs of teething so she felt around his gums and confirmed that she could feel a tooth coming up on his bottom right side but she said it hasn't cut through the gums yet. Isn't it a bit early for teething? He's been a drooling machine (we go through at least 5 bibs a day if not more) and loves shoving anything into his tiny mouth to gnaw on.
He's on the 'smaller side' for babies his age, but when I think about it, Elliott was born 2 weeks early and also started at 5 lb 6oz so he had a lot of catching up to do - he is now 13.5 lbs. I'm not bothered by his weight until my friends (who've also recently had babies) start commenting "oh he's so tiny" or "wow he's super lean" - it makes me feel like a bad mother and that I'm not feeding him well enough! Most of the time I just bite my tongue and remind them that he was born early and was at least 2 - 3 lbs lighter at birth than their 'big' babies and just hope that they get the hint and shut up. Then I go home and vent to my hubby that I can't stand how they keep saying E is small when I think he has been doing great at gaining weight and his pediatrician still says he's doing great. Am I being overly sensitive here? How else can I get my friends to stop making those comments? (and it's only the ones with babies)
As for my weight, well, that's a whole other story. I haven't been great at taking care of myself and well, it shows. I still have the flabby pouch and at least 20 lbs to lose before my ideal weight, and given that I'm a small frame gal, every lb shows :( I know that it will take a while to get off but I get frustrated when I look at pictures of myself and just feel uncomfortable in this body that is so foreign to me. I signed E and myself up for a Mommy and Baby Fitness class starting next week - so if all goes well, I'll be on the right track to getting my body back!
Right now hubby and I are looking into where we can go for a family vacation. We want low key, but also love trips with activities where we can go and do stuff, vs. just lying around on a beach (plus I ain't getting into no swim suit just yet). Any suggestions welcome - especially love to hear where you've been with your wee one at this age.
My grandpa (mom's side) passed away last week at the age of 91. I never knew him well as my grandparents all live in Hong Kong so I've only met them a total of 6 times in my life, but the sadness of his passing still hurts as it hurts to see my mom sad. My parents are flying back for the funeral tomorrow, and will be there for 7 weeks. I am a bit of a mess because ever since E was born, my mom has been around to help out and we hang out at least a few times a week, sometimes I'll even drop E off and go get some errands done. Now that they will be gone for so long, I won't have that support that I'm so used to and frankly, I'm a bit scared to 'go it alone'. I know I'm lucky to have family so close by, but because I've always had it, it will be the first time I will be 'on my own' without my mom here and I hope I can survive. Hubby and I tousled around the idea of joining them in Hong Kong for a few weeks but the reality of bringing E on an international trip for our very first family trip seemed a bit too daunting of a task, and we are not brave enough yet to embark on a 15 hour flight with a complete time change that would throw us all off. These upcoming weeks are going to be tough but I hope that I can keep busy by the new class I'm taking with E and hanging out with friends. We still may end up taking vacation in April if we can find something that makes sense financially and fits what we are looking for.
I will try to keep up with my posts more often as I miss writing and keeping up with you all!
