Sunday, January 19, 2014

Breastfeeding: Round Two

I don't know if this is the "norm" or if it just depends on the child, but breastfeeding this time around has been SOOOO much easier than the first three months with Delano were!



Ok, so claiming that "it rocks" at 18 days in is an exaggeration.  But for those of you who read my posts about my breastfeeding experiences after Delano was born, you know that I had a bit of a rough time there for a while.  In the second blog post I wrote, which was a few days shy of Delano's one-month birthday, I talked about how I wasn't prepared for the pain associated with scabby, cracked nipples.....and how I wasn't prepared for the long stretches of cluster feeding and how painful THAT was.  The cluster feedings took over for a while, not allowing me ANY relief.  Delano would latch on and I would want to both scream and cry.  I described it as being like shards of glass piercing through my nipples, and that was EXACTLY what it was like.  It would make my toes curl.  But I refused to give up.

When Delano was six weeks old, I discovered the possibility of a tongue tie.  A really rare posterior tongue tie, to be exact.  So when Delano was eight weeks old, he had his very first dentist appointment to inspect his mouth.  The dentist didn't visibly see any indications of a tongue tie, but said he would consult with an out-of-state specialist.  After he spoke with the specialist, he became fairly certain that a posterior tongue tie was indeed the likely culprit.  The problem was, none of the pediatric dentists in town had the equipment to deal with a posterior tongue tie, especially in an infant.  So when Delano was 10 weeks old, I decided I would make an appointment with a specialist at Vanderbilt's Children's Hospital.  But by the next week, before I had even had the chance to set up the appointment (I was trying to schedule it around a work project), everything FIXED ITSELF.  It seriously was like a switch was flipped.  I just woke up one day and there was suddenly NO PAIN ANYMORE.  It was the most fabulous thing ever.  I never made the trip to Vanderbilt.



So that was my experience with Delano.  It was painful, but didn't seem to be nearly as painful as some of the stories that some friends of mine shared.  One friend had a HORRIBLE experience with mastitis that occurred multiple times in a row and made her extremely sick.....yet she still breastfed her baby.  So although my first three months were rough, I'm grateful they weren't worse.

P.S.  Dairy cows often have to live their entire dairy lives with mastitis, with NO vet care for it (unless it affects their milk output).  Can you even imagine how HORRIBLY painful that is???


My experience with Lucy (so far) has been MUCH less dramatic.  I still had cracks and scabs in the beginning, though not as bad as my first go at breastfeeding.  And my nipples were definitely super angry about having a little person draining them every couple of hours, especially since Lucy came into this world with a small mouth and a shallow latch.  She actually cracked and scabbed me before I had even left the hospital due to her shallow latch.  But the cracks and scabs are long gone and we've been working on a correct, deep latch during every feeding.  My nipples are still sore, but that's to be expected.  So all in all, I have no complaints!


Last night and today have been a prime example of cluster feeding, which Lucy has decided to partake in.  She is attached to my boob at this exact moment, and my nipple is pretty much ablaze with FIRE in her mouth.  But she's falling asleep, AND I NEED HER TO SLEEP.  So that I can do something - ANYTHING - else besides feed her!

For the love that is all that is holy........STAY ASLEEP, CHILD!!!!

Just like that.  DO THAT.

Thursday, January 16, 2014

Life With Two Kids

Lucy is 17 days old today, and Delano is 17 months old!  And what a pair they are.  Although Delano thinks Lucy is TOTALLY BORING right now.  Don't worry, son.  It won't be long before you'll WISH she was boring.

I've posted this pic before, but here it is again.  :)

So life with two kids is WAY different from life with just one.  If my kids were further (farther?) apart in age, it may not be quite as much of a culture shock, but at this point my life is just go-go-go.  I've got a 17-month-old toddler who is whiny, needy, teething, throws periodic tantrums and is constantly on the move......and I've got a 17-day-old who wants to be attached to my boob whenever she's not sleeping.  I basically feed children and change diapers all day.


And going places?  That task has changed exponentially.  It was SO much easier going places with just one child.  And it's not that my children are difficult (temperamentally) to take places.  Delano loves going bye-bye and Lucy usually falls asleep in the car and stays asleep during the entire duration of the trip.  It just now takes a LONG time to get out the door.  Between making sure the kiddos are clean, dressed and ready and the diaper bag is stocked with everything needed for both of them......then after loading the baby into the infant car seat, holding the toddler's hand as we walk (SLOWLY) down the stairs (while carrying said infant car seat and diaper bag and anything else that's going with us that I haven't already loaded into the car), and getting everything and everybody loaded up.....it takes much, much longer than when it was just Delano by himself.  It almost doesn't make sense how much longer it takes me.  Delano and I could be out the door in 10 minutes.....now it seems like it takes me an hour.  It's crazy!  It makes you really debate on what errands are worth the effort.

But she's adorable!

(It is taking me forever to write this post......my mind is blank.  Totally not working this afternoon!)

Sleep has been pretty normal on the newborn scale.  Lucy sleeps a lot during the day for the time being, and lucky for me, her naps coordinate with Delano's naps so I'm able to get things done during the two chunks of time in the day when they're both asleep (like right now).  Delano still takes two naps a day that usually last two hours each.  While the kiddos sleep, I work on house chores, make baby food, wash diapers, take a shower, run on the treadmill, etc.  I also get projects on my to-do list done, balance my checkbook, check my email, pay bills, play on Facebook and write blog posts.  Delano goes to bed at night usually around 8:00 or 8:30, which is when Lucas and I curl up together on the couch and watch TV before bed.  Lucy also goes to sleep around 8:00 or so, but she wakes back up around 10:00 to eat.  She's back asleep between 11:00 and 12:00, then up again 2-3 hours later.  Then again 2-4 hours after that.  Once she even slept for a 5-hour stretch.  So in the world of newborns, she's pretty textbook. 



I was super grateful that Lucas was able to take two weeks off of work when Lucy was born.  That first week was definitely a "WHAT THE HELL DID I GET MYSELF INTO?" week.  I doubted myself a lot that week and wondered how I was going to do it all by myself when it came time.  But the second week was much better as we all got into our groove, giving me much more confidence about the balancing act of having two kids under a year and a half.  By the time Lucas went by to work for good this past Monday, I felt ready to go with two thumbs up. I'VE GOT THIS.


As time goes on, I know that some things are going to get easier while other things get harder......the same as with one child.  Bring it on.  I'm ready.  :)

Monday, January 6, 2014

One Week Down.

Lucy is one week old today!  Hard to believe it's been a whole week since she fell out.  Seems like it was just a day or two ago.



We made it to the doctor, since there wasn't any snow or ice accumulation in our area of town to worry about.  All looked good at the doc's office.....Lucy has surpassed her birth weight (she's now at 7 lbs 3 oz), her eyes look good, her ears look good, her joints all move like they should, she's eating a ton and pooping/peeing after every meal (and then some).  Her butt is a bit raw from all the pooping (and in turn all the wiping) that's been going on, so I've been advised not to actually "wipe" her, but to rinse her off and pat her dry.  And she gave me a bunch of samples of some Dr. Smith's cream to use.  I've been coating her with Nystatin (a prescription cream I had leftover from when Delano was a newborn), but it doesn't seem to be helping.  I'm going to give her booty a soak in a baking soda bath here in a bit when she wakes up.  She's not going to like it, but it will make her butt feel better!



Lucy had her newborn pictures done yesterday.  I still have to go through all of the photos and pick my favorites for editing, but here's a sneak peak that Heidi Burks Photography posted to her Facebook page:

LOVE.

Aqua-Tots Swim School in Chattanooga FINALLY opened its doors two days ago.  Last summer, I preregistered Delano for swim lessons, under the assumption that he would start at the first of July.  Then it was pushed back to September.  Then November.  And then they finally completed construction in time to open on January 4th.  All of the preregistered parents received an email a couple of weeks ago to remind them to finalize their registration (and save their child's spot) before they moved on to the waiting list.  Sadly, I have given up Delano's spot at Aqua-Tots for now.  As much as I want him to learn how to swim, and as much as I would love for him to be doing that at Aqua-Tots, starting right now just wasn't the best idea.  I mean, I did just have a baby 7 days ago.  And I had wanted to pay for the lessons myself, which would have been feasible back when I had my own income.  But since I'm on a personal income hiatus, that doesn't exactly work out so well!

Sidenote:  I'm currently watching Family Feud while I type this post.  Question was, "Name something related to a man that gets bigger as he gets older."  Girl screamed out, "His wiener!!"  That just happened.  Family Feud is the greatest.

My babies!

Speaking of babies, it's time to feed and bathe my youngest, as she is waking up from her extremely long afternoon nap!

Saturday, January 4, 2014

5 Days Old

It's Saturday, and Little Miss Lucy is 5 days old!

She had her first bath today and HATED EVERYTHING ABOUT IT.

We got to leave the hospital Tuesday evening around 7:00 (after having her just after noon on Monday).  We would have gotten to leave sooner, but our pediatrician never got the memo that she had a patient at the hospital, so we had to wait for her to get there, which was around 6:00.  I was super excited about going home, relaxing on my own couch, using my own bathroom and sleeping in my own bed.  I was also excited about just being back HOME with the baby, Lucas, Delano and even all the pets. 

The first night home was exhausting, as we were up most of the night with a baby trying to adjust to her surroundings (aka NOT SLEEPING).  The second night was a lot better, and the past two nights have been like perfect newborn clockwork, with Lucy waking up every 2-3 hours to eat and fall back asleep.


As for the days, Lucy has spent them sleeping and eating.  The end.  She's been pretty easy to please.

Lucas and I, on the other hand, have been discovering how drastically different life is with TWO babies.  Two babies in two completely different phases of life, yet still both babies.  I've been lucky enough to have Lucas home all week this week, AND I get him home all week next week, too.  He's been working a little bit from home here and there and has had to pop into the office a couple of times for a few things, but he works from home during Delano's morning nap and takes Delano with him during his office runs.  Having the extra set of hands has been AWESOME.  It's going to be quite the transition once he goes back to work, though I'm hoping that two weeks of "practice" will give me a good head start.  :)

My babies.

Starting over with breastfeeding has sucked.  Don't get me wrong, I love breastfeeding and wouldn't have it any other way.  And I've been-there-done-that, so it's not a new experience.  But it doesn't make any of the initial "breastfeeding woes" suck any less.  I still have to deal with my nipples being ON FIRE and crying out in fear every time the baby wants to eat......I still have to deal with my toes curling due to the pain that happens every time the baby latches on......I still have to deal with the cracks and the scabs and the greasy nipple cream and the fact that my nipples don't want to touch ANYTHING at all but yet I still have to wear clothes......and I still have to deal with the engorgement and the leaking - nothing like trying to sleep with two rock hard milk jugs attached to your chest that have dripped a small lake under your body.

Cabbage leaves are said to be good to relieve engorged boobs.  I don't currently have any cabbage, but I do have these little round, cloth-covered ice packs bought specifically for this purpose.

Lucy's one-week appointment is scheduled for Monday afternoon.  However, with the weather predictions for this coming Sunday through Tuesday, we may have to reschedule it for later in the week.  But so far so good! 

Here are a few of the pics from the hospital:

There she is!
Daddy holding Lucy.
Mommy holding Lucy.
Delano checking her out.
Delano and Mommy.
Daddy and his kiddos.
Mommy and Lucy (after a much-needed shower and change of clothes!)

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Welcome To The World, Little Miss Lucy!

Monday

So it's Monday, December 30th - 2:33 AM.  And I've been up since......well, I'm not sure I ever fell asleep.  Maybe VERY briefly.  But that's because I've been having contractions for the past three hours.  Since I can't sleep, I've been trying to determine if I'm in "true labor" or "false labor".  The contractions aren't hurting my lower back at all and don't seem to be getting any stronger than when they started, but they ARE consistent at about a minute long and currently about six minutes apart.

I take that back.....maybe they ARE getting stronger.  It's hard to tell.  It seems to be determined on how I'm sitting or standing at the moment one hits.

*********************************************************************************

Today

That's as far as I made it into my blog post Monday morning.....by 3:00 AM my contractions were DEFINITELY getting stronger at about a minute long each and 4-5 minutes apart.  I woke up Lucas and called my mom to come over (and stay with Delano) a little after 3:00 because that's when I decided it was time to go.  I made some notes for my mom regarding Delano and the animals, finished packing the hospital bag and we were ready to go and on our way to Parkridge East by 4:00.  By the time we got to the hospital, I couldn't walk through a contraction.  I would have to stop, hold onto something and just breathe until the minute was over.

We got checked in and placed in one of the Birthing Center's tiny triage rooms for "inspection" as I call it.  They needed to determine if I was ACTUALLY in labor before completing my check-in and assigning me to a Labor and Delivery room.  When the nurse checked my cervix at 5:00 AM, she determined that I was 2 cm dilated, but still could not tell me if I was in "true labor" or not since she would have to see if I was progressing over time.  By 5:30 my contractions were 2-3 minutes apart and super painful.  By 6:00 I was 3-4 cm dilated and officially checked in and given a room.  I was dilated enough for an epidural, but couldn't have it just yet because the hospital needed to draw blood and do some lab work first, which all happened around 6:30.  That next hour was the longest hour EVER, with contractions happening about every 90 seconds.  Contractions that made my palms sweat and my toes curl.  And the baby was NOT a fan of them, so would put up a fight in my belly during a contraction, which was NOT helping.  NOT HELPFUL, BABY.

I was good to go for the epidural by 7:30, and the anesthesiologist showed up right away.  HE'S MY FAVORITE.  And I told him so.  The epidural went in, and within about 10 minutes I felt like a whole new relaxed woman.  And they let me lie flat on my back this time, which was SO much better than being flipped from side to side every 30 minutes like last time.  Once the epidural was in full effect (around 8:00), the nurse checked my cervix and determined that I was 6 cm dilated.  Woo hoo!



At 10:00, I was told that I was about 7.5 cm dilated, and the doctor came in to break my water.  By 11:00 I was 9 cm dilated and by noon I was ready to push at 10 cm.  I gave my first set of pushes (3 10-count pushes) at 12:15.  During the next contraction, right after I started to push for the second set, the doctor made me stop.

Lucy Aurelia Simington pretty much fell out at 12:17.  I had been joking for weeks that I hoped Baby #2 slipped out like a wet bar of soap......I didn't even remotely imagine it would ACTUALLY happen that way!



When the doctor said, "It's a girl!!", Lucas and I were shocked.  We did NOT expect a girl.  Lucas says he realized his life had changed forever at that exact moment, while my single thought at that moment was "NO SHIT!?!?".  But sure enough, we had ourselves a little girl!!  We couldn't stop looking at each other and shaking our heads and just laughing.  A girl!

Granted, we had our girl name already picked out long ago, so it wasn't like we weren't at least prepared to name her.  Her first name, Lucy, was Lucas's choice.  A couple of years ago we traveled to Texas for Lucas's grandmother's funeral.  While at the grave site, we looked at the gravestones of other Simingtons who had passed away.  One of those Simingtons was a Lucy, and Lucas decided right then and there that it was a name he would like to pass onto a daughter (if he ever had one).  Her middle name, Aurelia, comes from the movie "Love Actually".  The first time I ever saw the movie, I fell in love with the storyline of the English writer (played by Colin Firth) and the Portuguese maid named Aurelia.  Not only did I love the storyline, I ADORED her name.  So there you have it - Lucy Aurelia.

Love Her.

I have a bunch more pictures (of course) on my phone that I haven't shared yet because I need to upload them.  I'll have to do that in the near future.  :)

Welcome to the world, Little Miss Lucy!!