Not Alone

One of my best friends gave birth to her son four days after Lily was born.  She's been back at work for a couple of weeks now so of course I've been asking her a million questions all week and can barely get through the first half hour of my day without emailing her or texting her.  I thought I'd share an excerpt from an email I received from her yesterday that reminds me I'm not the only parent who doesn't have it together.  I love her.

"I need a reset button for this week!! Yesterday was a disaster all around and so was this morning until I got to work. I sat down and crossed three things off my to-do list by 8:30. Totally needed that.

I felt like so many ridiculous things happened yesterday…Colt woke up at 5 which never happens…I should have known then that the day was going to be crap. Getting out the door was okay. Then I got to work and a return I dropped off Friday PM with the director for signature came back with an APPORTIONMENT change so I spent all day fixing the Canada federal and provincial returns…something that should have not had to happen. And I went to pump at 10 and realized I left the power cord at home. Luckily the battery pack was in there and had functioning batteries…by the grace of God I think. I would have flipped. Then I looked at the tubing and saw a spec of what I think is mold. Gross. Decided to go to get new tubes last night. Then I went to pick Colt up and they said he was really hungry again all day and they gave him WATER and I was like um seriously? I didn’t think that was okay…at least call to ask! But I’m over that now I guess. Then I got home and he wouldn’t stop crying. Then I realized the washing machine never finished the cycle the night before because it stopped working so the whole load was soaking in water all night and all day. And Ben had to leave for work. Then Colt had a massive blow-out so I started a bath because it was THAT bad and wipes just wouldn’t cut it. As I was filling the tub he peed on the bathroom floor. Then I fished everything out of the washer and went to my mom’s to finish that load. Got to my mom’s and the house was all locked up and I didn’t have my key. So I called her and told her to call me when she was home. in the meantime I went to Meijer and they didn’t have tubes. Mom called. Went to her house and did laundry. Left at 9:30 to go to Target. They didn’t have tubes. Went to Walmart. They didn’t have tubes. Went home defeated and washed my tubes, poured rubbing alcohol down them, sanitized them in the micro, and decided they’ll do until I can order some online. Tried and our internet wasn’t working. Did dishes so Colt had clean bottles for today. Pumped before bed and got like .5 oz, probably because I was already pissed and I have my period which does not help my supply. Went to bed at like 12:30 relieved that the day was over. Colt woke up at 5:00 again today. Ate a little. Slept. Woke up at 5:50. Ate a little. Slept. Got him up at 7 for a real feeding and he wouldn’t eat his bottle. He was happy so I figured I’d let it slide. Got him dressed and in the carseat ready to leave. He pooped. Unloaded him and changed him again. Finally got to daycare and left a smiling happy baby. Then I realized I forgot my lunch. Then I got to work and accomplished a few things. I hope that means I’m on the upswing!

Thanks for listening to my rant! After I dropped him off this morning all I wanted was to drive to GR and meet you for coffee. I needed to talk to someone who understands!!"

First Week Back

So far I'm surviving my first week back in the world of adults.  And Lily has survived a full day at home with Daddy and a new sitter.  Not much to share regarding work - I got welcomed back to a pile of work.  It's better than being bored all day thinking about Lily.

15 Weeks

It's hard to believe that I have to return to work already tomorrow!  I am so grateful that I was able to have so much time off with Lily - especially since my leave ended up starting the week before she was born and she spent two weeks in the NICU.  I will say that I am so ready to be back to work in some way or another.  I am craving adult conversations and structure!  I am lucky that Mike will be home with her tomorrow on my first day back and I won't actually drop her off at daycare.  She will be attending Appletree Christian Learning Center at the end of July (a brand new center is being built less than 5 miles from our house!).  In the mean time she will be getting a combination of Daddy, a new babysitter, and grandmas. 

Ready for bath time!

Lazy deck day

Uncle Brayden - Baby Whisperer

Snuggling with Monkey Man

Weight Check

Yesterday I took Lily to the doctor for a weight check.  The last time we were in Dr. Silvernale wanted to check her weight every couple of weeks to make sure she was still gaining.  There is no doubt - Lily is gaining weight like crazy!  She weighed 10 pounds 8 ounces yesterday (up from 8lbs 6oz the last time).  She's also 22.5 inches long.  I cannot believe how big she is getting.

I mentioned that Lily has been refusing to eat the past week and noted that she's been constipated.  Dr. Silvernale said more than likely the two are related (go figure).  He was hesitant to give her any sort of medication but suggested a teaspoon of Karo syrup in an 8 oz bottle as a home remedy.  He is hoping the sugar loosens her up instead of prescribing anything.  I just searched through our cupboards and luckily I have a bottle.  We'll see how this goes!

Lights Out!

Lily and I experienced our first power outage today.  Who knew having an infant and no power could be so inconvenient - I couldn't get formula out of the fridge, I couldn't wash dishes, I couldn't heat up formula, I couldn't do laundry.  I had the brilliant idea that we would just hit up the mall for lunch until I realized I couldn't get my car out of the garage.  I had to stand on a bucket to disengage the opener since I couldn't get to the ladder and then Mike told me we had the world's heaviest garage door.  I wasn't tall enough or strong enough to get the door all the way up the track so I stuck a screwdriver in one of the track holes to hold the door open.  I think my car had about two inches of clearance when I backed it out.  Have no fear though - we made it successfully to the mall!

We spent this past weekend in Vicksburg.  Every Father's Day weekend marks one of our favorite weekends of the summer - the Austin Lake Poker Run.  We were excited for it to be Lily's first Poker Run however when we went to register Saturday morning, we were told they were sold out of poker hands.  Lily was not going to be able to play!  Instead we spent the day watching the boats try to dock, drinking vodka filled snowcones, soaking up the sun and dodging thunderstorms.  Lily's new bathing suit didn't go to waste - that's for sure! 

Just hanging out on the boat

Lily needed a drink just like everyone else

Aunt Aimee came to visit!

Dodging the storms with Miss Rachel

Sunbathing beauties

And don't forget that Sunday was Father's Day!  We spent the day with Mike's family and visiting with cousin Anna!

Dad's Perfect Catch

Getting so big!

Since last Tuesday Lily has been extremely fussy during feedings - barely eating more than 2 ounces, pushing the bottle away and screaming everytime we managed to get one into her mouth but she'd take her pacifier no problem.  Aunt Hollie witnessed an episode yesterday and suggested we try one of Anna's wide neck bottles.  Sure enough, Lily downed an entire bottle.  For whatever reason, she seems to feed better off the larger bottle.  She has been eating so good the past 24 hours!

Thirteen Weeks!

I've been told I've been neglecting my blog.....

I cannot believe that thirteen weeks ago this little lady came into our lives.  She's had some pretty big milestones this past week.  She has been doing so much better - only a couple of vomiting episodes this past week - all of them following bottles of powdered formula.  You'd think we would learn our lesson but sometimes it's just so much easier!  Especially when we are out running errands or going to dinner. 

Milestone 1 - CRIB

Last Friday night we started her sleeping in her crib.  She has slept every night for over a week in her crib instead of her elevated bassinet - turns out a crib isn't just a decorative home accent.  We've been sleeping so much better now that she is out of our room!  I don't wake up at every single peep she makes.  And when she fusses it's way easier to let her cry herself back to sleep than when she is right next to the bed.  Here's to hoping she sleeps through the night soon now!

Milestone 2 - FOUNDERS

Ok - I don't really know if everyone would consider this a "milestone" but if you're from Grand Rapids then you know what an amazing place Founders Brewing Company is.  We hit up Festival Saturday morning (another great Grand Rapids event) and then somehow (mostly Daddy was driving and Uncle Brayden was agreeing) ended up at Founders in the afternoon.

Milestone 3 - HIDDEN CANYON

This is probably more of a Mommy milestone.  Our good friends the Stuevers - who happen to be our old neighbors - had their beautiful baby boy Cru on June 2nd and we were able to visit on Friday.  Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of Cru and Lily bonding but their puppy Axel wasn't too sure about having a second baby in their house.  It was my first time back to our old neighborhood since we packed up our house and drove out of our driveway (at six months pregnant you can imagine I was a bit emotional).  It was strange to have to get into our car to leave instead of walk across the yard.  We were also able to make a pit stop at both the Maleskis and the Veltings to say hi.  It felt just like old times - except we had a 25 minute drive home.

Milestone 4 - DADDY TIME

This is definitely a Daddy milestone.  Today I had a bridal shower to attend and decided to leave Lily at home with Daddy.  It was their first time home together for more than just an hour or two.  It appears everything went well - there wasn't any crying when I walked in the door (from Lily, Daddy or Diesel).  It was a good test for when I got back to work in two weeks and Daddy is at home one day a week with Lily.

I know I've already done a whole post on Lily and Diesel but I couldn't resist posting these next few pictures.  Everyone always asks if Diesel feels neglected but if anything I think she gets more attention.  Once I go back to work I'm sure she'll feel differently but she is loving having me home all day.

 

Hello New Doctor!

After calling seven pediatricans in the area this week and becoming extremely frustrated after being told over and over again that their practices only take newborns (not disgruntled patients of another practice), I called my family doctor and got Lily an appointment for this morning.  What a difference in care.

It was nice to finally have someone actually sit down and take the time to listen to what was going on and then explain all the possible things that could be happening.  Dr. Silvernale told me that yes all babies spit up but projectile vomiting is not normal - no matter what the frequency.  He also said that being premature should never be the answer (former practice's favorite reason for everything). 

Dr. Silvernale explained that when an infant is consistently projectile vomiting, often times there is a valve that connects the esophagus and stomach that doesn't open and close correctly.  He said if it's really serious you can feel the malfunction - think a huge rock in her gut.  Thankfully, Lily has only had one episode since Sunday, has good weight/growth, and no rock in her gut.  If she hadn't had good weight gain or if the Dr. could have felt the valve, he said he would have insisted she be seen today for a GI scope.  Since Lily has had a better week, we are just going to monitor her episodes of projectile vomiting.  If it starts back up again, we'll go see a specialist.   

He also went over her growth on a percentile basis with me but warned me that they don't typically do this for babies born prematurely because it's not accurate.  Based on her current weight and height growth she is in the 10th percentile for her current age.  Once he corrected it for her prematurity (subtracted six weeks off her age) she appears in the 75th percentile.  Pretty apparent why they don't track preemies on the scale - it would be super discouraging to hear Lily was only in the 10th percentile all the time.

Keep your fingers crossed for us that we don't have any projectile vomiting any time soon.  She had one incident on Wednesday (all over Mike thank goodness) and other than that has been doing great.  It's amazing how less stressful life can be when I'm not changing her clothes (and mine) every three hours.