9 lbs 9 oz
22.25 inches
Still skinny and long - We're working on that.
Noah:
• smiles all the time. It is fantastic for making us feel like good parents.
• likes his owl toy and his soccer ball rattle, also loves being talked to
• has this weird obsession about staring at the pictures on our living room wall. He will ignore me to watch them.
• smiles and coos at his reflection in the mirror. It is adorable and I die from the cuteness every time. I should get this on camera.
• likes to give himself hiccups and, of course, it is usually when we are trying to get him to wind down. Which drives me bonkers.
• still a stinkbug about being on a schedule - normalized enough I can semi predict it. But there is always a catch (ALWAYS. And it's usually sleep-related)
• he REFUSES to sleep longer than an hour in his crib. Which is nice for my sentimental side that LOVES to hold him all day. Awful for my sleep/sanity that needs more than an hour at a time and at least some of it in a bed, not a recliner.
>>>>> [so. ANY suggestions for this sleep-crazed momma? please please send them over. We promise to try anything and everything - aka I'm desperate] <<<<<<
Mom (& Dad, but still mostly Mom):
• loved loved LOVED having David's parents come! Noah really loves the attention and it was so incredibly nice to have them take over when I was exhausted and a little sick. And I am SO excited for my mom to come this weekend!
• BF is still really tough. We are working on it, but we also are supplementing with formula. Which is nice for church and when I need a break. And hopefully Noah starts gaining more weight.
• speaking of church, I have 2 callings and sometimes I feel super overwhelmed. Sundays are not relaxing
• everyone says "it will get better" and I'm kind of still waiting for it to get better. (Still enjoying the moment though!) Does it really or is that just what you say to make it through the day/week/month?
• Target is my drug of choice. I can wander just enough aisles to satisfy my need to get out of the house until Noah wakes up.
• I am definitely realizing how much motherhood (parenthood?) is all about being selfless and doing things for others and when you finally get a minute to yourself you are too tired to accomplish anything other than maybe closing your eyes for a second. And I'm realizing how selfish I was (AM) and how it is hard to give that up.
• I've lost all but 8(ish) pounds of baby weight but my body has changed SO much and I'm still not quite sure how to dress myself or how I feel about it. I'm (mostly) okay with it because, HELLO I HAD A BABY. I wasn't super skinny or anything like that before, but at least it was familiar and I knew what I liked. Now everything is ......... Strange.
And I wrote most of this in the middle of the night holding my sweet little boy. He is changing so fast already and I'm sad to leave the newborn phase behind (but then I take a good, long nap and I'm not TOO sad).
Natalie you are a GREAT mother. I still feel like I don't have the hang of motherhood (though much more now, admittedly, than at the beginning...), and Evie turns two on Saturday! It is hard, and the hardest part I would say is definitely the sleep deprivation. For me, I found that there would be different periods of sleep...the first few months were a daze of pure fatigue/insanity, and slowly E started sleeping more. Then, right when we were doing a solid 7-8 hours, she started a 4 month craze of waking up every 2 hours again. Now, she is sleeping 13 hours a day! It definitely is a roller coaster!
ReplyDeleteThe advice I was given and I know you've heard, is whenever the babe's sleeping, dive for your bed! I struggled with this b/c we didn't have a dishwasher, so there was always a pile of dishes/messy house/laundry, etc etc and I would try to use nap time for cleaning. My best days were the days that I had a nap and ignored everything else!
I also found that I always reached for my phone/laptop to unwind after I put the baby to bed, but then I would have a hard time sleeping bc my brain was wired. So I tried to just ignore all technology too and that helped. I would also put my phone on silent so I wouldn't get woken up by texts or calls..
Sorry that's the best advice I have! Noah is so so beautiful and hang in there! You're doing awesome, and I promise it will get better. IT WILL!!
xoxo Kristen
whoopsy daisy that was on will's account. ;)
ReplyDeleteHey Nat! I agree with Kristen and I am sure you are doing great. Be patient with yourself! For us, swaddling was our sleep cure. We used the miracle blanket and even though the boys don't like being wrapped, once they are in, it helps them stay asleep. Tanner has been a little harder than Kaiden sleep wise, because he wants to be held, rocked or nursed to sleep all the time. You do what you have to get some sleep! My boys would stay asleep after being held/rocked if they are swaddled but they wake right back up if I don't swaddle them. Maybe you have already tried it, but just an idea!
ReplyDeleteAs far as skinny babies, I totally understand. Kaiden was beneath the 10th percentile until he was 2 and just now is sitting around the 15th or so. What I have learned, don't worry about the percentile. Doctors can freak you out but if he is making his milestones and is a content baby, you are probably doing just fine. He just might be small. My doctors made me SO SO SO nervous with Kaiden. I was afraid he would never grow and I was somehow stunting him, but he is just a small kid and he is 100% absolutely smart and healthy. So just try not to worry (I know its hard). I was really hoping Tanner would be a nice fat baby just to change the norm, but he dropped down to the 10th around two months as well so I guess I just have small babies. Don't feel pressured to supplement unless you want to, you might just have small babies like me! Just try your best and you will figure it out! Noah looks cute and absolutely perfect to me!