Hellobee Boards

Okay, I'm totally behind, so going to try to catch up with everyone!

@ALV91711: Wow! I can't believe he's gained 4 lbs already!!! That's awesome!

@Smurfette: Sorry R is still eating so often. Xander's finally eating less often. He does two 4 hour stretches in the morning, and then three 2.5-3 hour stretches. Then he'll usually sleep 5-6 hours (going 6-7 hours between feeds) and then another 3 hours (going 4 hours between feeds). For example, he'll eat at 8:00 a.m., noon, 4:00 p.m., 6:30 p.m., 9:00 p.m., 3:30 a.m., and then we start the day over again around 8:00 a.m. These times are just estimates, but that's roughly how our day goes.

I don't really have any advice on how to get R to go longer though. Xander and I are doing EASY, so he wakes up, I feed him, then we play and he's usually up for around 2 hours, and then he goes down for a nap. The first few times he did the 4-hour stretch, it was because he slept for 2 hours (I actually ended up waking him to eat). Now I know that he can go 4 hours, so even if he wakes up early, I don't feed him until it's been over 3 hours (except in the evenings when we cluster feed).

Also, congrats on her sleeping so long!!! The first few times Xander did longer stretches, I kept waking up totally engorged and just waiting for him to wake up! I'm used to it now though!

@shopaholic: Wow, I can't believe K went 8.5 hours!!! That's amazing!!! I sometimes wonder if maybe Xander really could go longer if I didn't just jump up and feed him, but he's been giving me 5+ hours, so I figure that's pretty good.

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Soo... our first Mother's Day started off... not great. Xander and I went to bed around 8:30 on Saturday, and right before midnight, Xander woke up SCREAMING!!! I had NEVER heard him scream like that before!!! I mean, he did sort of when he got his shots, but that was only for like 3 seconds. This was for a LONG TIME!!! We noticed that his left eye was swollen and he just wouldn't open his eyes at all! I was so worried! But I was able to nurse him and he fell back asleep. A few hours later, he woke up again, SCREAMING. I knew he wasn't hungry since it had only been a couple hours, so I tried just rocking him and holding him. After about an hour, he finally calmed down and fell back asleep. A few hours after that, more SCREAMING. I knew he was probably hungry at this point, so I fed him and luckily, he fell back asleep. Usually when he wakes up, he's wide-eyed, but all these times, he refused to open his eyes, and his left one continued to look red and puffy. Finally this morning, I called our pediatrician and we were able to get an appointment. Luckily, Xander was obviously feeling better. He started opening his eyes (the left one was very watery and still puffy, but the eye itself didn't look too bad), and he started smiling at us, so I knew he must've been feeling better. Well, we went to our appointment and apparently the poor guy had scratched his eye!!! The doctor put a dye in his eye that allowed us to see the scratch under a black light. It was pretty big. No wonder he was so upset!!! But the doctor said it wasn't on the pupil, which was good, and that it would probably heal in a day or so. Xander's been more fussy than usual today, but he's definitely been getting better since last night!!

Besides THAT, Mother's Day was fun. The whole weekend has been pretty good. On Friday, Hubs came home with flowers for me, which was a total surprise! And then on Saturday, my best friend was home for a visit (she lives in California and I'm in New England), so I went to visit her so she could meet Xander, which was fun. Then Hubs and I went out to lunch and he bought me a Pandora bracelet for Mother's Day. I got the Mother & Son charm and also his birthstone. I love it! And then today, after the pediatrician, we went to my parent's for lunch.

@shopaholic: wow! 8.5 hours is awesome. I hope K was good for your dinner out and y'all had a great day.

@Adira: I try and get her to only eat every 3 hours but if she isn't sleeping it rarely happens. I don't want her to go hungry but she just won't eat much at one time. So annoying! I am going to have to send so many bottles to day care.
Poor Xander!! How did he scratch his eye? His nails? My friends sin scratched her eye a couple weeks ago. He was reaching back to her and it was freak timing. She said how painful it was so I can imagine how it was for X. Glad that you had a great weekend! I love my pandora bracelets, I filled up one so I started another.

We had a great day today. R and I both took at nap at 830 and we slept till 11. Then we tried to do her 2 month shoot before we left and she wasn't having it. It was an hour after the nap, but was still tired. Fell asleep as soon as we got in the car. Spent the day with the family at my Aunts house. She got fussy a couple times but I think she got over stimulated with all the people, noise, and being held by so many people. I sat in the back with her on the way home and she was just laughing and smiling. It was so cute. DH and Reagan got me a necklace with a R charm. I might have told him what I wanted. Smart man, he listened!

@Smurfette: I wish I had some advice on how to get R to go longer between feeds. Hopefully as she gets older and bigger, it will just happen naturally. Does she eat very little if you give her a bottle as well? Xander seems like he will eat more from a bottle because he doesn't have to work as hard for it. Maybe the same will be true for R? If it is, then maybe you won't have to send a million bottles to daycare if she's able to eat more at each feeding and then hopefully go longer between.

Yes, Xander scratched his eye with his fingernails. Since finding his hands, he now has the tendency to claw at his face!! He's now wearing mittens to bed!

OMG, Xander just slept 7 hours!!! He woke up at 3:30 which is when I normally feed him, but I decided to see if he could go longer so I just gave him his pacifier and he fell back asleep!!! I hope this continues!!

@Adira: At night when we give her a bottle, she will take 3-4 ozs. She then nurses before bed. But I think it is more comfort nursing then her eating much. When I nurse during the day, she eats maybe 12-15 mins on one side and that is all. I can't get her to eat more on the other side. So I am sure that is why she eats so often.
When nursing R will take her fist and swip over and over her eye. I have to hold her hand sometime cause I am so afraid she will scratch herself.
Glad that you and him got some sleep!!
@ALV91711: glad that you got some good family time this weekend. R loves outside as well. I actually just took her outside and it settled her down and she didn't fight her nap anymore. That will be nice to have your sister there while DH is gone.

So I think R and I both got whatever sinus infection/cold/whatever it was that DH had. My throat is killing me and I am a little stopped up. R has a runny nose and it congested. Poor baby! We have her 2 month appointment tomorrow so we will see what the doctor says. At least she has still been in a good mood. Just wants to be held but still smiling and happy!!

@ALV91711: He's doing much better today! I think he's fully recovered!

@Smurfette: Well, when I said he slept 7 hours, I literally meant that. So he went about 8 hours from the start of his last feed to the start of the next one. But when I say he does a 4-hour stretch during the day, I mean from the beginning of one feed to the next. I usually count the hours from the beginning of one to the next, but I was just impressed he actually SLEPT for 7 hours, so that's why I said that! Hope that makes sense.

@Smurfette: Yeah, when I say he goes three hours, I mean from the beginning to the next. So if you are saying R goes two hours from the end of a feed to the beginning of the next, that's actually pretty similar to what I'm saying. I think three hour stretches is pretty normal now. Xander just recently started doing a couple four hour stretches (from the beginning of one to the beginning of the next), but he's older and bigger than R, right? Xander is 11 weeks and is 12 lbs 8.5 oz.

@Smurfette: *cries* Yes! I'm not looking forward to it. I mean, I like my job and the people I work withbut not seeing my sweet baby's face for 10+ hours every day is going to be so hard. I'm going to miss him so much! I actually was looking forward to him waking up to eat in the middle of the night because it's more time for us to snuggle!

Day 2 of Xander sleeping from 10:00pm to 5:00am. This time he didn't even wake up in between. Hopefully this continues, because this would work perfectly for me when I go back to work.

@Adira: I will be thinking about you on Monday! I am dreading going back too. Going to be SO hard. That is awesome is he sleeping good, I hope he keeps it up.

@shopaholic: Glad that you had a great Mother's Day! That stinks big time about the AC. I can't believe she is rolling over already. Big girl!!

R went for her 2 month appointment today. She did great. Weighs 11lb 4oz, so 50%, 23 1/4 long, 90%. Doctor said that she is looking great. Her cry when she got her shots broke my heart. She is still so stuffy. I feel awful and exhausted cause I couldnt sleep cause I was so worried about her.

@Adira: I hope the 10-5 continues, that is a nice stretch!

@shopaholic: Sounds like a very nice mother's day. We haven't stopped swaddling yet, but I imagine we will have to soon as the weather gets warmer. I know he is not ready yet because if he is asleep in the day and I lay him down unswaddled he just startles himself awake.

@Arden: What beautiful pics!

Hi all!

I am so so so behind on the thread! Last week, my husband was in Vegas on a business trip and my inlaws stayed with me to help out and provide me with some company. It was great having them! The time flew by, which was a good thing but, because I had constant visitors, I wasn't on the internet a whole lot. Hence, why I am so behind!

Then, DH came home on Sunday afternoon and he has been sick with the stomach flu ever since, so I have been busy taking care of two babies this week! We don't want to expose Pete to any germs so DH hasn't been able to help with him at all. I have had my hands full! Thankfully, DH is starting to feel better tonight so I look forward to having him back on my team soon.

On a positive note, I went to my second "new moms group" yesterday. I really love it. There are 3 other moms, plus the moderator, and we just sit in a circle, nurse, and chat about our week. It's so relaxing and comfortable. Plus, it's great talking with other moms who have babies the same age (just like this thread!). We plan to go to baby friendly matinee movies as well as mom/baby yoga together next week. I can't wait!

Pete's sleep hasn't improved or declined. Status quo here. He falls asleep between 8-9:30pm and then wakes to feet about 5 hours later. Every once in a while he can do a 6 hour stretch. Then, he wakes every 2 hours or so until 6:30am. Once 6:30am hits, he is awake and we begin our day.

We have our first trip away from home this weekend. We are driving to my family's condo in Vermont on Thursday. It will be the first time Pete sleeps in the travel crib. I am really really looking forward to a weekend away, but I know there is a chance that it will be a sleep disaster!

@arden: beautiful photos! I love that little purple romper she is wearing!

@smurfette: so sorry to hear R has congestion plus the aftermath of her shots! At least the fever isn't too high. And so great that she continues to be smiley even when she is feeling crummy. I hope you start to feel better soon! Pete has his immunizations next Thursday and I am already losing sleep over them.

@shopaholic: K certainly is progressing in leaps and bounds! Her sleep pattern definitely sounds crazy but at least she is logging some long stretches every other night. Perhaps it will become more consistent (fingers crossed!).

@adira: Oh no! The scratch on the eye does sound painful. Poor Xander! Does it seem like he is feeling much better today? I'm surprised that it doesn't happy to more babies, as they thrash around while exploring their hands and bodies.

@smurfette *Hugs!* I don't think you should feel like a failure at all! Honestly, it sounds like most of my days with Pete. I have the hardest time getting him down for a midday nap (that's not in the stroller or ergo), and I have never even attempted the crib yet. I'm sure the daycare doesn't expect a 3 month old to come in with a perfect sleep schedule. I think it's so smart and proactive of you to speak with them ahead of time and I hope they have some tips to share. I know it must be hard to watch her be so upset, but you trying your best and that's all you can do. You are an amazing mom!!!!!

@Smurfette: Being proactive with daycare is good. I'm sure they are used to babies that don't sleep well and should have some good ideas for you. I wouldn't worry too much about the afternoon nap. Most of the time in the day Isaac won't nap well unless I hold him. I know I have to break him of this habit but I want him to have a good sleep.

@shopaholic: that happened to me today, too! My appt was mysteriously cancelled, so A and I went to target. Not as exciting as your afternoon, which sounds fabulous!

@shopaholic: glad you got some me time!!

@Adira: Just wanted to let you know that I am thinking about you tomorrow. I know Xander is going to love day care and makes lots of friends.

Hope everyone had a great weekend! R is still congested but acting normal. She is breaking my heart though when she cries it sounds so horse, like she has lost her voice. It is better today then yesterday so I think she is starting to get back to normal. Still sleeping pretty good at night.

DH found out on Friday that he has to head back on the road for a project. So he is home this week and then I will be solo parenting Mon-Thurs. I am super sad but at the same time SO thankful that he has been able to be home this whole time. I really wish he would be home the week I go back to work and day care but no dice.

@Adira: I hope daycare goes good. It will be nice to have some time for yourself today.

@Smurfette: I hope R gets back to being healthy, it must be hard to see her sick.

It seems to be that Isaac is only getting up twice a night now to eat. This is so much better. I can't believe he is two months tomorrow.

My baby is at daycare!! I cried all the way to the dentist. I miss him so much... I hope he is okay. I'm about to get a pedi so hopefully that helps me take my mind off it.

@QueensBee: I know that you are right... it's just so hard to leave him!! I feel like I've abandoned my poor baby. I'm also worried he is going to forget who I am... is that possible? I know he will eventually be happy there though. All the little one year olds that were there were playing with each other and seemed so happy to be there. Hopefully Xander will be happy too.

@Adira: He won't forget you, but will be happy to see you at the end of the day. Hope the first day was a success and that you enjoyed your pedi.

@Smurfette: I'd love if he got down to one, but the 2 is at least a lot better and I feel more rested in the morning. I hope daycare goes good for you when you start.

Today we are going shopping with my sister in hopes of finding myself some pants that fit. I've been living in yoga pants, but would like some shorts and capris for the summer. I went through my pre-pregnancy clothes yesterday and I have a handful of tops that fit, but there is no way I can get the pants on.

@Adira: yay!! So glad he had a good day. I am so worried since she still won't sleep unless being held and not taking the bottle great. I think that I am going shopping during her trial. I need some clothes badly. I scared too about pumping. But I am ok with formula as well. I think once we get her more comfortable with bottles I am stopping BF. I just want all the pressure off me for feedings. Going to play it by ear.

@ALV91711: I hear you on clothes. The shorts I am wearing are ones I bought during pregnancy and so bloated. My regular pants are still too tight. Can button a couple but have a huge muffin top so I can't wear them.