Emma: 2 Months Old

 

Emmie,

2 months ago we were welcoming you into the world and now we are more in love with you than we could have ever imagined possible. You really came alive this month, which has been so fun!  We have loved getting to know your personality and watch you learn something new everyday.  Your sleep has started to straighten out, which is a very welcomed change!  As much as we love you, we prefer to love you during the daytime hours!  You remain a very relaxed and easy going baby with very minimal fussing.  You also are not a very smiley baby, but more on the serious side, really making us work for those smiles.

I kept pretty detailed notes each week during this month because I wanted to remember every little detail.  So while this may not be exciting for anyone else, here's what you were up to each week during your second month of life:

Week 5 (July 20-26)

• Diaper size: 1, Clothes size: Newborn
• Naps were very tough this week!  You only slept in the swing or the car seat while we were out and about.
• You needed the pacifier a lot to be able to fall asleep, but you were horrible with it.  You spit it out constantly!
• Bedtime was awful this week.  I would feed you at 8pm but you wouldn't end up falling asleep until 10 or 11pm every night (after an extra feeding, rocking and usually with the pacifier).
• You slept for 4.5 hours straight a few nights this week!  Progress!  Thankfully you didn't have any long wake periods in the middle of the night.
• You started spinning around in your crib this week.  We would put you down facing one way and you would turn yourself completely around. 
• You still hated your crib this week.  Whenever I would put you down in there you would immediately start fussing (even if you were sound asleep before).
• Continued to nurse on one side only (10 minutes tops).
• Tried doing the dream feed again, but it still doesn't work well for you.  You wake up more in the night.
• You went to church for the first time this week.  Unfortunately Mommy missed most of the service because I had to take you to the nursing room for your 11:30am feeding.
• Mommy had her post-partum obgyn appointment this week.  Everything was fine.  I still had 15 pounds to lose.  But thankfully all the bleeding has stopped!

Week 6 (July 27-August 2)

• Diaper size: 1 (day) 2 (night), Clothes size: some newborn and some 3 months
• One night this week you slept for 5 hours straight!
• For 2 days during this week, I stopped nursing you and switched to all bottle feedings (pumped for every feeding, so you were still drinking my milk, just from a bottle).  This was a test run to see if it was my fast flow that was causing you to be so fussy while eating.  You would eat 3-5 oz per feeding and did pretty well with the bottles.  However, I hated the pumping!  It made me so sore and was exhausting to have to feed you a bottle for 20-30 minutes and then pump for 10-15 minutes.  I spent my entire day feeding or pumping.  No thanks!  Not to mention that I really missed nursing you.  There is definitely a special bond that can only be satisfied by nursing (at least for me!).
• Unfortunately, you had another all-nighter this week, wide awake from 2:30am-5:30am.  You finally fell back to sleep in the swing downstairs.  Ugh!
• Naps were rough this week.  Lots of crying.  :-(  You continued to do the majority of your napping in the swing or rock n' play.
• I read you your first book this week.  :-)
• You continued to only nurse on one side for 8-10 minutes total

Week 7 (August 3-9)

• Diaper size: 1 (day) 2 (night), Clothes size: 3 months
• This week we started letting you cry it out for bedtime (after the 7 or 8pm feeding).  It only worked one night this week, with all the rest ending up with us caving and bringing your down to the swing to fall asleep.  But at least we tried! :-)  We also started cry it out for nap time this week.  This was a little more successful, but still rough!  You still ended up napping in the swing a lot.
• You slept for 5.5 hours straight one night this week!  YEAH!  You were consistently waking only once per night (between 2-4am).  This is definitely a step in the right direction.
• Evenings continued to be your work time of day.  You would cry a lot and be wide awake from 6-10pm most every night.  You would usually fall asleep after I fed you again around 10pm, but even that didn't work every night.  
• Continued to nurse on only one side per feeding. 

Week 8 (August 10-16)

• Diaper size: 1 or 2 (whatever is in the room), Clothes size: 3 months
• You gave us your FIRST SMILE this week!!  It's about time! :-)
• You went to church for the second time.  You were so noisy while I was trying to feed you (from a bottle) that I ended up spending the majority of the service in the hallway with you.
• One night this week you actually slept after the 7:30pm feeding!  You slept from 8pm until 12:45am.  It was so nice to finally have an evening to ourselves!
• You continued to only have one middle of the night feeding every night this week (between 2-4am).
• You continued to eat from only one side per feeding, but on a rare occasion would eat a little from the second side this week.
• Your eyes are still goopey and watery (have been since birth).  This is from blocked tear ducts, which your big sister had as well.  Nothing to worry about, just an annoyance. 
• You continue to struggled to keep the pacifier in.  You love it when it's in, but you can only keep it in for a few minutes before you spit it out.  
• The swing stopped being a fool-proof way to get you to sleep this week.  You were content in the swing, but you spent more time wide awake in it then sleeping.  Not good.
• Your wake time ranges from 45 minutes to 1 hour throughout the day before you are ready to go down for another nap.

Week 9 (August 17-23)

• Diaper size: 2 but sometimes a 1 because we still have some laying around, Clothes size: 3 months
• The evenings continued to be a struggle this week.  You were not eating well for the 7pm feeding (constantly pulling off, fussing, gagging, choking, fussy).  Then when we would try to put you down you would start screaming.  We ended up putting you in the swing where you would often fall asleep and then we would move you to your bed, praying that you wouldn't wake up.  This work most of the time, but not always.
• You started "talking" a lot this week with coos and gurgles.  Adorable!
• We took the sling out of your bathtub this week and gave you your first bath all the way submerged.  You loved it!
• You were waking 1-2 times per night for a feeding this week.
• Naps were better this week, with more good naps then bad.
• You had your 2 month well visit on August 23.  You weigh 12lbs. 1oz. and are 23 1/4" long.  We scheduled an ultrasound for your spinal cord because of your curved butt crack (that's the medical term, I'm sure).  The pediatrician isn't really concerned, but it's better that we get it checked out now with an ultrasound instead of waiting until you are older and an MRI would be required.  You also got your first vaccinations at this visit.  You did NOT like those!  You were hysterical for several minutes afterward.  Then for the next 24 hours you were VERY sleepy and feverish.  It was so sad to see you so miserable.  Thankfully you slept for nearly the entire night and next day, but when you were awake you just looked so sad.  Broke my heart!
• As a result of the vaccinations, you slept for 9 hours straight over night on August 23!  What a welcomed treat that was!!  I woke up soaking wet (leaking) and scared that something was wrong at 4am and didn't know what to do.  I decided to pump and then of course you woke up right when I finished.  Thankfully I had only pumped on one side, so you ate from the other and went right back to sleep.

This is the schedule that we have settled into this month:
Schedule:
7:30am - Wake, Nurse, Play
8:15am - Nap
10:30am - Wake, Nurse, Play
11:20am - Nap
1:30pm - Wake, Nurse, Play
2:30pm - Nap
4:30pm - Wake, Nurse, Play
5:30pm - Cat Nap (usually in the swing or car seat if we are out and about or even in my arms)
6:30pm - Wake, Bedtime Routine, Nurse, Right to bed (around 7:45pm) - but this rarely happens since this is your fussy time
10pm - Feed (since you are usually already awake at this time, I end up feeding you and then putting you down for the night)
**You then wake between 3-4am for a feeding and then go right back to sleep until 7 or 7:30am

2 Month Stats:
- Diapers: Size 2 (but we are still using size 1 from time to time since we have a few laying around)
- Clothes: 3 months
- Shoes: Size 1
- Weight: 12lbs. 1oz.
- Height: 23 1/4"

So much changes in one month in the life of a newborn!  You are so much bigger now (you've gained 5 pounds since you were born!) and much more alert.  You love to "talk" to us and love starring at lights and your sister! :-)  We love you little squishy!

Potty Training Nightmare

Call me crazy, but we have embarked on the potty training wagon over here.  YIKES!  Hannah will be 2.5 in less than one month and it is time!  She communicates in full sentences and can have a complete conversation with you (has been doing this for several months) and shows all the signs of being ready.  She tells me every single time when she pees or poops in her diaper and wants me to change her constantly.  Could she be more ready?  If only it were that easy!  For some reason, Hannah has a deep fear of going on the potty.  It is not a fear of the actual potty (she will sit there for a LONG time with no results), it is an actual fear of producing something on the potty.  She is also resistant to trying to go on the potty or even sitting when told.  That I understand - what two year old willingly does something when told (terrible two's, remember?!).  But the fear of producing I don't really get.  Today was our first day wearing "big girl panties" (again...we tried this two weeks ago) and she managed to hold her pee from 9am until 1:30pm and then again from 2:30pm until 6:30pm.  She didn't have one accident, but also didn't have any successes either.  Her diaper at nap time was absolutely drenched (and so was her entire bed) and then when we went out to dinner tonight she peed in her pull up (with panties underneath), after holding it for 4 hours.  So frustrating!  I did nothing but praise her today and stayed 100% positive (not easy when you can see her doing the pee pee dance all over the house and knowing that she is obviously uncomfortable!) so I'm not sure where this fear is coming from, but it's annoying.  I have been going back in forth in my mind of weather I should just put her back in diapers or press on with the "big girl panties" not letting her know there is another option. 

I realize that we have had a lot of big transitions around here lately and this may not be the ideal time to potty train, but what am I supposed to do when she is asking to wear "big girl panties" and constantly wanting me to change her diaper every time she pees?  She is cognitively well aware of her bowels and should be able to easily take care of business on the potty! 

Can you tell I am frustrated (never a good time to write a blog post)?  I would love to hear all your suggestions or words of encouragement!  My plan for this weekend is to press on with the "big girl panties" and load her up with tons of liquids.  Pray for us!  I do not do well with messes and I can just envision the puddles of pee we will have all over our house tomorrow!  UGH!

I will be thrilled when this is something I look back on and wonder why I was so stressed about it!  But for now, I will live in this reality and suffer through it.  ;-)

Hannah: 29 Months Old

Hannah,

What an exciting month this has been!  It has been a month of change around here.  You are now sleeping in a big girl bed!  This is a major development because it was something I didn't think we would do for a while still.  Mommy was so nervous to move you into the toddler bed because let's be honest...you are not the best sleeper!  I figured that as soon as you had the freedom of being able to get out of bed, you would never sleep again.  Well, so far you have proven me wrong....thankfully!  :)  We converted your crib into a toddler bed on August 5 (just one week ago) and you have yet to escape.  While I know that this won't last forever, I'm pleasantly surprised with how well the transition has gone.  I think it helps that the toddler bed still looks very much like your crib did, just with a shorter front rail.  Your sleep has not improved since we made the transition, but it hasn't gotten any worse which is all one could hope for. 

Since the transition to the toddler bed went so well, Mommy decided to get really crazy and take a shot at potty training!  On August 8, we started and for the next two days you were completely naked from the waste down.  The first day you did okay, peeing in the potty 3 times and only having one or two accidents.  However, you were definitely afraid of going in the potty.  The second you would start peeing, you would jump off the potty in fear.  This resulted in a lot of peeing ending up on the floor, which was not fun, but I was hopeful that this fear would subside as you got used to going on the potty.  On day two things went from bad to awful!  Your fear seemed to increase, causing you to hold in your pee for the majority of the day, despite showing obvious signs that you needed to go.  It was breaking my heart that you were so afraid and as a result so uncomfortable all day.  Not to mention that you hadn't pooped in over 48 hours.  You were becoming very resistant to even sitting on the potty, let alone going in it, despite all my efforts to bribe you with candy and special treats.  That night I had a minor breakdown, not sure what to do the following day - continue on in our potty training or throw in the towel?  When you woke up on Friday, I stripped you down and pressed on with our potty training adventure.  After two hours of nothing (you were obviously holding it in) I could tell you were going to have an accident any minute.  Emma was waking from her nap, so I asked you to sit on the potty while I was upstairs tending to Emma.  You refused!  I knew if I left you downstairs alone you would surely have an accident, so I asked again, to which you refused.  This was my breaking point.  I sat down on the floor with you and put a pair of big girl panties next to a diaper and asked you which one you wanted to wear - big girl panties like your friend Hannah or a diaper like a baby.  You immediately chose diaper!  Boo!  So that was it...back to diapers.  I told you that anytime you wanted to use the big girl potty that you should just let me know and we would.  Or if you wanted to wear big girl panties again, to tell me.  As soon as I put the diaper on you, you looked right at me and said, "I'm making pee pee in my diaper."  AHHH!  Thanks for rubbing it in little peanut.  What was I supposed to say to that.  I just said, "Ok" and then had a good scream in my head and moved on with the day.  While I was very frustrated that we had gone backwards in our potty training adventure, I have to say that there was a weight lifted off my shoulders having you back in a diaper.  Those two days of potty training were so exhausting and I wasn't enjoying being with you.  The moment you were back in a diaper I was able to enjoy my precious little girl again and we had the best day.  I know that you will eventually be potty trained (although I have a hard time believing that you will ever be willing) so I am trying not to stress about it.  We will try again in a few months.

With all this big girl transitions this month I have really noticed just how big you are getting.  Having Emma to compare you to also makes you look so big!  I have been looking back at pictures and home videos of when you were Emma's age and it makes me realize just how fast time has gone.  Where did my little peanut go?  

You continue to be the best big sister to Emma!  When you see her you say, "Oh, look at that little cutie pie!"  When she cries or fusses you love to comfort her and say, "It's okay little girl." or "What's the matter Emma?" and give her her binky or hold her hand.  Absolutely precious!  You love to hold her and your favorite thing to do is make the three of us hold hands (Emma, Mommy and you) and sing the Barney theme song ("I love you, You love me"). 

This month you continued to love playing with your little people toys and even got a new little people princess castle to add to your collection.  You love it!  Your favorite thing to do continues to be lining up all your little people in a large circle and then turning them all so they are in a straight line and then lying them down to go "night night" one by one.  You also love building castles with your princess legos, playing with your baby dolls (taking them for walks in the stroller, feeding them from your "boobs", changing their diapers, putting them to sleep, etc.), and reading books.  You also loved going to church (the one time we actually made it there), which makes me hopeful for preschool, which starts in two weeks (on September 4).  Don't even get me started on the mixed emotions I have about you starting preschool!!  :-(

I have to say, the funniest thing this month were the random things that would pop out of your mouth!  There were so many funny things, but these are the ones I can remember:

- "I actually need some ice in my cup.  It's a need." (whenever you would say you "needed" ice I would ask you if it was a want or a need, so you started answering before I asked. haha)
- "They are going to the hospital to see the newborn babies." (talking about your little people)
- "Look at these pitty (pretty) stairs." (we got new wood on the stairs recently)
- "Hello sweetheart." (to Emma)
- "Come in my payroom (playroom)." (constantly!!)
- "She's such a cootie (cutie) pie." (about Emma)
- "Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls." (before you would put on a dance show for us)
- "Momma" (your new name for me)
- "I want to do ____ for a couple more minutes." (hold Emma, play, etc.)
- "Talk to Hannah" (when you want us to be the voices for all your toys)
- "You member (remember) when we went to that wedding?  We see (saw) Lauren and Brent and Cody and Kyle and Audee (Audrey) and Buddy and MeMaw and PaPaw." (referring to my cousin, Lauren's wedding back in May...your memory is amazing!)

This month we used your new "Okay to Wake" clock for every nap and at bedtime.  While I was very hopeful that this would be the key to better napping for you, it has not been a magic cure.  For naps the clock is set on a timer for 1 hour and 15 minutes and then turns green to indicate it's time to get up.  Despite reminding you over and over and over again that you need to be quiet until the light turns green, you still continue screaming during nap time the majority of the time.  For part of the month (mid month) you were consistently sleeping for one hour for naps, but by the end of the month you were back to not sleeping at all.  I have read that this is a normal occurrence as a child begins to wean from their daytime nap.  Your bedtime remains 7:30 or 7:45pm and for the morning your clock always turns green at 7:45am.  You are fairly consistent in waking up around 7:30 or 8am.  There were several nights this month where you would struggle to fall asleep (calling us back in to switch your blanket because you were "too hot") or would wake up in the middle of the night, screaming.  Most of the time when we would go in during the night you didn't even talk to us, making me think that you might have been crying out in your sleep and not truly awake.  I would just tuck you back in and walk out.  There were a few nights where I was up nearly every hour with either you or Emma.  Brutal!  Thankfully that has not been the regular pattern of the month, so I'm hoping that will be few and far between!  Overall, you continue to be a great nighttime sleeper.

Your appetite has definitely dropped again this month.  Breakfast is your smallest meal, consisting of cottage cheese (still your favorite food) or yogurt and fruit (raspberries are your favorite right now).  Lunch is usually leftovers from dinner the night before (grilled chicken, steak, pasta, etc.) or an almond butter and jelly sandwich, along with veggies and a piece of cheese (baby bell cheese is still your favorite).  Dinner is whatever we are eating (lots of grilled meats this month, since it is summer and it's the easiest and quickest dinner).

You continue to amaze me with your counting ability and you are starting to recognize even more letters of the alphabet.  I have been a little more intentional in working with you on these things this month, so that definitely helps.  You know every color, how to count to 14, how to count objects (one to one correspondence), and several letters (D, M, E, O, W, H, and others).

In two weeks you will be starting preschool at the local Methodist Church.  You will go two days per week (T and TH) from 9am-12pm.  I definitely have mixed emotions about this.  I am excited for you to have a consistent time away from me where you are learning and having fun with other children.  But I am also sad to not have you 100% to myself. :-)  I know it will ultimately good for both of us, but it's definitely bitter-sweet.  My little peanut is growing up and becoming more and more independent of me.  This coming week we will find out which class you are in and who is in your class.  Then the following week will be open house for mommy and daddy and then a day where you will get to go to the school for a Popsicle party to get acquainted with your teacher and classmates.  Big changes are ahead of us, that's for sure!

Other 29 Month Stats:
- You wear size 3T or 4T clothes (majority 4T)
- You wear a size 8 shoe
- You wear size 6 diapers, day and night

I love you so much Hannah Grace.  You are such a joy.  Your precious smile and silly laugh make everything so much better.  Your sweet heart and countenance brighten my day.  I love you all the way to the moon and back (that's a lot of love!).

Emma's Birth Story

Better late than never....

Emma Rose was born on June 22, 2012 at 9:04am, weighing 7lbs 1oz and 21" long.  She graciously arrived right on time, on her due date! :-)

I was scheduled to go in for an induction on Thursday night (June 21). All day I was having fairly consistent contractions (5-10 minutes apart), but they were never consistently spaced enough for me to think it was "time". By that night we were still waiting to hear from the hospital to let us know it was time to come in for the induction. We decided to get everything packed up and head out to dinner with Hannah and my parents (who had come into town the day before in preparation for the scheduled induction). 

We decided to eat at Chipotle and had a nice dinner while I continued to time contractions on my phone.  After dinner we still hadn't heard from the hospital but we didn't want to go home just to have to turn back around.  So we sent Hannah home with my parents (knowing it would be our last time seeing her as our only child) and decided to head to Target to do some browsing.

 While we walked around Target I started having some mildly painful contractions and even had to stop to breathe through them several times. I knew this was a good sign!  By 8pm we still hadn't heard from the hospital, so we called only to find out that they didn't have any beds available for inductions yet.  They said they would call us as soon as they did.  At that point, Brian's parents were almost to Atlanta (they were driving back for the induction as well) so we decided to meet up with them at Cheesecake Factory for dessert.  As we sat there I had several contractions (3-5 minutes apart) and they were increasing in pain.  When the waiter found out that I was in labor, he couldn't believe it.  It was so funny to see the look on his face.  I assured him that I had been through this before and I promised not to deliver the baby in the restaurant. :-)  By the time we finished up it was nearing 10pm and the hospital still had not called.  We called again and found out that they were not going to have any beds available until morning....not the news we wanted to hear.  We decided to head toward home and on the way I called my midwife.  After telling her about my consistent and mildly painful contractions she told us to head into the hospital.  So as soon as we pulled into the driveway, we turned back around and headed for the hospital. 

When we arrived at the hospital they were so packed that we had to wait a bit for them to find us a room.  When I was finally checked into my room, they checked my cervix and I was 3cm....no cervadil for me.  We decided to do some walking to help keep things moving along.  Contractions were definitely starting to pick up in intensity.  They checked me again at midnight and I was 4cm.  My midwife suggested that we try to get some rest so we laid down and attempted to sleep.  Yeah right!  I was a nervous wreck!  I knew the pain that was coming and I couldn't calm down.  I started having a mild panic attack and my contractions started spacing out, although they continued to be very painful.  Around 3am I ended up calling my parents to get their advice about what I should do - epidural or not.  Thankfully they were wide awake too! :-)  After much deliberation and prayer I decided it was time to get an epidural.  After my intense natural labor with Hannah, I just knew I couldn't do it again. 

The epidural was placed at 5am and I had the best nurse to talk me through it step by step, as I was definitely not excited about getting a needle shoved into my spine! It was so much easier than I expected...just a slight bee sting feeling and it was done. It took quite a while for the epidural to take full effect, but once it did it was wonderful. My back labor was gone and all I felt was pressure....A LOT of pressure! I also had the epidural shakes where my whole body was shaking uncontrollably...not painful, but strange and annoying. The pressure was so strong down there that they checked me several times to be sure I wasn't ready to push. By 6am I was already 6cm.  Because of the epidural, my body was finally able to relax enough for my labor to kick into gear and the rest of the labor was super fast.

They started setting up the delivery supplies by 7am, which I was convinced was wrong.  There was no way I would be pushing a baby out anytime soon, but I guess they knew better than I did because just two hours later Emma arrived!  At 8am I was 9cm and my midwife broke my water.  Unfortunately Emma had already had her first bowel movement while inside (meconium) so that meant that a NICU team would have to be present at her birth to assess her breathing. 

At 9am I started pushing and after just 4 minutes Emma was here.  I truly felt no pain and couldn't believe how much better this delivery was compared to my first!  I even had them bring over the mirror between contractions so I could see what was going on down there.  I NEVER thought I would want to see that, but I'm actually glad I did...pretty amazing!  I didn't even break a sweat during the delivery and told the midwife over and over just how amazed I was that I felt absolutely nothing!  So strange, but wonderful! 

Emma came out screaming at 9:04am and the NICU team immediately assessed her right there in the room.  While I was bummed that I couldn't hold her right away like I did with Hannah, I was glad that everything checked out fine and she never had to leave the room.  Her APGAR score at 1 minute was an 8 and at 5 minutes was a 9....just like her big sister!  After about 20 minutes I was able to hold her and nurse her for the first time.

Getting the epidural was THE BEST decision!  Not only was the labor so much more enjoyable (I was on my iPhone when I was 8-9cm dilated!) but it was nearly a necessity because of the trouble we had getting my placenta to detach.  While the NICU team was assessing Emma, I was delivering the placenta - yes, it is cruel that you have to deliver something else after you just pushed a 7lb baby out!  For some reason my placenta was being stubborn and my midwife had to literally reach her entire arm inside to scrape the placenta out!  INSANE!  If it weren't for the epidural I would have been DYING!  God knew that the placenta would be troublesome, so I truly believe it was His perfect plan for me to get the epidural.  Even my midwife kept saying how glad she was that I got the epidural.  Her words were, "We would not be friends right now if it weren't for that epidural" as she stuck her entire arm inside me.  YIKES!

Throughout my entire third trimester I was so worried about the labor, delivery and recovery.  I prayed that things would be completely different from my first.  So far things were going GREAT!  Labor and delivery were a piece of cake.  Next up, recovery.  My two biggest concerns were that I would be able to pee after delivery and not need a catheter (I had three after Hannah's birth) and that I wouldn't have huge blood clots again (the size of grapefruits after Hannah's birth!).  About an hour after Emma arrived, I tried to pee but couldn't.  So in went the first catheter.  Thankfully about an hour later I was able to go on my own and didn't requite anymore catheters!  YEAH!  As to my second concern, once again God answered all our prayers.  I never had a clot larger than a quarter and surprisingly my bleeding was very light overall.  By the second day in the hospital I was wearing my own underwear (goodbye hospital mesh panties) and no longer using the ice packs down there.  Things were so much better the second time around!

So, epidural or all natural?  EPIDURAL all the way!  Of course I realize that many people do not have such a good experience with an epidural and shockingly some people prefer an all natural delivery, saying it is less painful.  While I will never understand that, I do understand the desire to go all natural.  While my first labor and delivery and recovery were not at all what I had hoped for, I am ultimately glad I decided to go all natural because I can at least say I did it.  And for my second labor and delivery I am so glad I chose the epidural!  I got to experience both types of labor and I'm so happy I did. 

If it weren't for the horrendous pregnancy that I had (severe hyperemesis for the entire pregnancy) I may even consider doing it all again...that's how easy the birth was!  Such a blessing!

While we could not be more thankful for the labor, delivery and recovery that I had, our ultimate thankfulness is for the beautiful little baby that we now have in our family!  Emma Rose is the perfect addition to our family and we are so in love!

Emma: 4 Weeks/1 Month Old

Little Squishy,

Sweet Emma, you are one month old today!  Time is flying by!  I think that life is only going to get increasingly faster now that we have two littles in our family.  You are still in such a sleepy state and I'm loving it!  But the last few days you have started to wake up a bit more.  Unfortunately the night time is still your favorite time to be awake, but last night you did sleep for two 3.5-4 hour stretches, so things may be improving!  YEAH!  You are such a relaxed baby and rarely fuss (except when we put you in your crib...your least favorite place to sleep).  The past few weeks we have been working on getting you into a routine of eating, playing and then sleeping.  You have done very well with the eating part of the routine, but the sleeping hasn't been as good.  You don't mind sleeping, as long as it's in our arms or in your swing.  I've tried to be laid back about it all and just be happy that you are sleeping!  Hopefully you will eventually learn how to sleep in your bed during nap time, but for now I will just enjoy all the extra snuggles!!  Even though it is tough to get you to fall asleep for a nap, when you finally do you sleep like a champ for nearly 2 hours each nap!  This is the routine we aim for every day, but it definitely is VERY flexible and never happens exactly as planned.  I toyed around with several different schedules this past week, but this is the one that seems to work best for everyone.  I may eventually add in a dream feed around 10:30pm, but when I tried that this week it made for an awful night (lots of wakings).  I also tried cluster feeding (when you feed every two hours in the evening) a few days this week and that also seemed to make for a bad night's sleep.  So we will stick with the every 2.5-3 hour feedings and see how that works for now.

Schedule:
8am - Wake, Nurse, Play
9am - Nap
11am - Wake, Nurse, Play
12pm - Nap
2pm - Wake, Nurse, Play
3pm - Nap
5pm - Wake, Nurse, Play
6pm - Nap
7:30pm - Wake, Bedtime Routine, Nurse, Right to bed (around 8:30pm)
*You wake me up at least twice per night (around 1am and 5am)*

You are still only nursing on one side per feeding (for 8-10 minutes per feeding), but seem content and are definitely growing well, so I assume you are getting enough.  I know I am producing an excessive amount of milk though because even after she finishes nursing on one side, I am able to pump several ounces out.  When I have pumped instead of a nursed during a feeding time (when I am giving her a bottle instead) I am able to fill a 5oz bottle in under 7 minutes, from one side (using a manual pump!).  It's insane!  I give all the credit to nursing Hannah for so long (14 months) and my body just knowing what to do.  I am definitely thankful for such a great supply!

I'm fairly sure you hit a growth spurt this week because you had a few nights where you were insatiable.  I even gave you a 2oz bottle of formula for the first time the other night because nursing just didn't seem to be filling you up.  You gulped it down!  I then pumped 2oz just to be sure that my milk supply stayed up to speed with your eating.  Unfortunately the formula didn't help you sleep any longer than normal, but it did seem to fill up your tummy.  And I was glad to see that you would so easily take a bottle of formula....you just never know if formula might be needed some day down the road.

You are not a big fan of the pacifier, which Mommy doesn't like.  It's so funny because with Hannah I was so adamant about her not using a pacifier (which she LOVED) and now with you I just wish you would take it!  Oh how things change with a second baby. :-)

You have started spitting up less (since I finally realized you don't need to eat from both sides....too much milk!), but when you do spit up it almost always comes up through your nose.  Ouch!  The other night we were out to dinner at Chick-fil-a (your first visit) and I looked over at you in your car seat and saw that you were COVERED in spit up!  There was SO much...you were soaked, your blanket was soaked and you were sitting in a puddle of spit up!  Disgusting!  But there you sat, just as chill as could be.  Oh my.  I calmly cleaned it all up and thankfully had a spare onesie in the diaper bag.  We didn't have an extra blanket though, so we covered you in paper napkins.  HAHA  Oh the adventures of life with a baby! 

This week you started to like bath time more, which is a nice change from the screaming you did before. We also noticed how raw the skin in your neck folds is, so we started putting aquaphor under there to help it heal.  Thankfully your skin is still free of any baby acne, but your eyes continue to water non-stop (just like Hannah's did when she was a baby).  I'm sure it is just a clogged tear-duct, but when we go to the doctor on Tuesday (7/24) I will be sure to mention it to her.

Mommy has been working very hard on getting you to smile, but you won't.  I think you are going to be a serious one. :-)  You are able to hold up your head briefly while on your tummy and can turn it from side to side.  You can also follow an object from side to side as we pass it in front of your face.

1 Month Stats:
- Diapers: Size 1 (you seriously go through at least 10-15 diapers per day!!)
- Clothes: Newborn
- Shoes: Size 0
- Weight: 9lbs. 8oz.
- Height: 22 1/4"

We are so happy that you have joined our family and look forward to getting to know you better as time passes.  We love you little squishy (that's my nickname for you because you are just so scrumptious)!

Emma: 3 Weeks Old

Nursing: Emma is still doing well with nursing, but continues to only take one side per feeding.  It has been a lot of work to get her to nurse for even 10 minutes on the first side and she almost always refuses the second side altogether.  I have stopped trying to force the second side on her because when I do she almost always ends up projectile vomiting from simply being too full.  The only downside of nursing on one side per feeding is how lopsided I am throughout the day.  I know I could correct this problem by pumping on the side that she doesn't eat on, but I really don't need a massive freezer supply and don't want to continue producing such an excess.  My hope is that as she grows she will start to take more and that my body will also adjust to not needing to produce as much milk.  I know it's a good "problem" to have (overabundant milk supply) but it's still frustrating. 

Schedule: This week we started working on getting Emma on a more consistent schedule.  She is eating every 2.5-3 hours (usually 3 hours) around the clock and taking a 1-2 hour nap between each feeding.  While she is sleeping well during her naps, she refuses to fall asleep in her crib.  She took the majority of her naps in the swing this week.  I am trying not to worry about that since she is so little, but of course the rule follower in me worries that she will never be able to fall asleep in her crib, but I know better.  Right now our top priority is to get her to sleep during the appropriate times, next we will work on getting her to sleep in her bed and fall asleep on her own.  She is still so little!  Despite being such a great daytime sleeper, Emma struggled to sleep well during the nighttime.  Her most wide awake time seems to be after her 1-2am feeding.  This proved to be very exhausting this week.  On Wednesday night she was wide awake from 1:30-5am!  It was rough!  But then on Thursday night (last night) she did much better, sleeping for one 3 hours stretch, which was amazing!  We also have Brian's parents staying here for the weekend, so last night Grandma was able to do some middle of the night rocking, which allowed us to sleep a few solid hours.  As much as I love this tiny baby stage, I do look forward to the day where she sleeps soundly through the night.

Firsts: This week Emma went to her first playgroup.  This was also my first outing alone with the girls.  We managed to get to playgroup on time and home in one piece.  I fed Emma a bottle while we were there and she was wide awake the entire time.  It was so nice to get out and feel "normal" and Hannah really loved spending time with her friends!  This week was also Emma's first week sleeping in her own room at night.  She did pretty well, except for those middle of the night wide awake times.  But it has been nice to have our room back and not waking to every single tiny noise.

Mommy: This week was my first week on my own with both girls.  I was very nervous about doing it all on my own, but the first day went great!  Unfortunately, the rest of the week slowly went downhill, with Thursday being the toughest day of the week!  I was exhausted from so little sleep and both girls were fussy.  Hannah refused to play on her own, so I was unable to rest at all after being awake for the majority of the night (1:30-5am).  It was rough!  Thankfully Brian's parents came that afternoon, giving me a much needed break!  Despite some rough moments and sheer exhaustion, my emotions have been very stable this week and I feel like I have bounced back very quickly.  Physically I am nearly 100% and honestly think that I feel so good because I have been dealing with hyperemesis for the past 10 months and simply not having to deal with that makes everything else feel so much easier!  Being able to eat normally and not feel nauseous 24/7 is quite a luxury!  This week I packed away nearly all of my maternity clothes (ready to give away since I am DONE with pregnancy).  I didn't weigh myself this week, so not sure where I am as far as weight loss goes, but being able to fit into some of my pre-pregnancy pants is a good sign.


Brian's parents are here for the weekend, which is a nice break for us.  Grandma is helping with the middle of the night wakings, giving us a little extra sleep. It's hard to believe that Emma will be one month old so soon.  I really need to be better about taking pictures and videos because these moments are so fleeting!


Clothing Size: Newborn
Diaper Size: Newborn

Hannah: 28 Months Old

Big Sister Hannah,

You are a BIG SISTER now!!  What a month it has been!  Your little sister was born on June 22 and our lives changed completely.  The first week was rough.  You struggled to find your place in the family and make sense of what was happening.  It was so tough on all of us.  It broke my heart to see you so upset and out of sorts.  It certainly didn't help that Mommy was so hormonal after giving birth, but we had several good cries together.  At nap time one day you were being especially difficult.  I sat down in the chair in your room with you and had a little heart to heart.  I asked you what was wrong you said, "Emma".  I asked you if it was hard having Emma here now and you whimpered and said, "Yes."  BROKE MY HEART!  I know that in the long run having a sister will be such a blessing for you, but right now it's just a hard transition.  Thankfully after that first rough week, things have gotten a lot better and you have become the best big sister!  You LOVE Emma and love to hold her and sing to her and hold her hand.  It's precious!  In time you won't even remember a time before Emma was part of our family....nor will you want to! 

This month we have had family at our house nearly the whole time.  A few days before Emma was born MeMaw and PaPaw came to stay with us and then the day before Emma was born, Grandma and Grandpa came too.  We had a full house!  Then throughout the month MeMaw and PaPaw and Grandma and Grandpa took turns staying here to help us out.  You were spoiled rotten!  You became a bit on the demanding side and started to display some of the "terrible two's" traits.  Not fun!  However, with all the chaos that a new baby brings, we have cut you a lot of slack and tried to be understanding of this major transition.

Your sleep has remained the same this month - bedtime at 7:45 or 8pm and waking between 7-8am.  Naps continued to be hit or miss this month, with napping becoming non-existent at the end of the month.  We finally installed a video monitor in your bedroom which has been great.  We can now see what you are up to and have realized just how restless of a sleeper you are.  It has also shown us just how big you are and how it really is time to move you to a "big girl" bed....something mommy has been dreading!  At the end of this month we decided it was time to get a clock for your room that will light up green when nap time is over ("Ok to Wake" clock) to let you know it's okay to get up.  We are hopeful that this will help you sleep or at least rest during nap time.  We'll see!

This month we noticed just how OCD you are (just like your mommy).  You love to line your little people up in a circle, all facing the same way.  Then you lay them all down (to go "nigh-nigh") one by one...repeat.  It is a very tedious process, but you love it.  You do the same thing with your crayons.  First you dump them all out, then you do a little scribble on the paper with one, then line it up.  Repeat with each color until you have a perfect little line of crayons.  Sorry for passing that character trait on to you.  ;-)  Your imagination took off this month as well.  When you play with your dollhouse or little people or baby dolls you have a full conversation with them.  Recently you started to pretend that your playroom is a forest, complete with animals.  You say, "I see a tiger" or "I see a mommy elephant and a teeny tiny baby elephant.  I want to give that baby elephant a big big hug."  It is so fun to see your imagination growing!

Potty training continues to be put on hold, per your request.  When we ask you if you want to sit on the potty you always say, "No" and then "When I'm older I will".  It is hard to convince you that you are old enough right now!  At the end of the month I did manage to convince you to sit on the potty for about 5 minutes, but you didn't do anything.  Thankfully your extreme fear of poop has started to wane a bit.  You still always tell us that you don't want to see your poop (which baffles me because we have never shown you your poop!), but at least you now admit when you have pooped (unlike last month when you were denying that you pooped at all).  You constantly tell us that you are going to go poop and I always ask you if you want to go on the potty and you say, "No, in my diaper".  It's a bit frustrating that you are being so stubborn about not using the potty when I know you could do it easily, but I know it will happen in due time.

Your favorite foods this month were cottage cheese (this is what you asked for at every single meal!), cheese, cookies (every time we go to Publix or Costco), ice cream (frozen yogurt really), grilled cheese, and almond butter and jelly sandwiches.

You now know how to count to 13 and can show 1, 2, or 5 fingers when asked (3 and 4 are a bit harder to manipulate with your fingers).

Other 28 Month Stats:
- You weigh 31 pounds
- You wear size 2T (getting too small), 3T, or 4T clothes
- You wear a size 8 shoe
- You wear size 6 diapers, day and night

I am so proud of you Hannah!  You have transitioned to being a big sister so well and are so sweet to Emma!  She is lucky to have you as her big sister and I pray that you will be best friends always!