1 month old

 

 

Yesterday Oliver was a month old!  It's hard to believe.  But I think it's harder to believe that I've breastfed him for a month.  The first week wasn't looking too good.  He was very cranky last night when we were trying to get a decent picture of him.  He didn't end up going to bed until 1 am.  Ugh.  That happens about once or twice a week.   

 

Tomorrow we are going to Akron Children's Hospital for his spine scan of his anterior dimple.  The last PA who saw him said she probably wouldn't have even noticed it because it's so small.  That's why I'm not looking forward to driving there, because I know he will be ok and it's probably going to be a hassle taking the whole family.

 

We head for North Carolina on Friday!  We are getting a head start on everyone else because I have a good feeling that Oliver will slow us down.  That is something I'm starting to worry about.  Traveling 11 hours with a breastfed baby.  It will probably be closer to a 16 hour trip. 

 

 

Weight: 11 pounds (80%)

Height: 22 1/2 inches (82%)

Size Clothes:  I'm going to pack away him newborn clothes today.  The jammies still fit him, but the onesies are very hard to get on.  He has been wearing some 0-3 clothes for about a week now. Most of the newborn clothes I had were hand-me-downs but I had a couple new outfits.  It is sad that he only got to wear them once or twice.

Size Diapers: He has been in size 1 diapers for a week or two now.

Sleeping Habits: Naps in the morning and evening.  He wakes up twice a night and gets up around 9am.  When he naps in his swing, he fusses a lot then goes back to sleep.  Probably because he is in the living room with more noise around him.

Eating Habits: Getting better at spacing out feedings.  Can go 3 hours now, but usually only around 2.

 

 

 

Our July

Oliver is almost 4 weeks old and Penelope is almost 21 months now.  I would like to say that we are settling into a schedule by now, but I don't know if I can say that yet.  I have an idea of what I would like to happen in terms of a schedule, but that rarely happens.  Penelope's sleeping has been off.  She has been staying up too late and wanting to nap later.  So when I wake up at 9:30, I have to get her out of bed. Then she doesn't want to nap until after 1.... but we are working on that.  Oliver goes to sleep between 9pm and 12am.  But usually sleeps until 4 or 6 am.  Which I love.  He almost always wakes up between 7 and 8am.  By 9:30, one of us gets up.  Then he cluster feeds all morning, going in and out of sleep.  Usually he naps around noon or so and another nap in the evening.  That's just how it's been this week.  I feel like I can't remember anything before then.

Enjoying some of Grandma's birthday cake.

 

Forth of July!

 

She started swim lessons with Daddy 4 days a week.  Some days she is into it and other days, she wants to do her own thing.  It's very simple though.  The instructor will tell them to blow bubbles and that goes on for 5 minutes, then tells them to blow bubbles and kick their feet for another 5 minutes... It is for ages 6 months to 3 years.  I don't think I'll be signing her up next year.  She is very comfortable in the water, so she's not really getting anything out of it.  Plus, my parents have a pool so she can do the same thing at home.

 

Passed out after swim

 

Almost on a whim, we decided to go to a Cleveland Indian's game.  I wanted to sit as high up in the stadium as possible (we were in the last row!)  So Penelope wouldn't bother as many people and I could nurse Oliver without a bunch of people looking.  It was still pretty crowded because we were playing the Yankees and it was Derek Jeter's last game at Progressive Field.  I knew it was going to be risky since it was a night game.  Almost as soon as we took our seats, Penelope peed though her diaper onto Aunt Faith's lap.  She was in the diaper for the 3 hours, so we were kind of surprised.  I didn't have a change of pants, only a shirt.  So my mom took her to the bathroom to change her and had to put her shorts back on her.  She sat on top of a changing pad for the next hour while her shorts dried a little.  She was antsy the whole game.  Luckily, there was a walkway behind us, so she could get up and move around.  She started to have a lot of fun when the Tribe hit a home run and the fireworks went off.  She loved yelling and clapping and waving around her rally towel.  Oliver did very well and only got fussy once.  He slept most of the game. We changed his diaper on my sister's lap.  I didn't want to go down all those stairs just to change him.  After the game was over, I went to the bathroom, but decided to change Penelope's diaper in the car since there was no changing table, and it was very crowded.  While we leaving the stadium, she peed through her diaper again!  I have no idea why.  She has went longer between changes without a problem.  We finally got to the car and battled Cleveland traffic while both of the kids, thankfully, slept all the way home.

 

Trying to get the kids to sleep.

 

Penelope crawled on my back with I was doing yoga.

Asking for me to help her put her shoes on Brother.

 

 

In ten days, we take off for North Carolina!  I hate long car rides (it's 11 hours), so I wonder how this will go.  But the beach will be a lot of fun for Penelope (and me!)  It's a family vacation, so the kids will get to spend a lot of time with their aunts, uncle and cousins.  And Grandma and Grandpa. I will have to do a post just on that after we get back.  I can't wait!

 

 

Newborn must-haves

Even though my children are 20 months apart, it's still been over a year and a half since I had to care for a newborn.  Sometimes I feel like a first-time mom all over again.  So here are some products that I just cannot live without. 

Muslin swaddle blankets
These are great for swaddling and nursing.  I had a few of these with Penelope but didn't use them as much as I do now with Oliver.  These blankets are thin, stretchy and huge.  They typically measure 46"x46".  These are great for summer babies.  Oliver is a big baby and normal swaddling blankets don't work well, but he looks tiny being wrapped up in this.  And with the stretchy material, I can make it tight and snug.  Almost forgot to mention how soft they are!  To nurse, you can just tie together two opposite corners and have a great cover.  Aden + Anais is the most popular brand, but also the most expensive.  I have seven muslin blankets, with three different brands.  I haven't noticed a difference in any of them.  Find them here and here.

 

Fisher-Price Rock n' Play Sleeper
We have our Pack n' Play with the bassinette set up at the foot of our bed, but I have only used it once or twice.  Oliver sleeps better if he is not flat on his back.  He also "wakes" up many times in his sleep.  He will cry for a few seconds and go back to sleep, so it's nice to be able to have this right next to the bed so I don't have to get up for all those false alarms.  I can also just throw my arm over the side of the bed when I'm half asleep to rock him.  Penelope used hers until she was about six months old.  Find it here.

 

Lite-on-Shoulder Baby Sling

This was a gift from my aunt.  I never used a sling with Penelope and also didn't leave the house as much since I wasn't working and it was winter.  When we go somewhere, I almost always carry him in this.  I hate lugging around the infant car seat.  Oliver loves sleeping in it and it's light weight.  My favorite part about the sling, is that it is really wide and I can nurse him without being totally obvious about it.  The first time I nursed in public, I was walking around a hot air balloon festival.  It also made it possible for him to attend his first Cleveland Indians game!  (And walk all the way to the top of the stadium.) I haven't figured it out completely, but it can be used for bigger kids too. Find it here.

 

Avent Soothie Pacifier

I bought three different kinds of pacifiers for Oliver before he was born and he wants the one from the hospital.  I better buy some because he only has one!  I like these pacifiers because once he falls asleep, it falls out of his mouth.  He doesn't use a pacifier much, but it's still a must have for him!  Find it here.

Car mirror

I'm one of those moms who want to know what my kids are doing at all times.  Even if they are fine, I'm checking on them in the car every five minutes or so.  Is Oliver still sleeping?  Did Penelope throw her cup on the floor?  So if I can't see them, I'm going to go crazy.  Since his car seat is rear-facing, I can't look over my shoulder to see him, so a mirror is a priority for us! There are many different versions. I bought mine for $10, I believe.  Find one here.

Fisher-Price Cradle Swing

This swing is awesome!  We keep it in the living room and this is where Oliver naps during the day. The seat rotates so it can swing side to side or front to back.  It is removable so I can just use it as a bouncer. (Great space saver!) I mostly do this when we go outside.  I can watch Penelope run around the back yard while he naps on the deck. I like that it doesn't have a tray.  I feel like by the time he would be old enough to need or use the tray, he would have grown out of a swing. It's also more of a hassle to put him in and out with a tray. But like I said, this thing is awesome! I don't know what we would do without it!  Find it here!

 

 

That is my must-have list for Oliver, now that he is 3 weeks old.  I'm sure there are things that I'm forgetting.  What are some of your essential items? 

1 week old

 

This post is coming a tad bit late.  At least I got the picture done on time.  He is now 12 days old.  It's hard to find time to write a post nowadays.  Oliver is always wanting to eat.  I will feed him for an hour and he will take a small nap and wake up hungry.  At his one week mark, he was literally eating every hour and I was about to lose my mind.  I also felt bad for Penelope because I was literally attached to Oliver the whole time. 

At his 5 day check-up, he weighed 8 pounds and 12 ounces.  That puts him in the 70th percentile for weight.  He was also 22 inches long, putting him in the 97th percentile for length.  Those numbers are crazy to me since Penelope has always been in about the 60th for weight and 30th for height.  He has an anterior dimple.  We have to go to Akron Children's in a few weeks for a spine scan.  I'm not worried about it at all. 

Unfortunately,  Oliver is very gassy.  I give him gas drops, but I don't know how well they really work.  I feel bad for him because he gets very fussy because of it.    

I try not to leave the house very much.  But he is less than two weeks old, so I think that's a given.  We have taken him out 4 times so far.  I haven't mastered nursing him in any other place than my home, so that's probably why.  I would like to have a bottle for him if we have to go out in public.  Much easier and quicker. 

It really is amazing that after I gave birth, I suddenly didn't have to pee every 30 minutes, or eat every hour and I can walk again!  It's crazy how quick everything changes.  And I have lost about 25 pounds since he was born. 

Our vacation and 11 hour road trip begins in 24 days.  I'm hoping he will be able to handle that long drive.  I'm sure he will be sleeping for longer periods by then anyways. 

Now it's time to give the little man a bath :)