Post-Partum - Week 5

Im slowly but surely making my way back to reality. I love it - I almost feel like me again!

Life with 2 under 2 plus a big kid:

Dayton is a stud - Hes growing and eating and growing some more. Last time we took him in for a check up (2 weeks) he was 9lbs ~ up 2 lbs from his birthweight! We're following our pedi's orders as best as possible to avoid crowds with the Pertussis outbreak but its hard as we both have large families and can only be confined to the house for so long. For the most part though - we're home & staying healthy.

Week 1 & 2 for Brooklyn was tough. Brooklyn was showing some obvious regression and acting out as expected but I must say it only took a couple weeks to notice she was back to her normal crazy self. She loves on him like there is no tomorrow and melts our heart when she says "HI DAYYYNE~! Love you." *sigh* Theres nothing else as sweet, I tell ya. Ive taken advice from other moms & fine tuned my multitasking skills to include breastfeeding him & just about anything else you can think of; short of changing her diapers. :P

The 'big kid' part is where we are infinitely blessed. Kalina is an amazing sister and daughter. She helps a ton and seems to truly love her role as 'Big Sis'. Shes a busy sister with chores, soccer practice and getting ready for 6th grade.

Breast-feeding:

I dont know why I thought that just because it was my third time it would be a walk in the park. It wasnt. I had issues from the get. I was sore up until week 4 and after getting a great reccomendation for the Day One Center I learned a had some easy to fix issues (... but issues for sure.)

Now at week 5 Id say its going well. There is no more pain, his latch is much better, hes choking less, and feeding sessions are quicker. Sometimes hes done in 10 minutes! Im gearing up for the 6 week growth spurt and expecting all hell to break loose.

Sleep:

... or lack there of. Brooklyn & Kalina are sleeping the same. Thank. God. Dayton is working his way up to 3-3.5 hour stretches. This feels like an eternity compared to the 1.5-2 hour stretches we've been doing. Its all pretty textbook though.

Some nights, David takes him around 7-730pm, after we put brooklyn down & lets me sleep until 10 or 11 ... one night he fed him a bottle and I was able to sleep until midnight. Let me tell you - those 4 hours made me feel like a new woman.

I drink a coffee a day and without it I would not be deemed safe to leave the house (not that I do that too often these days anyways).

Me:

I feel like the newborn part is easy this time around. Then again, It hasnt been that long since I last had a newborn. The hard part is sticking to the low expectations. I cannot expect much from myself with 2 babies. Some days I consider it a good day when all Ive done is not lose my cool - other days Im able to shower, pick up the house a bit, make a trip to the library and even still feed my kids and myself. Those are good days and I remind myself that even the worst of days involve little sleep, lots of milk production for the little one and then much patience production for the tantrum wielding toddler - not too shabby if you ask me.

Emotionally I was a wreck the first couple weeks. Having lost my grandma within days of having the baby, I felt like I was in a fog and cried often. Hormonally this was to be expected regardless of the circumstances. I was prepared for it this time and reminded myself it was temporary ... at least the hormonal part of it.

Physically I feel great. Nothing like childbirth to cure the waddles, sciatica woes, sleeping challenges, and so much more. The recovery was a lot easier this time around. But in exchange for these gorgeous babies of mine I get Nat-Geo ta-tas, a pudgey abdomen & major bags under my eyes ... I still say its a small price to pay.

David is a huge help to me and has stepped up in ways I didnt expect. Ive found him working as hard as I am and enjoying it more than I imagined he would. Parenting consumes us right now. Theres little left over at the end of the day ~ but once again we try to remind ourselves that this is temporary. Well in some respects anyway.

All in All:

I cant believe we were blessed with another little person. I try to keep my neurosis in check so that I can enjoy it all - instead of freaking out over our unkept house, our piles (upon piles) of unfolded laundry or rarely leaving the house. I also try to nap whenever I get a chance ~ or whenever David 'encourages' me to. He says we're all happier when I've gotten rest and I tend to believe that.

ps. I found good use for the pudgy abs anyways ...