Thursday, April 29, 2010

Four Five Updates

I will give as brief of a catch up as I can to what we are up to. My update will not include photos, but everyone else will. I am doing fine, very busy (more about that later) and trying to master the art of nursing. You'd think after two other children it would be easy...it isn't. I remember giving the advice to other new moms..."give it 3-4 weeks". Now I am repeating that to myself many times a day! Other than that I feel pretty good and have lost almost all of my pregnancy weight. Not sure if that is a good or a bad thing...nursing mom experts, please help me out in this area!!!

Rosebud is now two weeks old. She weighed in yesterday at 6 lbs 13 oz. What a chunk, huh?
She enjoys tons of attention from both brothers. They dote on her and love her quite a bit. She has been spitting up frequently, which is new for me with a newborn. Perhaps some of it is all the "love" she gets from her older siblings.

She got to meet her Pop Pop for the first time. He of course loved her.

Look closely at the top of her head. This is her hair when wet...and she has curls! I won't get my hopes up that they stay, but I am enjoying them for the time being.
She has also started looking directly at me and smiles when I talk. I can't get a picture of it, because it is so fast, but it has happened several times!

Little Monkey Man loves loves loves loves loves Rosebud. Loves her to death. At least that is what we are trying to avoid. She is his current #1 object of affection. Kisses and hugs galore. Lots of pointing and grunting and smiles directed her way. I know, I know with the hair. Currently LMM and I are picking our battles. Sock wearing and pony tail flaunting are not ones I am going to fight. Food throwing, hitting, and screaming are worth fighting. Basically if we've had a little girl here (and with visitors, there have been several)

Excuse the laundry pile in the background, I am lucky to be blogging. Things just are kinda overwhelming right now. Laundry, meals (thanks to my Bible study, dinner comes every other night and is a HUGE blessing), diapers, and nursing take up 99.9% of my time. Here is a picture of LMM pointing out things he loves about his new sister. I was taking a picture of him kissing her, but he is almost always too quick to photograph. I didn't know he was going to get a hand on her face quite so quickly!

I really like this picture. You can totally see how happy he is with her. When he comes around, her eyes get very wide...and worried. On Tuesday he had a GI appointment and the results of his genetic testing were in. He does NOT have Celiac disease, and as far as I can tell never will because he doesn't have the gene. Praise God! He has gained back all of the weight he lost with the diarrhea, and has a diagnosis of "Wheat-Gluten Intolerant". His diet change has seemed to fix the problems we have been having, and he is in the 50 percentile for his weight. I think he is quite heavy enough, so heaven help the 50 % above him in weight :o) I can hardly lift the boy!

Snug enjoys being out in nature, and while daddy had LMM out and about today, and while Rosebud was sleeping, he and I shared some time in the backyard.

This was today's project. He had to examine all of this caterpillar's features, describe to me every book about caterpillars he has ever read, and find leaves for it to eat.

He had a great time!


Other current hobbies are watering the flowers he and Grandmommy planted, helping me weed the flowerbeds, and watching his sister nurse. He likes to be right there and tell me about a billion times just how cute she is. I'm glad he (probably) won't ever remember her nursing, because I'd be a little self conscious. On the other hand, he remembers Little Monkey Man nursing, with detail. So maybe he will. Oh well, it happens way too many times a day to go lock myself in her room.

This picture turned out blurry, but swinging and sitting in the sandbox take approximately 3-4 hours of his day. I can't wait till he learns to "pump" and push himself!!!


What has #1 been up to? Well, besides helping with another man hunt (elderly dementia patient escaped from nursing home) in the city we used to live in, he has been very busy doing things around the house and yard, working, and campaigning for the upcoming levy. He and Little Monkey Man were out for a couple of hours today asking people to vote. His department will lose everyone under him in seniority, and even possibly he could lose his job if the levy fails. Always exciting.

But being that it is his day off and we have beautiful weather today...he is currently doing this :o)

And so is Snug.

Which kinda takes the relaxation out of it for daddy...but still some time in the sun is always fun!
So that is what we have been up to. Rosebud is sleeping, the boys are busy with daddy, and the laundry is (almost) done. Now I will go try and catch up with what all of YOU have been up to! I miss reading your stories!

6 comments:

Liz K said...

Oh Jenney! Hang in there with the nursing thing! You remember, it really does get easier and easier, give her some time, eating, breathing, pooping, these are brand new things to her!:) And I don't think your weight lose is a problem:)

Liz K said...

oh and you know, it is ok to break down and use disposables for a while...until you get your head above water...it really is!

CM said...

Oh, she is so precious! Don't worry, she will catch on/latch on soon. Don't give up!

Love the pic of daddy and Snug in the swing. What a good daddy!

The levi...crazy! Cops shouldn't have to fight to keep their jobs! Good luck to him.

Genesis said...

Rosebud is gorgeous! Isn't it fun how much brothers love their sisters? Don't worry about them seeing the nursing...my oldest son was excited to tell everyone all about the placenta he got to see...praying he forgets that one!

Rebecca said...

My gosh I'm still hung up at you almost lost your pregnancy weight!? I had baby J about two months ago and I still have a very long ways to go. Hang in there Jenny. I'm on #2 and I had no idea it was going to be as difficult as it had been. Nursing is the best thing and I applaud you for doing so. I'm a huge fan. Rosebud will thank you later for it. Hang in there. From one nursing Mother to another it really does take two months for your body to adjust, especially the milky. In the hospital the Dr thought my son was toung-tied. He was not latching on and it looks to me that he could still be. I worked heavily with a lactation consultant. Promise it will get easier. Bottles are a pain, expensive and time consuming. How grand it is to be able to whip out the boop and have the milk at the right temp! Loving it and you will too!! We go for baby J's two month check up tomorrow. Going to ask about possible surgery so he won't have speech problems in the future. Ok I'm rambling to much. Hang in there before you know it, she will just latch and nursing will be beautiful and wonderful. Rosebud is so presh! You are blessed.

Unknown said...

1. Congrats on the losing of your baby weight. It is not a problem, you know nursing requires extra calories...as long as you are making enough milk you are consuming enough calories and the nursing should just melt the pounds away (not in my case...I guess I was determined to produce enough milk to feed an army with my eating habits).
2. That hammock is AWESOME!! Do you remember where you got it? It looks like it folds up somehow and would be perfect since we live in a townhouse community and have pretty much no permanent yard.
3. If you are having trouble nursing don't be afraid to schedule a consulation. I "failed" at 6 months with Nathan because I never had true support. I will talk to an LC this time though.
4. What is hydrotherapy and how is it different than a water birth? Do you just labor in water and deliver out?