New Sleep Pattern?

So it's 10am and I'm exhausted. For 2 nights, Aidan didn't fall asleep until close to 9pm. He was still sleeping until 7-7:30am and napping as usual so I wasn't too concerned. Last night, however, it got even worse and now I'm not sure what's going on.

I figured he was over tired from his late nights the previous two evenings, so I put him down about 6:30pm and he fell asleep. I relaxed, poured a glass of wine, and watched one of my fav shows - Law and Order SVU as well as a repeat of Lost which happened to be the only one I had missed this season while I was in Florida so all in all, the night was going well.

Around 8pm (just as Lost was ending - perfect timing), I heard Aidan crying. As I entered the room my nose detected that unmistakable odour. I had a plan of action - do not make eye contact, do not speak, just change the diaper and get out. Hopefully he would go back to sleep. I was wrong.

Aidan would be quiet, or be talking to himself happily, and then all of a sudden break out into wails. I'm really not sure why. I'd go in, flip him onto his back, and plug his mouth with a soother. 15-20 minutes later, the wailing started again. Finally around 9pm I fed him again. He ate and I really thought that was the end of the screams - not so.

At 10pm, still crying, I went in again. He was rubbing his eyes like crazy and turning his tired head from side to side. Mike ended up holding him until almost 10:30pm, when he passed out for the night. My sister commented, "At least he'll probably sleep in" but I knew better.

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Elapsed time - 7.5 hours. Mike is talking to me (or is it a dream?), "Katrina, I think Aidan is awake". Me - "Like awake awake or just making noise?" My question is answered with a wail coming from Aidan's room. I think he might go back to sleep so I go in to re-soother him. As soon as he sees me, his screams get louder. So much for going back to sleep. I bring him into our bed (a bad habit and one I said I'd NEVER do, but here I am doing it. Not often, but still....) and rub his head for a while, hoping he'll dose off. He doesn't. Eventually, at 7am, I feed him breakfast. I know he's tired but I'm not sure how to make sure he stays on a good nap schedule. At 8am I put him down for a nap, and I go for one, too. He only sleeps for an hour.

So here we are. I want to get Aidan back on track - he was sleeping so well - but I'm not sure what the problem is. I was thinking maybe he just needs to eat more in the day and is having a hard time sleeping because he's going through a growth spurt. I already fed him twice today (a morning snack, which he doesn't normally have) and I'm going to try to load him up at lunch and dinner, as well as an afternoon snack (sometimes his snacks are breast milk, but whatever high calorie "food" he can get will work I think).

If any experienced moms out there have advice about this issue happening around 6 months, please let me know! I want my good sleeper back!

Just a test

This is a test - I'm trying to post my blog in facebook so we'll see if it works!

New Post

So today won't be about anything in particular, I just thought I should write a new post to keep my fan base interested ;)



It seems I am now able to upload pics so here's a cute one (maybe I'm biased) of Aidan after getting food on his hand and then rubbing it on his face.







Tonight when I was feeding him, he kept grabbing the spoon and trying to put it in his mouth himself. I'm wondering when your kids started feeding themselves? I want to try it, even though it's messy, but I'm not sure when to expect him to be ready.

I had Aidan's portraits done on Sunday. He smiled the whole time and I can't wait until I get them back. For now here's a home-taken pic of him and I.



That's it for today. New post likely to come tomorrow since I hardly talked about anything today!

Dietitian, Mom and Baby Yoga

Another 2 topic post, man you guys are lucky.

Everyone knows the combo of pregnancy and loving food (as well as being a little lazy) can cause problems with that once girlish figure. A few weeks ago, I decided that I would count calories. I did an online calculator that takes into account age, weight, gender, etc and it said I should eat 1500 calories per day to lose a pound a week. After 2 days of that, I decided to up it to 1700 since I'm still nursing (but not nursing full time since Aidan is also eating real food). I thought that was a lot of calories, but I was surprisingly VERY cranky on that amount. After a few days, I just pigged out on junk because I couldn't take it anymore.

With time on my hands, I looked into what Michael's group insurance from work has to offer. I was surprised to find out that a registered dietitian is covered, up to $400 for each of us per year. I figured, since it's free, I may as well take advantage. I searched for a registered dietition in my area that specializes in post-natal nutrition as well as infant nutrition, since I had a few questions about Aidan.

The cost of the home visit was $125 for one hour. I'll just say, I'm glad it was covered by insurance and I can't believe people actually pay that much. I learned a few things that I didn't know before, but mostly you could just google it all (vitamin C to help absorb iron, eat lots of fibre, fruits, and veggies) if you didn't know it already. It was worth doing for me since it was covered, but unless you're clueless when it comes to nutrition, I don't recommend spending your own cash that could be better spent on new clothes that fit your new body :)

Topic #2 - Mom and Baby Yoga

I haven't done too much yoga, but I've mostly enjoyed the relaxation aspect. How can yoga be peaceful when everyone brings their babies? What was I thinking? I couldn't even do everything because I kept having to tend to Aidan. At the end, we did a sing time with baby instead of clearing our own minds. The class also ends at 3:30pm so I end up driving home right at the start of rush hour traffic. At the end of the class, the instructor said, "Don't give up, every week is different. Some moms don't come back because they get frustrated, but each class is a new class". Had she read my mind? I'd way rather take a regular yoga class and find a sitter for Aidan, or leave him at the babysitting service at the fitness centre. I'll most likely drop the class...but now I feel bad because the instructor told me not to.

One last mini-topic. I waited about a year before printing photos to put in an album and ended up printing like 3000 pictures. I'm trying to go through my pics from the past 4 months but I find it very difficult...any other new moms relate? I might have 450 pictures of Aidan in the bathtub, but I just can't choose which ones to delete. Another 300 pics of him in his exersaucer, etc. Choosing pictures to print has never been so difficult.

That's it for today! Again, seem to be unable to upload pics so it's just another wordy blog.

Mommy and Me Fitness, Vaccinations

Two topics to discuss today. First of all, I started a fitness class on Monday. I picked classes that work around Aidan's feed nap times so, while he napped, I searched through my closet to find workout clothes that fit (isn't it sad when some of your sweats are too small?). I settled on some shorts that aren't quite as loose as they used to be and a tank that I recently bought so definitely fit. I packed Aidan's bag, he woke up around 10am and off we went.

The class started with some easy warm-ups. Great for me (and probably others) because I wouldn't be ready for anything to hardcore right off the bat. We did a few strength exercises, lunges, and squats. The good thing about the class is, unlike at home, I can't really just stop because I get tired. The first class wasn't too hard but I definitely sweat and felt the burn the next day from the light weight lifting we did. I didn't get a chance to talk much to the other moms (most babes, including my own, were pretty cranky by the end so we pretty much ran out of there) but everyone seemed pretty nice and obviously we all have at least a few things in common - we're all moms who aren't happy with our bodies (haha.....)

I don't have a pic of us there, but today I start Mommy and Me Yoga so I'll get my sis to snap a shot of us before we go. I'm looking forward to this class. I haven't really done anything besides prenatal yoga so I have a feeling this is going to be a bit more challenging than what I've done before. I think I'm going to miss the days of getting on all fours, pretending my belly is a hammock, "rocking" me baby back and forth, and pretending that was a workout. I'll let you guys know how the yoga goes! The only "real" yoga I did a few years ago I kept falling over and ended up leaving half way through the class because I felt like such an idiot so hopefully that doesn't happen this time.

Insert random shot of Aidan on the swing:
Never mind, the image uploader doesn't seem to be working? Maybe I'll do an all photo blog later today.


Second topic - Aidan got his 6 month shots yesterday. I don't know about the rest of you, but taking my baby for his shots is probably more traumatizing for me than it is for him. That morning, as he happily played, I felt horrible looking at him - he was so oblivious as to what was going to happen to him later, so trusting that I would make his day as fun as possible and protect him from pain.

When we got there, Aidan smiled and squirmed for the nurse, so happy and unaware. As we waited, I could hear babies screaming all around me (from behind closed doors) and almost broke down in tears right then and there. As a woman left one of the rooms holding her son, red-faced with tears streaming down his face, I wanted to take Aidan and run. But I didn't, and we went into the torture room.

The last 2 times Aidan got his shots, I nursed him right after and he immediately calmed down. I decided to do that this time, as well (not sure what I'm going to do when he's 5) and it worked! Hardly any crying. Just needle prick, scream, pop out boob, done! By the time we left, Aidan was smiling and slapping his legs at strangers in the elevator. And I didn't cry at all! I will tell you this, though, I am definitely making Mike take him next time.

One last thing - I found out Aidan weighs almost 20 lbs (19 lbs, 9 oz) so no wonder my arms and back are sore all the time. I thought babies were supposed to triple their weight in the first year, not the first 6 months! He is also 28 1/2 inches which means he is 1/2 an inch away from needing a new car seat. I lamented about this to the nurse. She looked at me and said, "Well, look at you, you're tall. And how tall is your husband?" "6'3"...." "Well, what did you expect?" It's true, I knew Aidan would be tall, but I had no concept of how tall babies are or of having to spend $200+ on a car seat so soon after buying one of those travel systems (stroller with an infant seat) . Any moms of older tots have suggestions for a good car seat that won't make me broke? I've been putting it off but I'd say I definitely need to get one within the next few weeks.

That's all for now :)

Mommy Fashion - All About Me :)

This blog is going to be all about me and my problems - Someone nominate me for What Not to Wear, please!

I've always had a hard time with fashion. I want to look nice, but not really follow trends, but I have a hard time putting pieces together that look flattering and, when it comes to work, appropriate. Through the years my "best" pieces have most often been hand-me-downs from friends.

Over the past few months, I have been struggling with my "look" for a few reasons.
1) I have gained quite a bit of weight and just can't fit into my old clothes. I finally packed everything up and gave it away instead of holding onto the hope that I would one day fit back into them. But that's not the only reason I gave away those clothes.....
2) Mommy/married look - now that I'm married AND a mom, I feel like I should dress fairly conservatively. I still want to look nice, not like a sloppy mom (although I'm pretty sure that's my look most of the time these days) but I'm not sure how to pull this off. There's another reason I gave away all those too small/semi-slutty clothes....
3) Age appropriate - not only am I a mom now, I'm also pushing 30. I don't think some of those cute tops I had are appropriate for me anymore. Plus I now have "mom-cleavage" (which I guess is better than what I had before - no cleavage) so the lower cut stuff just does NOT look good at all.

Now that the early days of no sleep and living in sweatpants are over (or are they....) I really want to start picking up some clothes that look good and make me feel good. Money is an issue, of course, but the bigger issue is I don't know how to dress. This isn't that big of a deal right now, but in a few months I (hopefully) will have some job interviews and be making my way back into a classroom. I'm pretty sure I can't wear sweats to work, even on casual Fridays, so I really need to start picking up some things here and there. The only dress pants I have that fit are maternity. I wish I knew how to get help.

The last concern - hair. At first I wanted to cut it all off just because I didn't have the time to wash it, let alone style it. Now I want to because Aidan is starting to yank on it. I don't want The Mommy Cut, but I want to update this boring look I have. I guess the bottom line is, with a few extra pounds on me, I need my clothes and hair to look as good as possible to help boost my self-esteem!

Any other new moms struggling with finding a new look for themselves? Or did you just keep your old clothes and fit right back into them, no problem (jealous....)?

The Scoop on Poop

This one is for Moms Only - unless you enjoy reading about infant poop or if you want to be prepared for when you have your own baby poop to deal with!

I had no idea that Aidan's poop would be an issue in my life, other than having to change his dirty diapers. I didn't realize that there are common concerns that many new moms have when it comes to the bowel movements of their babies.

As a newborn, Aidan had that "pleasant" newborn poop that is yellow and mustardy. Since he was breastfed, it didn't even smell bad (I say this because the diapers of the formula-fed babies I've changed have been way more gross.....more brown and smelly). He fed about 8 times a day and pooped about 8 times a day. I assumed he would always poop every time he ate. At about 2 months old, a day came where he ate and then didn't poop. Okay, kind of weird, but not that big of a deal. Next feed came - still no poop. I was getting a little concerned and asked around. I also checked with my "What to Expect - The First Year". I found out that breastfed babies (maybe all babies?) can suddenly go from 5-8 poops a day to 1 a day or every few days. It's not a gradual change, it just suddenly switches from many poops to hardly any.

I remember the date, since it was Mike's work Christmas party. On December 18th, my mom watched Aidan for us so I could go to Mike's party with him. He hadn't pooped all day so I was confident that my mom would deal with the Gross Diaper. We got home around midnight and heard Aidan making noises from his room. When I went in to see him, I realized he had pooped the mother of all poops. I asked my mom to change it but she wouldn't! Instead she laughed and laughed and took pictures of me changing Aidan's huge disgusting full diaper. I will not post those pictures. Aidan was only enjoying himself, laughing and laughing. To this day, he often will be a bit fussy before a poop and then be quite pleased with himself once it's out of him.

So far, the poop changes were positive. Although there'd be a bit more coming out of him, it happened a lot less often so diaper duty wasn't as bad. But then.....he started eating solids.....

At first I fed Aidan rice cereal sporadically, not even every day. I didn't notice a change in his poop - it was still mustardy and non-stinky. About a week ago, I started feeding him lunch and dinner every day and trying different foods (carrots, peas, chicken, etc). All of a sudden, his poops changed from milky smelly to hold-your-nose man poops. And they sometimes take the colour of the food he has eaten. Gone are the days where I didn't mind changing his butt....it's now gross every time. I'm going to start potty training him as soon as he can walk, I will not change these "real" poops for any longer than I have to. Anyone have any potty training tips? I'd start him now if I could......

So there is my baby poop experience. Someday, when Aidan is older, I'm sure he'll be glad to know that his poop life was shared with all my friends. Hope you enjoyed :)

Turn off the baby monitor

If I've mentioned anything about this topic, please forgive me, but I thought this was a topic I should share with future moms.

Before Aidan was born, I had decided I probably wouldn't use a monitor. I didn't even buy one. I had read/heard too many stories about moms running to respond to every little noise they hear on the monitor and, let's face it, that's just not my style. But I was afraid that if I could hear him, my mommy instinct would kick in and I would be running to his side constantly.

When we brought Aidan home, we kept him in a basinette beside our bed. I ended up moving in the rocker as well and set up camp in my room. It's safe to say that I basically lived in my bedroom - cable TV, ensuite bathroom, what more did I need? Shortly after Aidan was born, I realized that I needed a monitor for when he was napping. Although I made myself at home in our bedroom, there were occasions that I had to hed to the kitchen for a snack (okay, many occasions) and sometimes, if Aidan were napping, I wanted to just leave him in our room. I spent probably an hour at Sears looking at the different monitors and comparing their features. I finally decided on one that had a portable receiver and a mute option with a screen that showed the volume of the sound. This mute option helped a lot during the cry-it-out time. The remote also had a sensitivity option that allowed the receiver to be sound-sensitive, only turning on if Aidan made a sound, and I could pick how loud of a sound. Perfect!

The monitor was perfect for when Aidan was napping. I would exercise or even just watch TV (more likely) without having to stop and mute the TV to hear if he was crying. So far, so good. (insert random picture of Aidan and I)

I don't know why, but for some reason I had in my head that Aidan would sleep in our room for the first few months. I didn't know that Aidan would grunt in his sleep. He doesn't do it anymore, and I'm not sure why he ever did, but when he was first born he would grunt in his sleep for up to an hour straight - loudly. Okay, time to move to the big boy crib. At about 3 weeks old, Aidan left our bedroom. I thought the transition would be hard for him, but it didn't seem to make a difference, he still slept for up to 3 hours in a row! (I do NOT miss those days....not at all). Because I still had to get up through the night to nurse, I left the monitor on "sensitive" so that it would kick on if he made a loud noise. Oh wait, those GRUNTS are loud. But still, I lived with it so that I wouldn't sleep through his nursing needs.

As those of you that have read my blog know, Aidan went through a crying phase. One night, Aidan was crying his eyes out in his room, on the second floor, when I went down to the basement to get away (aka do laundry). In the basement, I could still hear him screaming. That was the last time I used the monitor at night. I realized if I could hear him from the basement, there was no way his screams wouldn't wake me up from across the hall. I think that decision helped us both get a better sleep.

Now I rarely use the monitor at all. Now and then I'll turn it on to see if he's fallen asleep yet, or if I think I hear him crying I'll turn it on to check that it's not a "phantom cry". My advice to other moms that are feeling stressed - just turn the monitor off. Allow yourself to be "off duty" now and then, or you just might go insane.

The End :)

Prayers

I know a few people read this so I want to ask you all to pray for my sister. She is really sick and I'm worried about her. Pray that God will help her to get better and give her strength. Thank you.

Aidan's First Cold

I should've seen this coming. Up until recently, Aidan has been protected from illness by the antibodies in my breastmilk. Now that he eats solids twice a day, he is not as protected. Within a week of starting this 2 meal schedule, he got sick.

Last night, Aidan woke up crying about 45 minutes after falling asleep. He fell back asleep easily so I wasn't too worried about it. He then woke up around 2:30am quite upset. He again calmed down easily, but I thought it was a little strange. When he woke up crying at 5am, I knew something was definitely wrong. His eyes seemed watery and mucus was dripping down his face from his nose but I thought it might just be from crying. I wasn't sure what the problem was, but I knew there was something because he hasn't woken up 3 times in one night since before "The Schedule".

Later on in the day, I noticed more mucus and crusty stuff around his nose. Overall, he still seems pretty happy so I am diagnosing this as a mild cold. I've propped up his mattress for the night and got the humidifier ready, so hopefully tonight's sleep will be a little better (for him AND me).

Even though he's a bit under the weather, we were still able to go to the park for some fun on the swings - his new favourite thing (even though it's probably where he picked up the cold!).

Update

When I first started writing this blog, I would write about specific topics. Now I'm just going to write about the random things that are happening in my life.

So I signed up for 2 mommy and baby exercise classes. Did you know that you get a tax credit for these classes because technically it's child fitness since your baby goes, too? Bonus! They start in about 2 weeks, so hopefully they will help me with my fitness goals. One is an aerobic class (on Mondays) and the other is Yoga (on Thursdays). I'll write about how they are in a few weeks. I also started (just yesterday) keeping track of how many calories I eat. I found that writing it down made me think twice when I wanted a snack. We'll see how this goes, too!


Right now I'm taking care of my nephew. I remember when I was pregnant thinking it would be cool to have twins - man, I had no clue. The boys are only 2 weeks apart so they pretty much do everything at the same time. On one hand, this is great because they both nap and I get a nice break. But when they both need to eat, I am screwed! This morning I nursed Aidan, holding him with one arm, while I held a bottle in his cousin's mouth with my free hand. I was able to prop him up across my leg to burp him. I was pretty impressed with myself. Overall it's going pretty well and the boys seem to enjoy being around each other, as much as 6 months old can enjoy that sort of thing. This experience is making me think a little harder about having a second child, although in the back of my mind I believe it will be easier since Aidan will be older. Any moms of two have any opinions on that? I'm not going to post any pics because my sis may not like her son's face being on my blog, but just use your imagination ;)

Aidan Rolls Over!

So, since I said I'd do a post called "Aidan rolls over", here it is. Aidan learned to roll over a few weeks ago while we were in Florida. He looked so cute and proud of himself. I was proud of him, too, but I also knew it was the beginning of the end. By that I mean, the end of the days where I could just set him on his back somewhere to play and go about my life knowing he is safe. I now have to keep a more consistent eye on him. Aidan loves to roll from his back to his belly, but doesn't know how to roll from his belly to his back (could this be due to lack of tummy time?). At first, he loves being on his belly, but often he begins to fuss and cry. I have to roll him back. As a mom, I'm not sure how often or how quickly I should "rescue" him from being on his belly, or how long I should let him fuss so he can learn to solve his own problems. I feel like if I keep rolling him over, he'll take longer to learn to do it for himself. Oh well, not that big of an issue but just thought I'd mention it.

In other news that is not Mommy related, Mike and I had a fun date last night. We went to dinner and then to a John Mayer concert. I really enjoyed it, even though I didn't know a lot of John Mayer's newer songs. The crowd seemed to be mostly young girls so I did feel a little old, but it was still fun. It's also nice to go out and realize I don't obsessively wonder what Aidan's doing anymore. I didn't even care what time he went to bed or if he ate, etc etc. I was just happy to be out enjoying myself.