Memorable Days

We've had a couple of memorable days lately. One, of course, was my very first Mother's Day. We decided to split up the celebration into different days so we could spend adequate time with everyone. My Mother's Day celebration was on that Saturday, May 10th. Wes surprised me by making me breakfast in bed. After a quiet morning, we stopped by Subway to pick up some sandwiches and then drove to G.L. Smith State Park for a picnic. We found a nice spot overlooking the lake and ate there. Just as we were finishing up eating, Isaac woke up and was ready to eat. Afterwards, we found a walking trail called Squirrel Trail and walked along that. It was over a mile roundtrip. Just as we neared the end of our journey, the weather started looking dismal, so we went home. Wes finished putting together the new computer desk we'd gotten earlier in the week, and I tended to the baby. It was a nice, quiet evening at home. All in all, the day was just what I wanted. There were no phones ringing, no running ourselves ragged trying to do too much. I was out amongst nature, with my family, and it was a very quiet day. What a breath of heaven.

Last Sunday, we were part of a baby dedication service at Old Fellowship. Isaac just did fit into the outfit that I'd bought for him to wear for the occassion. (Thinking it'd be sooner, I'd bought the outfit a month ago.) Isaac was really good during the service too. He did need to eat towards the end of it, but he finished his bottle just in time to be called up to the front. Everything about the service was really nice - from the music, to the bulletins, to the message, to the dedication itself. Everything flowed and fit in well with the theme. I wish we'd been able to videotape it, but my video camera didn't work that morning. The service was recorded, though, so at least we have the audio.

Isaac has also been developing and able to do more things lately. He smiles and laughs all the time now, and often times spontaneously. He can lift his head up more and for longer periods of time during tummy time now. When sitting in the car seat, swing, or bouncy chair, he's able to move his head forward. He can roll onto his side. And he loves "talking" to us. It's hard to believe that today he is three months old. Where has the time gone?

Growth Spurts

Isaac is in another growth spurt right now. I can tell, because he's been mainly eating and sleeping for the last few days. I told Wes that, and he said, "Isn't that what he does all the time?" I resisted the urge to (playfully) throw a pillow at him. My response was yes, but he's doing that more than usual. Isaac has been sleeping anywhere from 7 to 8 1/2 hours at night on a regular basis. That's been wonderful, but it's also meant that he's staying awake more during the day. So I've really traded one type of exhaustion for another. I'm no longer tired from being up half the night. I'm just tired from tending to the baby all day.

We've been spending our days reading stories and singing songs. I also make sure that Isaac has time in the bouncy chair and swing, although he doesn't like the swing as much anymore. Every day, I also make sure that he has tummy time, as well as time to play with his toys. Every other day, I give him a bath. (Until he's crawling, he's really not doing much to be dirty to need a bath every day.) Sometimes we walk around the house and talk about everything we see. Other times, I put him in the sling rider so I can get some chores done. We take walks at the park, visit the grandparents, and go to the gym once or twice a week. So my days are full. And he is definitely not eating and sleeping all the time. Until this past week...

It seems like Isaac has wanted to nurse and sleep much of the day for this past week. Yesterday, he ate for about five hours out of the day. He napped for nearly three, and then he still got a full night's sleep. Yes, he is definitely in a growth spurt.

It's getting easier to handle them though. At four weeks and six weeks, the growth spurts totally stressed me out. I was still getting the hang of breastfeeding then, and a mere fraction of a second would pass before Isaac was crying if he didn't have his food right away. So between trying to figure out breastfeeding and worrying that I didn't have enough milk, I was frazzled during those times. At eight weeks, it was easier to deal with, but it really wore me out physically. I still fretted over my milk supply too, until my pediatrician told me that it was not unusual for Isaac to nurse every 1 1/2 hours during those times. So this week, when I realized that another growth spurt is coming on, I knew what to expect. I've also just accepted the fact that I'm not going to get much done this week besides feed the baby. And that's ok.

I'm glad that I decided to stick it out and not give up on breastfeeding. I came very, very close to throwing in the towel at six weeks. I kept thinking that things were going to get better, that my milk supply would build up and that Isaac's eating would even out soon enough. When we went through that growth spurt, though, I was convinced that my milk supply would never be what it should. I was aggravated and tired. My visit with Janice is what kept me going that time though. She helped me see how far we'd come, and how positive the outlook really was. I came close to giving up at eight weeks too. After realizing that Isaac's eating habits were perfectly normal, I just wasn't sure that I could keep going. It was totally exhausting. That time, my medicine is what kept me going. I'd been taking some medicine that was supposed to stimulate milk production, and I couldn't see wasting all that money. And now, I'm so glad that I endured. Breastfeeding is so much more convenient and less stressful than bottle feeding. And even though Isaac seems to be eating all the time, I will miss it when this season of life has passed. Feeding time is a bonding time. I can't quite explain the love and closeness I feel when I'm feeding him. Out of all the times I think, "He's so precious to me," or "He looks so angelic," the times it happens the most is when he's doing one of two things: eating or sleeping.

Now that Isaac is napping and I finally have a few minutes to myself, here are the pictures I've been promising to post!

Big Steps

I've taken some big steps in the last couple of weeks. Wes and I left Isaac with Wes's mom for a few hours so we could go on a date a couple weeks ago. We brought a ton of stuff over to his mom's, trying to be prepared for different things that might come up while we were gone. After talking to his mom for a few minutes about different things, she smiled, gave Isaac a kiss, and said, "We'll be fine." I said, "I know, but this is a big step for me! I've never left him with anyone for a few hours before!" She laughed. I knew he would be fine, and I knew she would take good care of him. That didn't make it any easier to leave though! Wes and I ended up having a good time while we were out too. We didn't stay out too late--all we did was eat dinner and go bowling--but I felt worlds better when we got home. Isaac was fine too. When we got back, he was fast asleep in his grandma's arms.

I've also started using the childcare service at my gym. I'd been going to Body Flow at night so that Isaac could be with either Wes or my mom while I was gone, but lately I've been going in the morning. The first time I left him, I was so nervous. I enjoyed my class, but I thought about him the whole time. I kept worrying about him, and then I'd rationalize to myself, Well they're not going to just let him sit there and cry. If he starts crying, they'll pick him up and tend to him. And if something's wrong, they'll come get me. When I got back, I breathed a huge sigh of relief as I saw that he was just as happy as he could be in the swing. I still think about him when I'm in my exercise class, but each time it gets a little easier to leave him.

This past week, we had revival at our church. I really wanted to go, but I knew I wouldn't be able to hear much of the sermon if I had Isaac with me. (I tried going to church one Sunday night and ended up in the nursery tending to him the entire time. That's about the time of day he starts winding down--he eats one or two more times, and then goes to sleep.) So our moms took turns watching him for us. The first night, I felt this emptiness without him there. I enjoyed revival, but I really missed him. I still missed him the other nights, but it got easier each time. And by the end of the revival, I did feel revived and was glad for the break that I'd had during the week. Thank God for grandparents - they never get tired of spending time with Isaac!

Even though I'm with Isaac during the day, I felt like I'd been away from him too much, so Wes and I didn't go out this weekend. In fact, Wes took the day off yesterday so we could have some time together as a family. We spent the whole day together and had a great time! This morning, we had our pictures made. Isaac did really well too. The photographer said that babies normally don't smile as much as he did today. I can't wait to see the proofs!

Since my last post, Isaac has been growing and developing so much. We went to the doctor last Friday, and the doctor gave a good report. Isaac now weighs 12 pounds, 2 ounces and is 24" tall! He also got some immunizations while he was there. That was definitely not fun. He screamed/cried for about an hour afterwards. He didn't have any reactions though, thankfully. No redness, swelling, or fever. He was just a little tired the next day. His next well baby checkup is not for another two months. I may be taking him to the doctor on Monday though. He's been congested in his nose and coughing some this week. I called the pediatrician's office, and the nurse told me to put breastmilk in his nostrils every 2-3 hours. She said that would stop the mucous, and the mucous is what makes him cough. Well she was right, but it seems like the congestion has gotten a little bit worse in the last couple of days. So I called back, and the nurse told me to buy some saline drops. That seems to work too, but tonight he was being really fussy while he was eating. I think he was wanting to eat, but it was hard for him to breathe while he was doing it. If I notice that tomorrow, I'll take him to the doctor on Monday.

Isaac has also continued cooing and laughing, but now he's also doing "baby talk." I've noticed that when I'm talking to him, sometimes he tries to repeat what I say if I use simple words. If my sentences are more complex, he just listens and studies my face. He's been making mainly vowel sounds and some consonants. Sometimes it sounds like he's saying "hey" or "hi." Other times, he'll really get to carrying on, talking up a storm. He does it the most with Wes, I've noticed. Yesterday morning, they were "talking," and Isaac laughed so much. Wes would laugh, and then Isaac would laugh even more. They probably laughed for two or three minutes together. I wish I'd been able to get that on video! They are so cute together.

I never did get time to post pictures. Another big step Isaac has made lately is sleeping through the night. That's great, but now he's napping less during the day. So that's making it a little harder to find time to post! Hopefully I'll have time to post some pictures soon though.