Finally...

It's been way too long since I've had a free moment to write. LUCKILY, I've kept notes on my phone as the days have went along as to what I want to make sure to write about! Otherwise, I totally would have forgot and would have little to nothing to write about now.

I've been learning more and more about our little guy as the past three weeks have went by. First,  he hates tummy time. I've not been able to find anything that works to keep him there longer than a few seconds. Other than his daddy who can at least get 5 minutes out of him. He will lay there and talk to his daddy for longer. He may not like tummy time, but he loves his play mat. He's loved that thing since day one and continues to enjoy talking to the animals more and more as he becomes more vocal. It's by far his favorite toy! He has been so much fun to interact with because he is "talking" and smiling all the time now. He not only smiles when I work at getting smiles out of him, but also smiles at me simply walking in the room and saying "Good morning." It's so rewarding on a rough day to have smiles from the light of my life at the end of the day. He's very interactive with us and his toys. He doesn't look or play like a newborn anymore.

Mittens: I thought they were stupid because they fell off his hands because they were so huge. But, they come in handy when his hands get big enough at 5 weeks to fit and 0-3 month sleepers fit which in turn don't have the hand covers like newborn clothes do. Speaking of the newborn clothes, Little B outgrew them overnight in week 5. In week 6, I was frustrated because he had just started fitting 0-3 month clothing and was already pushing fitting into a lot of them. Then, I realized that being 6 weeks old meant he was already 1/2 way to three months! It's hard to believe how the weeks fly by!

Breastfeeding: didn't turn out to be for us. Everything you read says to stick it out for a while and it'll get better. At five weeks, it wasn't any better. He's a very lazy eater but a hard sucker which made for a not so pleasant experience. Pumping on the other hand didn't hurt and was much more enjoyable. It wasn't just the lack of pain that made it more enjoyable but also the fact that I could be face-to-face with Little B and it doesn't feel like he's attached to me 24/7. The only downside is pumping being two times the work since I have to pump and feed him part of the time. But, it's worth it to me since it allows "breastfeeding" to be more comfortable for me, more ability for bonding time with Little B for both Daddy B
and I, and best of all, the fact that Little B still gets breastmilk!

Schedule: Other than eating approximately every 3 hours, he doesn't have a great sense of what a schedule means. In the past couple of days he has got better about getting up around 7 each morning and taking a nap an hour or two later. He's napping better but still has a long way to go. And even longer to go in the consistent bed time department. At the same time, as far as he has to go, he has got easier to handle during his sleep/awake times. You always read about overstimulating a child but I think that despite playing/talking/reading to Little B while he's awake that he enjoys going out and having somewhere to "go" once a day. We've been going somewhere at least once a day for the past 6 days and though it's still to early to know for sure, I really think it's helped! He still seems to be a bit more high needs than other babies because he has such trouble staying asleep if he's not being held/fusses a lot just because he wants to be held but there MAY be more of a light at the end of this tunnel than I thought. I just keep reminding myself that he's "needy" because he loves his mommy and daddy more than other babies and wants to be with us more because of this :) He enjoys A LOT of interaction!

Bottle Humor: I've made more than my fair share of mistakes with bottles lately. I poured boiling water onto my  hand when I was dumping the water out of the pot I'd boiled new bottles in. Then, the very next day I took a bottle into bed and went to feed Little B and it spilled everywhere. Which wasn't hard to understand since there was a lid with no nipple. I had put together the bottle with all but the nipple because it wasn't dry. Then I forgot there wasn't a nipple since the cap was on, pulled it off and wala...
On another note, I'm pretty sure that my co-workers think they should file a 310 against me because I took him in and had started to give him a cold bottle when someone came and took him to cuddle with. There were about 5 people who were freaking out because the bottle was cold. Of course, he enjoyed making more faces than normal just to get even better reactions. Last I knew, a cold bottle never killed anyone and he'll drink it :) Typically, he gets warm fresh milk since it doesn't have to be kept cool as soon as formula does. But every once in a while...

Postpartum: I couldn't be more frustrated with my weight right now. For the past three weeks, I've been stuck at the same weight. TO THE DECIMAL POINT! My hips are much wider which means I still can't wear normal pants but my maternity pants are getting too loose. I went to the store to get some pants a size up since I'm actually going out of the house now and will be returning to work soon and pants are typically a requirement for these types of outings. But, apparently, everyone needed the size I needed because they were sold out at Aeropostale. Old Navy's difference between one size was huge which meant one was too tight and the other huge. And then Penney's apparently thinks it's already summer with their bermuda shorts and capris lining the racks. I even checked online but no such luck...Last I looked outside, there's tons of snow on the ground and no sign of spring, let alone summer! Ah frustration...But, I've got friends lined up to help out with Little B in the evenings so that I can go to the gym and Daddy B can continue his job search. Hopefully this will help the weight start pouring off!

Meeting Big Sister...This past weekend, we headed off to Illinois to see Big E and family. He slept really well on the car trip. When we finally got there (despite his sleeping really well we still had to make more stops turning a 6 hour car trip into 7.5 hours), Big E brushed right past me with only a glance in her hurry to get to him. Daddy B wasn't even lucky enough to get a glance. She was mesmerized by her little brother. She was so helpful with wanting not only to hold him but to feed him, rock him, and help with changing his diapers and clothes. She was so sweet in the way she sang to him and kept telling him "It's okay, sister's here" anytime he'd cry. One of the most precious moments for me was the way that she was singing "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" to him which I'd taught her when she was two. Second to the joy I found in my husband seeing his son for the first time was seeing Big E with Little B. She could not be more proud and excited to have Little B as her brother and I loved it.

Momma's Favorite Moment: Nothing beats rocking my son and gazing into his eyes. I want nothing more than to protect him and feel love overflowing. As I rocked him over the past couple of weeks, it was the first time I looked forward to the trucks and a little boy running through the house and jumping on the couches while I'm yelling in the background versus Barbies and dress up. Now, before this is taken out of context, I never was disappointed that I was having a little boy. However, I was nervous about having a little boy to play with and not getting to use my childhood toys. But, as I gazed at my sleeping child, I could not have been more in love with the thought of "snails and puppy dog tails." He looked so perfect and innocent. As I was rocking him to sleep, I was smiling and he was gazing up at me. Just before he shut his eyes, he gave me a big smile. It made me feel so blessed that he felt so content with me as he drifted off to sleep. Despite the frustration at times with his constant need to be held which doesn't allow for much to get done, it's times like these that I look at him and could cuddle him for hours!

Momma's Worst Moment: Nothing is worse than having your son cry and cry despite having been changed, fed, rocked and loved on and there not being a single thing left that you know to do. Last week was one of those days and it brought me to tears. So there we were, bouncing and swaying both of us in tears. I'm sure it was a sight!

So that's the news in the Little B family life!