2 Week Update

Today Caleb is 2 weeks old. 2 weeks! Time is going by so fast, it's scary. Little man got circumcised today and Chris stayed with him while the procedure was done.  I'm thankful I didn't watch based on what Chris told me, but Caleb handled it so well and we'll be doing lots of skin to skin today to keep him calm and soothe him. I hope it heals fast and he doesn't have much discomfort while it heals. Caleb is definitely not starving! He's gained 12 ounces in a week, putting his current weight at 8 lbs 12 ounces!! His pediatrician told us he should be back at his birth weight by his two week check up and he has more than surpassed that. He also grew another quarter of an inch and is 20 1/2 inches long.  We thought he was going to have another well baby check up today, but apparently there was a mix up with appointments and after his pediatrician reviewed Caleb's weight and measurements he appears to be fine and another appointment isn't necessary. He won't go back until he's 2 months old

This last week has been a lot of trial and error and all 3 of us have had our fair share of meltdowns. When people tell you having a newborn and raising a child is the hardest job you'll ever have, they aren't joking. I don't know what I'd do if I didn't have Chris to go to for support and help. I seriously don't know how single parents do it. We constantly tell ourselves it's going to get better and it's a good thing Caleb is so damn cute... Even when he's screaming his head off at 3 o'clock in the morning and Chris and I are running off an hour of sleep. 

Speaking of sleep.... Caleb has proven to be a night owl and he wants nothing to do with sleeping between the hours of 12 and 4ish. This week we've tried exclusively breastfeeding during the day and giving breast milk in a bottle at night and then we've tried exclusively breastfeeding during the day and night. All I have to say is props to moms who can exclusively breastfeed 24/7, especially this early on. Caleb is a champ at nursing, but at night it's become more about soothing him than eating which leads to me being up for hours trying to put him back down to sleep to only get up 5-10 minutes later and "nurse" him again cause he's crying and nothing else will soothe him. It's exhausting. So, I think we'll be going back to nursing as much as possible during the day and giving a bottle at night. Chris has to remind me that just because we're giving him a bottle doesn't mean I'm failing at breastfeeding. He's still getting breast milk and that's the most important thing. 

Caleb had some episodes of spitting up yesterday which I think was a result of being overfed. I was nursing him on both sides and I think it was too much for his little belly to handle. When I pump now I'm getting about 2 ounces on each side, which is very reassuring. My supply continues to increase and I hope we'll have a stock pile of breast milk in the fridge/freezer soon. 

Despite my meltdowns in the middle of the night, occasional irritability and lack of sleep, I'm doing okay. At least I THINK I'm doing okay.  I have moments where I feel great and confident that Chris and I are doing everything well and then other moments where I'm just at a loss and feel like nothing I or we do is right. From what I hear, that's all normal. My hormones are still trying to get back in check and I don't think I've had any postpartum depression. I'm anxious to get back in the gym and I'm waiting to hear back from my OB-GYN when it's safe to do so. I've lost another 5 lbs this week and I'm only about 5 lbs away from my pre-pregnancy weight. We've been trying to go on walks when the weather is nice and little man wants to cooperate. It feels great to get out and get some fresh air. Caleb loves his car seat and being on the move either in his stroller or in the car. 

Yesterday we had his newborn pictures and got a sneak peak at one of the images already. We're so anxious to see the rest! I think that's all for this week. I want to change the name of the blog and I'm thinking of ideas. If you have any ideas/suggestions, feel free to let me know! 

Alissha