Wednesday, Oui? Overload!

Yesterday was Toby's first day with his nanny (the first day that I wasn't there with them.)

Naturally, I spent a TON of time loving him up and playing with him before I left for work and before Nanny arrived. While playing and snuggling Toby did the following:

He ALMOST rolled over.
He held his head up for the LONGEST time (ever!) without assistance.
Then he had his first day with Nanny.

I was on milestone overload; way too many in one day.

This shit is getting real.

There are days I still can't believe he's mine then he throws all these developmental milestones at me before I'm ready.

Yet, I am grateful he did these things yesterday. It was almost as if he was telling me, "I'm a big boy now, Mama. You go to work and I'll be just fine here with Nanny."

 

And he was fine. He did great... just like I knew he would.

Me on the other hand? I was (thisclose) to crying.

Toby: 3 months old

Mr. Mister is 3 (THREE!!) months old TODAY! I can't believe it!

 

"WHAT?! I'm three months old? Awesome!"

 

"OH MY GOD! So... so... that means I'm going to be four months old soon, right?"

 

 

"Okay, this is boring. I'm over it."

 

 

"Wait, I have an idea!"

 

 

"I'm going to pull off this stupid sticker"

 

 

"And I'm going to stick it on my head! I'm so funny!!!"

(That really did happen)

 

Here are some things Toby has done in the last month:

He went on his first boat ride

And he found it pretty relaxing

***

He went for his first swim and he wasn't so sure about it....

So Daddy had to bribe him with kisses...

***

 

He played dress up at his cousin's birthday party.

 He was a super cute very hungry caterpillar!

***

But, most of all...

He just laid around sleeping.

 

Here are his third month stats (just because I love to keep records of everything):

• Since Toby was born he has had 601 diaper changes
• He smiles (A LOT), laughs and gurgles; making all sorts of sounds.
• Toby sleeps like a champ-- 8 to 10 hours at night.
• He now takes about 4 ounces of formula 5-6 times per day. We add rice cereal to two of those feedings. And, he nurses. He's a piggy... but a tiny piggy.
• He has taken less interest in the breast as of late. I think it's because his nutritional needs are way exceeding what I can produce even on my best days. As a result he relies on the bottle more and more. (Shhhh, listen?? Do you hear that? It's me... weeping.) So, I pump. Then I pump, and then I pump some more. THEN I put THAT in his bottle.
• He has yet to spend a night in his crib in his own room (yeah the room we spent thousands of dollars and months remodeling.) He still sleeps in his bassinet in our bedroom. The other night Aaron wanted to talk about putting him in his crib at some point in the near future. I pretended I was hearing impaired.

 Updates on Mama and Daddy:

• I have plateaued in the weight loss department. :(
• I have pumped 96.4 ounces of milk (not including what Toby has nursed) since Toby was born. Me and my pump (my pump and I?) are best friends. I realize this amount of milk is so little considering it is what many women can get in a week or two but, for me, it has been my labor of love.
• Daddy goes back to school next week; Mama starts teaching her afternoon class the first week of September!
• I'm back at work and only doing 2 days per week. Those two days are filling up fast; I may have to add a third. (but refuse to work outside the home more than 3 days because that only leaves 4 days with Toby.)
• The new Nanny came to work for the first day yesterday. We are really happy with our choice in hiring her. She was really impressed with Toby. I think she suspected we were lying about how good he is. She couldn't believe how relaxed he is.

Want to see how he was doing in previous months? Click below

Two months
One month

Wednesday, Oui: Heather

So, this is my friend Heather.

I love her.

She met my son for the first time a week ago. When she visited, she brought him a whole bunch of goodies.

We loved everything she brought but, the two things below were our favorite:

A silly giraffe hat

and Toby's favorite: A silly giraffe Mama Toby named Raul.

Heather and I have a lunch date every other week.
I always look forward to it.
I should really tell Heather more often that she's an amazing lady.

So, today she's my "Oui".

Top Ten Tuesday: Toby

Well, the title is quite an alliteration, isn't it?

It certainly has been a while since I've done a Top Ten Tuesday, hasn't it? Remember when I said I wasn't going to make this a baby blog? I am such a liar.

So, without further ado, here are ten facts about the delicious Toby!

1. He loves, Loves, LOVES music. If you put on any music (or sing/whistle) he will smile, squeal and giggle (reference video above.) It melts me. His favorite music is classical, what plays on his play-mat, or his Jewel and Schoolhouse Rock Rocks! discs.

2. Whenever we go out people always comment on how cute he is. I concur.

3. We found him the perfect nanny and we are psyched!

4. When he gets a little bit older he's going to want me to redo his room from his current alphabet/giraffe theme to (mama's other favorite) dinosaurs. He loves dinosaurs, he just doesn't know that yet.

5. He becomes mesmerized when we read to him. He particularly likes books that rhyme. I love reading Giraffes Can't Dance and The Little Blue Truck.

6. He has a fake cough; he uses it when he's looking for attention.

7. He doesn't like onions or Trader Joe's apricot Stilton cheese (we learned that the hard way!)

8. He recently discovered that his fist fits in his mouth.

9. He loves having his diaper changed. He especially thinks it's funny to pee into the breeze when you're changing him.

10. If you press his nose, like it's a little button, he will laugh. It is the best sound. ever.

I cheat at breastfeeding, apparently

Not too long ago I ran into a friend of a friend at Babies R Us. She stopped to congratulate me and take a peek at Toby (who wouldn't want to?). I don't know her that well so it was one of those casual surface greetings where she asked all the usual questions. (I'll call her BRU just to make it simple.)

(We first exchanged pleasantries):
BRU: "How old is he?"
J: "9 weeks."
BRU: "He's so cute! How much did he weigh at birth?"
J: "6lbs 4oz.; just a peanut."
BRU: "How is he sleeping?"
J: "He sleeps great... 7-9 hours at night"
BRU: "Oh MY God?! 7-9 hours!!! You're kidding!"
J: "Nope, we're pretty lucky; he's a really good baby. He barely cries, too!"
BRU: "How on earth do you get him to sleep that long? My little girl wouldn't sleep for more than 3 hours! How does he go that long without nursing?! Do you have to get up and pump?"

PAUSE:

Okay, so let me stop there and explain something. It pisses me off, to NO END, when someone just assumes you breastfeed. Yes, I nurse. Yes, I know that it is proclaimed to be the very best thing for a baby and offers a bazillion health benefits. However, there are a lot of people I care about that didn't nurse or couldn't nurse either for personal, medical or other reasons. I DO NOT judge people who don't nurse and I have a serious issues with people who do.

REWIND: PLAY:

BRU: "How on earth do you get him to sleep that long? My little girl wouldn't sleep for more than 3 hours! How does he go that long without nursing?! Do you have to get up and pump?"
J: "Unfortunately, I can't produce enough milk for him so we supplement with formula. I give him about 3.5 ounces before he goes to bed and he sleeps right through. If I don't get up and pump it doesn't make a difference with my supply."
BRU: (Silent for a moment) "Oh, well then, with my next one maybe I'll just cheat too and stuff them with formula before they go to bed so I can get some sleep. I just couldn't bring myself to feed her formula!"

Then she giggled and shrugged her shoulders.
I wanted to punch her in the throat.
But, I took the high road:
J: "You're very lucky you didn't have to supplement with formula! Toby would starve if I didn't supplement. Good seeing you!"

Then I beat her to a pulp. No, I didn't... but, I wanted to.

Cheat? What the hell does that mean? What I wanted to say was:

"Oh, by cheat you mean the weeks I spent crying my eyes out because I didn't know what the hell was wrong with my supply? Or do you mean the 3+ cups of Mother's Milk Tea I drink on a daily basis (in 90 degree weather [!!!]) so I can produce a measly 3-5 ounces of breast milk per day? Or, I'm sorry, did you mean pumping 2-4 times per day on top of nursing 6-8 times per day? Or is it the Fenugreek herbs I take that make my piss and sweat smell like maple syrup that constitutes cheating? I know, it must be the 3-3 hour appointments I went to with lactation consultants while they watched me nurse and pump to rule out that I wasn't an idiot and it wasn't user error? Now back up and shut your pie-hole before I knock you out!"

11 years ago I had breast reduction. It was deemed medically necessary and my physician practically begged me to do it. I had terrible migraines and back and neck issues. I was warned, because they removed a significant amount of breast tissue, that my ability to nurse might be jeopardized. I was in my early 20's; the thought of having a baby (or nursing it) was so far off my radar.

I wouldn't go back and change it; I am so much happier with my body. I feel better physically and mentally. BUT, I won't lie, it does suck that I can't exclusively breastfeed my baby therefore, I could do without the judgements.

That said, it is really hard for me when I hear people say:

"Ugh, my freezer is so packed with breast milk, I can't fit anything in it."

• I have never been able to pump enough to store. I usually get about 20cc. (30cc = 1 ounce) I would give anything to produce enough to feed my son, let alone, freeze!

"Oh, my boobs are so sore because they are so full. I can't even stand it! You know what I mean?"

• No. I was never engorged. I have never had that "full feeling" Neither has Toby :(

"Oh, I forgot to wear a breast pads one day and boy, I was leaking everywhere!"

• Once, I got a small stain on my shirt about the size of a pencil eraser. I was so proud. I showed it to Aaron. We celebrated.

"Ugh, breastfeeding is just so much work! I wish I could just do formula, like you do."

• Formula is expensive. It's hard work washing and sterilizing bottles and always packing something for Toby to eat if we go anywhere. I don't have a drive-thru on my chest. I wish I did, like you do.

Still, I try. I nurse 6-10 times per day. I pump at least twice per day. I wear breast pads just in case I'm lucky enough to leak. I drink 2-3 cups of Mother's Milk tea. I take Fenugreek daily. I eat lactation promoting foods. I massage and use warm compresses.

Yeah, I totally cheat at breastfeeding.

Completely milk drunk