5 weeks old

Payton is 5 weeks today! She is on 2 different meds for her acid reflux, Prilosec and Bethanecol, they seem to be working, she is so much happier and more content. Someone said to me how peaceful she seemed. A week ago, I would not have said this about her, but she is definitely more peaceful then she was!!

We've run down batteries in both the bouncer and swing, but batteries are cheap if it keeps her from crying!

She had her first, real, bath yesterday. She cried at first, but it didn't take long for her to relax and enjoy it. Surprisingly, it did not help her sleep last night, she fussed from 8-11:30 :(

Her absolute favorite spot to sleep is on my chest. I am guilty of letting her nap there in the afternoons, it gives me an excuse to nap too. But, she has spent a few nights on my chest too. not my first choice, but momma needs to sleep too!

Oh, and she's discovered her fist/thumb. She doesn't always like it, she prefers the paci, but I did get a picture of her with her thumb in her mouth, and it was so super cute!

Garrett is very intrigued by the nursing/pumping, I'm trying to remember a few things he's said recently: he told me his boobs are big now and he has milk for Payton too! One day she wasn't latching on and he lifted his shirt and told me to try his boob!, then the other day he was asking about the milk, I said only momma's have milk for their babies and he said he had juice in his boobs for her! and then he told me he'd take his teeth off so he could drink my milk and then asked how to take his teeth off! I am pumping more then nursing her, so last night, they both laid on my lap, one on each leg and i held their cups/bottles for them. He wants to be a big boy, but still wants to be babied too.

As for me, now that she isn't screaming for hours, I feel like I'm getting my sanity back, still pretty sleep deprived, but that will last for a few more months! I am sitting at 21 pounds lost, I am trying to wear regular clothes, but I don't have much in any other sizes, so I'm not much better off then I was when I was pregnant. But, I am very happy with the weight loss, nice and slow and steady. The weather is so much nicer so now we can start getting outside and I can start walking again too. I am 10 pounds away from pre-pregnancy weight :)

MDO

Today Garrett started at Mother's Day Out at Powersports. After last week, Matt and I agreed that it was time for him to go to school, he needs attention that I just can't give him with Payton being so needy right now. MDO is perfect, it's from 9-2, twice a week, so it gives him some structure and me some down time. Of course, now that Payton's meds are working, things aren't so bad, but MDO is only through May, and by then, Payton will be more in a routine and I will have more time for Garrett again.

As for Payton, her belly button stump FINALLY fell off, 1 day shy of 5 weeks old, it was stubborn, so now she can have real baths, I'm hoping to give her one tonight, I think Garrett will really like that. I need to weigh her, but she has grown out of the nb diapers. I don't think she's quite ready for 0-3 month clothes yet, I put one outfit on her yesterday and she was just swimming in it, so I'm guessing she's probably right at 8 pounds or so.

I started pumping on Saturday, with her reflux, she was really tugging and pulling at me and I was so sore, it was pure agony, so after talking to the lactation consultant at her Dr's office and a couple other moms, I decided to try pumping and giving her a bottle. I still nurse her at night, she latches on better in the middle of the night and the idea of getting up and pumping at 2am just seemed too much to me. The meds really seem to be working, she is not nearly as fussy and she isn't spitting up as much.

Tomorrow she'll be 5 weeks :)

1 month old

Here are some photos of Payton on her 1 month birthday! She is much more alert now, she spends more time awake, which is a lot of fun. Unfortunately, she also still spends a lot of time crying. She fights going to sleep, so she cries for a bit at each nap :( Bedtime last night was especially brutal, she was awake off and on from 4:30 to 11:30. That is just too long for a 1 month old! But, she is SO strong, it amazes me. She is holding her head up for longer periods of time, and will even try to push herself up when I put her on her tummy. She still has her little stump, so still only sponge baths for her! I didn't weigh her today but I'm guessing she's over 8 pounds, she is fitting into her newborn clothes very well, she might be able to wear some 0-3 month stuff, but I haven't tried yet.

Matt and I went to the Houston Rodeo to see Toby Keith on Friday night, so she got her first bottles and she did well, she didn't seem too sure when I tested and gave her one in the afternoon, but after a bit she gulped that milk right down. It's nice to know that we can go out and relax knowing she'll take a bottle. I believe she cried the entire time we were gone, so I'm not sure our babysitters will come back!! lol

She enjoys the stroller, I've been trying to take her for stroller rides now that it's warmer out, she sleeps most of the time! She slept through her first trip to the park, Target and Walmart. Guess she's not much of a shopper, yet!

Garrett just loves holding her and he still wants to give her kisses and he says, "I love you, Payton", a lot. Which is good, considering how much she cries and he has to wait for me to do something with her!

I'm doing good, holding steady at 20 pounds lost. The weather was gorgeous yesterday so we went to the park and then last night I took Payton for a nice walk, and today I'm hurting, guess 4 weeks isn't enough to start exercising again :(

Happy 1 month Birthday, peanut!

3 weeks old

Payton is 3 weeks old today. Because she has been SCREAMING for hours daily and nightly, she had a Dr's appt today, so I know that she weighs 7lbs 14 ozs. It turns out that she suffers from acid reflux and that would explain why the last week has been pure misery for us all. She was not nursing well, spitting up badly, and crying, and crying, and crying, for hours on end at night. Thanks to some of my mommy friends I was convinced to take her to the Dr and he didn't have the slightest doubt what was wrong with her. So far today she's had 2 doses of Prevacid, and it's amazing how quiet it is right now in the house! Our stress level has gone way down. She slept a lot today, I imagine that's from crying for 7 hours straight last night! At 11, I put her in the car and she finally fell asleep. She has been awake and alert this afternoon, the past week she's either been eating, crying or sleeping, so this is a huge relief.

Her little stump still has not fallen off, so we are still doing sponge baths, the Dr put medicine on it again today and said if it's not off by next week, we'll have to take her in again for that.

Garrett is doing great with her, he loves to kiss and hold her. He had a couple days where he couldn't seem to make it to the potty at all, but he's back on track now.

My Dr's appt last week went good. It was just a post partum check up, I guess I passed :) As of this morning I've lost 20 pounds, only 12 more to go (plus 10 from G!!), i may have dropped a bit because I was so stressed over Payton so that may come back up. The weather is getting nicer so maybe we can actually go for some walks soon!

2 weeks old

Payton was 2 weeks old yesterday. We had a Dr's appt and she did great. The Dr was hoping she'd be back to her birthweight (7.1), she was 7lbs 5 oz, and she grew 1/2 an inch. She did not have to get any shots, but we did have to go get a newborn blood screening done, and she did not like that at all. Matt held her and I held Garrett, he didn't like it either.

She is spending more time awake, still eating every 2 hours, but goes closer to 4 hours at night. She sneezes a lot, always 2 in a row. She is holding her head up really well. She still has her little stub, so no real baths yet, she still hates the sponge bath, diaper changes and getting dressed.

Garrett still really likes her, he doesn't like it when she cries, he's a big helper though!

I am doing good, I go to the Dr today, but other then back & tailbone pain, i feel good. Weight loss holding at 17.5 pounds lost. I am not trying to lose weight, not yet. i do need to work on planning my meals better.

Happy 2 week birthday peanut!!

Snow 2010

We had a nice, little snow storm last night, 4 inches in Bryan is unheard of. I'm not sure who enjoyed it more, Matt or Garrett! They made a snowman and did snow angels. It was so fun last night. Payton slept through it all :)

1 week old

Payton is 1 week old today, she hasn't changed too much, but there's a few things that shows she's a bit older.

She is nursing SO much better. Her color is a lot better. She is awake a bit more, still mainly just eats and sleeps, although she seems to enjoy rocking at about 2am. She hates her sponge baths and her diaper changes, but loves to cuddle up with you. She likes her bouncer & seems to like the pacifier, after crying for 2 hours the other night, she took it and seems to enjoy it. She also burps, farts, and snorts like nothing I've ever heard! Oh, and she's been trying to hold her head up since Thursday! She looks like a little turtle when she stretches her neck out.

Garrett still loves her, he gives her tons of kisses and is very gentle with her. He is still trying to understand the nursing, he thinks she is eating my boob, lol.

As for me, I'm feeling great, amazing what an easier delivery will do for you. I know i'm not 100% healed, but I feel so much better at this point then I did with Garrett. I ended up gaining 31.5 pounds, as of this morning I had lost 17 of those! I have had some pain in my tailbone and back, but after a trip to the Chiro today, even those are barely hurting.

Happy 1 week birthday to my little China Doll.