Post Partum Week 1

I can't believe that a week ago at this time, the doctors were debating what the best course of action would be for me and Nick Jr (as we still called him at that time). This last week has been quite a learning process, but we've been blessed to have (thus far) an easy baby to guide us along. So here are a few reflections on the week:

Breast feeding : It ain't easy, and while it takes time, it seems like an eternity to adjust, especially when you're in pain. It wasn't bad in the hospital, and thankfully, his latch was never bad. Once we got home, however, my nipples were so irritated and beginning to crack. My milk came in on Tuesday (4 days pp), which was a relief. Jack was down 9 oz from his birth weight at his pediatrician appointment on Monday, so I was hopeful for him to start gaining weight quickly. Wednesday, he was up 5 oz from Monday! Wednesday was also the peak of my nipple pain, and while its not perfect yet, things are getting a lot better. I have found that Bamboobies Boob-Ease Natural Nipple Balm and Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula Nursing Butter help, although I prefer the Bamboobies. I've also used some of the Bamboobies nursing pads and Phillips Avent Washable Nursing pads. The Bamboobies are much softer and more comfortable. I've also pumped twice, just to alleviate some engorgement. I think once we get back above birthweight and are a little better established with breast feeding, I'll start pumping and introduce the bottle. Nick is really eager to be able to feed him.

This is what my husband finds humorous.

Cloth Diapering: We used disposables in the hospital, but were eager to start using cloth when we got home. It seemed like we weren't getting any pee diapers, though. We think that some of the cloth we were using were so absorbent (Hello, Thirsties Duo Fab Fitteds) that I was missing some of his potty breaks. We switched back to using leftover disposables from the hospital for a day or two while we made sure his input and output were appropriate for gaining weight. After our appointment on Wednesday, we switched back to cloth. I've gotten much better at fooling Prefolds, although Nick wasn't quite sure what do with them at first. I looooove Kissaluvs fitteds. The Thirsties Duo Fab Fitteds fit well, although bulky, and are super absorbent. These will definitely last for a while. Thirsties Duo All-In-One also fits him well right now, and is a bit more trim. At this point, he's able to wear both Thirsties Duo Wraps and Xsmall covers. If I hadn't been afraid the wraps would be too big, I probably would have just stuck with the wraps as they will fit him for longer. As far as Prefolds go, we have a diaper Rite unbleached ones and Green Mountain Diapers bleached ones...I'm not sure if its the brand of the bleached/unbleached factor, but the Diaper Rite ones seem to be more pliable and easier to work with.

I love the owls...

Sleep: We are truly blessed by a baby that likes to sleep! We had a rough time with sleeping I. The hospital, but for the past 2-3 nights, he's decided to start sleeping for 4 and 5 hour stretches at a time. This morning none of us got out of bed until about 9:45-we were up at4:30 and 7:30 only long enough to eat and get back to sleep. I had hoped he'd go right to his crib, but he's been sleeping in the rock and play next to our bed at night, mainly because I'm too paranoid to not have him close by. The first night at home was horrendous-only because I was too worried that something would go wrong. 

Little Squirt hanging out in his Snugabunny Rock and Play.

Weight loss: This morning I got on the scale for the first time post partum. I am down 13lbs from prior to giving birth. (It feels like a lie to say that, as I didn't have to do much-the doctors did all the work!) My final "weigh in" was 244lbs last week-up 85 lbs from my Weight Watchers goal, and 70 lbs from my first pregnancy doctor's visit (I wasn't very responsible last summer). I would guess I have at least another 5 lbs of water weight I'm carrying around-my feet, legs, and hands are still very swollen. My stomach has gone down a lot. It's going to be my hips and thighs that are going to be difficult to get the weight off. I've been eating healthier this week (no more emotional eating!), and my goal is to rejoin Weight Watchers at the end of next week. I can't exercise right now, so I'm hoping that just adjusting my eating habits and breast feeding to help melt as much if the weight away as possible. 

OK. so while the tummy is going down, I still feel like a heifer. But the goal of this picture is to help inspire me to keep losing weight and get back down to where I was.

General Recovery: I'm pretty proud of all I've done this week. We've been out and about a fair amount, and I've handled it really well. Today I've been a little more sore, but I also forgot to take my painkillers. Oops. Sometimes I forget that not only did I have a baby, but I had surgery as well.