4-month Doctor's Appt...

Believe it or not this is Ben just a minute or two after his 4-month shots. But, when put in his car seat he resumed his wounded animal howling so I know that he was not enjoying the experience. Dr. V said he was doing perfectly well. He weighs 15 lbs, 10 oz (66th percentile) and he is 25.5 inches long (71th percentile). He was all smiles, grabbing at the doc's stethoscope & fingers & drooling all over his Buddha belly. I asked the doc about starting solids & she said the most recent studies have show that waiting until closer to 6 months decreases the odds of developing a food allergy (which I've been reading about also). She said I definitely want to wait until I feel like my milk supply has bounced back (did I mention that I thought it was decreasing? Probably a combination of only pumping 2 times instead of 3 at work & then Ben was sick a couple weeks ago....my frozen supply was completely gone except what I'd pump the day before I needed it so we were having to supplement with formula @ daycare 1-2 bottles/day. My frozen supply is slowly picking back up again.). She also said for us to use our judgement when we thought he was ready to start solids based on his interest when we eat. He is definitely watching us eat now. Dr. V said that with his great head control that he should be ready soon. As a follow-up to my dairy dilemma, I am now eating cheese and yogurt again regularly and occasionally splurging on ice cream & Ben seems to be doing fine. I may try reintroducing drinking milk when he is 6-months old to see if his system is fully functioning, but for now soy & rice milk are acceptale solutions.

Ok. As my parting gift to you, here is a pic of Ben sporting a faux-hawk yesterday before his bath. What a little ham.

Once Bitten, Twice Shy Baby....

They say breastfeeding is an intimate time of bonding between mother and child. Tender moments in the wee hours of the night; sweet baby's tiny hand grasping his mother finger while she is feeding him the sweet nectar of life. Insert coo's and smiles. And then the baby turns 4 months, starts teething and tries to gnaw off his mother's nipple with his rubbery gums of steel. LOL. As you can guess, Ben has begun teething. He is a drooling mess of a child who requires hourly bib changes and can't get enough of shoving things in his mouth, mostly his hands. His other latest feats include experimenting with bulimia via index finger down the throat after a big nursing session, rolling in the crib and getting his legs stuck between the bars, and grabbing both feet simultaneously in a spread eagle pose...all the makings of a cheerleader I'd say. Brad may want to kiss his football dreams goodbye. Fear not, I staved off biting during his last nursing session with a little gum massage and frozen teething ring action prior to the sit-down. He may live to see another day of breast milk instead of being converted to stinky formula (YUCK!!).

In other news, spring has 'sprung' around here....sort of. We had a fabulously sunny day with temps in the 60's. Brad cut our grass with the precision of a major league baseball team's grounds keeper (seriously--our front yard is diagonally plaid patterned and everything). He put down fertilizer and did some flower bed prep with countless bags of top soil for my planting pleasure. Tomorrow we are anticipated to have rain with weather in the 70's. Monday and Tuesday SNOW SHOWERS. WTF? What a tease!! I want spring!!!!!! Give me sunshine or give me death. Ok. Not really. So I'll stay in and clean my house. *sigh* We also need to head to Lowe's to pick out tile for the dining room (whose carpet has been forcibly removed secondary to one too many doggy incontinence incidences).

On a positive note, I'll leave you with pictures of Ben's latest exploits.....sleeping on his tummy and sucking his thumb (he has next to no interest in a pacifier) and trying out the ol' excer-saucer (much to his delight because he is so over the Bumbo and it's lame supported sitting action). I wish you all warm weather and sunshine.....maybe we will enjoy some of that for Easter next weekend. The Easter bunny has plans for Ben's basket and I am going to try to drag Brad to a new church during this time of renewal. Wish me luck on both fronts!

Ben is all thumbs these days as you can see. Also notice the
multitude of little fat rolls on the backs of his legs. I am very
curious to see what he will weigh in at on Monday at his 4
month check up (btw he is due for MORE shots).

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We put Ben in this shirt to avoid any confusion
about his identity.

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Every time I used some ridiculously high-pitched voice to get Ben's
attention for this picture, Henry came running. He is having
a very hard time being number two these days. Poor kitties hardly
get a ranking at all. I would love to find them a new home
where they would get more attention.

Surrounded by buttons and toys, Ben mostly
played with his thumb and his bib. What can I
say he's a resourceful child who is riding out the
recession quite well.

The Boob-onic Plague

Well folks, my boobs used to be fun loving gals but they've fallen on hard times. Now they're perfunctory and in need of constant attention. I went to the doctor today only to find that I have mastitis. That's right, inflammation of the tatas. I will start on an antibiotic and wait for relief. Ouch is all I can say. Dear Ben and I aren't having the best week. Here's hoping next week is a little brighter.

5 weeks old

Ben is officially 5 weeks old today! I can't believe how fast he is growing. He had his 1 month pediatrician's appt Friday. He has done some serious growing since his last appt 2 weeks ago! He is now 22.5" long (73rd percentile) and 9 lbs 15 oz (50th percentile). So I am feeling pretty good about his intake from breast feeding. I did ask the doc about his gooey eye but there was no concern, just a clogged tear duct from being born. I also asked about his fussiness and need to feed at a constant rate some nights w/ spittiness and a gassy belly....she said it could be reflux but she is not concerned right now. If it keeps up then I will have to cut back on my milk intake (cows milk ingested by mom can cause belly aches in nursing babies who lack enzymes to digest cows milk). She also informed me that Ben has some fluid on his right testicle! Ugh! She said that unless it got worse they wouldn't do anything. If it does get worse then he might have to have a minor surgical procedure to close off the area in the abdomen that is 'leaking' into the scrotum. Lovely. I'm already a worry wart! Upon examination when we got home, I could see the edema but its pretty mild. My poor boy! I hope it isn't painful!
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This is a pic of Ben in his crib for the second time ever. He has only napped in there, no over night stays. We are taking it slow on that front. We, and by we I mean "I", just started letting him wake up on his own in the night for feedings vs being woken up at the 3 hr mark. We have done that for the past 2 nights and I am pleased to say that I have had the pleasure of enjoying 4 hrs of sleep at a stretch 1 of those 2 nights! Honestly, I kept waking up to check on him last night and finally got him up just after 3 hrs because I couldn't go back to sleep...he has me well trained!
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I realized that I hadn't ever posted updated pics of the nursery in it's nearly completed state so here they are. We are still lacking a changer/dresser. We got a dresser from a friend but still need to paint it. In the mean time, his crib has been used for changing diapers more than sleeping! :)
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I finally got my nursing chair! I ordered it before Christmas and it arrived on Wednesday. I love it! Thank you Phil and Jane....this is what I bought w/ my Christmas money! ;)

Ok for any of you who are squeamish about breast feeding...skip the next pic...hahaha!

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Ben is a good nurser! We have worked out all the nursing kinks and have the routine down pat. I am also pumping once a day to start my frozen store for my return to work next month. I am not looking forward to pumping at work several times a day. Wish me luck on that front!

Brad, Ben, and I are going to enjoy a uneventful weekend at home together. I think I may take Ben on his first road trip on Monday to pick up his pictures from Brad's friend, Robin, the photographer who came out to our house last month to take some artsy shots. We will stop to visit my mom and then head back probably. I'm a little nervous because it is about an hour and a half to Louisville but we've gotta try it some time! Ok, off to make dinner...I am quite the domestic goddess these days....I have been making dinner EVERY night....big change from our pre-baby routine. I'm sure this will help both the budget and the post-natal waist line. ;)

2 weeks old!!

Here is a pic of our wonderful baby boy at 2 weeks!
My how time flies when you are sleep-deprived!

This is one of the neatest gifts we have received...it is a wooden block
engraved w/ all Ben's birth stats....I only snapped pics of 3 of the sides...
thanks Jackson Family!!

Here is our tiny little Christmas tree for this year!
Adorable, huh?

Two weeks truly has flown by! It has been quite a challenge but worth every moment of lost sleep, worry, and frustration. The most recent development is congestion....all three of us have had it but Ben's has been the most worrisome. We have been suctioning him, using saline nose drops, and Brad even made a 5 am run to the store for a humidifier this morning. In more positive news, Ben gained 10 oz from last Friday to this Friday and has now graduated from the lactation consultant! Yeah! I am now permitted to drive so I am going to wrap up our Christmas shopping on Monday. Brad will have his first round of solo baby care and I have plenty of confidence in him....I will probably be worried sick regardless during my time away though! Another point of interest, I invested $35 in a "hands-free" breast pump corset...and yes it looks as hilarious as you are imagining but it is GREAT! I can eat a meal, or answer my phone, or BLOG while pumping (yep, you guessed it! This is a multi-tasking entry!). Hopefully I can also finish our Christmas cards to mail out on Monday so they actually get to people by Christmas. I would skip them all together this year but it is the perfect opportunity to spread the news, and even some pics, of Ben's arrival! We are certainly feeling blessed this year for the holidays!

Ben's due date...ha...

(Ben..."cordless")

Today was Ben's due date! Needless to say he and God had a hardy laugh at any plans that the docs and I had. We are so very happy to have him here! We are getting in a better routine. Nights have improved because we are beefing up his midnight feeding. We are still consulting w/ a lactation consultant because he is gaining but closer to the lower end of ideal. We go back to the pediatrician for a weigh in tomorrow and to the lactation consultant for a review of his latch and before and after feeding weigh ins. In other news, his umbilical stump fell off today! It got roughed up on picture day at our house so I think the shedding process got sped up a little that day! :( The photographer ( http://www.robinsphotography.com )stayed all day...he is an old co-worker of Brad's so they did a lot of catching up and playing w/ photography software. We have been busy bees this week, squeezing in laundry and cooking between feedings and diaper changes! Brad has been great about changing diapers and welding bottles when we supplement (we are supplementing w/ additional breast milk at every 3rd feeding to boost his intake...per the lactation consultants advice). Overall, things are less overwhelming and we are enjoying having our little guy around. Henry has been angelic and only has to be scolded not to sniff or lick the baby! :)