Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Cooper: 1 Month

How has a month passed already (ok, I'm 3 days early, but you get the idea)?! I can't believe it is the end of June OR that Cooper is a month old. I mean, we keep saying how big he is getting but the fact that time is passing so quickly is shocking. 

Must haves: (I have realized these are all about baby containment or baby feeding...pretty much the basic needs of a 1 month old!):
Momaroo - I broke down and bought one of these after having it on my "want" list since about 4 months pregnant. I couldn't justify the price tag but after a few generous gift cards came in as congratulations, and one very fussy day, I bit the bullet. This was the response 2 seconds after hitting "on"....
Momaroo for the win!

Motherlove - As I mentioned in my last post, breastfeeding can be a bit painful at the beginning. There are a million creams and lanolin options but I find most of them too sticky. This stuff is amazing and I also use it on my pump to make it is a little less painful as well.

Speaks for itself.

My Brest Friend - Take this to the hospital with you! I didn't take a nursing pillow with me when I had Noah and regretted it. This time it proved to make those early days of figuring everything out SO much easier. While I am definitely much better at nursing without this guy this time around, it makes it much more comfortable and easy, especially in the middle of the night. 
Your new best friend!


Works as a nice little shelf for all the kids ;-).

Medela Pump - Seriously with the breastfeeding...sorry! Get a good pump. Don't buy a cheaper version to save money. You need the good one to save you time and get good results!
This is my exact pump. We have a love/hate relationship but it is a great product!

Boppy Lounger - Love this thing! We use it all.the.time. It is great for pre/post baths, dinner time, TV time (for the parents, not the infant!), etc... I have no idea what purpose the standard boppy serves as mine has lived in my closet for both of my boy's early days (I also find it worthless for breastfeeding...not supportive enough).
Hello! I also recommend getting a cover for the lounger as it doesn't come with one and babies spit up...much easier to wash a cover than the whole pillow!

Rock n Play - Noah was a spitter so this was such a peace of mind thing with him being slightly upright. With Coop, he didn't like it at first but now it is his bed and he is starting to sleep like a dream in it. I think they make fancier versions now that vibrate and rock themselves...I would definitely spring for the extra features if getting a new one but the standard guy works just great! Bonus points for being super portable!
Noah tries out every baby item that appears. Clearly not intended for your 2.5 year old!

Mustela Facial Cleansing Cloths - We aren't great at getting Cooper in the bath daily, and, frankly, the doctor said not to at this point. However, he had a little baby acne start to creep up (Noah's was horrible) and so we started nightly wiping. It is almost gone and I feel slightly better about his hygiene ;-).
Love these!

Water bottle - The need for mass quantities of water is both a necessity and craving. Hopefully your hospital has a giant bottle you can take home, if not, find one you love as you will be attached to it.

Updates:
Night sweats - I forgot about these and they are awful! I can go from t-shirt, to no shirt, to long sleeve shirt all within about an hour. I can't remember when they end but I can't wait. 

Life with two - We have officially been on our own this week and so far we are all doing good. If I get stressed things start to fall apart so the key for me is to leave extra time and stay calm (especially with Noah). This works well most days but school days are hard. Getting up and getting everyone fed, dressed, and finding the time to pump, all in time to get Noah to school by 9 is a challenge. I always feel frenzied! Scott has been a huge help on these days (and every day) by staying home longer in the morning to help me get everyone situated and out the door. I definitely prefer having a man-to-man defense going but when it's just me and the boys we do a-ok. We have even survived a few errands and a trip to gymnastics!
Cooper isn't a huge fan of the swaddle so we jumped to sleep sacks. Noah was so excited to see that they match!

Asparagus & chocolate - These are the foods I have determined I can't eat while nursing. Both have led to a pretty miserable boy the next day. Neither are proving too hard to live without thus far. 

Schedule - We have none. I have started trying to put Cooper in our room in his bed after his last big bottle feeding. I also make sure his bath or face wipe happens at this time and put him in his sleep sack. So far, this has been going ok but some nights this is at 9pm, and sometimes at 11pm. I am considering starting the "Moms on Call" schedule. Anyone have experience with this or thoughts?
This has nothing to do with a schedule but we scored this double stroller free from our neighbors. Thank you for saving me $500!

Night owl - I am hoping starting a schedule with curb this a bit, but Cooper is a night owl. He does a good sleep from 9 or 11pm to 1 or 2am but then it is a battle to get him back to bed. Most nights this ends with him sleeping on me until his 5am feeding. We need to find some of this alert time during the daylight hours! 
I love those big eyes, just not at 3am.

Brothers - Noah is my hero. He loves his baby brother SO much. He gets really mad when I ask him not to touch Cooper (while Coop is sleeping), and he pretty much thinks he makes all rules when it comes to the baby. He is beyond generous with his toys and often asks for Cooper to be laid down in his crib for a visit. They absolutely melt my heart together. 
I never stage them for these pictures. Noah is obsessed with being about six inches away from Cooper's face!

Grunts - Cooper is the gruntiest baby EVER! He doesn't cry a lot but the amount of grunting he does while both awake and asleep is unbelievable. I am still trying to figure out what they all mean but I guess I should just be thankful that grunting is his way of getting his point across!

Breastfeeding - Since that is pretty much the theme of this post, I'll go ahead and address it specifically. I.can't.stand.it. I find nothing rewarding about it and frankly I think formula is more convenient! I nursed Noah for 7 months and I am trying to do the same for Cooper but it seriously might be the straw that breaks my back. The nursing/pumping routine is just extra hard with Noah running around. 

Hunger - Breastfeeding hunger is no.joke. I have actually gotten the shakes from being so hungry and it comes on like a freight train! I have the house stocked with bars and other easy to grab snacks because my patience wears extremely thin when I get hungry which isn't fair to any one...especially Noah who usually tries my patience the most in those moments! I also eat like 14 meals a day right now. I feel like this evens out a bit but right now I just live in a constant state of hunger! 

I'll be back to add in an update on his stats after we see the doctor next week. Also, please forgive any typos...I am giving up a nap to type this so I deserve points just for that!

1 comment:

Natalie said...

I only have one but we started the Moms on Call schedule pretty early (3ish weeks) and it has worked REALLY well for us! She was consistently sleeping through the night around 9 weeks and still is at 19 weeks--no 4 month sleep regression here! Naps aren't as great as they once were, but I'm okay with that if she sleeps all night ;) Highly recommend the MOC program!!