It's Either You Or the Chocolate

And trust me... some days I really want to choose the chocolate. Alas, that is something of the past and far off future. Sure, I could keep eating the stuff, but the screams of pain and discomfort break my heart and make me feel incredibly guilty. Not to mention, it leads to total exhaustion for both parties involved trying to resolve said pain and crying. Now, I could just fore go this breastfeeding thing in favor of the bottle, but that seems a little extreme just for a piece of chocolate. However, as many women (and some men) know, there are often no limits on what a person might do in the name of chocolate.


Pierscen is now 5 weeks old. Can you believe it? Already over a month! It has flown by. Just like they say. And along with everything else cliche I could say, it is amazing how much he has grown already. He is a wonderful boy. I don't think we could ask for a better kid. So now it's time for an update.


His 2 week appointment brought a strange feeling of deja vu. They had just strip him down to be weighed. I knew he needed his diaper changed anyway, but once we got the process started, we discovered he had blown out - and that his pants and onesie were now out of commission. After cleaning him up and and moving him over to the scale, he proceeded to pee everywhere. The nurse laughed and said it happens all the time, which I know it does, but still. The fountain finally stopped and I did my best to wipe things down, just in time for it to start again. All I could do was laugh. From my memory, this was almost exactly how my coworkers baby's 2 week check up went - hence the deja vu. At least we weren't alone.

He weighed 8 lbs 1 oz. This was a 3 oz gain from his birth weight, so the doctor was very happy. In face, he just wanted him to be a birth weight again, so any gain was a bonus.

The stats: 28.89% for weight, 41.94% for head circumference, and 40.34% for length (he grew 1/2 an inch = 20.5)

He was also circumcised on this visit. I did tear up just a tiny bit when they first gave him in the numbing shot and he squealed and little tears started down his face. But after that it wasn't bad at all. He did continue to cry - but it was out of frustration. He hates being restrained and they had his arms and legs pinned. Not a happy child. When they flipped him over to do the heal prick, he just about crawled off the table. He had his head all the way up and pushed up on his arms screaming. Not because of the prick itself, but because the nurse was holding his foot. Seriously - don't try and restrain that boy. (Very much his father's son. I can't really cuddle with Ryan because he feels like he is being restrained...)

The rest of the umbilical cord fell off the following week and his circumcision healed nicely.

Some common questions and answers:



1. Is he a good sleeper? (and/or) Do you get any sleep?

Ryan answered this one best. "We don't sleep. We nap." On most nights Pierscen will sleep in 2 hour spurts. Some nights are better than others. One night he decided to sleep in 20 minute intervals. Yeah that was fun. But then only a day or two later he slept for 5 hours straight, woke up to eat, and went back to sleep for another 3 hours. We do have to swaddle him at night so that he doesn't wake himself up flailing his arms about. This ideally is done when he is fairly groggy. If he is wide awake, the swaddling makes him angry. Again - it's that whole restraining thing. Many nights we go to bed listening to him grunt up a storm trying to work his way free. He has quite an array of caveman sounds. He is not so much for the cooing as he is the boy noises. He truly is all boy.

I took this picture while he was napping. He managed to work one arm free and then he was a happy camper.

2. Is he a good eater?

Yes, he does eat well. However, like sleeping, he eats about every 2 hours. I can't seem to get him to last longer than that unless he is napping. (Like right now - he has been asleep for 3 hours.) I would like to extend the time of his feedings, but I am not quite sure how. Any suggestions? I am doing my best to distinguish between his cries so that I know when he is hungry, tired, bored/overstimulated, has gas, or just wants to suckle. For a while there I think I was training him to be a snacker because he always seemed to be hungry. But now if I know he has eaten relatively recently, I give him the binki instead. I know he is not starving because he is definitely growing! On Monday night, I stopped by the ER after eating dinner with Ryan to use the baby scale in triage. I honestly was quite surprised.


10.4 pounds! Granted, I am sure a few of those ounces are from his clothes, but I figured since it wasn't the doctor's office, I wouldn't strip him down to the buff. He is a healthy little guy. His little cheeks are growing, as is his double chin. I love it. He is starting to get little dimples on his hands. So stinking cute.
Later that night while getting him ready for bed, I found myself fighting to get his pajamas on. They just wouldn't fit right. I couldn't figure it out until it suddenly dawned on me - he is outgrowing them! Shouldn't have been that novel of a concept, but it was still shocking none the less. My little guy has been in newborn everything this whole time. He still fits in newborn diapers. But all of the sudden (literally overnight) his newborn outfits were just a tad bit too small. Sad day.

3. Will he take a bottle?

Yes. I didn't let Ryan try for the first couple of weeks because I didn't want him to develop flow preference and decide that it is easier to take the bottle than to breastfeed. The first attempt didn't go so well. Because I had trained him to open up wide for feeding, he was practically eating the whole nipple and bottle. (It was one of those little nipples.) We then switched to the Avent ones that are much larger (and more realistic) and he hasn't had an issue since. This has been a blessing because then Ryan is able to help out with feedings. I started teaching piano again this week, so bottle feeding was a must. Ryan does a great job with it. And if he isn't quite holding the bottle to Pierscen's liking, he will let him know by either caveman grunting his disapproval, or actually grabbing the bottle and holding it where it belongs. The kid amazes me.

4. Does he take a pacifier?

As mentioned above, yes he does, but this is a frustrating topic for me. I remember in our breastfeeding class they told us that one of the reasons they use those big green "soothies" in the hospital is because they are more realistic compared to the Nuk and other pacifiers in shape. They are designed to fall out of the child's mouth when they sleep so that the child doesn't become dependent on it being in their mouth. It makes sense. But they also suggested not letting them have it for a while so they wouldn't develop nipple confusion. Oh, the many things you learn and want to do just right... But the best of intentions don't always work out. So I didn't let him have the soothie much while we were in the hospital. As a result, he does take it, but he has a really hard time keeping it in his mouth - and not just while he is sleeping. Sometimes when he is sucking on it, he is so enthusiastic about it, it keeps popping out every two seconds. This makes him angry, and makes me frustrated as well because I have to keep pushing it back in. What good is a pacifier if it makes the two of us even more angry?! And add to that a certain little Shih tzu that has an unworldly passion for pacifiers, and it's a challenge. When Pierscen is in his bouncer and launches the soothie out, Dodger is often sitting on the side waiting for it. If I am not watching him, he will steal it and run off with it. He knows where we often keep them and is constantly doing his best to get them. This is not a jealousy issue. He has loved them since the time he was a pup. I remember taking him over to my sister's house years ago and he would run off with their pacifiers too. It's quite funny in reality, but it is frustrating.

It is getting better though. There has been no nipple confusion - and I doubt there ever would have been. Silly silly. We have found it funny, however, that on many occasions we have caught Pierscen using his hand to hold it in his mouth. (Both in the hospital and out) Fine by me!



5. Does he enjoy tummy time?

Ummm... yes and no. I will admit that I have been selective with which pictures I have posted on tummy time. A good chunk of them are actually him crying. Poor thing. He does pretty well, and he does have amazing neck strength, but he doesn't love it. However, he quite enjoys sitting in the Bumbo. I know most people don't use the Bumbo until their kid is a little bit older and actually learning to sit up, but Pierscen does really well hanging out in it. He only lasts for a few minutes before he gets tired, but it's still good exercise.

6. How does he do with his baths?

Really good. The first bath we gave him was not a fun experience. He screamed and cried the whole time. However, in the long run this wasn't a bad thing because then he ate really well and went right to bed. My mother-in-law suggested putting a wash cloth over his stomach during the bath to help keep him warm. We gave it a try and now he loves bath time. It calms him right down. Unfortunately it doesn't make him sleepy, but it does help him relax. He loves the warmth. He hardly ever cries, even when we get water in his eyes. In fact, he really only fusses when we take him out. (Definitely my child in this regard. Ryan is a short showerer. In and out. I love the warmth and would stay in there eternally if I could.)


This cute towel was made by my friend Megan. It is awesome!

7. Have you been peed on/pooped on? (Thrown up on is a given.)

Yes. In fact, I had a 2-for-1 special on both of these. It was during the first few days after his circumcision. (Maybe even that very day.) We were told that if he got any poop on his pee pee that we should drizzle water over it to wash it off rather than wiping it off. So, when it happened, I stripped him down and carried him into the bathroom to wash it off. I had him over the skin when the waterworks went off. I was hit in the face, but then leaned back as quick as a could to avoid anything else. In so doing, his bum pressed up against my stomach, which apparently wasn't totally clean... I couldn't do anything to stop the spray the way I was holding him, so I just sat back and let it go. It coated almost the entire mirror top to bottom. I was laughing the whole time. I tried to take a picture to prove just how amazing it was - but clear liquid on glass doesn't show up very well.

I think Ryan has managed to avoid both of these, although just narrowly in regards to being peed on. During Pierscen's first bath at home, Pierscen let it go. The stream was so big and so impressive, that it sent Ryan pedaling backwards as quickly as he could to avoid being hit. In the end, he ended up in the tub which being some three feet away, was just barely out of reach of the stream. Pretty impressive I would say. I could have stopped it by putting a washcloth or my hand over it, but it was just too funny.

Other things I love about my boy:

1. Watching him sleep.

Especially when he smiles. I finally caught one of his smiles on camera. It's not a great shot, but it's something. We are really looking forward to the hopefully not so distant day when he smiles at us on purpose.

2. How alert he is.

When he is awake, he is very interested in his surroundings. He loves lights. And he loves looking around. He doesn't cuddle much any more because when I prop him up by my shoulder, he just holds his head up and looks around. We recently set up a play mat for him that has lots of bright colored toys for his to swing at, a mirror, and a piano that plays music and lights up when he kicks it. Although the swings and kicks aren't intentional right now, he loves it. He entertains himself there for long stretches of time. He also enjoys mobile time. The mobile matches his bed set and has frogs, turtles and snails on it. He likes to watch the blue snail the most.


3. His hands.

He has not made the conscious connection with them yet, but he is constantly bending and straightening his fingers. He often holds his own ear or my shirt while feeding. He likes to intertwine his little fingers, and will place one hand on top of the other on my shoulder and rest his chin on them when he is done feeding. He also likes to keep his hands in the "I got your nose" fist with his thumb between his pointer and third finger. I love it when he folds his arms or makes a fist and leans his cheek against it. Or, like the picture below, fall asleep "plugging" his nose.I just love those little hands. They are so precious.

4. Going on walks with my boys.

It has been so nice that the weather has allowed for walks. We don't get out every day, but it has been great to enjoy the sunshine in the middle of January. (He is not a fan of the beanie.)


Of course there are a million other things that I could say. I love this boy more than anything. He is such a great baby.

And I do have to add...

Ryan is the best husband/father in the world. I can't say enough about him. He is usually the one to get Baby P to sleep at night, often taking him out into the living room so I can sleep while he waits for Pierscen to wind down. He typically gets him up every morning as well so that I can recover from getting up a half dozen times to feed and change him during the night. He loves to walk around with him and talk to him. The crying doesn't seem to frazzle him at all. He is great to entertain and engage with him. The diaper changing never phased him. He is fantastic. I honestly could not ask for a better husband or father for my boy.

And just to round things off, if anyone is still reading...

How am I recovering?

Slowly, but steadily. This c-section stuff is a tough one. The first few weeks were killer. I had zero energy. I am finally feeling like I have my energy back (for the most part) but I am still extremely limited on what I can do. My stomach is still pretty tender. Below the incision is basically numb. Above it almost burns. Very sensitive. And the last few days the pain has suddenly returned - but I blame that on my doctor. I just had the post postpartum check and he pushed on my tummy quite a bit to make sure the uterus was returning to normal size. Ouch. Ouch. Ouch.

I thankfully have not suffered from any depression. I do go a little stir crazy if I don't get out of the house. I try to go somewhere at least once a day, even if it's just a small outing. I have not been back to church. I am ready to go back, but Ryan really wants me to keep Pierscen away from the crowds. I feel the same way, so we will just have to wait a little longer.

Sadly, the headaches I used to get before getting pregnant are returning. I haven't had any major migraines yet, but I have been getting smaller headaches almost every day in the last week. That was one blissful thing about being pregnant: the headaches disappeared.

Besides that, I am doing well. The dishes and laundry are getting done, even if it takes a little longer to do them, but that's better than not at all. The bills are starting to roll in, and I thank my Heavenly Father we have insurance. Modern medicine is amazing - and lifesaving - but wow is it expensive!

We had family pictures taken a couple of weeks ago. I will try and figure out some way of getting them on here, because I think they turned out pretty darn good!

Life is good.