Rachael was a natural with Charlotte ... we have missed her greatly! And how did Charlotte thank her for her hard work? By hosing down her cute top with a large volume spit-up!
Monday, August 29, 2011
Inlow Family Visit
A couple of weeks ago my Uncle Robert, Aunt Lisa, and cousins, Michael, Rachael, and Clare, traveled from Charlottesville, VA to see Charlotte. Aunt Lisa was even generous enough to sacrifice a night of sleep to stay over with us and help! We enjoyed visiting, playing with Charlotte, exposing the Inlow family to cinematic excellence, and taking a trip to the Civil Rights Museum. We had such a nice time seeing them and wish they lived closer. We will just have to plan a trip to beautiful Charlottesville!
Charlotte and Clare
Charlotte and Michael
Charlotte and Uncle Robert
Somehow this horrible, blurry picture is the only one I have of Aunt Lisa ... which is unfortunate after all of her help and advice regarding reflux, milk-free diet, sleeping, etc!
At the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Charlotte Smiles! (and other updates)
Milestones
Look who's smiling ...
Charlotte gave me her first smile around 6 weeks. I thought it was a fluke, but she did it several more times throughout the week. Since 7 weeks, it has been fairly reproducible. The best time to catch her grinning is right after eating or on the changing table.
Reflux/GI/Eating
All I have to say about this one is that it's a continuous battle that we are learning to live with. Charlotte still has large volume spit-ups - some projectile, some coming out of her nose, some right after eating, some two hours later - I cannot seem to identify any kind of pattern so she lives in a bib (as I realized when I was downloading pictures and she is wearing a bib in practically all of them - or she is naked). In terms of my diet ... I will no longer be eating Chinese food (we had terrible 24 hour periods both times I have eaten Chinese), and I am making every attempt to eliminate dairy. If it works, it is worth it to me even though I love yogurt, cheese, etc. I am thinking of starting a food diary to see if I can identify any patterns. We switched her medicine from Zantac to Prevacid a few days ago, and it might be helping with her crying/distress after eating, but it's too early to say for sure. I do think she has diarrhea as a side effect from the Prevacid, giving us our first diaper blow-out.
Charlotte is eating like crazy! She overeats almost every feed, which makes her reflux worse and leads to large volume spit-ups. After spitting up she always want to eat again, and we set up this vicious cycle of overeating, spitting up, rooting, feeding again, etc. I am still trying to figure out what to do with her seemingly constant rooting. It is tiresome to be literally tied down to her for hours on end. The good news is that despite all of this she is gaining great weight. Today she weighed in at 9 pounds 2 ounces!
Hips
Because Charlotte was born breech, she is at risk for developmental dysplasia of the hips. In the hospital after she was born, the pediatrician felt a click in one of her hips and a hip ultrasound showed mild instability in both. At her one month check-up the pediatrician felt like the hip click had resolved, but we decided to do another ultrasound just to be sure. The ultrasound, done on August 11th, showed a normal right hip (the one that she presented with during delivery which got bruised and had the abrasion) and mild instability in the left hip. So we got sent to the pediatric orthopedist to determine how serious the problem was and whether or not she would need to wear a harness. Our appointment was yesterday. I spent the night at my parents' house because Brandon worked, and I need serious help to be able to get us somewhere by 9 A.M. The appointment was in the same building as my dad's office, so he was able to come with us ... thank goodness! She screamed the entire time from the moment we stepped into the waiting room. A hip x-ray done at the office looked normal, and the orthopedist thought her hips felt fairly normal. She explained that the alpha angles on the ultrasounds were at 60 in both hips, which is what they should be. She said the mild instability is hard to quantify and there really isn't a good gauge for what "normal" is. So we will repeat the ultrasound next Wednesday and see her one more time next Friday, just to be sure, but she doesn't think Charlotte will need a harness. Good news!
Tummy Time
Charlotte still HATES tummy time, but she is getting stronger and able to push her head/neck/back up with her arms. She can also spin herself around in a circle. I try to time this activity before she is due to eat, because the only way she can calm down after getting hysterical on the floor is to nurse. She does, however, like tummy time when she is asleep or on someone's chest ...
Look who's smiling ...
Reflux/GI/Eating
All I have to say about this one is that it's a continuous battle that we are learning to live with. Charlotte still has large volume spit-ups - some projectile, some coming out of her nose, some right after eating, some two hours later - I cannot seem to identify any kind of pattern so she lives in a bib (as I realized when I was downloading pictures and she is wearing a bib in practically all of them - or she is naked). In terms of my diet ... I will no longer be eating Chinese food (we had terrible 24 hour periods both times I have eaten Chinese), and I am making every attempt to eliminate dairy. If it works, it is worth it to me even though I love yogurt, cheese, etc. I am thinking of starting a food diary to see if I can identify any patterns. We switched her medicine from Zantac to Prevacid a few days ago, and it might be helping with her crying/distress after eating, but it's too early to say for sure. I do think she has diarrhea as a side effect from the Prevacid, giving us our first diaper blow-out.
Hips
Because Charlotte was born breech, she is at risk for developmental dysplasia of the hips. In the hospital after she was born, the pediatrician felt a click in one of her hips and a hip ultrasound showed mild instability in both. At her one month check-up the pediatrician felt like the hip click had resolved, but we decided to do another ultrasound just to be sure. The ultrasound, done on August 11th, showed a normal right hip (the one that she presented with during delivery which got bruised and had the abrasion) and mild instability in the left hip. So we got sent to the pediatric orthopedist to determine how serious the problem was and whether or not she would need to wear a harness. Our appointment was yesterday. I spent the night at my parents' house because Brandon worked, and I need serious help to be able to get us somewhere by 9 A.M. The appointment was in the same building as my dad's office, so he was able to come with us ... thank goodness! She screamed the entire time from the moment we stepped into the waiting room. A hip x-ray done at the office looked normal, and the orthopedist thought her hips felt fairly normal. She explained that the alpha angles on the ultrasounds were at 60 in both hips, which is what they should be. She said the mild instability is hard to quantify and there really isn't a good gauge for what "normal" is. So we will repeat the ultrasound next Wednesday and see her one more time next Friday, just to be sure, but she doesn't think Charlotte will need a harness. Good news!
Tummy Time
Charlotte still HATES tummy time, but she is getting stronger and able to push her head/neck/back up with her arms. She can also spin herself around in a circle. I try to time this activity before she is due to eat, because the only way she can calm down after getting hysterical on the floor is to nurse. She does, however, like tummy time when she is asleep or on someone's chest ...
Friday, August 12, 2011
1 Month!
As of August 3rd, Charlotte is one month old. Time flies!
Her stats at 1 month:
*Weight - 7 lb 6 oz (5th-10th percentile)
*Length - 21 inches (25th-50th percentile)
*Head circumference - 13.5 inches (10th-25th percentile)
*Diaper size - newborn
*Clothing size - newborn and some 0-3 month. She is a very long baby (her weight for length percentile is < 3rd) and some of her newborn clothes are getting tight length-wise. However many of the 0-3 month clothes swim on her in the body. So since it is 100 degrees out on most days, we are opting for onesies and other outfits that are not footed in newborn size. Baby Gap probably fits her the best out of all the brands we have because it is cut long and narrow.
*Eats - Charlotte breastfeeds, on average, every 3 hours. She is eating like a champ and gaining weight well. However, she tends to drink very aggressively at the beginning of her feeds, sometimes causing her to choke (and turn blue ... which is frightening for a first time mom!). In an effort to prevent this, sometimes I pump a little before feeding her to prevent such fast milk letdown, and I pull her off the second she starts to cough or choke (because I have learned she would rather suck than breathe!). Every so often she gets a bottle of pumped milk. We have had trouble with bottles because she drinks too fast and chokes, like when on the breast. The bottle that is currently working the best for us is Dr. Brown's with a preemie nipple. Another issue complicating Charlotte's eating is reflux. When she was about 3 weeks old she began becoming fussy and distressed after feeds and started having large volume spit-ups. The pediatrician has started her on Zantac. It has helped with her distress, but she still spits up a lot. At least once per day she will spit up an entire feed. We have learned to cover ourselves and the furniture at all times, and she lives in bibs or naked with a diaper on. I am also doing more frequent, smaller feedings. As long as she is gaining weight, the pediatrician said that she is just a spitter and it's a nuisance for us, but not hurting her.
*Sleep - Within the past week, Charlotte is finally starting to get her days and nights straight. Prior to this, her eyes would fly open around 11 P.M. after being comatose all day. She can sleep a 4 hours stretch at night, but most of the time she wakes up every 3 hours. This leads to very little sleep by the time she eats and I keep her upright for 30 minutes because of her reflux and spitting up (and often keeping her upright does nothing to prevent the spitting up ... so we will be upright for 30 minutes followed by a spit up, clothing change, and now wide-awake baby). I have usually gotten enough sleep for us to get up for the day between 10 - 11 A.M. For the first two weeks she slept in her bassinet beside my recliner in the living room. Now she sleeps in her bassinet next to our bed. We have the head of her mattress raised because she doesn't do well flat on her back.
*Likes - Baths, car rides, her car seat, the swing, the bouncer, her grape-flavored Zantac (it always makes her smile - even if before I give it to her she is crying and hungry), her pacifier, being held, going for walks in the stroller, staring at faces (new in the past week), being swaddled at night, having her arms by her head, stretching out her body
*Dislikes - diaper changes, tummy time (9 times out of 10), being buckled into her car seat or being pulled out of it, lying flat on her back
*Weekly Photo Progression
**This post was written a week ago, so information was relevant for when she was one month old (just took me a while to get photos uploaded!)
*Weight - 7 lb 6 oz (5th-10th percentile)
*Length - 21 inches (25th-50th percentile)
*Head circumference - 13.5 inches (10th-25th percentile)
*Diaper size - newborn
*Clothing size - newborn and some 0-3 month. She is a very long baby (her weight for length percentile is < 3rd) and some of her newborn clothes are getting tight length-wise. However many of the 0-3 month clothes swim on her in the body. So since it is 100 degrees out on most days, we are opting for onesies and other outfits that are not footed in newborn size. Baby Gap probably fits her the best out of all the brands we have because it is cut long and narrow.
*Eats - Charlotte breastfeeds, on average, every 3 hours. She is eating like a champ and gaining weight well. However, she tends to drink very aggressively at the beginning of her feeds, sometimes causing her to choke (and turn blue ... which is frightening for a first time mom!). In an effort to prevent this, sometimes I pump a little before feeding her to prevent such fast milk letdown, and I pull her off the second she starts to cough or choke (because I have learned she would rather suck than breathe!). Every so often she gets a bottle of pumped milk. We have had trouble with bottles because she drinks too fast and chokes, like when on the breast. The bottle that is currently working the best for us is Dr. Brown's with a preemie nipple. Another issue complicating Charlotte's eating is reflux. When she was about 3 weeks old she began becoming fussy and distressed after feeds and started having large volume spit-ups. The pediatrician has started her on Zantac. It has helped with her distress, but she still spits up a lot. At least once per day she will spit up an entire feed. We have learned to cover ourselves and the furniture at all times, and she lives in bibs or naked with a diaper on. I am also doing more frequent, smaller feedings. As long as she is gaining weight, the pediatrician said that she is just a spitter and it's a nuisance for us, but not hurting her.
*Sleep - Within the past week, Charlotte is finally starting to get her days and nights straight. Prior to this, her eyes would fly open around 11 P.M. after being comatose all day. She can sleep a 4 hours stretch at night, but most of the time she wakes up every 3 hours. This leads to very little sleep by the time she eats and I keep her upright for 30 minutes because of her reflux and spitting up (and often keeping her upright does nothing to prevent the spitting up ... so we will be upright for 30 minutes followed by a spit up, clothing change, and now wide-awake baby). I have usually gotten enough sleep for us to get up for the day between 10 - 11 A.M. For the first two weeks she slept in her bassinet beside my recliner in the living room. Now she sleeps in her bassinet next to our bed. We have the head of her mattress raised because she doesn't do well flat on her back.
*Likes - Baths, car rides, her car seat, the swing, the bouncer, her grape-flavored Zantac (it always makes her smile - even if before I give it to her she is crying and hungry), her pacifier, being held, going for walks in the stroller, staring at faces (new in the past week), being swaddled at night, having her arms by her head, stretching out her body
*Weekly Photo Progression
**This post was written a week ago, so information was relevant for when she was one month old (just took me a while to get photos uploaded!)
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
A Week of Firsts
Our first week at home was an interesting mix of adventure, excitement, nervousness, and exhaustion. Bringing her home from the hospital was one of the more terrifying things we have ever done. I kept thinking, how could anyone trust us to take this baby home? We have no idea what we are doing! The steep learning curve, lack of sleep, and my physical recovery made week one interesting (and tearful, at times), but as Judy Apple would say, it was a memory maker.
First Outing: Zoe's Kitchen in Homewood for lunch (on our way home from the hospital)
First Outing: Zoe's Kitchen in Homewood for lunch (on our way home from the hospital)
Charlotte also had outings to O'Henry's, Mama Goldberg's, and the Pita Stop during her first week home. We waited until week two to introduce her to Bettola, O'Carr's, and Venetian Nail Spa!
First Pediatrician's Visit: Monday, July 11th at 8 days old
On Wednesday night before we left the hospital, Charlotte's weight was 5 lb 4 oz (she was 5 lb 5 oz at birth, then had dropped to 5 lb 2 oz on Monday and Tuesday). We were very proud of her as few breastfed babies manage to start regaining weight in the hospital. At our doctor's visit she was already up to 5 lb 11 oz!! She also got bloodwork drawn for a bilirubin level (which thankfully had trended down) and the second newborn screen.
First Stroll: Sadly I was not feeling well enough to go on this outing, but Charlotte took a nice stroll down the street in our BOB Revolution jogging stroller to get pizza. Apologies for the picture quality ... the humidity wreaked havoc on my camera lens.
First time alone with a babysitter: sadly this did not go as planned ... On Monday night (July 11th), I began to have redness and tenderness on the left side of my incision. I called the doctor on call (who happened to be the doctor who delivered us) and was put on antibiotics. The next morning I noticed some drainage, and within a few hours started oozing blood. So I left Charlotte for the first time (with Catherine) to go to the OB's office to get my incision drained ... thankfully everything has since healed up nicely!
First Time Meeting Brutus: Brutus sweetly, but enthusiastically, sniffed Charlotte. He also took a genuine interest in all things with her smell ... the diaper bag, burp cloths, pacifiers, etc. I think they will become good friends, especially when Charlotte is old enough to start dropping food on the ground for him.
First Photo Shoot: We had our newborn photo shoot with the Blink Lady when Charlotte was 11 days old. I can't wait to get our proofs back! She was cranky and wide awake when we arrived at the studio, but after I nursed her she went to sleep and we were able pose her and get some great pictures.
First Time Meeting Brutus: Brutus sweetly, but enthusiastically, sniffed Charlotte. He also took a genuine interest in all things with her smell ... the diaper bag, burp cloths, pacifiers, etc. I think they will become good friends, especially when Charlotte is old enough to start dropping food on the ground for him.
Here's Charlotte with her signature look - puckered lips and her right eye slightly open
First Sponge Bath: Charlotte LOVES bath time. I was expecting her to scream (as she did for part of her bath in the hospital), but she really seemed to like it.
First Photo Shoot: We had our newborn photo shoot with the Blink Lady when Charlotte was 11 days old. I can't wait to get our proofs back! She was cranky and wide awake when we arrived at the studio, but after I nursed her she went to sleep and we were able pose her and get some great pictures.
Brandon and Charlotte showing off one of their poses at home
One of the few decent pictures of me from Charlotte's first week or two ... and only because I got my makeup done for the pictures!
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