Morning Sickness or Something I Ate?

Sunday morning I woke up with a bit of a scare. I wasn't feeling too hot and well just plain sick. As I placed Baby E down after her wake up feeding it hit me; I ran to the bathroom and....threw up. WTF? As I rinsed out the nastiness from my mouth I began to think, where was my period? I should be getting it if not already gotten it already. My heart almost stopped. Don't get me wrong, I want to have another baby but not right now. DH and I would like to wait till March so I can go back on Maternity Leave for baby #2. In Canada you have to be back to work for at least 4 months to get benefits from the government for a full year. Plus, the thought of being Preggo again while still trying to figure this parenting thing out...oh dear god! I always look at mothers with 2 under 2 years with such admiration, they are truly superheros...and ones with 3 under 3 years...well, you're just plain crazy! :P

I walked back into our bedroom with Baby E in hand and I could see it on DH's face. I passed it off like it must have been something I ate but I wasn't 100% sure. Thankfully I did get my period later on that day so must have been something I ate. No baby #2 just yet. Hopefully, when March rolls around Baby#2 will too.

Thank goodness this all happened on a Sunday. DH was at home and took care of Baby E all day while I slept. All I had to do was nurse her and back to bed I went. Last night I asked him how he liked it. He says to me "I was exhausted by the end of the day!" good to know he now knows how I feel everyday :)

Sleep Baby Sleep...Trying Something New

Late night our put down wake up 1.5 hours later dance occurred again...Baby E woke from her 7pm bedtime put down at 8:30pm (in the middle of mommy's Gossip Girl) and didn't go back to bed till about 10pm. She woke up as happy as can be like it was any other nap. I honestly think the is used to having 4 naps a day and recently because she has woken up later, she has only had 3 before bedtime, shes just trying to stick with what she knows. I mean she has no concept of time, she doesn't know that after she goes to bed mommy can catch up on her guilty pleasures like Gossip Girl, Vampire Diaries and Gray's Anatomy...don't judge.

So I'm gonna try something new today. Since Baby E had been going to bed later she has also been waking up later. This morning she woke up at 6am (after going to bed at 10pm!), not enough sleep I know but I kept her up at 6am with the hopes that she will go back to her previous schedule. I know it doesn't always work that way with babies but I have to give it a go and see what happens. I mean isn't that what first time moms do? They throw shit at the wall and see what sticks?!

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November 29, 2011

Update: 2 words- Epic FAIL!

To say that none of the shit I have thrown to the wall stuck would be an understatement. So Baby E continues to wake up at 6-7am every morning. But she still refuses to sleep till 9:30/10pm (last night it was 1am) I have to get her to drop that last nap at 5/6pm but how? I've tried to wake her up early from the nap but she somehow finds a way to get back into a pattern where she wakes up at 8pm and is up till 10pm...I guess I just have to keep trying.

Isn't it sad when your baby's bedtime is later then yours?

Sleep Baby Sleep

Since about 4 months Baby E has become a decent sleeper. This is when we taught her to fall asleep on her own. No more rocking for an hour and walking around like a zombie. It was much easier this time around since her skill to self soothe herself was much stronger. Now, when we see she is tired we bring her up to her room, read her a story, pit her down when she yawns and close the door. Sometimes, she will whine or fuss but nothing really more then 10 min. Usually she just pops her thumb in her mouth and goes down without a fight.

Only now do I realize that Baby E is actually a pretty good sleeper...she would go to bed at 6:30pm wake at around 1am and go to 6am (sometimes there is a 4am feeding too). Until, recently. So when the change to daylights savings time came it was a bit rough, she would go down at 5am and wake at around 4am (how fun for me) but as time progressed she found her old schedule again...that is until about a week ago.

Baby E hit 5 months old and something changed. She would wake up 1hr after I put her down for bed and stay up till 9 sometimes 10pm! At first I thought it was because DH was away for work and she somehow felt he was gone, but DH has since come home and still wake ups after her bedtime put down.

I know I can't fight it and I can't force her to sleep (crying it out does not work when she is not tired) so I just have to pick her up and wait till she gets tired again. But I'm wondering what is going on? She isn't fussing so I don't think she is teething, she is starting to learn to roll but not sure if that will make her wake But more importantly, I want her to get enough rest. She will wake up around 7:30/8 am now and in my opinion 9-10 hours with a feeding in the middle is not enough sleep for a 5 month old. Let's hope she finds her way again and soon. If she continues to get up after bedtime, DH and I can kiss date nights out the window.

Baby's Got a Cold

I think one of the things I fear the most, aside from Baby E refusing to sleep ( which has gotten much better, but I don't wanna jinx it) is if and when Baby E is sick. The first time was a bit scary for me, it was about a month and a half ago and she had a bit of a cough. I didn't think anything of it because she had recently discovered her cough and would sometimes just cough and giggle , like she was playing. Then at night she threw up...I thought she ate too much. Then she did it again, and again and again. In total 6 up chucks in 3 hours. She had no fever but would cough and shove her hand down there throat and up it all came. That was not a fun night to say the least. DH had to make a 2am run to the drug store to get electrolytes (he came back with 3 huge bottles in different flavors for some reason).

I didn't mind staying up with her, rocking her and holding her; If I had to do it all night I would have gladly done so. It's the not knowing what to do or whats wrong that kills me. I mean it's not like she can say " Hay mom, my throat hurts" or "I need a Tylonol". Really, we're just guessing whats wrong. I bring this up because Baby E seems to have a cough again, and I'm so scared that it will get worse. I know kids get sick, the will build up their immune system and the fact that I breast feed helps a lot but none the less, it still worries me every time.

This makes me think, am I dressing her warm enough (it's starting to get chilly out here in Canada)? did she pick it up from a play group? am I keeping the house clean enough? all these things that make me wonder how I can protect her from these nasty germs. I know it's impossible and I can't put her in a bubble, but I guess this is just the Mama Bear in me coming out.

Mama Bear

I've realized one of the possible reasons Baby E needs us to rock her to sleep night after night. Mommy needs to rock her to sleep night after night. Dispite the number it's doing on my back, no matter how much sleep I loose and my mounting frustration of her lack of sleep at the end of the day I will admit, I am to blame for Baby E's dependnce on me and DH. Before Baby E was a reality, I had always said I would not be a super protective mother. I wouldn't coddle, I would let them explore and let her be independent. HA! yeah right!. I will say now that I think I am one of the most protective mothers I know. I hate to hear her cry or see her upset and if I had to I would hold her all night and forgo my sanity to make her happy. Now, some of my non-mommy friends may scoff and shake their heads, heck, some of my mommy friends may do the same but I make no apologies.

I think that it's natural for a first time mom to be protective, maybe not as excessive as I am, but hey, if I do something I don't go half ass. I mean you are suddenly responsible for this whole other person. They depend on you for EVERYTHING. You are in charge of keeping them happy, clean, healthy and most of all safe. If they cry you naturally want to comfort them, if they are dirty you naturally want to clean them and if they are happy, you naturally want to keep that smile on their face for as long as possible. Some people may say being too protective is spoiling your child. I tend to disagree. Sure, Baby E may be fine in a loud arena while DH and I take in a Hockey game. She will also be fine putting that toy in her mouth after X amount of kids had played with it before her, but I don't think I will let it happen if I can help it. I say being protective is doing what is natural. Giving all the love that I have, all the attention that I can and all the time I can doesn't mean I'm spoiling my baby. Giving my baby new things every week and giving into tantrums in the Wal-Mart toy section is spoiling them. What I am doing is trying to be a good mom, when the day comes when I don't feel the need to protect my child (be it from germs, excessive noise or other people), that is the day I should rethink being a mom.

My Hairy Situation

So here's something I can add to the "$hit they don't tell you about pregnancy" list. Hair loss!

Sure, when you are preggo your hair is nice, smooth, shiny and healthy; but after it. all. falls. out!

No joke after I wash my hair I look down and there is a Wookie sitting on top of my drain! It really is gross. I will run my hand threw my hair and a chunk of hair will be entangled between my fingers. I sweep and Biselle all the time since there is more of my hair on the floor then there is cat hair. It gets everywhere, even on Baby E.

So I have decided to do it. I am gonna get a mommy hair cut. No, this is not a day where mommy will take time for herself and get a nice day at the salon. I'm talking about chopping it all off, short! (insert panic attack) don't get me wrong, I've had short hair before. Mostly bobs and shoulder length, but what I'm talking about here goes a bit shorter. Ever since High school the shortest my hair has ever been was just below my ears. Right now it's to the middle of my back. I need something that Baby E can't grab onto and pull, something that wont cause my drain to plug up and most importantly, something that is easy to maintain and takes little to no time to style, buzz cut anyone? (joke)

So now I have to find a style that will suit me. Not an easy task since super short styles don't often suit big round faces...I've never cried at at hair cut before, but this time I just may

Nightly Sleep Dance

Wow, really? has it been THAT long since I've written an entry? It seems so. But believe me there has been no shortage of material. In the past month Baby E has learned to do a lot. The most notable is she has learned to use her voice. We are not talking coos and hums. We are talking about screams and yelling. To be honest it was a really cute in the beginning but became less cute as it started to effect her sleep. The week before, DH and I tried something new, we would rock Baby E till she was drowsy and then placed her in her crib. After a minute or 2 of whimpering she would turn around, pop her thumb in her mouth and off to sleep she went.(we have since been reluctant of sleep training since our experience last month). It was great! naps went from 45 min to 1 1/2 hours, she slept well through the night (still 1 or 2 feedings) and she seems to be a happy, well rested little baby. Then the screaming and yelling happened. It seemed that Baby E was much more interested in listening to her own voice then to sleep (yay, how fun for me). so I'd rock her and bounce her; she would let out a happy yell and scream; I'd continue to rock her and bounce her... eventually this resulted in me rocking and bouncing for 30-45 min (insane I know).

At the end of it all Baby E wouldn't sleep, not for long anyway. She would wake up crying if I put her down and DH and I found ourselves back where we were about a month ago. With a baby who wanted to be held all the time, despite her ability to self soothe herself to sleep on her own. It got to a point where if she did sleep it was only for 1-2 hours, then she would wake up wanting to play and stay up for 3 hours! WTF? all the books I read say babies at her age are only supposed to stay up for 1-2 hours...yeah, right! Tell me that at 1am when I've been bouncing my baby for 45 min! I think one of the most frustrating things for a new mom is when you know your baby is exhausted, you are doing everything you can to help them sleep and they just can't (or wont). But frustration aside, I have to remember that this little person is new and has yet to developed the skills needed to manage day to day, it's just a phase and it will eventually pass (I can type this now because its not 1am and I'm not bouncing and rocking her).

Anyway, with this new discovery, DH and I have had little sleep...but at least my little girl has discovered her voice, and isn't afraid to use it; which may be bad for us when she reaches 4 years old. No quite little girl for us!