Week 13 July 27-August 2

I'm posting this a day late but it is completely intentional. Now that Charlotte is 3 months old I am going to blog her updates monthly instead of weekly. I know that you all just patiently wait around weekly to find out the feeding, pooping, sleeping schedule of my princess but lately there has been so much more eating, playing, pooping than sleeping equalling less blogging time for mommy! So this is my last weekly update the next update will be on her 4 month birthday and I will be typing through tears :(

I am still going to use Your Baby's First Year Week by Week as my reference and combine the 4 weeks into one post covering more development at a time. As far as the rest of the family we will get our blog time in too, promise!

Week 13...

Schedule: Same as last week

Eating: She is still eating every 3 hours until 6 pm and then I wake her between 9-11pm and that was carrying her though until at least 5:30 but lately she can only make it to 4. I have experimented with waking at different times and she still gets up 4-4:30 so I'm just going with it right now. But in the end she is still getting the same amount of feedings. She is getting 2 formula bottles a day per her pediatrician. She needed a little help gaining weight and processing food so instead of supplementing a few ounces randomly through the day I give 2 whole bottles and pump. She did move to the medium flow nipples on her bottles.

Sleeping: She sleeps great at night until 4am and she goes right back to sleep after I feed her. Napping has not been great. There are several naps that only last a 30 minutes or so and she will cry the rest of the time...45 minute intruder? At night she is CIO and that is working great. She never cried more than 15 minutes and if she does it is usually an indication that something is wrong. She no longer sleeps with a swaddler and that was her choice. The nights she has it take much longer to fall asleep!

YBFYWBW
-laughing more...she will "talk" to us and toys
-smiling...she is smiling in response to people other than family

-tummy time...still screams and because of it she has not even attempted to roll over or push up on her elbows or arms...I'm getting worried :(
-toys... loves her mobile, and still loving Lilly the Lion but her favorite toy is her fingers!
 - Pacifier...she needs her paci when she is going to sleep but she has starting taking it out and sucking her fingers instead. When we see her we try to give her the paci back but she likes her fingers

-started napping in her room
- skin getting a little better now that she is on medicated lotion and running the humidifier
-getting excited...she will get super excited and kick and laugh and then in the next second burst into tears. I'm guessing she is getting over excited and doesn't know how to calm her self back down.

-sitting...she can sit in her Bumbo and against the Boppy or pillows
-grasping...has learned to grasp but not always to let go
- bubbles..she is blowing bubbles like crazy!!

Clayton: Finished up Space camp last Friday and has a little break until school starts on Friday. He is getting a new teacher AGAIN. This is the 5th time he has changed teachers! Got to love the Army life. We have been spending more time with friends such as he twins that live next door and our new friends Anora and Anya. He will be going to school (not in the same class) with Anora and Anya and is very excited about it!

                                                           This is our neighbor Faith
Me: I am feeling smaller after 2 weeks of workouts but numbers are not reflecting :( Maybe its muscle maybe something else but I do know that WW is not working in my favor! My milk supply is suffering and I am not taking in enough calories for a good weight loss from working out. So I am just writing down what I eat so that I am holding myself accountable but not worrying about the points and focusing more on healthy eating and taking in enough protein.
 

Jason: J changes command on the 31st and then back into his second command on the 6th of October. He is looking at some options for future in Army and needs prayer that we make/are given the best option for our family!

Week 10 and 11 of the Phillips gang...July 6-July 19

First of all as I say every week how did my baby turn 11 weeks already! Second I am combining 10 and 11 because we were only home 1 day out of those 2 weeks and I have 17 blogs waiting to be written covering our trip!! 

I could sum up the past 2 weeks with "so much fun" and "complete loss of anything scheduled and Babywise and routine" and "this week is back to business...as soon as I recover from vacay!"

Babywise: 100% my fault but every one's schedule was completely messed up while we were gone. In general I guess things stayed the same...eating, napping and bed time were roughly the same but there was WAY more flexibility than normal. 

Sleeping: She slept in her own "bed" (a crib in S.GA and pack n play in N.GA) But overall she slept through the night. Naps were rough and I'm not sure how long she slept for each one.

Wake time: Filled with new faces and new places! She was so into seeing so many different things and stayed pretty occupied.

Growth: At her 2 month well baby visit she weighed 10.11 and was 22 inches long. I can tell a big difference in her growth! Her cheeks and thighs are getting so chubby : ) and her newborn onsies are too small and her new born outfits are almost there :(

Eating: We tested out some formula while we were at home and as much as I hate to say it she loved it and was so happy after the formula bottles and not nearly as gassy! This doesn't mean I am giving up breastfeeding and at this point I am still putting on the boob every 3 hours but there are times she is getting formula and I'm not totally against it anymore. The extra formula is decreasing my milk supply I think but it could also be working out, wearing more sports bras, not drinking enough, not getting enough calories....etc

Diaper Duty: Has picked up a lot since last update. It may not be everyday but it is at least every 2 now. The gas is as usual...often and smelly! We are still using Mylecon and Gripe Water and when we do bottle feed we use the Playtex drop ins or Playtex Ventaire

2 month Well Baby: She received her 2 month shots and got a full look over by the doctor who said she looked great. She is growing well and meeting all of her milestones. I was a little concerned that she doesn't lift her head when she is on her tummy as much as I thought she should but he said that was normal and to keep up the tummy time. She was diagnosed with pretty bad eczema and was given a cream to put on at least once a day. The air here is so dry and that is not helping at all! She did have to take Tylenol for the first for a slight fever from the shots but otherwise handled them well.

YBFYWBW:
-she has excellent control of her head when held and when sitting with assistance
-kicks and swings arms all the time
-swings arms to reach objects
-she will hold her chest and head up while on her tummy but only for a few seconds
-when picked up she pulls her body in compactly
-she will bring her hands together
-follows slow objects with her eyes
-explores her own face with her hands
-stops sucking to look around and listen
-makes some noises but is usually a silent smiler
-she will mimic my facial expressions
-she will let me know when she is bored of a person or an activity
-she loves hanging toys that jingle or rattle when she moves them and really likes the rattles that go on her arm and leg
-she loves her baby bouncer now and when she is super fussy due to being tired I can lay her in the bouncy and she is right out!
-she is learning to control her cries and will stop them if distracted
-she can sit propped against the bobby or a pillow
-she will turn her head looking for sounds
-she has not gotten up on her elbows during tummy time yet
-she can hold a toy and wave it
-she is beginning to show favoritism for me over others
-she will allow you to capture her attention and will hold eye contact

Clayton: Loved being in GA was not excited about coming back! He has asked me everyday if we can go back :( He took a week off of camp to get readjusted and will start back next week.

 Playing in the bounce houses

 Taking a much needed break

 indoor playground at the mall

 He loved Kayla!

 Blowing bubbles with Aunt Karen (Doobee)

 Cousin Blair

 Cousin Jessica

 Playing with new toys

 silly faces

  Reading with Nana

Jason: Loved the chance to relax but is now back at work and looking forward to the next break!

Me: I love vacation but I will be glad when everything is back in place. I restarted Weight Watchers and start the Firm Express...after day 1 I Love it!

Week 7...Charlotte June 15-June 21

7 weeks have gone by already and I can't believe it! I am seriously getting more depressed as the weeks go on but I know I should be thankful for her growth and development.

Babywise and schedule: We have established the morning wake up time finally. She will wake up at 5:30 instead of 6 sometimes but will fix the schedule by her 9 am feeding. She is still on a 3 hour schedule starting at 6am and taking her last feeding at 11:30.

 

obviously not her but I will replace when I get a picture of her in one!

Sleeping: Sleeping through the night totally now and is taking much better naps. Next week I am going to really start working on her napping in her bed. She is napping on average 1.5-2 hours of her 3 hour routine. Once we get beck from GA we are going to transition her to her crib at night. She will be 2.5 months old and I think she will be ready. Still loving the swaddle and realy liking the Swaddleme Swaddle Pod!She is staring to show signs that she is tired instead of me just laying her down at the appropriate times. She rubs her head on my shoulder and starts searching for her pacifier while pulling in a fetal position. We are settling into a more structure bedtime routine for both kids together, I'm giving myself one more week before I report on that!

Diapers: Size one but since we buy cases at a time from daipers.com she is actually wearing a 1-2 (up to 15lbs). Side note: with Clayton I loved huggies little movers but with Charlotte I am loving Pampers...weird how different it is!

Clothes: newborn and 0-3

Weight: at birth 7.9 and 19.5 inches now she is 9.12 and 20in (she went to the Dr this morning so it is not a guess!)

Eating: Still nursing. She takes roughly one bottle a day and then I pump to make the difference. I took her to the Dr this morning because I was concerned that she might have reflux. She will gasp for air and I can feel her chest rattle but both only happen after she eats. According to the Dr it is associated with my overactive let down and not reflux which is great because I am already working on that problem and I am so glad we do not have to put her meds. We thought she might have a milk allergy because she cries after she eats and he said it sounded more like she was still hungry...Thanks goodness, I love milk and dairy!! She has been nursing with the shield for 4 days now and that has really improved the ease of BF and helped her get more caloric milk at each feeding.

Witching hour seems to be getting much better or maybe we just know it is coming and are prepared but either way 6-10 has calmed down a lot around here!


She is interacting with Clayton so much and will give him the biggest smiles.They play a game where he swings the chicken hanging from her bouncy seat and she will laugh this sweet little silent chuckle. I love it! 

She is becoming a total diva....knows how to get attention! And will cry this sad awful lip quivering fake cry that is so hard not to laugh at : )

Diaper duty: Slowed down a ton! Like maybe once a week now! I talked to the Dr about it this morning and he said it was completely normal for breast fed babies and as long as she doesn't go longer than 10 days than we are OK. I was concerned she may be dehydrated! It is SO easy to do out here in this dry 100+ heat. however she has some awful smelling gas. So I am going to start taking pro-biotics and when she starts on solids I will introduce them to her per his instructions. She is having well enough wet diapers!

YBFYWBW milestone:
-tracking objects with her eyes
-loving her hands
-starting to use the pacifier to soothe
-really lifting her head now...when pulled up by arms alone she will straighten her neck to raise her ehad level with her body
- grunting to communicate and starting to make some cooing sounds

Clayton

We got his school pictures back and I have to say he is handsome! Still loving camp...this weeks theme was Camping and they brought in fake light streamer fire thing that he is raving about and they got to build tents and have water play in the fake creek...so cute! 

Me

 Weight watchers is going great! I have lost 3 lbs in one week and an inch off of my waist! These yummy Coconut Creme Frappacinos might just be the death of me though!!  

My OB has cleared me for all normal activity and said I was looking great! So workouts here I come!!!

Jason

We should be hearing something really soon about his future assignment maybe by next weeks post we will know something!  

Week 6...Charlotte June 8- June 14

Charlotte is 6 weeks old today! The time is flying by so quickly :(

Babywise: I'm still working on the setting the wake time and we are still working on full feedings but it is getting much easier. I love having this schedule and knowing how to plan the day. It is so helpful with Clayton as well! We are slowly moving to a 3 hour schedule. I decided to make that move because I was having to wake her for every feeding and I assume that is a sign that she can go longer than 2.5 hours. She was crying around 5:30 every morning to be feed but I wanted a 6:30 am wake up. BW suggested when this type of thing happens to either move up the wake time or wake her earlier than when she cries, feed her and then put her back to bed. I tried the second option but once I was up for 30+ minutes at 4:30 I had a hard time going back to sleep so I went with option 1. Our new schedule is:

6 wake up...then she eats every 3 hours so 6,9,12,3,6,9,11:30(dream feed). She then naps for 2 hours at 7,10,1,4,7 and goes to bed at 9. I feed her for around 15 minutes on each side and then we do an activity or play to keep her awake for at least 30 minutes and then lay her down for nap. She is a routine girl and I can already tell a difference in her when she gets too far off of the schedule.

Sleeping: I talked about the schedule above but she is still sleeping in our room in her Rock and Play and will most likely stay there until we get back from GA in mid July. I don't want her to get used to sleeping alone and then have to room with us and then go back...consistency! She is still loving being swaddled and likes her pacifier to go to sleep. I have noticed she likes a dark room with some sort of moving light to watch...ie..projection from her sound machine. OH and she is officially sleeping through the night (11:30-6)

Diapers: size 1 

Clothes: newborn and 0-3

Weight: Complete guess here but I would say around 8lbs

Eating: Nursing unless having a witching hour and then Jason will give her a bottle to relieve me for a little while.Or when we are in public...I am still having a hard time with that one!

Witching hour: I thought she was suffering from colic or really bad gas. She would cry and cry for hours in the evening so I consulted the BW blog and found this post on the different cries and how to distinguish between colic and gas. And if you are a blog follower at all you know that sometimes you click and click again and end up somewhere way off from where you started. Well after a few clicks I ended up a BW post on Witching hour that sounded JUST LIKE our house from 6-10! I knew that babies/children have a fussy period but I was glad to know there is something that can be done about it. Charlotte loves the noise making the post suggest and also going outside. Although it is difficult to tend to her almost non stop for those few hours we have adjusted some things in everyone's schedule and are now handling it better. One of the most frustrating things though is the cluster feeding, or having to feed every 2 sometimes ever hour during that time. I am sore, Clayton is annoyed and everything else is left to be handled later. I am hoping she is past this soon and we can have our evenings back!!
BW blog says: "Do what it takes to keep baby happy during this time. Do what it takes to get baby to sleep during this time so she doesn't get overly tired and overstimulated. It will all be okay :)" I was so glad to read because I worried that breaking the routine would set us back but things fall right back into place the next day.

Smiling: She has really found this cute smile in the last week and I love it! The best part is that she will smile for Clayton bigger and more often than anyone else. At first I was a little jealous but I see that I want this to be the way they are with each other...melts my heart!!

Rolled over: Charlotte can roll from tummy to back if laying the right way and if she is mad enough!

Pooping: I was really worried about her BM's! She is only going every few days but I have read that that is normal with BF babies...was different that Clayton was for sure!!

Massage: I am still massaging Charlotte every time I bathe her and often during the day to relieve some of her gas.

Tummy Time: She does not love it but I try to do it every day if even for a few minutes. She is getting much better at holding her head up for a little longer than last week.

Hair: Still has really dark hair but is slowly losing it and getting the baby bald spot :(

Baby Bjorn: She LOVES it and I "wear" her to grocery shop, clean the house and any time she is fussy. I read that babies that are worn may be smarter! 

Dermatitis: She had HORRIBLE baby acne when we brought her home and that is clearing up but she still has a little rash that seems to get worse the day she is scheduled to take a bathe...oil maybe?

YBFYWBW Milestones:
-gaining neck control
-expresses excitement by flailing arms and legs and grasping at air...really cute!
-will stop when a new sound is introduced to her surroundings
-loves to sit up (controlled by someone obviously) and look around and seems to really notice things in this position
- can study an object in her hand...usually her other hand
-gets excited and anticipated objects...ie bottle or the boppy which both equal food! This shows memory improvement
-is staying awake for longer periods of time on her own
-really starting to reach for things like the little animals from her mobile in her swing

Me

I have started weight watchers and hoping that will help me lose some of this awful weight!! Once I get "cleared: by the doc I am going to get hard core about the exercising again. 

Clayton

Clayton is still in camp and loving it! We are also going to the library story time followed by Starbucks on Thursdays.

And swimming every chance he gets!

Jason

Everything that Jason experiences with Charlotte is new to him. He missed this part with Clayton because of his deployment so it is really fun to watch him interact with her and learn how to care for a baby over the age of 3 weeks. He is changing command but we will be staying here at Ft Irwin to take another command that is more related to his job field. He has also really gotten interested in working out and weight lifting...pretty inspiring for me to get back in shape...don't want to be that couple!

Week 5 of Charlotte May 31 through June 7

 Charlotte is 5w and 2 days old today and I am already having a hard time watching her grow so much so fast. She is great baby except when she is hungry and then it becomes a little bit hectic but we are working on patience for both her and me.

Charlotte:

Babywise: So far so good on the BW front. We are slowly working on really sticking to the schedule and following the BW guidelines but also doing what makes the most sense for our family. It is so much harder to do BW with a sibling and also with a daddy. When Clayton was this age Jason was in Iraq and I was basically free to do with Clayton as I saw fit without any one's opinion and now I have to take Jason and Clayton's needs into account when I make her schedule. The biggest thing I am working on right now is the first wake up or the Early Morning feeding. BW says this sets the tone for the day so I am really wanting to get this time set in stone. We are also working on getting full feedings. Charlotte is wanting to be a snacker and I am trying to get full feedings every 2.5 hours instead of the wanted every 45 minute nibble...um no!

Schedule:

 6:30 wake up-diaper-feed

         within that 30 minutes she eats for 10...diaper change and burp for 10...eats for 10

7:00 wake time (WT)

7:30-9:00 nap

and repeat every 2.5 hours until 9pm. At 9pm she eats and goes right back to bed at 10 and will usually want to eat again around 11:30 and then sleeps until 6:30.

Over the last few days she has wanted to get up 6 so I may adjust everything up or wait until she moves on to the 3 hour schedule.

Sleeping: So far she is doing great with sleeping through the night (mostly). She is in her "bed" by 11 for the final time and doesn't get up until 5:30 usually and will go back to sleep until 6:30 when she is up for good. I can work with this schedule. I have to get up to get Clayton to "camp" by 8 so the forced 6:30 wake up helps everyone get up and moving in the mornings. As far as naps she is getting in a more regular schedule . As long as she is swaddled and has a paci she is good to go. I am working really hard at making her nap in the pack and play or her bed and not get used to the swing or bouncy for a nap. This is mostly because she needs something to do during wake time and I want her to associate certain places with certain activities.

 Eating: She is eating every 2.5 hours right now but I feel like she is trying to push to the 3 hour but there are times during the day she just can not go that extra 1/2 hour. There are even times in the evening she tries to cluster feed and eat every 2 hours...um hello we have a schedule in place!  I'm kidding on that but only a little :) She is still breastfeeding and you can read all about that is the post I plan to write soon on our trials and tribulations of the baby vs. boob saga! There have been some issues but we are working through it all and my goal of six weeks is only 6 days away and I am extending it out to at least 3 months...if nothing more than so we don't have to worry about formula in GA.

 Diapers: She is in a size one and doesn't look like she is moving anytime soon
Clothes: She wears a newborn or 0-3 months

 This is 0-3 and it's kind of big still

Pacifier: We offered her a pacifier when she is sleeping or in the car and I hope it stays that way. There are certain times during the day when she will calm if she has it and usually will nap soon after she gets it. She loves the Advent and the Playtex Binky's.

Your Baby's First Year Week by Week: This is where I will touch on the major topics I read about this week:

bathing :she bathes about 3 times a week in the cutes and coolest little tub. YBFY talks about family tubs...no thanks but that's just me.

Obviously not me but I didn't have a bath pictures of her yet ( i know crazy right?)

swing: she is not a super huge fan of the swing and that is so sad to me because Clayton loved his. We got her a new one after we realized the movers in our last move lost the major pieces. It is a safe place to lay her though when I need to do something or run upstairs.

milestones:
-her actions are becoming more voluntary
-she bats at objects not within her reach
-she is calmed faster by me or another woman that a male
-she is retaining memory of objects (such as a paci or sounds)
-can be quieted by a paci
-quiets when held or a familiar face is in her line of vision
-she prefers to watch people over objects

pain: According to what I have read at this point babies can remember pain. They will not remember having a pain at 6 weeks when they are three but they will remember tomorrow when they encounter whatever ailed them again.
sounds: She loves music and sound machine noises. New sounds are supposed to be good for babies so I am trying to find some lullabies to introduce weekly and not just the norms!
physical development: She is working really hard at holding her head up when laying on her tummy.

She is stretching out and uncurling from the fetal position when laying on her back

She can move her hand to her mouth at will to soothe
vision: She is able to focus on people within 18 inches of her eyes

Different Cries: We are slowly learning the different cries and working on what best fixes her problem

This is her I am not happy cry!

Gums: We have not done this but the book suggest even at this age massage the gums and clean them after feedings. It will stimulate growth and help adjust her to cleaning to avoid that issue later.
massage: Baby massage is great and calming for both of us.
where to sleep: The book talks about the family bed. We chose not to do this and instead she sleeps in her Rock and Play beside me. I still have access to her at night and can see her but she is in her own bed. We will transition her in the next few weeks (after out trip home I'm guessing) into her own bed.
hiccups: Oh man she is the hiccup queen! And that is said to be uncommon in breastfeed babies but b/c she is using a shield (whole post on that here...or coming) she may be getting more air then I think. I give her Gripe Water when they get so bad they are interfering with her sleep or causing obvious pain. 
toys: Clayton is her toy of choice followed by me and Jason and then when that fails she likes her own hand.

Me:

I'm doing pretty well with sleep and eating. I am actually finding time for both. 

I of course would love to drop this baby weight a little faster than I am but I am getting into a routine of working out in the mornings while I only have one child and hopefully that will drop the weight! I lost a lot in the beginning thanks to breastfeeding but that was all nature could do the rest is up to me!

Clayton:
He is doing so well adjusting to her and has been a HUGE help! There are times he wants more attention than I can give...usually at feeding times. He is going to camp 5 days a week for 3 hours and loves the time and friends there. He tells everyone that she is his baby sister and all the details about her!

First day of camp!

Recap of first few weeks of Little Lottie's life

I want to blog at the end of each week of Charlotte's life. I sort of did this with Clayton in a legit hand written journal but now that I blog I would rather do it here and eventually make a book maybe. I am counting weeks as in the 'week of life'. So for example she was born on May 3 so May 3rd through May 10th would be week one and I will blog on that Monday night before she turns the next week old...make sense?

[Disclaimer: As I write this she is actually in her 5th week of life! I am behind but I wanted it documented so I am going back and filling in the blanks!]

This time around with my pregnancy I read Your Pregnancy Week by Week so I stuck with that serious and am reading Your Baby's First Year Week by Week so when I compare the "average" baby to Charlotte that is where I am getting my comparison.

Weeks 1-4

Jaundice
Before we left the hospital we were told that Lottie's biliruben (Sp) levels were high but not high enough to stay in the hospital and that we were free to leave with her if we brought her back the next morning for another blood test and weight check. This went on for 4 more days and on Mother's Day she was finally cleared to not come back until her 2 week check-up...Happy Mother's Day to me!

 

This is the best picture I can find where she looks a little yellow

Schedule

 I am really looking forward to implementing the Babywise parenting method into our lives again. It worked well with Clayton and I would like to do it with Charlotte as well. Right now we are letting her get adjusted and she is eating on somewhat of a schedule on her own. She eats roughly every 2 hours as instructed by the Dr to flush out her jaundice.

Growth

At her 2 day check up she had not gained back to her birth weight but was working up to it. (I'm not sure exactly what she was at the time we left the hospital or at her 2 day). She is obviously eating something that is making her gain the weight and that was a huge concern for me sense she is breastfeeding (see post on that). By her 2 week checkup she was at 7lb 10oz and 19 3/4 in. (7lb 9oz 19.5 in at birth) so that is great news and the goal we were told to look for! 

Sleeping 

She sleeps in a Rock n Play ^ and loves to be swaddled! Complete opposite of her brother. She also is already sleeping with a pacifier. I like having her close to me but not in the bed with me at this point. I would like for her to never sleep in the bed with me (it is really hard to get them out...trust me!). She is waking maybe 2 times to eat and going right back to sleep. I feel rested and that is super important with 2 to take care of now!

Reacting with Clayton

Obviously they do not play together yet but Clayton is very respectful of her things and space and the time I need to take out of his time to care for her. There are times I see him looking at her trying to figure the whole thing out but so far they are doing great together. She is not effected by his noise level or his sporadic movements even though I am! 

So far so good on the family of 4 front!