6 Week Update

Hello world! Its been almost 6 weeks since Marlene was born and boy has the time flown by. She is already starting to outgrow her newborn clothes.

Our home has been turned upside down, and this little one is sure running the show! We've definitely started to learn her quirks and I'm starting to get us on some sort of a schedule.

 

Here's how things are going, as of right now:

 

Marlene likes:

Being swaddled

Sleeping on my chest or in her swing

Riding in the stroller

Being "jiggled" to sleep
Sitting on the changing table
Noisy places
Being rocked and sung to

 

Marlene does NOT like:

The dark

Sleeping in Her crib

Riding in the car

Being set down

Tummy time

Getting the hiccups

Bathtime
Crinkly wrappers 

 

Of course all of these are subject to change because babies are crazy! As hard as it is sometimes to try and figure her out, she is such a sweetheart I can't stay upset for long.

 

She definitely has us wrapped around her little finger.

 

 

 

Let Me Explain...

I posted a status on Facebook about how much I hate breastfeeding and feel like I should

explain a little more...

 

Marlene took to nursing fairly quickly, which was a huge relief. Then when she was about 4 days old she started getting really tempermental. It seemed like every other feeding she would freak out and not nurse. This stressed me out a lot and caused me a lot of physical pain so I got a pump.

 

From that point on I decided that pumping was just "easier" because the stress of never knowing if Marlene would nurse or not was causing me some anxiety. I also figured that since I live in a house where there are 4 other people who can feed her a bottle,

that would just be easier.

 

Things had been going ok, other than the fact that I hated being chained to the pump, not being able to sleep/or go out for more than 3-4 hours at a time, and leaking all over the place as I was

trying to get on a schedule.

 

I decided that when I took Marlene to her 2 week check up that I was going to ask her doctor how long she recommended I nurse for, because I didn't think I could last much longer. I was relieved when she said that in her opinion, the mom's sanity comes first.  

 

Then, I received all the confirmation I needed. At her check up yesterday we discovered that Marlene hadn't gained ANY weight over the past week. Apparently, my milk doesn't have enough calories in it, which the doctor said can happen to some women. She recommended we add a scoop of formula to each bottle, and then alternate that with one that is straight formula so that Marlene's little tummy

can get used to it gradually.

 

So, I've decided to stop nursing and use up all the milk I have in the freezer (which is quite a bit) and then stick to just formula when it runs out. I feel like I'm waisting my time pumping milk that is

apparently good for nothing.

 

The formula has apparently done the trick, because I took Marlene back for a weight check today and she gained 3 ounces. (The doctor said she should be gaining at least 1 ounce a day.) So I feel really good about making this change, and I can't wait for Marlene to become a little chunker. =)