Mackenzie: 2 month Update

Another month has gone by! Mackenzie is 2 months old now and has already changed so much. The first month was pretty rough, and she was SO fussy. I was worried she might have reflux, but she didn't have any of the symptoms besides LOTS of crying. Things have gotten a lot better as she's gotten older and we have a happier baby now. 

We've been able to catch a lot of smiles, especially when she wakes up in the morning. Unfortunately, me pulling out my phone is always too big a distraction, and the smile disappears. Mackenzie is also finding her voice and its funny to hear her squawking as she plays on the floor. 

I feel like she's getting so big! At least bigger faster than her sister did at this age. We've already outgrown a lot of clothes, and she's in size 1 diapers now. 
She had her 2 month check up today and weighs 11 pounds, 6 oz. She's 22.75 inches long. She basically doubled her weight and grew 2.25 inches, so I think I was right about that!

Here's how other things are going...

Mackenzie Likes

Being swaddled

  Getting "bounced" to sleep

Spitting up/Going thru 3+ outfits a day

Laying on the changing table

Being sung to

Kicking on the floor

Holding her head up

White noise 

(Getting a sound machine has been a life saver!)

Being outside

Getting distracted by any light when its time to sleep

Sleeping in her crib (can I get an AMEN!)

Mackenzie Doesn't Like 

Riding in the car

Getting her clothes changed

Bath time
Being happy in the evening

The bouncy chair

Tummy time

 Going back to sleep after her 3 am feeding

 

We're settling into a nice routine now, and I'm feeling a lot less overwhelmed. She usually does 2 short naps a day, with a long one in between. Kenzie is drinking 5 oz bottles about every 4 hours, and takes FOREVER but that's ok.

Our beloved swing died a few weeks ago, which forced us to get Kenzie sleeping in her crib 100% of the time. The first few days were rough, but now she's sleeping in there, no problem. She's even gives us about 6 hours consistently each night from about 9-3 am. Right now she's in our room, and probably will be for awhile. At least until she's consistently sleeping through the night. Marley doesn't ever get bothered by Kenzie's crying, but I don't want to risk having a toddler awake at 3 am too. 

Overall, we're doing well. Kenzie has fit quite nicely into our family and the next few months should be even more fun as she's smiling and showing her little personality.   

Last months update HERE

Family Resemblance

Lately I've been noticing how much Kenzie looks like her sister. My timehop app keeps showing me pictures of Marley from 2 years ago when she was really small, and its crazy how much these girls look like each other. 

Here are some comparisons, with Marley on the left and Kenzie on the right. 

Its hard to find pictures of them making similar faces, but I thought these were pretty good. Can't wait for Kenzie to start smiling more!

Mackenzie: 1 Month Update

I blinked and a month went by, right? That's what it feels like. Our sweet Mackenzie is 1 month old now, and its hard to believe. Over the last month we have definitely had our ups and downs, but I finally feel like I'm getting this kid figured out.

She threw us for a loop when she decided that she didn't like the type of bottles we had...and that each time we fed her a bottle it was like she forgot how to eat. Luckily, we found a type she likes and she's figured out how to eat without her tongue flopping all over the place.

I feel like I've been on web MD about a million times since she was born. Googling things like "newborn constipation" and other glamorous topics. But we're finally settling in, and getting used to what is our new "normal." 

Here's how things are going so far...

Mackenzie Likes

Being swaddled
Sleeping in the swing

wiggling on the floor

Looking at the TV while wiggling on the floor

Spitting up if you don't burp her 3-5 times during a feeding

Falling asleep during a feeding

Letting you think she's fast asleep, only to stare back at you wide-eyed after you lay her down

Getting the hiccups...even if its been hours since she ate

Being awake at 2 am

Trying to hold her head up if you put her on your chest

Acting like the pacifier is the grossest thing you could ever give her

Mackenzie Doesn't Like

Baths

Getting rubbed down with lotion

Sitting in the bouncy chair for more than .025 seconds

 Tummy time

Falling asleep quickly...especially for Daddy

Riding in the car

 Mackenzie sure has a lot of quirks, but we love her anyway! I can tell already that she is very different from her sister and is going to have a very spunky personality. Can't wait to watch her grow...but not too fast please!

Sisters, Sisters.

Everyone keeps asking me how Marley is adjusting to being a big sister, so I thought I'd share how things are going. 

When we first came home from the hospital, Marley came over and looked at the baby for a minute...then went back to playing. Over the next few days she would stop next to the swing or the bouncy chair and just stare for awhile. 

After being home 2 days she came over and did this all on her own, and my heart melted:

Marley is very into the song "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes" so after I pointed out that Kenzie has eyes and ears she became more appealing. 

So far we've only had one incident where Mackenzie needed to be rescued. Marley decided to throw a tantrum right next to the bouncy chair and landed on part of it as she was flopping to the floor. She gave her sister a good bounce, and Mackenzie flew a good 3 inches off the chair. She didn't cry, but her eyes got real big and her hands flew in the air.

Just in the last few days, Marley has started saying "aww, cute!" whenever she catches me unwrapping the baby. She also likes to grab Kenzie's hands and giggles hysterically when they start flailing around like a newborn. 

 Once Kenzie is awake more, I can tell these sisters will have a lot more interaction and become the best of friends. Can't wait!

The Birth Story: Mackenzie Alice

All along the plan was to be induced with this second pregnancy, for many reasons. She cooperated a lot better than her sister, and everything actually went as planned. 

On Thursday morning we were told to be ready at 6 am for the possible call to come into the hospital. Jason and I got up at 5, were totally ready to go, and no call came. We both fell back asleep and then finally we got the call to come in at 10.

We left Marley with Jason's mom and headed down State Street to Intermountain Medical Center in Murray. They got us all checked in and I was officially hooked up to the pitocin around 11 am. They started things out slowly and gradually increased the meds about every hour. They broke my water around noon and then things started to get really intense. 

Because I have rods screwed into my spine from a surgery I had almost 15 years ago, I have to deliver completely unmedicated...that means NO epidural. As the contractions got more intense I was not too thrilled, but at least it meant things were progressing. 

Early on, the nurse and my doctor told me to let them know right away when I started to feel any kind of pressure or the need to push. Because this was my second pregnancy, they said that things could progress quickly and so I made sure to pay close attention to that. 

At about 2:45 I was having a contraction and felt a TINY bit of pressure. I mentioned it to Jason and so he went out to get the nurse. By the time she came back in and checked me (I was only dilated to a 7) that "tiny bit of pressure" had changed to me needing to push NOW. My nurse started running around frantic and they paged my doctor who was upstairs. 

She came bursting into the room saying, "I got your page and didn't even bother calling, I had a feeling what was happening and just RAN!" Its a good thing she did.

Within about 5 minutes of "feeling pressure" and starting to push, Mackenzie Alice made her way into the world. I still can't believe how fast it all happened and that she is finally here.  

She was born on March 19th at 3:03 pm, weighing 6 pounds 11 ounces, and 22 inches long. 

Our hospital stay went by quickly and we were ready to go home Saturday afternoon. My mom flew in earlier that day and has been here helping us out for the week. 

I'm so grateful that this time around I have been able to heal very quickly. With Marley it took me almost 6 weeks to recover, but this time around I feel SO much better. 

We're loving being home and Mackenzie has been a pretty calm baby. She definitely has her moments, usually at night, where she can get pretty fussy though. Marley is still trying to figure things out, but she's getting used to "the baby" being here. 

We're so grateful Mackenzie made it here safe and are excited about this next chapter as a family of 4.