Parenting Check-In (June 30th)

Jazibel · June 2014

Good Morning Everyone,

Congrats to @ball.and.chain on welcoming Benjamin!! :-)

How was your weekend? Any new accomplishments, challenges or celebrations?

QOTD: Many of us are co-parenting with a spouse, and/or have friends and family closely involved in raising our LO(s). What is one thing that your co-parent or family does with your LO that drives you crazy. What is one thing that you adore, or that has inspired you to try something different?

If you would like to be added to the roster please let me know.

@KH826 – Will born 6/4/14

@ATXmommas – Sebastian (“Ash”) born 11/21/13, other Momma is Z

@Wallace323 – J and L born 8/8/13, surviving triplets born at 31 weeks

@Trisholio – Proud foster parents to M born 2/6/12 and K born 8/22/13; and pregnant expecting a third daughter in September 2014.

@JGY – Gabe born 3/24/13, other Mama is S.

@Stringy813 – M born May 2013

@Filmfanatic82 – Charley born 3/15/14

@Mamosry – R born 2/25/14

@2brides – G & C born 5/18/06, other Mom is L

@Jrtmom – Henry born 8/15/13, other mama is L

@Sarahtrpt – C born February 2014

@CageyMack – W born 3/16/13

@Themommymonster – C (DS) born 2/18/09

@Clairmeij – Alarico born 6/28/13, other mama is V

@Mystjava – Little Bear (LB) born 3/31/10, other Mummum is Shawn

@winstan1 – J (DS) born 9/10 (currently 3.5 years old)

@newmompeanut – N (DD) born 2/12/13, other Momma is B

@herbabymam – C (DD) born 12/10/13, other Mama is K

@AmandaG47 – Twin girls born 2/22/14, other Mommy is J

@mwagner25 – Oliver born 11/27/13, other parent is L

@jazibel – Kaden born 7/13/12 and Owen born 5/2/14, other parent (Aya) is EV

@redrockmama – M born 6/19/14, other Mama is J

mwagner25 · June 2014

Hello all,

We are doing well. Not a whole lot new to report. We took Oliver to the Pride parade yesterday. He did alright. He wasn't too thrilled with all the screaming and when he got hit in the head with beads we had a bit of a meltdown. We watched from further back after that.

I ended up nursing him at the park without a cover. He hates the cover and refused a bottle so I didn't have much choice. It was kinda a big deal for me since I haven't been comfortable enough to NIP without a cover previously. Other than that he is just really fun right now, he likes to clap and wave at people to see if they will mimic him. It's really cute. I feel like we are in the "honeymoon" period. He isn't mobile yet so I can leave him sitting on the floor with his toys but he is so interactive and fun. I am sure that will change soon.

QOTD: What drives me most nuts about L with Oliver is that she rarely puts him down. I will come home from work (L stays at home) and she will tell me how much her back hurts from carrying him all day while doing things around the house. I keep telling her... Put him down with some toys while you empty and reload the dishwasher. But she insists that he Prefers to be held so that is what she is going to do. This is what I love about her. She spends all day every day doing everything she can to make him happy. The house may not get cleaned or other things done. But Oliver is sooo happy and I know he is so well taken care of while I am working.

Jazibel · June 2014

Okay I'll jump right in since Kaden is still asleep!! It's 8:34am!!

We had a great weekend despite the kids getting over a cold. I had taken Owen to the pediatrician on Friday morning and found that he was doing pretty well and didn't have an ear infection. It seems like everyone is feeling better today. We spent a lot of Saturday in the car, which was great practice for this weekends road trip.

Owen is the happiest baby. He is just full of smiles and coos and the dimple just slays me. I love him so much. I can't believe he's almost 2 months old, and weighs 14.6lbs. That's up from 13.10 in a week and a half!

Kaden likes to tell stories now, most of what he comes across as just "sounds" to us, but he's enthusiastic and includes the words and phrases he knows. It's really cute. Also he tried to be a big helper and brings our wubanub (pacifier with a stuffed turtle on it) over when he thinks Owen is sad. It's the sweetest thing. And Owen is already Kaden's biggest fan. EV and I realized we are going to be in trouble if these two ever try to scheme against us!! ;-)

QOTD: EV has a much more "cavalier" attitude toward parenting. I pack about 3 bags worth of things to bring with us if we go out for the day (just in case). EV would grab the boys and maybe an extra diaper ;-) and just make it work along the way. This both drives me crazy and helps balance out my "over planning". I love that she's creative in entertaining/calming the kids. Last night Owen was tired and fussy and she put drum music on the phone, lay him on his tummy over the boppy to help relieve his gas, and took a toy metal pot and rattle and shook them loudly to the beat. Owen loved it and after a little rocking in her arms fell right asleep.

PIP from last night included

Pinkspark · June 2014

My weekend was crazy! We had a new bedroom set delivered on saturday, and then a birthday party for one of my friends' sons on sunday! Then sunday night at about 11pm I discovered our hot water heater was leaking hot water all over our basement! Currently waiting for the plumber to get here to install a new one. Ugh!

The babies are doing well... Little Man had his ponseti boots and bar fitted on friday for his club foot and he HATES them.. it's been a challenge figuring out a good way to pick him up, feed, burp, etc.. I'm sure we;ll get it figured out soon enough! The boots are on 23hrs a day for the next 3 months, so we better! Little lady is really into being talked to and played with, I also put down a play mat with a mobile and she absolutely loves it!

QOTD: Honestly, not much at this point from my wife! When my mother in law was here I used to have to bite my tongue when she would say that it's going to be my son's "job" to "Take care of his sister". I don't want my kids to have the burden of assumed gender roles thrust on them- I'm going to teach them that they need to look out for each other because they are siblings- and that's what siblings do!

ATXmommas · June 2014

Ash had his tubes put in this morning. Everything went well and so happy to have this done. When we went to the ENT last week and they offered to do the procedure this Monday, I knew I had to reschedule some things at work, but knew we shouldn't wait any longer. Sure enough, little guy has signs of infection reappearing over the weekend and the doctor confirmed that his right ear looked pretty bad.

The fasting was fine. Since he is nursing, he only had to fast for 4 hours before the procedure rather than starting at midnight. I set my alarm for 2:30am so that he could eat by 3am. His procedure was at 7am and he nursed afterwards at about 7:30am, when he normally eats in the morning. He was totally fine between the time we had to wake him up (at 5:30am) and the time they took him back.

He was fussy afterwards, but nursed well. Since then, he has been very sleepy and cuddly.

QOTW: love this question. Z is typically very picky about what she wears, but she can't seem to dress our son! She either puts him in things that are too small, too big, or don't match! I don't get it at all. There are a lot of things that Z does that drive me crazy in general, but not too many things about her parenting does - at least not yet! If mismatched clothes is the nuttiest thing I can think of, not too bad!

Z and Ash have a lil dance parties that I love to watch! I don't have many moves, so I usually just watch, but I've been known to dance foolishly on occasion. Also, the only way I can get Ash to sleep when cranky is by nursing, but Z has a knack for getting him calm. Z is a goofy, fun person, and she and this kid are going to have all sorts of fun!

PIP - A selfie of me and my sleepy cuddlebug right now

mwagner25 · June 2014

@ATXmommas‌ glad to hear that Ash got his tubes and it went well. Hopefully no more infections at your house!

@pinkspark you always seem to have such a great attitude. I don't know how you do it. I hope the Plummer gets you guys all fixed up from that perspective today. It sounds like you guys are doing a great job with your two little ones.

2brides · June 2014

It was a fun weekend. The kids had a friend spend the night Saturday night and then had 2 birthday parties to attend yesterday. Grayson jumped off the high dive for the first time ever. I still can't believe he did it and didn't hesitate up there after he worried about jumping off the low dive just 5 minutes before!

QOTD: Nothing drives me really crazy. We are very in sync in our parenting. L comes up with far better tricks than I do (ie. alternating whose day it is to go first for all fun/not fun things to avoid the 'it's not fair....' drama. Works like a charm.) She is more lackadaisical about bedtime, but nothing major...maybe 30m because she gets side tracked. I'm sure there are other little things, but in the grand scheme of things, they don't matter.

KH826 · June 2014

Today Will and I took our first trip out together just the two of us. We went to the grocery store. It was mostly a successful trip. He cried on the way home, but otherwise was a trooper. I am relieved that my first trip out alone is over and we survived -- I had been stressing about it for a while.

My mom and youngest sister flew in for a visit on Friday and went home last night. I was glad they came and met Will, but I was also ready for them to head home. It was a long 3 days, a little overwhelming at times and my wife and I were both exhausted by last night.

Will's new trick the last 2 days is spitting up. He didn't spit up hardly at all until about 2 days ago and now he seems to be making up for lost time. He is currently on outfit #3 today -- he pooped through the first then had an epic spit up all over the second. Fun. Lol

He is currently a pretty good sleeper. I am thankful for that and hope it doesn't change, but I am sure it will at some point haha

I confirmed with my employer today that my back to work date is July 28. Blah. The next 4 weeks are going to go so fast...

I feel like I haven't really been myself again yet since Will was born... I think I need to just figure out what the new version of being myself feels like. I feel like time is flying and there is always so much to do, which results in me being overwhelmed and neglecting things that aren't directly related to caring for baby... I assume this is normal and I will find a new rhythm...

QOTW: my wife is like super mom. She is comfortable with parenting, and she just seems to be made for this. I am more tentative and nervous and worried that I will "screw things up" ... So I guess if I had to point out something that bugs me it would be that sometimes I feel like I need her too much and she is a crutch for me that I need to lean in in order to be a mom. I think some of that is in my head. I also am a control freak, and it is sooooo weird to take my wife's lead - it is not our usual dynamic. None of this is a bad thing, but just an adjustment as we discover our parenting styles both together and individually...

And here is a new Will pic, just cuz...

trisholio · June 2014

M and K are doing great! They spent most of the weekend with my wife while I was at the hospital with my sister while she was in labor. I was a little nervous about her handling them for the entire day and putting them to bed on her own, but she did awesome. I don't know why I doubted her. She does things differently than me at times, but she is so great with both girls. It also gave her and baby K some time to bond without me around. She is now giving high 5's, its super adorable!

I am not sure if it is 3rd trimester exhaustion or lack of sleep from this weekend but today was really rough. It was a struggle to get off the couch and by the time my wife got home I broke down in tears. Most days are tolerable, but there are days I am so overwhelmed with everything we have going on right now. I think it is also a reality check that we lost our 'back up' help since my sister had her baby this weekend. My sister loved spending time with the girls and so did my mom, but neither will be much help for awhile, so we are on our own to finish preparing for our baby and raising the girls. My wife is also starting a new position at work and her hours are changing slightly, she will be working until 6pm instead of getting off at 3:30 in the afternoon. So I feel like I have extra hours with the girls on my own. She is on that schedule for 6 weeks and then will be required to work 10 hours overtime a week. It all just seems like a lot right now preparing for our little one's arrival around 9 weeks from now. Whew! I am done being a debbie downer, some days just take more out of me than others.

QOTD: Like I said before my wife and I do things differently sometimes, I try and be patient with her but its hard at times. She is more of the playful one at times and doesn't think of bad things happening or anticipating kids getting hurt, so the times the girls have gotten hurt have been on her watch. I know none of it was intentional and upset her, she just looks at things differently than I do. She very much thinks like a "dad" that can be good or bad, just depending on the situation.

JGY · July 2014

Finally catching up on my bumping a bit. Yay!

Hugs to all those who need one ... Parenting is a trying journey, for sure. But so worth it.

Not too much new to report. We had a busy weekend, including the Pride parade (see pic below). G got lots of attention, it was really fun. We also found out that if we want to go out to eat, we have MUCH better luck with a Brunch buffet than somewhere that we have to wait for food. We can stagger our eating, and it's all hot and ready when we want it. Awesome discovery. The bloody mary for Mom doesn't hurt either.

Took Mr. G to the Dr. last night because he has 2 really strange bite-looking things. Though everything is fine and they are not tick-related (my big fear), the Dr. confirmed she would have brought him in too, had he been her kid. They look really painful, but apparently aren't bothering him any. Thank goodness.

In happy news, we had a longer conversation about considering TTC again. We're no closer to making a decision, but we did broach the topics of multiples and having a kid with some developmental issues. We will probably talk more this weekend as we're traveling, and that seems to be when we have the most time to chat.

QOTD: I aboslutely LOVE that S is fun. She comes up with ways to entertain G that I would never think of. Dr's appointment with just me? Disaster. Dr's appointment with S? New uses for gloves, cups, paper towels, trash cans .. you name it. I also love love love that she has special music that they share together. It's awesome.

On the what-drives-me-crazy side, well ... she has this tendancy to point out what I might have done wrong, right after G hurts himself. You know that moment when you're thinking "Oh man, why did I do that/why did I let HIM do that?" That hurts my feelings. Also, she hasn't done any reading on cognitive development in kids, so she doesn't get that her natural discipline tendancies might not be developmentally appropriate. And she doesn't really want to listen to me telling her either (but isn't about to read up). That's frustrating because it puts us on different parenting pages.

But honestly, she's a great parent. And I am SO appreciative that I get to do this whole parenting thing with her. Moments of frustration? Sure. But overall there's a lot more joy.

redrockmama · July 2014

I'm a day late...this seems to be my trend lately. I try to mobile bump and it just never works. This weekend was so busy. I probably overdid it a tad. Saturday we ran around getting last minute things for M's naming ceremony on Sunday. Sunday we had a naming ceremony, which went well. It was great to have so many friends and family there to welcome M into the family.

Our midwife came to the ceremony and talked to me a lot about taking it easy and all my crazy post-partum hormones. I seriously cry all the time (and I'm not a crier). She seemed a little worried, but told me what to watch for PPD.

Then, she came over again yesterday and checked M out and looked at my incision. Incision is great apparently. M was still jaundiced so she wanted me to call the ped and see if we should come in before our scheduled 2 week visit on Thursday. They wanted us to bring him in last night. Turns out he is still pretty below his birth weight and his bili level was 15, not treatable but not good either. The Dr. watched him nurse and I guess he's pretty lazy most of the time. We did a weighed feeding and he went up 1.5 oz which doesn't seem to bad to me. The doc wants me to have him nurse 10 min each side and then pump. I pumped last night after feeding him and got 1 oz. It didn't seem worth it, but I will keep it up. We go back tomorrow evening for another weight check. I hope this will jumpstart him and he'll start eating more vigorously on his own. Such a stressful day.

But here is a pic of M at his naming ceremony, we planted some Orion geraniums for him.

ATXmommas · July 2014

@redrockmama‌ - I don't have time to respond in full right now, but just wanted to let you know that the weight issue is very familiar to me. Ash was slow to gain weight and I went through the ringer of emotions trying to put weight on him - including pumping after every feeding, which was horrible and made me cry all the time. Eventually, my peanut started gaining well. I will say that getting a full ounce after nursing is pretty awesome! At times, I would get just 20ml or so.

Mystjava · July 2014

@redrockmama‌ -- I can echo what you are going through.. my LO had done same thing four years ago. Give M some sun, vit D - which helps knock off those bil (bullies!). Another thing -- give yourself some time -- when your milk really comes in, M will gain his weight...

As for us, LO and I are restless, we want to travel and camp! His most recent stats (from WIC - 42" tall, 36#... his weight is a concern for them - he lost weight from our last visit with them.) LO also had a fever last week -- we had a strange conversation with the doctor's office that they only want us to bring him in when his fever hits 105° -- my partner and I disagreed with them but didn't tell them..sigh!
My favorite thing this week is my LO's exploring of different fruits and veggies!

CageyMack · July 2014

Hi All!

Life has been pretty crazy lately--I've been watching a friend's kiddo, too, so we are just busy all day, every day! I've been reading a lot of the posts, but can't seem to find the time to type!

W is just growing by leaps and bounds--and finally starting to verbalize. He now says "dog" pretty well, and has a few other noises that he makes that are attempts at words: fish, water, and could say "mama" if he wanted. He is imitating us like crazy, though, will watch our mouths really intently and try to make words for few times. Then he stops trying, but keeps watching. I know he is just filing away.

QOTW: I love that my DW loves our kids so very much. She prioritizes them really well. She also has endless patience--from bouncing our newborn W to sleep, to staying calm when he is in a toddler mood. She is a wonderful mom! What don't I like? That's tough to say, because really I think she does an amazing job. I suppose sometimes she can be, in my opinion, over-protective. I'm much more likely to let W climb on the couch or do some silly (and dangerous!) thing. But I think her perspective balances mine out and is a good match.

Pinkspark · July 2014

mwagner25 said:

@pinkspark you always seem to have such a great attitude. I don't know how you do it. I hope the Plummer gets you guys all fixed up from that perspective today. It sounds like you guys are doing a great job with your two little ones.

Three words: Funny Youtube Videos

redrockmama · July 2014

Mystjava ATXmommas the support and advice are great

We went back to the Dr. last night and he had gained 1.5 oz and his stools are more yellow now. Hurray. Still pumping after nursing most of the time. I hope after our next visit I can stop the pumping, or at least soon. I do not love it.

ATXmommas · July 2014

@redrockmama‌ - glad to hear about M's weight gain and yellow poops! I meant to come back here to tell you that I wouldn't be overly concerned about slower than normal weight gain. Not that you don't want to be conscious of it and make efforts to get him to eat more, but in all likelihood he will catch up at some point. It took over 2 weeks for Ash to get back to birth weight and after that he only gained 3-4oz/week for a while. Once he hit 3 months he started gaining about 8 oz/week until 5-6 months when weight gain typically slows down. Our pedi had me fret about supply and pushed me to supplement even though his weighed feedings were all good. But the thing was - he always looked healthy, was alert, happy, and displaying developmentally appropriate behaviors. I would have never have thought to be worried if the dr hadn't made me worry. Not trying to diminish the dr's role - it's their job to worry about weight gain - I just think they can be a bit alarmist. Even my dad who is a doctor (a GP) told me that many times in the early months when I was so worried. I know from reading your posts that you are a resourceful sync conscientious person, but I just wanted to offer you some reflections on my own experiences. I was in such an emotional postpartum fog in the early days and relished all the support I could get. Looking forward to hearing more about M! How do you pronounce his name, by the way (if you are ok with sharing)?

Parenting Check-In (June 30th)

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