Friday, July 29, 2005
100 ways to be a bad mother
I must be a bad mother. Every time I speak to another mum, I discover that I'm doing something that I probably shouldn't. For example, Jack's been sleeping in his own room since he was around 6 weeks old. We don't live in a huge house; it's not like he's in another wing that requires a golf cart to get there. We can hear him quite well, but we're not waking up at every little sniffle, snort, and faux-choking noise anymore. It was getting to the point where both of us couldn't get more than a few minutes of sleep at a time, and that wasn't a good thing. He's been sleeping happily in his cot ever since; however, I seem to be the only mother who's been cruel enough to stick her firstborn in another room before the age of 6 months. I am a bad mother.
Then there's the creche (daycare) dilemma. I mentioned the fact that I leave Jack in a day nursery at my gym for about an hour, three times a week. With widened, horrified eyes, the Other Mums gasped. "Oh, I couldn't leave my baby in a day nursery." I feebly replied, "But it's OFSTED inspected and registered, and it's only for a short period of time." Bad mother.
Then there's the working dilemma. I am going back in January after a year off, which some of the Other Mums are also doing, but most are not. Although I'm sure I will miss Jack and find it extremely difficult to leave him with a relative stranger for most of the week, I'm still fairly enthusiastic about returning to work. I really enjoy my job and for various reason that I won't go into here, I feel that it's better for Jack to be with other children and adults instead of hanging out with me 24/7. I am a bad mother because I should be spending his waking hours showing him flashcards and teaching him to play the viola, while speaking to him in three languages.
Finally, there's the appearance dilemma. Jack has just discovered that he really likes being upside down - while screaming very loudly. Often times when I hold him, he flings himself backwards and lets out an enormous shriek. Passersby probably think that I'm doing some sort of chiropractic torture on my child. "No, honestly, he's enjoying himself. I know that he's screaming and the back of his head is practically touching his bum. He likes it."
Bad mother.
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
mummy's homemade applesauce
I think the jury's still out on this one.
Monday, July 25, 2005
new tricks
On Saturday, Jack tasted his first "real" (i.e. something other than baby rice) food: sweet potatoes. It's an understatement to say they were a hit.
He ate a baby food-sized bowl of the stuff and barely spilled a drop. When I first put a spoonful into his mouth, he pulled his head back and flinched. I thought I must have burned him by not checking the temperature of his food properly, but it felt lukewarm to me. I realised that the reaction was simply shock to something other than wallpaper pastey baby rice. After mouthful #2, he was eagerly opening up for each spoonful.
Yesterday, Jack supported himself on his hands while sitting up! Up until this point, he would keep rolling forward and landing face first on the floor (comical, but probably not very comfy). He sat like this, looking very pleased with himself, and played with his toys for ages.
Coming up later today: Jack tries stewed apples. Ooooh! Aaaaah!
Saturday, July 23, 2005
hand me downs bring me down
This morning, I went through all of my maternity clothes and put aside a large pile for Paul's cousin. She's due February 26, a mere 3 days after my due date this year, so my various sizes of seasonal maternity wear should work for her. There were several items that, sadly, I was still wearing up until very recently. Others I hadn't looked at for months, and it made me rather sad and nostalgic. I bought most of my clothes while we were on honeymoon in California, so that got me thinking about our time there. I found the support bras I had to wear to bed almost from the moment I got pregnant, which got me thinking about my early pregnancy days. There was the red and gold filmy blouse I wore at Christmas, the tops and jeans emergency purchase we made at Sears when American Airlines lost my luggage in San Francisco, the hundreds of breast pads I didn't get around to using up because I was unsuccessful at breastfeeding, and my top with the boy symbol on it that made people smile when they "got" it.
At least, unlike my wedding gown, I know that I can wear these clothes again one day - it just feels a bit weird to pass them along. I'm not really sure why this is making me get so sentimental and soppy. I really, really (really) don't want to be pregnant again at the moment, but I truly miss it. I wonder, is this Mother Nature's way of compelling us to go through the whole thing again one day?
Tuesday, July 19, 2005
beach baby
On Sunday, we went to Tankerton beach, just outside of Whitstable in Kent. It was Jack's first trip to the seaside, and he was a bit nonchalant about the whole thing.
Once he woke up, he thoroughly enjoyed himself. He entertained himself for hours by giggling at the parasol flapping in the wind.
Paul helped him dip his toes into the sea for the very first time. It was so cold, his poor little feet turned blue just from that quick dip!
It was a beautiful day. We had a picnic on the beach and sat in the glorious sunshine for hours. I love this country - you're never that far from the coast. I don't think that novelty will ever wear off with me.
Thursday, July 14, 2005
more milestones
I've been wondering if Jack's ready for solids. I think the answer is yes:
Jack had his first solid meal today, and it went down a treat. He's been guzzling his milk down and crying for more, so I thought it was time to introduce Jack to the exciting world of baby rice. It's the second time he's tasted it, but this was the first time he ate a substantial amount. The books said that babies may only take half a teaspoon to a teaspoon at first, and not to force the food into his mouth. Fair enough, I thought. Jack had a taste, and like the first time, it sat on his tongue. The second spoon got a bigger reaction with lots of lip smacking and a huge grin. By the third or fourth spoonful, he opened his mouth eagerly as soon as he saw the spoon coming and moved his head forward to get to it more quickly. Eventually, he grabbed the spoon out of my hand and shoved it into his mouth himself. Half a teaspoon to a teaspoon? Try over a tablespoon, plus a 7oz bottle of formula.
I always said that I would take cues from Jack to see when he was ready to wean. Grabbing food out of my hand and getting really grumpy when the bowl was empty are fairly clear signs, I'd say. Considering his genes, I'm expecting to find him in the fridge at midnight eating leftovers directly out of their containers.
Second milestone this week: Jack found his toes!
Tuesday, July 12, 2005
bouncing baby boy
Baby purchase du jour: a door frame bouncer. Jack loves standing up - if you try to get him to sit up, he'll lift himself up to a standing position - and when he stands he stomps his right foot like he's a fiddle player. I figured that this standing/foot stomping combo could best be accomplished with the aid of a bouncer. He absolutely loves it.
Action shot!
Monday, July 11, 2005
feed me, seymour
At 20 weeks, Jack reached another milestone today - his first taste of baby rice. He's been showing an interest in eating lately (or what I interpret to be an interest) and I was curious to see if he's ready for solids yet. As per all the NHS literature my health visitor brought for me, I put a tiny amount of complementary organic baby rice (also courtesy of my health visitor) thinned out with formula on the tip of my finger and let Jack have a taste. It sat on his tongue while he grinned at me and waved his arms around. "Are you actually going to eat that?" I asked, as he continued to smile and wave at me. After a minute or two the rice disappeared, but I wasn't entirely convinced that he was even aware that it was in his mouth. He's had toys, blankets, and dog hairs in there before; a miniscule amount of watery baby rice probably didn't seem out of the ordinary. I took a bit more rice and fed it to him, and a tiny frown creased his brow. Then a massive grin, lots of tongue-clucking, and hand-slapping on the table. I think he liked it.
I don't know if I'll continue to wean at this point or wait and see if he'll be happy to continue with bottle only. I'm leaning more towards the latter because he's not really showing the "classic" signs of wanting solids yet. Although he's been very interested in watching me eat and stuffing everything he can into his mouth, he actually seems less hungry lately. He gets through about half of his bottle, then he turns his head away to look around and just chews on the teat. He usually has five 7oz bottles in 24 hours, but lately every other feed has only been half a bottle. Maybe he's getting bored of the same menu, day in day out. Jumbalya probably looks a heck of a lot more interesting than white fluid out of a plastic bottle.
In other news, all my blood tests came back fine so I'm just an overtired, bloated mama. I've started taking dandelion root capsules for the fluid retention and evening primrose oil to sort out my wonky cycles. And I've decided that our scale is a lying sack of meconium and I'm not speaking to it at the moment.
Sunday, July 10, 2005
work it out
During pregnancy, I decided that I wouldn't watch what I ate. If I wanted a roast dinner, then we'd have one. If I wanted Nutella on homemade banana bread, then I'd snarf down a slice with tea. I'm not really a huge fan of junk food (although I did go through my Burger King phase), but I am a fan of good food...and lots of it. So, like the hungry caterpillar, I ate my way through pregnancy and beyond. Recently, I got to the point where I knew the fun had to end. It's a bit like when you visit the States and you eat those big American portions of everything with extreme glee (and with a side of fries), but after about five days, you just really want a salad. These are my salad days.
Paul and I have been eating healthily for the past two weeks, and we both feel so much better for it. We're joining our local leisure centre, which is not only a billion times nicer than my former gym, it's staffed by far friendlier people - and it's cheaper! For £57 a month, both of us can use all the facilities and attend any of the classes, plus the creche (daycare) is included. I really like the idea of working out during the day when it's not as busy and I can get some Lisa time while Jack gets looked after by the day nursery. I finally feel ready to start exercising again. I felt very fragile after the c-section and even after most of the pain subsided, I still wasn't confident about working out. Doing the Race for Life walk built up my confidence, and I'm not as afraid of splitting in two if I try to lift a dumbbell.
And on a totally unrelated tangent, here are some pictures. Jack as Mother Teresa:
It's a baby eat dog world:
Friday, July 08, 2005
flippin' heck
Almost three weeks ago, Jack discovered that he can roll on to his tummy. It was a very exciting moment for all of us, and we were very pleased indeed. Ever since that day, Jack likes to demonstrate this new ability to me throughout the day - while I try to feed him, bathe him, and change his nappy.
Flipping over all day long is tiring work!
Monday, July 04, 2005
busy beaver
We've had a very busy, but very fun weekend. On Friday night, we looked after baby Lucy (one of our NCT friends is her mummy, and part of our babysitting circle) who is about a week older than Jack. Every time she sees him, she tries to eat his hand:
It was lovely having her here, but man, we have a whole new respect for the parents of twins. Everything went very smoothly until Jack made a noise and woke Lucy up (they were both upstairs sleeping in Jack's room). Lucy started crying her little eyes out, which of course got Jack going too. One would quiet down, then the other would start up again, prompting the Screaming Baby Chorus once again. I walked around with Lucy and gave her a bottle while Paul calmed Jack down. How on earth do single mums of twins do it?!
On Saturday, we had our Canada Day BBQ which was huge amounts of fun. My aunt and uncle come here almost every year to their timeshare in the Lake District, and they were able to come down to see us at the end of their holiday. On Sunday, I did the Race for Life in Cambridge, but for some strange reason, prams/strollers were not allowed so Jack had to stay on the sidelines with Paul. You could carry your baby on the walk, but I think my back would have snapped in two if I carried Jack in the Active Carrier for 5k.
Jack has been blowing raspberries throughout the day and night lately, he's been stuffing everything into his mouth, drooling, and being slightly cranky - could teething be on its way? I went to the doctor's today to get an inhaler (my allergies have gone completely nuts this year and my asthma has returned) and I need to go back to get some blood tests. He's checking my thyroid (some women get thyroid problems after pregnancy), liver and kidneys, and doing a blood count to check for anemia. I've been very tired and pregnancy puffiness is still plaguing me, so he's trying to rule some things out (an underactive thyroid might explain this and my wonky periods). In the end, I could just be a sleep-deprived mother with fat hands and ankles, but it's nice to know for sure either way.
And finally, apparently this is a comfortable position in which to watch television:
