My 1 Lb Miracle Enjoying the Snow

Sorry this isn't working. I'll get it reposted tomorrow.

So Fun Snow Day

Great, great snow day today. Olivia and Ryan went out after lunch and she had the time of her life. She just kept saying,"This is the life!" I have a cute sledding video that I'll try to get posted later. And it's rumored that we might get another foot of snow on Sun/Mon. Wow, I really wish I owned a pair of snow boots.

Not So Fun Snow Day

I'm so frustrated today. We got over 14 inches of snow (second most snow fall on record here ) and I was inside with a sweet baby screaming in pain. Olivia should have been outside having fun and making memories. At least there is always tomorrow. Ryan had to work (from home at least) and I couldn't put Abigail down. I literally stood for hours with her singing Rockin' Robin. For some reason that's the only song I found that soothed her. LOL! I don't know what's wrong. I had continued breastfeeding (and got my supply up) and barely supplemented with regular Similac because I had really thought my antibiotic was causing the problem. That was a mistake. We have her back on Alimentum only. She refuses the powdered kind, so we have to get the ready to feed kind. Maybe it is a dairy allergy or maybe it is reflux. You can hear something coming up right before she cries. And the more she cries, the worse it is. She's on Zantac, but it hasn't been weight adjusted and honestly, it did nothing for Olivia. She needed Prilosec or Prevacid. Abigail has a 99.5 temp and has barely slept all day, so maybe she has a touch of something (although they tell me a rectal temp isn't a fever until 100.4.) She is miserable! I feel so bad for her and so bad for Olivia as I know she hasn't had a fun day. Please pray that we figure out what is going on! I just need answers. :(

Looks like tomorrow is snow day #3, so maybe it will be better.

Snow Day

Olivia’s preschool was canceled this afternoon as were a lot of other schools around.  We are expecting around 10 inches total by tomorrow.  Olivia was thrilled as we haven’t had a decent snow since she was 3 years old and she doesn’t really remember that.  I was thrilled because I really needed a day at home to do nothing!  And we did nothing!  We stayed in our pajamas all day, watched Netflix, cuddled and played. 

Olivia played with Abigail too!  I put her in the swing so that I could eat lunch and she started fussing a bit.  So, Olivia sat down on her step stool and talked with her.  Then, she ended up putting toys in front of her and singing and dancing.  Abigail loved every minute of it and when Olivia would get up to go get something, Abigail would cry.  It just warmed my heart. 

Daddy got to come home from work early and Olivia got to go outside to play.  We are hoping to get a snowman built tomorrow. 

While Olivia and daddy were outside, Abigail and I were staying warm inside.  And this little girl had one full, happy tummy.

Later tonight, on her 3 month birthday, she showed off her mad skills.  Look at that head and arm strength!  So proud of her!

What a great snow day!  Looks like tomorrow is a lot of the same.

3 Months

Not only is it a snow day with preschool canceled, but we decided to stay in our pajamas all day. I could sure use a day of rest today with this awful cold. And more importantly, Abigail is 3 months old today! She weighs almost 12 lbs ( about 11.8 lbs) and smiles and babbles up a storm. Her favorite word is ahh-goo. So in love with this girl!

ADHD

I'm really needing some advice from moms of kids with ADHD. Olivia is not officially diagnosed, but we strongly suspect that is what she has. Most everyone who meets her, suspects it as well as she has such a hard time sitting still. Most of the time, she is in constant motion and has been like this since she was a baby. She learned to walk before she could stand. To me, this isn't a problem as I know I can't expect her to sit still for a lengthy period of time. (Come kindergarten, it may be.) Some people stare at us as if to say,"Why can't you make your child sit still?" And that just infuriates me. She has a constant need to keep moving and isn't hurting anyone. The majority of the time, she listens very well and I couldn't ask for a better behaved child. But, at times it is a problem. Her impulsivity and hyperactivity sometimes get her into trouble. It's like a switch gets flipped and I "lose" her. She starts laughing, running around and I can't "bring her back" without threatening her. Then, she says," I was just laughing and being happy." Any advice on how to calm your child in those instances or how to teach them to calm themselves? I don't know what the trigger is and when to expect these outbursts and I pray I'm not in public. Sometimes it is brought on by fatigue, but other than that, I don't know when to expect it. I could really use some more strategies to help her. And to better understand why she acts this way. Any advice would be appreciated.

Rediscovering

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

A few weeks ago, I got a coupon code for a free udder cover nursing cover. I had forgotten all about it until it came in the mail today, personalized with Abigail's name. Awwww, so I'm still nursing. LOL! I think she has only pooped 2 times today and it wasn't diarrhea, so I think the problem was my antibiotic. Now, to build my supply back up.

I also woke up feeling like I was hit by a truck! I mean, my head was seriously going to explode. I had Abigail's appt at the chiropractor and called to cancel because I didn't know if I'd make it out of my pajama pants. They told me to come in because he could help me. So, while we are there, he adjusts my neck and does acupuncture on my sinuses! Instant relief!! I am not kidding. The pressure went away and now all I have is tons of drainage down my throat. I'm so grateful that I hopefully won't need another antibiotic, especially after how it affected Abigail. I still don't feel great, but I'm functional again. Crazy!

9 pm: Ok, so the relief only lasts about 5-6 hours. Now I'm back to feeling like I got hit by a truck again. Ugh.

Monday, February 18, 2013

Ok, so she won't take the powdered Alimentum, but will drink the RTF (ready to feed) kind. Hmmm. Still breastfeeding and supplementing with Alimentum. I still kinda blame my antibiotic, so I'm curious if she gets better in a few days. She is, however, a happier baby thanks to Dr. Scharenberg. Her tummy is super soft, no bloating and a lot less gas. I'd definitely recommend him if your baby has colic and tummy troubles. We have a few more days of treatment. In talking with him over the past 2 weeks, he thinks he may be able to help me with my restless legs. Often if you can increase circulation in your legs, you can find relief. That makes sense since massages and hot baths help ( which increase blood flow.) I have started using a body brush on my legs at night and they definitely feel more invigorated. I also bought a foam roller to massage my legs with. They definitely both help in the short term, but when I stop, the restlessness returns. I'm doubtful that anyone can help, but I'm willing to try. I don't want to live with this for the rest of my life!!

Anyway, that's what is going on here. Some days I still can't believe these two girls are mine. Seriously. I sit in complete awe of them. And feel so blessed and so lucky and so grateful. Just amazing sometimes.

Feeding Dilemma

At first Abigail was taking the Alimentum, but now she is refusing anything but breast milk. Even when I know she is hungry, she will not eat until I nurse her. So, not sure what to do. My supply is way down. I've found an alternative to dairy milk ( Almond milk, which I often drink) and to butter ( Earth Balance buttery spread) but have no idea what to do about cheese. I couldn't find any vegan cheese at the store. It's in so many of my recipes, as is all of the cream soups, etc. And the protein bars that I live on have dairy as well and it took me months to find a protein bar without a lot of sugar that was edible. To me, this is one of the most difficult things about newborns: figuring out what to feed them. I pumped and bottle fed Olivia for 6 months because she never took to nursing. I also had to bottle feed to add in her medication. Plus, we had her on Neosure for weight gain. She projectile vomited almost every bottle ( that was fun ) and we finally ended up having her on Enfamil AR which she kept down a lot better. But trying to figure out what my babies would do best on is such a struggle for me. And this no dairy thing is harder than it sounds, especially when you have a family to feed. I find it such a coincidence that her diarrhea problems started right after I got on my antibiotic. She went from going every 3-4 days to 10-15 times per day. So I'm not completely convinced that it is a milk protein allergy. But I'm now off my antibiotic and it hasn't improved, so maybe it is. Just wish I knew what to do.

Sunday, February 17, 2013

We took Olivia and Abigail to the zoo today ( it was Abigail's first time.) It was 66 degrees out! We didn't stay too long because 1) I STILL have a cold. I haven't been well all month. 2) Ryan STILL has trouble breathing. And 3) Abigail wasn't too impressed with being in her stroller. She also missed her nap and went to bed at 6 pm. But Olivia had a lot of fun with her cousins and it was great to see them! I just want to get drunk on cold medicine and sleep for a few days. Ugh. But I'm still technically nursing, so. . . I have just come to the conclusion that I'll never feel 100% again.