Dexter gained 12.8 ounces since his last weight check six days ago! He's now back above his birth weight (yay!), and we can relax - a little - about his feedings. He's still peeing and pooping like mad (skills he displayed in grand style at the doctor's office), and he looks good from head to toe.
I'm still not producing nearly enough milk for him, but I'm getting more OK with that. He still gets plenty enough to have good poops and get some immunity and nutrition benefit. Hopefully I'm getting some of those magic benefits, too.
And, since I feel badly when I post without any pictures, here are some 2-week pictures of our champion weight gainer. He wasn't feeling very cooperative that day.
Well, thank goodness for Google, which has saved us yet another call to the pediatrician.
We were quite surprised last night to find bright green poop in Dexter's diaper. Apparently this is normal and has many causes, including consumption of iron-fortified formula (of which he is getting plenty, so that's where our money is) and a possible foremilk/hindmilk imbalance (less likely, but also possible).
(He was not nearly as upset about the green poop as this picture would lead you to believe.)
Or, this was one of his pooping faces on Monday (10/13), at least. Really, he doesn't so much have a pooping face as he just freezes mid-expression while he poops.
To those who claim breastfeeding is free, I call you on your BS.
So far, we've spent $20 on herbal drops to increase my milk supply, $45 on a lactation consult, and $45 in additional pediatric co-pays for Dexter's repeated "weight check" visits. If I didn't have such a generous friend in Danielle L., you could add $300 for a breast pump to that total.
Yet, we still try. Dexter hadn't gained any weight between last Saturday and yesterday (5 days). The new approach is to nurse him for every feeding AND supplement him for every feeding. This way, he gets at least 16 oz of formula each day, which should be consistent with his needs for his current size, plus however much breastmilk comes from ~320 minutes of breastfeeding each day.
That's right. We're spending over 5 hours/day just breastfeeding. And I'm pumping some in between. We're trying to give it until the next weight check (Wednesday, 10/22).
The good news is that he isn't losing weight, and he's still/again peeing and pooping like a champ. So we're not worried at this point about dehydration or anything like that. But if he isn't gaining enough weight, something will obviously need to change. I think the next plan will be all bottles (even though that nearly eliminates the "fewer ear infections" benefit of breastfeeding), with as much pumping as I can handle.
In brighter news, I've lost 24 pounds in less than 2 weeks. If I weren't so exhausted, I'd probably feel like I have a lot more energy.
Finally, it's not too exciting, but here's a video hot off the presses(?).
Well, it's been a looooooong week. And also a super short week! His little face is filling out already, which is tough for a new mom who doesn't want her sweet baby boy to change one little bit, lest she miss some of the sweet newborn goodness.
All in all, I have to say it was a good week. We left the hospital at about noon on Wednesday. Dex hadn't been the greatest eater in the hospital, so after talking with the lactation consultant, we decided to supplement with formula. I hate having to give it to him, but he obviously needs it. It turned out to be doubly good, as my milk hasn't really come in with much enthusiasm (I'm producing about 1/6 of what he probably needs), so I'm glad wewent ahead and gave him the formula early instead of having to wrestle with that decision now, without the assistance of any professionals.
We've been keeping a log of everything that goes on. I'd laugh at ourselves and call it new parent paranoia, but we barely know what day it is, never mind whether he got 2.5 or 2.25 ounces of formula at what time. For your amusement, here is the record from Saturday afternoon (~3pm - midnight).
We know from our log that Dexter has lost the Poop Champion crown that he earned on his birthday. He's twice gone for very long stretches with no poop at all (28 hours and 20 hours). Thankfully, we had existing pediatrician appointments both times. The pediatrician says he's fine, but we are continuing with a careful poop watch.
Mostly, that's been it. We are slowly figuring things out. I've had what I think is a pretty tough recovery, with yeast infection, bladder infection, and bowel issues on top of regular post-caesarian issues. Dennis has been great. As the only one in the house currently allowed to drive, he's been a real trouper about running a ton of errands every day. We're learning that we need a lot more sleep than we think and are doing a better job about getting our naps in.
For those following belly pics from the last blog, here's one from 4 days postpartum. (And, for reference, one from 4w5d and 39w1d.) We think Dexter left his luggage behind or something. Good thing we had such cute clothes for him out here! (It's gotten a little smaller since then. But geez. I promise, the baby was on the outside when that last picture was taken.) A day after we got home, I'd lost 15 pounds. Now I'm down 20 total but will definitely need to be back at Weight Watchers in January - Dexter deserves a Mom with lots of energy to run and play and jump and stuff.
In other news, Dexter's hospital photos have been online for a few days now. I'm not sure how long they will be up, but for now you can view them here. I grabbed some to save for posterity, too. We didn't buy any, because he is WAY cuter than this. No wonder I thought all of the other babies in the online nursery were not so cute. They clearly don't pay much attention to lighting and things in the mass market web nursery photography business.
Since it's taken me almost 3 days to get this post online, I'm just going to put in a bunch of pictures at this point and call it good. That's mostly what people want to see, anyway. So, lesson learned - I'll try to do better about doing more, shorter posts so I don't have so much to say when I do get around to posting.
Tiny toes, ready to go home!
Dennis's first trip to the car. He's carrying FOUR bags. Babies do somehow come with a LOT of stuff.
All belted in and ready to go!
Yes, apparently Dennis HAS to do this for at least one shot every time.
Note all of the stuff that we still had left to take with us, even after Dennis's four-bag trip earlier.
Dexter loves this giraffe. (Thanks again, Jadie!) Thanks to the newborn palmar grasp reflex, he can keep a good hold on it.And yeah, I've certainly looked better, but we all know it's not about me anymore.
Dexter's first tree. I'm not sure what kind it is, but it's roughly as tall as he is right now.
Dexter's other first tree. Again, not sure what kind, but it's about as tall as he is now. We're hoping at least one will survive and they can have a growing contest.
Granddad, Dennis, and Dexter on tree-planting day.
Dennis and Dexter play a sneaky game of peek-a-boo.
Dexter and Demonjello get to know each other. Demonjello is still a little taller than Dexter, but we'll beat him soon.
Yeah, I'm just cute sometimes.
We've also been recording some videos, mostly with the webcam, so the quality could be better.
