Yawn

Baby = Sleep Deprivation

Back up to 7 pounds

Yesterday, Maddie had another weigh-in and we and the pediatrician were thrilled that she is back up to 7 pounds. She gained 8 ounces in just 5 days!

Things are going well in general. Jessica is spending her days taking care of the baby, which is proving to be a time consuming task! Nights are still rough, but Madeline seems to be moving toward a regular schedule... even if that means waking up every 3 hours!

She likes the Swing

Today we put Madeline in her swing for the first time and she seems to like it. At least while she is sleeping!

Also, most of her umbilical cord fell off, so now we'll be able to give her a real bath instead of just a sponge bath.

Other than that, we are down to our last few days of both of us at home as it is back to work for me on Monday. :(

Pediatrician Appointment

Madeline had her 2nd pediatrician appointment today and while she is very healthy, we're told her weight gain needs to increase.

So to further that, we've rented a heavy duty pump that will let us supplement what Madeline is taking out. Jessica is also taking fenugreek, an herb that is supposed to promote lactation.

Maddie's next weigh-in will be Tuesday morning.

Life with a baby and lack of sleep

Things are going well, but we are operating on not much sleep!

Here are some highlights (not comprehensive) since birth:

January 6
- Madeline is born at 8:28 am and stays awake for 3 hours straight!
- Family visits us and meets the newest member of the family.
- That night, we get about 2 hours sleep, as Madeline is up almost all night.

January 7
- A pediatrician visits and so does Dr. Marks
- Madeline passes her hearing test
- More family visits
- We get 1 hour of sleep that night. Definitely the worst night so far. Even the pacifiers don't work.

January 8
- Jessica is discharged by Dr. Marks and Madeline is discharged by Dr. Black
- We bring Madeline home around 2 pm. She sleeps through the car trip.
- We actually get several hours of sleep as we alternate our sleep schedules and get better at meeting Madeline's feeding and changing needs.

January 9
- 1st pediatrician visit with Dr. Allison. Everything goes smoothly (except for having to change her twice in the exam room!). Madeline lands at the 70% percentile in length, 30% in weight, and 50% in head size. Her next appointment is next Thursday.
- Madeline goes for her first stroller trip around the neighborhood. She sleeps through about all of it.
- A bit rougher night than the night before, but still way better than the hospital.

January 10
- Jessica is really getting the hang of breast feeding now and her milk is coming in.
- Brad runs out to some stores looking for smaller baby clothes since almost all her clothing is for 8+ pound babies and Madeline is now about 6 pounds 9 ounces (perfectly normal according to the Dr.)
- The night goes fairly smoothly, getting up every few hours and changing and feeding as requested.

January 11
- All of the morning is spent sleeping and feeding.
- Aunt Eirin has arrived to help!

Back Home

We're back at home after being discharged from the hospital. We are totally exhausted! Madeline has her clocks backwards and is apparently a wonderfully calm daytime baby and a very fussy nighttime baby. After an all-night labor and two nights of crying Baby, we are operating on very very little sleep. Jessica is trying to nap now in anticipation of another tough night, while I am trying to keep Madeline from waking her.

Sierra (our dog) met Madeline for the first time today and while I think she didn't know what to make of the baby at first (friend to sniff, chew toy, unidentified object?), after a couple hours, when Sierra saw a breast feeding session, followed shortly by us rocking a screaming baby, a sudden wave of realization (and anxiety) swept across her face and now she appears to be guarding her.

We have a bunch of stuff to unpack, unwrap, and set up still. Plus, the hospital gave us a whole bunch of pads, cloths, diapers, formula, and some other various goodies we are using to make our changing and feeding stations better! We learned a lot from the nurses in the hospital!

Madeline Rachel Loewy has Arrived!

Jessica delivered Madeline Rachel Loewy at 8:28am, on January 6, 2007 after 15+ hours labor. Mom and Baby are doing super! Dr. Marks was the OB at delivery. Stacy (until 7 am) and Michele (through delivery) were our nurses who got everyone through a tough all-night labor.

Madeline weighed in a tad under 7 pounds, 3 ounces. She was 20 inches in length. Dad got to cut the cord. She is beautiful (we are exhausted), and we'll get pictures up asap.