3 Week Postpartum & Baby Update

MAMA

Recovery – I think I’m almost there with recovery. The bleeding comes and goes but is a lot lighter. Going to the *ahem* toilet is more comfortable now so I think my ‘graze/tear’ must be pretty much healed. Woop. 

Body – my tummy is still flattening but it (obviously) has no muscle tone whatsoever haha! I got sent the Belly Bandit bamboo corset and Mothertucker leggings so am wearing them religiously to improve my posture and help my tummy flatten down even more. My boobs are still a bit crazy whilst they figure out the breastfeeding chat with L! I’m finding it weird to have to watch what I’m eating again. 

Mood – I’m in a much better place now. The cloud seems to have lifted a bit and now that feeding is going better, I’m feeling more positive. I still have days where everything goes wrong and I’m on the brink of tears all day but I don’t cry half as much as I have done for the past two weeks. Thank goodness!

BABY

Weight/Height – Baby L got back up to 8lbs 6oz earlier this week and then 8lbs 13oz later in the week – yay! Thank goodness.

Feeding – drum roll…….he’s latching! We’ve turned a corner!!! The appointments at the chiropractor are really helping him with his jaw and gums and I think it’s made a big difference to our feeding journey. She’s trying to release tension in his back as well, which is great. He latches well most times now and it’s only painful for the first 5-10 seconds. Sometimes he fusses a lot before going on but he does it eventually. I don’t feel like I have enough milk sometimes so he gets topped up with expressed milk and then one bottle of formula at night.

Routine – still no routine but hoping to implement one once he’s a month old. His day usually goes:

• wake up 8.30am after getting up through the night.
• Feed for 25-30 mins. Usually just on one side.
• He usually stays awake till his next feed so I try to entertain him a bit with his play gym.
• 11am – feed again for about 30-60 mins.
• Naps for a few hours – this seems to be the longest stretch of sleeping he does.
• 3pm – feeds again. Can be 30-60 mins.
• Likes to watch Isla and everyone else for a bit and dozes in and out of sleep.
• 5pm – feeds. 30 mins.
• 7.30pm – feeds. 30-60 mins. Sometimes give a top up of formula at this point as he can start getting a bit fussy and would feed all night if he could. Not ideal with a toddler who needs her teatime and bedtime routine doing. 
• I try to keep him awake at this point of the night.
• 9-10pm – feeds for 20 – 45 mins usually.
• Bedtime. I change him into a fresh sleepsuit and nappy before his last feed so he’s usually good to go and I just swaddle him before putting him down in his Sleepyhead, in his Snuzpod.
• Sometimes needs another feed to get him off to sleep.
• 3.30am – feeds for about an hour.
• 5.30-6am – feeds for about 30 mins.
• 7.30am – usually feeds again for 30 mins.

Sleeping – sleeping is all over the place. A good night is him going to bed at 11, after a feed, getting up at 3.30am-ish for another feed and change, then going back to sleep till about 6am before needing another feed and change. A bad night is him being up from 11pm – 3am then just generally sleeping on and off for the rest of the night/morning. Hard work!

Size – he’s still in newborn/first size/up to 1 month clothes. 

Development – oh my goodness he’s so alert. Too alert! I need more naps out of him to get things done! He’s taking a lot more interest in everyone’s faces and responds to noise more.

What we’ve been up to – we’ve just been finding our feet really. Trying to get out of the house as much as possible and see friends. Halloween was fun! Big sister Little I dressed up as a witch and L was a White skeleton. We took L to I’s nursery Halloween party and she loved showing him off. It was my dad’s birthday as well so we got him some treats and put up some decorations!