Like a lot of first time mothers, I knew I wanted to breastfeed. I don't know whether it was because of my fertility struggles or because I had placenta previa (that required me to have a c-section) but I was determined to breastfeed at any cost. I felt like I couldn't conceive or deliver a baby without help but I was going to feed my baby, no matter what!
While I was in hospital, breastfeeding seem to come very naturally to me and I thought 'this is great I'm one of the lucky ones'. My nipples were sore but I knew this was normal with early breastfeeding. Once I was home I was consistently on the look out for early signs of mastitis but didn't even think about how sore my nipples were getting. Looking back on this time, I didn't realise the pain medication I was on, was probably blocking the extent of my nipple pain.
About a week in I felt lumps in my right breast so I immediately starting draining this breast, massaging etc. to get rid of the lumps. I even made an appointment with a lactation consultant to check it out. By the time of my appointment I had managed to get rid of the lumps before they were infected but now my right nipple had started to grow more and more painful. The lactation consultant had a look at the nipple and found a wet spot. The wet spot was a crack in the nipple which was being prevented from healing because of it location. The lactation consultant advised me to keep it dry and it would heal within a couple of weeks.
Well it took five weeks to fully heal and those five weeks were so painful a few times I thought about giving up. The pain was 'toe curling' and I dreaded every time I had to feed James. Thankfully expressing wasn't as painful, so in the end I expressed from my right breast instead of feeding directly and give James the milk from a bottle. Another couple of days of this pain and I think I would have stopped feeding. I can see how for some ladies, breastfeeding is too painful.
Four months in and I'm so glad I persevered. I now enjoy feeding James and spending this time with him. I had originally thought I would breastfeed until James was six months, but now we are getting closer to this time, I think I will continue for another couple of months. We are hoping to try for another baby when James turns one, so I would like to have a bit of 'time off' before we go down the TTC road again.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Too soon...
We have a video monitor so we can keep an eye on James when he sleeps in his room. In the early days it was a blessing and a curse. A blessing when he finally went to sleep and we could see him relaxed. And a curse because watching him becomes very addictive and things just don't get done when we start watching him.
Lately the video monitor has been a way to watch James' nautical work out. He has become quite the mover and shaker when he goes into his cot. We always put him on his back to start off but he soon rolls onto his side then moves to face the foot of the cot. Then he rolls onto his belly to sleep. Sometimes he won't make it onto his belly and falls asleep on his side, it's so cute.
I knew this is one of the reasons that you put a baby into a cot, to keep them enclosed. But I thought this kind of rolling and moving into different positions wouldn't happen for months or at least until our little man was six months. It seems too early, at four months, to be able to do this. Or maybe I'm having a hard time accepting he is getting older and is going to continue to surprise me.
Lately the video monitor has been a way to watch James' nautical work out. He has become quite the mover and shaker when he goes into his cot. We always put him on his back to start off but he soon rolls onto his side then moves to face the foot of the cot. Then he rolls onto his belly to sleep. Sometimes he won't make it onto his belly and falls asleep on his side, it's so cute.
I knew this is one of the reasons that you put a baby into a cot, to keep them enclosed. But I thought this kind of rolling and moving into different positions wouldn't happen for months or at least until our little man was six months. It seems too early, at four months, to be able to do this. Or maybe I'm having a hard time accepting he is getting older and is going to continue to surprise me.
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Losing my hair...
I have thin, straight, brown hair. It's pretty boring really but when I was pregnant, I enjoyed the good "pregnant hair". In a matter of weeks, my hair turned from lifeless to full of body and very luscious (if I do say myself). It sounds like a shampoo hair commercial! Three and a half months of post-pregnancy has turned my hair back into the old lifeless hair I had before. But it seems to be falling out. I've done a bit of research and this is normal but it is so annoying! I've left hair everywhere, all over the bathroom, clothes, hair brush, my car and even on poor James. Apparently the shedding will slow down over the next few months so I'll just have to wear hats until then!
In other news James is growing like a weed. I can't believe he'll be four months next week. He's weight gain has slowed down but he's getting longer. I've even starting putting him into jumpsuits for six to nine months olds just to get the length.
One year ago today I had the FET that would eventually become a BFP and then our son. It's still difficult to imagine this living breathing little boy was the blasty we saw on the microscope a year ago. And it even makes me a little sadder about our first failed IVF and the baby that blasty might have been. We still have one Frostie ready when we are and that makes me a little excited about who that (hopefully) will become.
In other news James is growing like a weed. I can't believe he'll be four months next week. He's weight gain has slowed down but he's getting longer. I've even starting putting him into jumpsuits for six to nine months olds just to get the length.
One year ago today I had the FET that would eventually become a BFP and then our son. It's still difficult to imagine this living breathing little boy was the blasty we saw on the microscope a year ago. And it even makes me a little sadder about our first failed IVF and the baby that blasty might have been. We still have one Frostie ready when we are and that makes me a little excited about who that (hopefully) will become.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Three months...
Well the Party Animal has been tamed, for now anyway J We tweaked his night-time routine which seems to have worked for the past couple of weeks. I now nurse him in the dark without any distractions, no noise, no talking etc, in his room and then straight to bed. Sometimes he might stir but only for a couple of minutes and then off to sleep. Most nights we might not hear from him again until 5am. What a little champion! There is a lot of trial and error with parenting, more so than they tell you while you're pregnant. It's just working out what your little one likes and dislikes.
Now for the fun part here are some photos of my little man.
James has now starting grabbing objects and wants to get everything in his mouth! I've had to start putting bibs on him because of all the dribble from sucking on his hands! I was changing is clothes every couple of hours. No sign of teething yet but I'm keeping an eye out.
For the past week I keep having dreams about being pregnant again. When I left hospital some of the midwives told me I'd be back within 18 months. When I did ask Dr J about when we could use our last frozen embryo, he told us to wait six to nine months for my body to recover and then try naturally for six months before coming back for a FET. I was keen just to go straight to the FET. After trying for two years, it seems almost impossible that we could fall pregnant naturally. But Dr J has seen a lot of his patients use IVF for their first and then fall naturally for their second. It seems a bit like a urban myth to me but it would be wonderful to get pregnant without any medical intervention. I would like to have another baby within two years. I'm only getting older and now that I'm thirty (which isn't really that old for another pregnancy), I can really hear my body clock ticking.
Now for the fun part here are some photos of my little man.
James has now starting grabbing objects and wants to get everything in his mouth! I've had to start putting bibs on him because of all the dribble from sucking on his hands! I was changing is clothes every couple of hours. No sign of teething yet but I'm keeping an eye out.
For the past week I keep having dreams about being pregnant again. When I left hospital some of the midwives told me I'd be back within 18 months. When I did ask Dr J about when we could use our last frozen embryo, he told us to wait six to nine months for my body to recover and then try naturally for six months before coming back for a FET. I was keen just to go straight to the FET. After trying for two years, it seems almost impossible that we could fall pregnant naturally. But Dr J has seen a lot of his patients use IVF for their first and then fall naturally for their second. It seems a bit like a urban myth to me but it would be wonderful to get pregnant without any medical intervention. I would like to have another baby within two years. I'm only getting older and now that I'm thirty (which isn't really that old for another pregnancy), I can really hear my body clock ticking.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Party animal...
When I met (and then married) BJ, I knew he was a party animal. He loves catching up with friends or family over drinks or dinner. He is a very social person which helps him in his job as a salesman. Apparently even when he was a baby he always wanted to the centre of attention and never wanted to go to bed. Unfortunately it seems his son is the same way.
Over the past couple of weeks James has not wanted to go to sleep after his bedtime feed. Since we brought him home, we have used a bedtime routine where he has a bath/shower, a feed and a book then bed. Now after his feed, he just wants to play or be held, sometimes not going to bed until an hour and a half after his 'dinner'. During the day he is fine, I can usually read his tired signs and get him down for a nap. But this not wanting to go to sleep at night is, surprisingly, making me really stressed. This isn’t good for anyone.
I didn't realise how hard or stressful it would be to get him to sleep. I don't mind him being up and I love spending time with him, but I also don't want to get into the habit of having to rock him to sleep or have him cry to sleep (why is this always the advice from Grandparents or older people???). But he makes it up to me by (once he is asleep) sleeping until 6am!
Over the past couple of weeks James has not wanted to go to sleep after his bedtime feed. Since we brought him home, we have used a bedtime routine where he has a bath/shower, a feed and a book then bed. Now after his feed, he just wants to play or be held, sometimes not going to bed until an hour and a half after his 'dinner'. During the day he is fine, I can usually read his tired signs and get him down for a nap. But this not wanting to go to sleep at night is, surprisingly, making me really stressed. This isn’t good for anyone.
I didn't realise how hard or stressful it would be to get him to sleep. I don't mind him being up and I love spending time with him, but I also don't want to get into the habit of having to rock him to sleep or have him cry to sleep (why is this always the advice from Grandparents or older people???). But he makes it up to me by (once he is asleep) sleeping until 6am!
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Two months...
The one thing people told me over and over again during my pregnancy was, "Time will fly". And it sure has! I can't believe James is already two months old! He has nearly doubled his weight since birth and therefore already grown out of his newborn/0000 clothes, which I thought was a little bit sad.
He has been sleeping from 7pm until around 4am for the past week, which I've been grateful for. Sometimes after his 6pm feed he fights sleep which is frustrating because you know he is tired but I can't complain too much. James loves his hands and is consistently putting them in his mouth, even while I try to burp him or he is on is tummy.
James is more active now, legs and arms are always flying around, and he has started making some cute "talking" noises. He can hold his head up while on his tummy for ages (which is probably really only 30 seconds) and has a good look around. He loves bath time and taking showers with BJ. He loves the feeling of the water while taking a shower. No matter what mood he is in, once he is in the shower and feels the water, his whole face lights up.
He has been sleeping from 7pm until around 4am for the past week, which I've been grateful for. Sometimes after his 6pm feed he fights sleep which is frustrating because you know he is tired but I can't complain too much. James loves his hands and is consistently putting them in his mouth, even while I try to burp him or he is on is tummy.
James is more active now, legs and arms are always flying around, and he has started making some cute "talking" noises. He can hold his head up while on his tummy for ages (which is probably really only 30 seconds) and has a good look around. He loves bath time and taking showers with BJ. He loves the feeling of the water while taking a shower. No matter what mood he is in, once he is in the shower and feels the water, his whole face lights up.
Monday, January 2, 2012
Frostie is here...
I'll start off by apologising for not posting sooner but, as many new mothers can agree, motherhood comes with a huge learning curve so I haven't had time to post about Frostie's arrival until now. But I have been following your stories (usually while nursing in the middle of the night!) and I'm so glad to hear about some of the terrific arrivals and BFPs during late 2011!
And without further ado I'm pleased to announce the arrival of James Nicholas!!!
Every time I look at him, I count my lucky stars that we have him. It still seems surreal and especially for the first couple of weeks, it felt like we were babysitting someone else’s baby and I would wake up and it would all be a dream. But now, almost ten weeks down, it feels like he's always been here.
As you would have read, I was booked in for a c-section on the 31st October due to Placenta Previa, but James decided to come a little early. On Thursday 27th October, I had cleaned the bathroom and decided to rest my inflated ankles by watching some TV. At 11:00am I went to the toilet and found out that I had started bleeding. I called the hospital and they said to come in straight away. I called BJ so he could pick me up and put the last few things into my hospital bag. At that stage we thought I would just go in for monitoring and since the bleeding wasn't too bad and just stay in hospital until the 31st.
Once we got to the hospital they set me up in a birth suite with monitors so they could keep an eye on Frostie's heartbeat and any contractions I was having. My bleeding had stopped but they still called my OB and he said to keep monitoring me for an hour. So BJ and I sat there talking with the midwife giving her a run down on our past and how Frostie was "conceived in October 2010 and was being born in October 2011"!
The monitors were showing very mild contractions about ten minutes apart that I couldn't even feel but Frostie's heartbeat was still very good. My OB called back and advised that he was 99% sure we were going to go ahead with the c-section today but would come a see me before making a decision. So I started to get ready for the c-section around 1pm, thinking it would take place around 5pm that afternoon. Nope, I had just finished my shower and worked out how to put on the lovely hospital gown when my OB turned up. Frostie was going to make his/her arrival now! A quick blood test and discussion with the anesthesiologist later and I was on the move to theatre. Poor BJ, still in his work clothes, had to call both our mum's to give them the heads up. It was only as I was speaking with the anesthesiologist that the midwives realised BJ didn't have a theatre gown or scrubs so a set had to be quickly found. And then as I'm being wheeled out of the room BJ was still trying to get the scrubs and booties on before chasing after us!
The nurses and staff were terrific while I was getting the spinal, as I was a bit worried and I think it showed on my face. I was glad when BJ could come into the room once the spinal was done and the screen had been put up. The nurses kept us informed of what was going on so I wouldn't freak out when I felt the pushing and pulling. It felt like a lifetime before we were finally told our baby was coming out. At 2:26pm on Thursday 27th October 2011, James was born. BJ jumped up so he could see over the curtain and he was the one to announce, "It's a boy!" even before our OB could! We were both crying over the arrival of our little man, the poor nurses thought something was wrong! I also had a quick peek at our boy before he was taken away with BJ so they could warm him up.
This was the nervous part, if I started to bleed too much I would put to sleep and I have to require a hysterectomy to stop the bleeding. Another lifetime later, my OB told me everything went well and they were finishing up. BJ and James were allowed to come back in and I could finally see our little boy!
This is what we had been waiting, praying, longing for the past three years. All the anger, tears, hopes and dreams had brought us our little boy and we are over the moon about him!!!
And without further ado I'm pleased to announce the arrival of James Nicholas!!!
Every time I look at him, I count my lucky stars that we have him. It still seems surreal and especially for the first couple of weeks, it felt like we were babysitting someone else’s baby and I would wake up and it would all be a dream. But now, almost ten weeks down, it feels like he's always been here.
As you would have read, I was booked in for a c-section on the 31st October due to Placenta Previa, but James decided to come a little early. On Thursday 27th October, I had cleaned the bathroom and decided to rest my inflated ankles by watching some TV. At 11:00am I went to the toilet and found out that I had started bleeding. I called the hospital and they said to come in straight away. I called BJ so he could pick me up and put the last few things into my hospital bag. At that stage we thought I would just go in for monitoring and since the bleeding wasn't too bad and just stay in hospital until the 31st.
Once we got to the hospital they set me up in a birth suite with monitors so they could keep an eye on Frostie's heartbeat and any contractions I was having. My bleeding had stopped but they still called my OB and he said to keep monitoring me for an hour. So BJ and I sat there talking with the midwife giving her a run down on our past and how Frostie was "conceived in October 2010 and was being born in October 2011"!
The monitors were showing very mild contractions about ten minutes apart that I couldn't even feel but Frostie's heartbeat was still very good. My OB called back and advised that he was 99% sure we were going to go ahead with the c-section today but would come a see me before making a decision. So I started to get ready for the c-section around 1pm, thinking it would take place around 5pm that afternoon. Nope, I had just finished my shower and worked out how to put on the lovely hospital gown when my OB turned up. Frostie was going to make his/her arrival now! A quick blood test and discussion with the anesthesiologist later and I was on the move to theatre. Poor BJ, still in his work clothes, had to call both our mum's to give them the heads up. It was only as I was speaking with the anesthesiologist that the midwives realised BJ didn't have a theatre gown or scrubs so a set had to be quickly found. And then as I'm being wheeled out of the room BJ was still trying to get the scrubs and booties on before chasing after us!
The nurses and staff were terrific while I was getting the spinal, as I was a bit worried and I think it showed on my face. I was glad when BJ could come into the room once the spinal was done and the screen had been put up. The nurses kept us informed of what was going on so I wouldn't freak out when I felt the pushing and pulling. It felt like a lifetime before we were finally told our baby was coming out. At 2:26pm on Thursday 27th October 2011, James was born. BJ jumped up so he could see over the curtain and he was the one to announce, "It's a boy!" even before our OB could! We were both crying over the arrival of our little man, the poor nurses thought something was wrong! I also had a quick peek at our boy before he was taken away with BJ so they could warm him up.
This was the nervous part, if I started to bleed too much I would put to sleep and I have to require a hysterectomy to stop the bleeding. Another lifetime later, my OB told me everything went well and they were finishing up. BJ and James were allowed to come back in and I could finally see our little boy!
This is what we had been waiting, praying, longing for the past three years. All the anger, tears, hopes and dreams had brought us our little boy and we are over the moon about him!!!
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