I am still very "weirded out" (for lack of a better word) by my belly. I just expected loose skin instead of this small baby bump with an outtie belly button. Don't get me wrong, I am thrilled not to have the loose skin, but my belly just feels so mis-shapen. Here is a recent pic. I have 15 lbs left to lose as of 2 weeks postpartum. I have a feeling those extra lbs are staying with me for a while because my boobs are ginormous and feel like they weigh 15 lbs a piece!!!
My tailbone has been so sore and according to Dr. Google, apparently you can bruise or even break your tailbone during childbirth. Who knew?!!
I am hoping to bounce back a little more. My bleeding has pretty much stopped, hemorrhoids are in check and pooping going ok. The swelling in my legs is SO much better. I still have a little in my ankles and feet, but I have knees and calves again. Hallelujah!! LOL! So while many things are much improved, for some reason, I feel 100 years old. It just hurts to go from sitting to standing and I feel like I move at a snail's pace. I think it has to do with the blood loss and it's just going to take time. I am just used to being so active and fast paced that it feels strange when my body just aches and is telling me to slow down.
So that's the update for now!
Friday, August 12, 2011
Week 2
The boys are getting bigger and stronger. They already do tummy time and can pick their heads up and turn them. I call Matthew our little break dancer because he does this superman move where he rolls forward on his chest and his legs are up in the air. They are eating about 2 oz. every 3 hours. Breastfeeding has gotten better, but it is still hit or miss. It seems like all the stars have to properly align - they have to be hungry, awake, alert, but not too fussy and then we can feed. Otherwise we spend 10 min. trying to get latched and finally just give up and I have Mom or hubby give them a bottle. The bottle feels like it is undermining my cause because they get milk so easily, but they obviously need to eat. It's just hard. I know they are drinking breastmilk from the bottle, which is the most important thing to me, but I just wish breastfeeding was easier so we could eliminate some steps of this long feeding process and that it wasn't so frustrating for me and babies.
Honestly, that has been my biggest and pretty much my only struggle so far. Otherwise they are such good babies. Their funny little faces when the sleep and their sprays of pee during changing time keep me laughing and I can't get enough of kissing their soft baby skin.
We went to the pediatrician yesterday for their 2 week check up. Both boys had gained almost a pound and they now weigh 5 lbs 12 oz. and 5 lbs 7 oz. Theyhave almost graduated from preemie outfits and diapers!! The pediatrician was really pleased with their weight gain. The worst part of the visit...the doctor heard a heart murmur on Matthew. She said she didn't think anything was structurally wrong and that most murmurs resolve themselves by 6 mos. but she wants us to see a pediatric cardiologist just to be on the safe side. She said not to worry (yeah right). I did some reading online and it does sound to be fairly common and many murmurs are totally benign. Just praying that is the case here.
Honestly, that has been my biggest and pretty much my only struggle so far. Otherwise they are such good babies. Their funny little faces when the sleep and their sprays of pee during changing time keep me laughing and I can't get enough of kissing their soft baby skin.
We went to the pediatrician yesterday for their 2 week check up. Both boys had gained almost a pound and they now weigh 5 lbs 12 oz. and 5 lbs 7 oz. Theyhave almost graduated from preemie outfits and diapers!! The pediatrician was really pleased with their weight gain. The worst part of the visit...the doctor heard a heart murmur on Matthew. She said she didn't think anything was structurally wrong and that most murmurs resolve themselves by 6 mos. but she wants us to see a pediatric cardiologist just to be on the safe side. She said not to worry (yeah right). I did some reading online and it does sound to be fairly common and many murmurs are totally benign. Just praying that is the case here.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Week 1
We came home on Friday, August 1st. It was so strange to walk in my house after being gone for 5 days unexpectedly. I found my bathing suit and towel randomly hanging on the door knob (because I had gone swimming the morning of my doctor's appointment when I was sent to the hospital). Just things not as tidied as I would have had them. Plus - moving boxes everywhere. We didn't quite finish the new house before our little guys arrived. But, it's just fine. The little guys don't have a fab nursery, but they are staying with us downstairs anyway and the swings, bouncy seats and pack n' play seem to be doing the trick for now. Poor hubby has had to spend time going to the new house to finish up projects. I will be SO glad when the house is ready!My Mom is here and has been AMAZING! I have no idea what I would do without her.
Our first big outing was to the pediatrician on Sunday, August 3rd. I think they have you come as a test - to see if you can get your act together, feed, change, get the little ones in the car seat properly and get to an appointment on time. Not an easy task! The boys got a great report and are maintaining their birth weights. No jaundice or temperature issues (which were a little borderline when we were discharged from the hospital).
We are on a 3 hour schedule. Whichever little guy is more awake, I start breastfeeding him and we let the other one sleep. I work on breastfeeding for about 10 min. If I can get them to latch, we stay nursing. If not, and if the little guy is upset, I turn him over to hubby or my Mom to get a bottle of pumped milk. It is hard to strike the balance between helping them learn to breastfeed and not letting them spend too much energy if it isn’t working (they need to keep their weight). I have found that I have to get them naked and good and awake for them to nurse properly. Cutting out either of those things = a not so good nursing session. So basically, I nurse one, hand them over for a bottle to finish them up and then I work with the other little one. Mom or hubby bottle feeds one, burps him and then puts him down in a swing and takes the other one to feed him a bottle. At the end, we get everyone changed, dressed and swaddled up in a blanket. We were changing them at the start
of the feeding to wake them up and while it did wake them up, we end up with more poop and pee during the feeding, so twice as much work in changing. So we changed up the order.
I'm starting to find that the days all kind of run together. Getting outside is huge! It makes you feel human again. But, it is so stinking HOT and HUMID! UGH!
I am so in love with every little thing on these guys - the tiny fingers and toes, the little grunts, yawns, hiccups, burps and farts - all adorable. I can't stop myself from kissing them and cuddling them.
Our first big outing was to the pediatrician on Sunday, August 3rd. I think they have you come as a test - to see if you can get your act together, feed, change, get the little ones in the car seat properly and get to an appointment on time. Not an easy task! The boys got a great report and are maintaining their birth weights. No jaundice or temperature issues (which were a little borderline when we were discharged from the hospital).
We are on a 3 hour schedule. Whichever little guy is more awake, I start breastfeeding him and we let the other one sleep. I work on breastfeeding for about 10 min. If I can get them to latch, we stay nursing. If not, and if the little guy is upset, I turn him over to hubby or my Mom to get a bottle of pumped milk. It is hard to strike the balance between helping them learn to breastfeed and not letting them spend too much energy if it isn’t working (they need to keep their weight). I have found that I have to get them naked and good and awake for them to nurse properly. Cutting out either of those things = a not so good nursing session. So basically, I nurse one, hand them over for a bottle to finish them up and then I work with the other little one. Mom or hubby bottle feeds one, burps him and then puts him down in a swing and takes the other one to feed him a bottle. At the end, we get everyone changed, dressed and swaddled up in a blanket. We were changing them at the start
of the feeding to wake them up and while it did wake them up, we end up with more poop and pee during the feeding, so twice as much work in changing. So we changed up the order.I'm starting to find that the days all kind of run together. Getting outside is huge! It makes you feel human again. But, it is so stinking HOT and HUMID! UGH!
I am so in love with every little thing on these guys - the tiny fingers and toes, the little grunts, yawns, hiccups, burps and farts - all adorable. I can't stop myself from kissing them and cuddling them.
Random Thoughts from Labor & Delivery
We came home 9 days ago and everything is going great. The little guys are happy babies and eating more and more. I will post more soon. Just wanted to capture some random thoughts from labor and delivery....
- I was shocked at how fast things move. One minute I thought I was going home, 5 min. later my water was broken!
- Epidurals are amazing! Seriously, contraction pain totally went away. BUT – while the epidural helped with contraction pain in belly, I felt EVERYTHING down low. I didn’t think that was how it was supposed to be. According to my doctor, that is a "good" epidural so you can push effectively.
- Pushing a baby out is the hardest thing I have ever done. It was like running a marathon times 10 (except that I've never run a marathon)! PS – it is not a good idea to push using your face because you end up looking like you got stung by 1000 bees and you get broken blood vessels in your eyes. Not pretty!
- The mesh underwear in the hospital….best underwear ever!
- Pads in the hospital – yuck! Let’s just say you feel like you are wearing a diaper.
- Lansinoh nipple cream is my best friend.
- Getting a catheter without an epidural – not so pleasant.
- The swelling in feet (or in my case, ankles, calves, knees and thighs)…that gets worse before it gets better.
- Take the stool softener the hospital gives you. It makes SUCH a difference!
- Along that line, hemorrhoids suck : (
- My boobs are EN.OR.MOUS!
- Holy night sweats! In the few hours that I do sleep, I wake up drenched! I guess that is my body’s way of getting rid of the extra fluid.
- At one week, I have lost half of my pregnancy weight (27 lbs). I am so fortunate to not have any stretch marks. My belly is still very strange looking. I expected to have loose skin. Instead it looks like I still have a little baby bump and my outtie belly button is still there. Just not what I expected.
- The fluid that is in my legs is leaving the way it came. It started in my feet, then my ankles, then my calves, then my knees and finally my thighs. Now, the fluid is gone from my thighs and knees, but still in my calves, ankles and feet.
- Breastfeeding is challenging – seems like it is one step forward and two steps back. I was planning to tandem feed from the beginning. Just getting one to latch is hard enough. I can't imagine trying to do both at the same time yet.
- My milk supply seems to be doing well. I am making (pumping) more than double what the little guys are drinking (they drink about 40 cc’s per feeding) and I am making between 140 – 200 cc’s now that my milk is in.
- I thought your milk coming in would be a big event. I heard things about waking up to monster boobs. That kind of happened, but for me it was more of a gradual process. I kept making more and more each day, so it was kind of a gradual process.
- It is amazing what adrenaline can do and how little sleep you can function on when you are totally in love.
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