Yummy, mummy

This is a duplicate from my other blog. For readers of both, I apologise. I need to share!!

I have discovered the most wonderful product for parents of babies. It is a necklace from a company called
Gumigem.

The necklace is beautiful, just the sort of necklace I would wear anyway.


Mine is identical to the above picture, it is the Lightning necklace in Fury. It looks like it is made from a pretty stone.

But it is amazing. It is made of silicon which is entirely baby friendly and free of parabens and BPA. Baby can chew away without any worry as to whether they may ingest anything harmful.

As it hangs round your neck, it is always there for baby to play with whenever you pick her up or lean over her.

I am blown away by the simplicity yet genius of this idea. Babies are instinctively drawn to necklaces and this one is safe for baby so mummy doesn't have to fret about keeping necklaces off while baby is small. Best of all it is an excellent teether and seems to provide genuine soothing for aching baby gums.

Gumigem also offer different styles of necklace as well as bangles - a safe toy for baby that's just there on your wrist looking pretty. I intend to buy more, for these products are not at all expensive unlike other teething necklaces available.

One very happy customer that wants to share this with every mother out there.

Differences

There is nearly 6 years between the twins and E so my memory may not be true, but the differences between them is are endless. Even taking into consideration that they are boys and twins and she is neither, it still astonishes me how little she does as they did.

Toy wise, E is joyfully embracing toys that are virtually pristine due to the boys showing no interest in them whatsoever.
The boys had linky loops which look like this



These were purchased with the idea that toys could be attached by these to things to stop them being dropped. Turned out they were the best toy ever in themselves and they boys adored holding them and experimentally chewing them.

So we bought new ones for E. She hasn't shown any interest in them at all other than the generic procedure of everything being tasted at least once.

Not so for the logical next step in loop discovery, again from ELC and called Lots of Loops.

This was purchased for the boys and totally ignored by them. I deduced it was too heavy for them to lift comfortably.

Not true. Little E was given this to investigate when she had just mastered gripping things, and within seconds she was lying on her back holding it over her and joyously chewing on it. It remains one of her favourites.

The boys both had dummies as teething relief, O had a dummy pretty much from birth until he was 3, R had one just for teething. E does not like dummies one bit and won't take one, even though she is desperate for something to clamp her aching gums onto. So she seeks things to bite on a lot more than they did and is often found chewing on a removed sock or similar. Soft toys are a favourite as she can bite them without hurting herself.

Today I unearthed a rattle the boys had rejected and she pounced on it joyfully; a soft padded "dog" with clattery shapes around the loop of the "face".

I would have said that the twins were as different as can be, but they mostly liked the same toys as babies. Not so true as they got older and O discovered cars, which have never inspired R. Admittedly as twins they may have rejected a toy, then seen it being played with by their twin and reconsidered it.

Nothing is as fun as something your twin wants. Or maybe that's just my twins? E is experiencing the frustration of the youngest: constantly wanting what the older siblings have. I relate to this as the youngest, although I only have the one older brother and feel quite sorry for future E and her inevitable teasing.

With chalk and cheese twins, I had hopes for E being like one or other of them, but so far it isn't looking likely.

6 months

E is now 6 months old, which is both an eternity since she was born, and no time at all.

To her delight, she can now eat something resembling food. Her coordination is a bit lacking but she can steer most things roughly towards her mouth. Finger foods are a bit off yet, but she's enjoyed the handful of lumpier and slightly protein based goo that she's been offered. (rice, tomato and chicken so far her favourite). She is also allowed gluten now so has weetabix for breakfast instead of baby cereal. She approves greatly, but is still anxious to eat what we are. A chip went down a treat, although how much literally went down is another matter altogether.

Reaching and putting everything in her mouth is the aim of every second she is awake. Nothing is safe, other than the blessed fact that she is still not able to travel. Turning and reaching are trouble enough and her ability to pick things up is improving daily, terrifying in the light of the immediate transfer to mouth.

Movement at the moment consists of rolling and reaching. Much frustration is caused by an inability to stand or crawl. Sitting isn't quite there, she managed just a few unsupported seconds before she topples over.

She mostly sleeps like an angel all night, but is reluctant to nap by day and often gets tearfully grumpy and needs coaxed to sleep, only to awaken twenty minutes later.

Speech consists of much blethering, wow ow and igloo are common utterances. I'm not sure when or if she'll move onto the more conventional ba ba, ga ga.

She is beautiful and giggly and a delight to be around, I am so enjoying her babyhood. Bring on the next stage, which is due in about an hour...

Confusing aspects of parenthood

Babies are confusing creatures. Many a time do I wonder the same thing, to the tune of:

1) why do babies cry inconsolably when they need to sleep? Why not just sleep?

2) how do babies sense when you are about to snooze/have lunch/do anything non-baby and immediately require attention?

3) how can three babies from the same parents be so completely and utterly different?

4) why is throwing things on the floor so exciting to a baby? And how can six year olds perpetually pick them up without tiring?

5) what do people do if they don't have children? What did I do before I had them?

6) why is the world so buggy unfriendly? Shouldn't everything be accessible for wheelchairs and therefore also suitable for buggies? How can they not be?

7) do lazy buggers, who have no children with them but who take the last parent and child space, not think about it? Do they think parents don't really need the space and they have as much right to a generous space? Or do they fully understand why we need the spaces but just figure we can wait until they're gone because for whatever reason, their need is greater?

Baby dictated weaning!

And weaning progresses...

I was pleased to note this article from the Guardian which pretty much confirms my understanding of it all. The most important thing for mothers to know, which seems to be missing from most literature, is that babies are individual and they make it very obvious when they need more than milk.

I personally believe baby led weaning, where at six months you offer finger food, is harmful both from the point of view of waiting until the baby can pick things up accurately and from a potential choking hazard.

I haven't tried it however and many others have successfully. Some babies need solids later than others, maybe if they don't demand it until after six months they can cope with chunks of finger foods, I don't know.

Miss E is not yet six months and seems to want to eat real food. She had some homemade veg soup which I had made with no nasties in and puréed a spot for her. Loved it, unlike any of the ready made jars I've offered.
Sigh. I guess it's down to my cooking and Plum Baby as back up (she liked their parsnip and pea) again.

But she seems to have a favourite. Lunchtime arrived and E was making it very clear she was hungry. Milk: no. Bean purée: absolutely no. Apple and pear: look mummy, I'm hungry, not peckish. Ok. Rusk in milk: oh yeah! That's the stuff! And I'll take my milk now too thanks.

Uh oh. She's not really meant to have rusks, and that makes 3/3 of them weaned on rusks. Oh dear. Bad mummy.

Weaning

I touched on weaning in my last post, now I shall expand.

Incidentally probably literally expanding as we speak, as I am making up for weight not gained during my pregnancy and gaining pounds almost daily. Can't stop eating, won't stop eating. Weight gained in pregnancy: 4lb. Weight gained since: another 17lb. Not good, but I just can't stop the hunger.

But that is me and I am fully weaned.

E has had a passionate interest in food since she was first able to focus her eyes. So she was delighted at the age of about 20 weeks to be offered some form of food. We started with baby banana porridge which bears no similarity to real porridge as it is made from baby rice not oats. But it tastes kinda like Angel Delight and unsurprisingly E was impressed. So we tried some fruit purée. E was unsure, but willing to eat. Spurred on by the memory of the virtuous home made purées that the twins had, I made some sweet potato purée, which was spat back at me. Plum Baby's parsnip, apple and pea purée went down a little better, but not much.

Now E turned her nose up at the baby cereal having tasted real food. I tried a couple of baby breakfast sachets and she was somewhat meh. So we tried yoghurt, which goes against the "no dairy products till 6 months" doctrine, but I'm believing Danone in a ludicrously idiotic manner because it suits me and the advice doesn't really make sense. So we go with "suitable from 4 months". Likewise with rusks which are heavily frowned upon but which certain twins had as first foods and which young E devours with enthusiasm. Mixed with formula into a paste I may add, not given as a finger food.

So I'm bad.

I did purchase some broccoli to make my speciality of green speckled potato however. Whether E takes it is to be seen, but that's tomorrow's tea. I also have some pear purée for the potential of pear and everything, which I had to resort to with baby R.

It's going fine. Could do better but I am acutely aware that she is advised not to start at all until six months, so she's fine until then if not getting a full and varied diet. I shall probably not try baby led weaning but we'll see. I have been known to change my mind on major parenting issues when confronted with actual facts.

Almost six months

I haven't been exactly keeping up with this.

There is a reason for this and that is the need to remove one's thoughts from baby world. In pregnancy it is hard to think of anything else; post pregnancy it is essential to be distracted.

And so we are now at over 5 months. E is a giggling, almost sitting/crawling/eating chubby bundle of joy. She smiles and laughs a lot and is in a fair representation of a routine.

She can now turn over onto her front (but not back) which she then finds immensely frustrating as she can't immediately crawl. This doesn't look like it's far away, so I am busy just now with making sure the house is baby friendly. It isn't, yet.

Eating: we are doing "tastes". So far we like yoghurt and rusks very much, both of which I am sure are no-no until 6 months, but then again all food is sort of no-no until then. Manufacturers of both say "suitable from weaning" so I'm going with it.

She also likes fruit and isn't wild about any veg she's tried. I have cooked one portion of sweet potato (which was rejected) and so far anything else veggie was bought ready puréed, because Plum Baby and the likes do baby food that looks like food.

I was so smug with the twins, they were weaned on all home cooked meals. But as they still want meals, I simply don't have the chance to make it for E. I guess I need to create at lunchtime. We'll see.

And that's about it. She's gorgeous and perfect and getting big!

As time goes by

Seven weeks (and 3 days) gone already! My tiny baby is now regular baby sized - newborn size now - not least due to a (presumed) growth spurt that meant consumption of endless milk. Tiring. Over for now, I think, but we need some semblance of routine now.

E is just gorgeous, she's sweet and bright and adorable. She's now got chubby cheeks and chubby thighs and her smile is starting to be recognisably in response to people and things.

Her brothers are still gorgeous and wonderful, but boy, they are difficult. Back to school tomorrow and it's a big relief. They are presumably reacting to the adjustment of a baby but they are being very naughty. A lot of their toys have been confiscated for now. They do seem to adore their baby sister - as a baby sister myself I know this will undoubtably change but for now they are very sweet. R is a bit apprehensive about her altogether, he is rather shy. O on the other hand is very keen to look after her and rushes to comfort her or amuse her. I do have to explain that she gets overstimulated easily, but they are only 5. When she is a little older and responds to the boys more I think all three will delight each other.

Feeding is difficult, no routine at all and I find she has times when she wants a tiny feed and other times when she wants lots. Generally she is best in the morning and through the night, and afternoons are often spent with tearful cuddles between frequent feeds. Gina Ford is being revisited tomorrow. Hopefully.

I am to go into work for a couple of "keep in touch" days, mum is to watch E for me. This will be interesting to see, I don't feel just now like I want to return to work until E is at school, but maybe it would be better. I only work 15 hours a week after all. For now I am doing two 2 hour days on consecutive Tuesdays, I'm sure I'll survive.

I sold a number of things on eBay, maternity things. I only made about £15 all in, but postage was covered and I'm rid of them. Very easy, I have my beady eye pealed for anything else I can sell.

And that's how it goes for now.

Hunger

Hungry, hungry hungry. Baby and me.

E can't get enough to eat. She was sleeping well and coping with eating too much, for a while. But for the last few days: oh dear.

The problems are thus:
1) E is starving, so drinks milk too fast. Even slow teats don't slow her down.

I have bought to date 6 Avent, 5 Tommee Tippee, 2 NUK bottles, 8 Avent teats and 6 NUK teats, as well as 2 replacement sterilisers (gifted steriliser smelt odd)

Avent starter kit: £12
Avent replacement teats: £12
Tommee Tippee starter kit: £12
Avent Microwave steriliser: £10
NUK bottles: £10
NUK teats: £12
Tommee Tippee bottles: £9
Asda steriliser: £12
Avent teats: £4
Avent bottles: £7
Total cost: £100

At first the slow flow Avent or Tommee Tippee were too slow for E's tiny mouth, so we tried fast flow (should've tried in between but daddy was shopping). Fast flow too fast, tried NUK bottles. Brilliant, for a while, so we got NUK teats for Avent bottles. 2 weeks of greatness. E grew, the NUK were too gushy for a stronger sucker. We retried Tommee Tippee and hurrah! Slow flow perfect, more bottles bought, and a steriliser they fitted in as they are non standard size. Good for another 2 weeks, then the sucking defeated them. 10 minute feeds: too fast. Buildup of wind, sore tummy, more food demanded for sore tummy, sickness or crying follows.

I am now a bit demented. Avent slow flow are the current attempt to slow down/avoid wind. The Tommee Tippee make it impossible to feed sitting up, which is a suggested way to avoid wind. Avent work better. We started with them and much expense later are back with them.

And then there's the milk. We had an unsuccessful foray into Hipp Organic milk, which made E sick. £6.97 wasted on formula. We remain back with Aptamil, I need to seek advice on hungry baby or comfort milk.

I think the hunger is false and a mistaken attempt by E to alleviate stomach pain.

Sleep a problem, progressing from happily sleeping in cot rather than bouncy chair to not going to sleep anywhere that isn't a parent. I am exhausted. Gina Ford did not work, her advice on formula is very limited.

I need to stop eating and lose the post baby weight I'm gaining.

Boo to hunger, whatever the cause.

5 weeks 5 days

Blogging? Watching tv? Reading? Ha!

One day soon...

Greedy girls

All is going well, mostly. We had a few sleepless nights where missy wouldn't settle to sleep on her back, culminating in two nights of her in her bouncy chair all night and then one successful night in her cot after she went to sleep in her bouncer first.

Tonight we did the latter to much success until she awakened to an explosive poo (most of them arrive with an audible pop) and got all confused by the ongoing "there is action in my tummy, I must be hungry" which heightens the "am awake, must eat" thought process.

According to my scales, E is now 7.5lb. As they are correct to half a pound, this isn't that accurate, but she must be over 7lb and so is gaining weight well.

She is rather greedy however, my logic is that her sucking needs/ability, awareness and sleep requirements are that of her age - 5 weeks - but her tummy and digestive systems are that of her adjusted age of one week. So she wants to eat more than she can cope with. Two or three nights of vomiting a feed after bedtime means I have had to consult the health visitor and also get Gina Ford's new edition of her tome. Interestingly, E has almost moved herself towards Ms Ford's ideal routine, but I am a bit unsure as to amounts so I shall start properly following her routine tomorrow.

That won't work as soon as I can't get up at 7am.

I do sympathise with E's hunger, I am suffering from the same thing. I cannot satisfy my hunger and I am rapidly gaining weight. I stand at 1 stone above my prepregnancy weight (and I was but a few pounds above it shortly after E was born), and nearly 2 stones above my ideal size. Most depressingly I am only a little more than a stone less than my heaviest ever. So weightwatchers for me, which I have ostensibly being doing for a month but haven't actually and have gained half a stone in that month. Oops. I intend to eat a lot of soup and less cake. And just be hungry I guess. Drink water. Eat bananas.

Food today. Next time: clothing.

Sicky sicky milk woes

Well, last night was a load of fun! Mega sickness which could be attributed to the cold, but could also be attributed to the change of formula. HiPP organic meant a little spit up at every feed and a couple of bouts of significant sickness. It didn't seem to satisfy her and so you took too much. Aptimel today again and we are back to smaller more frequent (several each day) poos, but not a drop of sick. Which is better.

She has on occasion asked for food after a large feed. The first two times, I indulged with an additional feed, and she threw up. Tonight I offered a few sips of cooled boiled water and that my baby is settled and asleep after just a few sips.

Now. I am told by Dr Google that water is bad for a small baby. I disregard this on the following basis:

Sips? A few sips? Can cause damage... how? I can understand how excess water can cause potential problems, but a few sips?

Formula is made from cooled boiled water + formula. Thus, how can water sans formula be awful? It must be assumed that the occasional sleep deprived parent adds a scoop extra of a scoop less in order for the boys to be collected.

Christ. Tired.

Baby girl perfect at 4 weeks. Mummy getting there.

Just edited this to delete a couple of completely nonsensical sentences:

Tom: phew
Mr muddle if we need it.

They make no sense, and I have no idea what I meant. I vaguely remember typing mr muddle so it's not malicious, like anyone would bother anyway.

No blogging when properly sleep deprived.

More sniffles, less sleep and being overly worried about safety

Sleep: what I should be doing as Miss E is currently asleep, but as her and I had an epic nap this afternoon, I'm not tired. Well, I'm kinda tired in that I basically have narcolepsy at the moment, but I'm not overly sleepy.

I don't really have narcolepsy, I just can fall asleep uncommonly easily anytime, anywhere. I do fear for E's safety sometimes because of this. As such, she is well accustomed to her cot, that being a "safe" place I can't drop or squash her in, and she will settle and sleep there. Result!!

Decision to return to Aptimil after toying with HiPP Organic. The HO seems grand, E takes more, but is sicky with it and that's not good. Aptimil stays down, even if she likes it less. She does seem unimpressed with milk per se, I think she'd wean tomorrow if she could.

Observation of her digestive functions lead me to the conclusion that she has now the digestive maturity of a brand new baby (I would be 40 weeks today, the official due date) so she will cope with weaning at 5 months at the earliest, 17 weeks from today. Ah well.

Neurosis made me purchase a Buggy Tug, a strap that goes round your wrist and the buggy so if you let go for any reason, the buggy doesn't escape. I heard they existed, I observed that the downwards sloping arcade we walk down each day to school has no barrier at the bottom and exists onto the High Street, I got paranoid, I bought one (£3 or similar). One of the school mums told me her buggy had escaped with her second son and only the quick reaction of another person saved him from going onto the road. Neurosis reassured.

I feel the narcolepsy striking...

Sleep and sniffles

Baby E is bunged up with a cold - again. Like mother like daughter, cold two in 4 weeks alive seems unfair. She is more stoical with this one, the last cold made her super grumpy, this one she is more cuddly and resigned.

The main problem with the cold is her inability to feed enough to sleep it off. We had just switched to Tommee Tippee bottles and Hipp Organic milk with apparent first day success, the the arrival of the snot rendered the Tommee Tippee redundant and NUK back on the menu. As to the milk, it seems ok but we have a little sick which could be the milk, her age or just mucus related.

And as if by magic, baby awakens for her next feed. Later...

Today was the day

I feel strange. It is now 26 September, which is one month after that diabolical day that I attended hospital for a routine appointment and remained for ten days before leaving with my tiny early baby.

More significantly, today is the day that E would have been delivered had all remained stable. This is the day I've been looking to since May.

Instead, I have a bouncing three week old still tiny baby. I cannot fathom why I feel sad/guilty/weird about having her early. This weekend past would have had me stressing, but loading things onto my iPhone, packing nice pjs, organising newborn sized clothes. Nice planning. And today I would have had the section. Which isn't pleasant really, other than the amazing moment of meeting the baby.

E is unaware of this, of course, and is happily adhering to the behaviour expected of a three week old.

She cries more loudly and frequently. Tears are down to hunger, nappy changes and a new addition for three weeks: not being allowed to sleep exclusively on mummy's chest. She mostly feeds well but I have a dilemma of no perfect bottle yet. NUK has proven most successful, the next size bottles of, which she will need as soon as she takes more than 4oz each feed, don't fit in the steriliser. We have an array of Avent things (including the steriliser) but she doesn't get on with the teats. Small ones are too hard work, larger ones are too messy. We have mostly NUK teats on Avent bottles at the moment and they are kind of leaky. Tommee Tippee may be the answer, but we're not there yet.

O was home with a cold today. I am exhausted from sheer lack of sleep. 8pm bedtime for me tonight I think!!

Oh, and my wound is infected, I now need an antibiotic, despite the nurse insisting it was clean.

I need a holiday. Or a maternity nurse. Or a cleaner. Or all of the above.

Zzzz zzzz

E has the cold. E has slept badly and been grumpy since Sunday night, coinciding badly with hubby's return to work on Monday.

Tired much.

But I don't mind much, even though I may be a danger when out and about. Not being a great sleeper, spending nights cuddling my gorgeous wee girl isn't a hardship.

E continues to astonish with her alertness and general brilliance. I fear I may be experiencing first born syndrome with my first singleton, purely because I have time to sit and cuddle her and simply watch her be. The twins, while amazing and gorgeous also, were both overwhelming and a duo, so I could not just watch and cuddle them incessantly.

I am tired though. I cannot go to bed early. This makes me stupid, I know this. I don't change though. Bedtime is currently about midnight however which is a vast improvement on usual. Usual doesn't however normally have me awake 3 till 5.

Monday is the day I expected E to be born. I may feel more balanced after it has passed. Maybe.

And now, to sleep perchance to dream.

2 weeks to go...

Hmm. The health visitor visited on Thursday and while she was suitably appreciative of E's notable genius and general wellbeing, I feel a little narked. Not at the HV herself, she was very nice, but at the "preterm" thing.

E was delivered at 36 weeks (almost, a day short) at the recommendation of the obstetricians. 36 weeks is enough time for a baby to mature. 37 weeks, one week later, is considered full term.

Now, E is considered preterm. By one week according to the above. No. 4 weeks. So everything she is expected to achieve and all her checks etc are "adjusted" by 4 weeks and it will be as if she had been born on her due date. She doesn't graduate off the preterm growth charts until she is 6 weeks old at what would have been 42 weeks. Her immunisations follow her actual age thankfully, otherwise she is currently -2 weeks old, which doesn't help the whole making sense of it all in the raddled old head.

She is perfect though, and is eating for Britain (if there ever was a need to suck milk for one's country) as well as being astonishingly aware and alert. Small downside of her apparent early growth spurt (she would be gaining fat at a rate of noughts in utero right now, and fat she is certainly lacking) is the frequency with which she wishes to feed.

And poo. Ten or so dirty nappies a day, HV says it is because she is early and it should rectify by E's due date.

Due date. So much is pinned on that:

E will reach "normal" weight and will cease to struggle with feeding enough, temperature etc.
I shall feel normal about her being here.
I shall be normal shaped (if be-uddered).

BP update: is measuring NORMAL. Wooooo!! And that's not even a touch sarcastic. Now on extra high doses of drugs, concerned BP may drop TOO much now. We'll see.

Tried E out in her baby sling, she liked it a lot although I wasn't convince she was safe in it an constantly checked she was breathing. She was, it is safe. It doesn't feel it though.

Insomnia is a thing of the past. If I lie down, I go to sleep. Any time. Awakeness is decreed by awakened offspring.

Night all.

Day 11

They don't count the date of birth, the following day is day one, so today is day 11.

This means:

No midwife visit today, I am deemed capable and recovered and Day 10 marked the end of the daily midwife checks. On Thursday I am to be vetted, sorry, visited for a catch up, by the Health Visitor which is always a joy. And also my GP for the old blood pressure, which at present stands at high but normal.

Last night was better, we have two wake ups for feeding, last night it was midnight and 3am, which was fine, with her next cries at 7am when we need to be up anyway. E cries very little, a few cries to alert us to her needing food, and more grunts in response to dirty nappies etc. Grunts and sighs and squeaks are her first line of getting attention, crying is reserved for desperation at the slowness of a parent. This is lovely, long may it last. Newborns "should" cry a lot more.

We do still have teething ahead.

I have four more days, plus the weekend, of paternity leave and having a partner in nappies. When he goes back to work next Monday I shall be a little lost. I am having a practice of doing the morning routine on my own (failure this morning as missy urinated all over her clothes mid nappy change, requiring a clean up and a complete change, so daddy had to take over toast spreading and distribution).

I haven't done the school run yet. I may go up for them today (with their daddy, not alone). I now feel non bonkers enough to speak to people without crying so it should be ok. Most notably, I can walk there. Woo.

Back to me

Well, E is doing well, she is regaining weight after the post birth weight loss (of all babies, not just E). She is also alert, a good colour, content and so on. And the brightest baby ever (since my last ones) obviously.

So, me.

My blood pressure is normalising. Woohoo. It is still high, but it is no longer dangerously so. No more hospital!

My body is a slightly better version of the one I had prepregnancy. Seriously. I apparently don't do the baby weight thing and the ginormous bump is vanishing at an astonishing rate.

We won't talk about the udder and the new added udder of udder. We shall pretend that it's not there and that I wear Spanx for comfort only.

I have had odd compliments on my thinness. While I was having my spinal block given prior to E being delivered, I was pleasantly aware that there was little flabby resistance to the anaesthetist's fingers when he was feeling for my hipbones in order to ascertain my symmetry. He later commented that I had a "nice back" with nothing in the way of the vertebrae. When giving injections to prevent clotting, the midwife complained that I didn't have enough fat on my legs.

I'm not skinny. By a long shot. However, I was gratified in hospital every time the "large" blood pressure cuff had to be replaced by the "medium" one. Most other patients seemed to need the large and I have noted that most ladies seem to have lardy arms in pregnancy. Even skinny ladies.

I am feeling a bit less hormonal now, I managed to do stuff around the house and generally feel more, well, normal. With a cute little baby added in.

Motherhood the second

Well, from my ponderations of pregnancy, a few things have transpired to be true and a few to be woefully inaccurate.

I got my section, no need to worry about whether or not I wanted one, it was taken as wanted, and as E was delivered at 36 weeks and I couldn't be induced having had a previous section, it would have to have been a section in the end regardless of prior arrangements.

No breastfeeding, although E did latch on and get some colostrum on day 3. I cannot now breastfeed as my blood pressure refused to calm down with breastmilk friendly drugs, so I am now on ones that are working, but which are not suitable for breastfeeding. Which is a shame when she'd had a shot, and she looks for it from me, but she is so small and in need of food she would have required at least some top ups anyway. My milk is now in, I am engorged and in pain, with entirely unappealing cabbage leaves in my bra (they do provide relief) and looking forward to "drying up".

One baby is infinitely easier than two. Way, way easier. E is a very chilled and contented baby, which helps, but still. Just one!!

E is a tiny baby, not jumbo as feared. She was just the right size for 36 weeks at birth, but that's tiny. Her skin is too big for her and she is teeny tiny pocket sized. Healthy, but minuscule. Everyone comments on her tininess, including me and her daddy. She is very cute though, and does, fingers crossed, seem very well.

And then there is me. I'm a bit broken. I have been scared shitless (sorry) about dying, and I feel very emotional. For no good reason I feel sad that I am not pregnant any more, I should be for another 2 or 3 weeks. The fact is I am not, I don't have to endure the lumbering discomfort of the last month of pregnancy, and the birth is behind me, with baby out, and healthy. So why do I feel bereft whenever I think back to being pregnant?

Answer: hormones. All out of whack. I am also very tired and need to take things sloowwwwly.

Bananas reduce blood pressure. Damned marvellous fruit so it is. I am self medicating (plus the official drugs) by eating more bananas and consuming less caffeine and salt. Something's working finally, my bp is that of a normal person with slightly raised bp. Not mental admit-to-hospital high like before.

Pelvis is normal! Like it never had a problem. I can walk again!

Neck still not sore.

Overall weight gain in pregnancy is currently 5lb and falling daily. Woohoo. It was all baby and baby fluids, not doughnuts. Joined weightwatchers online to avoid piling on post natal weight.

And that is where I'm at, 8 days after the birth of my daughter. I have a daughter you know.