Adventures in Mommyhood: Baby #3: 8 weeks

Well, I can hardly believe it, but baby boy turned 8 weeks old on Monday! Its so weird because it feels like he's been here forever, but it also feels like it's passed in a flash. My new little boyfriend is not much of a "napper" so this is gonna be a quick update...

What's going on with us now? Well, I think it's fair to say that the Joneses got their groove back ;) It's taken us a little time, and of course this is on the cusp of me returning to work full time (well, more on this in a bit....), so it will definitely be short-lived, but I believe we have made it out of "survival-mode" and we are thriving as a family of 5.

Me and little man spent the first 7 weeks of his life hanging at the house, napping, taking care of chores, visiting friends and family and just enjoying each other's company. I put the girls in part time daycare starting at 6 weeks post partum and so they were hanging with us Monday and Friday. We made it 1 week like that, and then I got a call.....My HR department called and asked if I would consider returning to work earlier than I had planned (10 weeks). They said they would take me in any capacity that I would consider returning. I thought about it a lot, and maybe I'm a weirdo, but I decided to re-enroll the kids in full time daycare and begin working from home "full"-time while keeping the baby with me. So, I'm back at it!

Now our days look a little different. Me and little man stay home most days. And during those days I still try to get the house work done in between responding to emails, working on reports, participating in conference calls and entertaining my hates-to-nap little one. It's been challenging, but thankfully the pressures of work have not been such that I feel overwhelmed....at least not more than I usually do. I will be working in office on Wednesdays until my original return date (so just this week and next) and on that day, my mother-in-law will keep Nicky for me. Tomorrow will be the first morning that all 5 of us will be leaving our house at the same time. Nervous does not begin to describe it.

But really, that's not what this post is about. Let's talk about this baby!

It's no secret he's my THIRD kid. And I have to keep reminding myself that because I am still trying to figure out why I feel like such a newbie! God is reminding me that he created each of us VERY different. I'm trying to think of what might be considered "pertinent" information, so I'll just start with the questions everyone seems to ask me when they see me again for the first time:

* Is he sleeping?

* How are the girls doing with him?

* Is he an easy baby?

* Are you still breastfeeding?

*Is he sleeping?

You know what? He is! We went 6 1/2 weeks of him waking every 3 hours. RARELY a 4 hour stretch. I was dying....and yes, I know it was only 6 1/2 weeks, but when you're not sleeping more than 2 hrs at a time, it's an eternity. I couldn't figure out why he hated me so much. And then I decided one night, out of desperation, to swaddle him - arms in. I was originally convinced that he *hated* his arms being pinned down, and you know what...maybe that's still the case, but at this point, his feelings about his arms don't concern me. I swaddled him and for the first time I got 4 1/2 hrs of sleep! he stayed overnight with my MIL at 7 weeks (yes, this is what you do with kid #3, ship them off for their first sleep over at 7 weeks old) and slept 5 1/2 hours for her!! Since then he is sleeping around 6-6 1/2 hours a night. THANK YOU GOD!!! He goes to bed around 9, wakes up between 3-4 to eat and then right back down until around 7. All I can say is - GAME. CHANGER.

* How are the girls doing with him?

Well I think I mentioned before that it was a rough transition for Bella. She really wasn't sure why we needed another baby in the house, afterall....SHE was our baby! But after her initial hesitation, she has really come around! She LOVES her baby brother :) She constantly wants to "hold him!" and *helps* me feed him bottles, and she's also nominated herself as being on "papi" patrol (that's what we call paci's in our house). Whether she's ripping it out of his mouth or shoving it in, she's got it. And Mia....my little mama <3 She's amazing with him. She loves him SO much. Like more than I could have ever imagined. I guess it was hard for me to understand her feelings towards him because I don't have younger siblings myself, but she really like GENUINELY loves him more than anything! She is the best at holding him and feeding him (also a kid #3 thing - my not quite 4 yr old is totally allowed to feed him totally on her own....because as much as I could use them, I do NOT have 6 hands). So, in short....the girls are doing AMAZINGLY with him. I could not be more proud :)

* Is he an easy baby?

Let's just get one thing straight.....there is no such thing as an "easy" baby. And if you think there is, you are clearly still sleep deprived or drunk. He is a good baby. He eats well, is gaining weight now, sleeping well, but he's not "easy". Because he's a baby. And babies aren't "easy". One thing that is very different from his sisters (and really everyone in our family) is that the child DOESN'T nap. I had no idea how good I had it with the girls. I feel like I am in a constant state of not-finishing-anything. Of course, as I type this, he is sleeping, but it will likely be the last/only of the day. And you know what, that's ok. It's challenging, but it's ok. He likes to be held a lot, and that works out for us sometimes because I really like holding him ;) But it also makes it a little harder to get things accomplished around the house. It probably contributes to my every 2-3 day showering schedule now, and I may or may not be wearing the same yoga pants I've worn for the last 3-4 days as well.....He's not easy, no. But he's awesome.

*Are you still breastfeeding?

No. No I'm not. I was so gung-ho at the beginning of this, then I was so beat down after he wasn't gaining weight and I had to nurse, pump, bottle feed, repeat 8 times a day.....that I introduced formula. And I haven't looked back since. I pumped and bottle fed him until last week, so he was at about 50% breastmilk, but due to time restraints, I began pumping/producing less and as of this weekend I started weening. It's a personal choice that I feel pretty good about until anyone asks me about it, and then mom-guilt sneaks in and I get down on myself....so let's just not talk about it ;)

So, that's about it. That's what's going on with us lately. The one other big thing I can think of is Nicky's smile :) He started smiling around 5 weeks, and now you can tell he can actually see you when he does it. I love it.....I forgot how much I love this phase. It's like collecting your paycheck from a year of work. And it's the best check ever!

I guess it wouldnt be one of my posts if I didn't update you on my status as well. I am feeling great actually. I have not been super active lately, mostly because the baby doesnt nap during the day, and it's ridiculous hot outside still, so running is tricky, I did begin training for my half marathon training. That's right, I'm training for training. In order to start the training, I have to be able to run 3 miles. At this point, I have run 2.4 miles as my farthest distance.....I WILL run 3 miles this week though. It's happening. I am signing up for the Dallas half in December, so we'll see how that goes. As of right now, I'm still 10lbs up from pre-pregnancy weight. I usually would be down on myself about that, but I am realizing that it's just my body. I will lose the weight like I always do and I will at some point fit back into pants that don't have an elastic waistband ;)