Progress Report

The last time I did report cards, I followed up with conferences, then topped it off with a baby. It's report card time, so I figure I need to do another update on the baby. A progress report of sorts. For starters, he is known by the following: Mason, Mason Jett, Jett, MJ, and The Baby. I call him Mason, but to each his own. He is up to 6lbs 1oz as of 1.20.10. He is working so very hard on holding his head up. It's quite funny since half his body weight is housed there. He'll be on the cusp of getting it, then topple over. Hilarious. Also, he is doing a better job of tracking objects with his eyes. We work on this a few times a day.Fortunately,  he has been less cranky when he gets a dirty diaper, which makes me happy. I was tired of hearing his complaints at the drop of wetness or poo. However, I would not have minded if he squealed yesterday; for, I was the victim of a poo that crept out of the Huggies and onto me. And it was on my new house pants =( We've been trying to get his feedings up to 60mL a session, currently he's at 50ish. There are too many cute, fat babies being born at my job that he is competing with. Skinny babies finish last, so he's gotta pack on the weight. His latest (and most eye rolling for me) thing is this outburst of crying he does. He cries (for probably 7 seconds) like I am pinching him. We're sooooo over that, too bad he is not. We have decided he is just finding his voice. After all, he had to listen to his roomy cry constantly in the hospital. So, he has had some lessons on how to cry. We are super lucky that a friend gave us a swing. We can get a bit more done while he swings away. I'll be glad when he can fit in a carrier. That way he can hang out with me while I do whatever it is I do. Overall, he is still a pretty good baby. I'll let you know if it still holds true on his next progress report.

The greatest gift?

What's the greatest gift? The gift of life? The gift of love? The gift of reading? Nope, nope, and nope. Apparently, I am giving Mason the greatest gift I can give him. Breast milk. Now, I have some issues with people asking me if I am breastfeeding. Mainly, not everyone produces milk; and I would be sad if I had to repeatedly tell people that. People have a lot of interest in what milk my child is receiving. I can tell when I meet a breast milk proponent. They have a look in their eyes. One lady said "It is the best thing you can do for your child". Really, lady? The best? Out of allllllll the things I could do for my child? How about not drinking or using drugs while pregnant? That's a good gift. How about a stable home or the simple gift of love? I work with some kids, and I sure can't tell the ones who were breastfed. Yet, I certainly can tell a kid from an unstable home. I digress, for that is another blog. Back to the milk. The nurse brought a breast pump to the room the day after child birth. It's a process. You have to pump on a schedule, which was really difficult to do when I did not have a baby at home. And as the days went one, nurses would ask if I would be breast feeding. Lactation consultants would call to see if I was still going strong at home. They even tried to get me to sign a consent form for Mason to receive donor milk if I could not produce my own. (By the way I answered NO!) Pressure, so much pressure. I'm glad I can offer this "super food" to my child, but it comes at a price. It doesn't feel that pleasant. Your breast become tender at odd moments. If Mason and I are bonding too much they begin to leak. If we're not bonding they leak. You have to build your daily schedule around pumping. It ain't for the weak. Nonetheless, I am doing it. Besides, it's cheaper and allegedly helps you lose weight.

No nipples!

Well, today is my first day of maternity leave...with my baby at home. So far, so good. I even did the night shift without too much discombobulation. Now, I am home for six weeks, so I am certain I will get more blogging in. And I am sure that there will be a milestone in those two weeks. We had our first milestone this weekend. I decided to take Mason to see my grandma. His first trip out of the house that was not a visit to the doctor. I bundled him up and loaded the diaper bag. As we were riding down I-40 my brain began to function. That's when I realized that I packed 99% of the essentials. What's the 1%? Nipples. I packed bottles and no nipples. I panicked. What was I to do? Do I feed au natural? Turn around? By a cheap-o bottle? So I did what made sense... I called Pat. He was no help. He suggested a natural feed, I was not interested. Luckily, Babies R Us was the next exit. So, Mason got to take his first trip to a public place. Of course I was paranoid to take a newby to a place as such. After finding the most convenient, yet cramped parking space we went in. I decided to keep my car seat cover on, and not contaminate my boy. Of all the days I have gone into this store, this was the most crowded I had ever seen it. And everyone in there was in the bottle section. I kid you not. Next lesson, bottles are more expensive than I'd anticipated. After spending twice as long as desired, I bought a bottle, squeezed Mason back into car, and headed to Grandma's. Whew. Lesson of the day? Check, double check, and triple check that diaper bad. 'Cause stoppin ain't worth the headache.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz 2.0

Let me preface this post by apologizing for any typos. However, I HAVE to dedicate another post to sleep. I'm sleepy right now, but I wanna be the old Jan who stays up late 'cause she knows school has been canceled tomorrow. Yet new Jan is questioning every keystroke I make and wondering why I've opted to blog instead of hit the sheets. As my fellow followers know, I took the night shift this weekend. How did it go? Put it this way, I have never been so ready for the work week to start. I knew that having the work week begin meant that Pat would be back on the night shift and I would be in dreamland. I love my son (we all know that a "but" comes with this sweet sentiment ), but I don't like waking up to feed him. I can handle the 12am, I can tolerate the 3am, but that 6am is a doozy! As soon as you get settled in from the 3am, BAM! time to wake up and do it again. Not to mention the diaper changes. And Mason is a crier when he needs his diaper changed. I have been trying to figure out how to lace my milk with sleep aid so he can sleep through the night. JOKE! Please don't report me. Meanwhile, I'm yearning for just a moment extra of sleep and he's gettin 16 hours of the precious stuff. In addition, Mason is a party animal from the hours of 9pm-6am. So, if I don't return an email, or stop texting you mid conversation, or have a mumbo jumbo conversation with you on the phone, please forgive me. I'm just a little sleepy.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Let me begin by saying that I have tried three times to write this entry, but I'm sure you can guess why I was unable. Yep, Mason...directly or indirectly. I had the cutest set up for a New Year's entry, but he wanted attention. They are sooooo demanding. Anyhow, what's the newest haps on parenthood? One word: sleep. I have always loved sleep! Now, I love it even more. After all, you always want what you can't have. I have not been deprived to the point where I wanna cry. This is mainly because Pat has been a trooper. He does the night feedings so I can sleep. But  even when I am in bed, I still hear him and wake up. This makes for the most absurd dreams because my sleep is put on pause. (I had a dream my sister was contemplating Rupaul as a nanny and I also dreamed Pat was working for Santa Claus). I have even tried to figure out a way to pump and sleep. I'm open to suggestions. Mason ain't hurting for sleep, however. And if anyone can tell me how to "Sleep when the baby sleeps." tell me. 'Cause I can't figure out how to do that and get laundry done and bottles cleaned. Wait...Mason's sleep...why am I bloggin? Nitey nite.