I am a big fan of Dr. Harvey Karp's material. I have read and used both the Happiest Baby and Happiest Toddler on the Block books and I value a lot of what he has to say about how to approach parenthood. And I am happy to say that we are approaching a milestone in the coming week - the end of the Fourth Trimester!
Dr. Karp's idea is that all babies are born "prematurely" and that it takes the first three months of their lives to adjust them from the womb to the world. He calls this time period the Fourth Trimester and his baby book is aimed at teaching parents how to help calm their little ones (and get over colic) as they make this transition. Basically you swaddle, swing, (hold on) side, (allow to) suck, and shhhhush (use white noise for) the babe as much as possible in the first three months.
We have done all of these things for Raegan and even though we've had some rough nights/weeks when she seemed pretty fussy during the evening, we are happy to report that she really is such a happy baby! Her personality is really starting to shine and she grins and smiles at us all the time. Like her brother (and my brother) she has the greatest, most expressive eyebrows; you can only imagine what thoughts are behind each little raise and wrinkle! Her gummy smile is wide and while I don't see any big dimples, there might be a hint of one on her left cheek. She is also cooing more now and telling us all kinds of stories. I love that it feels like we are already conversing with each other.
Raegan's hands are some of her favorite things. She loves to have one or both up by her face or, preferably, in her mouth. This makes swaddling a challenge at times, but we still manage to keep her pretty well wrapped for sleeping as that seems to keep her sleeping for longer stretches. Speaking of stretches, she loves to do that as well. You have to be careful when holding her because you never know when she might arch her back and lurch away from you a bit. Her daddy says she is already practicing for the high jump. :) And speaking of sleeping, she's doing really well with that, too. Most nights I only have to get up once with her and then she goes back to bed for several hours. This is nice because it also allows me to have some special time with just Harrison each morning.
The other exciting development as we enter our last week of the Fourth Trimester happened last night. My parents were here visiting and my mom had Raegee on her belly on the playmat in our living room. My dad was helping me move boxes around and as he walked by he made a comment about how she looked like she was trying to roll over. Sure enough, not two minutes later, she did! She flipped over her right shoulder, landed face up, and immediately started crying. Poor thing - we think she startled herself and was wondering exactly how she got where she got all by herself! So Mom put her back on her tummy and it took no more than 20 seconds and she was over again. Such a big girl!
Altogether, these have been an interesting three months. We have had just a bit of commotion in our lives lately and now that we're finally out of the old house and into the new, AND moving out of the FT, I am hoping that we can just kick back and enjoy daily life. I'm so excited to see how Harrison will react to his baby sister as she continues to grow; my hope is that, like my own brother and I, they will be great playmates and good friends for years to come.
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Someday We'll Laugh
Someday, twenty-odd years from now, Harrison and I will sit down over a meal or a coffee or a beer and we'll start talking about what he was like as a child. More specifically, we'll talk about what he was like as a toddler. As the conversation begins, I'll smile, shake my head and simply point to my hair which will have been completely gray for twenty-odd years and say, "Well, does this tell you anything?" Perhaps he'll smile sheepishly and ask for details.
I'll remind him of his amazing language skills and tease him about how much his continuous question of, "Where did ______ (Daddy, puppies, ball, etc.) went?" drove his English Teacher Mama batty. Then I'll regale him with anecdotes about his need to wear fleece footie pajamas every. single. day. I'll tell him that we had to buy four pairs just so there would always (hopefully) be a clean one to put on and that getting dressed to leave the house was almost always a 30-40 minute process (*ahem* battle). There will be stories about how I always called him my good eater because, quite frankly, he was, with cheese, Runza, fresh fruit, and pancakes topping the list of favorites. Then I'll share how amazed I was whenever we'd drive around town and he would point out landmarks and name places that we'd only been to once or maybe twice (the best being that McDonald's stood for "Mama's coffee and not Chicken McNuggets!).
Harrison will take all of this in but perhaps then he'll ask something along the lines of, "That all doesn't sound so bad...what's with the gray hair?" That is when I'll tell him about the long afternoons of popping out of his crib or bed or room and just how wild he got whenever he missed a nap. I'll sigh a little bit and tell him how it seemed that he laughed the loudest and the hardest when he knew he was doing something naughty. I'll go into the throwing and the swinging and the biting and the time outs and how those moments were the times when I wished for someday...not because I wanted to wish away his childhood, but because I knew it would take time and growth on behalf of both of us to see the humor in our (daily) struggles.
I can't predict how he'll respond to those stories, but I can hope that we'll be close enough and healed enough to see the lighter side. Maybe it won't even take twenty-odd years to reach that point, but certainly today is not the day when it seems even remotely funny.
I'll remind him of his amazing language skills and tease him about how much his continuous question of, "Where did ______ (Daddy, puppies, ball, etc.) went?" drove his English Teacher Mama batty. Then I'll regale him with anecdotes about his need to wear fleece footie pajamas every. single. day. I'll tell him that we had to buy four pairs just so there would always (hopefully) be a clean one to put on and that getting dressed to leave the house was almost always a 30-40 minute process (*ahem* battle). There will be stories about how I always called him my good eater because, quite frankly, he was, with cheese, Runza, fresh fruit, and pancakes topping the list of favorites. Then I'll share how amazed I was whenever we'd drive around town and he would point out landmarks and name places that we'd only been to once or maybe twice (the best being that McDonald's stood for "Mama's coffee and not Chicken McNuggets!).
Harrison will take all of this in but perhaps then he'll ask something along the lines of, "That all doesn't sound so bad...what's with the gray hair?" That is when I'll tell him about the long afternoons of popping out of his crib or bed or room and just how wild he got whenever he missed a nap. I'll sigh a little bit and tell him how it seemed that he laughed the loudest and the hardest when he knew he was doing something naughty. I'll go into the throwing and the swinging and the biting and the time outs and how those moments were the times when I wished for someday...not because I wanted to wish away his childhood, but because I knew it would take time and growth on behalf of both of us to see the humor in our (daily) struggles.
I can't predict how he'll respond to those stories, but I can hope that we'll be close enough and healed enough to see the lighter side. Maybe it won't even take twenty-odd years to reach that point, but certainly today is not the day when it seems even remotely funny.
Friday, January 13, 2012
The Candida Diet (OR "Um, at least I'll be skinny?")
Thrush update: we are still struggling.
We are on Round Two of the gentian violet as of yesterday and will continue with that through Sunday. I purchased a fresh bottle thinking that might make a difference, and if nothing else, it certainly stains more. Poor Raegan's whole mouth-face area is purplish, and I keep thinking "Violet, you're turning violet!" when I look at her. The stuff makes her gag when I first apply it to us, so we're doing our best to nurse our way through it and not stain every single inch of ourselves or the house in the process.
Thanks to the help and generosity of a good friend, I now have actual live Acidophilus to take as opposed to the capsule form. Hopefully this will help neutralize the yeast/bacteria that seem to have taken up shop in my system. The bottle she brought me is blueberry flavored and actually tastes just fine, but for some reason the way the stuff in the bottle bubbles (and literally looks alive) kind of freaks me out. The same friend also brought me a bottle of Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar which I am adding to water and drinking. It is gross and gaggy, but I keep doing it, again, in hopes of ridding my body of any and all things nasty.
My other approach to kicking the thrush is severely reducing my sugar intake. Prior to this week I was trying (sort of) to not eat as many sweets. I've come to realize after some research, though, that cutting out my beloved brownies and ice cream habit isn't enough to do the trick. To really fight yeast, you have to really eliminate sugars and yeast from your diet, which is really not an easy task. As it turns out, yeast/sugar is in just about everything. My dear husband did some research online for me the other night and came up with several sites that detail just how strict the Candida (yeast) Diet is. In short, sugar in almost every form, alcohol (duh), grains, fruits, all pork and lunch meats, all fish except for sockeye salmon, all cheese, milk, coffee and teas, peanuts, beans and soy, condiments, vinegars (save for the apple cider), and a lot of fats/oils (save actual butter) ALL equal big NO-NOs. Doesn't look so short, now does it? If you want the really long version, click here. Fortunately, Ben also found another web site that tells me what I can eat. Basically a lot of fresh greens and vegetables, chicken and lean beef, almonds, eggs, and some fruits like oranges and peaches. But if you know me, this diet is asking a lot.
For one thing, I have to remember that I'm nursing. Yes, I want to get rid of the thrush so the nursing feels better, but I have to remain mindful of taking in enough to produce enough for both my body and Little Miss Raegan, too. Another important factor here is the fact that we are moving one week from tomorrow. I honestly don't have time to totally re-haul my entire pantry and diet right now. I also don't have time to make double meals - one for me and one for the boys. We're trying to eat a bunch of the freezer meals I made last fall and some of those just do not follow the Candida Diet.
Lastly, if you didn't know, I am a carb freak. I love bread and pasta and baked goods - they have always been my favorites. So this is a real stretch just for my palate, but I am trying. I've gone on a couple shopping trips now to collect some "OK" items to eat, including more fresh veggies and new alternatives to snacks (list-approved nuts, for example). The real bummer in all of this, though, is how much yeast fights to stay in your system. As I'm working to eliminate it, it's fighting to hang on, literally making me crave sweets and breads more than ever. Nice, huh?
I guess the bright side here, in addition to Goal Number One: Get Rid of Thrush, is that, if I stick to it, I will get real skinny following this diet. I would say "real skinny without even trying" but obviously I am having to try all the time to follow the rules. I know that I won't be able to follow the lists 100% of the time, but I guess I'm hoping that every little change I make helps us move in the direction of healing. It would (will!) be so nice just to enjoy my nursing/nursing my baby girl.
We are on Round Two of the gentian violet as of yesterday and will continue with that through Sunday. I purchased a fresh bottle thinking that might make a difference, and if nothing else, it certainly stains more. Poor Raegan's whole mouth-face area is purplish, and I keep thinking "Violet, you're turning violet!" when I look at her. The stuff makes her gag when I first apply it to us, so we're doing our best to nurse our way through it and not stain every single inch of ourselves or the house in the process.
Thanks to the help and generosity of a good friend, I now have actual live Acidophilus to take as opposed to the capsule form. Hopefully this will help neutralize the yeast/bacteria that seem to have taken up shop in my system. The bottle she brought me is blueberry flavored and actually tastes just fine, but for some reason the way the stuff in the bottle bubbles (and literally looks alive) kind of freaks me out. The same friend also brought me a bottle of Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar which I am adding to water and drinking. It is gross and gaggy, but I keep doing it, again, in hopes of ridding my body of any and all things nasty.
My other approach to kicking the thrush is severely reducing my sugar intake. Prior to this week I was trying (sort of) to not eat as many sweets. I've come to realize after some research, though, that cutting out my beloved brownies and ice cream habit isn't enough to do the trick. To really fight yeast, you have to really eliminate sugars and yeast from your diet, which is really not an easy task. As it turns out, yeast/sugar is in just about everything. My dear husband did some research online for me the other night and came up with several sites that detail just how strict the Candida (yeast) Diet is. In short, sugar in almost every form, alcohol (duh), grains, fruits, all pork and lunch meats, all fish except for sockeye salmon, all cheese, milk, coffee and teas, peanuts, beans and soy, condiments, vinegars (save for the apple cider), and a lot of fats/oils (save actual butter) ALL equal big NO-NOs. Doesn't look so short, now does it? If you want the really long version, click here. Fortunately, Ben also found another web site that tells me what I can eat. Basically a lot of fresh greens and vegetables, chicken and lean beef, almonds, eggs, and some fruits like oranges and peaches. But if you know me, this diet is asking a lot.
For one thing, I have to remember that I'm nursing. Yes, I want to get rid of the thrush so the nursing feels better, but I have to remain mindful of taking in enough to produce enough for both my body and Little Miss Raegan, too. Another important factor here is the fact that we are moving one week from tomorrow. I honestly don't have time to totally re-haul my entire pantry and diet right now. I also don't have time to make double meals - one for me and one for the boys. We're trying to eat a bunch of the freezer meals I made last fall and some of those just do not follow the Candida Diet.
Lastly, if you didn't know, I am a carb freak. I love bread and pasta and baked goods - they have always been my favorites. So this is a real stretch just for my palate, but I am trying. I've gone on a couple shopping trips now to collect some "OK" items to eat, including more fresh veggies and new alternatives to snacks (list-approved nuts, for example). The real bummer in all of this, though, is how much yeast fights to stay in your system. As I'm working to eliminate it, it's fighting to hang on, literally making me crave sweets and breads more than ever. Nice, huh?
I guess the bright side here, in addition to Goal Number One: Get Rid of Thrush, is that, if I stick to it, I will get real skinny following this diet. I would say "real skinny without even trying" but obviously I am having to try all the time to follow the rules. I know that I won't be able to follow the lists 100% of the time, but I guess I'm hoping that every little change I make helps us move in the direction of healing. It would (will!) be so nice just to enjoy my nursing/nursing my baby girl.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
The Little House
Ever since I was young, The Little House has been one of my favorite books. Even now when I read it, the illustrations are so familiar...as if that little house and its story belonged to my own family and our history. As it is in reality, though, my family has never moved. My parents still live in the same wonderful house where I was raised. Ben's too. So it is not lost on us that in just a couple weeks, our children will be experiencing something we never did as kids.
While I know for sure Raegan will be too young to remember this move, I wonder about Harrison. We talk about the "new house" quite a bit these days and he knows where it is when we go on walks or drive through the neighborhood. He can even look at the pictures of the real estate listing and point to his future bedroom. But does he really understand what this all means?
Today, after his nap, Harrison went up to the little space heater in his room, touched it and told me, "My heater needs to go to the new house" (don't worry, people, it's kid-safe!). Then he put his hand on the lamp and said, "My light needs to go to the new house, too." He looked at me with such big eyes as he made these statements and kind of nodded his head as he spoke, as if to reiterate the importance of his words. I nodded in agreement and told him that yes, all of his things would go to the new house. In one way this doesn't surprise me because he's obviously noticed all of the boxes around our house and he even "helped" pack some things from his closet yesterday morning. But how much can an almost two-and-a-half-year-old really understand about moving? I'm an almost thirty-year-old and the whole process is still a little bit lost on me!
Before today I hadn't really considered that HD might be slightly concerned about the upcoming move. I still wouldn't say that he's really worried or scared, but now I can see that it will take some time, patience and explanation for him to understand fully that we live there and not here once we make the switch. This might be complicated by the fact that the old house will still (always) be just around the corner. I now have visions in my head of Harrison telling me that he wants to come back to this house when we walk by on future afternoon excursions; I can see him insisting that this is still "Harrison's House" and that he should be able to go in it or in the yard. And why wouldn't he? This is his little house; it has been 95% of his world for his entire life, so of course it may be difficult for him to let it go.
For me, saying "goodbye" to this house will be bittersweet. For all the little (and not-so-little) hiccups and projects, it has been a wonderful home to us for the last five and a half years. We bought it, though, as a starter home and that's exactly what we did here. We started our life together as a couple. We started our careers as teachers. We started our family. And now we need more space. We need room to breath and play and grow. All of that will happen in the new house and I am grateful that it will provide us with those opportunities. But I have a feeling that I may have some toddler moments in the future when I take a stroll through the neighborhood and pass by this little tan bungalow...it may just be that I still think of it as "my" house and it just may be that I want to demand to see it again because it has played such an important role in my life. Funny, isn't it? I never realized a little house could be so big.
While I know for sure Raegan will be too young to remember this move, I wonder about Harrison. We talk about the "new house" quite a bit these days and he knows where it is when we go on walks or drive through the neighborhood. He can even look at the pictures of the real estate listing and point to his future bedroom. But does he really understand what this all means?
Today, after his nap, Harrison went up to the little space heater in his room, touched it and told me, "My heater needs to go to the new house" (don't worry, people, it's kid-safe!). Then he put his hand on the lamp and said, "My light needs to go to the new house, too." He looked at me with such big eyes as he made these statements and kind of nodded his head as he spoke, as if to reiterate the importance of his words. I nodded in agreement and told him that yes, all of his things would go to the new house. In one way this doesn't surprise me because he's obviously noticed all of the boxes around our house and he even "helped" pack some things from his closet yesterday morning. But how much can an almost two-and-a-half-year-old really understand about moving? I'm an almost thirty-year-old and the whole process is still a little bit lost on me!
Before today I hadn't really considered that HD might be slightly concerned about the upcoming move. I still wouldn't say that he's really worried or scared, but now I can see that it will take some time, patience and explanation for him to understand fully that we live there and not here once we make the switch. This might be complicated by the fact that the old house will still (always) be just around the corner. I now have visions in my head of Harrison telling me that he wants to come back to this house when we walk by on future afternoon excursions; I can see him insisting that this is still "Harrison's House" and that he should be able to go in it or in the yard. And why wouldn't he? This is his little house; it has been 95% of his world for his entire life, so of course it may be difficult for him to let it go.
For me, saying "goodbye" to this house will be bittersweet. For all the little (and not-so-little) hiccups and projects, it has been a wonderful home to us for the last five and a half years. We bought it, though, as a starter home and that's exactly what we did here. We started our life together as a couple. We started our careers as teachers. We started our family. And now we need more space. We need room to breath and play and grow. All of that will happen in the new house and I am grateful that it will provide us with those opportunities. But I have a feeling that I may have some toddler moments in the future when I take a stroll through the neighborhood and pass by this little tan bungalow...it may just be that I still think of it as "my" house and it just may be that I want to demand to see it again because it has played such an important role in my life. Funny, isn't it? I never realized a little house could be so big.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
It's Not Easy Being Purple
So I totally freaked out about 10 different moms at MOPS this morning. Here I am, carrying around this two-month-old little baby, smile on my face and blue-looking lips on hers. Each one that noticed it got wide-eyed and said, "Um, Mom...." But no worries. Well, not really - there are worries, but not the fact that Raegan's lips aren't the natural or normal pink that they should be.
See, we are STILL treating for thrush and gentian violet is our latest attempt to rid it from both of our systems. As you can tell by the name (or the link if you take a peek at it), it is a purple liquid and it stains. Everything. But the basic concept is that you paint it on the baby's mouth or your nipples or perhaps both and - hopefully - after a few days, the thrush will disappear. Now we've tried weeks of antibiotics for both of us and probiotics/yogurt for me and vinegar washes after nursing and Lotramin and reduced sugar intake for my diet, but none of that has been able to get rid of the white on her tongue or the stinging in me when we nurse (and sometimes even when we're not). So purple mouth it is.
But being purple isn't easy, and not just because it scares everyone who sees her sweet little face. The stuff really is a holy terror mess. I apply it once every evening and then we both have to wear and be surrounded by things that we don't mind turning purple. Fortunately I have some lovely old towels that just happen to be a lovely shade of lavender - perfect for this week of treatment! I also found some old gowns that Harrison managed to stain in other ways and we are using those for Little Miss so she doesn't get icky anywhere other than her face. Olive oil has helped too - I paint a little of that around her mouth before applying the gentian violet and then the purple doesn't stain the outside of her mouth quite so much. So yes - fun, fun.
The thing is, if it works, I don't care. I am obviously willing to try just about anything to get rid of this because I want to enjoy nursing. I plan to do it for at least another 10 months, either way, but I would really appreciate it if I wasn't in pain for that entire time span.
So, no, being purple isn't easy or fun, but hopefully it is effective.
See, we are STILL treating for thrush and gentian violet is our latest attempt to rid it from both of our systems. As you can tell by the name (or the link if you take a peek at it), it is a purple liquid and it stains. Everything. But the basic concept is that you paint it on the baby's mouth or your nipples or perhaps both and - hopefully - after a few days, the thrush will disappear. Now we've tried weeks of antibiotics for both of us and probiotics/yogurt for me and vinegar washes after nursing and Lotramin and reduced sugar intake for my diet, but none of that has been able to get rid of the white on her tongue or the stinging in me when we nurse (and sometimes even when we're not). So purple mouth it is.
But being purple isn't easy, and not just because it scares everyone who sees her sweet little face. The stuff really is a holy terror mess. I apply it once every evening and then we both have to wear and be surrounded by things that we don't mind turning purple. Fortunately I have some lovely old towels that just happen to be a lovely shade of lavender - perfect for this week of treatment! I also found some old gowns that Harrison managed to stain in other ways and we are using those for Little Miss so she doesn't get icky anywhere other than her face. Olive oil has helped too - I paint a little of that around her mouth before applying the gentian violet and then the purple doesn't stain the outside of her mouth quite so much. So yes - fun, fun.
The thing is, if it works, I don't care. I am obviously willing to try just about anything to get rid of this because I want to enjoy nursing. I plan to do it for at least another 10 months, either way, but I would really appreciate it if I wasn't in pain for that entire time span.
So, no, being purple isn't easy or fun, but hopefully it is effective.
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