We just returned from Wren's one-month well visit. She did fine - aside from a few tears at getting her 2nd dose of HepB - and is growing well:
Weight: 9 pounds 2 ounces (50th percentile)
Height: 22inches (75th percentile)
Head Circumference: 14.5inches (50th percentile)
This makes me conclude the following:
a) Weight: she is eating enough - eventhough at times I feel like she could be eating more and I think that this still holds true but at least I have no reason to be concerned;
b) Height: Evan and I both think they must not have stretched her out completely when they measured her at the hospital as she did have a slight conehead and it's highly doubtful that she would have grown 3 inches in her first month
c) Head Circumference: she'll be a genius, of course :)
But seriously, it lets us know that she's proportionate, which is always nice.
After the doctor's office, we went downtown to Tops for shoes for Oakes. He's needed a new pair for a while now and when Evan took him to the Stride Rite in the mall last week, we discovered they are closing that store. So now we are members of the Tops Kids' Club (or something like that) where after we buy 12 pairs of shoes, we'll get a pretty nice discount on another pair. And after seeing how much Oakes' feet have grown (he's been wearing a 6.5 for a few months and is now a size 8!!!!), I have a feeling we'll be getting that discount soon! I have to say, there are some seriously cute shoes for girls out there and I am a bit excited about getting some of them for Wren when her time comes.
After hearing Oakes volunteer "I'm not tired" about 3 times on the way home from the shoe store, we hustled upstairs and ate lunch before putting him down for a nap. We also went ahead and took his temperature as he's had a nasty cough for the past 2 days and has been a bit whiney. Yup, little guy had a 100.4 degree temperature which means no playdate this afternoon and hopefully a longer than usual nap. Ugh... At least we will both be home from school tomorrow so if he has to have a sick day then we will be ready!
In other news, we tried a bottle with Wren on Saturday night and weren't too successful. We've come up with a Plan B and will give it another shot in the next day or so. As her doctor said, she'll figure it out sooner or later and until then, we just keep on trying.
Showing posts with label Wren. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wren. Show all posts
Monday, January 16, 2012
Friday, January 6, 2012
Updates
So Wren was 3 weeks old yesterday - cannot believe she's so old already! We had an appointment at the Breastfeeding Center yesterday to check her weight gain and she's doing well. She's now 8 pounds, 13 ounces so in the past week, she's gained an ounce a day but it's a little less than that if you look at her 2-week gain. Either way, I'm producing plenty and she's getting a good deal of it. She's still a sleepy little girl and a lazy little eater though so between the two of those traits, her middle of the night feeds are not so easy (especially with a tired mama!). I find myself surfing the internet on my phone at 2am to stay awake so that I can keep her awake and nursing. Oh well, like I said she's doing well. Here's a copy of the birth announcement I created, using her photo from her amazing photographer, Dawn, at http://www.owlsistersphotography.com/. If you check out their facebook page, you can see a few other really cute ones - and even one that showcases her dimple she inherited from her handsome father!
Evan is lucky enough to be able to take some time off work too, so we've really enjoyed getting to know Wren over these last few weeks. Wren and her Daddy are actually both taking a nap on the couch - she's cuddled in the Moby Wrap on him and he's providing a bit of white noise for her. :) And Oakes is enjoying his time at "school" still - I had originally thought we'd go down to sending him only 2 or 3 days a week, but he does very well with a schedule and I feel like I'm a better/more refreshed mama to him when he gets home in the afternoon than I am when I'm chasing him around the house all day with all of his "terrible two" drama he gets in to. He is still doing excellent with his potty training and his teacher even asked us the other day what our secret was to this as he's had the easiest time transitioning. Of course, Evan told her honestly that we didn't have much to do with it, it was his Oma's determination when she saw that Oakes was obviously ready for it. While Evan and I weren't quite sure we were ready to tackle and newborn and potty training at the same time, it's been pretty easy so far and not having to buy diapers or pack them in my purse when we go out is an incredibly liberating thing!
Oakes is still smitten with Wren though - he thinks she's pretty cute and all he wants to do is try to hold her and kiss her. We got a really-super-over-the-top-cute video of him singing his ABC's to her last night and then doing Patty-Cake with her hands. The photo-hog didn't know we were filming which is good as he'd have just frozen with his new cheesy "the camera is out so it must be that they want a smiling picture of me" smile on his face.
Did I mention it's been 3 weeks?!?!? If I was going back on time, I'd be half way through my leave right now -- ACK! I'm just not ready! With the looming deadline of when I have to return hanging over my head, I have decided to start blogging officially in the hopes that one day in the not-so-near-future I can hang up my teaching outfit, blog full time, and spend more time with my kiddos. Establishing a new blog will be done in the next few days and I'll post a link to it on this site. I'd LOVE if you all checked it out once it's up and running. I figure the theme for it will be home improvements, decorating things, and maybe even some fun kid stuff that I'm doing already (or have done already). I love doing all of that stuff so I feel like even if the blog isn't my ticket to early retirement, it will be a creative outlet for me and will give me an excuse to do fun projects around the house. I already know the first project I want to do on the blog, though I'll probably start by highlighting some of the quick things I've already done since those pics will be quicker to get posted!
Honestly, I think that daycare is truly the BEST thing for Oakes and for Evan and I. And I know that I'm excited about the prospect of Wren going into daycare/school at some point as well. However, I just want the flexibility I have now: if I want to keep Oakes home, then I keep him home; if I want to take the kids on a "field trip" on a weekday, then it could be done; if one of them is sick, then Evan and I wouldn't have to scramble to come up with lesson plans. I think that in my dream world - if it could come true tomorrow - I would be blogging and doing projects at home with Wren in her Moby Wrap helping me out, and Oakes would be attending a preschool type of school (9-12 sort of hours) instead of being gone all day. Now where's my magic wand to make that happen?
Evan is lucky enough to be able to take some time off work too, so we've really enjoyed getting to know Wren over these last few weeks. Wren and her Daddy are actually both taking a nap on the couch - she's cuddled in the Moby Wrap on him and he's providing a bit of white noise for her. :) And Oakes is enjoying his time at "school" still - I had originally thought we'd go down to sending him only 2 or 3 days a week, but he does very well with a schedule and I feel like I'm a better/more refreshed mama to him when he gets home in the afternoon than I am when I'm chasing him around the house all day with all of his "terrible two" drama he gets in to. He is still doing excellent with his potty training and his teacher even asked us the other day what our secret was to this as he's had the easiest time transitioning. Of course, Evan told her honestly that we didn't have much to do with it, it was his Oma's determination when she saw that Oakes was obviously ready for it. While Evan and I weren't quite sure we were ready to tackle and newborn and potty training at the same time, it's been pretty easy so far and not having to buy diapers or pack them in my purse when we go out is an incredibly liberating thing!
Oakes is still smitten with Wren though - he thinks she's pretty cute and all he wants to do is try to hold her and kiss her. We got a really-super-over-the-top-cute video of him singing his ABC's to her last night and then doing Patty-Cake with her hands. The photo-hog didn't know we were filming which is good as he'd have just frozen with his new cheesy "the camera is out so it must be that they want a smiling picture of me" smile on his face.
Did I mention it's been 3 weeks?!?!? If I was going back on time, I'd be half way through my leave right now -- ACK! I'm just not ready! With the looming deadline of when I have to return hanging over my head, I have decided to start blogging officially in the hopes that one day in the not-so-near-future I can hang up my teaching outfit, blog full time, and spend more time with my kiddos. Establishing a new blog will be done in the next few days and I'll post a link to it on this site. I'd LOVE if you all checked it out once it's up and running. I figure the theme for it will be home improvements, decorating things, and maybe even some fun kid stuff that I'm doing already (or have done already). I love doing all of that stuff so I feel like even if the blog isn't my ticket to early retirement, it will be a creative outlet for me and will give me an excuse to do fun projects around the house. I already know the first project I want to do on the blog, though I'll probably start by highlighting some of the quick things I've already done since those pics will be quicker to get posted!
Honestly, I think that daycare is truly the BEST thing for Oakes and for Evan and I. And I know that I'm excited about the prospect of Wren going into daycare/school at some point as well. However, I just want the flexibility I have now: if I want to keep Oakes home, then I keep him home; if I want to take the kids on a "field trip" on a weekday, then it could be done; if one of them is sick, then Evan and I wouldn't have to scramble to come up with lesson plans. I think that in my dream world - if it could come true tomorrow - I would be blogging and doing projects at home with Wren in her Moby Wrap helping me out, and Oakes would be attending a preschool type of school (9-12 sort of hours) instead of being gone all day. Now where's my magic wand to make that happen?
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Jaundice
I figure it wouldn't hurt to give everyone info on Jaundice, since we are currently dealing with that with Wren. When we left the hospital on Saturday, she had levels of 11 (Saturday evening). We had daily bilirubin checks for the next few days in which her levels peaked at 13 on Sunday, then started to creep down: 12.9 on Monday and 12.7 on Tuesday. They are giving us a few days off of the checks though we still have to keep her treatments up (bili-blanket and bili-lights) in the meantime. We go back Friday morning for our next bili check and will hopefully see more progress. Our pediatrician couldn't give us a "safe" number as she said the bili chart is on a curve based on the age of the child and their numbers, but she said that the older Wren gets and the more her levels continue to creep down, the better she will be.
The following info on Jaundice was taken from babycenter.com - I actually just got it on my "your baby is a week old!" email and figured it could answer questions a lot better than I could.
What is jaundice?Jaundice is a condition that causes a yellowish discoloration of the skin and the whites of the eyes. If you press your finger against the nose or chest of a fair-skinned baby with jaundice, you can see this yellow tinge. If your baby has dark skin, you can see the yellowness in the whites of the eyes or in the gums. The most common type of jaundice develops on the second or third day of life — about when the baby is being discharged from the hospital — which is why it's important to know about it and keep an eye out for it. Most of these cases, called physiologic jaundice, disappear on their own in two weeks.
What causes jaundice?
A newborn has more red blood cells than her body needs, and often, when a baby's immature liver can't process them quickly enough, a yellow pigment called bilirubin (a byproduct of the red blood cells) builds up in the blood. Much of this bilirubin leaves the body in the baby's stool, but about half of babies develop some degree of jaundice during the first two weeks of life. Preemies and babies with genetic diseases or infections are especially vulnerable. Some breastfeeding babies develop jaundice if they don't get enough breast milk, because the bilirubin isn't able to exit the body through body waste. Breastfeeding jaundice usually shows up in the first two weeks of life. When jaundice is detected within the first 24 hours, it may be due to a blood-group incompatibility with the mother (the mother is Rh-negative and the baby is Rh-positive), infection, or an underlying liver problem.
Should I worry?
Most newborn cases of jaundice are harmless and require no treatment. The doctor may order blood tests to measure your baby's bilirubin levels, which usually involve taking a small amount of blood from your baby's heel. In moderate cases of jaundice, the doctor may prescribe phototherapy (light therapy), which involves placing the baby naked under special blue lights that help her body break down the bilirubin so that it can be excreted. This can be done in the hospital or at home with a portable unit. A special kind of fiber-optic blanket, called a bili blanket, has a similar effect. In addition to phototherapy, it's important to keep your baby well hydrated and to identify and treat any underlying medical issues. Your doctor may recommend breastfeeding more often or supplementing with formula to give your baby more fluids and help her pass more bilirubin in her stools. The goal of treatment is to lower the bilirubin level to prevent the buildup of toxic levels in the baby's brain (a disease called kernicterus). With monitoring and treatment, the risk of kernicterus or other complications drops to almost none.
The following info on Jaundice was taken from babycenter.com - I actually just got it on my "your baby is a week old!" email and figured it could answer questions a lot better than I could.
What is jaundice?Jaundice is a condition that causes a yellowish discoloration of the skin and the whites of the eyes. If you press your finger against the nose or chest of a fair-skinned baby with jaundice, you can see this yellow tinge. If your baby has dark skin, you can see the yellowness in the whites of the eyes or in the gums. The most common type of jaundice develops on the second or third day of life — about when the baby is being discharged from the hospital — which is why it's important to know about it and keep an eye out for it. Most of these cases, called physiologic jaundice, disappear on their own in two weeks.
What causes jaundice?
A newborn has more red blood cells than her body needs, and often, when a baby's immature liver can't process them quickly enough, a yellow pigment called bilirubin (a byproduct of the red blood cells) builds up in the blood. Much of this bilirubin leaves the body in the baby's stool, but about half of babies develop some degree of jaundice during the first two weeks of life. Preemies and babies with genetic diseases or infections are especially vulnerable. Some breastfeeding babies develop jaundice if they don't get enough breast milk, because the bilirubin isn't able to exit the body through body waste. Breastfeeding jaundice usually shows up in the first two weeks of life. When jaundice is detected within the first 24 hours, it may be due to a blood-group incompatibility with the mother (the mother is Rh-negative and the baby is Rh-positive), infection, or an underlying liver problem.
Should I worry?
Most newborn cases of jaundice are harmless and require no treatment. The doctor may order blood tests to measure your baby's bilirubin levels, which usually involve taking a small amount of blood from your baby's heel. In moderate cases of jaundice, the doctor may prescribe phototherapy (light therapy), which involves placing the baby naked under special blue lights that help her body break down the bilirubin so that it can be excreted. This can be done in the hospital or at home with a portable unit. A special kind of fiber-optic blanket, called a bili blanket, has a similar effect. In addition to phototherapy, it's important to keep your baby well hydrated and to identify and treat any underlying medical issues. Your doctor may recommend breastfeeding more often or supplementing with formula to give your baby more fluids and help her pass more bilirubin in her stools. The goal of treatment is to lower the bilirubin level to prevent the buildup of toxic levels in the baby's brain (a disease called kernicterus). With monitoring and treatment, the risk of kernicterus or other complications drops to almost none.
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