And Baby Makes Three

Well, after initially seeming back to his regular self this morning, Benjamin had another bout of fussiness and resistance to nursing around noon. So, I decided to call the nurse again. She suggested that I bring him in to find out if there was an infection that was making him uncomfortable, etc. Dr. Wardell happened to have an appointment available 20 minutes later, so we hopped in the car and drove straight there.

Turns out, all the fuss was over not so much. All she could find was that he has a “mildly irritated” throat. No ear infection or stomach problems (hooray!). She just suggested that I give him Tylenol as needed, and otherwise “wait it out.” It makes sense. The only time he was upset and in pain was when he was nursing, because that’s when he was having to swallow, which hurt his little throat.

Oddly enough, the doctor’s visit seemed to miraculously heal Benjamin. Since we left there, which was about four hours ago, he has been very happy, nursed very well, and is now taking one of his regularly scheduled naps. Maybe he, like me, just wanted to know that there wasn’t anything to be concerned about.

I am confident that the worst of his sore throat has passed, and that he will be totally back to normal in no time. Hopefully my next post will be about something more fun than sick babies!

So this is the not so fun part of parenting. Benjamin developed a mystery ailment on Monday afternoon, and since then we have tried to keep him comfortable, get him to finish his feedings, and figure out what is wrong. Amazingly, this is the first time Benjamin has really been sick, other than a couple of runny nose days and the fever that followed his first set of vaccinations.

Here are his symptoms:

• Mild fever (99.5 last time we checked)
• Red, glazed eyes
• Will only nurse for a few minutes before starting to fuss and turning away
• Sporadic high-pitched “I’m in pain” cry (so, so sad!)
• Vomited (only one time, but it was much more than the usual spit up)
• Very tired (this has been the positive aspect of his sickness is that he is still napping well and still sleeping through the night)

Here’s how we have treated it:

• Gave gas drops once Monday, once Tuesday (this seemed to help his tummy pain, and was quickly followed by lots of gas, a dirty diaper, and a happy baby!)
• Baby Tylenol (we gave him this for the fever last night, and it also seemed to help him a lot)
• Lots of rest (including naps on Mommy, which I usually don’t let him do – I’m all about teaching him independence and learning to take naps in his crib – but it sure was fun to snuggle and comfort him!)
• Gently forcing him to eat – My main concern is that he will lose weight because of his loss of appetite, so when he stopped nursing after a few minutes, I would wait 30 minutes or an hour and try again. If he still wasn’t nursing, I gave him a bottle of my milk, which he quickly took. Strange. Usually he is resistant to bottles. This sickness has thrown his feeding schedule off, but I’m sure we’ll get back on track when he’s feeling better.

We called the nurse yesterday, and she said it could be related to teething or an ear infection. His pain, where ever it is, isn’t constant, so I’m wondering if it was just a virus that is now working it’s way out of his system. He woke up this morning his regular, happy self and nursed well. No vomiting, no fever. Hopefully the rest of the day will continue back toward normalcy.

This is probably minor compared to some of the viruses and infections we’ll encounter with Benjamin, but for a first time parent, the first illness is a big deal – no matter how small! Moms reading this, do these symptoms sound familiar?

The last time I wrote about Benjamin’s daily routine was when he was seven weeks old. (Click here to view that post.)

At that time, I was only beginning to get him on a schedule. Now he is very much on a schedule. Here’s how a typical day goes for us now:

• Benjamin usually wakes up between 8 and 8:30. He is perfectly happy to talk to himself in his crib for up to 20 minutes, which gives me time to eat breakfast, make some coffee, etc.
• When I go in to get him out of his crib, his face lights up with excitement and the sweetest smile. He’s always so happy to see me! Often, Brad goes in with me, and Benjamin is just as thrilled to see him.
• After I feed Benjamin, he usually stays awake for an hour. He doesn’t require much entertainment in this phase of the morning. He’s happy to hang out with me, where ever I am.

• He goes down for his morning nap very easily. A quick diaper change, swaddle, and snuggle, and soon he is as peaceful as can be. This nap usually lasts 1 1/2 to 2 hours, which allows me to go to the gym (when Brad is working at home) and shower, go do some shopping, or get things done at home. This is my main “me time” of the day, so I try to make the most of it.
• The afternoon is usually pleasant for us. I feed him around noon, then he stays awake for about 1 1/2 hours, and then he takes a 45 minute to 1 hour nap. I often take a nap at this time. Otherwise, I check email, work on my blogs, sometimes have coffee with Brad, etc.
• Benjamin is becoming more independent during his awake times, since he can entertain himself more and more. This is because he is very interested in toys now. He can hold them, which makes him very proud. So now he likes to study them, bat at them, etc. We have various locations for him to play with his toys, including his bouncy seat, his swing, his high chair, a quilt on the floor, etc. Other of his favorite things to do include dance marathons with me (his version of dancing is to kick his legs and swing his arms – it’s very cute!), watching ceiling fans turn around (we conveniently have one in every room in our house), and leaving the house to run errands. He always gets excited when I put him in his car seat, and whether it’s Walmart, Target, or a friend’s house, he’s very interested to take in all the sights.
• Back to the schedule… After his next feeding, which falls around 3:00, it’s more of the same – a pretty long awake time, followed by a shorter nap (30 to 40 minutes). I usually try to use this nap time as a chance to prepare dinner, since it’s in the 5:00 hour. Sometimes I run errands in the late afternoon, and Benjamin takes his nap in his car seat where ever we are. He will take a nap where ever we are, which is convenient for me.
• His dinner time feeding is tricky, since it falls around the same time as our dinner time. Usually I feed him first, and direct Brad as to how to finish up our dinner, and then we eat afterwards while Benjamin is full and happy.
• I’ve learned that a sure fire way to fend off Benjamin’s fussiness is to take him on a walk in the neighborhood, so we do that just about every night now, waiting until around 8 when it isn’t quite as hot outside. I was deterred a few nights ago by ridiculous swarms of gnats, but they haven’t been as bad since. Sometimes he falls asleep for 20 or 30 minutes during or after the walk, but other times he just looks around and marvels at the leaves in the trees, the sounds of the birds, etc.

• Brad usually spends some quality time with Benjamin after dinner as well, which gives me a chance to have a few moments to myself. Usually this time is spent washing dishes, folding laundry, or doing some general house straightening up. There’s always something to be done. Some days it feels like I don’t stop moving from the time I wake up until the time I go to sleep!
• Around 8:30 is bath time. Brad and I take turns bathing Benjamin, and it is always fun since he loves the water.
• By 9:00 Benjamin is dressed for bed, very relaxed, and I am feeding him for the last time of the day. Usually Brad and I will watch something on tv during this time. We put Benjamin in bed between 9:30 and 10:00, and he goes to sleep right away. He’s always so tired from the day, even with all the naps he takes.
• I love the hour or two after we put Benjamin to bed. As much as I love my baby boy, this time is a reminder of what life was like before the responsibility of being a parent. Brad and I enjoy the one on one time together, and I enjoy just chilling out – reading a book, eating a snack, watching television. I usually go to sleep some time between 11 and midnight.
• I never have to feed Benjamin during the night anymore. He does occasionally wake up during the night, but I rarely have to get out of bed to check on him. When he does wake up, he normally is perfectly happy to talk to himself until he goes back to sleep. Sometimes he’ll wake up crying a little bit, but again, he usually goes back to sleep on his own, within a few minutes. So, I get a full night’s sleep, with minimal interruption.
• The next day I wake up between 7 and 8, with 8 or so hours of sleep under my belt, ready to start it all over again!

It will be interesting to see how our daily routine changes as Benjamin grows and develops.

South Louisiana has a lot of character – the accent, the food, the landscape… and the humidity! So, when we visited Brad’s mom, a dip in the pool was a welcome relief from the hot, humid weather. We waited until sunset to venture out, since mom and baby both have very pale skin that is super sensitive to the sun’s rays. Benjamin was in a very pleasant mood while we were there, so I captured several good pictures. Take a look.

It was Nana’s idea to take Benjamin to the pool. She’s a smart lady!

Benjamin enjoys snuggling with Brad, as this picture shows.

Father and son. Do you see the resemblance? Most people are now saying that Benjamin looks more like me, at least his eyes, forehead, and complexion. But I see something of Brad’s mouth and chin in Benjamin.

Such a kissable face!

One of Benjamin’s latest forms of entertainment is to show off his core strength when Brad holds him up in a Superman pose. He is very strong!

He loves to spend time with his Daddy.

Benjamin’s interests are constantly changing and evolving. Below, take a look at some pictures that show him in his favorite places, or doing some of his favorite things. But first, here are some other favorites:

• Favorite funny words from Mommy: “Bibbidy Bobbidy Boo!” (He laughs and smiles every time I say this. I guess he likes alliteration, as he should with an English teacher for a mom.)
• Favorite Beatles song: “All My Loving” (We are fans of the movie Across the Universe, which is a Beatles’ musical. We’ve had a renewed interest in the Beatles because of this, and this is one song Benjamin really enjoys. It’s the one that starts “Close your eyes and I’ll kiss you, tomorrow I’ll miss you. Remember I’ll always be true…”)
• Favorite room in the house: Where ever Mommy and Daddy are. But if he had to choose one, he’d probably say his room because it has all the fun colors and shapes to look at. (Two thumbs up to the Alphabet Soup nursery decor!)
• Favorite new soothing technique: Soaking his feet in warm water. In the evening when he’s fussy, all I have to do is put some warm water in the bathroom sink and let his feet soak in it awhile. He loves it!
• Favorite toy: One of those baby key rings with all the different colored pieces.
• Favorite redirecting technique: If he is getting frustrated or fussy, and we need something to distract him, lightly blowing air in his face works well. It surprises him (he gives a cute little gasp when the air hits his face) and then he smiles and waits for us to do it again.

Now on to the pictures…

He enjoys sitting upright, since it gives him a better vantage point of what’s going on in the house. Since he’s not strong enough to sit up on his own yet, he spends time propped up with pillows, or sitting in his bumbo chair. In this picture he looks like he is doing a boxing stance, doesn’t he?

Benjamin and Chloe are very comfortable around each other these days. He likes to watch her bathing herself, walking across the room, or just sitting in her bed. Chloe likes Benjamin best when he is happy and quiet. His crying makes her nervous.

In this picture Benjamin shows off his pot belly. And although you can’t really tell, he is kicking his legs – another current favorite activity. He really gets his legs going when we entertain him with song and dance. (Oddly enough, this is a common occurrence in our house.)

Now that he is reaching out and grabbing or batting at objects, he’s really having fun with this Baby Einstein Activity Center. It comes complete with classical music, flashing lights, and lots of fun things to look at and touch. When we lay him down to play with it, he can go from fussy to mesmerized in mere seconds. Of course, it only entertains him for five or ten minutes, but it’s nice to know he enjoys it.

Here he’s doing a “running man” pose. Although I mentioned above that he likes to sit up, he also enjoys play time on a quilt. Any time his legs and arms are free, he lets loose with lots of movement.

In the evening, we’ve learned that he enjoys sitting with us. Usually that means joining us on the sofa, where we eat dinner. (We will eventually move to eating at a table, but haven’t done so yet.) He gets a kick out of sitting in between us, propped up by pillows. And we are thrilled that he finds this so entertaining. For us it means eating dinner without listening to a fussy baby.