Juliana - 2 months

Weight - 10 pounds
Height - 58 cm

Likes

Her likes haven't changed - loves baths, sleeping, the babybjorne and the pram. She goes to sleep so easily and we often refer to her as the angel baby (who knows if it will stay that way but we're enjoying it at the moment).

Dislikes

She does not like it when you pick her nose (fair enough! But sometimes it's a necessity).

Day-to-day

Restrictions have started to ease so we are spending days at the playground. Hudson is back at school (after 6 weeks of homeschooling) so we are getting into a new routine. She is still feeding mostly every 3 hours with a few longer stretches - she has gone 7 hours overnight once and a few 5 or 6 hours. She is still taking mostly one boob but having more 10 minute or over feedings.

I am writing this when she's 10 weeks old and is just now starting to fit into some of her 000 clothes, and she got some hand me downs from Gabe's brother and cousin which was lovely. I am refraining from buying clothes for a bit.

About me

I feel great which is due to the sleeping being okay. I haven't started exercising but hope to soon. I have been getting headaches which I read could be from breastfeeding. I usually only get one or two a year but the past few weeks I have been having them almost daily.

One month - Juliana

Weight - 8 pounds 8 ounces


Height - 53 cm




Likes


She loves to lay on your chest and enjoys her egopouches for nighttime sleeping. She likes baths but we don't do it too often. She is still spending lots of hours sleeping but now has longer awake times. She enjoys walks in the babybjorne or the pram.




Dislikes


She dislikes waiting more than a second to eat after she says she's hungry but otherwise is a content baby who only cries when she's hungry or needs a nappy change.


Day-to-day


It's been a strange start to maternity leave with the COVID-19 lockdown. We can't go to cafes, playgrounds, see friends, or do much aside from some daily walks and lots of couch cuddles. I started homeschooling Hudson last week since schools have been shutdown (except for kids of parents who are not able to work from home). I also have Xander out of daycare so that means it's me and three kiddos day in and day out. I do love spending so much time with them but we are all going a bit stir crazy.


I reread Xander's one month update and little Jules is a lot like her older brother - sleep is going well (restless between 8-11pm with lots of cluster feeding, mostly 3 hr stretches at night, wakes for the day around 10am), she's settled into the family seamlessly, the boys are being great big brothers (who always want to hold her), she's eating 8-10 times a day and mostly taking one boob (5-10 mins but sometimes 15).


About me


The recovery from the birth went really well - only mildly painful in the hospital when they pushed on my uterus and a bit sore for a day or two after; I lost the baby weight within the week but only gained around 15 pounds (but I am still carrying around the weight I gained with Hudson!!!); I had light bleeding but did bleed off and on for three weeks; no pain peeing and felt very normal right away. Looking forward to building up my strength and endurance. I started walking around day 4 and tried the elliptical in week 2 but then had pains so have not resumed.

Juliana's Birth Story

After having Xander at home we were worried that another home delivery may not go as smooth as the first and it was scary to think that we would be far from the hospital. I spoke to my GP and the hospital's one and everyone was supportive of a scheduled induction with a date to be confirmed at the 38 check-up. Sunday, 15 March I was worried that my water broke. I didn't hear a pop like with Xander but it seemed like fluid was coming out and it wasn't pee. We decided to go to the hospital on Monday to have it checked and I also wasn't feeling the baby as much. Five hours later (lots of time in the waiting room!) I find out that it was just pee and Baby J was doing really well. Tuesday was the 38 check-up and I had a high blood pressure reading so I had to stay for another 4 hours to get it monitored. I ended up going in on Friday too with both kids to get her checked again because I wasn't feeling her move. With the corona virus they said no kids were allowed in the hospital so I called Gabe to collect the boys. Another 6 hours (mostly in the waiting room) to find out that she was great. It was a relief to know she was good. The induction was scheduled for Sunday, 22 March, so on Saturday Chelsea came over to stay the night and watch the boys. Sunday morning I called to see how they were going and they said it was unlikely that I would be induced in the next few hours but still come down to get the baby checked. We spent two hours at the hospital getting the baby checked and then sent home with instructions that they would call us to let us know and it would either be later that day or Monday. I called at 8pm and there were still no beds so I was told to come in on Monday morning.


At 11:55pm I was laying in bed and I heard the telltale 'pop' of the waters breaking and my eyes bulged out of my head and I thought "OMG it's happening again like last time". I didn't move for a few minutes because I was freaking out mentally but when I stood up a gush came out and I knew for certain that my waters had broke. I hadn't had any contractions yet but I called the maternity assessment and they said to come it. Then we called 000. I felt weird calling but we didn't know how fast she would come and I definitely didn't want to deliver her in the middle of the night on the side of road. Gabe called Chelsea to give her an update and said he would call her back to discuss the next step (luckily she just hopped into her car). When the ambulance arrived I walked outside like I was catching a taxi and hopped in. I could tell the paramedics thought I was going overboard to call but they were nice about it. Gabe called when I was heading to the hospital to make sure we were going to Sunshine. I had some tightening in the ambulance but nothing painful. We joked about it coming fast and having to pull over. I didn't move at all and kept my legs closed! When we arrived at the hospital we couldn't get up the elevator and I had a proper contraction, and I thought 'Oh no I'm going to deliver in the elevator'. I made it up to level 3 and they said they would assess me and then decide if I was going to the birthing suite (I don't think they really appreciated how fast the delivery could be). I had another contraction when I was being assessed. I was gutted to hear that I was only 4 cms (when I was checked at the 38 week appointment I was 3cm so I hadn't really progressed at all). But they decided to take me to the birthing suite. I got in there at about 1:20 and Gabe arrived a few minutes later. I had a painful contraction and then another, and asked for gas. I had the gas but it didn't really do anything so after a few more contractions I asked for an epidural because I was thinking that I had hours of labour ahead of me. They needed to take some blood and do some testing so said it would be 15-30 mins before I could get the epidural. A few contractions later little Juliana Isabel was born at 1:53 am weighing 3.065kg (6lbs 12 ounces) and 47 cm (18.5inches). We stayed in the hospital until 9:30am.


The recovery has been so easy this time. I didn't have any stitches and I've had minimal bleeding. I had some painful after birth contractions when the baby was feeding the first two days, but otherwise it's been great. Juliana has been a good feeder and on day 8 she's surpassed her birth weight (3.08kg). She has been sleeping well so far (save for Tuesday night when she wouldn't go in the bassinet and didn't get to sleep until 5:30 am when we put her in bed with us). She wakes around midght, 3 or 4 am and 8am lately.


The boys are smitten and always want to hold her and cuddle her. It's lovely to see and they don't seem to be jealous.


We are so incredibly happy that Juliana is here and healthy!


Off to make a cuppa before Jules wakes up,


B

Here We Go Again!

It's been awhile (i.e. years!) since my last update! Hudson is 6.5 and Xander is 3.5 and we are 1-2 weeks away from welcoming a baby girl into our family. This pregnancy has definitely been harder than the first two, but I still feel really lucky that it has been much better than what some people endure. In the past few years, Gabe and I have changed jobs, bought a new house, went on some fun holidays, Hudson started school, and we created lots of lovely family memories. The boys are thick as thieves and love playing together (and fighting. haha). It's all about to change as we enter into the newborn phase one last time. After Xander's crazy home birth, we are opting for an induction this time to limit the risks of something going wrong so I should be scheduled for an induction sometime next week!

THIRTY - EIGHT WEEKS WITH BABY NUMBER 3!

Weight gained: 13 pounds 

Workouts: Walking - averaging 10,000 steps or so per day
  

Labor Signs: None
  

Symptoms: Waddling but otherwise hasn't been too bad lately 

  

Movement: The placenta is in the front like with the others so I don't feel as much as some moms but she has a bit of a routine. She likes to party around 11pm which isn't a good sign. Ha. 

 

Food Aversions: Nothing at the moment.

Food Cravings: None really 

Sleep: Waking up 3-5 times a night. 

Stretch marks? There may be some new ones on my sides but pretty happy with how it's looking

 

Miss Anything? Stomach sleeping, cider, soft-serve ice cream

 

Fun and/or Interesting Things from the last few Weeks: I started maternity leave at 36 weeks. The world is going crazy with Coronavirus and the toilet paper shortage, but we are trying to remain calm. 

Belly Button in or out? Popped out

 

Wedding rings on or off? Off.  

Happy or moody most of the time: I just want to hold her in my arms. I still cannot believe I'm having a girl.

 

New Baby Items: I have gone a bit crazy on the shopping front - lots of new clothes and stuffed animals :) 

Alexander - 6 months

Stats:

Weight: 16 pounds

Height: Not sure – he has a check-up next week

His likes/dislikes:

He loves being around people, and especially staring at his big brother (he’s mesmerised). He dislikes waiting for his milk (even a tenth of a second!)

His typical day:

Around 4 months he stopped sleeping through the night and for the past several weeks he’s been up every hour or two at night. Last night was the first time he slept for 5 hours in a row. I miss the early days when he slept! He usually gets up for a feed around 6:30 then sleeps until 10, up until 11:30ish then naps for an hour or so and takes another nap around 2-3. When Hudson is home, I try hard to plan his nap around Hudson’s. He still loves the pram (and surprisingly is still in the bassinet one). He rolled over around 5 months (back to tummy), but still isn’t sitting. He loves grabbing the balls out of his swing and enjoys the playmat now. He’s a louder, happier baby than Hudson was (he’s doing a high pitch scream as I type because he’s trying to get his balls out of the swing). I love how they each have their own personalities.

We started solids a bit before 6 months on the advice of the maternal nurse, and he’s taken to it like a champion. He loves to eat and opens his mouth up huge and yells if you’re not fast enough. So far he’s had a taste of watermelon (first food), steal cut oatmeal, avocado, pumpkin, carrot, banana.

His adventures:

We had 2 months of torture with breastfeeding and realised he needed to have a laser treatment on his upper lip, which we did when he was 5 months old. It made a huge difference and now feeding is completely pain free. However, we are a bit worried about the weight he’s putting on – he’s gone from the 75% at 2 mons, 50% at 4 mons and 25% at 5.5 months. We have a check-up next week, so hopefully he’s put on a bit. He’s taken a few bottles, which is good! I realised I’ve only been away from him for around 6 hours altogether over the past 6 months.

We had our first beach trip, and it worked out great. Hudson loved the water, but Alexander stayed in the baby bjorne.

Official Nicknames:

I think we’ve decided that Xander will be his nickname – it was either that or AJ as I don’t particularly care for Alex. We call him all kinds of names – Xan, Xansibar (like the island Zanzibar), Xanny, and sometimes Xander the Salamander.

Thoughts on the past few months: 

It’s been so much fun. I was surprised by how easy the transition to two has been, although you do feel a bit like a single parent to the second because dad is so occupied with work and the first. I love watching Hudson with Xander – he’s so sweet!

Off to clean the house that is never clean,

B

Alexander - 2 months

stats:

Weight: 14 pounds

Height: 61 centimeters

His likes/dislikes:

He loves it when you tickle his mouth, and loves going for walks (whether that be in the pram or in dad’s arms walking around the house)

He still dislikes getting a bath.

His typical day:

His routine is still not set yet, but the boy loves to sleep (and I love him for it!). We’ve been getting solid 7-9 hours for a few weeks now and most days he has a big nap (although some days he just catnaps). The other day he catnapped in the morning, napped from 2-6pm, slept from 8:30-6:30, woke up for a feed then back to bed until 9:30. It was amazing!

He’s an incredibly happy baby who rarely cries. We spend a lot of time in the pram walking around town and checking out the park.

He’s having both sides now for most of his feeds. I’m doing on demand so he gets it whenever he wants. Sometimes he cluster feeds in the early evenings.

His adventures:

We tried a bottle for the first time (6wks) and it didn’t go well. It’s winter so we haven’t gotten up to much – lots of walks, café visits, couch cuddles. Looking forward to warmer weather! His neck is super strong and he's a pro at tummy time (at least for a few minutes at a time).

Thoughts on the last month: 

I am falling more in love each day. I never understood when parents said they love their kids for different reasons, but it makes sense now. Alexander is so different from Hudson already. Alexander is our happy baby and Hudson is our sweet and sensitive one. And both are so incredibly great – we’re very blessed.

We are still trying out different nicknames for Alexander. We don’t like Alex, and mostly call him Alexander but we’re also trying out Xander or AJ. Time will tell which will stick ;)

Off to bed at 9:15 on a Saturday (party animal!),

B