dancerjodi (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
dancerjodi) wrote2012-05-02 02:55 pm
dancerjodi) wrote2012-05-02 02:55 pm
May
Time seems to fly faster since I've become a parent. It is May already?
At this time last year Brian and I were in St. Thomas, on a trip that he was given by his company. They pick "President's Club" members each year who are exemplary performers and treat them and a guest to a trip somewhere swanky. We were at the Ritz on St. Thomas, all expenses paid. Though it is not the kind of place we would have gone on our own (not being big fans of the heat and Brian not knowing how to swim), it was lovely. I went in for an http://www.fertilityplus.org/faq/iui.html on Wednesday (after doing a series of fertility injections) and we flew out on Thursday for the Virgin Islands. We lounged around, ate lots of good food and swam with sharks. I got eaten alive by noseeums. And unbeknownst to us, our Mina was starting to grow. Such a crazy, whirlwind of a year!
This is week 4 back at work for me, just crazy! I think we are finding our groove with things. Some mornings I feed Mina before I go and some I don't - there doesn't seem to be a lot of regularity with when she wakes up in the morning (hence giving myself a two hour window to get out of the house). We have her sleeping typically by 8:00 PM (sometimes a bit before and sometimes a bit after, depending on how the day went). I was really dragging this afternoon, because we didn't have a great night. She went down a bit after 8:00 PM and woke up to eat at 2:00 AM (pretty normal for her, though sometimes she'll sleep a bit longer). She ate for about an hour and then fell asleep again on me (also pretty normal for her). But then she woke up a half hour later. I asked Brian to get up with her and check her bum or give her some formula in a bottle if she was still hungry (my alarm was set to go off in an hour and 1/2 and I figured if I could get some rest then, he could get some later - he drops her off at daycare around 8:00). She sucked down 2 ounces and still wanted more. At that point I was due to get up in another hour, so I asked Brian to just bring her to bed with us. I stuck her on the bewb and at least was able to lay there until the alarm went off (she fussed off and on during that hour and I had to keep putting her back on there so I didn't get to sleep, but at least I was horizontal). By 5:00 AM alarm time, she was finally sleeping next to me, and I was able to put her in the crib so I could get ready for work, and Brian could sleep a tiny bit more. She lasted an hour and 40 minutes or so until she was "up up". Our girl is a morning person just like her Mom. And the cats. Poor Brian!
Getting up early seems to be the key for me feeling sane and productive. I get to spend some time with Mina before I go and I usually get some dishes and laundry done so that there is less to mess with after work. I can take my time and don't need to rush out of the house - regardless of when she wakes up and if she wants to eat. After work, I put a blanket on the kitchen floor and she and I chat/play while I put things away for the day and try and get dinner together. Brian is home by 6 (if I have dance class) or 6:30.
The breastfeeding continues - she gets 1-3 bottles of formula a day depending on when she's hungry and how much I'm able to pump. I definitely slack on it over the weekends, since I don't *have* to. It's just another thing I have to add in the day. I (as usual) go back and forth between wanting to continue gung-ho and wanting to reduce my feeding/pumping sessions to gradually decrease my production. We are going to FL for Celebration VI in late August, and the plan is to not bring Mina with us (my sister has graciously offered to watch her for us, though I can't imagine being away from her for four days). If I was still breastfeeding I'd need to bring a pump, leave the con to pump in my hotel room every few hours, and deal with bringing all of the milk back on the plane after 4 days (it is allowed via TSA, it is just a PITA). I'm not sure I want to do that, though right now, breastfeeding is going mostly well. I'm excited to have overcome most of the issues that we have (and the ones that we're still facing, I think they are just the way they are going to be - sometimes she'll be tired or lazy or keep pulling off and going back on, and she's always going to take forever to do it). My understanding is that to easily cut back, I should drop a feeding (or pumping) in the middle of the day and continue that for a week. Then drop another for another week, then another, until gradually my body isn't producing as much. It is convenient to be able to calm an upset baby so easily in a way that only I can, I love snuggling with her so, and I love knowing I'm giving her a natural super-food of sorts, but I also know I can't do this forever (nor would I want to). My sentiment really just depends on the day and time of day (and how difficult feeding Mina has been that day or night).
This http://www.cobblestones4families.com/index.html just opened in Waltham. Brian and I checked them out on Saturday and loved them - I signed Mina up for the group that starts next week. Two of the women that work there went to St. Pat's in Watertown with me - such a small, small world. I'll miss seeing my regular Monday Mom's group friends while we're doing it, but I could get together with them if they do activities at another time (or least of all, after 6 weeks). There are also other folks I keep meaning to make plans with on a Monday, but I'm trying to keep our day fairly open with only 1 committment.
Our dance recital is in a couple of weeks - it is early this year and is over two days (same show Sat and Sun) to accommodate a small venue and lots of ticket sales. I need to get some costume stuff together, but when/how with a needy baby? It will all fall into place at some point. :)
We've been aiming for a date night once a month, and have managed with thanks to my parents for coming down from NH to babysit for us. On Saturday we're seeing Avengers with some friends, and they are sleeping over to have breakfast with us Sunday (they aren't so into the late night driving). Our next challenge is to find someone to sit for us during our June date - we have tickets to the Iron Maiden/Alice Cooper show on Tuesday 6/26 at Great Woods. Being on a weeknight and having my parents, brother and sister all in NH makes this difficult. The cousins around the corner have moved to Marlboro. Nana Jan (since Brian doesn't have any family, our good friend's Mom has graciously agreed to be Mina's Nana) lives in Haverhill and has offered to sit for us in general, but she has to get up for work the next day (and it would leave us dropping her in Haverhill, going to a show in Mansfield, going back to Haverhill and then back to Waltham all in that night - lots of driving and really disruptive to Mina). Harump! How do you folks find babysitters?
At this time last year Brian and I were in St. Thomas, on a trip that he was given by his company. They pick "President's Club" members each year who are exemplary performers and treat them and a guest to a trip somewhere swanky. We were at the Ritz on St. Thomas, all expenses paid. Though it is not the kind of place we would have gone on our own (not being big fans of the heat and Brian not knowing how to swim), it was lovely. I went in for an http://www.fertilityplus.org/faq/iui.html on Wednesday (after doing a series of fertility injections) and we flew out on Thursday for the Virgin Islands. We lounged around, ate lots of good food and swam with sharks. I got eaten alive by noseeums. And unbeknownst to us, our Mina was starting to grow. Such a crazy, whirlwind of a year!
This is week 4 back at work for me, just crazy! I think we are finding our groove with things. Some mornings I feed Mina before I go and some I don't - there doesn't seem to be a lot of regularity with when she wakes up in the morning (hence giving myself a two hour window to get out of the house). We have her sleeping typically by 8:00 PM (sometimes a bit before and sometimes a bit after, depending on how the day went). I was really dragging this afternoon, because we didn't have a great night. She went down a bit after 8:00 PM and woke up to eat at 2:00 AM (pretty normal for her, though sometimes she'll sleep a bit longer). She ate for about an hour and then fell asleep again on me (also pretty normal for her). But then she woke up a half hour later. I asked Brian to get up with her and check her bum or give her some formula in a bottle if she was still hungry (my alarm was set to go off in an hour and 1/2 and I figured if I could get some rest then, he could get some later - he drops her off at daycare around 8:00). She sucked down 2 ounces and still wanted more. At that point I was due to get up in another hour, so I asked Brian to just bring her to bed with us. I stuck her on the bewb and at least was able to lay there until the alarm went off (she fussed off and on during that hour and I had to keep putting her back on there so I didn't get to sleep, but at least I was horizontal). By 5:00 AM alarm time, she was finally sleeping next to me, and I was able to put her in the crib so I could get ready for work, and Brian could sleep a tiny bit more. She lasted an hour and 40 minutes or so until she was "up up". Our girl is a morning person just like her Mom. And the cats. Poor Brian!
Getting up early seems to be the key for me feeling sane and productive. I get to spend some time with Mina before I go and I usually get some dishes and laundry done so that there is less to mess with after work. I can take my time and don't need to rush out of the house - regardless of when she wakes up and if she wants to eat. After work, I put a blanket on the kitchen floor and she and I chat/play while I put things away for the day and try and get dinner together. Brian is home by 6 (if I have dance class) or 6:30.
The breastfeeding continues - she gets 1-3 bottles of formula a day depending on when she's hungry and how much I'm able to pump. I definitely slack on it over the weekends, since I don't *have* to. It's just another thing I have to add in the day. I (as usual) go back and forth between wanting to continue gung-ho and wanting to reduce my feeding/pumping sessions to gradually decrease my production. We are going to FL for Celebration VI in late August, and the plan is to not bring Mina with us (my sister has graciously offered to watch her for us, though I can't imagine being away from her for four days). If I was still breastfeeding I'd need to bring a pump, leave the con to pump in my hotel room every few hours, and deal with bringing all of the milk back on the plane after 4 days (it is allowed via TSA, it is just a PITA). I'm not sure I want to do that, though right now, breastfeeding is going mostly well. I'm excited to have overcome most of the issues that we have (and the ones that we're still facing, I think they are just the way they are going to be - sometimes she'll be tired or lazy or keep pulling off and going back on, and she's always going to take forever to do it). My understanding is that to easily cut back, I should drop a feeding (or pumping) in the middle of the day and continue that for a week. Then drop another for another week, then another, until gradually my body isn't producing as much. It is convenient to be able to calm an upset baby so easily in a way that only I can, I love snuggling with her so, and I love knowing I'm giving her a natural super-food of sorts, but I also know I can't do this forever (nor would I want to). My sentiment really just depends on the day and time of day (and how difficult feeding Mina has been that day or night).
This http://www.cobblestones4families.com/index.html just opened in Waltham. Brian and I checked them out on Saturday and loved them - I signed Mina up for the group that starts next week. Two of the women that work there went to St. Pat's in Watertown with me - such a small, small world. I'll miss seeing my regular Monday Mom's group friends while we're doing it, but I could get together with them if they do activities at another time (or least of all, after 6 weeks). There are also other folks I keep meaning to make plans with on a Monday, but I'm trying to keep our day fairly open with only 1 committment.
Our dance recital is in a couple of weeks - it is early this year and is over two days (same show Sat and Sun) to accommodate a small venue and lots of ticket sales. I need to get some costume stuff together, but when/how with a needy baby? It will all fall into place at some point. :)
We've been aiming for a date night once a month, and have managed with thanks to my parents for coming down from NH to babysit for us. On Saturday we're seeing Avengers with some friends, and they are sleeping over to have breakfast with us Sunday (they aren't so into the late night driving). Our next challenge is to find someone to sit for us during our June date - we have tickets to the Iron Maiden/Alice Cooper show on Tuesday 6/26 at Great Woods. Being on a weeknight and having my parents, brother and sister all in NH makes this difficult. The cousins around the corner have moved to Marlboro. Nana Jan (since Brian doesn't have any family, our good friend's Mom has graciously agreed to be Mina's Nana) lives in Haverhill and has offered to sit for us in general, but she has to get up for work the next day (and it would leave us dropping her in Haverhill, going to a show in Mansfield, going back to Haverhill and then back to Waltham all in that night - lots of driving and really disruptive to Mina). Harump! How do you folks find babysitters?