Life with a 2 Month Old (10 Weeks) – PM Schedule

Check out the AM schedule here

1:05PM – Back upstairs for a change of scenery to do some tummy time. This doesn’t last for long. Then a diaper change, rock in the glider for a couple minutes, swaddle, pacifier, crib for another nap. I go downstairs to Swiffer the floors and fold Toby’s laundry.

2:05PM – He’s up again! I get him and we go downstairs to dance a little to some music (I usually keep the TV on one of the music stations for background noise during the day). He starts getting fussy so it’s time to eat. I brought the Boppy downstairs with me earlier so all nursing sessions take place in the living room by this point.

2:40PM – All done eating so we play with his elephant toy. After 10 minutes, we get ready to take a walk in a neighboring town’s park. Diaper change, I change into work-out clothes, make sure I have necessities in my bag, and then we’re off to Hubby’s work to grab the car seat caddy since we forgot to switch it over to my trunk last night. He fusses a little on the way there but then falls asleep a minute before we get to Hubby’s office. Hubby comes down to see what Toby’s wearing and say hi.

3:45PM – Finally at the park. We get a couple laps done on the path around the soccer fields before he wakes up and starts fussing.  It’s gorgeous weather but he gets hot in his car seat easily.  We drive back home and of course he falls asleep again.

4:20PM – At home and he’s ready to eat. After he’s finished, I put him in the pack n’ play and turn on his owl mobile which always keeps him entertained. I eat a yogurt and feed the cats. I put Toby in his Jeep stroller and we walk down to get the mail.

5:15PM – Time to start dinner, so I drag the activity mat into the hallway outside the kitchen so I can watch him while he’s playing. I wash bottles while pasta is boiling and sausage is cooking. Dinner tonight is rotini with chicken sausage quarters and diced tomatoes in tomato sauce.

5:45PM – Auntie Hil is home and says hi before she goes downstairs to take a nap. By this time, Toby is getting fussy being on the floor mat, so I finish dinner and set it aside to wait until Hubby gets home. I bring Toby upstairs to see if he’ll fall asleep for a cat nap. Sure enough his eyes close after rocking in the chair for just a minute. Swaddle, pacifier, crib.

6:15PM – I come downstairs and start working on this blog post. Hubby gets home, re-heats dinner, and we eat.

6:40PM – Toby is up and crying. Hubby gets him, warms up a bottle and starts feeding him. I’m still working on this post :)

7:15PM – Toby is finished and burped but still crying pretty hard so I try nursing him instead of pumping. He only eats for a couple minutes so I guess he needed just a little more. Going to need to get bigger bottles soon as he probably ate close to 5oz with that last feeding! I pump for 15 minutes and then head to the grocery store since I didn’t go yesterday.

8:45PM – I am home and groceries are unpacked. Hubby changed Toby into PJ’s while I was gone. Toby is crying and definitely ready to eat again and go to bed. We’ve tried moving his bedtime up because he gets fussy around 8ish but it backfires because then he wakes at 11PM and then again at 1AM instead of doing one long stretch. We go upstairs to nurse and Hubby hangs out on the spare bed until we’re done.

9:10PM – Toby is done eating…swaddle, pacifier, crib. Let’s hope he stays asleep until 3ish tonight (or even later…). I come downstairs and Hubby and I watch TV and use our laptops until bedtime.

10:40PM – I pump, wash the parts and bottles, and head upstairs to bed.

So that’s a typical day lately. Sometimes instead of a walk, we do errands instead. Though, he tends to wake up halfway through when we’re in a store and freak out in the car seat which stresses me out and then we leave. At this point, I’d rather do errands on my own on the weekends until he gets better being inside stores. Sometimes we don’t leave the house at all which I’ve been okay with despite my goal of getting out of the house at least once a day.  Some days we just need some time to re-charge and hang out at home instead of going out and that’s ok :)

I kind of see a pattern emerging during the day with his naps but really it all depends on his feeding schedule. We still do on-demand nursing during the day so it could be 2 hours between feedings or he’ll go 3 hours in between. I want to make sure he’s gaining enough weight so we’ll keep doing this and let him make his own schedule for now. 

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Life with a 2 Month Old (10 weeks) – AM Schedule

“So what do you do all day?” is the one of the most common questions I get asked now since I’m a SAHM.  I decided to recap a day-in-the-life post to recap what Toby and I do currently on a daily basis.  This took forever to put together (I saved little notes on my Notes app on my phone all day to remind me what we did), but it was worth doing and I’d like to do it again in a couple months to see the changes for our schedule!  I’m going to separate this into two posts, since it’s pretty long.

Day of the week: Monday, Aug. 27th – morning schedule

2:50AM – I wake up to Toby fussing on the monitor that sits on my nightstand table.  He’s been asleep since 9:30 so it’s time for him to eat.  Grab my phone, head over to the nursery, un-swaddle, sit down with the Boppy on the my lap.  Toby nurses for 20 minutes (I usually time all of his nursing sessions on an app on my iPhone).  I’m surfing the Internet or checking Facebook while he eats.  After burping, I re-swaddle him in his Miracle Blanket and lay him back in the crib.  He is asleep almost immediately.  I head back to bed for a few more hours of sleep.

6:50AM – Wake up again to Toby crying.  Grab my phone, head back to the nursery.  He stops fussing as soon as I say “Good Morning, Toby!”.  He is all smiles and bubbles.  Un-swaddle and bring him over to the changing station to do a diaper change.  As soon as I lay him down, he realizes he’s not being fed right away and freaks out so I try to do this quickly.  Back to glider, he nurses for 20 minutes.  Hubby comes over to kiss us both good-bye since he’s ready to go to work.   I decide to try to get Toby back to sleep and rock him.  After about 10 minutes, I re-swaddle, put him back in the crib and give him the pacifier.  Maggie comes in to see what I’m doing and peeks in on Toby before we leave.

7:45AM – I go back to my room and turn the monitor on to see if he’ll fall asleep on his own since rocking didn’t make him drowsy.  I watch the Today show (biggest news is Hurricane Isaac that is going to hit Florida and New Orleans this week) and also check the video monitor every so often.  Toby is wiggling like crazy in his crib but not making any noise except for an occasional grunt so I close my eyes and hope we’ll both doze off for a bit.

9:15AM – Success!  I wake up to Toby stirring on the monitor.  We both got an hour or so of sleep.  I head back to the nursery, un-swaddle and start nursing.  He’s all smiles again.

9:40AM – We come downstairs after he’s done eating, I put him in the swing and turn it on.  After cleaning up cat barf, I grab a bowl of Rice Krispies and come back to the living room to eat breakfast on the couch.  We go back upstairs, I pick out an outfit for Toby, change his diaper, apply lotion, and dress him.  Then I prop him up in the Boppy on the floor so I can change his crib sheet since I’ll be doing his laundry later.

10:10AM – We go into Hubby and I’s bedroom and I put Toby in his infant chair so he can punch the toys that hang above him.  I hop in the shower, then brush my teeth, dress in my standard mom outfit (stretchy shirt that can be pulled down for nursing, yoga pants), apply some make-up and throw my hair into a messy bun.  By this point, Toby is fussing and I know he’s ready for a nap. 

10:35AM – We head to his room to read a book to calm him down before napping.  I choose Love You Forever which always makes me tear up at the end.  He is closing his eyes as I finish so I swaddle him in an A&A blanket and give him a pacifier.  I quietly leave his room with his laundry basket and go downstairs.  I fold Hubby’s laundry that was in the dryer and stick Toby’s stuff in the wash.  Then I relax on the couch, work on an Etsy order on my laptop and check out some blogs.

11:40AM – Toby is up!  He usually wakes up pretty cranky from naps so he’s not too happy until I walk into his room and say hi.  Quick diaper change and then nurse again.  We come downstairs and he lays on his activity mat to play for 20 minutes or so.  I make lunch quickly and then eat in the living room so I can watch him.  Then I move him over to the swing so I can vacuum the downstairs and throw the laundry in the dryer. 

Up next I will post the PM schedule!

Weekly Photo Recap: Weeks 8-9

iPhone photo dump from weeks 8-9:

Sly little smile

Sleeping smile

Smiling at his froggy on the activity mat

Nothing cuter than jean shorts and some little blue shoes

Dancing at the candlepin bowling alley

Looking like a little boy and not a baby!

Hanging out with his guys in the kitchen while Mommy makes dinner

Enjoying the warm breeze outside on the porch

Happy!

Keeping it classy in a polo

Listening to the cars go by with BFF Maggie

Checking himself out in the mirror

Cute little overalls

Toby: 2 Months!

What happened to the snuggly little newborn who loved cuddling on our chests, and was perfectly content with just snoozing all the time???  He’s grown into a wide-eyed, curious little guy who is constantly wanting to move and squirm ALL the time.  Month two has flown by so fast – the biggest changes have been seeing Toby become more aware of his surroundings.  He recognizes both of our voices and if he hears someone new, he will search the room with his eyes trying to find the person attached to the voice.  He loves being outside, feeling the breeze and warm summer air.  He prefers for music or some kind of noise to always be on.  The louder a room is, the easier it is for him to fall asleep – and to stay asleep for longer.  He is definitely growing now.  I keep looking at his fingers and his nails and am amazed at how bigger they seem.  He’s also filling out clothes at a much faster pace.  He’s still longer than wider, but I can tell he’s getting chunky.  He keeps getting lint and other stuff stuck in his rolls, which has made baths a necessity :)

I have to admit, I miss the little new baby cuddles and just how tiny he was!  He will still fall asleep in my arms, but it’s just not the same as it was when we first took him home.  I never thought I would say I’d miss the first few weeks since they were tough, but I do!  However, I’m really excited for month 3, though, since he’s so much more into playing and interacting with us now.

Weight: His doctor is on vacation until next week, so his 2 month appt isn’t until the 28th.  Maybe he’ll be close to 10 pounds by then?

Height: Still long and lean – some of his 0-3 clothes are pulling already at the bottom of his diaper bulge and getting short.

Medical Issues: Baby acne is finally going away!  Still dealing with some eczema but it doesn’t seem to itch or bother him.  Not an issue, but I accidently made him bleed when cutting one of his nails tonight…oh I feel so awful right now :(

Sleep: Pretty good!  He usually falls asleep on his own if we put him in the crib drowsy and not completely asleep.  Same routine of being in the crib by 9:30 at the latest, sleeping until 2 or 3, eating, then back to sleep until 6:30 or 7.    Now I’m trying to feed him again quickly and put him back in the crib to see if he’ll sleep for another hour or so before we actually start getting ready for the day.  Some days it works, some days it doesn’t :)  Naps are going well, too – he’s finally starting to sleep longer than just 3o minutes at a time, though he still isn’t on a set schedule yet.  He will fall asleep anywhere – the crib, pack n’ play, swing or car.

Clothes/Diapers Sizes: 0-3 stuff finally all fit.  Still 1 for diapers.

Diet: Pretty proud that we’ve made it two months with breastfeeding!  We’ve had some frustrating moments but we’ve gotten through it.  Sessions last about 20-30 minutes and he’s even getting good at latching on himself without help.  When eating from a bottle, he takes close to 4 ounces (I usually put 3.75 in).

Baby Gear Love: Nothing really new – he still loves his activity mat, the swing, the Ergo, and now he’s getting more comfortable with his high chair (it reclines back for an infant) so we’ve been able to eat dinner together at the table. 

Milestones/Firsts: Daddy taught him how to “stand” and now he wants to do it ALLLL the time.  He loves holding his legs as straight as possible and putting all his weight on them.  Even while laying down, which has made diaper changes and putting him into footed pj’s very difficult.  He also grabbed onto the leg of one of his toys by himself but I’ve only seem him do that once. 

Likes: Baths.  Being outside.  Loud noise and listening to people talking.  Punching and swatting toys.  Looking up at the mobiles in his crib and pack n’ play.

Dislikes: Tummy time.  Sigh – we were trying to work up past 5 minutes each day but as soon as I put him on his belly, he fusses immediately.  Also not a fan of being in the car seat for an extended period of time.  I have a feeling we will be using the Jeep stroller instead of the seat caddy much more in the next few months.

Postpartum – Mommy: Last ten pounds are coming off very, very slowly.  I’ve heard that you burn more fat calories in the 3rd-6th months of breastfeeding…wondering if that’s actually true and maybe I’ll finally drop the pounds then?  I did try on a pair of my jeans that I was wearing right before I got pregnant when I was at my lowest weight ever, and I can zip them up but I’d have a serious muffin top and my thighs were sucked in.  Thank God I saved a few “fat” pairs :) 

Love these half smiles.  Makes my heart happy :)

New Career

I’m definitely still in the process of adjusting to being home full-time, and I think I’ve had to come to terms with it being a “career change”.  I never wanted to think of being a stay-at-home mom as a job, but since Toby’s been born, I’ve realized it really is like being employed since it’s a lot of work.  A ton of work.  I don’t know how working moms do it – I have a hard enough time fitting everything into a day and I don’t go out of the house for 8-10 hours and have a commute to deal with.  The biggest adjustment I’ve had to make is that being a parent is a 24/7 job.  You don’t get a “break” unless you work something out with your significant other or get a baby-sitter, and even then, you have to think “did I leave enough bottles?, “will he be easy to put down for a nap?”, etc.  It’s no joke when people tell you being a parent is the hardest job you’ll ever have.  But I’ve learned very quickly it is the most worthwhile.  Toby and I are still working on a schedule, but each day gets a little easier.

We’ve started to play more the past couple weeks so instead of him napping all the time, I’ve encouraged him to stay up more during the day.  We do a lot of this:

And this:

And we’re practicing a lot more smiles, too:

 

If you asked me a month ago if I was happy being home, my answer would not have been that positive.  The first six weeks with a newborn are rough, but you eventually get through them.  Then the little person you gave birth to actually starts to interact with you more, making those sleepless nights and days of refusing to take naps more bearable.  Now I’m grateful every day I get to stay home with this little guy instead of being holed up in an office.  Sure, I miss the adult interaction and the extra money but seeing these smiles and hearing the little coos more than makes up for it :)

DIY Newborn Photos

A few months before I was due, I started researching local photographers for newborn picture packages.  Unfortunately, everyone I found was unbelievably expensive.  I realize being a photographer is a lot of hard work and it takes a good eye to come up with amazing photos…but I just wasn’t ready to spend $500 for a 2 hour session to only be able to see 20-30 edited photos in an online gallery (and then pay even more for a CD and rights to the images).  I splurge on some stuff, but that I just couldn’t justify doing after some last minute baby stuff we bought before Toby was born. 

I decided to try and DIY my own newborn photos instead.  I started when Toby was about 2 1/2 weeks old.  I would finish nursing him, rock him a little, and then put him down in his crib while I started getting all the props ready (Bobby pillow, regular pillows and some white blankets).  The light in his room is pretty good, so I did a couple “sessions” in there and also did a couple in our room on our bed.  Overall, there were 3 days that I took pictures, each session lasting about 20 minutes or so.  I tried to position him as quickly and gently as possible before he started stirring, but that would only last for a minute or two and then he’d wake up.  I managed to get a few shots of him snoozing but the majority of the pictures are him awake and then getting ready to cry.  Here are some of my favorites:

So are the best quality pictures?  Hell NO!  The lighting is okay in some of them and horrible in others.  I’m still working on my editing skills – editing takes so much time.  And the position he is in for a few of them is a little weird.  However, am I happy with them?  For the most part, yes.  The real reason why I needed newborn photos was for the birth announcement, and the pictures all came out really cute on it:

(courtesy of Shutterfly)

Do I regret not getting professional newborn photos?  Some days I have no regrets and other days I think in the future will I have wished we got professional ones done?  While I do love the ones I took for the announcement, obviously there could have been better pictures taken by someone else.  I read other blogs and see these amazing photos and am a little jealous.  But then I think of how much those probably cost and it helps me justify why we didn’t do them.  What I ultimately think we will do is get some professional photos in an outdoor session when Toby is a little older – so we can have good ones of him smiling and interacting with us.  Those are the ones I will want to showcase in frames in our home, anyway.

Taking newborn photos is incredibly difficult, which is why photographers charge a lot for those sessions and I definitely understand that now :)  If I were to do these again, I would definitely start taking them a couple days after we brought home the baby.  I would also need Hubby or someone else to help me with getting stuff ready, moving blankets and pillows around, positioning the baby, etc.  Probably the advantage to taking them myself was that I could do several sessions over a week.  So if baby is fussy and totally not cooperating one day, it’s no big deal, just try again the next day.  Overall, for me doing these by myself, they’re pretty good keepsakes!