We are all doing great! The terror and panic have subsided, and we feel like we are getting the hang of things (at least for this stage!).
Delaney is a great eater and has been gaining weight at a very healthy rate. She is already outgrowing her newborn diapers and newborn clothes, which gives me a mixture of pride that she is so healthy and thriving, but also sadness that she is growing up so fast!
Our biggest challenge has been our difficulties with bottle feeding. Thanks to an abundant milk supply, we were eager to do more bottle feeds to give me a break and to give Brice the bonding experience. We’ve tried 4 different kinds of bottles (Medela, Breastflow, Dr. Browns and Born Free), 2 different kinds of nipples, different positions, me feeding, me not in the house while Brice is feeding, different temperatures, different environments, etc. We finally went on a 48 hour bottle mission where Delaney was only given the bottle. This was pretty traumatic (mostly for us) but we did make some progress. She still has a strong preference for the breast, but at least I can now leave the house without feeling like she might starve. We are going to try the Playtex bottles next which have latex nipples that are recommended for breast-fed babies.
I won’t say much about her sleeping since I don’t want to jinx ourselves, but I will say that we are getting the hang of the night time routine and feedings. She typically feeds between 7-9pm, we have bathtime and put her down in her crib, she wakes again between 12-2am and then again between 5-7am. If the timing works out well, sometimes we only have to get up once in the night! Brice does the 12-2am bottle-feed but I am still up at that time to pump. We’ve managed to get about 6 hours of sleep at night, even if they are in 2 or 3 hour increments.
From the beginning, we’ve been vigilant about putting her down after a few yawns. She stares into space for a little while and maybe lets out a few fussy cries, but for the most part, she goes to sleep on her own. This has been fantastic and we are hoping it has started to instill good sleep habits for her. Although she sleeps at night in her crib, we have her take naps in her crib, her rocker and sometimes her carseat.
Delaney’s activities include tummy time—and she’s impressively strong for her age and already turning her head completely from side to side and lifting up her head.
We finally are getting some use out of the swing. Unfortunately she’s gotten motion sickness a few times, but she seems to get the most enjoyment from the bird mobile which spins.
Our favorite time has been her night time routine. She nurses and then we give her a bath. She really seems to enjoy the bath and after getting dried, applying her night time lotion, getting her hair brushed, putting on a fresh onesie for the night, we put her down in her crib, turn on her Sleep Sheep (her favorite setting is Ocean) and sing “Twinkle Twinkle.”
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