We Are Not Bottle People

During the entire year that I breastfed Tali, I never once gave her a bottle. I tried, but she refused to take a bottle from me. She would take it from others, but not me. So now that I have to give Eli a bottle for the next week, I am in unfamiliar territory. His first bottle experience wasn't too bad, but his second reduced me to tears.

I prepared his bottle before bed so I would be ready to go as soon as he woke up. I was so tired though, that H had to wake me and tell me he was crying. I went into his room and shut the door with the hand holding the bottle. Some of the milk spilled onto the floor. Ugh. I got Eli out of his crib, changed his diaper and sat down to feed him. The rest of the bottle spilled all over him, me and the floor! Precious breast milk wasted! Eli started screaming because he got wet and was hungry. I was so upset that I had somehow screwed up something as simple as a bottle. So I rushed him downstairs, put him in the swing and defrosted more milk. I triple checked the bottle to make sure it wouldn't spill and put him on my lap to feed him. Eli had other plans. He wanted to breastfeed. And, just like his sister used to do, he turned towards my chest every time I put the bottle in his mouth. I eventually got him to take the bottle. And after some choking and a number of breaks, he finished the bottle.

After the bottle was done, I took him back upstairs to change his pajamas and dirty diaper. I swaddled him, put him down and he started crying. Why was he crying? I hav no idea. Did he not get enough milk? Did he swallow too much air? Was it something else? It's been 15 minutes and he is still crying. I am pumping so I cannot go to him. After I am done pumping, I have to wash everything then prepare the next bottle. This whole thing takes well over an hour. Breastfeeding takes 15-20 minutes, including a diaper change.

Whoever said a bottle is easier must know some sort of secret. Clearly, I am not a bottle person.

Today Was Brought to Me By the Number Three

THREE DAYS
Tali's been in camp for three days now and she's already sick. Today she came home and threw up (what seemed like an entire watermelon) before her nap. Later that afternoon, she felt warm and was a bit shaky. Her fever steadily rose from 100 to 101 to 102 before bedtime. I'm hoping it's a quick virus and she'll be better tomorrow. I'm also hoping Eli doesn't get it.

THREE WEEKS
Eli had his first bottle today at three weeks old. Today I saw a lactation consultant due to pain from breastfeeding. She advised that I pump for a week and give Eli a bottle so that I can heal. It took him a few minutes to accept and drink from the bottle, but he did. I just hope he doesn't start to prefer it over breast feeding.

THREE NAPS
The number of naps Eli hasn't taken (or taken well) today. Instead, there was lots of crying.

Tomorrow will be better, right?

Tali and Eli

Tali at 2 1/2 years old. Eli at 3 weeks old.

The first question people ask me these days is how is Tali with Eli. When Eli was born, she acted exactly as I expected: not paying much attention to him and focusing on Jackson. However, as the days have gone on, Tali's reaction to Eli has changed.

Last week, she began to get a little jealous of him. She would often say "give Mommy a hug, no baby" if I was holding Eli. She would also try to sit on my lap and push him out of the way. On Friday afternoon I had a babysitter watch Eli for two hours while Tali and I went to run errands. It really helped things. Tali was so happy to be with just me and repeatedly said "it's just Tali and Mommy" while we were out.

Over the weekend her behavior actually surprised me - she asked to hold Eli! When I first put Eli on her lap, she lifted her dress as if to feed him like I do (Tali - I am posting this picture at your dad's request)! I explained to her that only Mommy feeds Eli like that and Tali and Daddy hold Eli with their shirts down. So, she put her shirt down and held him for a minute or so. On Sunday, she asked to hold him again. And today (Monday) she actually asked to feed him! Again, I explained that only Mommy can feed Eli. She wasn't happy with that explanation but she didn't force the issue too much. In addition to wanting to hold him, she is asking to kiss him, is much more aware of him and is accepting of when he is with us.

So, she's getting into the groove of being a big sister. I'm surprised by how quickly she's come around. And I'm very proud of her.

Tali trying to breast feed Eli.

First Day of Camp!

This morning Tali had her first day of camp. The one problem with this camp is that all campers are required to wear the camp shirt. Since Tali only wants to wear pink or purple, I knew this would be a problem. So I spent the past week telling her all of the fun things she'd get to do at camp, but she had to wear the blue shirt. Last night, I put out the shirt and let her pick out her shorts (pink, of course). This morning, we had a meltdown. She screamed and cried but I got the shirt on her! It was another battle for the shorts, but she eventually got dressed. I did promise that she could change when she got home, which she did.

Camp itself was great. Tali walked right into her classroom and got busy playing! (We took a tour yesterday so the facility was fresh in her mind.) I stayed for a little bit just to make sure she was okay. While I was watching her play, a few of the other parents were commenting to each other on how cute Tali was - always nice to hear. After about 15 minutes, I left for a parent orientation. When I came to pick her up, the counselors all told me how great she was. Her main counselor said she is the "quintessential camper" as she was excited for every activity and had a smile on her face the whole time. (The only thing she didn't like was the pool. But I warned them about that in advance.) They also commented on how well behaved she was and how much she liked to eat! Apparently, she left the cafeteria with carrots in her hand as she didn't want to see any food go to waste.

So Day 1 was mostly a success. Let's hope I have an easier time with the shirt/shorts tomorrow morning.

The Reason You're Punished

When we punish Tali, we always tell her "The reason you are punished is..." so now she says it herself. She usually knows why she was punished and inserts the proper reason.

Just a few minutes ago, I punished Jackson for not listening to me. Tali followed him to the crate and shut the door behind him. Then she said "Jackson, the reason you are punished is because you didn't listen to Mommy. And you have to listen to Mommy." He's been in the crate for about two minutes now and she keeps going over to him to tell him why he is punished. And, she's right every time.

Welcome Baby Eli!

Baby Eli - the spitting image of his big sister.

On Sunday June 5 at 7:46 p.m., Tali's little brother, Eli, was born. He weighed 5 lbs. 3 oz. and was 18 inches long.

The labor/birth story:

"They" say that second labors are usually quick and much easier than the first. But Eli and I are definitely the exception to that rule.

Because Eli had been measuring small, my doctor wanted to get him out (so he could grow on the outside and be properly monitored) as soon as my body showed signs it was ready. So the plan was made to induce me on Saturday evening and for me to give birth on Sunday - just about a week before my actual due date. (Everyone was surprised that I was still pregnant, given that Tali was 3 1/2 weeks early.) H and I checked into the hospital on Saturday evening and I was given cervidil a little before midnight to soften my cervix and hopefully start labor.

The next morning, when my doctor arrived, I was started on Pitocin because the cervidil didn't work. I endured seven hours of painful labor with very little progress. During this time, Eli's heart rate was regularly decreasing during contractions, worrying the doctor, doula and nurse. My Pitocin was constantly being adjusted to find a level that would progress my labor and keep his heartbeat steady.

After seven hours, I decided I was ready for an epidural. Once I was sufficiently numb, my doctor put her hand inside to correct the problem - Eli's hand was on top of his head, making his decent close to impossible. My doctor placed his hand in a better position and then my labor finally started to progress. I went from four to ten centimeters over the next three hours.  During that time, I was placed on oxygen for both the baby and myself as my blood pressure had begun to drop.

Around 7:30 p.m., my doctor came to check on me and told me I was ready to push. So, I pushed. As soon as the head came out, it was clear why his heart rate had been dropping - the cord was wrapped thightly around his neck twice and his head was turned about 180 degrees. I couldn't see anything but H said it was very scary. The doctor calmly and quickly cut the cord and Eli took his first breath. It was a long process, but we are all doing fine now and happy to be home.

Tali has been better with the baby than I expected. She is curious and asks to see him every so often. Jackson is so excited for him and constantly wants to be close to him and sniff him, tail wagging hard. So far, things are good here. Now if only I could get some sleep...

Pool Party!

On Monday (Memorial Day), we went to a friend's house for a pool party. They have three girls, ages 7, 4 and 10 months. Tali and the 7-year-old (I will call her Miss A) became instant friends. H and I got a free babysitter for the day. Tali followed Miss A everywhere and Miss A had a blast taking care of Tali. She took Tali on the swings, played with her in the kiddie pool, took her to the bathroom with me, sat next to her at lunch and taught her how to eat corn on the cob. Tali, having already downed almost an entire platter of baby carrots and broccoli which she slathered with some sort of very spicy dip, figured out the corn pretty quickly. She loved it! And, of course, she asked for seconds. Although she never really went in the big pool, Tali had a blast at the party and talked about her new friend quite a bit the next day.

First bites of corn on the cob

Polishing off her first piece