Sunday, February 23, 2014

More Thoughts on Night Waking and Sleep Deprivation


I am one of those people that likes to rationalize everything, I like to find explanations. I am always trying to better understand the world in a way that makes sense to me.  Having a baby has completely thrown me for a loop!  Miko's sleeping patterns are beyond comprehension, the more I try to identify a pattern the more confused I get...


 I have become obsessed with documenting his sleep habits. In fact, I have four different spreadsheets where I record his daily nap schedules, his bedtime routines, and his various night wakings. Every morning I pour over my spreadsheets to try and unlock 'the secret' of his sleeping habits. I even chart his progress in a graph and have become disheartened by a downward trend that has occurred in the past few days. Miko was feeding at regular intervals throughout the night - anywhere from 2.5 to 4 hours between each nursing session.  I was getting between 8 and 9 hours of broken sleep a night and could finally see a light at the end of the tunnel of sleeplessness.  I was starting to feel like a normal human being again and assumed that the worst was over.... Just as thought I had it all figured out, everything changed again. Maybe it's because he got his first immunizations, maybe it's another growth spurt, or maybe its because we had to start using a different swaddling blanket because he outgrew the old one?  Maybe its something else entirely? 


 I will forever be baffled by newborn sleep habits. I may never fully understand the sudden and unexpected sleepless nights.  But you know what, that's okay.  I have grown to accept that fact that I have very little control over this aspect of my life right now. The only thing I can do is adjust my attitudes and expectations, and remind myself that it will get better.


I am so very thankful that this is my only 'issue' right now. Miko is an absolute joy!  He is such a happy baby. He seems so very content throughout the day and night.  There is an hour or two in the evening where he just wants to be cuddled and moved about, but other than that he is such an easy baby.  He breastfeeds like a champ and puts himself to sleep in his bassinet without any fussing whatsoever.  Every morning I am greeted with huge smiles and squeals of glee.  He seems to be doing great and that is all I could ever hope for. If I need to endure more weeks of sleep deprivation for his benefit, of course I will do it in a heartbeat! 

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

A Day In The Life - Winter 2014

A Day in the life –A Weekday at Home - Feb 17th
 
All pictures were taken with my phone for ease of use
 
6:15 am – I awaken to the happy sounds of Miko in his Pack n Play bassinet. He sleeps next to our bed so I pat his chest and say our sleep cue 'Its time to go night-night Miko'. Success! I knew he wasn't hungry because I just fed him an hour before. He falls back asleep for 1/2 an hour :)

6:45 am – More happy awake sounds from Miko as Luke's alarm goes off for work. I turn on the light and say good morning to our little guy and turn off our new white-noise machine. I change Miko's diaper, he immediately poops in the fresh one as soon as I get him dressed.
 

7:00 am – I feed Miko in bed while Luke snoozes next to us. He has started to nurse on one side only and seems to be much more efficient now. He nurses on the right side for 7 minutes and I record this info on my little notepad.

7:15am – I change his diaper again and get him setup in the living room on his play mat. I head to the kitchen and start making coffee and assemble my breakfast – celery with almond butter and wheat-free oatmeal. Miko is gurgling away on his mat, smiling at his new favourite toy- the baby mirror. I sit next to him on the floor and eat while he is entertained on the play mat.
 
 
7:25am – Luke is now awake and is making poached eggs for breakfast, we have a big good morning hug :) I get our coffee ready and head back into the living room and turn on the Olympics. Circus is meowing at the door so I let him outside to 'play'
 

7:30 am – I record our overnight feeding schedule into Miko's sleep log spreadsheet (as recommended in the 'No Cry Sleep Solution') while Miko continues to be adorable on his mat. Luke says good bye to us before heading to work. I quickly write-up my to-do list for the day.

8:00 am – Miko starts to protest so I flip him over to get in some tummy time before I pick him up. I put him on my shoulder and walk him around the house until he falls asleep.

8:15 am – I carefully place sleeping Miko into his Lamby chair – he does not wake up :) I check out my favourite blogs for a few minutes and successfully locate a new recipe to try in our crock pot today.

8:30 am – I spend some time writing out 'A Day in the Life' Post because I was inspired by some other Mom blogs this morning.

9:00 am – I pull the chicken out of the freezer to start defrosting and make myself a second cup of coffee. I let circus inside because he is patiently waiting on the porch. I start up a Pilates work out on my laptop and follow along while Miko naps beside me.

9:05 am – Miko wakes up hungry so I quickly change his diaper before we get settled on the couch. I turn up the tv so I can watch ice dance.
 
 
9:30 am – After nursing and dozing on my lap I transfer Miko to his chair again where he lays awake and looks around, I read him a sweet book 'The Dog I love Best' and he falls asleep

9:35 am – I try the Pilates video again, success

10:15 am – I head to the kitchen to try my new recipe only to discover I am missing a key ingredient – coconut milk. I quickly change my plans and throw ingredients into the crock pot for 'chicken enchilada stew'.
 
 
10:45 am – I grab a banana and piece of cheese for a snack. I text my Mom back and send a cute pic of Miko to Luke at work

11:00am – After charging my camera's battery I transfer pictures onto my laptop and external hard drive and start uploading pics to my photo-bucket account for my relatives to look at.

11:25 am – I wake Miko up to feed on the right side this time. I check out some blogs while nursing on the couch. I'm currently reading 'Under the Sycamore' and 'Mom's Make It Work' a series of posts from a bunch of different Mom bloggers about working from home, working away from home or being SAHM's.

11:55 am – It's time for a Diaper change for Miko, he loves getting his diaper changed so much its adorable! I think we both actually look forward to them ;)

12:00 noon – I settle Miko onto his play mat and turn on Castle – its the one show I try to watch every day. I lay next to Miko on the floor and show him different objects, I also place them in his hand so he can feel the different textures.

12:15pm – Miko is totally entertained and happy on his play mat so I take the opportunity to eat lunch. I heat up some delicious soup that Luke made a couple of days ago.
 
 
12:20 pm – Miko starts to make unhappy noises, its a good thing I am a fast eater! I scoop him up and put him over my shoulder, we walk around the living room looking at various things on the walls.

12:30 pm – I realize I haven't been paying attention to Castle so I abandon the espisode. I put Miko in his Lamby chair in the kitchen and do all of the dishes while he is in a good mood.
 
 
 
12:45 pm – Since Miko is still calmly hanging out in his chair I pump some breast milk for future use. Now that I have 5 oz I record the date on a post-it-note, stick it on the bottle and nestle it into the back of the freezer. The house is starting to smell like delicious food by now.
 
 
1:00 pm – Miko stretches out his legs in his bassinet while I make a massage appointment :) It will be my first massage since last September, I can't wait! I put some clothes on so that I look nice when Luke gets home. (Well as nice as you can look in yoga pants, a nursing tank top and cardigan)

1:30 pm – The little one starts acting hungry. I nurse Miko in bed so that I can work on a Blog Post draft while he is feeding. He dozes off on my lap.

2:30 pm – the phone rings, its a nurse from the health unit reminding me that Miko gets his immunizations tomorrow. Miko did not like being woken up and gets upset. I can't settle him easily so I put him in our baby bjorn and start vacuuming. Miko is instantly calmed.
 
 
3:00pm - Miko does not appear to be sleepy so I set him up on his play mat and Skype my Mom and Dad while he is awake and being cute.

3:30pm- Time for another feeding just as Luke gets home from work. After he is satisfied, I prop Miko up on my shoulder while I make nachos and Luke makes himself a snack. The little guy is tired but can't seem to fall asleep. I try rocking him in his chair with the vibration function on with no luck. I put him back on my shoulder and walk around the house.

4:10pm – Miko finally falls asleep...

4:20pm – Luke's phone rings and Miko wakes up hungry so I nurse him on the rocking chair while we watch Castle together. Miko falls asleep on my lap for half an hour :)
 
5:00pm - I try to transfer him to his Lamby chair but he wakes up a few minutes later. Luke changes his diaper while I shred our chicken in the crock pot.
 
 

5:30pm – Luke entertains Miko while I eat a bowl of stew quickly.
 
5:50pm – I nurse Miko while Luke eats. We watch the latest episode of walking dead together on the couch. I try to bounce Miko on my lap for a while. I put him on his play mat to see if that will keep him entertained.

6:30 pm – Miko is very vocal tonight and is hard to settle, we take turns walking him around the house.

6:56 pm – I try to feed him in bed in an attempt to calm him down – no luck... I place him in our stroller and start pushing it back and forth, it works! He falls asleep almost immediately.

7:25 pm – Miko awakens hungry but is much less upset and able to feed. I quickly change his diaper so he has a fresh one for the night. He feeds for 40 minutes! I gently place him in his bassinet and swaddle him up. I say his sleep time cue 'It's time to go night-night Miko' and turn on the white-noise machine. He falls asleep right away and sleeps until 10:30. I get ready for bed and quickly do some tidying around the house. Luke and I get an opportunity to talk and cuddle in bed before we both fall asleep at 8:45pm.

I am going to try and record a 'Day in the Life' post four times a year - one for each season.  It's a bit of work to get everything all written down and documented but I think it will be worth it.

Monday, February 17, 2014

Cousins


See that awesome hand painted shirt Miko is wearing?  That was made for him by his sweet cousins who live in Ontario.  He has three so far, 4 year old twins (a boy and girl) and their two year old little sister.  Miko has yet to meet them but he is already making use of so many of their hand-me-downs. Growing up I was very close to my cousins, and there were a lot of them!  I am so glad that Miko will get to experience the joy of having cousins but at the same time I am saddened by the fact that they live so far away.
 
 I realize now how lucky I was (and am) to have had so many cousins to grow up with. Our families got together very frequently so we had many opportunities to play together and form life-long bonds. Now that I live on the opposite side of the country it has become harder to keep these relationships so strong, but I will always cherish what I had and what I get to come back to every time I visit.
 
I look forward to seeing relationships form between Miko and his cousins and I hope that they remain close regardless of the distance between them. Let's just say that I am very thankful for all of these new technologies that help us keep in touch!

Saturday, February 15, 2014

One to Two Month Comparison

                              One Month                                                                  Two Months

So it appears our little one is taking after his Daddy when it comes to his size.  I entered his measurements into a child growth calculator and his percentile is 75.8 for weight and 97.7 for height! Whew, no wonder my arms are getting a work out lately :)

Thursday, February 13, 2014

Miko at Two Months

 

How Miko is Doing
-Weighs 12 lbs 7 oz and is 61cm long (was 50cm at birth)
-Has started outgrowing his 0- 3 month size clothes! We are now into the 3-6 month size
-Still loves his bath and now enjoys getting his diaper changed. He also prefers to poop immediately into a fresh diaper.  It's quite consistent, I have to do back-to-back diaper changes a couple of times a day.
-Miko eats every two hours during the day and is less consistent at night. He can go anywhere from 1.5 - 4 hours between feedings
-He now smiles responsively and we can't get enough!  He is much less fussy and has long periods of alertness. He makes adorable 'happy' noises, kicks his legs, smiles and moves his arms around much more gracefully now.
-He has recently realized that my face is attached to my boobs. He gazes up at me and smiles before, during and after nursing sessions now.
-Luke hates how fast he has been outgrowing his cute clothing so we have started a keepsake box already
-Nicknames: Chubby Cherub, Grunty McGrunterson, Sunshine, Miko-man, Old man turtle (long story), Sweetheart

How I am Doing
-I weigh 120 pounds and I am still wearing maternity/yoga pants. I either go for a walk or do Pilates everyday
-I am dealing with the sleep deprivation quite well I think.  I have learned to be patient with the frequent night feedings and keep telling myself to cherish this stage because it will be over before I know it.
-I'm still getting 6-8 hours of broken sleep a night, and naps are very rare
-We now have a much more consistent day time and bed time routine. I am still loving my relaxing days at home with Miko. :)
-Books I have read this month: The No-Cry Sleep Solution (awesome book!), Clutter-Free with Kids and The Girl with the Pearl Earing

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Making Memories



Dear Mikolaj,

Oh my sweet little one, I swear I love you more each and everyday!  How do you get cuter overnight? Everyday I see more and more of your individual personality peaking through and it is just awesome.  I can't believe how quickly you are growing, changing right before my eyes. You change so quickly that I barely have time to soak up each stage and store you away in my memories... Maybe it has to do with the lack of sleep but I find that I'm having a hard time remembering all of the little details from even just a month ago. I am so glad I am addicted to documenting my life with my camera!

From now on I am am going to exert every effort to cherish and remember each and every stage of your development. I am going to make sure I journal as much as I can, I will write down how it feels to be your mother. It is important that I record those little details before they get lost in time...

I am also going to start listening to music again so that I can associate certain songs with each stage of your life. It's amazing how listening to a certain song can instantly transport you back to a specific time in the past.  I am going to take advantage of this.

Luckily, I am obsessed with keeping jounals, notebooks and scrapbooks. I have a pregnancy journal, a baby book (thanks Nanna), baby milestones calendar (thanks Manda), a scrapbook that is all about you Miko (thanks Aunt Marg) as well as this blog, and my everyday journal. I will have quite an array of documentation to look back on and share with you when you are older. :)

I look forward to creating and recording a lifetime of memories with you my little Miko!

Love your Mommy

 

 Miko's scrapbook (in progress)
 
 Pregnancy journal

 Circus loves to photo-bomb
 
 Baby book
 
 Baby's first year calendar

Monday, February 10, 2014

Around the House

 This is one of my most favourite Christmas gifts!  It was made by my awesome husband, he knows how much I appreciate homemade presents. 
 We have had so many sunny days this winter. The Okanagan has been uncharacteristically bright this season and we are so very grateful.


 This cozy little nook is where I do most of our nursing sessions.
 Circus continues to be his adorable self - always 'getting into things'