Growth Spurt @ 3.5 weeks
Well, they don't put this growth spurt in the books - or perhaps Finlay is doing this one in two goes. He's fed every 2 hours since this morning, and would not go to sleep for more than an hour at a time. Boobs are empty, and I am exhausted! But fingers crossed he's now asleep after a long evening feed.
Not surprising he's hungry - it's been a busy Bank Holiday weekend. On Saturday we made a spontaneous visit to Sussex to see Granny D, and pass Finlay round for cuddles with all the Singleton ladies.. he charmed them all and was very well behaved indeed, and enjoyed a little walk round the village whilst Daddy and I snoozed. Sunday he had his first outing to the pub, where we had a nice lunch and he was the best behaved baby there (i.e. asleep until the last 5 minutes!). He did some amazing sleeps of 4 hours at a go, which meant we could have really good 8-hour nights. And today my godfather came for a birthday lunch, and.. well, Finlay ate and ate and ate! I knew we'd get payback for all that sleep.. ;) Hopefully he will now settle down again and go back into his 4-hour rhythm.
David has a serious tummy bug so I don't want him handling Finlay, so it will be a long night feeding him and changing him every two hours with no help - eek! [Update: it was BRUTAL, and I am exhausted... he was up every two hours during the night, but he's now been asleep for 2 hours and fingers crossed will continue for a while. David isn't that much better so will keep going on my own for a bit, after some sleep! Thankfully I'd expressed some milk yesterday so I could give the boobs a rest! I am now crossing my fingers that I haven't picked up the tummy bug too... grrr! So long as Finlay doesn't that's ok]
There are some positives - we got a big gummy smile that we are certain wasn't wind... yesterday we were talking to him and he gave this big grin, which widened when we smiled back at him. And then when playing in his bouncy chair, he started reaching out and fingering the teddybear and book hanging from the arch, really exploring them with his eyes and fingers. Clever boy!!
[Update (1st Sept): well, I succumbed to the lurgy too, so Finlay is now off-limits for 24hours - David is doing a fantastic job of being a single parent. Finlay got a touch of the lurgy, but I have kept expressing throughout, so he should have some nice antibodies to help him fight it. He's currently entranced with his rattle-ball on the arch and keeps batting it with his hands. His 4 week birthday was yesterday, so he's coming on in leaps and bounds]
Posted by jen at 09:04 PM | Comments (0)
Sumo Baby
Well we know where all the milk went... the Sumo Baby put on 8oz since last Friday! He now weighs in at 7lb 7oz and a half-ounce. That's almost a pound heavier than his birth weight! Go Finlay!! He's still a tiddler in the percentiles, but he's a long baby, and has a lot to fill out! And skinny like his Dad...
Posted by jen at 12:12 PM | Comments (1)
Yo Mum! Keep it going with the milk!
Posted by jen at 04:42 PM | Comments (1)
Growth Spurt @ 3 weeks
Finlay had his 3 week growth spurt over the last few days, which is why it has been a bit quiet on here. Things have been less quiet at home - after lulling us into a (pleasant) false sense of security by auditioning for "perfect baby" with his 4-hour cyles (30 mins feeding, 30mins changing and playing, then three hours sleeping), the proverbial hit the fan.
Tuesday morning (by morning, I mean all the hours after midnight on Monday), Finlay switched to a 2 hour cycle. Forty minutes feeding (I kid you not), twenty minutes changing. And an hour's nap. Then it started again... and again, and again. David was pretty wrecked when he went to his meeting on Tuesday morning, and I was a zombie by the end of Tuesday. We had the most wonderful house guest - whom I hadn't seen since my wedding in June - who was an angel from heaven, and finished making the lunch, finished making the cake, and finished tidying the kitchen - all tasks started, then interrupted by the familiar "screech screech" from Mister Greedy Monster. I barely saw our poor friend, who left in the early hours of Wednesday morning - boy, what a 24-hours to pick!!
Of course, Mister Finlay is now back on 4 hours, after a marathon 5 then 6 hour sleeping stint (doing all that growing after all that extra milk) - of course, after our poor friend had left! It has allowed David and I to catch up on sleep - much needed - but the Milk Bar has not yet recovered, and I am lying on the sofa wincing in pain every time I so much as move an inch. Industrial strength vaseline, kamillosan and jelonet have been used, but I think it's just a recovery thing now. He's gone from being full on 90ml, to wanting more after 30 minutes on the boob PLUS a 60ml topup - eek! No wonder it hurts..
I now have to persuade the little man to fall asleep - the eyelids are doing their drooping thing, the yawning is happening, he is fed and changed, but the world is just too interesting for little boys to fall asleep right now. Thank god for the little rocker chair David and I got on Sunday (cheapo sale option, but does the job!) - I can update his website whilst rocking him with my toes. It seems to be working - so long as I don't stop rocking him!
He has grown hugely - the double chin is getting wider, the legs are far chubbier and the nappy is now not having to be virtually double-wrapped round his once-skinny waist. The health visitor comes tomorrow, so we will see how chubby he really is (the washing-bowl-on-kitchen-scales option no longer cuts the mustard). His head control - always very good - has got even better, and his 'tummy time' has really helped with the arm and leg muscles getting stronger by the day. Now all he has to do is finish his thankyou letters ;)
Posted by jen at 04:27 PM | Comments (0)
Photo update
Finally we've finished the 'time line' photos of Beanlet from... well, 'Beanlet' to Finlay. Photos here.
And of course the obligatory batch of photos from the last week or so.
Posted by jen at 09:30 PM | Comments (0)
Cutiepie
Posted by jen at 04:47 PM | Comments (1)
oops....
This is one of those classic stories that everyone with a baby will relate to. Last night we gave Finlay a bath, and decided to video it for our baby video. So I held up Finlay with his bottom to the camera and made a funny joke about how I was going to show this bit at his wedding.
He obviously didn't like this, because immediately there was a horrible sound and an explosive burst of liquid poo from his backside. Luckily Jen had made me put the plastic sheet down on the floor before the bath. Unluckily we weren't standing on it. Poo everywhere all over our nice white carpet!! At least I managed to laugh at it. Half an hour later the bath was complete, and the carpet was back too its normal whiteness.
Maybe I'll publish a short clip of the incident on my website. Definitely should show it at his wedding...
Posted by david at 02:09 PM | Comments (1)
Clothespegs
Use a clothespeg to clip up a tshirt on the side you're breastfeeding, so it doesn't keep slipping down and suffocating Beanlet (and your tshirt being soaked in milk!)
Posted by david at 05:03 PM | Comments (0)
Progress Report - Two Weeks
Well, yesterday Finlay was two weeks old. I can't believe the last 14 days has gone so fast - most of the last week in a blur of sleepless mornings spent with a little windy man, his face screwed up tight and froggy legs tucked up to his tummy. We have tried every winding position under the sun - sometimes they work, sometimes they don't. We're both a bit tired but he makes it worth it as he's so cute!
We've worked out he doesn't like the TV on (thank goodness), but loves Classic FM. He is tracking things around the room with his eyes (Granny D got him a Lamaze toy bee that he loves to watch move, and explore with his fingers), and stares intently at you when feeding. His head control is amazing for someone so small, though can get interesting when you want him to latch on properly, and he thinks he's on Boob #1 (and tries to turn his head the other way). He is very strong, and can push himself up you when you try and wind him, holding his head off your chest or knees. His finger sucking has reached new heights - his scratch mitts are useful for feeding time so he gets boob and not fingers!!
We celebrated his two week milestone with tiramisu and candles, and cuddles. He repaid us with a migraine (for mummy), a late late night with an expressed bottle (for daddy) and lots of yucky nappies (for Granny D).
We're going to introduce the lovely aromatherapy massage oil and bath stuff tonight (sent over by the wonderful Grandma K), to see if that helps him snooze off a bit better tonight. He's wriggling in his moses basket right now - he's meant to be asleep but I think the excitement of wearing Big Boy clothes (rather than a babygro) has gone to his head - he does look very cute, though. I can't put him in his (dark and probably more sleep-inducing) cot as a) it's too hot upstairs and b) I can't carry him plus basket upstairs! Oh, the joys of a C-section... Hopefully Classic FM's chilled afternoon programme will help ;)
Health visitor tomorrow - we'll see how clever he is and how he's doing. He's storming past his birthweight (6lb 14oz two days ago) so that breastfeeding must be working its way in somehow!
Posted by jen at 04:06 PM | Comments (1)
Progress Report - 8 days old
It's been a while since the last update - I am now home with Finlay, and we've been settling into home life and trying to establish some sort of routine/pattern away from the chaos of the ward.
Finlay is doing very well - he went down 4oz in the first few days, but is now creeping back up to his birthweight (6lb 6oz today). That might have something to do with the fact he is such a greedy guzzler! He's been necking 70-80ml of milk every 4 hours or so, which he really enjoys. We had a bit of fun establishing breast feeding - after a great start, I was overwhelmed by all the conflicting advice from the 101 midwives, and ended up with bleeding nipples and was not a happy bunny. We went to see the NCT Breastfeeding clinic, who leant us a double electric pump, so I could let my boobs heal. They've done really well, and today we re-started the breastfeeding again with great success. Those clinics are highly recommended - it's like getting a heart surgeon to do your transplant rather than the GP, and they're really very good at giving you the confidence back, too.
Because Finlay has been on breast-milk bottles, we've been able to feed him pretty regularly, with Daddy feeding and me expressing simultaneously to ensure the volume and routine were in synch. Finlay went pretty much 4-5 hours between feeds, which has done wonders for sleep and getting things done. Still extremely tired, and will regret the trip to the hospital when the tiredness hits me like a brick tomorrow! It will be very interesting to see how he settles into the breast-feeding business, without a guage on my boobs to see how much he drank, and his propensity to doze off mid-feed, I can't see much sleep happening in the next few days until we're back in a rhythm. We fed him about an hour ago but he seems to be grumbling now.. he did this in the hospital which was very exhausting, but it has to be done some time.
Well as he's grumbling now and it doesn't look like stopping any time soon.. time for a nappy change probably! He usually soothes himself back to sleep by sucking his fingers - very cute but sounds like a bullfrog in the middle of the night - unless there is something really the matter!
His other cute party trick is in true Noo Zeelund stylee - he's mastered the art of the Hongi when you say hello to him close-up (those eyes aren't focussing yet), except if you do it too long he then whips his head up and attaches his little mouth to your nose and sucks like a little limpet!!
Thank you for all your wonderful cards, presents and messages - they are very much appreciated, and we will teach Finlay to write thank you letters as soon as he has mastered this boob-thing ;)
Another progress report soon. I can't sit at the computer for more than 1/2 hour at a time because of the stitches, but I will be back to let you know how he goes.
Posted by jen at 07:01 PM | Comments (0)
More photos
I've just put some more photos up on my website. The family is all doing well, and may be allowed to come home today. I'm sure Jen will post a lot when she gets home, so in the meantime enjoy the pictures.
Thanks to everyone for your lovely (and very witty) comments :)
Posted by david at 09:27 AM | Comments (1)
Jen's Story
This is your hospital correspondant.. With the semi-gory details ;]
Finlay is doing wonderfully - I can't believe that he was 51cm at birth, holding the tape measure up in front of my belly [still rather saggy], it is no wonder that his kicks inside were sometimes very painful! He will be tall like Daddy I think, and has the long toes and spitting image of David already!
It was an interesting experience - backache started on Tuesday afternoon, but was bearable. When David got home, the contractions were noticeable, but 10 minutes apart. Decided half way through the evening to put on the TENS machine, as due to the backache - this was obviously not another false start!
We watched a bit of 24, and made some chocolate Brownies to take my mind off the increasing pain and closer contractions. Decided that with the TENS machine ramped up, I could drift off into a semi-comatose state - helped by a very cuddly Cosmo!
Woke around 3 and this was definitely not a false alarm! Drifted back to sleep until 5, with the contractions around 3minutes apart, and then thought it would be a good plan to have a shower, BAD plan, as it meant taking off the TENS machine, and realising how painful the contractions really were, necessitating help getting out of the shower!
Decided to go to the hospital around 6 - the TENS machine hadnt really kicked in again properly, and contractions were about 2 min apart when we got into the car. And there was me thinking "this isnt too bad...".
Got to the hospital to find - arggggh - was only 2cm gone, and therefore was sent up to the ward to chill out, About an hour later something shifted, and the consultant sent me back down to be monitored - was in a lot of pain too,
About another hour later and the pain had really kicked in. Having wanted as natural a birth as possible, I tried the Gas and Air and it didnt do much for me at all, except make me feel very sick [I had just been sick as a dog just from the pain, as the TENS machine had ceased to do anything for me.]
So in went the epidural - was too tired at that point, after over 12 hours of pain. The first didnt work as I was squirming too much and it hit a blood vessel. The second placement worked slowly, and I am sure a few choice words were aimed at anyone in the room!
At that point, Beanlet's heartrate kept dipping, and they were concerned. They were ok when I lay on my left, but that meant the epidural wasnt working on my right side at all. So another dose lying on my right gave more pain relief, but the subsequent dips in hearttrate worried the doctor enough to break my waters, in which they found meconium. Not good.
They tried and failed several times to get a blood sample from Beanlet's head, but as I was only 4cm that wasn't easy and kept slipping. Poor love still has the scratches on his head. As they couldnt tell his blood oxygen level, they didnt want to give me a drip to speed up labour, especially as the epidural wasnt working effectively.
What with that, my increased bleeding, the heart trace and the meconium, they decided to whip the Beanlet out asap, Thankfully I had an epidural so was awake for the experience, apart from the fact I was shaking very hard from the epidural one minute, and totally zoned out the next!
David was very brave and came into theatre, and he got to see and tell me that we had a beautiful little boy! Despite the meconium they sucked out, his APGAR was 1O all three times. He looked so perfect when he came out I could hardly believe he was ours.
Now 24 hours on we are both totally shattered, but Finlay is getting a grip on breastfeeding, He is a bit of a muncher but am getting a bit of help. Didnt get much sleep last night but hoping I do tonight, Though with 3 other babies in the room I doubt it! Granny had a visit today so hope it tired him out. About to have the first real food in about 60 hours - chinese takeaway - am starving!
Am not so sore today - though morphine has worn off - have impressive scar, and although sad I didnt have a natural birth, am glad Finlay got out in one piece - he is a real cutie, as you can see from David's site [with more obligatory cuteness to come!]
Posted by david at 10:49 PM | Comments (8)
A New Arrival
Its been one hell of a day, and Jen & David would like to announce the arrival of Finlay David Farquhar. Finlay was born today at 4.27pm, and weighed 6lb 8oz. Mother and baby are a bit tired, but very well. There's some photos on David's website www.khaosproductions.com
There will be more details and photos soon, but for now we're all off to sleep.
p.s. Jen says he has my nose, and is a spitting image of me.
Posted by david at 08:59 PM | Comments (11)