Three Weeks!

Baby is three weeks old as of.... forty minutes ago or so! Since we are now skipping church for the third or fourth week in a row, I thought I'd spend a few seconds to put out a wee update.

Firstly - I'm sorry for double-posting (posting the same posts to both blogs) so much! It happens with each pregnancy, I'm afraid. My blogs - one having to do with my personal life and with hyperemesis, and the other with pregnancy and birth - have so much overlap space, especially during pregnancy, that it inevitably occurs that my pregnancy/birth/postpartum updates get posted on both blogs. Sometime in the next couple of months I shall re-banish my personal updates back to my Whining Puker blog.

So - how are we doing?

Not too badly! This has by far been my easiest postpartum. For one thing - no catastrophic nursing issues! Hurray!!!! I can't say how much of a blessing that has been. By this time in our last postpartum, I was pumping around the clock and baby was exclusively bottle-fed. It was, in a word, awful. Having a baby who is a vigorous and enthusiastic nurser is much better! We had some issues with him being a sleepy eater, at first, but being able to recognize the signs right away this time, I was able to correct that right away and he has been a great nurser ever since.

Another awesome thing - baby has been letting me sleep through the night since the first day! Is that not amazing? I just take him to bed with me, and he eats perhaps three times during the night - but he just murmurs gently to let me know that he's hungry, then goes right back to sleep when he's latched on and eating happily. It has been wonderful, and I pray that it continues! One of the hardest things about a new baby is sleep deprivation, and not having that to battle just makes life more sane.

Operation Afterpains was a huge success. Still unpleasant, but nothing - absolutely nothing - like the debilitating time with #1, or the better-but-still-yucky time with #2. A huge improvement!!

Two notes of interest:

Baby Giles, after waking up from his newborn sleepiness, has shown himself to be (1) not fond of naps, and (2) a cuddle bug who does not like to be put down. Did I mention that he doesn't like to be put down?? Not a good combination! I have found myself in a bit of a quandary, due to the fact that (1) I am not particularly fond of baby wearing, but.... (2) neither do I like to let newborns cry. But it seems to be one or the other. Therefore, baby has won the day and is currently nestled comfortably in my Moby wrap as I type! We'll see how it goes from here.

On another note. We have always picked our baby names to be (1) simple, (2) un-nickname-able, (3) not common, and (4) easy to pronounce. Apparently we flubbed on point #4, because no one seems to know the name "Giles"! I was so surprised! I know it's no longer common in this country, but I thought that most people would still know it. I was wrong! Most people are calling him Giles with a hard /g/ sound (it is pronounced with a /j/ sound), and one nurse even called him "Gills." Quite a surprise!

Other than that, life is well. I feel pretty well (placenta medicine working its wonders - entry on that later!), and we have been so very blessed with meals by friends and church family - always such an incredible blessing! (If you want to bless a postpartum family, meal support is the ultimate way to provide for their needs and bless them!!)

It is always a stretch getting used to another child, and #3 has been no different - but nothing like the life-changing cataclysm that baby #1 was, or even the mental stretch that #2 was. This has been not that bad.... so far. But definitely a challenge, and I know it will be even more so after we get more fully back into homeschooling after our new-baby break. And when I attempt to leave the house with three - something that has not yet happened. We'll see!

A funny side-effect of baby #3 has been that both DH and I have completely lost it with regard to calling each child by his correct name. We didn't have this problem when #2 rolled into town, but #3 has apparently messed with our minds. Both of us have spontaneously started calling the boys by completely wrong names - sometime going through the entire roll-call, or just ending with "or whoever you are!" Odd that it happened to both of us at the same time! But quite amusing, too.

I'm afraid that both of these blogs are going to be even more neglected now than they have been this past year or two. I adore blogging, and it is a wonderful release and relaxation activity for me - but there just isn't much time anymore. For those of you mommy bloggers out there who blog actively while homeschooling five-plus children, raising farm animals, sewing all your own clothes, and running two home-based businesses - I salute you! I'm afraid I shall never live up to that mark. So do forgive me if these blogs just aren't as active as I'd like them to be. Blogging is one of my true loves, but with caring for three kidlets and a hubbie, and trying to keep the house livable, it's the first thing to go.

Okay, off to nurse the baby!!