One Week Old

Thomas is now a week old!  Time is already flying.  It feels like it has been one really long day.  The cycle of feeding and changing him makes every day feel the same and almost makes me lose track of what day it is.  My mom came for a few days to help us out and that made things a lot easier, especially with keeping Grant entertained.  And many thanks to our church family who kept us well supplied with meals during this first week.  A lot of people think that bringing neighbors and friends meals in this day and age is unnecessary with fast food, delivery, and frozen meals so easily accessible.  But it is something that I really appreciate.  It is one less thing that you have to think about and often you get to try something different from your ordinary meal rotation, and is usually much healthier compared to whatever takeout you might have gotten.  Plus, it is just nice to know that others care about your family and they get to meet the new baby when they come by.  So thanks again to everyone who thought about us!

We took Thomas to the doctor yesterday and he weighed 6lbs 11oz, so he has almost gained back to his birthweight which is great.  He has a bit of jaundice but nothing to be too concerned about.  We just need to make sure he eats regularly and gets some natural light each day.

So far, things with Thomas have been going really great and there have been several pretty big difference between the newborn experiences of Grant and Thomas.  I want to outline some of them so I can remember what it was like.

1.  Sleeping!  Thomas has been a much better sleeper than Grant so far.  Every night since birth he's had one block of sleep that is 3-6 hours long during the night, then will wake up about every 2 hours after that.  I could not believe it!  That makes such a HUGE difference being able to get 4 or so hours of uninterrupted sleep per night.  With Grant, he woke up every 2 hours to eat like CLOCKWORK.  It was beyond exhausting.  And Grant would also stay awake and fuss or cry for a while at night, too, and often would only sleep if one of us was holding him.  So far Thomas hasn't done either of those things.  So I've really been enjoying having Thomas sleep on his own in the bouncer or in the Rock and Play sleeper that my brother is letting us borrow.

2.  Eating!  Thomas overall nurses pretty well, but he does have a little trouble latching sometimes.  It just takes him a little while, but once he gets it, he gets it.  Overall I think Grant picked up nursing a little easier/faster, but we've still had a good experience with Thomas because I know a lot better what I'm doing this time around.  I thought I would experience less soreness, but it's about the same.  I guess it still takes some getting used to with each baby.  Thomas also seems to eat a little bit slower since he's always so sleepy, so our feedings take a bit longer.  Sometimes we will sit there for about an hour, or we'll have one 20 minute session, take a break, and then have another 20 minute session shortly thereafter.  Grant pretty much just took 20 minutes and that's it.

3.  Alertness! Overall Thomas is much sleepier and less alert than Grant was.  Grant was constantly moving his arms and legs around, would never stay swaddled, and was awake and alert quite a bit.  Thomas seems more calm and laid back.  Today was the first day where Thomas was pretty fussy for part of the day, so who knows if that will change in the long term.

4.  My recovery...so far it has been a million times better than with Grant.  I think my pre-eclampsia had progressed further the first time around before I had Grant, so my body had a harder time recovering.  The next day after having Thomas, I felt really yucky and swollen and in pain, but every day after that I have felt better and better.  It's still not a walk in the park but I can't even explain how great it is to see improvement each day.  With Grant, it felt like I kept feeling the crappiness of the first day went on for several weeks without much change.  I'm so happy things are better this time!

And now for some pictures...

Sleeping in daddy's arms

Meeting Nana

Sleeping and dreaming in his bouncer

Meeting Granny and Grandpa

Meeting Aunt Susan

Finally getting to see more of his eyes

I love how innocent and sweet he looks when he peeks his little eyes open

Snoozing away

Grant laying next to Thomas.  Whenever Thomas touches Grant with his arms or legs, Grant screams and says "it tickles!" and then usually runs away.  It's funny.

Finally getting some awake time!