she swims, she swims...

in a new swimsuit this week too!

Brother Eddie was actually awake for part of the lesson this week, so Mom didn't get quite as many pictures, and none of the little boy. But I am sure there are plenty of him in other posts! Hard to believe it is almost time to register for the next swim session!

playtime fun

Such a sweet baby boy!

1st Tub Bath

I am starting to think I liked the sponge bath better than bending over the tub! Perhaps we will move the tub to the kitchen sink in the future. Poor Eddie wasn't a huge fan of the bath at first, but he adjusted well. His sister thought his bath in the tub was the coolest thing. I will forever have a right hand man for Eddie's bath time!

This is what the helper looks like in the tub these days. All she wants to do is 'swim' or 'float'. Oh well, it is a good soak when all is said and done!

sibling love

Soy update...by no means do I think that the formula would already have made a huge difference, but we did get some sleep last night. Eddie ate at 9pm, 1am, and 5am. He doesn't sleep soundly inbetween feedings, still does some grunting and groaning, but he was well overdue for a poop so I think that was part of his issue too. But it was way more sleep than I got the 2 previous nights.

that's enough...

breastfeeding...soy here we come.

Clearly last night was not much different than the night before since I have decided it has to be all or nothing. The bigger difference last night was Eddie didn't nurse well at all. I felt like a pacifier! And he really isn't so into a true pacifier, so I didn't have another option.

So by 5am when Ed was leaving for work, I told him I was done. I can't go through the trying soy formula and pumping until we know if it is the answer or not. So, I was started soy formula and started to let the breasts dry up. Luckily the Pediatrician had given us a sample of Prosobee (Enfamil Soy) when we were at the office yesterday. If soy isn't the answer then we will try the other more expensive pre-digested formulas (Alimentum or Nutramagen) so hoping Soy is our saving grace yet again.

It is a little sad to stop breastfeeding, because until Sunday night it was going well. Other than the nipple shield need of course. When I pumped on Monday, I had a severe difference in supply between my left and right breast as well, which I think Eddie was catching onto. He didn't want to stay on the right because it ran out so quickly (1-1.5 oz). Whereas the left had at least 3-4 oz at a crack. But I have decided as much as I want to be super mom and breastfeed because it is best, it clearly isn't best for my children. And my sanity needs to come into the picture here at some point too. As my husband said this morning, clearly my breastmilk is toxic to our children! Therefore, if there would ever be another child added to this family, I will absolutely not breastfeed and start with soy from the first feeding. (NO, we are not talking about more kids already, if anything we are thinking we are done, but time will tell, it's only been a little over 2 weeks)

2 Weeks Old

Not really sure where to start with this post...

We were into the Pediatrician this evening for a 2 week weight check, and the little porker was 7 pounds 14 ounces! That is a 1 pound 6 oz weight gain in 10 days! Yipee, the breastmilk works...or does it?

That being said, we had a very rough night last night. The boy did not sleep from 9p-5a! More than a 30 min cat nap anyway. He would nurse, fall asleep, I would put him down, and 5 minutes later he was grunting and groaning and crying out. Pick him up, check his diaper, feed him again, fall asleep again, put him down, and same thing. In addition to all of this, he has had some explosive gassy poops all night, and a sore butt.

So finally at 3am, I gave in and popped open a can of Similac Sensitive (for gassiness/fussiness/lactose intolerance) which is just a can that I had at home. It was either that or pack Eddie up and head to Walmart at 3am, and that wasn't a very appealing option. So I was going to try formula all day, and pump and discuss with the Pediatrician our options or causes at our appointment that evening.

Of course he took the formula fine, and slept pretty good during the day, and it was super annoying to have to pump (even though I was considering starting to pump once a day to start building up the supply for when I go back to work). I actually missed nursing him during the day too.

So our questions for the pediatrician were, how long would we have to try formula before noticing a difference, and is Similac Sensitive an okay option or should we go the soy route? Well first strike, Similac Sensitive is a milk based formula, so I wasted my time with that today. It clearly didn't fix anything if it was essentially the same as breastfeeding. And the Pediatrician is pro-breastfeeding of course, especially if that is what we want to do. So he recommended I continue breastfeeding and maybe it was just something I ate. Of course if this continues and we feel we need to try Soy formula, he was open to that as well. Though he is of the mind set that if it is a milk protein sensitivity, generally they steer away from soy as well. But since Soy worked for Rowan, if we wanted to try that first, we could. So we left the doctors office deciding that we would go back to breastfeeding at this point.

Nana and Papa deliver...

Nana, Papa and Tulah came to visit this afternoon, and brought dinner too! Rowan woke up from her nap just in time to welcome them at the door. Poor Papa got run ragged playing hide and seek with Rowan, but she absolutely loved it. Nana and Papa found Rowan a couple new puzzles, so we did her new puzzles over and over this evening as well. And of course Eddie got his one on one time with both of them as well.

And a few pictures of the many faces Lil Eddie is making these days. He was awake for quite awhile this evening, hopefully that will pay off tonight! We will see!

she puts up with alot...

We can tell the Tulah really misses having Rowan around on a daily basis to play with her! And despite not seeing us as much, she still really puts up with just about everything Rowan dishes out. Gizmo is very tolerable of her as well, but he would have been up and gone a long time ago, and Tulah just laid there and took it all!

thirsty thursday

Another swimming night here!

Tonight, with every jump that Rowan did, Ed let her go further and further under the water. And she got very smart and wanted Daddy to get closer, thinking that she wouldn't go under as much. She didn't even go under completely, but she drank plenty of the pool, as evidenced by her diaper later that night! Very wet!

And our little champ slept through the entire lesson again!

hangin' out

Eddie IV sure knows how to get his hands and arms flying. And he doesn't hide it when he wants to eat! Such a good rooter!

so peaceful...

when he sleeps...although he does generally sleep alot, and even when he is awake he is very good! Knock on wood! Such a cute pose he gave me! Enjoy!

Aunt Manda...

Aunt Amanda came to spend a few days with us over her Spring Break! Wasn't that nice of her! I warned her that it wouldn't be very exciting around here, due to lack of sleep, and she was okay with that. She had no problem napping with us in the afternoons. And spoiling her new nephew, and of course her favorite niece too. Rowan got some new crayons and stickers and clothes too. And Eddie will be styling this summer too with her new wardrobe as well!

ice cube

Rowan and Daddy have been playing a little too rough lately, and I was a bit concerned we were going to be in the emergency room with a toddler and new baby. Rowan can be a bit clumsy, and might overreact a bit when she gets hurt. But she hurt her foot and wouldn't walk on it, so we put an 'ice cube' aka ice pack on it. And she thought that was super cool. And thankfully when all was said and done, she was walking on it fine. And it wasn't a big puff ball the next morning, thank God! Of course she was still well enough to play with Mr. Potato Head!

1 Week Old

Sort of hard to believe that we have been a family of 4 for an entire week now. Things are going pretty well. We have our good nights and our bad nights. Of course Eddie sleeps fine during the day, but not always at night. But that comes along with breastfeeding is what I keep telling myself.

Eddie has continued to be a very good baby. Doesn't cry much, unless he is hungry or getting his diaper changed, continues to have a lack of interest in a pacifier, which is okay with us! Circumcision is pretty well healed, and just waiting for the cord to fall off next. We continue to nap as a unit in the afternoon, and do what we can to stay awake during the day after sleepless nights! And I survived the first day at home without Ed! Yahoo!

Knutson Family

Grandma and Grandpa K, and Uncle Mitchell came to visit today! Not only did they come bearing gifts, but dinner too! Nothing better than a good visit and good food. Rowan ran Uncle Mitchell ragged! That is what he gets for being so excited to see her, she didn't let him sit down for much of his visit! He is young enough to run around with her! Too bad it was rainy and we couldn't let them outside!

Grandma and Grandpa B

This is about all I could get for pictures of Rowan today! Heaven forbid she smile for a picture with Grandma and Grandpa! Maybe next time. She is too busy asking people to do her puzzles with her, or play Mr. Potatohead! So funny how she is into new things every week. Mr. Potatohead is the feature of the last week or two!

Of course, Grandma Pam and Grandpa Bill came with goodies for the kids as well. So nice to have some boy things for Eddie to wear!

Daddy Time

It is rare to sit in the recliner and hold Eddie without a toddler joining you. Don't mind Rowan's lack of a shirt. The girl likes to be naked more than we would like. But sometimes it just isn't worth the fight!

Luckily she is quite the lover! She for the most part is very good with her brother. When he cries she tells us to go get him. She is always wanting to kiss his head and rub (gently of course) his head too! Very cute. I hope it continues!

1st bath @ home

Though Eddie wasn't a huge fan, it went well! I think he will enjoy the tub a bit more. But gonna wait until that circumcision is a bit more healed for that!

Big sister Rowan was a great helper, like usual, thankfully! She loves to help with the snaps (though she usually gives up on them), and will be in charge of handing you the diaper and wipes most times too. Hoping this continues!

My apologies...

Just a quick post to let you all know that we are alive and well.

I am apologizing to my fellowing blogging friends with new babies in the last year that I continuously pressured for updates constantly. Clearly I forgot about the lack of sleep that comes along with newborns! Only this time I have a newborn and a toddler. But we are alive, and I really hope to get a caught up on my posting by the end of the weekend. Although we have a weekend full of visitors, and hopefully some napping before Ed goes back to work next week. Not looking forward to that at all!

In a nutshell, all is well here! Big sister loves her brother and has been doing pretty well with all the changes. I definitely blame her cold for some of her increased sassiness. But it is just the beginning!

Updates to come!

Weight Check

Apparently the breastmilk is working, or flowing, or however you want to put it...

6#8 oz

...a 4 oz weight gain in 30 hours! We will now return to the office for a 2 week weight check!

Gizmo turns 6...

...and who better to visit, than his second set of parents! Karen and Doug took a trip up to visit us today! And came bearing gifts of course. And not just for the newest addition! Rowan got a gift bag as well as Gizmo! Can you say spoiled? No, just loved! Karen and Doug not only got to enjoy Eddie, but also got a run for their money with Rowan. Of course she tended to prefer Doug (she likes the males the most), but Karen had her fair share of playtime too!

1st trip out

Eddie and I tagged along for swim lessons tonight! And the little boy slept through the entire trip. And he was oogled by many people. I guess it's rare to see a 3 day old out and about! Thus I was thrilled that he slept and could stay contained in his seat away from the people. There were a few siblings watching the class as well that were dying to get closer than close, but luckily there mom (who is pregnant and due in a coupld weeks) was very diligent on them keeping their distance!