C & T plus Baby Makes 3!: Letters to Emerson- Two Months

Emerson 2 Month Stats:

Weight:

On 3/5 (10 weeks old) you were 10lbs 13oz 10-25% at your 2 month appointment at Pedi.
On 2/26 you were 10lbs 9oz at GI specialist appointment.
On 2/23 you were 10lbs 8oz at Pedi
On 1/29 you were 8lbs 14oz at Pedi

Height: 22"

Clothing: Newborn, just starting to fit into some 0-3

Diapers: Newborn, just starting to fit into size 1.

Favorite Toys: Not playing with toys just yet, but I catch you looking at frames on the wall, etc.

Favorite Past Time: Being held.

Communication: You cry when you're upset which has been more often than not this month. You have proven to be by far my most fussy baby, and it's heartbreaking to not be able to get you to settle. There have been many days and nights that your being upset has brought me to tears. There is just nothing worse than having a baby scream for hours. It's awful.

Cries: You cry when you're tired, hungry, when you have a dirty diaper, and when you are generally uncomfortable, which is a lot. This is mostly due to your food intolerances, dairy, soy, and whatever else we aren't sure of. You also have reflux which makes you uncomfortable as well.

Bedtime/Nap time: You are still taking cat naps on me, and most often fall asleep nursing. You are proving to be a light sleeper and it's hard to get you to sleep in any sort of apparatus. You sleep mostly on me, in our bed.

Foods: You were exclusively breastfed until 7 weeks, but after no change in your mucosy, green diapers even after I had cut out dairy and soy for 2 weeks, we started to introduce hypoallergenic formula at every other feeding. This was done to try to see if we saw any improvement in your diapers and your overall general comfort.

Worth Mentioning: This month we have been back and forth to the peditrician's office at least once a week trying to get to the bottom of why you are so upset and unable to be soothed. After cutting dairy out for a week we saw no improvement in your temperment or diapers unfortunately, so then I cut out soy. 2 weeks later still no improvement. You still had a rash, diapers still mucousy, and overall were just very fussy. You would have crying spells that could last a couple of hours at a time.

Breastfeeding has never come without challenges for me- with Reese I struggled with supply, and had to stop at about 4 months. With Adeline it was a similar situation dealing with lack of supply, but I was also not eating/drinking enough due to being on the dairy/soy free diet and caring for a toddler in addition to a newborn. This time around I figured, third time will be a charm! Since I know that you are my last baby, Emerson, I wanted to give our breastfeeding journey my all. You had such a great latch from the beginning, and I enjoyed the bonding time we had just you and I. I would have given anything to make you comfortable and for us to continue on our journey, but you were just so miserable.

After introducing you to the hypoallergenic formula you became a different baby. We saw instant improvement in your temperament, your sleeping, and your overall happiness/content-ness. I knew the decision had been made for me to stop nursing, and it made me an emotional wreck. I was so incredibly sad knowing that I would never nurse you again. We ended our journey the night before Valentine's Day. This is a picture that I will cherish forever.

Taken on 2/13/18

Milestones:

- After being on formula for about a week you could be put down in your bouncy seat and swing without screaming. You also took a liking to the Boppy Lounger, so we put that in your crib and started having you take naps in there since you are such a lite sleeper and easily woken up by our house (even though your sisters, daddy, and I are quiet like mice). After success with naps, we attempted having you sleep in the Boppy Lounger in your crib at night, and you did great (2/16/18)!

First smile- 1/29/18 after a 3am feeding
Dr app on 1/29/18 you weighed 8lbs 14oz and 20 3/4" head circ. 14"
1/30/18 Bed around 830pm upstairs and in RnP. Wake at 1230, nurse quickly and wake at 450am!!!
First bottle of pumped milk 1/31/18 2.5oz of pumped breastmilk
First bottle of formula on 2/5/18
Smiling lots on 2/12/18. Also starting to notice eyelashes growing in and becoming darker.
2/13/18 First day of napping on Boppy Lounger in crib.
2/14/18 Celebrated your first Valentine's Day!

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2/16/18 First night in crib.
2/18-2/19/18 Slept 845pm-845am only waking once at 4am for a bottle.
2/20/18- Finally had a nice day weather wise, so we went on our first walk outside!