Jack at 9 weeks

Our sweet baby boy just turned 9 weeks old, and I can hardly believe we have made it this far. Each week brings on new milestones and accomplishments, and it is hard to keep up with all of the changes.

Growth:

At Jack’s 2 month check up this week, he was 13 lb 5oz and 23 inches long. Still 75th percentile for height and weight (he seems enormous to me though) and 95th percentile for head circumference. He is super consistent with his growth, which we are very happy about. In the past few weeks, Jack’s reflux has worsened and he’s starting to eat less and have back arching, but thankfully, it has not affected his growth.

Milestones:

Since about week 7, Jack has been smiling more and cooing like crazy. We love sitting with him and having “conversations” with him, and it is pretty much the cutest thing ever. We think he laughed a little the other day and loves to let our little yelps and sighs. We work on tummy time every day, and he is starting to hold his head higher and higher. In the last few weeks, he has also started self soothing by chewing on his right hand. Jack is spending more time on his play mat and loves to explore.

Eating:

Jack eats every 2-3 hours around the clock. We are working on stretching his feedings overnight, and it is a work in progress. He takes 2.5 oz- 4 oz of expressed breast milk in a bottle. It has been difficult to have time take larger feedings with his spitting up, but we are hoping with the help of Zantac (started this week), it will help his eating and sleeping.

Our routine:

We do our best to keep Jack on an eat-play time-sleep routine, but his schedule varies every day. I hope one day he’ll have a consistent wake time and bed time, but right now, we go with the flow. I’m realizing now that his poor sleeping has a lot to do with his tummy being hungry from all the spit up, so we need the Zantac to work its magic! I’m also wondering how much I should alter my diet.

During his play time, we will read books, play on his play mat, practice tummy time, or just hang out. Sometimes he will rock in his rocker or hang out on our bed as I fold laundry.

We are trying to make his sleep routine consistent, so Jack knows what the expect. 60-90 minutes after he wakes up, he is offered a nap. Any longer than that, he gets overly tired and very fussy, which results in Jack fighting his sleep and lots of screaming. He usually starts yawning, kicking, and moving his arms and legs rapidly, and that tells me he is getting tired. That’s when I close the curtains, dim the lights, put Jack in his swaddle, and get him ready for sleep. He mostly naps in his crib, and occasionally in his rocker. We try to put him down while he is awake (but drowsy), and I am super proud of him, because he will normally put himself to sleep. We are working on this!

What else?

-Still in size 1 diapers, but I’m pretty sure size 2 would fit him just fine. I’m trying to finish off the open pack before we move up.

-Wearing 0-3/3 month clothing, but he’s getting pretty long, so we may have to go up a size soon.

-I’ve established my milk supply, and I am finally happy with where I am at and how much I am producing. I’ve been able to freeze milk everyday that we will use when I go back to work. I am pumping exclusively, which was not what I had planned, but Jack had so much difficult latching in the beginning, it just wasn’t working for us. Maybe I will try to nurse him again now that he is older but it hasn’t happened yet. I am currently taking supplements from Legendairy Milk and eating the occasional lactation cookie to keep up my supply. I’m pumping every 2-3 hours during the day and the amount I pump overnight varies.

-I have lost all 40 pounds that I gained during pregnancy! I am eating as much as I can to produce milk and haven’t exercised officially, but hope to get into an exercise routine in the next few weeks.

-Every day, I find something new to worry about, but I am praying for continued perspective and decreased obsessing. Right now, it is his spit up and a mysterious rash that has developed on his trunk and thighs. Thinking it is a heat rash vs contact dermatitis.

-I still cannot believe I’m a mom, and I’m wondering when it will get easier. Some days, I feel terribly overwhelmed, and other days, I feel like I can conquer it all. All I do is stare at the baby monitor when I am away from Jack, and I know that I need to relax a bit, but it is hard. I keep going over my sleep course like I am going to be graded on it…Looking for that perfect sleep solution. Thank goodness for my husband, who has been the biggest help ever. I can see that I am not able to cope with every day blips as easily as I used to, and I am paying more attention to self care, and getting used to my new normal. I am trying to not have expectations and meet Jack where he is developmentally. It’s hard not to compare what he is doing with other babies I know that are around the same age, but I need to just focus on how well he is doing. Plus, I want to have a bunch of babies, which Yung is not going to allow if I am falling apart at the seams everyday. Just some real talk. I am so grateful for Jack, but as amazing as motherhood has been, it is equally as difficult.

Here are photos taken when Jack was 7 weeks old: