Long time no post

 I keep thinking about this blog really I do and
then something else side tracks me when I do
have a moment. Taking a nap is high on the priority list.
So what have we been up to since the last post. Well our weight issues still continued. We were doing so well that if you remember from the last post we went to breastfeeding alone. And then we had a hiccup where her weight did not rise as much as it should. We went back to topping her up by bottle with some of my pumped milk. She did finally come around to gaining the 1oz a day they recommend for her age group. The the timing could not be more perfect as she now is not a fan of the bottle anymore. She will take it if it is her sole meal which means she is hungry but does not want it as a top up. Only draft for this kid, leave your bottle behind. She has a friend who is exactly the same age as her (they are an hour apart) and she has also gone through the same no more bottle phase.
We are actually at the point where she is starting to outgrow clothes, and clothes that I thought were to big for her are now starting to fit. Like the blue hat her cousin had especially made for her. When we first tried it on it was too big and now it is just right. I love it because its a lovely colour and yet still feminine with the flower on the side. Reminds me of flapper girls. She is wearing it today on her 8th week picture. Wow 8 weeks have just flown by. Other milestones include her sleeping for 5 hours. Unfortunately for me they were not through the night but it still shows it is a possibility although she has not repeated that since.

She is also starting to enjoy bath time a little more. She tolerates her hair and face being washed. Although still kicks up a fuss when we place her in the tub to wash her body. I am told that other kids like baths but we are still waiting for this to happen to her. Still also waiting for her hair to curl. She still has a lot of it, if it has fallen out I have not noticed. I can not get over as to how much people comment on her full set of hair. Who knew hair on a baby was such a commodity. I never paid attention to it before and honestly I still do not. Okay that is my update for now. As you notice the post will be more sporadic.

Right after bath time

 

Bonding over a bottle

Last week we not only saw our family doctor but also saw Ceilidh's surgeon for a follow up appointment. Ceilidh is up to 7 lbs 11 ounces as of Tuesday and yesterday we weighed an even 8 lbs. Hopefully this will continue to be on the rise. She is now just feeding on the breast except for an evening meal which is when her and M can bond over a bottle. His bottle is sold at the beer store and hers is provided by milkman aka me.

 A sleep after a good bottle.

The surgeon who is amazing as usual let us know that all is well for now but she may require some further surgery at a later date. Why the future surgery you may wonder, especially since all is back in her tummy. Well right now her tummy puckers a bit from where the organs were put back in and this may settle on its own or it may require future surgery. The reason to wait is to see if this problem will resolve its self as she grows. But the surgery will not happen any time soon, her next follow up is in a year time. And she will probably be followed up for at least a few years.
On other news,  I went to go visit my work place. Weird not to be there, but I was happy to visit and show off little Miss C. She was fussy though. It is the first time I have seen her overtired. When we go to our groups she is generally not handled so much and sleeps through it mostly. Like baby sign language today. She is a slacker and slept through 99 percent of the class. I cannot get over how many wonderful groups there are in my community. Worth all my taxes.

Comfy nap

Flying sole and getting sprung

I did promise to let everyone know how we are doing and how the first week went. And also to elaborate on the circumstance of us getting sprung from CHEO. Well it was a very tense time for my self. We had been trying all sorts of different methods to get Miss C out of the big house and I will now admit in my eyes things were not going well. In retrospect I think I was just rushing it. She would have done fine on her own time but I just really wanted her home.
If you recall her issues were feeding sans feeding tube. Well let me tell you she has no problems eating these days and when she is bottled she takes it down in no time, a far cry from the 50 minutes she use to take. I still remember calling M in tears just the day before she was released because things were just not working in terms of just breastfeeding her alone. She wasn't getting enough and had to be topped up by bottle which to me just meant failure and a longer stay. At the time I was spending the night in order to prove that I could feed her all night long. In the end, I capitulated to letting her bottle (with breast milk of course) and then give her breast as a top up. After all I felt this was the only way I could get her to gain weight which was the only way I could take her home. She did gain the weight and since her release has been gaining just fine. Though I will be weighing her tomorrow, last Thursday when I weighed her at the clinic she was a good 7 lbs 7 ounces. She had put on 3 ounces from when I measured her on the Tuesday. Fantastic!
And when the doctor said I could take her home I was so elated. I had to ask him to repeat the good words. And then I had to convince M this was not yet another belated April fools joke. Why do things concerning Ceilidh always seem unbelievable.

One Month Old and not cooperating

What have we been up to last week and today. Well as some of my posts have mentioned we have been getting to know one another. We are also trying to break our dependence on pumping and bottling. The first step is to admit you have a problem. Actually it isn't a problem but it is really time consuming pumping and bottling. So we are learning how to breastfeed. Apparently, I wasn't doing it properly and hence why she wasn't getting enough. The things I have learned about babies and eating, crazy.  To those women who do breastfeed, wow you make it seem so easy. I have been seeing an amazing lactation consultant and with her help I hope to be bottle free. Well maybe not completely free since it is good to have it on standby when I want a night out but you get the point. And today on our first day alone we went to our first play group. Of course I almost missed it since I thought it was at a different time but I managed to get my act together and little Miss C was the picture of cooperation. I hope to continue to attend all sorts of events with the mothers in the area. It makes me feel like a normal person again. And it gets me past any anxieties I have around doing things with Ceilidh in tow.  Okay so that is it for now. Thanks for reading.