Monday, November 29, 2010

This Little Piggy...

Eats and eats and eats! He routinely nurses for about an hour every feeding. He eats every three hours during the day and, now that his bilirubin is okay, every 4+ hours at night. BUT...the last few days, he's been wanting to eat every hour! You do the math...that's basically back to back eating! Luckily I have an abundance and have quite a bit pumped and in the freezer. I get a break now and then and the kids, especially Jacob, love to feed Isaac. Last night, he nursed his usual hour, finishing around 10pm and by 11pm, he acted liked it had been 6 hours since he ate! He was trying to latch on to anything that was close to his face. So I thawed out some milk and he sucked down 4 oz. in no time. Then he proceeded to sleep until a little after 5am!!! I felt like I got 10 hours of sleep. I'm really hoping that he isn't becoming a lazy sucker like his brother was. I don't think he is-he nurses pretty good, just slow (or else has a huge stomach!). We can't afford formula!! If all else fails, I'm prepared to simply pump what he needs and bottle feed it to him. Anna and Jacob both only nursed 3 months-Anna was impossible to keep awake. We did everything from ice cubes to waiting til she was super hungry, but it seemed after 5 minutes of eating, she just couldn't stay awake. Plus she had stomach issues for several months. And Jacob, he was just a lazy sucker so I ended up nursing him, pumping, then bottle feeding him. It got to the point that all I was doing was feeding him. He had a huge appetite! I never used the small 4 oz bottles with that boy! I'm determined, one way or another, not to do formula this time. Simply for the money factor. Yes, breastmilk is best for the baby, but obviously my other two kids weren't harmed by being on formula! But I think this time around I've got a better "grip" on nursing and pumping and Isaac really seems to be a better nurser than the other two-an answer to prayer! My $50 pump I found at a consignment sale has already paid for itself :)
Okay, enough on that topic. Isn't he a doll?! :) He's still a very good baby-rarely cries. Unless he's getting his diaper changed (usually), doesn't get fed quickly enough, or is getting a bath! I can't keep things warm enough! My new bathroom sink is perfect for him, but until his cord falls off, I can't get him all the way in the water. So even with the heater on in the bathroom, it's pretty chilly! Aaron got to hear him really holler tonight!
Anna and Jacob are still adjusting (we all are!). They love Isaac but are acting out toward each other and Mom & Dad. Anna has become an expert antagonizer and Jacob fights back now! Staying consistent with first-time obedience is a challenge, but one that I know will pay off. Not 5 minutes after Papa & Binga left today, they started in!!! Bedtime was a drawn out affair. Aaron finally realized (I never caught on) that Anna just needed some attention and she was to the point that she didn't care if it was positive or negative. So he spent a while rocking her and she finally settled down. It's been hard (and will only be harder now that we're "on our own") juggling the needs of all three kids!! But we'll get it figured out...hopefully sooner than later!
Speaking of juggling and balancing, I better get to bed since Isaac is asleep! Thank you for all the encouragement and prayers. Keep up the prayers!!! :)

Sent from Jennifer's BlackBerry

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