Sleep Deprivation

I love sleep. I get a little cranky and crazy when I don’t get enough sleep. My body is apparently finding its own way to cope. You’ve heard of sleep walking, maybe you’ve heard of sleep eating or even sleep sex, well now there is sleep breastfeeding. I woke up in the middle of the night a few nights ago with boob out, Sadie in my arms and suckling away. I have no recollection at all of picking her up and giving her my boob. Oh well, what could I do except go with it? It worked out well for both of us.

Cloth Diapers (part 1)

I really like cloth diapering so far. I can’t exactly explain why I like it. Perhaps it’s the challenge of it. I have changed so many regular diapers, from infant to adult size, in my life that maybe it is just too easy now. That’s probably not the reason though, especially since they are not a challenge. I think part of it has to do with that when disposable diapers get wet they get so heavy and full. Also with disposable diapers, when there is a major poo explosion that goes up baby’s back it goes right on up out of the diaper. Cloth diaper covers provide a waist band around the back so they hold in that back poo explosion. Of course I like the fact that I’m not creating a ton of extra trash to go in landfills, but on the other hand I am using more water to wash the cloth diapers often.

Ok, so I had decided awhile ago that I wanted to cloth diaper but never really put in the research. I just thought I would figure it out as I went along. Not really the best plan of action. It has helped me figure out what works best for Sadiecakes though. Here is what I have tried so far and what I think. This is still a work in progress as I have more brands/styles I want to try out and it may change as she grows.

Fuzzibunz: These were highly recommended but I am not super impressed. They are a pocket diaper system. That means they have the outer shell and an inner layer with an opening at the top back of the diaper for an insert. I don’t really care for the pocket system because the inner layer gets soiled with the first wetting or poo, so the whole diaper has to go in the wash. The insert can be taken out and a new one put in but the inner layer of the diaper is soiled so no point in just changing the insert. The inserts are super absorbent so I like that. In my testing I decided to put the insert on top. This works better for me. When the diaper gets soiled, I pull the insert off the top layer and just lay the second insert in, thus extending the life of the cover. *note even though the inner layer seems to be made of the same absorbent cloth as the insert, it is not absorbent at all and without an insert they will leak and you will get peed on!! Fuzzibunz are also super bulky. They are huge on my little baby. I think even as she grows they will still be huge as they are just made that way. This brand has made a new style called Elemental that does not use the pocket system. It has the absorbent insert attached. These would again just be a one use diaper cover. Basically you would need at least 24 of either style, 12 for one day then 12 for the next while the first were in the wash. (we are not going through 12 a day but you want to be safe rather than sorry).

Pros: absorbent inserts; one size fits all adjustable; very soft inner layer against baby; adjustable leg bands, no folding.

Cons: one use per cover then they need to be washed; expensive $18-$26 depending on the style bought; very bulky; one size fits all style does not always fit all; almost forgot that the inserts pull in the washing machine so if you wash them with anything else the other clothes can end up with fuzzies on them

Thirsties: These I really like. I have been using the Thirsties Diaper Duo’s. They are basically the outer shell that holds everything in. They are water proof, have Velcro or snap closures (your choice), have elastic around the inner and outer leg and along the back, and are pretty simple. They come in size 1 or 2. They are not one size fits all b/c the company feels that those style do not truly fit all. I agree with this. I suggest the snap closures b/c as baby grows she will quickly be able to figure out how to pull open the Velcro. Thirsties require prefolds or inserts. I have mostly been using prefolds with them. Prefolds are just an absorbent cloth that you fold up and wrap around baby or stick in the cover. Prefolds do require a cover or the wetness/dampness of a peed in diaper will leak through. I have been using Gerber multi-purpose cloths but have just ordered birdseye weaved cloths as I read that they are more absorbent. I will let you know once I test them out. Prefolds can be laid in the cover flat or wrapped around baby and secured using diaper pins or snappies. I have left them flat and wrapped, both work. Pins and snappies both work as well. Hubby likes the snappies b/c then he doesn’t have to worry that he may stick Sadie with the pin. I have also been using hemp inserts. These work great on their own just for pee but as they are just a straight line sometimes a messy diaper can get around them. They also work great as a doubler. That means they are put in with the prefold, usually for overnight for extra protection. What I really like about Thirsties Diaper Duo’s is that if a really wet diaper has made them feel damp or even a little poo has gotten around the prefold onto the inside of them (I’m not talking about leaking out, just the inside) they can be wiped off with a baby wipe and quickly wiped dry with a prefold and reused. You do not have to wash after every single diaper change. I love that!

Pros: affordable $13; can be used more than once before needing to be washed; can be combined with any method of insert/prefold you prefer; easy to use; elastic around legs and back

Cons: elastic is not adjustable like the Fuzzibunz; prefolds and inserts sold separately (inserts are about $7, prefolds vary $10 for 6, Gerber $12 for 12), have to fold the prefolds.

Real Nappies: I only have one of these. It is very similar to the Thirsties. I received a starter kit off my registry that came with one newborn size cover, one insert, and one flushable diaper liner. I like the size of the cover, it fit her when she was first born when some of the others were still too big. The insert is bulky though and is a prefold so you still have to mess around with folding it.  I haven’t really been using the flushable liners b/c they are more for catching solids and newborn poo is not solid. I think they can be used on any cloth diapering system you want though. I plan to test them again as Sadie gets bigger.

This is still a test in progress. I plan to try out another brand called JamTots. I have also just got a diaper wash from Thirties that I haven’t tested yet. So I will post again about those and the new brand of prefolds to see if they are better than the Gerber.

Cloth Diapers: Pros: easy, not creating extra waste, affordable, save money in the long run, are supposed to help prevent diaper rash. I suggest just letting baby’s bottom air out each day or using one of the extra prefold cloths to wipe her dry before putting on the next diaper as well as using A&D cream to prevent diaper rash.

Cons: extra steps (I rinse out the cloth) extra wash, expensive up front to get all the supplies you need all at once, bulkier on baby than disposable diapers.

Notes about prefolds: prefolds need to be washed a few times to maximize absorbancy, hemp inserts are not supposed to be washed with any other absorbant cloth as the hemp oil can negate their absorbancy.

Picasso Body

I never had a perfect or ideal body. I always had a some fat and some rolls on my tummy. I did not really have TOO many body image issues though. I would have liked to be more fit, thinner, less fat etc. But I could deal with what I looked like.

During pregnancy I was fine with my body. I actually even liked having my baby bump.

Post pregnancy I can’t complain about the weight because I actually lost the baby weight in only 2 ½ weeks. What I can complain about is the fact that my body now looks like Picasso painted it. I am now an abstract. I have a beach ball on one side and a basketball on the other where my perky C’s used to be. They can also often be seen with machine gun points sticking out squirting bullets of milk all over, take cover. There are chicken wings painted where my arms used to be. A layer of cottage cheese has been added to the sides of my bum.  My stomach roll has drooped and become jell-o gigglers shaking all over the place so that my jeans no longer fit properly. Oh and best of all, Picasso has added some stringy spaghetti looking stripes to my lower abdomen, some women refer to this as stretch marks.

I started doing yoga again today. I’m hoping yoga will suffice as a workout but I know I’ll need to add some strength training and ab work (yuck). I hope that thinking of my tummy as jell-o will help motivate me.

Sleep

I laid down to take a nap last week and was shocked that I was not instantly asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. I was never able to fall asleep that fast before I had a baby, post baby I can sleep while awake. I have a sleeping angel on my lap right now.

I wasn’t against co-sleeping but thought that it wasn’t for us. Hubby cocoons himself in blankets all the way up around his head, so I was always worried that he would suffocate the baby in his shell of covers. I had worried that if the baby wasn’t between us that she would fall off the bed. I got a Moses Basket for her to sleep in next to the bed. It worked great….for a week. Angel baby was not satisfied with sleeping next to the big bed. She demands to be in the big bed. I’ve tried to let her fall asleep on me and then put her in the basket. That lasts for about 5 minutes before she wakes up, demanding to come back. As soon as I pick her up and cuddle her or even just put her in her boppy on the bed, she calms down. Even if she doesn’t go right back to sleep as long as she is on the bed she is calm and quiet (for the most part). I was extremely paranoid about putting her in the boppy at first because it has a big “not for sleeping” tag on it.  But, as anyone with a new baby knows, you will do anything to help her sleep so that you can sleep too. The Moses Basket has not gone to complete waste. It is now used as the buffer between the bed and the floor so that if somehow she pushed herself and the boppy backwards she would just go onto the basket and a pillow instead of falling off the edge of the bed. So now her bed is just a back up plan/safety net. It should be interesting trying to move her into her own room and crib.

And all hell breaks loose

Sadiecakes and I had a pretty uneventful night. Hubby was on night shift so it was just the two of us and Sadie enjoyed sleeping in her Daddy's spot instead of her Moses Basket. In the morning, after cuddling with Daddy for awhile, I was changing Sadie while Chad went to sleep.
Suddenly our peaceful night was over and all hell broke loose. I'm sitting on the floor with Sadie on her changing mat and Chad is trying to get some rest. As soon as I take off the diaper my phone starts to ring, normally I could just ignore it but of course it will wake up Chad if I just let it go off. I run to grab it and silence it. Sadie, who is normally a quiet little baby, decides that this morning she will cry through her diaper change. I try to soothe her while quickly changing the diaper. As soon as I remove the diaper she squirts out a fountain of wet poo. It is projectile. It squirts right over her changing pad and onto the carpet and my foot. I can't avoid loudly gasping in shock and disgust. Well with all that in her no wonder she was crying. I clean everything up and get a new diaper. Sadie proceeds to pee on the clean diaper. By this point the dog is jumping up and down off the bed going between me and Chad, disrupting him I'm sure. Third diaper is the charm. We go into the bathroom to throw out the trash, leaving my phone on the floor in the bedroom. Of course now my alarm starts going off so I have to rush back to turn it off. All this in a matter of minutes. Finally things calm back down.
Sadie is on my lap as I write this. She was squirming around in her sleep, I'm guessing because of gas. Then all of a sudden she stops, a very peaceful look comes over her face, then boom, a huge wet sounding fart with what I assume would have been more projectile poo. Time for a diaper change, hopefully it will be uneventful.

Labor

Here is all the gory details of my labor and delivery. Just kidding…No gory details just the story of how it all went down. This is post is mostly for me as a journal entry but here you have it too.

I had not had any Braxton Hicks contractions throughout my pregnancy so when I started having really mild contractions Monday night, I didn’t even realize what was going on. I thought I was just having some cramping (they were extremely mild contractions at that point). It was only with hind sight that I realized they were actually contractions and not just a bit of cramping. Tuesday morning I woke up with mild contractions again, a little worse than the night before so I knew they were contractions. I only had a few in the morning right when I woke up. But of course they started again right before it was time to leave for the airport to pick up my mom. Hubby had been on night shifts so I woke him up to ride with me. Yes, I drove us all to and from the airport while I was having contractions. I was having back labor as well as regular front labor and since the driver seat in my car has extra lumbar support I wanted to sit there for my back to be comfortable. At home that night, Chad and my mom basically stared at me all night long. I felt like they were waiting for me to spontaneously combust.

I went to sleep at 11pm and woke up with contractions at 1230am. They were worse than before but still not horrible. I was dozing back to sleep in-between them. This was going on for awhile with the contractions getting closer together. I got up for awhile around 3 or 4 am, walked around, sat on exercise/birth ball, went online, then went back to bed. Chad came in to go to sleep too since he needed to sleep all day to go to work for the night shift. My contractions had other plans though. I could no longer lay down or sleep through them. After having 3 painful contractions in 10 minutes, I decided it was time to go to the hospital. I still wasn’t feeling rushed though so I got ready and tried to eat some toast before we left because I knew they wouldn’t let me eat while I was in labor. Since I hadn’t eaten since dinner the night before, I ended up not having anything until about 3pm Wednesday. By the time the toast was done, my contractions were so intense I felt nauseous. I tried to have one piece then we hit the road.

The hospital is only 5 minutes from our house, which is why I didn’t feel a huge rush to get there in the middle of the night. I went to check in and they asked me to wait outside the maternity ward in the waiting area. I said Hell No. My contractions are only 2 minutes apart I need to be admitted now. They sent me to the triage, where a nurse checked me and I was still only 2 cm dilated. Not good for contractions every 2 minutes. The doctor took his sweet time coming to check on me. Of course I went into labor on the one day that my regular OB is off. So here I am meeting this idiot for the first time and he tells me I should go home since I’m only 2 cm. I wanted to kick him in the head. Then he offers me some drugs, not for the pain but for anxiety. I am not anxious. I am calm and thinking clearly, my clear thought is I want to kick him in the head. I politely decline the useless drugs. Next he tells me to walk around the hospital for an hour and then he’ll check on me again. The nurse agrees with him, I now want to kick her in the head too. So I suck it up and walk around the triage area. Chad is fantastic through my labor, walking around with me, rubbing my back, holding my hair, reminding me to breath and breathing slowly with me so I can time my breaths to his. Who knew out of nowhere he would just know how to be a labor coach? I can only make it from one bed to the next before I need to stop and lean over the bed b/c of the back labor and front contractions.  I get my revenge on the nurse by throwing up on one of the clean beds. Once my hour of torture is up, I am 4 cm and the dumbass admits me.

In my maternity room, I have about another hour and a half of labor. The nurse suggests an epidural to get me dilated quicker, my OB had previously recommended the same thing. I give in and have one. Getting the epidural was much worse in my head then in reality. Once it kicks in everything slows down. I no longer feel my contractions or back labor, Chad takes a nap and my mom goes to lunch. Lalalala me in the hospital bed just waiting. Nothing really happens for the next 2 hours. Then I start to feel a pressure as baby drops down more. I feel that getting much more intense for the next 15 minutes. Just when I don’t think I’ll last any longer without starting to push her out myself, the nurse comes in. She immediately calls the doctor and says it’s time for me to push, guess I was right. I push through about 5 contractions for the nurse while we are waiting for the doctor. They tell you to push as if you are trying to have a BM, which I find very odd and gross, so I tried to focus more on contracting my abs to push. I was actually contracting every muscle in my body to push her out quickly, I was determined. There was no screaming or yelling, I think the only thing I said was asking the nurse if I could push again yet. Chad held my hand between my pushing, again being right there for me and exactly what I needed. The doctor finally shows up at basically my last push, just in time to catch the baby. 15 minutes of active labor and my beautiful Sadie Rosalie was born at 1418. She’s perfect! Great color, no cone head, no spots, absolutely beautiful. 6 pounds 10 ounces, 19.25 inches long.