The first 5 weeks- a review
What the first 5 weeks have been like for us.
I hope some of this helps one of the moms-to-be with what to expect.
Scott is having a harder time adjusting to waking up during the night than I am. Molly is not on a schedule yet but normally she eats 11-midnight, 3am and 6:30am. Because of the bf difficulties Scott has to get up and feed Molly while I pump. Some nights I let him sleep and I do it all, but it takes over an hour then and it is a bit more taxing on me that way.
I have been lucky that Scott has only worked about 4 days since I had Molly. He goes back to work on Monday so I think this will be a real challenge for all of us. But I am looking forward to getting on more of a real-life schedule.
What I find very difficult is the lack of a 'morning' now. She wakes up at 6:30am and goes back to sleep around 7:40am and I am still so tired so I go back to sleep too and we don't wake up until 10ish. By the time I take my shower, get dressed, make the bed and get her feed and changed it is close to Noon and I still haven't had my tea or cereal. So I often feel like the day is slipping away quickly. If Scott is not home then each time the baby needs to eat (every 2-3 hours) I need to a) try to nurse, which can last 45 minutes at times, b)offer her a bottle and wait for her to finish, which can take her 20-30minutes sometimes and then pump, which takes 15-20 minutes. Then I have to wash everything (pump supply stuff). She may or may not be sleeping at this point. But get this, you time her feedings from when she STARTS, not finishes. So by the time I am done washing the pump supplies I hve maybe another 15-30 minutes before she wants to nurse again. But she will nap once a day for about 3 hours and then I just have to pump during that time.
Not being instantly back to my pre-prego clothes is emotionally difficult. When I was prego I didn't mind having a belly show. Now I put on some stuff and have to nearly puke. I miss some of my old stuff. I did get into my jeans today. Okay- it was my 'fat' jeans and they hurt my incision like he_ ll BUT I did it![]()
My house: I am a very neat person and now I cannot possibly get everything done each day. That is hard for me to adjust to. But the lacation consult reminded me that Molly will only need this much of me for a brief time in her life so a few messes is worth it when you think of it like that. Still, if you can have someone help you the first 2 weeks with the cleaning and washing laundry it is well worth it. Scott also has to help a lot more now, which is a good thing IMO.
I love to just watch Molly. She doesn't have to do anything and yet, she is so much fun to just watch.
I hope some of this helps one of the moms-to-be with what to expect.
Scott is having a harder time adjusting to waking up during the night than I am. Molly is not on a schedule yet but normally she eats 11-midnight, 3am and 6:30am. Because of the bf difficulties Scott has to get up and feed Molly while I pump. Some nights I let him sleep and I do it all, but it takes over an hour then and it is a bit more taxing on me that way.
I have been lucky that Scott has only worked about 4 days since I had Molly. He goes back to work on Monday so I think this will be a real challenge for all of us. But I am looking forward to getting on more of a real-life schedule.
What I find very difficult is the lack of a 'morning' now. She wakes up at 6:30am and goes back to sleep around 7:40am and I am still so tired so I go back to sleep too and we don't wake up until 10ish. By the time I take my shower, get dressed, make the bed and get her feed and changed it is close to Noon and I still haven't had my tea or cereal. So I often feel like the day is slipping away quickly. If Scott is not home then each time the baby needs to eat (every 2-3 hours) I need to a) try to nurse, which can last 45 minutes at times, b)offer her a bottle and wait for her to finish, which can take her 20-30minutes sometimes and then pump, which takes 15-20 minutes. Then I have to wash everything (pump supply stuff). She may or may not be sleeping at this point. But get this, you time her feedings from when she STARTS, not finishes. So by the time I am done washing the pump supplies I hve maybe another 15-30 minutes before she wants to nurse again. But she will nap once a day for about 3 hours and then I just have to pump during that time.
Not being instantly back to my pre-prego clothes is emotionally difficult. When I was prego I didn't mind having a belly show. Now I put on some stuff and have to nearly puke. I miss some of my old stuff. I did get into my jeans today. Okay- it was my 'fat' jeans and they hurt my incision like he_ ll BUT I did it
My house: I am a very neat person and now I cannot possibly get everything done each day. That is hard for me to adjust to. But the lacation consult reminded me that Molly will only need this much of me for a brief time in her life so a few messes is worth it when you think of it like that. Still, if you can have someone help you the first 2 weeks with the cleaning and washing laundry it is well worth it. Scott also has to help a lot more now, which is a good thing IMO.
I love to just watch Molly. She doesn't have to do anything and yet, she is so much fun to just watch.
