Broken collarbone at 22 months

Yup, he did it... He broke a bone before the age of two...

Noah is active. By active I mean, more active than your average little boy. He’s curious, he likes to run, to see, to play, to discover. It’s in his nature and I have to admit that sometimes it’s hard to keep it up with him specially having to watch Emma at the same time.

Monday (the 22^nd of July), Noah climbed onto the computer desk to watch his cartoon from closer. It wasn’t the first time he did that but this time he lost his balance and he fell backwards. So he fell head and back straight into the wood floor. It was a 2 foot fall but he would not stop crying and I got worried when he didn’t even want to take the breast (still breastfeeding) for comfort. He also didn’t want to let go of us. So, we called 811 (nurse service, advice) and she told me that we might want to bring him to the ER just to make sure he is okay.

We went to the ER, he was admitted right away and he had head x-rays taken. He was all good and he was released at 2am. Then, the next day, we noticed a bruise on his shoulder and that he had a lot of trouble moving that arm. We waited another day to see if it was just swollen but the bruise got bigger and he wasn’t in any less pain. We ended up going back to the ER on Thursday (25^th of July). He took some X-rays and was diagnosed with a broken collarbone.

So, what happens now? Now much,  he’s still very young, so the bone will reconnect on his own. It will take from 3-6 weeks. They gave him a sling and a follow up appointment in another 3 weeks. It is quite a challenge to make him stop moving his arm but it’s quite the thing. We used safety pins to tie his sling to his shirt but it’s not always the easiest thing ever.

I hope he will recover fast, not too worried though!

Please keep it safe Noah! We love you!

Life at almost Two (Development 2 years old)

Hello there!

It’s been a while…so sorry, it’s really hard to jungle things with two babies, hmm more like a toddler and a baby.

Noah has been doing well. He’s been growing up really fast… Leaning a lot of new things and he is as active as he ever was. He is starting to say a lot of words and he will try and repeat what we say. It’s really and I’m very happy about that.

I’ll be honest here. I’m much more into the toddler Noah than  I was into the newborn Noah. I mean, Noah was an adorable newborn but to be able to communicate verbally with him, to know he understands my words and that he can reply to me is amazing. 

So anyway, a little bit about Noah. At around 20 months he started to become very interested by cars. Whenever he saw a car, he’d point it out. Now, at 22 months, his most important words are; car, truck, bus, “vion” (avion-plane), train, cop (helicopter) and boat. Anything that involved transportation actually. So he’s really into that…

Teething wise, it seems like all of his teeth are coming out at once. Actually, most of them ARE out right now but it all started at 19 months, his top cuspid started coming out, then a week later, his bottom cuspids. His first molars (all of them) came out at about 20 months and his molars at about 21 months. At 22 months he is having his laterals coming in. So he’s been fussy for a while but he’s doing pretty well now (teeth wise anyway).

Now let’s talk language, he’s saying words and he’s also starting to make connections between words. So, he’ll say “story-book” That’s pretty recent though. He will also start to differentiate articles. He will say “ the cat” if he’s referring to Soleil (our cat) but “a cat” if he sees a random cat in the street or in a book. He is also starting to sing to “The wheels on the bus” and “Old McDonald had a farm.”  It’s really cute.

Growing wise Noah is still tall and skinny. He likes to eat pasta, some chicken, pork, beef… Veggies aren't his favorite but he’ll eat them if it’s mixed with apple sauce. His favorite veggies would have to be carrots and his least favorite will be peas. He really doesn't like seafood but he will have fish. He’s not a big fan of sweets but cookies are always a win…

That’s about it for now. Everything else is great! Keep on growing baby boy!

We love you!!!!

Mom

Noah is 14 months!

13 months and 2 weeks

Dear Noah!

Wow! It’s been forever. I’m sorry mommy couldn't update as much as she wished.  So many things have happened.  To start off, we moved in May. Totally different city but not too too far away from home. Then, daddy started working full time. He loves what he is doing but sadly we don’t get to see him as much. Then, mommy never mentioned this before, but I got pregnant with your sister when you were 8 weeks old….a while ago. She was born in early September; you weren't even a year old. It’s so difficult to raise two kids under one. Daddy and I are making it work though. We have our little schedule and we stick by it. Anyways, here are some updated regarding yourself and your achievements.

Teething:  So, at 6 months you had your front left bottom tooth. At 7 months, you got your left right bottom tooth. Then, at 8 months, you got both of your from top tooth. At 10 months, you got your right lateral incisor tooth and a few weeks later, your left lateral incisor tooth. At 11 months (close to 12 months), you got both of your lateral incisor. Right now, you have your right canine coming in.

Eating: Right now, you eat everything we do. You don’t have any known allergies. As a newborn, your favorite puree food was butter squash. You could eat up to 4 jars a meal. Your favorite meat is chicken and favorite fruit is apples or blueberries depending on your mood. As of right now, your favorite meat is ham, your favorite fruit is banana or apples and you enjoy eating pasta a lot.

Walking: You took your first two steps in the playroom of our first house when someone (I can’t remember who) was holding you and let you go. You took two steps towards me before realizing it would be easier to just crawl. You were about 8 months and a half. At 9 months, you were walking without falling too much. By 11 months you would never fall when you were walking. Now, at almost 14 months, you can run, dance, and jump (kind of).

Talking: Your first words were mamamamma and dadadadada at around 4-5 months. Just before you turned one, you started saying “Da qua” which means “give me” in Portuguese. You also say mamah and dadah and Emma. You call the cat “ka” and the boobies “boo” or boobi”. Yup, that’s about it… You also communicate…yes lol. When we ask you “where is X or Y person or thing” you’ll point to it.

Sleeping: You’re hell to put to sleep and you sleep like crap. How’s that? You go to bed at 11pm, you wake up on average 4-5 times a night and you still need to be nursed to sleep. How fun?

Also, here is your routine for now: You wake up at around 9am, then you have your breakfast (toast, eggs or cereals), then you play in the playroom until about 1pm. Then we eat lunch, you nap, you wake up around 4-5 ish. Then it’s play time again and then we go for a walk with daddy and Emma. We come back at around 8-9pm. Then it’s your bath time, read a story time and bed time.

Yup, that sums it up… You’re not an easy baby to deal with but we love you with all our hearts and we are trying our very best to satisfy all of your needs. You are a great individual and it’s amazing to see you grow. Thank you for being so awesome and for being part of our lives.

We love you!!

Your Achievements!

22^nd of April 2011 (6 months and 4 weeks)

Hi Noah!

I’m taking some time while you’re napping to write to you. It’s been such a long time but I feel no real guilt as I’ve been constantly talking to you during the day (OH and you reply!). However, I do want to put some of your milestones in here, so that one day, you hopefully read this and know what you did and when you did it. 

Starting to coo: In December…So when you were about 3 months old, you really started to coo and to do it loudly!

 

Able to stand up while being assisted: January 25^th (5 months). Daddy would hold you and you would be able to stand up and even mimic walking. 

Able to sit: January 29^th (5 months). You were able to sit on your own without falling. 

Starting to crawl (able to crawl with hands but unable to move legs): February 17^th (4 months and 3 weeks). You figured it out pretty fast. You would go from trying to crawl to sit! (super cute).

Stand up without assistance (but holding yourself on furniture): 7^th of March (5 months 2 weeks). We left you in your bassinette (highest level) and we came back to find a suicidal baby ready to jump out of it. Heart attack….

Eating and crawling: 16^th of March (5 months and 3 weeks). We gave you some cantaloupe and broccoli though baby lead weaning (you eat by yourself) and you were fine. However, you didn’t eat too much, so we decided to try purees for a while and then we’ll move into BLW. As for crawling, you just woke up one day and you were able to crawl. Yeah, you even got better at it now…

Teething: 20^th of April (6 months and 4 weeks). Dad and I noticed a white bump on your gum on the beginning of April. However it went away. It wasn’t until the  20^th that your Godmother and grandma noticed a tooth cutting in. It’s your left bottom front teeth. 

First words: Around 4-5 months. When you were upset you would say “mamamamamamama.” Eventually you also learned to say “mum” “Dada” “Gaga” and a whole bunch of new words and syllables. 

Sleeping without needing us there all the time: Mid 6 months. And let me tell you, it’s very appreciated!

As for breast milk: you are still being breastfed exclusively.

These are some of your achievements so far. We are so proud of you and cannot wait to see you grow…but please take your time.

We love you Baby!!

Mommy

Finally some news!

27^th of December  2011 (13 weeks and 2 days)

Hey Noah,

I’m sorry for not writing as much on the blog. There is so much to write about. I’m sorry also that I won’t be writing a lot but I am currently holding you. Yep, you fell asleep on my boob- again. You seem to enjoy falling asleep that way and I enjoy it too since I can be at the computer while you’re sleeping.

I wish I could write about all the progress you have done since my last post but I don’t think that will be possible so let’s only talk about the basics. Feeding wise it’s going okay. Only okay because in late November (when you were 2 months old) you got a cold. Nothing big but your appetite dropped and so did your weight. So we had to feed you more often, well actually force you to take the breast because you didn’t want to eat. Then you got your 2 month old shots and you got a more sick. You didn’t react very well. So you wouldn’t nurse during the day, just at night. You FINALLY got better around mommy’s birthday and you started to nurse all-the-time. I can’t complain though, I am happy that you’re healthy. You gained 500 grams since you have been feeling better. Awesome.

Other than that, you started to be able to roll over from your back to your tummy in early December. Now (well today to be precise) you started to be able to roll back and forth. That means you pick your sleeping position! Love that…we don’t have to guess anymore how you want to sleep. Let’s move on to a different topic…sleeping. It’s going very well. We co-sleep and you sleep very well with us. You usually start sleeping around 11h30pm and you wake up around 11h00am…That’s actually great-thanks baby! I really love sleeping with you.

You also started to grab objects. By objects I mean anything. We have to keep you distant from everything. You also started to grab the cat… That’s well, he doesn’t like it.

You’re cooing much more and you’re actually pronouncing some syllables- just not together. To summarize it all, you’ve grown so fast. 

Mommy and Daddy love you very much Noah!

P.S. I am so sorry that I wasn’t able to keep up with this blog. Taking care of a newborn isn’t exactly relaxing hehe. Specially Noah…

5 weeks old baby!

October 30^th 2011 (5 weeks old)

Dear Noah,

You’re growing up so fast. I can’t believe how much you’ve changed. Some of your newborn clothes don’t fit anymore and the blankets we used at the hospital are getting too small to swaddle you. I just don’t know, it seems like we just got out of the hospital and yet it also feel like I know you since ever. Weird huh? 

You currently weight 4900 grams (you’re gaining about 40 grams per day) and you’re growing very tall. Actually, the only reason why your newborn clothes still fit you is because you’re long, not big. Anyways, I know you’re young and everything but here is my first piece of advice for you; if you decide to procreate in the future, do it with someone that is very patient or be extremely patient yourself. It takes skills to handle you baby Noah…

First, YOU decide how you want to be handled. If you want to stand, you stand. If you want to sit, we must sit you. If you want to fly, we better make sure we make you fly. Here is what I don’t understand. When we make you “fly” we do the exact same movement as the very expensive swing we got you- WHY do you not like the swing but adore our arms? 

Second, when you are not happy, you’re really not happy. You seriously scream bloody murder. I don’t even know why it happens. Sometimes I seriously believe that you cry just to cry. Everything is fine with you, you’re content and all of a sudden you decide to start crying. Okay…well. We hold you (in 10000 different positions trying to soothe you) and listen to you cry. Let me tell you, I’ve heard better music.

Third, you don’t seem to enjoy sleep as much as mommy and daddy do. We put you to sleep everything seems fine when all of a sudden you wake up after 15 minutes. Seriously? 15 minutes? You think that’s enough? So we put you back to sleep. And you wake up after another 15 minutes. I don’t know if you enjoy making us go crazy but we really really like it when you sleep for 2-3 hours in a row. Keep doing that. Try to reduce the 15 minutes naps.

Forth, will you ever get off that boob? It seems like I feed you every hour for 1 hour each time. Seriously. Grow your own! 

That being said, daddy and I really enjoy having you around. Sure it’s not easy but it’s so worth it. Sometimes we’ll be exhausted or upset because we can’t figure what’s wrong with you and you just give us one of those cute smiles or you just do something cute in general (like punch yourself in the face and start crying) and we just forget all the rest. You’re getting pretty good at drinking. I just put you near the nipple and you can find it by yourself. I barely have to hold it. We are also trying new breastfeeding positions. So far so good. I can officially say that I can sleep while you’re breastfeeding. The problem with that is that when you’re no longer on the breast, I dream that you are. Oh well.

You’re also becoming much more vocal. You make a lot of new sounds and you enjoy repeating them over and over. It’s exciting! Soon you’ll be able to let us know what’s up with you and why you’re crying. Oh! And you can finally stay in your crib looking at your mobile for a good 10-15 minutes. Woohooo!!!! Mommy can actually go to the bathroom without you! Honestly, it feels great. You seem pretty happy when hear and see the mobile play. So I’m guessing you really enjoy it. The only thing left now is to like you’re swing. 

Almost forgot, you don’t scream bloody murder anymore when we give you a bath or when we change your diaper. You actually like warm (hottish) baths and you cry when we take you out- or when the water gets cold. As for diapers (by the way you’ve gone through +400 in two months- no kidding), you are okay with it. You’re not happy but you’re not crying which is a great improvement.

I can’t wait to see you grow a little more and at the same time, I don’t want time to go by so fast. 

We love you little bean, be good and sleep at night,

Mommy & Daddy

Baby Blues and Postpartum Depression

October 26^th 2011 (4 weeks 3 days)

Hi everyone!

Baby Noah is sleeping next to me as usual. I’m watching him because he’s sleeping on is stomach and yea- he’s not supposed to. We find it’s best that way since he has lots of gas and sleeping on his stomach eases the pain by a lot (he farts so much)! I thought I would write today about a serious topic that hit me very strong after birth; baby blues and Postpartum Depression.

My husband and I went to prenatal classes. There were four of them and one of them was about postpartum depression. I remember coming out of that class thinking; that was useless and boring! After all, I’m such a happy person and I have never suffered from depression, nor has anyone in my family. So we thought that class was perfectly useless to us.

Turns out I wish I had listened. Our birth didn’t go as planned. We wanted a natural birth at home and we ended up having to be induced at the hospital. Noah was over 42 weeks and he didn’t have enough fluid left. Not only was I put under Pitocin but our birth story ended up in a c-section, so we also needed to get an epidural (that didn’t work) and then a spinal. Everything was going fine and I labored “naturally” with Pitocin for 15 hours before knowing I would have a c-section. That gave me about an hour to realize what was happening and that my dream birth wouldn’t come true. Not even a little bit. The moment I found my first instinct was not to panic and to think about Noah and my husband. I knew I would be fine but I could only imagine how my husband felt about this operation. I could almost run his thoughts through my mind and my priority was to comfort him and assure to him that everything would be okay. I would be fine, Noah was going to be fine, we would be a happy family. Maybe I shouldn’t have acted to strong. Maybe I should have let my true feelings out but at that moment, I had such an adrenaline going through my mind and body that all that mattered was to get Noah out safely and make sure the husband would be okay with me being operated and him having to take care of Noah for his first hours of life alone. 

The rest was history. Noah came out, he was perfect. I cried when I heard his first cry- I was so happy. I started breastfeeding and he latched on like a pro! We couldn’t have been happier. The next day, my midwife came to visit and asked “how I felt about the c-section.” How did I feel? Who cares! Noah is here and it had to be done anyways, right? The second day, I woke up during the night. I wasn’t able to fall back asleep… and that’s where my nightmare started. 

Before I start this, I all the readers to know that if you are in this situation- PLEASE seek help. Don’t be afraid or ashamed there is nothing wrong about asking for help. 

So, it all started at the hospital when I suddenly woke up for no apparent reason. I then looked at Noah, sleeping next to me and this strange thought came through my mind; I’m exhausted, I can’t walk because of my c-section, I can’t even grab him, I obviously will never be able to raise this child. I stayed awake all night thinking of this. Then, the next morning, the nurse came to weight Noah. She weights him and said he had lost too much weight. He had lost 10% of his weight and that was the maximum he could lose. That honestly crushed me. I was breastfeeding non-stop, on demand. He was latching on properly and everything was fine! Why the hell was he losing weight? I called my midwife and told her about the issue. She told me to get the hell out of the hospital. It would only stress me. I left a few hours later.

Then it was sleepless nights and nasty thoughts going through my mind (mainly about not wanting this baby since I wasn’t able to take care of him). The thoughts would be present mainly at night but it wasn’t rare that throughout the day I had them. I also wasn’t hungry at all. So I barely ate (bad for breastfeeding!). I remember feeling totally lost and losing control. I would talk to my husband about it but he couldn’t help. He knew that I am a good mom, a good wife, that I shouldn’t be concerned but my mind didn’t care. I didn’t want to breastfeed anymore. I was super unmotivated. I mean, what is the point of breastfeeding anyways? He can just get formula, why should I kill myself when I’m not good enough? Then, came the need to reject him. I didn’t want to look at him, didn’t want to hold him. I just didn’t want to be his mom. My husband asked me seriously “Do you want to give him up for adoption?” I thought about it and said “No.” but I wasn’t convinced. YES it’s THAT awful. My midwife had told us something about the third day being very hard mentally. So we were sure that was it…but it continued the fourth, fifth and sixth day. I didn’t know what to do anymore and decided to give a call to my midwife during a crisis at 11h30pm. She couldn’t do much over the phone but she gave me the best advice ever; “take one minute at a time.” Not…one day at a time, no no, one minute. I did. The next day, she sent a midwife that I get along with to come and talk to me. We spoke about how upset I was, about my labor that went awfully wrong. It felt good. I cried, I laughed, then cried again and laughed because I didn’t know what was going on. She said that it was most likely baby blues but that she would be honest with me; she didn’t know if it would go away. If I still felt that way after 2 weeks I would need medication. Meanwhile, she told me that sleeping and eating would help a lot. She also weight baby to reassure me that he was gaining weight. He was, he gained 120 grams in a day which is almost impossible but it made me feel so good. He was back to his birth weight. 

Before leaving, the midwife told me to try two things to sleep; Rescue remedy and Homeogene 46. TRY IT! Rescue remedy is really worth trying. I slept so well. I felt so good the next day. I was still depressed but I actually had the strength to take care of Noah. Then, after that, it went better. After a week, I was good. For me, baby blues reached its peak at 5 days and then decreased. By two weeks, nothing was left. If I’m really tired, I still have days where I feel more depressed but it’s normal. 

As a final advice for ladies with Baby blues, hold your baby. I know you don’t want to. I know it’s hard. I know…I just know how it feels but hold him. Tell him all that you feel. When he cries, hold him. Never let go of him. If you breastfeed, put him on the breast as much as possible. Even if you don’t want to, you’ll see that once your baby starts sucking you’ll feel better. Also, REST. Don’t be silly- when baby sleeps-SLEEP! Even if you can only sleep 10 minutes, it makes a difference. Also, eat! Find time to prepare something quick to eat…you need energy. Lastly, don’t be afraid to ask for help. Talk about it. Talk about the way you feel, how powerless you are, how bad you feel, how you don’t want this baby, how this is not the way you had things planned. Talk it out! Don’t be afraid to ask for help- do yourself and your baby a favor- ask for help. 

Good luck ladies, it’s not easy, it’s extremely hard but you can do it and most important; you are not alone.