It's been quite a week! We came home from the hospital on Saturday. My parents came back to town that morning and stayed with us until Monday night. What a blessing that was! I hadn't thought I'd need much help with the three girls but I couldn't have planned on my own health taking a lot longer to bounce back to normal. They just so happened to have a three day weekend, so once again, God's hand was evident in how it all worked out.
The girls' adjustment has been fairly typical. Josie, the oldest who has gone through this once before when she was just a baby herself at sixteen months, is in love with Amelia. She wants to kiss her all the time and is constantly bringing her things (stuffed animals, blankets, pacifiers, other random toys). She often will hold her (with our help) which means we talk about the "baby rules" quite often since I could totally see her trying to hold her on her own. She is eager to help with anything related to Amelia, so often times she is helping pick out her clothes, throwing diapers away, grabbing various baby things like burp cloths or shoes, and just generally being attentive to what she is doing. I love this part! Watching that relationship begin between these two has been just a blessing to me. Having sisters is a gift to them, not just to us!
On the flip side, there is definitely a struggle with behavior and adjustment to a new family dynamic with Josie-girl. She has always been a button pusher when she's feeling put out, and there is no exception here. We are staying consistent with our parenting and already it's gotten better. She's pretty obvious when she needs some one-on-one time, so hopefully we don't end up lacking in that area at any time, either. She takes her role as the oldest sister very seriously and has really upped the bossyness with Audrey. Thankfully, Audrey doesn't seem too bothered by it and this behavior has even lessened a bit in the last few days.
Audrey, on the other hand, hardly seems affected. She is still happy to play by herself when I'm busy with Amelia, happy to play with Josie when given the chance, and happy to ask for help if she needs it. Honestly, I haven't noticed any major changes in her yet. I wouldn't be surprised if this changes, but as of now it isn't noticeable. She also is interested in what Amelia is doing, but it's in a less obvious way and doesn't last nearly as long (typical two year old behavior, jumping from one thing to the next quickly). She often asks questions that point out her noticing changes, like "Is Amelia wearing new jammas? Is Amelia eating from your tummy? Does Amelia like sleeping?" So far, there are no signs of aggression or frustration, which has made this first week a lot easier.
My recovery is still slooooowwwww. I am physically pretty tired and feel like I'm weighted down all over my arms and legs. The normal part of recovery after birth has been better since I lost most of it right away (silver lining, friends!), but now that my milk is in and the soreness from that has definitely set in, I'm a hot mess most of the time. I know it is short lived so I'm not dwelling on it too much, but I did want to note it for future reference.
The first few days at home with Amelia consisted with me feeding her almost nonstop and holding her if she wasn't eating. She would fuss when anyone else held her and was always eating her hands and smacking her lips if she wasn't feeding. She would not sleep unless she was being held so I pretty much didn't sleep at all at night. It was a bit exhausting. Then, my milk came in, and just like I hoped, she switched over to a happy, full bellied baby. Now she doesn't mind being held by anybody else and she isn't eating all the time, instead stretching it out to the normal 2-3 hour increments that are recommended. She has a lot of solid wake time, which I feel like we are getting earlier than normal because of how overdue she was. Her facial expressions are hilarious and we all enjoy those moments when we get to connect with her by making eye contact. I did buy a pacifier to try at night, but since she's going to bed with a full belly she hasn't needed it.
We are so blessed to have friends bringing us meals for the next few weeks. It makes life so much easier with all of these changes! I cannot stress enough to those who have friends having babies soon - bring them a meal! It is the best gift you can give.
We are staying at home for the next few days but will hopefully be resuming regular life activities soon. I am not scared to be out and about with all three girls by myself, but I do want to feel back to my old self or better beforehand. It's been great to be able to bend over, sit down and get up without struggle, and have a bit more energy now that I'm not pregnant. Oh yeah, and enjoying that baby on the outside has been pretty great too.
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