I can't believe Caleb has already been a part of our family for a whole month it went by really fast. I didn't get to nurse Madison because she went to the nicu because her breathing was bad. So I have been pretty determined to nurse this baby the right way. However he was ripping my nipples apart so when he was 6 days old I went to a free clinic that Pomona valley hospital puts on for nursing mothers and Caleb had lost a 1/2 lb which is a lot but not uncommon so they helped me with his latch and then asked me to bring him back in 2 days so they could check his weight. When I took him back he had not gained any weight (he should have gained at least 2 oz in 2 days) and he had lost about 2 more ounces. So they told me I had a couple of options breast feed him then pump and bottle feed him extra, give up and feed him formula, or exclusively pump and bottle feed him only breast milk. I went home in tears and felt defeated. I felt like a failure and if anyone knows anything about me anything but perfect is considered a failure in my eyes. So I tried the breast feeding and the pumping and reseeding but holy cow this took almost an hour each time he would eat! This was stressing the while family out. Soon order to heal my boobs and give us all a little sanity back I started alternating pumping and bottle feeding breast milk. This seemed to work better. I went back after 5 days to the clinic and Caleb had gained a little weight! I felt like this could work until I could go back to fully breast feeding. We took Caleb Toni's pediatrician at 2 1/2 weeks and his weight was increasing but it was slow so they asked us to bring him back in 7 days. By the time we had took him back 7 days later I was exclusively pumping and Caleb was gaining weight fast. At this point I decided I would pump as much breast milk as possible for as long as I could so I went the next day and purchased a very sturdy pump that could sustain the constant pumping and a good milk supply. By the end of the month this little man was thriving.
Things I want to remember about this month:
Caleb was born at 7lbs 7 oz
At 6 days old he weighed 6lbs 15 oz
At 8 days old he weighed 6lbs 13 oz
At at 17 day old he weighed 7lbs 1 oz
At 24 days old he weighed 7 lbs 9 oz
He loved to sleep he would gladly sleep 4-5 hour stretches and I quickly learned i needed to wake him up every 3 hours and make him eat.
Sleep deprivation really messes with your patience
We had tons of help this time around (with Madison we got no help from friends and little help from family)
I am soooo in love with this little boy
His schedule is there is no schedule he's awake randomly and for very short periods of time and he is literally on an eat then sleep schedule
Nursing sucks and at first it takes a very long time and your nipples are ripped up but it gets better after the first 3 weeks
Caleb went to church for the first time at 17 days old and it was a rough 3 hours
Skills he gained this month:
he already has started lifting his head momentarily
his little hands are clenched in little fists all the time
when he's awake he looks at you when you talk
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