Today Izzie B is exactly one week old and today was her due date. It's been a crazy week and I won't pretend like it was a walk in the park. We weren't expecting to have her until mid-week, so Andy had planned on working Monday and Tuesday. He was able to work out a deal to work at home, but on Wednesday had to go into the office for a full day. That day was of course the day Brady decided to have a bunch of meltdowns. I heard more screaming and crying from him that day than the last six months combined. Thursday was supposed to be Andy's official first day "on vacation," and by 8AM work was calling him saying they needed him to do work. He was sitting on his work computer, Izzie was crying, Brady was trying to get his attention, and honestly, I was crying too because I was just completely frustrated with the situation. Thankfully, yesterday was completely work free. He works from home Monday, then is "on vacation" Tuesday through Friday this coming week.
Brady has been great with Izzie. He wants to be involved in every diaper change, lets us know when she's upset, and kisses her head. While Andy was on the phone doing work and she was screaming for a diaper change, Brady got all of the diaper stuff ready and then came over to me and physically tried to take her from me to change her (I was having some issues, so not able to move around a lot and was pretty reliant on Andy for diaper changes). His tantrums have been about him wanting us to do something for him when we are physically unable to, like when I'm nursing, etc. My mom has been here to help out and would offer to do the things he wanted, but he would scream that he wanted mommy. He's such a daddy's boy that hearing him scream for me broke my heart and I was almost in tears myself.
She's an amazing sleeper and eater. She had a really rough first night home (which Brady did too when he was first home) and there was a lot of screaming because she didn't want to be in her bed. The only thing that made her happy was being in the bed with us. We know it's a controversial topic and something we've only done a handful of times with Brady. I have a large pregnancy pillow that surrounds me on both sides, so I've been nursing her on my side and then propping my arm on the pillow, so she's above me and I can't move with the pillow around me anyway. She's a very still sleeper and only gets up once or twice a night to eat. I've been in a lot of pain and even moving from side to side in bed has been excruciating. It's gotten a lot better in the past two days, so last night I was able to get up after her feeding and put her in the pack n play. She slept for two hours on her own in the pack n play! It's definitely progress.
She hardly ever cries and if she does its for a reason. The biggest reason for crying is having her clothes or diaper changed. She HATES to be naked, which Andy says he can live with ;) We were at the doctor's office and he was examining her in her diaper and we told him she hates to be naked. He covered her up with a blanket and she calmed down immediately. Like most babies, she doesn't like to have a dirty diaper and some times we change her diaper and as soon as her clothes are back on, she needs changed again. She's been keeping us on our toes.
When it comes to eating, she's a champ. She latched right after birth in the hospital. You don't get breastmilk for a few days after birth, so they aren't really getting anything, but them latching and attempting to nurse helps bring the supply in. Brady would latch for five seconds, realize he wasn't getting anything, then pull away. I had to pump to help increase my supply, and we ended up giving him a bottle of formula every other feeding, alternating with breastfeeding. Izzie didn't get a bottle for a few days and we give it to her when she's had a full breastfeeding, but still seems hungry. She's had maybe 6-7 bottles in the last week.
We've been at the doctors a few times this week. Babies often lose 10% of their birth weight in the hospital. Izzie was down to 7lbs 8oz (she was born at 7lbs 14oz) when we left the hospital, which was very close to 10% lost. We had a doctor's appointment on Tuesday when she was three days old and she was down to 7lbs 6oz. She also had a touch of jaundice, so we were sent to the hospital lab to get her bilirubin levels checked. Above normal is 21 and she was at a 12.1. We went back on Thursday for a weight check and to reevaluate the jaundice. She was back up to 7lbs 8oz (still not at birth weight) and they decided she needed to have the levels rechecked again. It was at a 13, so not serious enough to take any other measures than keep feeding her so she can expel the bilirubin. Breastfed babies can have low levels of jaundice for months after birth. We were concerned going in that day because her umbilical cord stump was looking like it was coming off early and we were noticing some puss underneath. We covered it with a bandaid so the onesie wouldn't rub it off before we got to the doctor. It was hanging by a thread when we got there and the doctor snipped the thread with sterile surgical scissors and said to let it heal naturally. Most babies lose the stump weeks after birth (Brady was three weeks old when he lost his).
My sleeping babies. We know Izzie looks more like Andy and Brady looks more like me, but we're trying to see if they look alike at all. We're excited to see what color her eyes will be and if they'll look alike when she fills out a bit.
I said earlier that Brady has been great with Izzie and you can see how happy he is to be holding his sister. Andy had so many nicknames for Brady and was worried he wouldn't come up with one for Izzie. The one he has for her right now is Sissy B.
Hanging with little sister in his bed.
Yesterday, my friend Dunny came into town to visit for the weekend. She will be one of Izzie's godmothers when she's baptized in the spring or summer. Brady was so excited for her to come that he didn't go down for a nap until 3:30PM (he normally goes down around 1:30PM). There was so much going on that he didn't end up in bed until 11PM (he normally goes down around 9:30PM). We had him in the nursery so Dunny could have his bed and that must have disrupted his routine enough that he got up three times during the night (thankfully my mom is on Brady duty at night/morning). He was up for the day before 7AM (he's usually up between 8AM and 9AM). By 8AM we could hear him having meltdowns downstairs. He was already exhausted by 10AM but refused to take an early nap.
Today, we were expecting Andy's dad and older brother, Chris, for a day visit. They were expected to arrive at noon and we figured Brady would be even more of a terror by then. Fortunately, he was happy to see his Pap, so he was good for a few more hours. By the time they left at 3PM, he was definitely ready for bed. It was very nice to have them come all this way (a 4.5 hour drive) for a quick visit. They brought food for our fridge and gifts of clothes for Izzie B. Buks sent with them a monogrammed sterling silver Noah's arc piggy bank, with her birth date engraved as well. We are blessed to have such a generous family.
Pap and Uncle Chris with Izzie B.
Uncle Chris with Izzie B. He held her for over an hour while she slept.
Uncle Chris with both his niece and nephew.
Three generations of Traps, with Izzie B being the only girl.
Our first official family portrait as a family of four.
I decided to do a few comparison shots of when Nana and Pap met their grandkids. I thought that even though three years have gone by, neither of them have changed much.
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