2-3 month update

Hello readers!

I would say I'm sorry for not blogging lately, but I'm not. I've been busy spending as much time as I can with my sweet baby girl since I've gone back to work. (Sorry I'm not sorry.)

Some highlights: 

-Harper smiles ALL the time now! She's just starting to laugh and coo as well.

-She has moved up to size 1 diapers. We are still buying Pampers Sensitive and I still love them.

-She is wearing size 0-3 months, but she can already fit into size 3-6 months, and shockingly 6-9 months. She is so long!

-She's getting better at self soothing. Sort of. I can at least put her in her rock n' play for 20 or 30 minutes and get some things done around the house whereas before I couldn't put her down without her screaming and crying instantly.

-I joined Amazon Mom. More on that later.

-She does a fantastic job of holding her head up unassisted! We're still working on tummy time. (I probably don't give it to her as often as I should.)

-She sleeps in the Pack N' Play in our room without the bassinet insert. We use her noisemaker giraffe on the ocean setting and I think it really does help her stay asleep longer.

-She eats 4-5 ounces per feeding about every 3 hours. Occasionally she'll take six ounces.

-At night she goes to bed around 10 or 11 and only wakes up once for a feeding. Occasionally she won't wake up until it's time for us to get up!

-She can roll to one side on her own.

-She really doesn't care for pacifiers, so I won't have to worry about weaning her off of them later.

-Heyward seems to really like her now! I caught him licking her head the other day - what a sweet big brother.

-She really enjoys exploring bright lights and objects on her activity mat. Oh, and she loves staring at ceiling fans.

-She LOVES bath time, thank goodness!

-Her list of nicknames are Baby Bear, Harper Bear, Little Bear, Little, Sweet Bear, Pretty Girl, and Honey Bun.

-I stopped breastfeeding and pumping three days ago. My supply was so low after returning to work that I just weaned her off. I truly enjoyed the breastfeeding experience, but formula is so much more convenient for us at this stage.

-We have switched to Enfamil newborn, Enfamil gentlease, and Gerber soothe blends. We buy both the powder based and ready-to-eat bottles. I highly recommend each of them and definitely prefer them over Similac. They don't make her gassy and they blend into water better than Similac does.

-She is an early teether! I've stocked up on baby Orajel, baby Tylenol, and I bought her a Tommee Tippee chewther. She drools like crazy so I'm having her wear a bib a lot more lately.

-She has much shorter crying spells! It used to take a while to soothe her, but now she calms down relatively quickly. Her night time crying spells have reduced from 4-5 hours to only 1 or 2. Progress!

-I realize I'm bragging now, but my baby is just BEAUTIFUL. Many people have stopped us in public to compliment how cute and pretty she is - makes me feel great!

-As of this past weekend I can fit back into my pre-pregnancy jeans! 

Okay! So at her two month check up (which was two weeks late due to a scheduling error at the pediatrician's office) she is 25 inches long (off the charts percentile wise) and 12 pounds exactly (75th percentile.)

I joined Amazon Mom! It's basically Amazon Prime. You get 2-day free shipping, and great deals on all kinds of baby items. Diaper shopping is wonderful. You can't beat $46 for a box of 192 diapers. You just can't! I highly recommend moms to join. It's $80/year but well worth it.

So this next topic is pretty personal. I went back and forth as to whether or not to include it on this blog. I decided that it's too important to not share - after all, sharing my experience could help a new mom out.

For a while after Harper's birth I found myself on a roller coaster of emotions, which is pretty normal. The first 3-4 weeks I cried at EVERYTHING. I was sleep-deprived too, which did not help things at all. I was anxious every time she woke up. I remember feeling panicked and thinking, "What will I do this time when she cries? What if it doesn't work? What am I doing wrong?" I was very short with Taylor. I'd pick fights with him. I'd fly off the handle at the smallest things. I was exasperated every time the baby cried. I even punched the oven one time during an argument (that I started.) In general, I just felt really really angry and short-tempered all the time. And then I'd feel really guilty about my behavior. It wasn't until Taylor literally said to me "You have turned into such a mean person." that I realized how bad it had gotten, and it just seemed to get worse once I returned to work. I shared some of that with a friend who suggested I may have post-partum depression. Now, THAT had never entered my mind before. At first I thought, "No way. I'm not sad, I'm not crying all the time anymore, and I don't want to hurt myself or the baby." But she told me her symptoms were exactly the same. I went ahead and scheduled an appointment with my doctor a week later. Sure enough, after all of the questions she went through she told me I have post-partum depression. She prescribed me 50 mg of Zoloft to take daily. It takes about two weeks to go into effect, but I noticed a difference less than a week in. I am so much calmer and happier. I don't get anxious or as frustrated when she cries anymore. I definitely don't feel angry and mean anymore. I can actually enjoy being a mother now! I am so grateful to my friend for talking to me about it and sharing her experience with me, otherwise, it may have taken a lot longer to figure out and correct. 

Since I did not update last month I have two pictures to include this time!

Age: Three months

Pre-pregnancy weight: 141 pounds

Heaviest weight: 150 pounds at 39 weeks

Current weight: 123 pounds

Maternity clothes or regular clothes: I can fit into my pre-pregnancy jeans!

Stretch marks: Still visible.

Diet: Nothing notable. I'm trying to make healthier choices. Trying.

Favorite Milestone so far: Listening to Harper coo and watching her smile.

Moody or not moody? Much better now with Zoloft.

Looking forward to: My birthday and visiting my BFF in Savannah with Harper.

 Easter 2013

 Harper and cousin Hope