Baby Growth Spurts - Insatiably Normal

When they are this small, babies know little more than “feed me”, “change me” and “hold me” … each of which accompanied by a slightly modified version of their sole capacity for communication, the big cry.

Once parents get the knack, as we now have, for recognizing which cry is which, it becomes instantly obvious when she’s just looking for attention or when she is genuinely starving for milk. What a surprise for us when regular feedings wouldn’t satiate her at around 2 and a half to 3 weeks old; she just could not get enough nourishment and we were starting to get very concerned.

That only lasted a short while however until we started researching the whole notion of growth spurts, which according to many sources are completely normal instances during a baby’s development where they suddenly become insatiably hungry for a day or more in a row. These spurts can happen anytime but seem most common around 2 or 3 weeks, and again at 1 and a half, 3 and 6 months … who knew!

For father’s like myself, volunteering to bottle feed to help relieve the strain on mom can only help so much since we are trying as much as possible to provide a steady stream of natural breast milk … but when the growth spurt hits and no amount of breastfeeding or pumping can seem to keep up, the occasional bottle of formula is the next best way to go.

Kudos to you if you are a new parent who love’s their child to death but remains open-minded to effective solutions, and no doubt you’ll unwittingly come across several breast-feeding nazis out there as we like to call them … people, professional or otherwise, who simply scowl at you at the mere suggestion of formula. Well they can preach all they want, I for one was not breast fed at all and I know dozens of close friends who I regard with the highest respect for their contributions to society and overall stalwart integrity … and they were on the bottle right from the start too.

If your baby is having a growth spurt and Mama is ripping her hair out trying to keep up … do yourself a great big favour, boil the water, break out the similac, and give that poor woman a break … she definitely deserves it and your baby will turn out just fine thank you very much.

Safety First Infant Car Seat

Before checking out of the hospital, the nursing staff’s parting duty to us was to carefully inspect our ability to secure Cassidy in her fancy Safety First Car Seat. It was a complicated adjustment at first to get things just right as we were still under the impression that babies are fragile … HAH!

Despite their resilience nothing makes us feel calmer than knowing she is safely strapped into her rear-facing car seat when we go out to run errands or just go for a drive to try putting her to sleep for a little while. Either way, the combo system we have is awesome and we use it every day religiously.

The rear-facing seat attaches to a base that is permanently hooked up in the backseat behind me on the driver’s side. A handy mirror that was gifted to us by a close friend is perfect for keeping an eye on her in the rear view mirror too which is very reassuring, especially in the first couple weeks when she had very little neck strength and we could see right away if she was bobbing around or in any danger from bumps in the road.

The detachable seat is very sturdy and fits snuggly into an equally handy attachment that places her on the accompanying stroller for going to the mall or walking around town for a comfortable stroll. This is definitely a must-have for any new parents in our opinion.

Baby Hat Fun In The Sun

Anytime we go outside, we are constantly vigilant to turn Cassidy’s head and face away from any direct sunlight.

While we have a great collection of sun hats for her baby head, we haven’t yet had the opportunity to don many of them as Cassidy seems very agitated and uncomfortable when we try to put them on her.

Right after birth Cassidy had a layer of dry skin that looked very much like she had suffered a mild sunburn all over her body … which was impossible since she hadn’t even left the hospital let alone gotten any direct sun light. This dry skin eventually disappeared with subsequent bathings and applications of moisturizing lotion. The dry skin on her head however has not yet completely disappeard, and even after several weeks we are constantly attending to what seems to be a dry scalp.

We have been reassured that it is completely normal but nonetheless we keep trying to protect her head even further by trying on her collection of funky head gear … hopefully one day she’ll enjoy wearing them. If she looks half as good as her mom does in hats, we’re a lucky family indeed.

Protect Your Nipples!

Babies are so damn cute, but feeding them can tax a mother’s patience, especially when nipples become sore or even worse if they become cracked and dry.

Most pharmacies and baby supply outlets carry a variety of nipple protectors to help ease the shock when your baby latches on … it won’t stop the pain but it will significantly reduce the constant abuse nipples take when babies who have little consideration for anything but their own hunger get down to the often painful business of feeding on mama’s milk.

My respect for Liz grows exponentially when I see her grimace in pain as Cassidy latches on, but Mom continues to offer calming and reassuring messages in a soft and warm voice throughout the obviously uncomfortable experience of breastfeeding our seemingly insatiably hungry daughter.

Aaah breastfeeding.

Cassidy in her Airflow Sleep Positioner

We weren’t sure at first if we would use it at all but we have come to rely on our Learning Curve Airflow Sleep Positioner. Not that she can actually turn herself over or anything yet, but it does give us peace of mind to know that she’s not wiggling around too much or tugging randomly on blankets and such that might obstruct her breathing.

We us it in her basinette, on the couch sometimes or even on our bed when we’re cleaning up or getting ready in the morning. Pretty handy and it adjusts as she grows so it doesn’t become uncomfortable for her.

The only time it’s not handy for us is when she’s very fidgetty since she can sometimes get an arm stuck underneath her from flailing around too much, which might not happen if she wasn’t in the positioner and could simply wiggle herself free. But when she’s like that we can’t leave her unattended for too long anyway as it’s often a sign that she needs to be fed or changed or just given more attention.

Thumbs up for sleep positioners I say, you could easily live without one but since we have it, it’s in regular use at our house and anywhere else on the go.

Cutest Habs Fans Ever!

Whether or not the Montreal Canadiens can actually win the Stanley Cup this year, I can say without hesitation that we’re the big winners at our place, what with the the two cutest habs fans ever living under one roof!

Big surprise for the Canadiens this playoff season as we watch Subban and Halak turning the Habs 2010 battle for the cup into an actual hope-filled run for Lord Stanley’s prize but we’re just happy to watch and cheer them on regardless of the outcome; with intermissions for diaper changes and bath-time life couldn’t be better :)

Cassidy May is Born

Born on May 4th, 2010 at 6 pounds 11 ounces, Cassidy May Anderson Thibault has finally joined us and is about as beautiful as can be.

Mom is an absolute pro and spent half an hour and 4 pushes getting the little tyke out … you’d never know it was the first time.

We’re so lucky and elated to see our beautiful daughter for the first time and are filled with wonder at what’s to come for her, what will she be, how will she be inspired … what a glorious mystery!

Happy Birthday Cassidy May!

Baby Toes ... how cute are they c'mon!

They gotta be the absolute cutest things in the world … c’mon seriously!

What a pleasure to have made it so far without any emergencies, but what a strain on Liz to be so uncomfortable all the time.

Cassidy is taking up about as much room as she can now and just getting an hour’s sleep can be a huge challenge.

We’re only weeks away now and she is handling it all so well but I honestly cannot wait till our little peanut is out and about so Liz can finally feel somewhat normal again.

Cassidy's Baby Pool - courtesy of Uncle P

Becoming a parent is a wild adventure to be sure and it is so comforting when good friends come together to help the process be even more enjoyable …  every little bit counts and those that have already been through the experience themselves are often very forthcoming with advice and ideas.

When we woke up this morning to find that someone had started a baby pool for Cassidy on Facebook, we were so pleased … what a wonderful surprise, thanks Uncle P!

Can you feel the love?!