An Honest Account of Week 1

This was the most stressful week of my life. Both my mother and mother-in-law came down ill and so neither was able to come out and help the first week. Rob (the wonderful husband he is) stepped up and took over the role of mother and mother-in-law and took care of meals, cleaning, running errands, late nights holding our fussy son and emotionally supporting his tired wife. I was so tired physically and mentally that at one point I seemed to hear Asher crying whenever I laid down, but when I got up to check on him he would often be asleep. Rob slept next to Asher's crib for several hours a couple of nights so that I could sleep, knowing that if Asher cried Rob would be there to take care of him. Asher was literally crying every time he was awake unless he had a pacifier in his mouth. I sensed it was because something was wrong but couldn't figure out what it was.

At Asher's 3 day follow-up appointment on Tuesday with the doctor we found out that Asher had lost over a pound in three days (down from 7 lb. 11 oz. to 6 lb. 10 oz.). Although the doctor did not seem concerned since "all babies loose weight", the amount lost seemed abnormally large to us. What further worried us was that he was was not likely to start putting on weight since he slept through his feeding times no matter what I tried. On Thursday, two days later, Rob and I went to a lactation consultant, the greatest thing we could have done. We found out that he was crying because he was extremely hungry but then when he tried to eat he didn't have the strength to suck and so my milk did not come in so he was left hungry. We were instructed to wake and feed him every three hours, supplement feedings with formula (which we had not even thought to consider), use a pump so that my milk came in, and were told not to give him a pacifier until he gained back his birth weight. I realize that many parents have a baby who feeds every two hours, but the three hour schedule (not to mention the mental and physical difficulties of breastfeeding) was tough for me. Feeding , supplementing and pumping and changing diapers took an hour and 20 minutes at the least (with Rob's helping with the bottle supplement), but it was worth it. For the next three days Asher ate and slept, no crying and no pacifier needed. When he was weighed one week later he had put on one pound and 9 ounces, for a total weight of 8 pounds 3 ounces.

In addition to baby activities, by the end of the week we had run out of leftovers. I had planned meals based on additional help in the house but neither Rob nor I had enough time or energy to cook. After a friend called to find out how we were doing, two meals were brought over and on subsequent nights several other friends were kind enough to also bring dinners, which was a physical and emotional lifesaver for two exhausted new parents. Thank you so much!

As the pictures show though, our little boy is growing and "filling out".

On a more funny note, Rob and I were initated as parents while changing Asher's first diaper at home. The hospital did not want to release Asher until he had urinated after his circumcision, to make sure that everythingthing was still functioning properly. Asher went a little so we were allowed to take him home. Little did we know that he was saving everything for us. Rob and I were changing his diaper together when I felt a splat on the side of the face and hair, saw a stream across the furniture and wall, and heard Rob say that Asher had "got" him as well. All I could do is laugh at the memory that had just been created.

PS. It's amazing how time tends to smooth memories. Even as I write this post a month later I am thinking to myself that the first week was not as bad as I make it sound. Rob and I were able to start working on our new parenting skills and communication immediately. Also, I know that life without parental help is possible because we made in through week 1.