Check In | 12 Weeks
Felix is 12 weeks already. My goodness time flies when you're looking after an infant. It seems like just yesterday I was anxiously awaiting labor pains and for my sweet little man to grace the world... and now here we are -- 12 weeks old and I have no idea where the time has gone.
I am desperately trying to soak in every moment with my little guy.
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These past 12 weeks have been about learning.
I've always loved kids, so if I wasn't babysitting my siblings, I was volunteering at their elementary school or in the church preschool room. Before I had Felix, I was even teaching a classroom of 3rd and 4th grade boys for our church's AWANA program -- I could never get enough of little ones and was always dreaming of having my own.
When Felix was born, I was pretty confident with the idea of becoming a mom and so when the journey began, I was surprised to learn that even with my lifetime experience of being around children, I knew very little.
No one tells you that a baby who wants to consistently nurse is not always doing it out of hunger, but sometimes just for comfort. No one tells you that breastfed babies can go 10 or more days without pooping without it being worrisome and no one tells you how much breastfeeding can hurt -- you have to learn these things on your own.
At the beginning of Felix's life, everyone wanted to see and hold him which would sometimes frustrate me. When you have your baby, all you want to do is spend time looking at that precious babe, take care of their needs and then go to sleep because you're exhausted. People would come over and would wake him up just because they wanted to hold him. After they left, I had to spend hours with a restless overstimulated baby who couldn't fall back asleep.
Another thing that would make me lose it is when people would kiss his cheeks. I spent the first 2 months of his life at home just so he wouldn't get sick and then people waltzed in from the outside world, where germs roamed free, only to leave a slobbery one on my helpless little one's face. It sounds dramatic, but it really bothered me because I was trying so hard to keep a contained sterile environment. It took me a long time to muster up the courage to tell people, "no, please don't touch."
Lesson 1:
it's okay to tell people that they cannot touch your child.
Another thing that happened was that I was also overwhelmed by the advice everyone was giving me on how to take care of a newborn -- because more often than not, it was conflicting information.
I know everyone meant well, but part of me wanted to learn on my own.
There was a lot of pressure from people to breastfeed. Like I mentioned in a previous post, it took a long time for my milk to come in and while I was waiting, people kept asking how much I had pumped in the morning or if I had breastfed that day. Others, when they heard I was supplementing with formula would scold me and tell me to stop. There was a lot of pressure, from everyone, but at the end of the day, I knew I was trying my best and that I was doing what was best for my baby. The milk eventually came in and then everyone laid back and stopped asking about my milk supply -- thank goodness.
Lesson 2:
do what you think is best for your baby, not what people are telling you to do.
Being a new mom is hard especially when everyone around you has opinions.
I had to listen to their advice, but I didn't always have to follow it.
I found myself having this maternal instinct that I didn't have before. I'll be in the kitchen and then I'll have a sudden urge to go check on the baby, and when I go, there he is, about ready to start crying.
It is amazing how in tune mother and baby become.
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But even though these past 12 weeks have been full of ups and downs, they have also been amazing.
Felix is growing so fast. He loves talking to mom and dad, and has recently started giggling. He adores people and always wants to be around someone. He's just the most smiliest content baby and I absolutely adore that little man.
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Here are some of my favorite pictures from these last 12 weeks:
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