really i'm just proud of myself for making it through my first two days on my own with two (two!) kids without crying. except in the morning when matt left for work. that was hard. i loved having him home with us.
i had truly envisioned capturing pictures of henry, bea and myself in tears to post here, but that never happened much
to my surprise!
the first day (monday) bea slept pretty much all day. i think that was her gift to me and to henry. it helped me transition to
matt going back to work and gave henry and i some playtime together. the second day, was almost a repeat of the first but
she was awake quite a bit more.
bea is doing great and so is henry. she is a great sleeper and eater. she has already surpassed her birth weight and is only waking once in the night to eat (i hope that continues). she smiles a lot (i don't care if anyone thinks its gas, i believe differently) and is holding up against her brother well (she gets bounced quite a bit).
henry has adjusted well to bea's permanence. the first day home was a little rough, but he took it out on matt & i. since then he's been a normal toddler. he loves on his sister often, he likes to nuzzle her head, just like mama does. and he has already learned that bea is his 'out' when trying to get out of trouble. he does a fake cry saying "i see bea, i see bea". i have to say it usually works. i am so proud of my boy for the way he has welcomed his sister into our family, he acts as though she has been here with us his whole life. it has really just amazed me. he brings her blankets, shares his 'trog' with her, and entertains us endlessly. i cannot wait to see them grow together. as long as it's not too quickly.
i'm doing pretty well myself. two days in a row now with no nap, so i guess my energy level is returning. and physically i'm pretty good, but i'm having issues with my left side, the same side that bothered me most of the pregnancy. oh, and the sudden surges of hormones gets to me some nights. like last night. henry was testing us at the dinner table and i just couldn't take it so i told him he had to leave the table and go to bed. no stories, no bath, no nothing. (i actually did this twice, because the first time i gave in to him and let him have another (failed) try at the table). so off he went. he was a little upset, but he was really tired. i of course felt guilty the rest of the evening for sending him to bed in such a negative way and wanted desperately to go in there, wake him up and hug him and tell him i loved him and that he could come to our bed.
ah, our bed. before bea, we joked about getting a king size bed so it could accommodate all 4 of us. henry ends up in our bed at some point almost every night or morning, so we got a co-sleeper from craigslist for bea to sleep in. so far henry has slept in the co-sleeper more than bea has and i am amazed at how big our bed can feel with all of us snuggled in there. it's been a perfect fit since the evenings are cooling off here.
honestly, before henry was born i never would have thought i would have encouraged the family bed thing, but it is one of those things that i love so much right now and couldn't care less what anyone else thinks about it (i know several people who think i am crazy for allowing it, and that's okay).
well, i'm rambling so that's enough for now. thanks again to everyone for the kind words and thoughts. this blogging family is such a positive thing for me and i appreciate all of you!
Yay for you and yay for Henry! I was meaning to ask you how the hormone surge was treating you -- I was a complete and total sobbing wreck both times. I'm glad you are all making the adjustments as well as can be expected! I hate those guilty times when you've been too sharp, too short-tempered. I try hard to believe that it just shows we are all human and I try hard to apologize and explain in the morning. (As much as I would like to wake them up and tell them right away!)
ReplyDeleteWe have three children (7, 5, 2) and sometime through the night they all come, and are welcome!! Every one of our babies slept with us from birth. I totally understand. Good for you for standing up!!! Beautiful pictures!!!
ReplyDeleteI am so inspired by you - you really are taking this in stride and seem very open to every aspect. Your babes are lucky.
ReplyDeleteWe totally have the family bed, and always have. The most expensive piece of furniture in the house is our king bed, and worth every penny every night when I can hear all my loved ones breathing as I drift off (that included the animals, too...)
i love knowing we are not alone on the family bed issue!
ReplyDeleteamy, ours includes a 65 lb dog sometimes, too. although she's getting on in her years & its hard for her to get into the bed, she seems to make it just fine on the colder nights.
i am with you on so many of your emotions rgarding this new adjustment. i remember it all so well. yu are adjusting beautifully, and the kids sound like they were made for sibling life. that pic of henry & bea in bed...oooh, it makes my heart full.
ReplyDeleteand we, too, have the family bed. it used to be all four of us at once, but now it is generally two at a time...but hardly ever just me & tony. putting angus into a twin bed makes it so that we have an extra spot for when things get too crowded. :) i will snatch up a small warm body and head in there for some room to stretch. but i still need a little one beside me in oreder to sleep really well.
pooh on people who want to tell you not to co-sleep. when i was expecting my first son a great friend gave me a book that talked about how children were raised in different cultures around the world - and there was a *lot* in there about babies and small children sleeping with their parents. it's worked for people all over the world since the beginning of time - because .. it really works! :^)
ReplyDeletethat is one *beautiful* baby, btw. :^)
holly, i can't wait for henry to move up to the big bed so i can lie with him and read to him in his bed! we're considering giving that a go after the holidays. you should have seen me and big preg-o belly trying to fit in his toddler bed with him!
ReplyDeleteso, still contemplating a #3? ; )
Lori-
ReplyDeletethanks for leaving a comment! that is a great friend who gave you that book. when i was pregnant with henry people gave me the opposite advise "you'll never get him to sleep in his own bed" kind of thing.
we broke lots of 'rules' and did what worked for us and for henry and don't regret any of it.