The Shower

The luxury of a shower. For years now I have never understood when people talked about how once you have children having a shower is nearly impossible and becomes a luxury. Norm and I would often talk about how we just didn't get it. Put the kid down and go take a shower. What's the big deal?

We're assholes.

With Norm being back at work this week I have realized what everyone has been taking about. Lauren is very fussy during the day and seems to do nothing but eat and scream. There is rarely a moment when I'm not holding, rocking, shushing, changing or feeding her. Showers are a thing of the past. One day when she did drift off to sleep, I quickly had to decide what I wanted more - a shower or breakfast. The shower won, but it was certainly not the long leisurely shower I once knew.

Pushing through

Okay, this is not the most flattering photo of me, but it might just be the only one of Lauren and I to date. I'm not looking so hot in general and go running when cameras come out, but at least she is not screaming in it.

Since Lauren arrived, the blog has suffered. I wonder why that is? Oh wait, I think it's because it is taking two grown, fairly capable, and intelligent people, 24 hours a day and four hands to care for this screaming nearly 3 week old squawk box. Squawkey as I lovingly refer to her.

We were on a positive role, with Squawkey feeding like clockwork every 3 hours and going back to sleep at night without an issue. However, that seems to be changing. Last night she woke up at 3:30 a.m. and screamed until noon.

She broke her parents.

Luckily we cracked at different times, so at 5:30 a.m. when I had all I could take, Norm stepped in, then later on when his eyes were showing signs of insanity, I took over for a bit. In the end I broke down and gave her some gripe water and she almost immediately conked out and slept for a couple of hours.

The dad is going back to work on Monday and this mom is scared! He seems to have more patience with her and can calm her when I just don't know what else to do. How am I going to do it alone?

Long days, long nights

So we're on day 11 of The Life of Lauren and our lives have definitely changed. All those people who warned us were not kidding when they said it was tiring. I am trying to sleep when she sleeps, but honestly how do you ever get anything done?

The hardest part of the day is 10 p.m. - 12 a.m. we just can't seem to get her to settle down at that time. Between gas, hiccups, intense hunger and poo explosions, that time of the day is very difficult and frustrating. Once she is asleep, the rest of the night seems to go fairly smoothly with her waking up at regular three hour intervals to eat, but it's getting her to sleep initially that is difficult.

I am still having some issues with my incision - I wont get into the details here - but that is weighing heavily on my mind. I am very much ready for the "my body is a science experiment" to be over. I look forward to the day when my boobs, crotch and milk supply are no longer the topic of every conversation.

I should also mention before I end this post, that the best part of the day is right after she eats and she drifts in and out of sleep. She makes the cutest facial expressions - she even smiles at me - or it could just be gas, but whatever it is, it's adorable!

She's here!

Lauren Molly Young was born on Monday September 27, 2010 at 3:55 p.m. weighing in at 6lbs 14ozs.

I have no desire to re-live my labour experience at this time so perhaps I'll save that for another post. I also warn you that what you are about to read will not be a literary masterpiece as I am too tired to put a whole lot of thought into my sentence structure or grammar.

We were able to leave the hospital on Thursday and have now spent four nights at home. I am counting the time in nights because they seem to be the hardest to get through. Everything seems harder at night. Crying is louder, hiccups seem more severe, feeding is more difficult and solutions to problems are harder to recognize and administer. The same things could happen in the day and they seem so much easier to deal with.

Norm and I have been working very well as a team. He is the Baby Whisperer when it comes to burping and getting her to sleep,while, I, being the one with the boobs have got feeding covered. I'm also better at dressing her. Many times now she has been presented to be with both legs in the same leg hole of her pants. In his defence, her legs are small and the holes are big...

So far we really have no idea what we're doing but somehow we're all getting better at it every day.