This is the summary of Spear’s 3rd week of life. From Dec 15th through Dec 21st (He was 2 weeks old during this week). This was also our first week HOME!!! Yay!
Feeding: I figured the ability to use the Medela bottles wouldn’t last forever, and this was the week where a change had to happen. He was taking AGES to eat. On the 19th he took 90 minutes in the middle of the night and I was SO over that!!! I looked into options and realized that Medela bottles are made for breastfed babies and that their flow of nipples were just slower than other bottle types. Even the quickest flow of Medela nipples wasn’t really all that “quick” so it was time for a bottle switch up!
He had NO problem finishing a bottle! I tried hard to keep things as simple as possible. We use nursery water at room temp. We don’t warm the bottles. Even breastmilk I aim for room temp too. He did fine with it all! He was downing 3-5 oz each feeding.
Prior to Spear’s birth I randomly saw this brand of bottle on clearance at Publix and grabbed them. They are Evenflo Advanced. I hadn’t even ever heard of them but I figured if they worked out then that’d be great!
I also had a lot of friends recommend the Playtex VentAire so I got a couple of those to try as well. I stuck to just those to brands to test out! I really, really wanted to avoid Dr Browns b/c they sound like such a pain to clean 🙂
We quickly decided we liked the Evenflo best, I think it’s because of the nipple size. Spear hasn’t ever breastfed so he is used to the smaller nipple and the large, breast-like nipples just weren’t a good fit for him.
I totally forgot about how much babies will spit up! Spear spits up WAY less than my other three did though. It really made me realize how much I overproduced milk! I def think my “happy spitters” were due to my over supply than anything else! Since Spear is bottle fed he doesn’t get too much, too fast and doesn’t spit up NEAR as much. His spit up tends to happen when he’s not been burped well enough!
I now have had experiences with both exclusively breastfeeding and exclusively bottle feeding. I will say that breastfeeding has many benefits (obviously breast milk is AMAZING stuff!) and many elements that I enjoyed. But bottle feeding? It’s so awesome too. It’s SO EASY and it’s so great that anyone can feed my baby. I love that Zach gets more quality time with him. I love that the kids can feed him. It’s really great!
So far we’re still able to give Spear 2 bottles of breastmilk a day which is a HUGE blessing. If you have any you’d like to donate please email me at journeyofphood@gmail.com. My goal is two bottles a day until he’s eating solids then 1 bottle a day until a year if we can make it! We decided to have him drink the two breastmilk bottles during the day as the dr said the protein being different in breastmilk vs formula can sometimes cause digestion issues. And if he disagreed with something in the particular breastmilk bottle that day you want it to have time to work out of his system before night sleep. We decided to have his breastmilk bottles at 10 am and 4 pm. That way there was a formula feeding at 7, 1, and 7 as well as any in the middle of the night!
Britt took the longest to probably really warm up to Spear. I think it’s probably her age and just being in the middle but her ability to feed him has really helped her bond!
Sleep: At two weeks old you can “officially” start scheduling. Although Spear was pretty much already on a great schedule from the start! His current schedule for this week was to eat at 7, 10, 1, 4, 7, 9:30 then whenever he woke in the night. I set my alarm for 5 hours but he never really made it until then anyway. He did sleep until 3 am on the 20th which was exciting!
I started using the Moms on Call app because I felt like it was more formula friendly than Babywise for the early days.
Zach and I traded on and off for middle of the night but then we realized Zach just couldn’t sleep in the middle of the night when Spear would wake anyway so he started doing ALL the middle of the night feedings and I did the morning ones.
Spear typically doesn’t fuss much at all but if he fussed at the start of nap I’d let him fuss and he’d always fall asleep within a few minutes. If he fussed mid-nap I’d wait a few minutes to see if he’d settle back on his own but then I’d go in and comfort him until he was back to sleep.
I use a Miracle Blanket for his swaddle and it works well! Sometimes he busts out the bottom and I think it’s because I’ve used these Miracle Blankets for so many babies that they are stretched out!
We have had a colder winter than usual and Spear’s room just doesn’t seem to warm as well as the rest of the house so I started swaddling him with the Miracle Blanket on the bottom and a receiving blanket on top. He’s really my first baby who I do think responds to temperature changes. He started sleeping a lot better when I started the double swaddling!
Sweet biggest sister waking him up!
I love the BIG STRETCH itty bitty babies do when you first unswaddle them!
Spear is still very sleepy while eating and I have to work to keep him awake during feedings (here are my tips to keep a sleepy baby awake!). I don’t mind the sweet snuggles!
I know many people sleep with the baby in their room for a certain amount of time, but that’s not something we’ve ever done. Our babies all sleep in their cribs from the start! He used the small basinet his first two weeks of life because we were in Florida but he had no problem transitioning into the crib when we got home!
Making progress on the middle of the night wake up! Spear from early on only woke up ONCE in the middle of the night to eat!
When we have to go somewhere during nap I start him in the swing rather than the crib depending on when we have to leave (like if he’s going down at 7:45 and we leave at 8 it’s silly to put him in the crib for 15 min and easier for him to transition into the car seat from the swing). We have this swing and LOVE IT!
Awake Time: Moms on Call is really hardcore about keeping feeding times short which I just don’t agree with. Some babies are just slower eaters (goodness Britt would sometimes nurse for HOURS). I did agree though that a bottle fed baby should logically eat pretty quick? So I worked on getting Spear to finish his bottles faster and therefore to have more awake time after eating and before nap. The kids LOVE just laying and playing with him during those few, brief moments of awake time 😉
Dr Visits and Outings This Week: It was our first week at HOME! I just LOVE having our sign up all week letting all of our neighbors know that we had a new baby at home 🙂 The kids and G-Mama did SUCH an awesome job with it!
This cracked me up haha the kids didn’t understand why we couldn’t come home sooner and we just kept telling them that government papers had to clear!
So sweet.
Our first full day at home was Saturday Dec 16th. I was wanting a lazy day at home but also realized Spear probably needed to hit up the chiropractor so Tess, Britt and I went together to take him. (Read about why I love chiropractics for new babies here!) The local chiropractor really surprised me by saying he didn’t see any reason for Spear to have any sort of regular plan or schedule and that he was really doing well and was plenty loose etc. Def great news!
On Monday the 18th Spear had his two week well check up at our local pediatrician. It was his first visit there and I was eager and excited to show him off to everyone! Since he wasn’t having any shots Zach went ahead and worked. The older two kids were in school so Tessie and I took Spear together! They both did GREAT!
Big 2 week old cutie 😉
Playing “peek a boo” to stay busy while we waited, and waited. So thankful Tess is extremely patient for her age!
At his last weight check at a week old he was 6 lbs 12 oz, 20.25 inches, and a head circumference of 13.25 inches.
For this visit (2 weeks and 3 days old) he was 7 lbs 13 oz, 19.75 inches, and 13.5 head circumference. His length has been ALL over the place haha I don’t know how it’s possible that he’s gotten shorter?!?! But I was SO happy to see the weight!!!
Couldn’t resist 😉
Sweet boy did SO great during the appointment!
These question things drive me crazy! They seem SO silly and have to be annoying for the staff to deal with too!
I do like looking at the developmental charts though and seeing where my kids are in their growth, development and milestones.
Typically we see a PA at the pediatrician and I just LOVE all the PAs on staff. Since it was Spear’s first visit in their office we saw the “legit dr.” Who I also like, but I just don’t love the way I do the PAs. I’m just less comfortable with him I guess? I didn’t even ask for Spear’s percentiles because I felt more rushed. Not that he rushes me, I just don’t feel as relaxed as I normally do!
- I asked him about formula amounts and he said at this age that 3-5 oz was perfect.
- We talked about his eye and he said it’ll heal up very soon no problem at all and wouldn’t have any affect on his vision or anything long term.
- He said for congestion to do saline drops as needed but that he also didn’t think Spear is congested and it’s more just that new babies take awhile to develop and sound congested when they really aren’t.
- Spear had these blisters along his diaper area and the pediatrician recommended switching brands. Yall I about DIED because I have ALWAYS used Pampers and have a massive stockpile of Pampers!
- I had him glance at my ear because it was bothering me and he said to do Sudafed and it’d clear up.
The hospital hadn’t yet sent over all the medical records so I did make sure to fill the staff in on all the details of Spear’s birth and birth family. The pediatrician said he’s a PERFECT, HEALTHY baby which makes my heart SO HAPPY!
To celebrate we went to Target 😉
I tossed up the diaper question on IG and had some great tips! Also so many people who had to switch brands. But I’m stubborn and I decided to just move up to Size 1 diapers and it did the trick! Yay!
Seriously, this child is an ANGEL
I wish there was a way to share “live” photos here. Omg. This is THE funniest thing EVER. Tess was SO good at the dr then SO good at Target while I fed Spear. When he was done eating she just wanted to hold him and get a picture with the dog. How could I say no to that sweet, simple request? Sure enough she didn’t hold him tight enough and he started to roll out of her arms right as I was snapping the pic. The “live” version you can see the whole thing and my baller mom catching skills! He was FINE and didn’t even cry. But this still shot looks scarier than it was! I really had him and he wasn’t close to falling on the floor or anything. Poor Tess felt so bad though!!!
So I got her an icee. Because I mean she deserved it 😉
We survived the dr AND Target with a 3 year old and 2 week old!
We had Spear’s newborn pics this week…which just so happened to be the EXACT same DAY we had them with Britt! C-Razy!
I had my first outing with all FOUR this week! We had to go to the bank and then gymnastics! I did tell them they could wear whatever they wanted haha but we survived!
We also did our annual stocking shopping at the Dollar Store as a family which was super fun! We love all shopping for each other and our favorite part is handing out random cash envelops to strangers. The kids get to take their envelop to anyone they choose and this year the reactions were SO special. So many hugs and tears and just LOVE!
Visits:
Lots of visitors this week! I’m SO thankful for our Meal Train as it provided our family with delicious food and had a GREAT routine for people stopping by!
Big Papa
G-Mama
Keeli
Enjoying the yummy dinner as a FAMILY! First family dinner!
Aunt Courtney
Aunt Casey
Tessie loved showing off her brother to Carter 🙂
Chicken Salad Chick…always a winner for me!
Gifts: Meals, visits AND so many thoughtful gifts this week!
Robyn’s mom got these adorable outfits!
Our preacher and his wife sent home Spear’s first bible and a teddy bear
Keeli got this awesome prayer beads
Dad and Audrey sent Spear’s first L.L.Bean item!
Other Items This Week:
I felt SO conflicted about Christmas cards. I do them EVERY year. But I decided to not stress it and to instead send out more of the birth announcements and have them be like a “Happy New Year” type card! I think it turned out well. I appreciate ALL the cards we received and promise we will be back to mailing them out again next year!
We also had yet to even start our advent countdown haha!
I started getting a blister from carrying the car seat and DUH remembered that whole viral video that went around about the “proper way to carry a car seat.” I will say it totally helps!!!
Siblings: They simply adore their brother. I loved finally being HOME to all enjoy each other and to be able to experience all the little moments of life and see how the older kids did with Spear being part of those moments.
Tess has blown me AWAY. I was nervous about how she’d do because she didn’t see my belly grow bigger. She didn’t experience pregnancy. Just one day BAM she had a little brother! She has been over the moon in love with him. Constantly talking to him and loving on him and is just SO PROUD. It’s THE sweetest thing!
I’m honestly not sad, at least not yet, about being done with babies in our family…but seeing Tess as a big sister DOES make my heart hurt thinking that we won’t get to see Spear in that same roll.
Not surprised at all that Kye is smitten!
My routine with new babies is that I try to nap when I can (that has happened the LEAST with Spear. FOR SURE). I will let the older kids watch a movie in my bed while I nap. Now with tablets they can play and I can sleep 😉
Shirts optional 😉
Heart melted.
Loving life!
Videos:
Sibling Comparisons:
Pillow Size Baby!
I took these to send to Mama E…he’s laying with the gift her mom bought him and I know her dad likes golf so I thought he’d like the onesie 😉
Truth 🙂
Haha…picking that nose in his sleep!
HOME for Christmas!!!
Couldn’t pass up some Mickey themed photos 🙂
My work has been featured on Love What Matters, Today Parenting and Babywise.Life. I'm also honored to be a member of the Babywise Friendly Blog Network.
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