Jake is two weeks old today. And today marks the first day of our new normal. Jamie returned to work Monday morning and his mom flew home yesterday afternoon. And now I'm a stay at home mother of two. It is harder than expected, but easier too. It helps immensely that Jake is nothing like Will was at this age. He rarely cries. And he sleeps. He sleeps a lot actually. He sleeps so much that it makes me nervous, but then I remind myself that I shouldn't compare him to Will because he was a difficult, fussy baby and that Jake is most likely just a typical little dude. Having Jake has actually healed my self esteem a bit really. I felt very inadequate and like somewhat of a failure when I struggled so much during Will's first weeks. Especially when I compared myself to other new moms who seemed to have it all together. But dude, it's EASY to have it together when your kid sleeps all the time! I'm probably jinxing myself in talking about this. But seriously, this baby is refreshingly low maintenance. He's just a joy.
He does take a ridiculously long time to eat, however. I started out thinking that breastfeeding was going better this time but I'm fairly certain at this point that I will have to supplement with formula. I just don't think I make enough milk. This has become especially clear to me today as we seem to have begun the second week growth spurt. Jake spent nearly every moment that he was awake wanting to nurse. From what I've read, most breastmilk should be drained after about 15 minutes of nursing per side. The fact that Jake will nurse for like, an hour at time, and then will want to eat again only an hour later leaves me thinking that he's not getting enough. Plus, I never feel like I have a chance to even fill back up, if you know what I mean, before he wants to eat again. And I don't hear him gulping like he has been in days prior. So, I gave him an ounce of formula earlier tonight. He sucked it down and then slept like the dead for three hours. I'm disappointed. I'll be honest. But at least I'm catching it early this time, before things get bad. We go in for a weight check tomorrow. Here's hoping we're back up at 9 lbs 7 oz!
Will is adjusting. He still grabs my hand and pulls me over to the playroom to play at every opportunity, regardless of whether I'm holding or nursing Will at the time. He has little fits of jealousy and frustrated outbursts when we can't go outside to play (his most favorite thing to do). I know he's probably tired of being cooped up in the house, but Jake is still pretty small and it's too cold for me to feel very comfortable dragging him outdoors. And I'm kind of nervous about taking the boys out in public for the first time by myself. I think Jamie and I will do a trial run tomorrow, since he has Veterans Day off, so I can figure out how to manage things with him there to back me up.
Daddy is Will's new favorite person. He gets a rock star welcome each evening. Actually, Will starts pointing at the door saying "Dada" HOURS before Jamie gets home. It's sweet. And he gets a "Bye Da!" each night as I take him up to bed. In fact, he now calls out for "Dada" when he wakes up in the mornings (previously he called out for "Mama"). I'm not even jealous either. Because Daddy is so charmed by it that he doesn't even hesitate to go get him, leaving me to enjoy a few more minutes in bed. And considering that I'm once more getting up through the night with my newborn little guy, I need all the extra sleep I can get. Speaking of sleep, I better go get some!
