Squidbits
Thanks to all of you who have sent emails or left comments with kind words and congratulations. It is wonderful to know that you are all so excited for us! Speaking of leaving comments, Dutch (of the excellent sweet juniper!) brought to my attention that the comment links (which looked perfectly normal in Safari) were rendering as illegible squiggles in IE. I don't have IE on my Mac, but I replicated and then eliminated the problem in Firefox, and hopefully that will do it for those of you still using the evil empire's browser as well. :)
Most of my typing these days is done one-handed, so entries will be less frequent, but I wanted to update with a few bits and pieces from the first few weeks of parenthood.
On sleep deprivation: Little did I realize, when going to school for my degrees and taking night classes for my various hobbies, that the most valuable skill I could cultivate as an adult would be an ability to nap deeply and on cue. It's not that the Squid is a fussy baby - far from it, though he's been a bit gassy lately - it's that it takes me anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour to fall asleep. My brain won't shut down - it races on and on, thinking about things I don't even care about, song lyrics and embarassing stuff I said in my twenties and minor add-ons to my to-do list...and then just as I'm starting to drift off, the baby wakes up. My anxiety about this creates even more difficulties, as I tend to lay in the dark, worrying that I won't fall asleep in time to get any rest and tensing at the slightest noise that might be a sign that the Squid is waking. I've always needed more sleep than anyone else I know, and so this is hitting me pretty hard, despite the fact that Himself takes at least one feeding each day to let me get a solid several-hour block.
Firsts: This weekend was the Squid's first bath. Who knew bathing such a small creature could take two adults, five towels, and wet down the entire bathroom? Wow. While I am positively dying to post the photo of him naked and squalling in the sink, my better internet sense prevails - no, we do not post naked pictures of our children online, doyee - and so I can give you only these:
On photos: My friend S (who also sent a package of bath things last week - perfect timing, thanks, S!) wrote to ask if the Squid was just unusually photogenic or whether we'd caught him at a good time. While I of course believe him to be the world's most gorgeous baby, I think the quality of the baby pictures has more to do with Himself's photography skills and perseverance. Imagine, if you will, two grown men with huge professional-looking cameras flashing away at the squid as one woman holds the backdrop sheet up and another positions the baby when he starts to slump. That was the ten-minute post-bath photo session that resulted in the be-robed photo above, and it's not atypical. Next thing you know he'll have his own wardrobe consultant and makeup artist. At least he's, um, well-documented!
Nota bene, bebe:
Breastfeeding strategies that do not work
Most of my typing these days is done one-handed, so entries will be less frequent, but I wanted to update with a few bits and pieces from the first few weeks of parenthood.
On sleep deprivation: Little did I realize, when going to school for my degrees and taking night classes for my various hobbies, that the most valuable skill I could cultivate as an adult would be an ability to nap deeply and on cue. It's not that the Squid is a fussy baby - far from it, though he's been a bit gassy lately - it's that it takes me anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour to fall asleep. My brain won't shut down - it races on and on, thinking about things I don't even care about, song lyrics and embarassing stuff I said in my twenties and minor add-ons to my to-do list...and then just as I'm starting to drift off, the baby wakes up. My anxiety about this creates even more difficulties, as I tend to lay in the dark, worrying that I won't fall asleep in time to get any rest and tensing at the slightest noise that might be a sign that the Squid is waking. I've always needed more sleep than anyone else I know, and so this is hitting me pretty hard, despite the fact that Himself takes at least one feeding each day to let me get a solid several-hour block.
Firsts: This weekend was the Squid's first bath. Who knew bathing such a small creature could take two adults, five towels, and wet down the entire bathroom? Wow. While I am positively dying to post the photo of him naked and squalling in the sink, my better internet sense prevails - no, we do not post naked pictures of our children online, doyee - and so I can give you only these:
On photos: My friend S (who also sent a package of bath things last week - perfect timing, thanks, S!) wrote to ask if the Squid was just unusually photogenic or whether we'd caught him at a good time. While I of course believe him to be the world's most gorgeous baby, I think the quality of the baby pictures has more to do with Himself's photography skills and perseverance. Imagine, if you will, two grown men with huge professional-looking cameras flashing away at the squid as one woman holds the backdrop sheet up and another positions the baby when he starts to slump. That was the ten-minute post-bath photo session that resulted in the be-robed photo above, and it's not atypical. Next thing you know he'll have his own wardrobe consultant and makeup artist. At least he's, um, well-documented!
Nota bene, bebe:
Breastfeeding strategies that do not work
- Serenading the nipple with baby noises while farting
- Biting the nipple
- Screaming at the nipple
- Pawing at the nipple with your hands
- Eating your hands instead of the nipple
- Idly mouthing the nipple while looking cheeky and bright-eyed
- Looking expectantly at the nipple and waiting for the milk to just happen
- Falling asleep on the nipple.
posted by The Stute Fish at 06:28
4 Comments:
Feedback from one unlikely to lie (Ada): I showed her the photos of the squid, and she responded with laughter and that pursed lip "ooh" sound generally reserved for dogs and other super exciting beings. Looks like she approves.
he is just beautiful. the sleep deprivation has caused me to forget much of that young, amazing phase of Henry's life. sounds like you are doing great considering!
Ohh do I ever remember that feeling of not being able to get to sleep quickly enough, and then tensing at the little noises -- I got to the point where I was so sleep deprived and attuned to J's noises that I started hallucinating that she was fussing when she wasn't (I remember being in the shower and just being sure I could hear her crying).
Longest couple of months of my life, but it truly was only a few months -- by four months life had calmed considerably.
Barring photos of my own children,I think that first photo of your baby in the hood might be the cutest damn thing I've ever seen. Really.
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