The Fourth Trimester: Week 8

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Wow!  2 Months say what?!?! I know I pretty much say that every week that passes.  I mean, it is pretty amazing we made it this far. I’ve got to take his two-month photos today in the meantime…

Body Changes

Um, who cares, it’s Christmas next week? Just saying…

The only body changes I’m focusing on this week is getting my strength back, see workout section. I switched to using Mr. Hungry’s head and shoulders shampoo conditioner combined which seems to have tamed the oily hair situation.  Acne is a new unwelcomed thing, I feel like I’m SO OILY which is so not normal for me.  Thank you hormones.

Emotional Wellbeing

KJ is so much more interactive these days, which for me is a huge plus on the emotional wellbeing front.  He smiles at me, plays on his activity mat and responds to me.  Even when he is upset he displays more deliberate emotions like frowning and pouting which melts my heart.  His increased interaction is fun, I feel like we are bonding more and more.  He is easier to calm because he responds to stimuli or maybe I’m just figuring it out.  Either way, my confidence increases day by day!

This week was a little easier too because I was able to get some work done.  We are trying out a paid nanny situation for just a couple hours 1-2 times a week to prepare for when I start teaching next semester.  My Aunt also came over one day while I photographed a new recipe for you guys.  Those couple hours to work have been great for my psyche.

Breastfeeding

Successes:  

• I finally got to the point where I could pump at night about 1-1.5 hours after he goes to bed.  I’m also still using the Haaka after he wakes up from his long stretch of sleep.
• Building up a small stash! I have this awesome milk storage organizer.

Challenges:

• Feedings are back to taking around 45 minutes.  Sometimes this is because I get distracted (damn you Grey’s Anatomy) and let him fall asleep suckling.  Sometimes he legit eats that long, especially around 3 am when he hasn’t eaten for 5-7 hours.  I need to pay better attention and cut off the non-nutritive suckling more often than what I’m doing now.

Sleep

Bedtime has been erratic, sometime between 7-11pm with no consistency AT ALL, so that’s been a little rough. He sleeps about 5-7 hours at night for the first stretch and then does another 2-3 hour stretch.  Sometimes I can get him back down in the morning right away for another 30 ish minutes and sometimes I can’t.  In any case, I’m now getting about 7 hours of sleep between the hours of 1030 and 7 am ish.

Workouts/Activity

Running in one of Mr. Hungrys shirts because my workout clothes aren’t flattering yet.  Remember when workout clothes used to be old t-shirts and Sofie shorts?  I definitely do, it was simpler and cheaper time.  Horrific on the fashion front, but still simpler and cheaper.

Real talk though, the return of the workouts has been incredible on my emotional wellbeing.  However, the ability to fit them in tests my ability to correctly anticipate the babies needs and communicate with my husband efficiently.   Mr. Hungry works out very early in the morning lifting or playing basketball.  Most of the time I workout immediately when he gets home from work between feedings.

Unfortunate for both of us since he would rather workout at night and I would rather workout in the morning.   It’s super hard to coordinate my workout at night because he also cluster feeds at night.  If I don’t correctly anticipate the next feeding Mr. Hungry is left with a very unhappy baby.  I only mention all of this because I so often see moms on social media sharing about their workouts and I feel like they make it so easy to fall in place.   Just trying to share the reality of the behind the scenes, it’s not all blogtastic perfect workouts.

Sometimes the baby is crying while I finish the last 5 minutes (with Mr. Hungry) and I cut the workout short, skip stretching/foam rolling, etc… So, if you are struggling to get in workouts, mama, I feel you, you are not alone.  Do what you can, when you can, and let it be enough.

Thursday (12/13)- 

• 45-minute stroller walk (AM)
• Upper Body Circuit Week 1 (Post Baby Body Plan) (PM)

Friday (12/14)- a 40-minute stroller walk

Saturday (12/15)-

• 20 min stroller walk (AM)
• 1/2 mile jog to warm up (PM)
• Lower Body Circuit Week 1 (Post Baby Body Plan) (PM)

Sunday (12/16)- a 45-minute stroller walk

Monday (12/17)- OFF –> SO SORE, EVERY MUSCLE IN MY LEGS SO SORE!

Tuesday (12/18)- 

• A 30-minute walk with the stroller (AM)
• 20-minute walk/run (PM)

Wednesday (12/19) – 40-minute stroller walk and Total Body Workout Week 1 (Post Baby Body Plan)

Thursday (12/20): 

• Stroller Walk 40 minutes (AM)
• Slow Jog 25 minutes (PM)

Past Posts:

• The Fourth Trimester Week 7
• The Fourth Trimester Weeks 5 & 6
• The Fourth Trimester Week 4
• The Fourth Trimester Week 3
• The Fourth Trimester Weeks 1-2