Our family with a 2 week old

Alexandre at 2 weeks

First, to clear up any confusion, our son's name is pronounced just like Alexander, but with a French spelling.  He is a sweetheart and a joy, and his big sister and big brother completely adore him.

He turned 2 weeks yesterday and had his 2 week checkup today.  At 8 pounds, 2 ounces, he has easily surpassed his birthweight, which is more than the doctor expects from an exclusively breastfed baby.  He's built like his big sister, so he's a little more on the skinny side, but that's fine.  Skinny babies are healthy babies too, as we learned from having Isabelle.  It's just strange for me to have a skinny baby again after having chunky Andrew.  But God makes each child just how they need to be, and Andrew's larger size is an example to me of God's perfect design, since he ended up having lung surgery at almost 6 weeks of age. 

Speaking of lungs, Alexandre's lungs are perfectly healthy, according to today's x-rays.  God is good!     

Alexandre at 2 weeks: Newborns are both cute and funny looking at the same time! 

Mommy at 2 weeks

This is both easier and harder than I'd expected.  I expected the usual newborn fussiness for a few nights or so, and then I expected a colicky baby, perhaps, since our older two kids had some gas/reflux/colic issues.  Well this little guy isn't colicky at all.  He's very happy and rarely cries.  I also expected that we might have dueling babies waking us up at night, with Alexandre's cries waking up Andrew in the room next door.  But that also has not been an issue, again, because Alexandre rarely cries. 

What has been a bigger challenge than I'd anticipated is the c-section recovery.  On Monday, I stayed in bed quite a bit, but the little bit that I did do, primarily refereeing between the older two kids, was way too much.  By the end of the day, my stomach was hurting, far more than it was on Saturday or Sunday.  On Tuesday, I did even less.  A friend kept Isabelle, my 3 year old, all morning until naptime, so that made the day much easier.  I've continued to rest as much as possible, and I think I'm reaping the rewards of the rest as well as time, and I feel better with every day.

I'm trying to keep in mind that the pain and limited activity won't last forever.  I'll be back to normal really soon, and even moreso if I take it easy now.  But I talk myself into thinking that my house must be clean or that the kids are watching too much TV and need more attention from me, and then I'm either overwhelmed at all that is left undone or I'm hurting from exerting myself too much. 

I'll be really honest.  On Monday, I actually cried because my house was messy.  Seriously.  My husband just says "Lies, Gabby, they're all lies.  Stop believing them."  He's right.  I know he is.  But I really am ready to feel normal again.

Nursing at 2 weeks

It's easy peasy at this point.  Alexandre is eating and growing really well, and if I have any doubts, I just pull out the baby scale and see how much he has gained.  With this baby, I had no pain or any other nursing issues, but we did have what I would call "perceived nursing issues," meaning that the baby was doing fine, but I had some concerns that turned out to be nothing.  I just had to remind myself that he would do well once my milk came in, and he really did.  But while I was waiting, I was reminded once again of why so many women stop nursing:  Because it's hard!!  This is why I will not guilt trip or nag a woman who felt she had to stop nursing at some point.  It really is difficult at times, and I'd be a fool if I denied that.

My husband said that even after 3 kids, sometimes it's still hard to believe that the system of breastfeeding really will work out, if you just give it time.  I feel the exact same way.  There were several times when I had to remind myself that it's all going to be fine.  The baby will gain weight, milk will come in, and all will be fine if I just keep nursing.  And he had a growth spurt recently, and during growth spurts, when the baby is eating every 1 1/2 hours, it's really easy to think that my supply is low, but again, I just have to keep on trucking and know that it's just a growth spurt, and he'll space his feedings further apart again soon.  You can't nurse a baby too much.

Big Sister and Big Brother at 2 weeks

Isabelle and Andrew love their little brother.  Isabelle loves to hold Alexandre and just stare at him.  Even Andrew likes to take turns holding him and then kissing him.  He says "Bayyybeee" anytime he sees me walk in the room with Alexandre.

So far, we haven't seen any signs of jealousy.  Andrew had been a little on the grouchy side for the past two days, which I attributed to coming home from being at Nana's for a week, or toddlerhood, or a need for attention from Mommy.  He even woke up during the night recently, something he never does.  As it turns out, he has a pretty bad double ear infection! 

We never dealt with jealousy from Isabelle when Andrew was born, and I don't expect it to be an issue this time either.  I hear that it does happen sometimes, but I really don't recall ever being jealous when any of my brothers were born.  My mom says that we weren't jealous; we just had fun with the new baby. 

First bath:  I let Isabelle participate and help wash her little brother's belly.

Fun Moments:

As soon as Alexandre came home from the hospital, Isabelle declared that he needed to drink her milk!  We had to clear that one up pretty quickly.  Currently, she is settling for nursing her baby dolls and playing mommy to them.

She says she's burping them and then makes her dolls say "burp!"

Tea party on the ottoman:  Isabelle wanted to put them in high chairs, but had to settle for plopping one of them in a bucket instead.  I don't know why she insisted on having her tea party here, on my glider's ottoman, instead of at her tea party table, but that's the logic of a 3 year old.

At 18 months, Andrew is all about identifying body parts, specifically those on the face, as well as bellies, hands, and feet.  He loves to point out Alexandre's little features. 

Isabelle is still fascinated with kissing the baby's eyes!  She was the same way when Andrew was born.  We're constantly telling her to leave baby's eyes alone!

How many times will mommy get peed on during diaper changes?


Alexandre smiled for the first time last night, smiling several times in a row at Isabelle and I.  Maybe he was just relieved that bathtime was over? 


I woke up around 6 or 6:30 this morning, yet I almost feel like I got a good night of sleep.  Almost!