Wish List (Things I Need)

UPDATE: Georgyana is now 7 lbs 9 oz & growing quickly! I expect she'll outgrow the newborn size clothing & size 1 diapers soon, so here is an update on needed sizes:
Size 0-3mths sleepers
Size 0-3mths layettes (they are like sleepers but have the bottom open for easy diaper changes)
Size 2 diapers - she still fits in size 1, depending on the brand, but I think we'll be moving into size 2 soon!!
I still need the items listed below, but wanted to update size needs.

**Used items are welcome**

Clothes
It's difficult to guess exactly what size clothing I will need when, but I think Georgyana is growing very well, so I will try to project what sizes she'll be in, when

Onesies
Sleepers
Cute outfits (the girlier, the better! LOL)

Sizes
August - Sept 0-3mos, light long sleeved warm weather clothing, light long sleeved sleepers - I especially need lightly warm clothes, such as long sleeved sleepers that aren't heavy. It's been a cold summer & we don't get to use all the cute hot season clothes very much.
Oct, Nov - 3-6 mos, cool, fall clothing
Dec, Jan, Feb - 6-9mos, cold winter clothing
Mar, Apr, May - 9-12mos?, cold winter clothing

Bath
hooded bath towels
wash cloths

Spit Up, Burping Equipment
This kid spits up something terrible, so anything that can be used to catch spit up! LOL.
Cloth diapers
Bibs
Terry cloth spit up cloths
Boppy Pillow Cover (it's a cover that goes over my boppy pillow, costs about $10), my boppy gets covered in spit up:)

Toys
Floor Playmat with the arches & dangly toys
Bouncy seat with vibration
dangly toys that attach to the car seat
note: already picked up a swing - I was desperate!

Consumables
Size 1 diapers (she is now fitting these quite well! Although Kroger brand & Whisper something from Meijer with the lamb on it are TOO SMALL. I like Meijer's Dry Babies brand, which is cheap & a good size for now.)
Lansinoh Brand Diaper Rash cream

Misc
I would like to try cloth diapering, but it's hard to muster up the courage to buy them, LOL. But if I did try cloth diapering, here is what I would buy:
Chinese or Indian Prefolds in Newborn size (or Infant - whatever size matches the length of the covers)
Bummis Super Brite Cloth Diaper covers in Newborn size in cute colors, or Bummis Super Whisper Wraps Newborn
Baby monitor (if you have a used working one you want to get rid of, pass it along!)

Georgyana Breeze

Georgyana Breeze...wide awake!

awake...

awake...

And finally...asleep:)

Weekly Review

Everything is just slower with an infant. Case in point: it took me 2 days to make zucchini muffins (and the zucchini was already shredded). It was taking so long, I had to have my 8yo finish the project. But we're putzing along.

3rd grade:
learning great skills in team leadership & motivation, housekeeping, cooking, and other domestic skills. Also learning how to love and comfort a baby, and how to change a diaper. In Math, she's learning multiplication & multiplication strategies. As usual with BJU, it starts off slow and conceptual before moving to the more abstract. Right now, its very conceptual and she finds it very easy. With her Familiar Quotations copywork, she's reading great stuff by great thinkers:) It's amazing the things that come up in every day conversation that stem from these famous quotations. We're applying these ideas to our own opinions and finding references to them in books & movies. How cool is that? In English, she had to write game instructions. She chose "Tag" as her game. Her daddy helped her develop this into a well written thought-out paper. Under my tutelage, the original paper said something like "tag someone and run away from them", LOL. But now it is a well developed paragraph. Now she's back to learning Grammar in English, which she is much happier with (she hates writing assignments). Spelling has been non-existent, because it really takes sooo much consistency from me, which isn't happening right now. She continues to make progress in Reading - she finished reading a play, and then she and her sister divvied up the lines and performed it.

1st/2nd grade
She learned how to ride a bike without training wheels (woohoo!). She is also learning the fine art of housekeeping, diaper changing, and putting a pacifier into a crying baby's mouth. Math was about subtraction strategies and reviewing addition strategies (making 10s out of 9's, etc.). For Reading, she has picked stories out of her Disney Princesses book. Handwriting has her copying full poems now. English & Phonics has been a hodge-podge of review (its the last unit of 1st gr). I need to order her 2nd gr LA books but have been dreading it. My little girl that used to be so motivated and excited to do her schoolwork has become frustrated, snippy, and whiney. I think its a stage. I remember her big sis going thru this. It isn't any easier the 2nd time thru! Favorite phrases include: "I can't do it" and "it's too hard". In every day life, words frequently used are: "that hurt my feelings", "you're being mean," "it's not fair," and "I never get to do that, but she always does". Lots of heartbroken crying ensues. If anyone has a way to deal with it, let me know. I'm at a total loss!

The past 2 weeks

A few people have asked when I'm going to write on my blog, so here is a recap of what we've been up to -

• Georgyana had her first eye exam. We have to go every 2 weeks, until 10 weeks after her due date (so until 10 weeks after July 5th). After that, I think we'll have periodic check ups with a pediatric eye dr. They check for early signs of the cause for preemie blindness, so very important appts.
• Alaithia went to day camp with fellow T&Ter's (AWANA) as a reward for finishing her book at AWANA.
• Zoiya went to a tea party themed birthday party - very cute!
• Zoiya and Alaithia are a huge help with the baby. Whenever I need to do something hands free, they are there to hold the baby for me. Very nice!
• Our web design business received one of our regular work projects (just shy of 100 pages!!) that I have spent the past 2 weeks working on. Hence the blog neglect.
• The girls are continuing their school and helping with housework. I have not been overseeing their schoolwork much, but hope to get back to that as soon as I have officially finished my work project.
• The baby definitely prefers being held to sleeping in a crib or bassinett. She is getting lots of snuggles. Naptime is longer in someone's arms, whereas she doesn't seem to sleep long apart from the human touch.
• Georgyana is already outgrowing her preemie size clothes - although it *should* still fit her weight, it does not fit her length. She seems to be a rather long preemie:)
• I had my 6 week post-natal checkup - everything appears in good health, I have been cleared for regular activities, and I'm off of the blood pressure medication, yay!
• Georgyana sort of nurses, a little bit, if I catch her in the right mood. I can only get her to latch on and nurse if she's in that evening fussy mood, if she has decided that the bottle or pacifier won't do. It's happened about 5 times now. I sometimes have luck with a nipple shield, but she doesn't have the stamina for a full feed at the breast.
• Pumping breastmilk & washing bottles is exhausting work. I'm storing as much milk in the deep freezer that I can. If I can't get her nursing by 3 months, I'm turning in the hospital pump. I hope to have enough milk stored to last until Georgyana is 6 months old. You should see my growing freezer stash:)

Wordless Wednesday

(Nearly wordless note: dh disturbed the nest & then asked me to move it. So, no...we won't be watching cute lil' hatchlings...sigh. But it was a beautiful nest & those blue eggs are gorgeous!)

Yesterday's update was written during -
the 8yo: "How do you spell 'checklist'? How do you spell 'other'? How do you change bullet points on the computer? How do you-"
the 6yo: "Mom, I don't know what to do. Mom, no one will play with me. Mom, I want a carrot. Mom, I can't find the carrots..."
the husband: (calling from upstairs) "are you busy?"
and the baby: (in her sleep, but on the verge of waking up) "squeek, screech, squawk, errrt"

Needless to say, it was poorly written:) Now for the real one:

Georgyana is 4 lbs 1 oz, and 18 inches long. The dr & NICU nurses have all said to somewhat isolate the baby until she gets bigger. She shouldn't be passed around by other adults. Anyone that does hold her should wash their hands thoroughly first. She should have limited exposure to people. This means - no trips to Meijer until she's 8-9 lbs, & means that she should stay with us in church, covered by a blanket in her seat or otherwise protected from sneezes & coughs. We need to be cautious about having her around people that smoke - the smoke smell on their clothing can be dangerous for her young lungs. We have gotten the OK to go to co-op in the fall & church, but to limit her exposure to people (i.e., she stays with her parents during that time, not in the nursery).

I'm starting to learn her little language:) "I'm cold" = feed me. "I'm hungry" = feed me. "I'm uncomfortable" = feed me. And "I hate the taste of these nasty vitamins" = spit, spit, feed me, oh yuck, now what do I do? Basically, everything translates into "feed me", LOL. If she acts hungry, but only eats little bits, or isn't sleeping, it's probably because she's cold or uncomfortable. She seeks comfort from food (awww, just like her mommy!), so my job is to figure out whether she is really hungry or something else. Of course, it doesn't hurt to feed her anyway, because she's putting on the weight like a champ. She also poops like a champ & burps like a champ. What's not to like? Oh, and she spits up like a champ. As the NICU nurse said, "she's going to give you a lot of laundry!" Once I understood the "discomfort = feed me" equation, I have been able to get her to sleep 2-3 hour intervals at night, yay! I know it won't last forever (afterall, there will be growth spurts, teething, terrible twos...), but it's nice while it lasts. Ahhhh, sleep!

I've gotten this question a lot lately: Have I gotten her to nurse (breastfeed)? No, but we're trying. I think there are times when it is easier to get them nursing, and I'm waiting for our time. If I could get her to latch & stay latched, then I might be able to try an SNS to get the nursing rolling. Until then, we'll keep trying, I'll keep pumping breastmilk, and we'll see what happens...If you have any Successful Nursing Preemie stories, feel free to send them my way!

First pediatric appt

Above are photos of the older girls with their baby sister. The baby always looks bigger in photos, for some reason. Those that see photos and then see the real thing often comment about this.

At her first pediatric appt, Georgyana weighed 4lbs 1oz. She is gaining well! We've had some rough nights, but last night went better. I think the house was too cold for her, and when we cranked up the heat, we had a better night. Also, the hospital left me terrified of SIDS by telling me not to swaddle her or put a hat on her, and this was contributing to her heat loss. She was uncomfy and waking up seeking a bottle and cuddling for comfort. Once we turned up the heat, put a hat on her head, and swaddled her up, we had a much better night (she slept in 2.5-3hr intervals). I still have to get up to pump breastmilk, so her 3hrs = 1hr feeding + 30 mins pumping + cleaning of supplies, so it greatly reduces the amt of time I can enjoy sleeping...but it's better than no sleep!! She is also a very noisy sleeper: she squeeks, squeals, screeches. I'm trying to learn to sleep through all of those sounds.

I'm having bouts with the baby blues - but this has more to do with sleep (or lack thereof). When I get an hour of sleep here and there, then I end up a much cheerier person. When I miss out on sleep, I'm pretty weepy. Amazing how sleep makes such a big difference! I'll try to update everyone as I can, but my days (and nights!) are very full.