Postpartum

After Frankie's birth, Ron took the whole week off work. My parents went back home on Tuesday. Unfortunately, Ron was out of the house quite a bit. I really overdid it taking care of two kids and ended up back on bedrest.

My parents came back the following week and things started looking up. But they had to leave after just four days so my mom could get back to work.

Then things got even worse! Frankie kept trying to suck his fingers AND my breast at the same time. So every nursing session was a wrestling match. And Cami wanted to nurse just as much as her brother. I got VERY sore nipples, that cracked and bled.

Finally, I went to the Lactation Consultants at Christ Hospital. Frankie and I were diagnosed with thrush and got prescriptions from our family practice doc. I also realized that I had postpartum depression since I was crying EVERY day (for three weeks!) and had no
interest in seeing my friends or even the motivation to leave the house. My midwives gave me a prescription for Prozac which I took for about a week until things got better.

Then just as the trush started to clear up, Frankie lost the ability to latch. So we had to go through a whole "re-learning" process to get him attached properly. This led to VERY long days and many sleepless nights.

In the past few weeks, we've definitely turned the corner. Frankie and I finally got breastfeeding figured out. We're able to get out of the house, go shopping, visit friends and attend playdates.

We went to the doctor this past week for check ups. At 7 weeks, Frankie is 10 lbs. 10 oz. and 22 and a half inches long, 10th and 20th percentiles. Cami is now 3 years old. She's 27 lbs. and 35 and a half inches tall. She got a scooter for her birthday, which she loves almost as much as her baby brother.

Ron is working 6-7 days a week. Good paychecks, but we hardly ever get to see him. So today the kids and I are heading to my parents' in St. Louis. We'll be there for at least a couple weeks.

Thanks for reading! Christine