Gotta love Walmart

Oh yes you do. I'll be the first to admit that they are an evil giant, but when you need something - anything - at 3am, where can you turn? That's right - Walmart.

While I was pregnant, Brent was set on getting a glider. I was the one saying no, we wouldn't need it, they are too expensive, blah blah blah. The ones we saw at Burlington, Target, etc. were expensive, around $300 or $400. I am cheap, okay? So it was a no go on getting a glider.

However, 5 weeks of feeding this baby while standing up or sitting on the couch had me begging Brent to get us a glider. So, we were shopping around, and one day while I was at the beloved Walmart, there it was. A perfectly nice glider and ottoman, for $90!! You're probably thinking that for being that cheap it must surely be a piece of crap. Well, you're wrong. Brent went and bought it today and we set it up and it is awesome. We love it. We put it in Ava's room by the window and it is just perfect. Sure, the cushions could be a little cushier, but that is my only complaint.



It matches our furniture perfectly as well. I thought we wouldn't need one, but I would advise any pregnant woman that you really must have a glider or rocker. It is so worth it. I was willing to pay $200 or $300 for one, but to find one for $90 that is just as good made me so happy! Walmart rocks!

So do my in-laws for making us dinner tonight!



Ava and her Daddy testing it out.

To the mall...

We made our first trip to the mall today. I did not brave it alone, Brent went with us. Most babies fall asleep in the car - not our girl. She's too smart for that. Her eyes were wide open the whole ride there. Our first stop was Target. She cried a bit in there so we made our stay there pretty short. Then we ventured across the street to the mall. At this point she did fall asleep. We walked around for a bit, actually ate in the food court, and managed to buy a few things before she woke up and got really pissed. On the ride home she pretty much started wailing. Overall, not a bad first outing. Let me just say that I love Old Navy baby clothes. When she gets a little older I am going to go a bit crazy in there. They have the cutest stuff for toddlers and it is very inexpensive. I bought her a little sun hat and some more onesies. She is still too small to fit in the cute dresses and outfits that she has. She lives in onesies and sleepers.

About formula, we are still using Enfamil, but we have tried a low-iron formula (didn't help) and now we are on to a lactose-free formula. I'm not sure that it will help either since so far she spits up most of it. With the original formula, she didn't spit up hardly at all. I think the lactose-free is thinner so it comes up a lot easier. Not to mention that she eats a TON of it since it probably doesn't fill her stomach up as much as the original stuff. She normally would eat about 4 ounces of the original, but with the lactose-free she downs almost 6! By 4 months old we would need a Big Gulp with a nipple on it to fill her up. I think I am going to end up going back to the original Enfamil and just deal with her fussy problems. I don't think they are formula-related, but just her demanding personality.

She was a month old on Thursday. I can't believe how fast it has gone. It is so cool to see the changes in her. She is focusing her eyes on things a lot more. I put her in her bouncy seat and while I'm walking around her eyes follow me. She is also holding her head up a lot better, but she still doesn't have much control over it. She has a fat head. Some of her onesies are getting snug on her. We tried to weigh her on our bathroom scale today and it said she weighed 9.7 lbs. It already hurts my back to hold her too long.

Fussy girl

Well, I think it's official - we have a fussy baby. Right now she is hanging out in her bouncy seat. It seems like lately if she's not eating or sleeping, then she's probably crying. I know that all babies cry, but she seems to like to do that a lot. She goes from content to screaming in the blink of an eye. Then we put a bottle in her mouth and she shuts up just as quick. I don't know if she's going through a growth spurt or what, but she loves to eat. It seems like all I do is make formula and wash bottles. We switched formulas to a low-iron formula to see if that helps with the fussiness. I doubt it, but figured it was worth a try. The best times are after she's done eating a big bottle. She gets this kind of drugged, sedated look on her face, and she just lays there in my arms staring at me. She reminds me of what I feel like after Thanksgiving dinner.

I should probably try to get some dinner while she's chillin in her seat. I am getting used to making dinner and then eating it cold 45 minutes to an hour later. I am also getting really good at performing tasks that normally take 2 hands with one hand.

Good night!

Ava slept in her crib the past 2 nights! Friday night was kind of rough, but last night was great. I like Friday and Saturday nights because Brent is home and I kinda get those 2 nights "off." During the week I get up with her since he has to work, but Friday night I get to catch up on my sleep. Last night Brent and I got to sleep in the same bed at the same time for the first time since Ava was born! She must've just been really tired because she was sleeping a lot yesterday. She had been napping and at 10pm I woke her up to give her her bottle, and she was falling asleep in my arms after. I set her in her crib and she did not make a sound, just went right to sleep. She woke up twice during the night, at 1am and 4am for more food, but that was it.

Today she has been really fussy, not much is making her happy. I started giving her gas drops because sometimes it seems like that might be bothering her. How do you know when you need to change formulas? I have been using the formula that the hospital uses and I didn't want to change. I don't think she has a problem with it, but how do I know if that is what is making her fussy? Sometimes she is perfectly content, other times she is screaming her head off for what seems like no reason. Isn't that normal?

First Bath

Ava had her first real bath on Monday night. I don't think that she liked it very much, she cried pretty much the entire time. Brent couldn't wait to give her a bath. He's ready for her to start baby talk and crawling and playing. I think time is going by so fast, she's already almost a month old. She is getting so big already. I tried to weigh her on our scale and it said she was over 9.5 pounds! She is fitting into her clothes better too. Int he picture you can see her belly button, she has an innie!

Well, her sleeping patterns are becoming a real problem. Last night was pretty brutal. I got about an hour of sleep after being up since 5am the previous morning. Brent had to work last night, so I decided to start a little bedtime ritual. At 10pm I turned off the TV and most of the lights, and put on soft music. I washed her face and hands, changed her diaper and put her in a clean nightgown. Then I gave her a nice big bottle to fill her up. At 11pm we were still at it, not even close to being asleep. I rocked her, put her in her bouncy seat, nothing. At this point I was the one falling asleep. At midnight she actually started to doze off in her crib. She hates her bassinet, otherwise I would've put her in there. She slept in the crib until about 2 am and then she was awake again. I gave her more food and then she fell asleep with me on the couch. As soon as I went to put her down, she started crying. At that point I got Brent up to take over, and she fell asleep laying on his chest. At 6am when he put her down to go to work, she started crying. She just likes to be held. Sometimes that doesn't even work. Last night was the first time she slept in her crib. I am terrified of SIDS so I was hoping she would sleep in her bassinet in our room for at least a couple of months, but she hates it in there. She'll sleep on our bed but I can't sleep with her in there. Is she too young to sleep in her crib? She looks so small in there. I hope we get this figured out soon because it is really hard on all of us.

Comments

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First Post

Hi! I decided to start this blog as a way for family & friends to keep up with Ava as she grows. I hope you'll check it often. I hope to update with pictures/posts at least once a week, although with a new baby that might be easier said than done.

Ava is just over 3 weeks old now, and we have already seen some changes in her. She is trying to hold her head up more, and you can tell her eyes are focusing on more things. She really looks at us now. The bump on her head has gone away and so has her jaundice. She loves to eat, be held, and look at her teddy bear mobile. She hates her bassinet and doesn't really like to sleep, so she has been keeping us busy. Her favorite game is to pretend to fall asleep in my arms, and then as soon as I put her down she wakes up and fusses. That is fun for everyone.

Please check back often, and feel free to comment. At this point, I welcome advice. How do I get this child to sleep in her bassinet, and is she too young to let her "cry it out?"