I was tempted to title this post "Snot Factory," because that about sums up my general state for the past two weeks. I can't remember the last time I had the common cold, but I've had a relentless two weeks of symptoms now, and I'm beyond sick of it. At the height of things, where I was coughing every 10 mins, I stayed away from Gauri entirely. Since then, my symptoms have improved, but have not gone away fully.
Then my mom got sick, and we have two people (three including my father) coughing all over the place. A few days ago, it looked like Gauri had finally gotten this nasty infection, but thankfully, today, she seems to be mostly symptom-free, and her feeding (frantically knock on wood) has remained okay throughout.
I have a TON of help (an amazing (albeit slightly bossy) live-in nanny, a cousin who came and stayed a couple of days when everybody was sick, my parents, and my brother). The entire family is hands-on about taking care of her, which has literally saved my life. This is the amazing part of being here, and it is so lovely to see how much my family dotes on her. With my infection, I have not been able to fully bond the way I've wanted to with her, and sometimes, I literally elbowed out of the way by grandma and the grandpa and the uncle and even the nanny. Sigh....everybody wants their time with this little girl.
I went public on Facebook few days after the birth, and the response has been gratifyingly and very surprisingly overwhelmingly positive. It is quite amazing, but many really conservative family members have given me and my parents no grief and only offer congratulations and some even talk about how brave and intrepid I am, which just makes me blink in astonishment: I really did not see this coming, but I am so grateful (for my parents sake) that this response has been so positive.
As a technical note, I started the goat milk formula after ten days of being on Nestle Nan Pro 1 (which has soybean oil, yuck, I detest unfermented soy-based products). She tolerated the change very well, and her poop has become softer and the mild constipation she had on Nestle Nan has gone away.
From the formula I listed here, I increased the goat milk powder (to 1 tbsp per 8 oz), slightly decreased the lactose, halved the coconut oil, and threw out the blackstrap molasses as it appeared to be giving her too much iron (green poop the second day). The only downside we could see with this formula is that she seems to get hungry a little more often, but her weight gain has been good (8.5 ounces/week).
Then my mom got sick, and we have two people (three including my father) coughing all over the place. A few days ago, it looked like Gauri had finally gotten this nasty infection, but thankfully, today, she seems to be mostly symptom-free, and her feeding (frantically knock on wood) has remained okay throughout.
I have a TON of help (an amazing (albeit slightly bossy) live-in nanny, a cousin who came and stayed a couple of days when everybody was sick, my parents, and my brother). The entire family is hands-on about taking care of her, which has literally saved my life. This is the amazing part of being here, and it is so lovely to see how much my family dotes on her. With my infection, I have not been able to fully bond the way I've wanted to with her, and sometimes, I literally elbowed out of the way by grandma and the grandpa and the uncle and even the nanny. Sigh....everybody wants their time with this little girl.
I went public on Facebook few days after the birth, and the response has been gratifyingly and very surprisingly overwhelmingly positive. It is quite amazing, but many really conservative family members have given me and my parents no grief and only offer congratulations and some even talk about how brave and intrepid I am, which just makes me blink in astonishment: I really did not see this coming, but I am so grateful (for my parents sake) that this response has been so positive.
As a technical note, I started the goat milk formula after ten days of being on Nestle Nan Pro 1 (which has soybean oil, yuck, I detest unfermented soy-based products). She tolerated the change very well, and her poop has become softer and the mild constipation she had on Nestle Nan has gone away.
From the formula I listed here, I increased the goat milk powder (to 1 tbsp per 8 oz), slightly decreased the lactose, halved the coconut oil, and threw out the blackstrap molasses as it appeared to be giving her too much iron (green poop the second day). The only downside we could see with this formula is that she seems to get hungry a little more often, but her weight gain has been good (8.5 ounces/week).
Sounds like good times...aside from being sick of course! So glad your baby girl is thriving. Also glad your family has accepted your decision so positively. Keep up the good work Momma!!
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you've had so much support from your family- especially with your being sick. Hopefully as you feel better, you'll be able to elbow some other people out of the way!!! Take care! I hope you feel better soon
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful to have your family there pitching in. I remember being so sleep-deprived and out of it those first few weeks...Hope your health is quickly on the mend.
ReplyDeleteHow crappy that you've been plagued by this never-ending-cold in the first few weeks of your darling girl's life. I'm hoping it's all clear breathing from here.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you are completely in love with your girl. That's really great to read.
I'm relieved to read that your friends and family friends have been supportive of your choices, and have welcomed your daughter into their community.
Damn, sucks that you've fallen ill, but nothing tanks your immune system more than the stressors of being a new parent. Great to have your family pitching in, though!
ReplyDeleteI am so sorry about the cold interrupting this sweet time, but I am amazed at all the love your sweet baby is getting right now. Hoping that my late catching up finds you very well at this point and getting all the sweet snuggles in yourself.
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