Once we were home from the hospital, Gibson and I took up residence in our bedroom and pretty much stayed in there the first few days. Liam came down with a runny nose the day we came home, so we kept them separated. We ended up having to keep them apart for most of the first two weeks because Liam's runny nose lasted that long. Unfortunately, I think this set us up for some jealousy from Liam.
I would say that Liam has had a tough time with all of this. He definitely loves Gibson, which means he wants to mess with him all the time. Well, he can be too rough and he's just unpredictable in general, so we have to stop him from bothering Gibson much in order to keep Gibson safe. Those arms and legs of his are just too tempting to pull on, apparently. But overall, I think the thing Liam is having the hardest time with is that I just can't give him all the attention he wants. I give him what I can, but Gibson literally wants to be on me 24/7. Liam learned fast to misbehave when I am stuck feeding Gibson. He has started screaming when he's upset like when we tell him no. He has refused to go to bed for hours at night resulting in everyone showing their bad side. So Liam has definitely been our biggest challenge this month.
Gibson, however, has been a pretty easy baby. He is content...as long as he is being held. This is challenging for sure at times. I strap him on me with a wrap for most of the day. He nurses a lot. I have to hold him at night while we sleep. Yes, a month in and he's still sleeping on top of me at night. I haven't laid flat on my back for more than a few minutes this past month. My back is killing me. Occasionally, I can lay him down in his crib or the bouncy seat for just a little bit. However, I can't leave him unattended in the bouncy seat to even go to the bathroom because of Liam. Hopefully things will change soon and Gibson will start sleeping in his crib at night. It's literally less than a foot away from my side of the bed, but me being close by seems to wake him up until I hold him. Gibson also doesn't like to be swaddled as most babies do. I'm hoping when it gets warmer that he will warm up to his crib.
Back to his first week home. The day after we left the hospital, Gibson had his first check up with our pediatrician. I even had it together enough to take him by myself to the appointment. His weight was down to 6 pounds, 14 ounces from 7 pounds, 11 ounces at birth. So that's a pretty big difference. The doctor suggested giving him a tiny amount of formula before breastfeeding to wake him up, and that seemed to work well. Gibson also had a bit of jaundice, but not as bad as Liam. The doctor was overall pleased with Gibson despite these things. He assured me that I wasn't starving him even though my milk had not yet come in. We had to go back two days later for a weight check and to check his jaundice (just by observation instead of heel pricks!). That day, his weight was 6 pounds, 13 ounces, so he had lost weight even though my milk had come in by then. The jaundice was about the same or a little better. The doctor was once again fine with all of this and told me to keep doing what I was doing regarding nursing and formula. I remember that weekend Gibson nursed a ton and then we went back yet again on that Monday when he was 8 days old. I thought he had surely gained weight, but nope, he was still 6 pounds, 13 ounces. So he hadn't lost any weight either. He had also not pooped since he was 3 days old. The doctor had confirmed he wasn't constipated, though, and he had not been acting like he was trying to do that but couldn't. Once again the doctor was not concerned and said he was well-hydrated. He said I could give more formula if I wanted to, so I decided to give him a little more. That second week, it seemed like I just wasn't making enough for him as he would still be hungry after nursing. I wasn't attached to the ideal of getting to exclusively breastfeed, so I was fine with giving him more formula. And then when he was 10 days old, he started pooping again after taking a week off. I could tell he was starting to gain weight as well and his jaundice was gone. At a month old, I still have to give formula after most feedings, but Gibson is getting way more breast milk than Liam ever did, so to me we are successful and I am not stressed out about it like I was with Liam. It's a much better situation.
At his two-week appointment, Gibson was up to 8 pounds, 2 ounces (70th percentile) and 21 inches long officially (99th percentile). So all the feeding was doing him good. To date, Gibson has still not spit up even one time. He's also really good at burping after meals. He really does love to eat and is chunking up really fast.
Gibson hasn't gotten out of the house much in his first month except to go to the pediatrician. It's now been a couple of weeks since he's even been there and he doesn't have to go back until he is 2 months old. It's been cold a lot of the time we've been home (with a few spring-like days here and there), and it's flu season. So those reasons coupled with the fact that we don't really want to deal with going out with two kids yet has kept him at home. I've gone places either by myself or with Liam, but Gibson so far has stayed behind. We have taken several walks around the neighborhood, but Gibson has been in the wrap snoozing on me every time. He got to meet his grandmother, great-grandparents, great aunt and uncle, and friends who blessed us with meals. Gibson also experienced his first Valentine's Day in his first month.
The first few weeks with newborn Liam still stand as the hardest of my life. I am much more calm and less-stressed this time around. Gibson has given us a few smiles on purpose and is starting to focus on us more. He's been awake a lot more since the third week or so. It doesn't help that Liam makes a ton of noise or that Gibson will wake up usually if I put him down even for just a couple of minutes. The longest stretch he has slept has been 5 and a half hours, but that was just one time!
I have to consciously remind myself that Gibson is not just baby Liam all over again. He certainly looks similar, but so far their baby personalities are pretty different. Liam always enjoyed his space and slept in his bed from day one. Gibson demands to be held. Liam was way more fussy than Gibson is. Maybe Gibson will be our laid-back go with the flow child because Liam is certainly not!
We are very much in love with Gibson already. He is a sweet, snugly baby. I know that Liam will adjust one day to all these changes, and then life will be easier maybe. The days really do go by fast, though. I'm sure Gibson will be the precocious two year old before I know it.
First Week:
Second Week:
Third week:
Fourth Week:
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