Lexie is Simply a Fussy Baby

The poor girl must have an upset tummy a lot of the time. She fusses off and on all day, and then a lot in the evenings. That is when she does her outright screaming a few times a week. The only things that soothe her are holding her upright against your shoulder and bouncing up and down, or laying her face down on your lap and firmly patting her back. At least she usually settles down.

And she wants to be held all the time, which is why I'm having an increasingly difficult time updating this blog and just checking email. You should see my house! Dishes and laundry are getting done, but picking up the clutter and vacuuming regularly have fallen by the wayside. Oh well... I'm just doing what I can and trying not to stress about the rest.

A friend is going to lend me her Baby Bjorn front carrier, which will really be a blessing. Lexie hates the sling I have to wear her in... she hates having her legs scrunched up in there and will scream unless she's in the upright position. She's only 6 weeks old and already giving us a taste of being very high maintenance. My mom and sister said, "That's a girl for you!"

Lexie's Thrush is gone in her mouth, but I'm still treating both of us with Nystatin so I don't reinfect her when nursing. The yeast infection in my milk ducts is much more difficult to clear up, but at least it's no longer painful to nurse. Thank you everyone who prayed about this!

Lexie is sleeping a little better at night. She's still up 2-3 times to eat, but will usually go right back to sleep afterwards, thank God! Now if we can just get rid of one of those night-time feedings...

Lexie is Back to Soy Formula

We ended up switching Lexie back to soy formula. Since we tried the Enfamil Gentlease she's been spitting up a lot... almost to the point of throwing up. I'm hoping that with the gas drops she'll do better with the soy than she did 2 weeks ago. Plus, that might've been enough time for her digestive system to mature a little bit.

Thanks to everyone who has shared what worked for them when their babies had thrush. It's been a huge help. The lactation consultants at Kettering have been awesome, too. One of them even called my doctor to discuss the importance of getting me a 2 week course of diflucan to knock out my infection. Apparently, Dr. Banias tried to call that in, but my insurance company would only approve 3 does instead of 14. Go figure. But, he's planning to call United Healthcare directly on Monday and personally ask them to approve it for me. How about that? Please pray that it happens so we can knock out the infection in my milk ducts so I don't reinfect Lexie.

By the way, the thrush in her mouth is almost completely gone already since her infection was topical. She's definitely doing much better!

1990 Chevy Astro Van for Sale

Today my parents blessed us by giving us their car since they decided to buy a minivan. We now have a beautiful 2003 Hyundai Elantra and it drives great! Thanks mom and Fred!

This means that we are hoping to sell the old van. We figure it might be a blessing to a high school or college kid since it has some issues. The engine runs great and it has new brakes. The only issues are that some of the doors don't open from the outside, the front windshield leaks a little when it rains, and part of the muffler is gone, so we're hoping to get $750 for it. Please let us know if you know anyone who might want a used van for a very reasonable price. It handles very well.

A Decent Night's Sleep

After 2 hours of screaming last evening, Lexie slept better through the night than she has so far. After going to bed at 10:30 pm, she was up at 12:45 am, 3:30 am, then 7:00 am... what a blessing. I got 3 decent stretches of sleep which did me wonders, especially the 3 hour stretch at the end. Your prayers are definitely working!

Today she seemed to be feeling a lot better. She wasn't as fussy and took a couple nice long naps. This evening, she only cried for a little while and was settled easily by lying face down on my lap. Luke likes to help pat her back when she cries, and lays his stuffed monkey next to her to make her feel better... it's adorable!

Lexie has Thrush

Well, we went to the pediatrician yesterday and Lexie has thrush in her mouth, which is a yeast infection. Apparently it causes pain while trying to eat and discomfort afterwards, so we're hoping the antibiotic will help some of her fussiness and digestive issues. It appears that part of her problem is simply an immature digestive system which should resolve itself within a few months.

I only have a minute, so more details will come later.

In the meantime, please keep Lexie in your prayers as she is very fussy and uncomfortable, especially in the evenings. Also, please pray for me, too; since the infection is in Lexie's mouth, it affects me as well. It's very painful to breastfeed right now and I have to get an antibiotic for a yeast infection so we don't keep passing it back and forth. I'm pumping a lot and supplementing with both breast milk and an easy-to-digest type of formula, Enfamil Gentlease, which really seems to help Lexie.

A Very Fussy Baby

Lexie has had a very rough time today. She's been really fussy, if not downright screaming, off and on all day, especially this evening. The only thing that has helped her is laying her across our laps and patting her back very firmly. That's where she is at the moment (11:00 pm), and I'm praying she'll calm down and go to sleep soon.

She's also been cluster feeding today, which has left me in a bit of pain from all that nursing. To give myself a break, I've been supplementing with both soy formula and pumping when I can. I'm guessing it's a growth spurt. Today she was hungry at 2:00 am, 4:30, 6:30, 8:30, and every hour and a half to 2 hours all day long. So... you can add sleep deprivation to the mix.

I'm hanging in there, but have had a very emotional day. Yes, I'm still hormonal and cried a lot. I did manage to get a 1 hour nap while Luke was napping and Lexie had actually fallen asleep. (Maybe since she didn't sleep much today she'll sleep longer tonight!) Thank God Marty took over once he got home. I needed a break from the baby and got to spend some quality time with Luke. Poor guy, he gets neglected when Lexie is so needy. (I've been told that's a girl for you.)

With all the rain, Luke has been going stir crazy. He wants to play outside so badly. So, this afternoon, he played in the back yard for about an hour, then we took a walk in the stroller, then we walked around the block with him walking, then we played out back again after dinner. I'm hoping that he'll sleep good tonight after all that exercise. It also did me a world of good emotionally to sit outside in the sun.

I still appreciate everyone keeping Lexie and I in your prayers! (By the way, Lexie finally fell asleep... thank the Lord!)

Lexie Has Her Days & Nights Mixed Up

Lexie takes great naps during the day, some 3 hours long. But she only sleeps in 1 1/2 to 2 hour spurts and night. A few days ago she was wanting to stay awake for 2-3 hours in the middle of the night several nights in a row... talk about rough! We're hanging in there, though. Last night she was up every 2 1/2 hours but went back to sleep quickly each time, thank God!

She's gotten increasingly fussy and gassy, so I ended up switching her to soy formula for her night-time feedings, just like we did with Luke. She seems to really like it. She eats it much more eagerly than she did the milk-based formula, so it must taste better to her and sit well. I'm also avoiding all spicy stuff and giving her gas drops before each feeding so her little tummy doesn't hurt. It's helping a little, but I've come to the conclusion that she's a little colicy. She seems to fuss off and on in the evenings the last few days and nothing seems to completely help. I can get her settled down, but not completely comfortable. (At least it's not a continuous 3-hour screaming session!)

Don't they say that colic usually begins at around 3 weeks of age? We're just taking it one day at a time. She's definitely eating well... she's already turning into a little chunker.

My neck still bothers me from time to time when I catch myself tensing my shoulders while holding Lexie, but it's so much better than it was. I appreciate prayers at this point for Lexie to get her days and nights corrected and to sleep longer stretches at night. Thank God for my mom coming over a couple days a week to watch the kids so I can have a nice long nap!