Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Surprising Things

  • Exponentially increased need for and use of batteries- From the occasional battery for a flashlight and a set of recharge-ables for the camera, to... the mobile (which wears down quickly), the swing, the colic pad (again, quickly), the sleep positioner, the baby papasan, oh and what else am I forgetting... batteries, batteries, batteries.

  • Poop is THRILLING- We wait eagerly for poopy diapers. NEVER imagined that.

  • Washing cloth diapers fine- No big whup. Really.

  • Mundane things distressing; distressing things mundane- For our baby I mean. To be specific- she HATES sleeves, sleeves of all things! Putting something over her head, that I could understand to be distressing, but that typically doesn't phase her, but putting on or taking off sleeves... oh goodness. Taking her temperature rectally, picture of mellowness. Hunh?

  • Lightning fast mood changes- Truly impressive, really, the rate at which our sweet thing's mood (and corresponding facial expressions) can change and, for that matter, how mysterious the triggers for these shifting moods can be.

  • How intense and loud such a little person's screaming can be- I've written about this before- and to clarify, she doesn't cry anywhere near constantly, little bursts from 5-20 minutes scattered throughout the day, she is able to be consoled almost always! This isn't colic. What is surprising is how intense it can be and how quickly she gets to totally cranked up. I mean this is some impressive stuff.

  • How calm we remain when she is so intense- Again, I've written about this before, but really it shocks me. I distinctly remember more than one occasion of being in a public place with an intensely crying baby and being so distressed, wanting to fix it, but not being able to, and it ruining my night. I also remember babysitting for intensely crying babies and not being able to calm them and how horrible that was. I guess the difference is that I can breastfeed this crying baby, and that almost always helps, but also... I don't know... I'm more peacefully able to accept her as she is, however she's feeling, and this is new to me, not internalizing another's distress, especially the distress of someone I love so dearly... this is NEW.

  • Difficulty distinguishing between mommy/daddy farts and baby farts- Seriously, who would have thought that could be challenging?

7 comments:

esperanza said...

Oh my. I am cracking up. What great observations, most of which could have come from our house.

Desert Mama said...

Isn't it amazing how calm one can be when a little one is just amazingly pissed off at who knows what? As the mother of one very intense now 5 year old, my continued patience in the face of her fits - which have changed but not disappeared through the years - amazes me. Surely a gift from God! I am a generally pretty patient person, but she has put me to the test many times.....
Also - quick funny about the being able to nurse thing - my mom, the first time she watched M. while I went out for about an hour, was faced with a red-faced screaming bundle about 45 minutes into that time - and totally flustered. She realized then how much she had taken for granted just being able to nurse when her babies were upset - she would try other things, but nursing was always there if nothing else was working. It really threw her for a loop when she couldn't figure out how to comfort M. Fortunately for her, my dad came home early (I was visiting them) and was able to help - he was much better equipped, having never had breastfeeding to rely on....

Silent said...

It's funny how some babies are so alike and yest so different. Baby Girl could get intense quickly without it fazing me when she was tiny. Now when she gets intense, I'm less calm--it seems like as she gets older there are more options of what could be bothering her--and breastfeeding isn't always what she'll accept.

I can't believe you await poopy diapers! I must have a pooping machine! (We do sometimes call her Princess Poopy Pants.) I think she was 3 months old before we changed a diaper that didn't have at least a little bit of poop in it. And now, it's usually one poop a day, but often so much that it's up the back and out the legs.

Oh yes, batteries--and I'm sure none of them use the same size! :)

April said...

This made me laugh, Sarah. These are some of the things I'd forgotten!

About the pooping -- when our first was born, neither of us had really seen newborn poop (I didn't remember that part of siblings and hadn't babysat any breastfed newborns.) We took a picture of her first mustard poop to show the pediatrician and that thing is still in our photo albums. Every once in a while it comes up on a slideshow and while it should be disgusting, it always makes us smile that we were such worried first time parents. Who knew poop could be so exciting, indeed?

Jennifer said...

I love the farts confusion--the blending of a family takes all forms, doesn't it??? Love reading about Miss Caroline and how you are all getting to know one another. I remember something of that absolute acceptance of my infant children; your message is a reminder to tap that feeling once more. It somehow seems harder to do when the kids are so determined to not only be pesky, annoying, ill-mannered (and also lovely, beautiful, sweet...), but also don't want any comfort or closeness to get them down off that wall. The drive toward independence is thrilling and exhausting both. Thank you for taking me back!

Jon said...

The batteries are out of control with us also--I think it's a product of not being able to wire baby toys. We finally got rechargeables.

The baby sounds like just a delight! I think you're heading into some really fun days.

EJ said...

The need for batteries only gets worse. But then, you'll find, you can't figure out why, for they are happiest getting out the tupperware tops and bowls, as well as screwing and unscrewing the water bottle tops.

But then they enter junior high, and you want them to satisfied with plastic ware.