All That Blooms

A few of our favorite captured moments this month:

8/12 - Poop face! If you think this is funny, you should see the video! LOL

8/16 - Relaxing at the pool

8/22 (two months/almost 9 weeks) - Such a happy baby!

8/22 - She tries so hard to laugh!

8/22 - Showing her support at Michigan's media day

Changes this month:
Emma likes to watch TV.
Lots of goo & gaa’s.
She moves her mouth and “talks”.
She’s all smiles and “talkative” after a good nap, a good meal and bath time.
She hops around in her tub when she’s excited.
Emma tries to sit up when she’s tired of laying down/sitting in her car seat, apparently.
She also tries to laugh.
Her nighttime routine seems pretty, well, routine. Sleep between 10:30 and 11:30, eat around 4 and then again around 7. I’m not sure there’s any set routine during the day. We let her eat and sleep when she wants to.
I still sit in the backseat with her when we’re in the car. She stares at me a lot when we’re back there.
She’s still mostly breastfed. I’ve been having supply issues, but I’ll have that story for another post.
Surprisingly, we don’t deal with a lot of crying.

Emma’s two-month appointment is September 2nd (a little late because her pediatrician is on vacation), so I’ll post another update on her weight and height then She’s filling out, though, that’s for sure!

I know I have been MIA for the past few weeks.  Hubby, Emma and I just got home from another two weeks or so at the in-laws’ because of electrical problems at home.  Let me tell you, the month of August has not gone very well for us at all!  Emma has been perfect, of course, but everything else has been a little nuts!  It all started on that family (about 30 of hubby’s relatives) vacation to Indianapolis – a two and a half hour drive – that we’d been looking forward to all year.

This is going to be long… Read the rest of this entry »

While I was pregnant, I came across a drink for breastfeeding moms called Mamatini. It was my plan from the beginning to breastfeed Emma and I was afraid that I wouldn’t produce milk or enough milk (first-time fears, I suppose), so I contacted the owner of the company, Erica, about trying it. She agreed to send me a case with specific instructions not to start drinking it until the baby was born, as it is designed for nursing mothers.

From Drinkmamatini.com:
Mamatini is an all-natural, organic herbal infusion that was created by a pediatrician with your specific needs in mind. Mamatini can help you breastfeed better by boosting milk supply, increasing your energy and your ability to absorb and retain critical nutrients your body is using to produce milk for your baby.

Drinking 1-2 bottles of Mamatini each day helps increase milk supply, relieve baby’s colic symptoms, and increase your energy, leaving you free to enjoy that precious first year with your baby.

About the ingredients:
Fenugreek helps you produce a generous supply of milk for your baby
Fennel stimulates the “let down” reflex, prevents bloating and colic
Chamomile, Ginger relieve stomach upset and provide restful sleep
Micronutrients promote absorption of vitamins and minerals, such as Calcium and Iron, often depleted during pregnancy and breastfeeding
Vitamin A forms healthy teeth, bones, skin and nails and is key for breastfeeding
Vitamin Cforms collagen in the body and aids the absorption of Iron
Vitamin D aids the absorption of Calcium, forming strong bones
Folic Acid and B Vitamins provide energy and prevent birth defects

I have to admit that I tried to drink a bottle of Mamatini the day Emma was born but was a little put-off by the ginger-mint flavor. I emailed Erica and asked if she had any suggestions to improve the flavor, and she let me know that it’s basically an unsweetened tea and that I could add a sweetener. (I’m not a huge fan of tea in general, so maybe that’s my issue). I added a couple packets of lemon Splenda to a bottle and loved it! I also tried it with a packet of Arizona Pomegranate Tea (the ones you mix with a bottle of water) and it was even better. I had no problem at all drinking two bottles a day, and could have easily drank it all day.

I haven’t had any milk-production issues as far as I know and have had frequent “let-downs” (when the milk comes down), but I can’t be sure that’s from the ingredients of Mamatini. (We’ll see if it’s different now that I’m out of drinks!) I felt great knowing that I was drinking something good for me and for Emma, though. I have already considered ordering more.

While Mamatini is a little bit pricey, if you’re having milk production issues (or a baby suffering from colic – I would love to hear if it works well in that area!) I would definitely recommend giving it a try! You can order by the case or sign up for a 4-week or 12-week auto shipment. There’s free shipping for the auto-shipments and a 10% savings when you sign up for 12-weeks. In honor of World Breastfeeding Week, Erica has offered everybody an additional 20% savings:  Simply use the coupon code BLOOM20 when you order.

Please remember that Mamatini is for nursing mothers. You should not drink Mamatini while you’re pregnant because Fenugreek – in large doses – is not recommended for pregnant women. While the amount contained in Mamatini is safe, it’s better to wait until the baby is born and you are ready to start breastfeeding.

Our little girl is already six weeks old!

I can’t believe Emma is already 5wks old! She went to her one-month checkup on Thursday and she’s up to 8lbs, 2oz and 20.5″ long. And I worried that she wasn’t eating enough!

All bundled up after a bath. See how happy she is? (one month old/4wks, 2 days)

She loves having a bath, being dressed/undressed and having her diaper changed. She grunts a lot, and gurgles and growls. She smiles at Daddy the most, and when she’s eating. She seems to like sleeping with her face against something soft and warm, usually her own hand, my hand or whatever she happens to by sleeping on/in.

She also loves car rides. (12 days old)

She still sleeps most of the day and sleeps well (usually) at night between feedings. Mark likes to give her a bath right before or after her last feeding before bed and then puts her to sleep in his arms. We go to bed around midnight and she wakes up between 4:30 and 5 to eat, then again around 8. She eats for an average of 12 minutes.  She’s pretty good about going back to sleep after eating or putting herself back to sleep, after a few minutes of happily looking around.  She’s pretty content for the most part.  I have had some issues with her getting fussy while eating, pulling/tugging at the nipple and squirming.  We haven’t quite figured out what that’s about (Full? “Empty” breast? Discomfort? Something I ate?), but doesn’t usually last long.

Their favorite time of the day (2wks, 6 days) All three of us love my Leach Co Cuddle-U pillow.

We did have Emma sleeping in her carseat at night because she sleeps better sitting up, rather than flat in her bassinet, but our pediatrician let us know that it increases the risk of SIDS because she can get all scrunched up and close off her airways – YIKES! The doctor told us that putting her in a swing or bouncer is fine, though, so she sleeps in her swing now. She naps well flat on her back during the day, so maybe we’ll just try to switch those around at some point.  My dad wouldn’t be happy if he bought he a crib for nothing

Em's first JCP Portrait session at 11 days old!

We haven’t really started using her cloth diapers yet. We tried them after one wash, as instructed on their tag, but she soaked right through them every time. I was told to wash/dry them 5-6 times despite what the tag says, so I did that. I spent the last week and a half trying to remove the rust that a few of the inserts seemed to have absorbed from our washer (No idea why it shot out so much rust during one wash! Stupid washer/water lines.)  I tried rewashing with regular soap, dish soap, soaking in Rockin’ Green Soap, soaking in a “natural” oxy booster, Shout AND an OxyClean paste as suggested by GroVia, with no luck. I’m giving up on that, so we’ll start using them again soon

She loves bath time! (one month/4wks, 2 days)

We had an “America’s Funniest Home Videos” moment on Sunday while Mark was bathing her. It happened AFTER I turned off the camera, of course! Before I turned it off, I thought she’ll probably do something really funny after I shut this thing off.. and she did *sigh*. I was getting a towel and Mark was getting ready to take her out of her baby tub (sitting in the big bathtub) when she pooped, turning the water bright green. He picked her up over the bathtub so I could empty the baby tub and he could give her another bath, and she peed. I emptied her tub and had the water running to refill it when she let one of her explosive poops go.. all over the bathtub! There was so much force behind it that some of it managed to hit my leg (ew!) I almost peed myself laughing!

3wks, 4 days