The First Month & a Half with Cooper
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| Our sweet baby boy, Cooper Nash |
So, September 7th we left the hospital and headed home. I remember pulling into the driveway and Eric letting me get out before pulling into the garage. It was painful, lol. I moved VERY slowly. Eric turned off the car, got out, got Cooper and car seat out very gently, and we walked through the door as a new family. It was like crossing the threshold after the honeymoon - it meant so much.
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| Banjo's introduction to Baby Boy |
Honestly, the first few days are extremely foggy. I had to bust out my iPhone to look at my photos and I reviewed my Facebook page too (totally sobbed reliving it all) to even remember what happened - ha. I remember having a routine: Going to bed, waking up to feed and comfort little man, trying to go back to sleep (but failing miserably because all I wanted to do was stare at him), waking up around 7:00 AM, bringing down all my hospital gear (ya know, the pads, squirt bottle, and my loves - the percoset and naproxen) and my body pillow, and setting up shop on the couch for the day. I was told I was not allowed to do much for the first 6 weeks, but especially for the first 2-4. I couldn't even go up and down our stairs more than 2 x's a day and I couldn't lift anything heavier than our 9 pounder - which was tough for me. I don't like being told what I can and can't do...ha. Stubborn much?
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| My babies and me... Lele, Coop, my parents baby, Belle & Banjo |
Eric got to stay home from his (brand new) job for one whole week. It was so nice to have him there to bond with our son. He became a pro at diaper changes, bought me flowers, constantly told me how awesome I was, and was a serious rockstar in the kitchen. Love that man. I decided to be totally rad and let him golf with my Pop the first weekend we were home, too.
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Eric and his mini me |
Both of our parents were at our house for the first couple of days, which sounds like it would be chaos but it actually worked out nicely. You do what you have to do when family travels from 2500 miles away. We had some great meals, played with the new addition, payed attention to the fur-babies, and tried to sleep as often as we could because we had the extra hands...but I was nursing every hour and a half basically. Whew, that was exhausting. It was also hard because he had gotten so used to the nipple shield, so it took a lot of time and patience to get him to wean... He finally did about a month later. Phew. During the first few days of being home, Mom and Mom-in-law went all over town in search of the perfect glider for us. My parents bought this for Eric, Cooper and me for the nursery. Like? (His colors are Navy, Grey and White.)
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| Proud parents in our new glider |
The first few nights were tough, but I was on such a high, I didn't mind in the slightest. Coop did fairly well during the day (had major gas though - like loud, explosive gas), but as soon as we got into our room, it was like he was thinking, "Nope, I don't like it in here." He cried and cried, screamed and screamed. We'll soon find out why...
Eric's folks left a few days later to give my parents some time with us, so they took a road trip to the East Coast... They loved KY and PA a lot, and saw many Amish towns. Alberta was in heaven! They brought us back Vermont cheese and maple syrup, and Coop got some cute outfits.
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| Nana & Papa Kambestad |
My parents stayed, helped out, and loved on their new Grandson. It was so wonderful having them here.
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| Gigi & Cooper |
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| Pop Pop & Coop |
Cooper was lucky and had many visitors, too. We also got some lovely flowers, and my sister even sent us cookies. We felt very loved.
Mom and I took Cooper to his first Doctor appointment 5 days later to be checked out by the doc who did his circ. We loved her, but it turned out she was SOOOO far away! Anyway, Cooper's weight was down to 8 pounds and 5 ounces (63rd percentile), he was still 21.5 inches long (76th percentile) and his head circumference was in the...wait for it...98TH PERCENTILE. Holy. Cow. No wonder why he was so hard to deliver. He also impressed the doc, mom and me tremendously because, at FIVE DAYS OLD, he freakin' rolled over! TWICE! Doc White was very impressed...actually, shocked. That doesn't happen. My lil' Hercules.
Mom and Dad stayed through Mom's birthday - USC's opener (Cooper's first SC viewing experience) - and more.
They departed on September 16th, and I cried my eyes out. I was so nervous, but Cooper and I did great. Eric's parents arrived shortly after, and stayed through the 23rd (ish???). Alberta and I took him to his 2 week check-up, and the new doc (Dr. Loesh at Brentwood Children's Clinic). Cooper's weight was back up to 8 pounds and 15 ounces, he was all healed from his circ, and all was well. We discussed the gas, but doc didn't seem too worried. Cooper had a few rough nights, followed by a few good nights. I was just doing "on demand" feedings, but I should have started a schedule and routine. He just screamed a lot, and was in pain from all of the gas. Friends on Facebook offered a plethora of advice; some of which we tried, and some we did not. One thing we did try was Colic Calm. It worked for a few nights, but was not a permanent solution. Doc said to keep her informed and that is may be a milk protein intolerance, so maybe try cutting the main dairy products out of my diet: milk, ice cream, cheese (so sad, if you know me, I LOVE cheese!), etc. But - anything for baby boy.
Side Note: I have some news to share soon. We did a lot of stuff regarding this news during this time, too. Stay tuned. The news we were going to share a few months ago TOTALLY, 100% changed. What a fun, surprising ride life is, huh?
Eric played in his softball tournament, and Coop his parents and I all went to cheer him on. Eric got a home run, and we enjoyed seeing all of our softball buddies. I shielded Coop with my life though, lol. It was nice to get out but after his games, I couldn't wait to get home with my boy. Eric's parents left on the morning of the 24th after I took my shower and got organized. It was nice having the help, but there I was...on my own again. Cooper and I did great...and Daddy helped when he came home from work! It was awesome...but he had some rough nights, and just generally seemed uncomfortable, poor kiddo.
My Mom flew back to Nashville for a month long stay on September 26th. I gotta tell you - she is really amazing with lil' dude and is super helpful. Dad flew in a few weeks later - and helped us out a lot too. We filled our days loving on Cooper, shopping, cleaning, and hanging out. We even went to a baby shower for a family friend... We were having a blast, even though Mr. Coop still had obvious problems. My sad little man. FREAKING ADORABLE THOUGH, and still loving life and all of us.
Mom and I went to the doctor multiple times, and even though he was in serious pain and crying all the time, Cooper was gaining weight just great. Seriously, at 1 month check up, he weighed 10 pounds and 9 ounces.
The doctor knew that he was in pain and that no one was sleeping, so she had me restrict my diet even more at this point. It was either that, or switch to a special, expensive, hypo-allergenic formula, and I was not ready to stop breastfeeding. So...diet it was. I was basically eating bland protein and non-gassy veggies, no acidic anything, no milk protein, no soy, etc. He was also prescribed baby Zantac. He still did not get better. I was heartbroken. (Still am...) I loved being the one who could give to my son... but it was hurting him.
Unimportant Side Note: At 5 Weeks, I could fit into my pre-preggo skinny jeans! Woo!
October 14/15, Cooper had his worst night yet... He was up literally all night. I moved downstairs so that Eric could sleep. I tried feeding him, changing him, bouncing him, singing, shushing, swaddling...nothing worked. He was just too distressed. Mom and Dad came down to support me...but there was nothing anyone could do. I remember at one point Cooper was screaming in pain and crying so hard that I broke down. I started crying my eyes out, whispering, "I love you baby boy, I am so sorry. It's going to be okay...it's going to be okay." Mom and I took turns bouncing him, rocking him, and making sure we were doing all we could for him, but we knew we needed to see the doctor ASAP. I don't think he slept until early morning came, and the only reason he slept was because he was so exhausted from screaming ALL night from the severe pain. The doc got us in that morning.
He weighed 11 pounds and 11 ounces (and was 22 1/4 inches long). Clearly his milk protein intolerance was not hindering his weight gain - but there was still such an obvious issue (doc described it like a colitis for adults) that I was willing to try the formula. Doc said that I would be okay - she saw I was devastated. She reassured me that he would be okay - Her sons had this issue, and she switched them to formula - and today, they're thriving. She said I would be emotional, but everything would be fine. She told me to surround myself with love and support. Etc... Anyway, she was great, understanding, and took the time to answer every concerned question my mom and I had. She even gave us some Similac Alimentum to try out.
I gave him 2 more feedings while we researched formula and sanitized all of our bottles, cried the whole time, and loved and soaked up every moment during that amazing bonding time with my son...then...we moved on...to the formula.
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| Gorgeous Auntie Cassie lovin' Coop |
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| Lovely Auntie Jen looking so happy |
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| Marion and Baby Coop hanging out |
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| Left to Right: From Ukulele's old mama, Ariane From my office, LBMC From Eric, to me |
Mom and I took Cooper to his first Doctor appointment 5 days later to be checked out by the doc who did his circ. We loved her, but it turned out she was SOOOO far away! Anyway, Cooper's weight was down to 8 pounds and 5 ounces (63rd percentile), he was still 21.5 inches long (76th percentile) and his head circumference was in the...wait for it...98TH PERCENTILE. Holy. Cow. No wonder why he was so hard to deliver. He also impressed the doc, mom and me tremendously because, at FIVE DAYS OLD, he freakin' rolled over! TWICE! Doc White was very impressed...actually, shocked. That doesn't happen. My lil' Hercules.
Mom and Dad stayed through Mom's birthday - USC's opener (Cooper's first SC viewing experience) - and more.
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| Coop says, "Fight on!" |
They departed on September 16th, and I cried my eyes out. I was so nervous, but Cooper and I did great. Eric's parents arrived shortly after, and stayed through the 23rd (ish???). Alberta and I took him to his 2 week check-up, and the new doc (Dr. Loesh at Brentwood Children's Clinic). Cooper's weight was back up to 8 pounds and 15 ounces, he was all healed from his circ, and all was well. We discussed the gas, but doc didn't seem too worried. Cooper had a few rough nights, followed by a few good nights. I was just doing "on demand" feedings, but I should have started a schedule and routine. He just screamed a lot, and was in pain from all of the gas. Friends on Facebook offered a plethora of advice; some of which we tried, and some we did not. One thing we did try was Colic Calm. It worked for a few nights, but was not a permanent solution. Doc said to keep her informed and that is may be a milk protein intolerance, so maybe try cutting the main dairy products out of my diet: milk, ice cream, cheese (so sad, if you know me, I LOVE cheese!), etc. But - anything for baby boy.
Side Note: I have some news to share soon. We did a lot of stuff regarding this news during this time, too. Stay tuned. The news we were going to share a few months ago TOTALLY, 100% changed. What a fun, surprising ride life is, huh?
Eric played in his softball tournament, and Coop his parents and I all went to cheer him on. Eric got a home run, and we enjoyed seeing all of our softball buddies. I shielded Coop with my life though, lol. It was nice to get out but after his games, I couldn't wait to get home with my boy. Eric's parents left on the morning of the 24th after I took my shower and got organized. It was nice having the help, but there I was...on my own again. Cooper and I did great...and Daddy helped when he came home from work! It was awesome...but he had some rough nights, and just generally seemed uncomfortable, poor kiddo.
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| Check out my hat! |
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| I love my tennis shoes! |
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| Sleepy boy with baby biceps. |
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| See! He can smile! I am so happy he's not in pain 100% of the time! |
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| Cooper LOVES the bouncy ball and this play mat. |
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| Pop pop and all the Kambestad kids...lol. |
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| Smiles |
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| Gigi and Baby Cooper... Look at the love in this picture. |
Mom and I went to the doctor multiple times, and even though he was in serious pain and crying all the time, Cooper was gaining weight just great. Seriously, at 1 month check up, he weighed 10 pounds and 9 ounces.
The doctor knew that he was in pain and that no one was sleeping, so she had me restrict my diet even more at this point. It was either that, or switch to a special, expensive, hypo-allergenic formula, and I was not ready to stop breastfeeding. So...diet it was. I was basically eating bland protein and non-gassy veggies, no acidic anything, no milk protein, no soy, etc. He was also prescribed baby Zantac. He still did not get better. I was heartbroken. (Still am...) I loved being the one who could give to my son... but it was hurting him.
Unimportant Side Note: At 5 Weeks, I could fit into my pre-preggo skinny jeans! Woo!
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| My handsome boy and me. I love this little man. |
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| My sleepy boys... |
October 14/15, Cooper had his worst night yet... He was up literally all night. I moved downstairs so that Eric could sleep. I tried feeding him, changing him, bouncing him, singing, shushing, swaddling...nothing worked. He was just too distressed. Mom and Dad came down to support me...but there was nothing anyone could do. I remember at one point Cooper was screaming in pain and crying so hard that I broke down. I started crying my eyes out, whispering, "I love you baby boy, I am so sorry. It's going to be okay...it's going to be okay." Mom and I took turns bouncing him, rocking him, and making sure we were doing all we could for him, but we knew we needed to see the doctor ASAP. I don't think he slept until early morning came, and the only reason he slept was because he was so exhausted from screaming ALL night from the severe pain. The doc got us in that morning.
He weighed 11 pounds and 11 ounces (and was 22 1/4 inches long). Clearly his milk protein intolerance was not hindering his weight gain - but there was still such an obvious issue (doc described it like a colitis for adults) that I was willing to try the formula. Doc said that I would be okay - she saw I was devastated. She reassured me that he would be okay - Her sons had this issue, and she switched them to formula - and today, they're thriving. She said I would be emotional, but everything would be fine. She told me to surround myself with love and support. Etc... Anyway, she was great, understanding, and took the time to answer every concerned question my mom and I had. She even gave us some Similac Alimentum to try out.
I gave him 2 more feedings while we researched formula and sanitized all of our bottles, cried the whole time, and loved and soaked up every moment during that amazing bonding time with my son...then...we moved on...to the formula.
6 Weeks - 2 Months Coming Up Next...
And the items I LOVE, and recommend.
And the items I LOVE, and recommend.
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