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August 19, 2003
Straight Faces and Happy Faces 9/19/03
Jaida did not continue her trend with the happy faces. She brought home a straight face on Tuesday with a note that said, “Very talkative today, she seemed anxious or upset about something this morning.” Steve and I tried to talk to Jaida to find out what the problem had been but she shut down and got quiet. She even told Mom to leave her alone when she asked her what happened at school. The next day she had another straight face and the note said, “Playing in the halls and restroom.” Steve talked to her again and she promised to try and do better.
Jaida was able to keep her promise and when I met her as she got off the bus yesterday; she was already saying she got a happy face. I told her what a good job she had done and that I was proud of her. When Steve got home she was about to burst to say that she had been good at school. Although, it seems when she is good at school, we pay for it at home. I guess she has to let off steam somehow. She was a bundle of energy last night and I was tired too so we were getting on each other’s nerves I think. But tomorrow is Saturday and we can all relax a little.
Lambchop is Turning into a Pork Chop
The one thing about formula-fed babies is how quickly they gain weight. Julian is getting chubby. He has two chins and his little bum, which used to fit in my palm, is now overflowing out of my hand. He also outgrew the newborn diapers and it was a good thing I only bought three packs. He is officially wearing a size one diaper now! He doesn’t seem to eat that much but over the course of 24 hours, I guess it adds up. His stomach issues are starting to get better and I think his body just had to adjust to processing formula. His bowels are a little more regular and I have noticed he is not having so much trouble going.
I did get desperate earlier this week and I called the doctor after Julian kept me up all of Saturday and most of Sunday night. It was horrific. He didn’t sleep at all! After I described his behavior and bowel problems to the phone nurse, she said she would talk to Dr. Simon and call me back. I told her I thought it was gas and I asked if there was anything stronger than Mylicon. When she called back, she said Dr. Simon wanted to try something called Levsin drops. I quickly did a google search and found out that Levsin is an anti-spasmodic drug with some potentially bad side effects. I decided to get some Hyland’s colic tablets and Baby Bliss Gripe Water and try those first. I wanted to use the Levsin as a last resort.
Julian did seem less fussy after the first dose of gripe water. He had been whining and whimpering in his sleep all day on Monday. I gave him the tablets in an ounce of sterile water and that helped a little more. By 9:00 he was still fussing and acting like his tummy hurt so I gave him the lowest dose of the Levsin and waited. Since it is a sedative too, he went to sleep and only woke twice during Monday night. He also had four bowel movements and I think that helped. I don’t know if it was the extra water from the colic tablets or if he worked it out on his own, but he seemed much better after his stomach was empty. So far, the rest of the week has gone well. He still wakes up a lot at night but I make sure to give him the herbal stuff regularly and gas no longer seems to be the reason.
Julian’s personality has begun to emerge and he is quite a funny little kid. He gives us what I call the “warning cry” about 30 minutes before he really wants to eat. I finally figured this out and now I wait until he is a little more awake before I rush to the kitchen and warm up a bottle. Sometimes he just cries in his sleep for no apparent reason and I’ll heat the bottle and try to feed him and then he remains sound asleep. So I put him back in bed and right on cue, he wakes up when I’m back in bed or in the middle of doing something important like eating or using the bathroom. That is usually when Mom will rescue him and feed him or just hold him if he seems to want that.
We haven’t had as many visitors as I thought we would. My MIL has only been to see Julian once since he came home from the hospital. But as I’ve said before, she doesn’t really care for tiny babies. Toddlers are more her style so Julian has some growing to do before she takes an interest in him. My FIL hasn’t seen him since the day he was born. The marked contrast between my parents and my in-laws still amazes me. I wonder if it would be different if they had a daughter. My Dad comes by sometimes when Julian is awake in the mornings and he calls every day. Mom thinks Julian is going to be a genius because he is already trying to hold his head up and he pushes with his feet if you put your hand under them.
Steve’s aunt and cousin came to visit last Friday night and they both got on my last nerve. This aunt, his mother’s only sibling, is notorious for saying things that don’t need to be said and she has upset me in the past with her insensitive comments. I like to refer to her as Aunt Esther, like on Sanford and Son, because she is mean to everybody. She’s a regular old equal opportunity offender. Anyway, she critiqued everything from my failure to breastfeed (Why would you even try it?); to the way I was holding Julian. I really do not like that woman. Her daughter, A, has a weight problem and she said that me and A needed to watch the Dr. Phil special that was coming on later so we could hear what we needed to do to lose weight. I wanted to tell her to get the ---- out of my house but that wouldn’t have been nice. (Insert the expletive of your choice.)
This same aunt alluded to the fact that I was “too lazy” to do anything about birth control and that is why I got pregnant with Julian. UGHHH! Did I mention Alzheimer’s runs in their family? I think she may be next ‘cause she is obviously showing signs of dementia. Senile old bat! I mean, everything I said, she had a comeback for it. I said I wanted Julian to stay awake for a little while so he would hopefully sleep that night instead of waking at 12:00 or 1:00 and staying up for two hours. She just had to tell me about how her first child hollered from 10:00 to 2:00 every night and that I would live if he did the same thing. When she started in about the episode of Oprah that talked about PPD that was it. She kept saying how women with PPD were “sad and pitiful” and it was ridiculous that they couldn’t “run a household and take care of their children” I had to go to my room and cool off. My hormones were still all over the place and I was about to blow but it would have been a waste of time. She and my MIL are dense that way. Thankfully they left shortly after that.
All Aboard the Hormonal Express
As I said before, my hormones are in full upheaval. I was beginning to feel like I did after I gave birth to Jaida. I was spending all day trying to sleep and at night, the thought of going to sleep filled me with fear and dread. But for the life of me I couldn’t tell you what I was afraid of. Thank God I am starting to feel normal again. It must be the daily trips out of the house to drop off or pick up Jarod that have done the trick. I have also become reacquainted with my old friend, java. Lordy, how I used to love coffee! I was even a member of the Gevalia coffee club, LOL. But when I realized it was bordering on addiction, I quit cold turkey.
After Jaida was born, coffee was the only thing that got me through. And after nodding off slightly in traffic last week, I decided now is a good time to start drinking it again. And no, nobody else was in the car and I had just dropped Jarod off. I got so scared I went straight to the closest fast-food place and got a large cup of coffee. That day, I decided to get some coffee at the store so I could get my caffeine buzz before leaving the house. I used to drop off like that after Jaida was born too. On the last few miles of the way in to work, sleep would almost overtake me. One time, I almost had a head-on collision when I ran a red light. I want to be here for as long as God lets me, so I will not drive if I’m sleepy anymore! But between the coffee and a little Earth, Wind & Fire I should really peppy in the mornings. You have to be brain dead if you can sit still through Serpentine Fire!
Until next time,
Kim, Jaida, Jarod & Julian (who is well over 8 lbs, I'm sure!)
PS~ I will try to add some new pics to Julian's site tonight so check back tomorrow!
http://www.babiesonline.com/babies/t/threescompany
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