Don't judge...you'll do whatever it takes to get a baby to stop crying
OR
Gas drops and binkies are key to a decent nights sleep
OR
Holy crap, just when we thought we had them somewhat figured out!
Well it's been about 2.5 weeks since my last blog and well, again I must say WOWzers I am pretty sure I am partially deaf from all the screaming and crying we have endured the last 2 weeks. It has mostly been Georgia who does the crying and screaming and not wanting to eat or sleep. I mean she was eating some, but no where near where she had been the week before and just absolutely freaking out with this blood curdling crying for hours during the day and the she would start up again for several hours in the evening. My first thought was colic? Can babies get it this late? Maybe an ear infection? My next thought was a growth spurt? But why wasn't she eating and sleeping more if she was growing? We knew she wasn't sick and didn't have a fever or any sickness symptoms, so every time she freaked out for the last 2 weeks we would run down our checklist of trying to calm her down:
Is she hungry? Feed her
Dirty diaper? Change her
Is she tired? Swaddle her, rock her, bounce her, walk her around the house
Is she too hot? Strip her naked to her diaper and lay her on her playmat and let her kick her legs (this also helps with gas)
Is she gassy/tummy ache? Give her gas drops, put her on her belly on the boppy
And when all else fails turn on the noise app on your phone that plays the oscillating fan noise and stick it next to her ear
And if all that doesn't work and you are starting to lose your mind?? Well that's where we were at....
So I decided last Thursday to call the pediatrician and take her in just to make sure she was alright. Frankie had had a couple of episodes starting the second week as well but nothing like Georgia so I just took Georgia. And guess what.....
The doctor checked her over, and said well.....she is teething. Is she drooling? I said yes she and Frankie had started to in the last week and they were both chewing on their hands more. She felt Georgia's gums and said yep I think that's what it is because she is fine otherwise.
So off to the store I went to get teething devices, some liquid Tylenol and some all natural teething dissolving tabs (as recommended by my friends after emailing them for help!!)
Let me back up for a second. About 5 days after the screaming started with Georgia I decided to try and gradually switch over to the target brand of formula because it is WAY cheaper than the similac sensitive stomach name brand formula. And as the screaming and crying continued I noticed Georgia was pooping a lot more and she and Frankie were eating less and less and Frankie was starting to cry more as well.
Sooooooo, as I sit here today I'm not sure if its the teething that is causing all the craziness or the switch to a different formula or a combination of both things over the last 2 weeks.
But today (Sunday the 20th) after these past 2 long weeks of crying and not sleeping and not eating well and giving Georgia Tylenol and teething stuff I decided to switch back to the expensive similac formula last night and again this morning. And guess what......they both slept soundly last night, woke up happy and not crying this morning, ate really well this morning, and both fell asleep with no fuss this morning. Soooo, what was causing all this?? I'm not sure if its teething, them not liking the target brand of formula, a combination of both, or some other weird baby stage??
Whatever it is/was I'm hoping we have gotten past it....please, please, please!! And it would just figure they both would have expensive taste in formula! I know this is only the beginning of them having expensive tastes like their momma! Ha ha!
This experience is definitely teaching Justin and me patience and just making us excited for the day when they can tell us what's wrong with them. It is SOOO frustrating not knowing what is wrong and trying all the methods above and they are still screaming!
I have to say though too, overall they are very good babies, but sometimes it's just hard to remember the happy times when you've just endured 2-3 hours of screaming. But they are sleeping better and longer than most babies their age and are very healthy.
I also wanted to mention things that have made our life much easier and much harder to this point just in case it can help someone else in any way!
Snap sleepers SUCK!!! When it's dark and your trying to change a baby in their room and not wake the other baby up, snaps can make you lose your mind!! Zippers are key.
Always make sure the diaper is on super tight and the diaper isn't too big for the baby cause if not, you and your baby will be covered in poop from head to toe. Just ask Justin!
Baby nail trimmers are a joke. The best thing I have found to cut their nails, (thanks to my sister in law, Kelly) are tweezerman trimming scissors. They are super tiny and sharp and perfectly rounded to trim their nails.
Any toy with lights and music is key for babies this age!! We love the baby Einstein toys and Lamaze toys.
You can get a baby to sleep longer if they wake up in the middle of the night by putting some gas drops in their mouth or on the end of a pacifier and sticking it in their mouth. Best trick ever!
The Sleep sheep that plays ocean and rain noises helps our babies sleep more soundly and longer! A definite must have!
Swaddling blankets and Velcro swaddles are amazing, but they need to invent a swaddle where the Velcro doesn't wear out or something stronger for babies like Georgia who can break out of any swaddle you put her in. Sometimes I double swaddle her in a Velcro swaddle and a swaddling blanket. Hey what ever makes them sleep, right!? Can u say baby straight jacket?
An electric swing is key because they can handle more weight and No batteries is key.
Clothing other than sleepers and onesies up until this point are pretty stupid because they basically just live in those 2 things in the winter time. We have one or 2 cute outfits in each size and really that's enough until they get bigger and we take them out more. It's probably way different if you have spring or summer babies.
Also I'm obsessed with gadgets that can help make our lives easier or speed up certain processes we do over and over again on a daily basis.
Baby Brezza- electric water kettle that is made specifically to heat baby bottle water to the perfect temp for formula bottles. Saves us HOURS of time over the week of having to heat bottles
Bottle buddy- electronic formula dispenser, all I can say is it is amazing! It also lets you make odd number size bottles which is helpful for not wasting formula
Glo egg- temperature gauge for their room, awesome to have so I know if its too hot or too cold in their room
I-gym activity center by chicco- awesome when they get to be about 2 months old. It will keep them entertained sometimes up to 30 minutes...sometimes not.
Snot sucker, aka nosefrida is awesome for getting boogies out of their noses. Those bulb syringe things you steal from the hospital don't do anything. The concept of the snot sucker is kinda gross, but whatever works, right!?
Well as I type this Georgia is screaming again.........ha ha ha! Hoping she is just hungry!
Overall we are still loving every crazy, screaming, sleepless moment of this life adventure with Georgia and Frankie! But man I had NO idea this job was going to be this challenging! The toughest job I've ever had! And I thought cold calling selling copiers was hard! Ha!
But when Georgia or Frankie laughs or smiles at us, you momentarily forget about all the hard times and the screaming and it's ALL worth it for one smile! Amazing how that works!
Well I've got to go feed a baby and its my day to nap, so I'm gonna try and take full advantage of that!
Love to all!
The girl power team and the greatest daddy ever!
No comments:
Post a Comment