Poor Baby!

Last week Marley's face started getting kind of dry and flaky - normal infant stuff. But, on Tuesday we noticed that it was looking more red and rashy. It seemed to worsen throughout the week, and on Thursday night he was unusually fussy. Friday was a tough day. Mars was really feeling lousy and he let us know. Jeff came home from work so he could help take Mars to the doctor.

The diagnosis: Impetigo. I was surprised, expecting eczema or something. But the doc pointed out that in addition to the crusty rash on his face, he also had small sores on the back of his neck and in his diaper area. She prescribed oral antibiotics and a topical ointment. We will give it too him for ten days, but he should be feeling much better within five and will no longer be contagious after taking the meds for 48 hours.

Impetigo does not agree with Mars at all. He has been exceptionally cranky and difficult to soothe. In fact, there are only three things that have made Marley happy in the last day or so:
1.) His mobile, 2.) Jeff making fart noises with his hands (this actually got a laugh!), and 3.) Doing the Humpty Dance.

Enjoy!

Happy (belated) Easter!

Swedish Home Care came and gave Mars his synagis shot on Friday. He weighed 10 lbs 6 ozs! His 4 month doctor's visit is on April 15th and his next synagis shot is on the 17th. Go ahead and place your bet for his 4 month weight. There may even be a prize for the closest guess!

We had a fun Easter. Saturday was spent down in Steilacoom with Jeff's family and Sunday we were up in Arlington with the Husons and the Funkhousers. That was probably the biggest group of people we've been around and Mars was very well behaved.

Marley is smiling socially now, so Jeff and I spend most of our day trying to get a smile out of him. Of course, he only does it when HE wants to and NEVER when we want him to. But, he's doing it more now, so it's getting easier to catch him in the act.

Compare this video of Mars gazing at his mobile to the first one I posted. What a difference!

It's an Easter Miracle!

For over 24 hours we have been able to successfully latch on without using the nipple shield - EVEN in the middle of the night! Yippee! Mars and I went to a Breastfeeding Support Group at Swedish yesterday. It was more like group therapy for hormonal nursing mothers. It was exactly what we needed! A lactation specialist was there and helped us so much! I can't believe that a few small adjustments could make such a big difference. She had me make slight changes in the placement of my hands, Marley's position, and the motion I used to insert my nipple into his mouth (starting with nipple towards his nose rather than aiming it straight at his mouth).

It's hard to explain, which is exactly why having her demonstrate was SO helpful. I've had lots of phone consultations (even with this same nurse), but I guess I didn't REALLY get it until yesterday. Also, Mars weighed in at a whopping 10 lbs 6 ozs - before eating!

Swedish Home Care never showed up today to give Mars his synagis shot. I don't know what happened - Jeff called and left a message, but they never called back. So, he's unprotected, yet again, from RSV. ARGH!

3 Months Old

Believe it or not - Marley turned three months old this week! He's out of his newborn size clothes and rapidly filling up his 0-3 month clothes. He gets his next synagis shot on the 20th and will be weighed then. Any guesses as to how much he will weigh? Anyone think he will make it to the big 1-0?

One step forward, Fifty steps back

Okay, so maybe it's not quite THAT bad. But, when Mars is starving and I'm trying to wrestle him onto my breast and he's refusing to latch on - it sure feels like it. We had a really rough patch last week where he didn't latch for nearly three days! There were lots of tears (from both of us), but eventually he figured it out again.

I just don't understand. Sometimes he gets it so quickly, and other times it just doesn't happen. I keep trying to figure out if I'm doing something differently. Jeff made a really good analogy. He said it's like in bowling when he's throwing strikes and then he gets a gutter ball, even though he feels like he's doing the exact same thing. I just wish Marley would have a few less gutter balls!

In other news, we added some pictures from my parents' visit to our Picasa site (link on the right). It was so fun watching them with Marley. We were sad for them to leave!

8lbs 10ozs

Marley gave us a little scare yesterday. Enough for us to take him into the doctor's office.

Let me go back to a couple weeks ago, at his last doctor's visit. I was convinced that Marley had gastroesophageal reflux. He was spitting up a lot (especially when I laid him down on his back), arching his neck and back after and during eating, and nursing for long periods of time - all signs of reflux. The doctor prescribed Zantac, but Marley's symptoms seemed to improve so I never picked up the prescription. Plus, he was still eating and gaining weight, and he wasn't especially fussy.

Yesterday morning, however, was a different story. He woke up to eat around 4am and I laid him back down around 5. Less than an hour later, he was awake and crying. He wouldn't stop and none of our normal methods of soothing him were working. He especially didn't want anything to do with his pacifier, which was very unusual.

I called the doctor and got an appointment for 9:30. I have a cold and was worried that I had passed something along to Mars. But, the doctor found no signs of infection and Marley's lungs sounded clear (big relief!). So, it looked like the most likely culprit was reflux.

I wish I would have trusted my instincts the first time around. I feel awful that the reflux had to get so bad before we treated it. The poor baby was exhausted when we got back from the doctor's office. He'd been crying all morning and hadn't eaten since 4am. We finally got him to eat around noon (while he was still sleeping).

Now, Mars takes Zantac twice a day. It seems to be helping - at least he hasn't had any more scary crying episodes. It sounds like reflux is pretty common in babies and that most will grow out of it within the first few months. I sure hope so!

8 lbs 4 ozs

Marley got another shot yesterday. Swedish Home Care finally came and gave him a synagis shot for RSV. We've been going back and forth between his doctor, SHC, and the insurance company since he came home trying to get this taken care of. Initially, Premera denied our claim, saying that he wasn't eligible. But when we appealed, they overturned the denial saying that they made a mistake and looked at his date of discharge rather than his date of birth. That was a stressful experience!

Mars is 8 lbs 4 ozs, now and becoming more and more alert every day. He's noticing things around him and staying awake for longer and longer periods of time. He's also latching on for most of his feedings, which is such a relief to his mother:)

Here Mars looks at the mobile over his changing table (sort of). Enjoy!