One of the points that Dr. Karp makes in The Happiest Baby DVD is that once upon a time (or still today in cultures other than our own), the task of soothing a fussy baby was made less stressful by many hands making lighter work. In more communal cultures, grandma, great grandma, aunts, sisters, and neighbors were all readily available, so that the baby was constantly moving, being soothed by a fresh, relaxed set of hands whenever needed.
Because that's not a part of the typical American lifestyle these days, we need systems like the Five S's to teach weary parents methods to cope on their own. My thoughts on this? Lame. I'd prefer a village.
This post could also have been called: An Ode to My Mother. It was SO wonderful to have her here for our homecoming. To have an extra set of hands to not only help with everyday life tasks, but, more importantly, to take Lana so that I could rest, or do the laundry, or just have some time to decompress. I really miss having that extra set of hands around the house. Raf is fabulous. Seriously--amazing. But it would be really nice to have a village.
Side note: Check out the super awesome foot placement in this last photo. Classic!
3 comments:
the place up the road is still for sale...... :) miss you all so much it hurts... just come up here and stay for the next few months! Raf can commute! :) love you honey xoxox
So wonderful. Keep the photos coming.
Down here there is definitely the village dynamic going on. Everyone cares for everyones children. It is a joy to see.
And the men are pretty good at being care takers!
Hang in there. Celebrate every moment.
And keep posting!
Hi Brooke!
Just thought I'd come over and answer your question here. It did seem to help a lot... the cutting out of offending food. Especially the cow's milk. Onions, gassy veg, garlic, etc also probably weren't helping. BUT, I will say that Dashiell didn't get fussy until about 5 or 6 weeks.
One thing you might want to consider, (AND I AM NO EXPERT BY ANY MEANS), is that she might not be getting enough milk/food? If she's fussy immediately after she eats, she could still be hungry. I've had a few friends who have been in this situation and when they finally figured it out and it was like a major A HA moment. Not to say that you should supplement her with formula if you're not. You can definitely build up your supply in many ways. AGAIN, not an expert at all so please disregard my comment if you prefer! I may be totally wrong. You could consider talking to your pediatrician? Or try nursing her every hour, instead of every two hours. (Shorter, more frequent nursing is best for building supply).
I'm sure the nursing mother's companion has recommendations too. And there's always La Leche League. You can call them 24 hours a day. It's pretty amazing.
This might not be the issue at all, but just thought I'd mention an alternative. I'm sure you guys will figure it out. Best best best of luck and a huge congratulations!
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