Here are some of the changes in the Prentice household:
Routine, routine, routine. I'm such a routine-type/scheduled person, that it's probably been a rougher adjustment for me recently than others in the house. I love to plan outings (errands, playdates, etc.) around nap schedules. While Meredith is still doing very well with her one-nap-a-day routine and 7:30 p.m. bedtime, Luke of course, is not on any type of concrete schedule. He eats every 2-3 hours and usually sleeps in 3-4 hour stretches at night, but other than that, who knows what time we can ever do anything. For example, he has been waking up between 7:00 and 8:00 a.m. Chad has been helpful getting Meredith up in the morning (around 6:30 a.m.) and getting her breakfast started, giving me a much needed little bit of extra sleep. So, when I get up around 7:00 a.m. to get my own breakfast, he wakes up and is ready to be fed. That feeding could last 30-45 minutes and then I try to find somewhere in there to get ready myself. Usually, by the time I'm dressed and I get Meredith dressed and ready, he's ready for the next feeding and then we start the process over again :) However, I will say that he is leaps and bounds ahead of how his sister was doing at this age in terms of sleeping well and eating well. As of four weeks old, she still had her days and nights mixed up and was giving mommy and daddy terrible crying spells. I think it was a mixture of colic to a degree and her acid reflux problem. I'm sure it won't be long before he will be on a more predictable schedule; It's not like the Illinois weather has been the best for us to get out anyways.
Recovery. Overall, my recovery has been much easier this go around than with Meredith. That is especially nice, since I'm taking care of a newborn and running after a toddler. I have had to get creative with how to "lift" my 30-lb. toddler. I'm on a lifting restriction of Luke's weight right now, so it has been interesting to say the least. The biggest concern I had before his birth was how to get Meredith in and out of her crib. I now have her climb onto a folding chair and then I lift her into the crib. This was approved by my doctor, since I'm not lifting her straight from the floor, possibly hurting my back as well. We also taught her to "jump" (e.g., climb) into her high chair and I change her diaper on the floor. Also, we didn't realize how nice it would be to have Meredith potty-trained until recently. She is definitely ready and I think able, but we just haven't had the time to devote to it now.
Growing Up. Meredith has grown up so much since we returned from the hospital. The obvious is her weight...or, it seems that way to me. Probably because I got so used to changing Luke's diaper that Meredith seems to resemble the kid from '90s movie, "Honey I Blew Up the Kid" when it comes to diaper changes. Aside from that though, she has expanded so much on her vocabulary. She is now making complete sentences; It's truly amazing. One of the funny moments was when we first had both she and Luke in the van together. He sneezed and she said, "achoo baby boy". That's another thing - She can't say her "L's", so Luke is out of the question. Instead, she calls him "baby boy". It's quite cute. I find myself calling him Baby Boy now more than Luke.
Diaper Changes. I'll leave it at this...boy diaper changes are so different than girl diaper changes. While we used to daily go through 4-5 outfits on Meredith because of her spit-up, we go through just about as many outfits with Luke around diaper change time :)
Managing Two. I have found that Meredith is much more of a challenge than Luke right now. He's a pretty content little boy, usually only crying if he's hungry or needs a diaper change. She, on the other hand, is pretty aggressive around him and is starting to really assert her independence (e.g., entering the "terrible 2's"). It started out that she just wanted to touch him or would pat him on the head. After about week three, she changed. Over the past few weeks, she learned how to unzip her sleeper, so we find her half-clothed when we get her up in the morning. She now wants to unzip his sleeper. She says, "zip", and proceeds to unzip him:
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| Caught red-handed! |
She also likes to try and pick him up....talk about mommy having a heart attack! We are slowly, but surely, trying to teach her to be gentle with him. Hopefully that happens soon. He already has his first battle scar (e.g., scratch) from her:
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| No wonder she wants to pick him up all the time - he's right around the size of her doll. |
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| I invested in a baby carrier, but haven't used it quite as much as I thought I would. Luke doesn't care for it a ton and I find it awkward to get him in and out. |
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| We tried this once and that was it! We now bathe Luke in his tub first, then bathe Meredith after in the big tub. |
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| This is how Chad spends his evenings :) Keeping Meredith away from Luke. |
Kids. The adjustment to say "kids" instead of just "Meredith" has been difficult and kind of weird :)
In summary, while we are going through an adjustment period, I also wouldn't have it any other way!
