Hello. I'm Mila.

We received the link to Mila's newborn pictures last week and I fell in love with all of the pictures.  It was so hard choosing the picture for her birth announcement but I ultimately settled on the picture above because she's smiling in it (it's NOT gas, it's a REAL smile, I'm sure!).

See how hard the decision was??

 

love Robert's expression in this one. he's so in love :)

Here is the link to all of the pictures so you can order them to hang in your house :)

Week 3

Papa puts Mila on his stomach to sleep when it's his turn to hold her. Last week he had her laying vertical on his chest/stomach and after a short amount of time she scooted her way down to where she was laying horizontal! So funny!

I tried to have a photo shoot last Wednesday to capture all of Mila's little details but then she fell asleep so I will have to pick up where I left off.

one of my all time favorite pictures

hair bow!

They say sleep when the baby sleeps so here I am...sleeping with my other baby :)

Robert always does a "hoo" noise when he holds Mila and puckers his lips and she has started mimicking his face. It is ADORABLE.

On Friday Robert had training for work and I needed to drop off Mila's paperwork in Cypress.  Afterwards Mila and I stopped by my work so I could show her off there.

All dressed up to go visit Mom and Dad's work.

On Sunday we went to Palmdale for the day so Robert's grandparents could meet their great granddaughter.  We started out the day with brunch at El Toreo (yessssssss) and then went back to Robert's parents to hang out.  Grandma and Grandpa Rodriguez' friend's, Louie and Sue, were also there and they got Mila a little pink Raiders outfit. I can't wait for her to fit into it...heck, I might just dress her in it now!

Daddy, Great Grandma Bunker, Great Grandpa Pops, Grandma Rodriguez

Mila and the grandmas

Mila and the grandpas

 

 

Monday night Robert and I went over to Matt and Aimee's house. Matt and Robert work together and Aimee and I were pregnant at the same time; they had their second daughter, Alyssa, the day before Mila was born.  I forgot to take any pictures of the babies together but here's a cute one of Mila laying on my lap :)

 

Monday night I took the plunge and supplemented my breastmilk with formula. Mila LOVED it.  She was such a happy baby afterwards; it made me feel much better about my decision. I think the thing that made the decision the easiest for me is that I found out that Mila was only in the 38% percentile in weight, which just isn't cutting it.  I wasn't producing that much milk and she wanted more. She sucked down 6 ounces (4oz breastmilk, 2 oz formula) last night when she normally would only get 2.5oz breastmilk. 

As a crazy twist to my breastmilk saga, Aimee had told me that she was able to express more milk from a manual pump than her electric pump; she gave me an extra one she had on hand to try.  Just to remind you, on a phenomenal session of pumping with my electric pump I would get 2.5oz after 20 minutes of pumping.  After using the manual pump last night I was able to generate 5oz in 10 minutes. Insane! So now I have much more milk and don't really need the formula unless it's absolutely necessary. Happy baby = happy mama

Mila has another checkup tomorrow so we will get her height and weight updated then. I think we may have an 8.5lb baby on our hands!

 

Hospital Packing List

As I do with many things in my life, I scoured the internet for the most inclusive list to pack my bag for the hospital and then ended up making my own (apparently I have too much time on my hands).  That being said, I didn't need a ton of the stuff I brought to the hospital so hopefully this will help all of you future moms out there (and me the next time around).

My biggest piece of advice is to take a tour of the hospital you will be delivering at and ask what that provide for mom and baby because there are all items that you don't need to pack and bring yourself.

Here's my original packing list, with notes and other helpful tips: 

For Mom

Essentials

• Nightgown or big t-shirt (I packed two and that was enough; make sure they are low cut or loose at the top for breastfeeding)
• Socks (very helpful because the rooms are super cold)
• Washcloths and towels (weirdly, there was no shower in my hospital room so I didn't shower while we were there.  I did shower before leaving for the hospital, though, which I am thankful for)
• Flip flops (I packed a pair but also wore a pair to the hospital so I only needed that pair, not the one I packed)
• Robe (came in very handy to wear with only a nursing bra for all the back to back feedings)
• Shower bag with toiletries (include hair tie, chapstick and dry shampoo)
• Pillow and pillowcase (in a color other than white so you can distinguish it from the hospital's pillows) (VERY necessary because the pillows at the hospital suck)
• Camera (not needed, our iPhone cameras were sufficient)
• Loose outfit for going home
• Makeup
• Lanolin or nipple cream
• Cell phone charger
• Birth plan (I made one of these (email me if you want a copy) but forgot it at home so didn't end up using it...or needing it)
• Nursing bras and breast pads (you don't have enough milk at the beginning to leak so these aren't needed)
• Underwear (either disposable or cheap gma ones you can throw away after) (mesh underwear is provided by our hospital so you don't need to bring your own)
• Sanitary pads (provided by our hospital)

Extra Items

• Tennis ball (to be used as a massage aid) (didn't have one so didn't bring it, and obviously didn't need it)
• iPod, books/magazines (we brought our iPads so it included all of these)
• Towel
• Gum and other hard candy
• Snacks
• ID and insurance card
• Bag to take home any extra gifts you may receive
• Spray water bottle (provided by our hospital)
• Laxatives (provided by our hospital)
• Hand sanitizer (provided by our hospital)

For Dad (Robert packed his own bag but I think he brought all of this and his iPad)

• Toiletries
• Cash/change for vending machines (Robert left the hospital to shower and pick up lunches for us, I don't think he ever went to the vending machine)
• Change of clothes

For Baby

• 2-3 sleepers or nightgowns and undershirts
• Scratch mittens
• A shawl or baby blanket
• Cream, such as A&D or petroleum jelly (never used)
• Disposable diapers (provided by our hospital)
• Cotton balls (never used)
• Wipes (provided by our hospital)
• Baby book (for hand and footprints)  (too much going on to take care of this)
• A car seat
• A hat (provided by our hospital)

A special treat for the nursing staff (a great idea but like I had time to whip anything up before)

Two things I didn't bring to the hospital that I wish I would have were the SwaddleMe blanket things and a thick blanket (thicker than a receiving blanket).  Our hospital room was set at 70 degrees and Mila was FREEZING. I had her in a onesie and two receiving blankets and still had to keep her in bed with me under the covers because she was so cold.

Week 2

I can't believe that Mila is already two weeks old. The time really does fly by and I don't like that one bit! 

Last week was a little emotional for me because, as of Tuesday, Mila hadn't pooped since we left the hospital.  According to the doctors, she should have 1-3 dirty diapers every day and she didn't have any.  I called the lactation consultant, the pediatrician and a nurse at the hospital (enter crazy mom here).  This probably wasn't the best idea because they all gave me different answers, but the consensus was that she should be pooping.  The lactation consultant suggested I come to a breastfeeding clinic on Wednesday so they could do a pre- and post-feeding weight to make sure she was taking in the milk.  Then I would have more of an idea as to whether or not we should see the pediatrician.

So Wednesday afternoon Robert dropped us off at the clinic and Mila took in 0.6 ounces of breastmilk, which wasn't very good. However, she had just eaten a half hour before so it is likely that this was just a snack for her, not a full meal.  The lactation consultant told me she wasn't taking in very much milk, it was a concern that she wasn't pooping and she looked a little jaundice so, of course, that sent me over the edge!  I called the pediatrician that afternoon and moved our newborn check up to the next day. 

Love!

That night, though, Mila had her first bath; well it was really a sponge bath because her umbilical cord hadn't fallen yet but I still think that counts. She did really good but wasn't very happy to be wet and cold.  She had to have a bath, though, because she needed to be so fresh and so clean for her newborn photos on Thursday!

 

Skin to skin time with Daddy

Before the photos, though, we went to her first doctor's appointment.  The doctor made me feel so much better because he said that he didn't think she looked jaundice at all and her weight was healthy (7lbs, 13 ounces; she also grew a 1/2 inch and is now 19.5 inches long).  She had pooped the night before (after some rectal stimulation as suggestion by the hospital nurse), so that made mama feel much better.  Her pediatrician said that all babies are different and some go days between poops when they are a little older but Mila was just going through it a little early (already such an over achiever!).  Going to the doctor made me feel so much better and made me realize that you can't pay attention to every since little thing that is "going wrong;" in addition, I think I placed too much emphasis on what the lactation consultant was telling me (when really she's not even a nurse) and let her over-worry me. Our baby is healthy, gaining weight and happy; and that's all I care about.

 

We have been going to my parent's condo every couple of nights just so I can get out of the house, which is definitely helping with my mood.

 

 

After the doctor's appointment we hurried home for the newborn photo shoot.  Initially Robert couldn't understand why we were taking pictures so early but, as soon as he saw them being taken, he was totally on board. They. Are. ADORABLE. They should be done by this upcoming weekend and I am dying to see them.

every single one of these was cuter than the last

We went to a Farmer's Market down at the beach on Friday, where I just happened to find a hat like the one from the photo shoot.  Can't wait for it to get cold so she can wear it!

Robert's parents came down again last weekend and spent the night on Saturday night.  Robert, Garret and my dad golfed on Saturday morning and it seems like we are getting back into a routine. 

KU played (horribly) against K-State on Saturday so, of course, Mila had to support her Jayhawks!

Rock Chalk!

Newest Jayhawk

Mila is starting to smile, although I think they are really from gas, but it is the most precious thing I have every seen. We're talking huge, open mouth smile (like a smiley face icon); it will melt your heart (you will have to take my word for it, though, because I haven't got a picture of it yet).  We have had a few rough nights where Mila wants to be up every hour feeding or just being held, but the last two nights have been great.  I breastfeed her around 11:45pm and then Robert gives her a bottle of breastmilk that I have been able to pump and save and she will sleep from 12am-5am, when I have to wake her up to feed her again (breastfed newborns aren't supposed to go more than 5 hours without eating).  She will feed for a half hour and then go back to sleep from 5:30am-8:30am, when I have to wake her to feed her again. It's pretty wonderful.

 

 

CSULB Onesie from Auntie Shawn!

Bug friends

Papa Time

Family photo shoot!

Finally, last night I had my first pear cider in 9 months. And boy was it delicious.