Well, several new things have happened in the past week. First and foremost (for me) we got a gym membership, so I finally got to go work out. I went swimming a couple of times. It's certainly not enough to get me to lose weight on its own, but if I can get in some other workouts too, and cut back on the crap I've been eating, maybe I can lose weight. I weighed myself at the beginning of the week, and was horrified to see that I was 221. That means I gained back some of what I lost after having the baby. Not good at all. I need to find some kind of food routine: cut back on the amount of cereal I have in the mornings, and maybe just have Carnation Instant Breakfast or something for lunch, and then REALLY cut back on the amount I eat for dinner. I need more veggies too. I notice we eat a little healthier when my father-in-law is here, so I guess I need to do some better meal planning when he isn't.
Another new thing that happened this week--today, actually--and that is the introduction of a new food. Brendan's been doing really well with the rice cereal, and we had increased his amount to two feedings each day, one around lunch and one in the evening. He makes a tremendous mess when he eats, and to help him get used to swallowing I've been feeding him on his lounger pillow rather than sitting all the way up. I should bring the high chair we inherited from my sister-in-law up from the basement and start getting him used to it. But anyway, since he has been doing well with it, I figured we should consider introducing another cereal. My husband brought home baby oatmeal (no, the oatmeal isn't a baby; it's single grain and tiny so it's easy for a baby to eat; it looks like cream of wheat) this afternoon, so we mixed it up and gave him a bowl of it for dinner. He made a face at first, because I guess it was a different flavor that what he was expecting, but he ate the whole thing willingly enough. I'm hoping the oatmeal is popular with him. According to some things I've read, rice cereal can contribute to gas and constipation (he's been really gassy lately, and he's still been doing the "poop every three to four days" routine, but from what I've read, oatmeal will have a bit of a laxative effect and also cause less gas. Maybe now he'll stop waking up three or four times each night and go back to the one to two times that we were doing. Or, God willing, sleep straight through the night for once. It's now been over a year since the last time I slept straight through the night (one of the first symptoms of pregnancy I experienced was having to pee in the middle of the night), and I'd absolutely to get a good night's sleep someday soon.
The next new thing is also gym-related: Brendan got to go to childcare at the YMCA (our gym) for the first time. He wasn't thrilled either time: apparently, the first time he cried pretty hard for a little while (they actually came looking for me, but didn't see me in the pool) and then gave up and fell asleep. The second time, he was awake when I dropped him off and so the girl was going to take him out of his carseat, but he threw an absolute hissy fit, so she popped him back in his seat and he fell asleep. He needs to get used to people other than me, because he seems to be growing more and more attached to me. He'll often cry when other people are holding him and stop when I take him. I can certainly understand why; after all, I'm the one who provides all his food, and I'm the one who puts him to bed at night. I'm almost always the one who gives him his bath. And in the evenings I'm usually the one who plays with him; everyone else eventually puts him down so they can do something else. I'm with him all day long, and I'm the one who gets up with him at night. So it doesn't surprise me at all that he wants to be with me. But people (namely my in-laws and my husband) have started to make joking comments about how I've spoiled the baby. After all, I go and pick him up when he cries, rather than letting him lay there and get progressively angrier and angrier. That must be spoiling, right? Anyway, I know everyone is joking, but it's kind of hurting my feelings. I am NOT spoiling him. I don't think it's unreasonable to pick up a crying baby. He's crying for a reason, whatever that reason may be, and if he feels secure because he knows someone will take care of him, then he should be less likely to cry unnecessarily. So I'm really teaching him when to cry and when not to. Also, it's not like I snatch him up at every little squeak. At night, I only go in and get him if he's actually crying, as opposed to just making noises. Sometimes, when he's making noises, he'll go back to sleep. I only go in after him when he's starting to work himself up. During the day, I put him down so he can entertain himself. However, he can't crawl around or even sit up unassisted, so there's a limit to what he can do when he plays. So he gets bored. Rather than leaving him down until he starts wailing, I'll pick him up for a little while, then switch him to another activity. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes he'll take a nap, usually next to me on his Boppy pillow. I suspect when he's able to move around a bit more, at least sit up while he's playing, he'll be able to go longer and longer periods without my attention. But what it boils down to is, I'm not spoiling my baby, and I'm starting to resent when people suggest, even jokingly, that I am.
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