Prayer Breakfast

This morning I took the kids to a prayer breakfast at church. A missionary couple who serve in Cambodia were speaking. I wasn't really in the mood to leave the house at 8:15 given I only got 4 hours of sleep last night, but I thought Nadia would really enjoy playing with Abby, and I didn't want the cinnamon quick bread I had made yesterday for the occasion to be eaten entirely by me. It turned out that Abby's family didn't come (except for her grandparents) and only 1/2 of one slice of my bread was eaten. To avoid temptation, I wrapped it in foil and put it in the freezer. I am still glad I went. As I watched their video it struck me once again how very blessed I am. It's so easy to take things like running water and food for granted. The missionary family doesn't have an indoor toilet at their home in Cambodia. Their "shower" consists of dumping a bowl of water over themselves outside. I was feeling very down in the wee hours of the morning due to lack of sleep and Ian's lack of weight gain. I can throw myself a really good pity party, LOL. I was thinking that it was so hard for me to become pregnant and then both deliveries were difficult (Nadia's was much worse the actual day she was born but Ian's was also not exactly easy especially considering my retained placenta experience) and now my body doesn't seem to be functioning properly to feed my son. When I look at others, it seems like nursing is such an easy thing to do. I should focus on my blessings. It wasn't that long ago I was longing for the day I'd become a Mom. Now I get to enjoy the smiles and laughter of two children every day. Thank you, Lord!

Of course I don't know why he hasn't been gaining weight this week - maybe it has nothing to do with me. It could be because he spits up so much. I don't think he was fed enough by Beth & Paul on Tuesday while I was at work, but I was at home nursing him on demand Wed-Fri so I can't see how that impacted more than just Tuesday's weight gain. If I had lost a lot of weight this week, then I'd think maybe that was the problem, but losing one pound over a period of two weeks is definitely not too rapid of a weight loss. I didn't end up calling the lactation nurse today. I am not sure if she's in on Saturdays, but I was afraid I'd burst into tears. I am going to wait until Monday and hope that Ian gains weight before then (in which case I won't call her). Part of me wants to put the baby scale away. I didn't weigh Nadia in between doctor appointments. The pediatrican was happy with his weight, and if I didn't own this scale that I bought in December, he wouldn't be weighed again until his April appointment (unless he gets sick in between now and then). Maybe ignorance is bliss??? I'll be more likely to continue almost exclusively nursing him if I don't keep weighing him, but of course I want him to gain weight! Well hopefully he'll gain 2 ounces the next couple of days. I weighed him 3 times today hoping to get a different result, but nope he weighed exactly 8lbs every time (with his clothes on, which weigh 4.5 ounces). I do know that if my ducts get clogged again while he's sleeping, I'm not waking him up. I'll just pump a little - just enough that I am not in pain and can go back to sleep.

Because of the breakfast this morning, Ian's morning nap was in my arms. The same will be true tomorrow because of church. I had toyed with taking Nadia to a play date that the MOPS group is having on Monday morning (the group I've been going to since September), but I think I'd better stay home to give Ian a chance to take a nap in his Nap Nanny. I also need to work on Ian's tummy time. He's really enjoying they gym. I need to get a video of him when he's in there (on his back). He smiles, bats at the toys, and likes looking in the mirror.

Nadia continues to say new words every day. Today when I was reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar she correctly identified the egg, moon, butterfly, and apple. Those aren't new words. The new word she said was "pears" (which is what he eats on the second day). When we were coloring, she handed me a green crayon and said "green." When Paul was reading her a VeggieTale book, she pointed to Madame Blueberry and said "blueberry" and pointed to Larry's belt and said "belt." When she was dancing, she pointed to the camera sitting on the couch beside me and said "picture." These are just a few of the new words we've heard her say today. She also has been saying many more two and three word sentences.

The pictures we had taken at Sears last week were ready to be picked up tomorrow. I've decided to go pick them up tomorrow afternoon after Nadia's nap. Today I made an appointment for tomorrow at 3:30. If they seem to be in a good mood, I will try to get one picture with the two of them together when I go to pick up the prints. If we get one good picture, I'll buy the package that includes quite a few prints (of only one pose) for $8. Hopefully they'll cooperate! It would be utterly amazing if Ian smiled, but I am not going to expect that even though he has been smiling a lot these days. I'll be happy as long as Nadia smiles.