Well, internet friends, Charles still won't sleep for more than 2 hours at a time. In fact, last night, he went into his crib at 11, woke at 12, 1, 3, 5, 7, and 8:30 to nurse. He pretty much follows this pattern during the day, which leads me to ask: Why have I not lost all my pregnancy weight? Seriously, I am burning enough calories through breastfeeding that I should have my svelte pre-mama figure back by now. But instead, I ripped a hole in my fat jeans today. So, I present to you a composition entitled "Apology to My Fat Jeans" or "I'm Sorry I Ripped the Only Pre-Pregnancy Pants That Zipped and Made Me Feel Somewhat Cute Again":
Fat jeans: you gave me all you could, but your stretch just wasn't enough.
I know you tried. You had the best intentions at heart.
But you couldn't hold against my girth.
My jiggly thighs, my droopy butt,
My loose hip joints, my spare tire
All conspired to keep you from making me look hot again.
Funny how you used to be the pants I wore when I felt fat.
You found new life and new joy, I'm sure
For awhile,
As the pants that I wore when I felt skinny.
Thank you for your years of service.
I am beginning to wonder if having food around that someone else cooked while I spent the weekend at my folks' house somehow turned my weight loss around. Or maybe it was the social aspect of eating? Like, I had people to talk to during a meal for the first time in awhile?
Speaking of meals, Charlie's doctor advised us to feed him cereal, but not to start other solids until six months. I read up on this, and it turns out that having food other than breast milk or formula is correlated with a higher incidence of pneumonia later in childhood, as well as allergies. I really don't think Charles, big, healthy boy that he is, is at risk for pneumonia, and that kid has been eyeing my food as if he were starving of late. Add that to the frequent breastfeeding, and I am willing to try feeding him solids earlier. Take that, doctor! The interweb tells me it will be okay!
So, Charles has sucked on a big piece of apple that I held to his mouth (don't worry, no choking hazards here), he has had pureed carrots, and just tonight he tried some banana in his little mesh bag feeder. He loves it! He wasn't sure about the carrots at first (even though they were mixed with breastmilk and rice cereal), but he got the hang of it.
I'll admit that I am feeling a little bit of "bad mommy" mojo for feeding him solids when the doctors and the American Academy of Pediatricians said to wait another 6 weeks, but I am still pretty sure I made the right decision. He's not going to wake up with pneumonia tomorrow, right? Right?
