Blaaaaahhh....that's how I'm feeling today. We've had another spell of winter weather. It's just icy and cold. The benefit to this is Brent has been home today which is always nice :-)
Now comes the part about the rats (ugh). We have been hearing sounds coming from the attic for several months now. We keep calling our landlord to come fix it... that's suppose to be a perk of renting right? Someone else has to deal with it. Well, the landlord FINALLY came today to investigate. Turns out we have rats in the attic AND one that has come up from under the house into this little furnace closet. Thankfully, they have not entered our actual house (yet). SO DISGUSTING. They set traps to catch them, but it's just so unsettling. My imagination is running wild and I keep thinking...what if one falls through the vent on Ella or gets in her crib...I'll just be glad when they are gone; we're not into sharing our home with rodents.
On to the next one- Prune Juice. Why is it that no one tells you about the challenging side of being a parent? For example, some breastfed babies can go 10 days without a bowel movement and it's perfectly okay. Or babies can strain and turn red, but aren't necessarily constipated. Just general things that are good to know up front. Well, Ella has not had a bowel movement in 8 days. She's been wincing and straining for days now acting like she has to go. I know she's miserable and we are miserable too because we feel so sorry for her. We went to the doctor yesterday and she said to give her 3 oz. of juice a day to shock it out of her system. She had apple yesterday and NOTHING!! So, today we were forced to move on to prune juice. If this doesn't make her go, then I'm at a loss (and growing more concerned). We will definitely be going back to the doctor on Friday (Day 10) if the prune juice doesn't work. Anyway, we are thinking that the juice has to be the ticket and hoping that this resolves soon for our little Ella Bean.
I never knew babies got constipated and never imagined I'd be blogging about Ella having a bowel movement...but such is motherhood. What I've learned in Ella's 7 and 1/2 weeks is simple yet so complex- you love your child from the moment you lay eyes on her and want everything to be perfect for her. It is going to be a struggle for Brent and me to accept that we can't always fix things for her the moment she is in pain, is sick, or her feelings are hurt. I've been really worried about this bowel movement and really stressed about her being in pain. Brent has been worried too, but he's a little more calm about it (imagine that). I finally get how much parents love their children now that I have one of my own. You just can't stand for them to be hurt, sick, or upset. We are learning many lessons in this journey. I think the one that has shocked me the most is how much we love this little girl. I knew we would love her (obviously), but I cannot describe how much we do. It's surreal sometimes to think such a little baby can change your life so much. Just wild!
By the way, Ella's colic is much improved!! We've had several days of Happy Ella back and it's been a lot of fun! She's smiling and cooing at us (when she's not vigorously straining). Once we get her "regular" we'll really be rollin'!
Stay warm, friends, in this winter weather!! And a Happy Birthday to Lauren Fisher...hope you had a great day!!
****This just in...while I was editing the blog post, Ella finally went number two. Prune Juice works and she's no longer straining! Who would have ever thought a bowel movement could be so exciting...LOL. I guess patience, prune juice, and a little blogging therapy pay off!
YAY! For #2 & Happy Ella! You are such a good mommy:)!
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