All About Renee

I documented so many more things about Kira when she was Renee's age (almost 3 months old). And, Trevor admits he took more pictures of Kira than of Renee. Here are some Renee stories off the top of my head:

One thing Renee does that makes me laugh is she whacks herself with her fist and starts crying. It's so cute. Poor thing; she can't control her muscles very well. I can tell she doesn't take any nonsense; Renee annoyed, Renee cry. Despite having little control of her muscles, Renee is stronger than Kira was. She holds up her head pretty well, and she kicks hard.

While we are comparing Renee and Kira, I must say that Renee eats a lot more than Kira did. Renee feeds every 2-3 hours, while Kira fed every 3-4 hours. And, I think Renee eats more than Kira did at each feeding based on what I'm perceiving as greater milk production by me. Renee does not suck as long as Kira did and she does not seem to work as hard. I attribute this to my milk coming out easier. Overall, breast feeding has been much easier with Renee than with Kira. I haven't had as many issues, such as blocked milk ducts and engorgement, as I did with Kira. And as I said, Renee doesn't suck as long, making my job a little easier.

Renee is a big smiler. You take one look at her, and she gives you a huge grin! By three months, Kira was having little laughing fits. Renee hasn't quite broken out in laughter yet, but she's been smiling for weeks. She talks a lot, too. She makes goo goo ga ga noises to her reflection and anyone who will make eye contact with her. Baby goo goo noises are the cutest thing in the world! I'll post a video of Renee doing her goo goo ga ga smile.

Renee has huge spit ups. She throws up what seems to be the entire contents of her stomach. It goes splat on the floor when it happens! Luckily it hasn't happened on carpet yet. My mom says that when I was a baby I would throw up like that too. Renee seems to battle with gas more than Kira did. Renee is cranky every night from 9 until about 11:30. Kira was also cranky for hours in the night, but Trevor and I were not experienced enough to realize why.

Renee is a big girl. At her last doctor's appointment (two weeks ago), she measured 14 lbs! She's wearing clothes labeled 6-9 months. I've been itching to buy coordinating outfits for Kira and Renee for a special occasion coming up in a few months. But I'm holding myself back because I don't know how big Renee will be by then.

It's been a few weeks of taking care of both kids on my own on certain days (I'm lucky to have help on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and of course Saturdays and Sundays). I'm sure some would consider my job easier than so many others in my position thanks to all the help I get from family. Despite that, I still have days when I watch the kids on my own, and just because I do it fewer days out of the week doesn't make those days any easier. If anything, I'm more rested than most stay-at-home mothers, and I have no shame for accepting help. For Kira and Renee's sake, a rested mom is better than a tired mom. But back to the point, taking care of both girls is very challenging. Kira is very demanding of my attention. I push back on her a lot and she is forced to play on her own most of the time. I think she's doing as best she can, and it's great, but when she just can't handle it anymore, she's a handful. Renee is just a normal infant requiring the expected amount of attention, which is a lot. Watching both children makes me feel spread very thinly. On those days, I just keep doing my best, keeping my patience, trudging along until Trevor comes home. What helps me get through it is keeping in mind that Renee will require less attention, and Kira will have more understanding as they both get older. I'm almost there!