How often should my baby poop?December 20th, 2005 @ 8:21 am
After reading Avorie’s post back in November, I decided I really should start to look into reading something along the lines of “what to do with your baby once it’s born”.
I promptly looked over what books Avorie suggested (and what others suggested in the comments) and placed them on hold from the public library. I picked them up last Friday night and went right home, excited to read them all over the weekend.
Fast forward to Saturday night.
I was sitting at the (ghetto) mall in South Seattle enjoying dinner alone (and by “dinner” I mean a Blizzard from Dairy Queen), and thinking about the baby and about what I had read in the books, so far. I started thinking that maybe The King and I had made a huge mistake with deciding to have a baby. How were we going to do this, and work full time, and build our new house, and be involved with our Church. Not to mention the love and attention we want to give to our baby.
The books freaked me out. They freaked me the HELL out. They talked about dealing with your baby not sleeping, or not eating, or pooping all the time, or crying all the time, or not being able to breatfeed, or not loosing weight, or infections and doctor visits. I mean, the list went on and on. I was horrified.
I came home and talked to The King about it. He wasn’t happy about me feeling that way, because he doesn’t feel that way. He told me not to read anymore of the books. But I have to read them. I have to have some idea on what’s going to happen when our little guy arrives. I need to know how much he’s going to eat, or what different diaper changes can mean and how to choose a doctor for him.
After almost reading three books from cover to cover since last week, I have learned that each book tells you something completely different. One books said that under no circumstances should you ever wake your baby up to feed him. They said to just let him sleep. But another book said that you should wake your baby up to feed him if he sleeps more than 3.5 hours at a time.
How do I know what book to follow? Do I just pick one book and follow it completely, or a few books and choose the topics I agree with the most? And how often am I really going to use the books once the baby comes?
I did ask The King to buy me two books for Christmas. I like what they have to say the best.
I still have another list of books on hold from the library. And this isn’t counting the books I need to get on childbirth, discipline, and breatfeeding. Oh, and I need a few on “going back to work”.
We're having a baby
Nancy
said,
December 20, 2005 at 10:54 am
Isabel, there’s no easy answers. As you’ve discovered, all the books give very different advice. I think what you’ll find is you’ll rely heavily on books as reference sources to begin with, and once you get to know you’re baby, more and more of the instinct/familiarity will kick in.
I know some people don’t like the “What to Expect..” books, but I do have all of them, and I found them helpful as long as you don’t rely solely on them. Another one I like: “Your Baby and Child: From Birth to Age Five” (Penelope Leach) — a very straightforward book with some good guidance. I also like “The Mother of All Toddler Books” — I think there’s a baby version too.
As a mom that works full time and does a bunch of other things, I wanted to reassure you that you can do it — you will find time for everything. Some days may be more crammed full than others, but you can do it. If you’re interested I did a post related to this a while ago (responding to another blogger’s similar concerns about going from one kid to 2):
http://mommaamme.typepad.com/mommaamme/2005/09/this_is_how_i_d.html
Good luck, hang in there!
Nap Queen
said,
December 20, 2005 at 10:59 am
I don’t have kids, but I’ve taken care of a lot of kids, and all I can say is you’ll end up doing what’s best for you and the baby. If your baby doesn’t sleep well, then I certainly wouldn’t wake them up every 3.5 hours! I’m sure you’ll be a fabby mom, and raise your kid wonderfully
anna
said,
December 20, 2005 at 11:03 am
All parenting ways and all children are different. The most important thing to remember is just to go with what feels right and makes sense for you and the baby. That could mean letting your kid sleep 8 hours a stretch (like that would ever happen in real life), or waking him up every 2.
Elisette
said,
December 20, 2005 at 12:20 pm
You will take all that information and squash into a lump in your brain. After you’ve been sleep deprived by the screaming, pooping, eating love of your life, you’ll figure out what is good and what is not. I knew NOTHING about babies before I had mine. Now I know, no two are alike. If you have a question? Call your doctor. Do what is best for you and your baby.
Lisa
said,
December 20, 2005 at 12:34 pm
Nancy is right. There’s no easy answers. I guess you do what you think works best for you and your family. And if you find its not working, you change what you’re doing.
I freaked when I was pregnant too, wondering if I would be able to adapt to the constant barage of changes that would take place. But you do. You love that little person so much — you do what you have to do and don’t even think about anything else.
But when a kid isn’t eating or not sleeping, that usually doesn’t last more than a few days. And you get through it. Its ends up not being nearly as bad as you think it will be.
You will be a FANTASTIC mom. And your hubby sounds very nurturing too. So it will all work out. You’ll find you do alot of “tag-teaming.”
Dawn
said,
December 21, 2005 at 8:23 am
May I suggest a personal favorite?
Your Self Confident baby by Magda Gerber.
I gave this to everybody, and love Madga’s way of saying “Stop doing, and just BE!”