WORKING WITH BABY AT 3 MONTHS !!

I’m losing my touch with the outside world ..and am feeling alienated . What’s happening on Facebook ? Linked In ?My favourite jewellery site? Let me log in … and then I lose touch with this new baby filled world and drift to my old one . The familiar feeling ..the mind moves into overdrive. Wow – that job opening is what I have  been looking for .. great deals on great stuff  … etc. etc.

A wail and I return to the world that centres around the baby .

And then I decided to get back to work – flexi time .

Step 1 – hire help. Even though my mom is around, she gets tired looking after the baby on a full time basis- mentally and physically. Babies are a full time job!! So , investing in hired help is the first towards freeing up time to work .

Step 2 – train the help . This is a two week process, and really helps me wean myself away from the baby as I see Lakshmi (the nanny) get a grip on things and do it ‘my way’. Vira is happy with her and I feel happy seeing this bonding. Leaving them under my mom’s guidance, I am feeling confident of spending time on work.

Don’t I feel guilty ?– handing the baby over to ‘others’ to take care? I think there must be no mother who does not feel that she is the best ‘mom’ and caregiver for her child. But then, work is my baby too and it is an integral part of who I am ..and my finances. The trick is to balance both and give each enough  attention to grow . Yes, I understand that I may not be able to do as much work as I was doing pre- Vira, but then, that is a trade-off I knew was coming .

A close look at the corporate environment and help from my friends helps me get work that I can do predominantly from home. Its not as easy as it sound

s as interruptions are many – mom drops in for an opinion , elder child returns from school and wants to share her day, maid asks if you need coffee etc. etc. But the flip side is , all of this makes me happy .. happy to be !!

Combat techniques from the art of war – 

a)      Be in a constant state of readiness for combat – create a no fuss wardrobe which needs minimum maintenance and ensure your battle gear (laptop, internet connection , wire-less ear phone etc.) are in top working condition for sudden assault from an external client and the baby . 

b)      Keep your main weapon in good condition. Listen to your body – don’t overdo anything else your work and baby will get effected tomorrow. Be smart. Think long term.

BABY TALK AT 75 DAYS :) MAKES MAMA PROUD

Vira’s maternal uncle (mama) was all agog to converse with his new niece. I sent him some pictures on Black berry messenger and one day the baby said the magical words – gooooo go goooooo!! 

20 seconds later we were on the phone for a mama bhanji  (uncle – niece) conversation –

Mama:- Hello beta (child)

Vira :-Gooooo

Mama :- So nice talking with u

Vira :-Goooo goo

This conversation is priceless !!Jand the first of many to come…

THE NIGHT VIGIL

The first 60 days are just over, and I feel like its been eternity since Vira’s been around. I can’t remember the last time I slept thru a night ..gosh ! 60 days look like a lifetime? No doubt Chinese methods of torture included sleep deprivation.

The best part is, she gets up , feeds, burps, poops and then falls asleep effortlessly about 80% of the time .. for these 20 mins of waking time for her , its 1 hour waking time for me – cause it includes,

·         20 mins with the baby

·         20 mins eating, drinking water, visiting the loo etc.

·         20 mins trying to fall asleep …

And then she is up again, in about 1 and a half hour!!  Since the spinal injection section hurts a bit every time I get up , the whole night is miserable .. and I get up feeling very tired in the morning . Thankfully my mother takes her from there and my life gets simple- try and stay awake and do some office work . Coffee – splash water in the face- type , type, type – feed – and repeat the chain . A two hour nap in the afternoon is the highlight of my day .

Combat techniques from the art of war –

a.       Be prepared to tackle the enemy

·         Keep some low calorie chocolate ready for a quick munch in the middle of the night

·         Keep lots of water on the bedside table

·         And all the baby stuff within reach

Stay positive .Don’t dwell on the current situation of siege– imagine the happy time ahead .Eg , the walks you will take with you kid, the slim figure you will achieve in a year or two etc.

 

The 'poop' issue

The poop issue

Baby poop is yellow and squishy. And seems to come out nearly everytime she pees .. or farts .. or burps .What is this ? Nothing to worry – say the doctors. It is normal for children to have no control over their bodily functions . Some kids, and it seems Vira  will fall in this category , do this till they are 90 days old. So I guess I can look forward to a million soiled nappy’s in the next 50 days .

P.S. In India grandma’s try to make you believe that baby poop is ‘chandan’ (sandalwood powder) J

Check out this site –baby poop guide - http://www.babycenter.com/100_baby-poop-guide_10319406.bc

The immunisation cycle - keep the baby comfortable on ‘those’ days

The immunisation cycle and how to keep the baby comfortable on ‘those’ days

The cycle of immunisation ensures that the baby is to get a vaccination injection nearly every month in the first 2 years . These jabs lead to redness and small bumps thru swelling and a lot of crying at the point of injection . Even if you take the ‘painless’ vaccination, it may lead to fever and pain . Vira is used to her massage and bath cycle. The doctor advised us to continue with it – just avoid massaging the concerned limb for 2 days . And that worked!! Of course we had to give her Calpol drops for pain and she developed colic that night – most likely because of the strong vaccination.

A grandma’s recipe to combat stomach ache caused by gas formation /colic is to take a pinch of asafoetida (hing in hindi) and dissolve it in half a spoon of water .Apply the paste around her naval and get ready to hear the musical sounds of the baby fartJ. I vouch for this method – which worked wonders for my kids.

And if you need instant relief from a bottle - Colic aid is a God sent and helps give instant relief.

Combat techniques from the art of war –

a.       Prepare for a rough night on the days of vaccination since the child’s suffering is maximum after sun-down

b.      Keep your ammunition in good order to compact the enemy (pain , fever, colic) – Calpol drops and Colic aid and a hot water bottle .

The initial sights and sounds - baby in month 1 and 2 :-)

Vira started recognising me (her mom) by smell by the first 2 weeks – and with that started her attempts to communicate. By week 4 she was yelling with 4 discernible sounds.. which seemed to express pleasure (or displeasure) of varying degrees .  Then started the facial movements .. the eyebrow lift, the widening of her eyes, the various shapes of her mouth , the turning of her head to follow movements . She became more demanding – I want a feed NOW, I want to be lifted NOW … Demands of a growing kid – week 7 and she is kicking with gusto , loves being on her stomach (though she cannot roll over yet) and has started opening her fists to hold on to clothes .

The nappy scene – and the 'Art of War'

My mother, who is the mainstay of Vira’s care (apart from the feeding and night care) is gone to attend  a wedding. The baby is 47 days old … and just figuring out that the world ‘out there’ , away from the crib , is a very interesting one. And she sure does not want to miss the action . So everytime we rock her to sleep, she wakes up as soon as  she is put down into her crib J . This is one out and outer baby. And as all of know, if the baby is awake, the frequency of feeding, burping, peeing and doing potty goes up two fold. So in the afternoon the cotton cloth nappy is replaced with Pampers Active Baby diaper to let me rest for 40 minutes (yes .. 20 minutes to hand her over to the maid , all dry and happy, prepare myself for a nap and a 40 minute nap before the maid brings her for a feed) .

About the Late morning / afternoon nap :- This nap is a huge life saver – it helps me stay cheerful till the end of the day .And absolutely helps beat depression (which can creep up so very easily when you feel tired and it feels like the baby has overtaken your life)

 And then by the evening we (maid and I) are all too tired to want her to wake up during her fits of sleep . So out comes the diaper again. The trick I’ve learnt ,to avoid nappy rash, is to put a lotion everytime we change the diaper. And to change the diaper rather frequently (not wait for her to pee into it 6 times – as written on the pack) . I find that nappy rash is mostly  due to over drying the skin (the diaper absorbs all oil etc. from the skin and adding in a dose of baby powder just makes it drier and more itchy and red) or letting the soiled diaper stay on for longish periods of time .

Combat techniques from the art of war –

a.       take short naps

b.      use technology (diapers with extra aloe vera)  to increase your effectiveness – but take precautions not to be upset by the enemy (nappy rash)

c.       thank god for surviving everyday - love your mother  and maid and husband and whoever makes this survival possible