Brrrrrr!

It has gotten cold out!  This is making Mary Rose's clothing issue even harder, as she needs to layer pieces.  She is finally starting to gain a little weight, though, since I have been off dairy.  She is over 9.5 pounds.  She has a lot more "happy time" and less painful screaming.  I think there are a few foods affecting her that I haven't identified, yet, but they seem to affect her tummy less frequently than before I went dairy-free.  She can clear a room when she passes gas, though!  It is great to see her smile so much, but a pain for me to check everything I eat.  So far, I have been very strict, avoiding foods that contain any milk or butter, and will test products slowly.  This limits my breads and granola bars, excludes bake goods and has me cooking with special margarine and soy cheese (ick).  Rice cream is not so bad, and may be better with chocolate (I have been off it 2.5 weeks and am ready to try it again).  Anyway, Mary Rose is getting great head control.  We found a grandmother who lives near my clinic to watch Mary the days I will be at work.  This will be great, as it is personal (she will be the only child there) and flexible, plus, I can pop over to nurse her at lunch!
We have had a TON of rain this month and a few frosts.  The rain brought down most of the leaves before the peak of the colors and washed most of the local pumpkin crop into the Connecticut river!  It is hard for me to remeber that Brian is not used to raking, as Houston does not have "fall" and his other residences were rentals.  I am sure it will keep us busy!
I have been trying out some fitness classes and gyms to get some tone and endurance back (and hopefully to fit back into a few of my old pants).  I tried Zumba, which is very aerobic.  I liked the salsa and meringe components, but prefer a dance class.  I hope to join the Dartmouth gym next month.  Brian is finally altering his suits to accommodate the weight he lost when we moved to New England. 
Brian spent this week traveling for work, the longest he has been away since he became a father.  He starting in Monterrey, where he was able to see the hotel where his great-grandfather had worked.  He spent the second half in Houston and spent time with his family.  I was grateful to have my mother visit during this time, so I could get a break, some sleep, and run errands.  She even cleaned and cooked (with meals to freeze, too).  It will seem quiet next week, without her, but I will be traveling to Minnesota the week afterwords.  I am going home while Brian travels Texas for another week. 

We have a baby Halloween party to attend, and have found a great costume for our baby.  However, she is so tall that we will have to let out the bottom seams or buy a new one!

Tummy Troubles

Mary Rose continues with severe gas problems that keep her from sleeping and cause her to cry out in pain.  We are finding ways to calm her and help her fall back asleep after waking from pain, but it is agonizing that we cannot take her pain away.  I tried to changing my diet by excluding dairy, nuts and chocolate and after a week, things seemed worse!  I know it takes two weeks to get the proteins out of my system and hers, though.  I called a lactation consultant, who thought I may have an abundance of foremilk (the milk that comes out in the first 2 minutes of nursing is sweet and low-fat).  So, I started nursing her on one side per feed and there was a dramatic difference!  So, I went back on all the foods I had eliminated.   That was a mistake, I think, as her improvement only lasted 3 or 4 days.  Last week I went off dairy and chocolate again; I do suspect dairy is the culprit, even if her doctor doubts that it is the cause.  I am also trying to avoid foods that say contain milk on the ingredient list, like some breads, fig newtons, etc.  That is hard, but better than avoiding wheat or soy.  She had a bottle of part breastmilk part formula on Sunday and she was much worse, which would fit with a dairy intolerance.  She is happy for a short period in the mornings, when I get to see her smile, coo, and gain head control.  She is big enough for the Bjorn carrier and sleeps in it if I stay in motion, so that is a great help in getting us out of the house.  I have been attending a new mom's group in town and it is great to have a social event and talk with other moms.  She is long and skinny (75% length and 10% weight) so we have a hard time finding clothes that fit her, now that she needs her legs covered with the cooler weather.  She wears a few newborn things still, because she is not wide enough for many of her 0-3 month outfits!  Brian thinks her size makes her more cute.
Brian had his first work trip last week to new destinations - Halifax and Toronto.  It was weird to have him in a time zone 1 hour later than eastern!  He did not take advantage of sleeping a long time while he was away.  I had a hard time while he was gone, as she is so hard to put down, but we did have the help of 2 or 3 friends.  Brian has two more trips, each a week long.  I will have my mom here next week to help me while he is in Mexico and Houston.  I know he must really miss Mary Rose while he is gone.
I was away from Mary for almost 2 hours last weekend, while Brian and I went out for a celebratory dinner in my 30th birthday.  I don't really feel like 30, more like 28.  Maybe I feel like I missed the last few months.  We went on a long hike on my birthday, Mary Rose's first, and had people over for drinks and cupcakes.  Our social scene is changing as more babies are born into our group of friends.

I am starting to think more about work, as I return in 3 1/2 weeks.  I am not looking forward to it, partly because I have not had peaceful or fun time with the baby, yet.  I had hoped to be taking her places, getting more done around the house, enjoying her development.  But, at least I feel like I am able to comfort her more than daycare.  I am still working out child care for my two days of work; I am on numerous wait lists.  Many places do not take infants or part-time children, and I need two specific days.  I have a lead on an older woman who lives near work looking to care for one child, so I will meet with her soon.  It would mean driving 35-40 minutes with her each way in the winter (the woman could come here when the weather is good), but I could try to breastfeed at lunch.  I am still not interested in work, though, as I see the email updates and don't really care.  Oh, well, it will be good for me.