1 month report (at 5 weeks)
It's now just over a month since Mr Luther arrived (MOTS hate me calling him this, but it suits him perfectly IMHO). So what has it been like since this hand grenade went off in the middle of our utopian family life?
Well, first and foremost, there was no such thing as utopia. Things are tough at the moment, and were before Mr Luther arrived. Endemol (hereby the name for Big Brother) is having his ups and downs, is generally better since Mr Luther arrived but still has some moments.
But as a big brother he's great. Helpful, doting, sharing, chats about him, generally really good in that respect. So how's the little brother doing? Weight gains are bang on, but MOTS is already looking to retire some clothes. I don't see the point in size "0-1 month" or "up to 10lb". Hell, some babies are bigger than that when the stork drops them off (Mac). So while it's nice to get a massive amount of new clothes at this size they don't last long at all. So yes, weight, seemed a big gain over the last 2 weeks until you look at the graphs, and in "real terms" there's been no movement at all, tracking the line exactly, gain spot on expectation. As a percentage gain though it is quite a bit, up from 9lb 1oz to 10lb 11oz in 2 weeks initially brings on the question of pie eating.
It is completely different this time around. Even Endemol has started to tune out Mr Luther's screams while we're sat having our dinner. Hungry? No. Wind? No. Nappy full? No. Cold? No. Right, carry on screaming, we're having pork satay, we'll give you a cuddle later.
It's all about adjusting too. With me having nearly 4 weeks off work this time we got into a nice routine that came to an abrupt halt when I went back. One that involved the spare bedroom and a pair of earplugs for me, and permanent nightshift for MOTS. The theory being that I was then fresh to look after the rather active Endemol when he got up, allowing MOTS to get more sleep during the morning. That has now changed, I'm on nightshift Wednesday & Thursday nights to make sure MOTS gets a full nights sleep for being up on Thursday & Friday morning when she has both boys on her own all day with no chance of catching up on sleep. Me? I can always catch up on sleep at work, I have a pair of glasses with eyes painted on the lenses so nobody will know.
Main question from the health visitor yesterday: "Has he started smiling?" Oh yes, recognition smiles (knows his parents), interactive smiles (smiling when he likes how you talk to him), both are coming along quite nicely. And those roast chicken legs* are strong too, movement is coming already. He had to straighten them out sometime, but I see trouble ahead if he's working his way up the crib now.
MOTS was worried about last Thursday having them both on her own, and I was greeted home with "I kept my head above water, just". Hmm, expecting carnage I was very surprised. On top of keeping the boys fed, watered and cleaned up she had made dinner, two loads of washing and cleared the kitchen. That's not keeping the head above water, that's way more than can be expected with those two.
It does seem like there's little time on an evening now, but when things settle into a new routine and Mr Luther starts sleeping through things will get easier and more flexible. Until then there's one thing I think will come back from history - and that's sleeping on the train on the way home on Thursday nights.
* Roast chicken legs - a bi-product of a section delivery, they don't get to straighten out.
