A mid month update.

I've been back to work for a week now. And I hate it. I miss my little punky monkey so much. I am jealous of my mom and my friend Erin (our Au Pair) because they get to spend all the fun active time with Isla. I only get 1 period of active Isla before bed. I know it will get better as she begins to go longer between feedings and takes fewer naps. But it gets harder and harder to leave her, not easier and easier like I thought it would.
I can't WAIT for a day off. But on the upside, now I have time to blog again. Hopefully I will remember to do so more regularlly.

Cloth diapers are going great still. I tried out a Bum Genius Organic OS AIOs last night and I loved it. The organic cotton is SO much better than whatever is in the BG pockets. The cotton absorbs quickly like my Kissaluvs and GMD prefolds. It's like the perfect marriage. So today I ordered a 12 pack (with snaps!). Justin is excited about snapping diapers. And frankly so am I. Aplix is a pain in the rear. It never stays stuck to the laundry tabs.
We'll still be able to use our KL0s for a few more weeks at least so I plan to order more BGs when the KL0s get too small. I debated getting all the fun colors, but white is really just more practical since it doesn't show thru light colored clothing. I currently always find myself searching for a white cover because my colored ones don't go with her outfit.

Laughing is on the horizon. I'm expecting giggles any day now. We sometimes get one excited "HA" out of her, but no real giggles yet.
Erin says tummy time is going better. Isla still doesn't like it, but she tolerates it. Yes, I pawned tummy time off on the au pair (I like this word so much more than nanny or babysitter). I get so little time with my girl I don't want any of it to be time I have to make her unhappy.
And sleeping is still going famously. I really hope she continues to have good sleep habits. She goes down pretty late, but so do I. So it works for us. She normally sleeps around 8 hours a night, but lately she's had a few 11 hour stretches. She weighs over 10 lbs now. And we took her to her second movie, My Life In Ruins, the other day. She was just enthralled. She sat on my lap and watched nearly half the movie (the other half she was eating).

Feeding issues

The pediatrician wants me to continue pumping until I pump 30 mL twice in a row. And then he wants me to alternate pumping and breastfeeding every feeding.
The lactation consultant thinks I should keep nursing. And as much as I hate to ignore a Dr's advice I have to agree with the LC.
So I've decided I will nurse her as much as she wants to nurse and then pump after nursing to make sure my breasts are empty and stimulate them to produce more. I don't even think I'm getting emptied on the pump alone and nursing is much more efficient. I'm going to keep seeing the LC so we can track her weight gain and ensure we are doing everything right. It's a learning process for both of us and I think trying to pump exclusively will only lead to extreme frustration and eventually, a decision to switch to formula.
Currently she's nursing and then taking about another 1.5 oz from a bottle every 3 hours. We have a weight check tomorrow and I'm hoping to see that she's gained.
This morning I woke up with pretty tender boobies, I'm really hoping that means I'm making some progress. It's just breaking my heart that I can't supply what she needs. I've been taking Fenugreek and I am going to call my Dr. for a prescription for Reglan. I'm nervous about taking it as it is known to cause dystonic reactions. So I wanted to be sure I started it when someone could be with me 24/7 just in case I have a reaction I can't control with Benadryl. Since Katie is coming to visit tomorrow, mom has taken vacation for the rest of the week. So I'll have someone available to be here. I've also heard Reglan can cause depression. So I'll have to watch for that.
But overall, despite having to supplement with formula, we're doing much better. Isla is sleeping for longer stretches because she isn't starving. And she doesn't cry anymore unless she is hungry or we're torturing her with a diaper change or bath (and sometimes not even then). She sleeps a lot, but usually after her 8pm-ish feeding, she will stay up and look around for a while before drifting off to dreamland. It's nice to have a happy baby! Last night I got a whole 3 uninterrupted hours and woke up on my own before she did! Now that might not sould like a whole lot, but after a couple of good naps yesterday it was all I needed to bounce back. I've never needed a whole lot of sleep to function. I think if I can get one good afternoon nap in and at least 3 hours at night I'll be set.
I started using my cloth diapers too! So far I'm loving prefolds (similar to what our parents used) the most. They aren't the easiest to get on a squirmy baby, but they are so much trimmer than other diapers. My next favorite would be the Kissaluvs, much easier to get on, but bulkier than the PFs. And my favorite cover so far is my Bummies Super Whisper Wrap. I think I'll like the Thristies too, but they are a little to large for her at this point. Proraps are ok. They are a little gappy in the legs and the tabs don't overlap. But they will suffice for now.
And that's all for now.