What to expect in Week 13

In Week 13 or 14, something big usually happens: Many mothers go back to work.

After three months of maternity leave, my wife is going back to work tomorrow, when our son is 3 months and 5 days old. The best situation, of course, would be one where financial obligations have no say over our decision making process but for many Americans this cannot be helped and we are in this group. We are lucky to have great family and great jobs to make the transition easy.

Daycare stories will likely become a big part of this blog soon but, in the meantime:

The Exorcism

One thing we are thinking about is how the daycare will deal with our son’s daily Exorcist routine of turning delicious, nutritious formula into vomit.

We’re starting to wonder if acid reflux medicine is the only option. We have tried every type of formula (more on this in another post) and split time between Aveda and Doctor Brown bottles and nothing really stopped it. When it’s all solved (soon, hopefully), I’ll post on everything we did. Until then, we continue to investigate!

One important tip: if your kid spits a lot, buy things such as gas relief drops that do not have dyes. If they are, say, pink as many are, your kid’s bibs, clothes, family, friends, home will soon have shades of pink.

But enough of the chronicles of ridiculous vomiting …

Time to Laugh! 

Week 13 also brought about an amazing change: the belly laugh. Sure, he was giggling and smiling with the best of them as noted in previous posts but this week was the first that I heard  him really laugh deeply — and it was hilarious.

Teething

When our son is fussy and drooling excessively, we are starting to wonder if teething can start this early. It turns out that teething can indeed start long before those little baby teeth protrude from the gums (and enter your nightmares due to all of the screaming). A first tooth usually does not show until about SIX MONTHS, but the process (and pain) wouldn’t be a surprise at the third month.

We bought some teething rings and use the old strategy of putting it in the fridge for a bit before. So far, he is showing no interest in these things but we’re prepared!

But enough of this blog, we have to prep for tomorrow’s first day of daycare. And, by that, I mean prepare my wife …