My second child, Chibinee-kun, is now 2 months old [Growth Record]

On April 17th, my second child, Chibinee-kun, turned exactly 2 months old. Compared to when I had my first child, Chibichi-kun, I realized that I have surprisingly few photos of Chibinee and absolutely no time to pick up the camera. Every day as a mother of two is incredibly hectic. It's happy, though.

Below is the record of Chibinee-kun's growth for the one month from March 17th to April 17th.

1. One-month checkup on March 20th. Everything is going well!

After being told he had poor weight gain at 12 days old, he was confirmed to have gained weight properly at 19 days old, and this was his first weight check since then. He weighed 4065g.

They said that for a one-month checkup, it's considered fine if the baby has gained about 1000g from their birth weight. Since Chibinee-kun's birth weight was 3034g, I was relieved to be told that he is growing steadily and doing well.

2. Still struggling with direct breastfeeding

Chibinee-kun is still not very good at nursing, so while we practice direct breastfeeding, I also feed him expressed breast milk and formula. From birth until he was a full month old, it took a huge amount of time (sometimes it would take an hour), and I thought it was exhausting every time. However, I feel like the time it takes has finally started to decrease. It's just a feeling, though. Maybe 30 minutes on average? I haven't timed it, though (lol).

Even so, he still struggles to latch onto the nipple and lets go right away. I'm continuing with 5 minutes on each breast. If I increase it to 8 minutes, he barely nurses on the other side, so it's still 5 minutes for now. He doesn't get satisfied with that, so I supplement with formula when he wants more.

The important thing is not to raise him on breast milk alone, but for Chibinee-kun to grow up healthy. For me, direct breastfeeding is easier because I don't have to wash baby bottles or breast pumps, but I can't afford to be picky, so I'm using the breast pump, bottles, and formula quite a bit.

I practice direct breastfeeding 3 to 5 times a day. There have been times when he's been satisfied with just direct breastfeeding. Growth!

3. Our first walk outside!!

We started going for walks the day after he passed his one-month checkup. My first child, Chibichi-kun, loves being outside, so we try to leave the house if it's not raining. Chibinee went into the baby carrier for his first time outside. I'm not sure if he finds the outdoors comfortable or if he just likes the carrier, but he fell asleep immediately.

He's usually fast asleep during his older brother's outdoor time (lol).

Since he sleeps even past his feeding time, it seems Chibinee is the type whose desire for sleep outweighs his appetite.

4. He has started sleeping for around 4 hours at a time at night.

Perhaps because he is dragged along to play outside with his older sibling every day, I feel like he learned to distinguish between day and night quite quickly. He still sleeps a lot during the day, but not for long stretches like 4 hours. Yet at night, it's like: sleep for 4 hours -> nursing & formula -> sleep for 4 hours. I'm so grateful. Thanks to that, my own physical condition has been gradually improving!

5. He stopped having bowel movements every day. Diapers changed from newborn size to size S.

He produces massive amounts of the loose stool typical of babies every one to two days (lol). There are many times it leaks when he kicks his legs. His urine has started leaking too. Just before he turned 2 months old, I sized up his diapers from newborn to size S. Even then, it leaks...! Why...! Hand-washing has increased, so I decided to place a bucket for soiled clothes in the washroom and adopt a style of tossing them in there. Since it's impossible to wash them every single time, I'm using the strategy of washing them whenever I have the chance.

6. He has started making eye contact.

Looking back at the few photos I have, many of the pictures taken before he turned 1 month old show his eyes looking in different directions. It was to the point where I was worried he might have strabismus. Perhaps because he can see better now, the frequency of that concern has dropped significantly. When we make eye contact during nursing or just at random moments, I seriously, and I'm not exaggerating, feel so happy. He is the absolute cutest. So precious. So dear.

7. His seborrheic eczema is terrible...!

He has more seborrheic eczema than Chibichee ever did.

His dad compared it to a turtle shell, and my mother compared it to the crust of a cream puff. Everyone is so unconcerned just because he's the second child (lol).

When it was Chibichee, it only appeared in a small patch on the top of her head, but for Chibinee, it's like it's covering the entire top of his head. Wherever he was sleeping, there are usually flakes of shed seborrheic eczema left behind. I'm just being careful to keep it clean and moisturized, and leaving the rest to nature. I hope it gets better soon.

Here is what Chibinee-kun's growth looks like!

A fresh, brand-new baby after a year and a half. He is just so cute. Really, so cute. Even when he's fussy, I end up landing on 'he's cute' anyway.

When they grow up, my children will forget these cute and precious days. Even I, as a parent, won't be able to remember everything. That's why, even when I'm busy, I want to record things like this. It'll be something to look forward to in my old age (lol).

May tomorrow be a good day, too.

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