This is Why

This morning we went to the doctor with Robert, to talk with him about why Robert doesn't seem to be gaining any weight. Sure enough, Robert has fallen off the bottom of the percentile weight chart, making him a very skinny little boy. The doctor isn't too concerned, though obviously it's something we've got to work on correcting right away. Robert's healthy and alert and developing in every other way, so it's probably just a matter of low milk supply. It took so long for him to learn to nurse, it seems likely that his suck is not quite what it should be, and my milk has been slowly drying up. Now there's not enough for him to grow on.

So what does that mean? Well, it means back to the pump. Argh. For the next two weeks, I'm going to be pumping full time again so we can measure exactly how much milk he's getting, and supplementing him so that he's getting 5 or 6 ounces at every feeding. I'm drinking a ton of the yucky tea, and looking into other supplements as well. There are a couple that look promising that I'm going to pick up, but they are not at all cheap. I bought some Motherlove More Milk Plus capsules on Amazon, and using the refund from the broken teapot and a gift card from taking surveys, got 120 pills for 12 dollars. But the normal Amazon price is 35, and that's just a 20 day supply! I'm also going to probably go in to Motherhood Express and get some goat's rue, another herb that's supposed to help, but that's even more expensive. I'm praying that all my milk supply needs is a kick start before I go back to producing enough, and that a bottle of each of these will be enough. Otherwise I may have to face the tough reality that I can't afford these supplements indefinitely, and the state will help pay for formula the way they won't for medicine.

For the moment, I have some formula to supplement with, but I'm starting by using up all my frozen supplies and only an ounce or two of formula. Robert doesn't like the formula-added milk as much, but he has been drinking it. He had two six ounce bottles and a seven ounce bottle today, which seems like a ridiculous amount of food, but is apparently what he needs to start catching up. Starting tomorrow, I'll be trying to give him 35 ounces a day, and since a pint's a pound the world around, that means he's going to be getting something like 20% of his body weight in milk every day. Hungry baby! He's lucky I like him, because this is going to involve a lot of work, even if the supplements and the tea work perfectly.

Other news today is more exciting, Robert reached out, grabbed his paci, and shoved it into his mouth! This is a big step. I'm hoping he starts being able to do that reliably, it will make both of us so much more comfortable. =) I've started putting together a couponing trip, but it's going to have to wait for Thursday. Tomorrow I've just got to get some enumerating done, I didn't manage to do a thing today. Monday and Tuesday are just not good working days for me. But I'll hit it hard the rest of the week, and pick up some necessities at the store besides. I think I may be couponing less and living out of the pantry more while I'm working, but that's not a bad thing. The sales always come back, even if you miss one once. I have to remind myself of that sometimes, but it is true. Making more money and doing less shopping could be a potent combination for me, and it's not like our pantry couldn't use a little rotating!